Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Vibration analysis of nanomechanical mass sensor based on circular graphene sheets

Graphene sheet (GS) is a two-dimensional (2D) material with extremely favorable mass sensor properties. In this paper, a linear elastic 2D plate model is applied to study the potential of a nanoscale mass sensor on individual GS. The simulated natural frequency was compared with the results obtained from the Rayleigh's energy method. The effects of the attached mass, aspect ratio, and the layer number of the GS on the natural frequency are investigated in detail. Initial tension due to the fabrication process and temperature is also studied, which has effects on the frequency and frequency shift. The results show that the sensitivity of the mass sensor with smaller dimension is higher. The resolution of mass sensor can reach 1 zg and the sensitivity of seven-layer graphene mass sensor is the highest. Lower temperature has higher sensitivity and initial tension due to the fabrication process has little influence on the mass sensor. The conclusion is useful for the design of mass sensor with high resolution.
Accurate Estimation of Single-Phase Grid Voltage Parameters Under Distorted Conditions

This paper presents an accurate technique for the estimation of single-phase grid voltage fundamental amplitude and frequency. The technique consists of a quadrature signal generator (QSG) and a discrete Fourier transform (DFT). The frequency information required by the QSG based on a second-order generalized integrator (SOGI) is estimated using the spectral leakage property of the DFT. The presented DFT operation does not require real-time evaluation of trigonometric functions. The frequency estimation is less affected by the presence of harmonics when compared to similar techniques based on QSG-SOGI such as the phase-locked loop and the frequency-locked loop. Moreover, unlike these techniques, the DFT-based QSG-SOGI (DFT-SOGI) technique does not create any interdependent loops, thus increasing the overall stability and easing the tuning process. The effectiveness of the proposed technique has been validated on a real-time experimental setup.
Psychiatric comorbidity in primary care somatization disorder.

&NA; Lifetime prevalence rates were calculated for comorbid psychiatric disorders in 119 patients who were referred from primary care physicians for unexplained somatic complaints and who met DSM III‐R criteria for somatization disorder. Comparisons were made with general population norms from the ECA study. Prevalence of nine comorbid conditions was significantly higher than in the general populations. The most prevalent comorbid diagnoses were major depression (54.6%), generalized anxiety disorder (33.6%), and phobic disorders (31.1%). The least common comorbid disorders were mania (4.2%) and drug abuse (4.9%); drug abuse prevalence rates did not significantly exceed general population estimates. Risk ratios were highest for panic disorder (16.25), major depression (9.41), schizophrenia (7.77), and obsessive‐compulsive disorder (7.04).
HIV Education and Welfare Services in Primary Care: An Empirical Model of Integration in Brazil’s Unified Health System

Integration of health education and welfare services in primary care systems is a key strategy to solve the multiple determinants of chronic diseases, such as Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (HIV/AIDS). However, there is a scarcity of conceptual models from which to build integration strategies. We provide a model based on cross-sectional data from 168 Community Health Agents, 62 nurses, and 32 physicians in two municipalities in Brazil’s Unified Health System (UHS). The outcome, service integration, comprised HIV education, community activities (e.g., health walks and workshops), and documentation services (e.g., obtainment of working papers and birth certificates). Predictors included individual factors (provider confidence, knowledge/skills, perseverance, efficacy); job characteristics (interprofessional collaboration, work-autonomy, decision-making autonomy, skill variety); and organizational factors (work conditions and work resources). Structural equation modeling was used to identify factors associated with service integration. Knowledge and skills, skill variety, confidence, and perseverance predicted greater integration of HIV education alongside community activities and documentation services. Job characteristics and organizational factors did not predict integration. Our study offers an explanatory model that can be adapted to examine other variables that may influence integration of different services in global primary healthcare systems. Findings suggest that practitioner trainings to improve integration should focus on cognitive constructs—confidence, perseverance, knowledge, and skills.
Prohibitin Interacts with Envelope Proteins of White Spot Syndrome Virus and Prevents Infection in the Red Swamp Crayfish, Procambarus clarkii

ABSTRACT Prohibitins (PHBs) are ubiquitously expressed conserved proteins in eukaryotes that are associated with apoptosis, cancer formation, aging, stress responses, cell proliferation, and immune regulation. However, the function of PHBs in crustacean immunity remains largely unknown. In the present study, we identified a PHB in Procambarus clarkii red swamp crayfish, which was designated PcPHB1. PcPHB1 was widely distributed in several tissues, and its expression was significantly upregulated by white spot syndrome virus (WSSV) challenge at the mRNA level and the protein level. These observations prompted us to investigate the role of PcPHB1 in the crayfish antiviral response. Recombinant PcPHB1 (rPcPHB1) significantly reduced the amount of WSSV in crayfish and the mortality of WSSV-infected crayfish. The quantity of WSSV in PcPHB1 knockdown crayfish was increased compared with that in the controls. The effects of RNA silencing were rescued by rPcPHB1 reinjection. We further confirmed the interaction of PcPHB1 with the WSSV envelope proteins VP28, VP26, and VP24 using pulldown and far-Western overlay assays. Finally, we observed that the colloidal gold-labeled PcPHB1 was located on the outer surface of the WSSV, which suggests that PcPHB1 specifically binds to the envelope proteins of WSSV. VP28, VP26, and VP24 are structural envelope proteins and are essential for attachment and entry into crayfish cells. Therefore, PcPHB1 exerts its anti-WSSV effect by binding to VP28, VP26, and VP24, preventing viral infection. This study is the first report on the antiviral function of PHB in the innate immune system of crustaceans.
Mesenchymal Stem Cells as Gene Delivery Vehicles

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) possess a battery of unique properties which make them ideally suited not only for cellular therapies/regenerative medicine, but also as vehicles for gene delivery in a wide array of clinical settings. These include: 1) widespread distribution throughout the body; 2) ease of isolation and ability to be extensively expanded in culture without loss of potential; 3) the ability to differentiate into a wide array of functional cell types in vitro and in vivo; 4) they exert pronounced anti-inflammatory and immunomodula‐ tory effects upon transplantation; and 5) the ability to home to damaged tissues, solid tu‐ mors, and metastases following in vivo administration.
Cell-heritable stages of tumor progression in transgenic mice harboring the bovine papillomavirus type 1 genome

Tumorigenesis of dermal fibroblasts in a line of transgenic mice carrying the BPV-1 genome was found to involve distinct proliferative stages. Cell cultures derived from normal skin, from benign proliferative fibromatoses, and from malignant fibrosarcomas each evidenced distinguishable, cell-heritable characteristics. The latent viral genome was transcriptionally inactive in normal-appearing skin and was activated in the dermal fibromatoses. Fibrosarcoma cells grew continuously in culture, formed domelike foci, and had a more rounded, anaplastic appearance. Independent cultures derived from the fibromatoses varied in their proliferative characteristics, which correlated well with the levels of viral gene expression. In contrast, progression to malignancy was not accompanied by a further increase in transgene activity, which strongly implicated cellular genetic changes in the later stages of tumorigenesis.
Kinetic measurement of glucose with a centrifugal analyzer; hexokinase and glucose oxidase procedures compared.

The application of a nonlinear fixed-time kinetic approach to the hexokinase (ATP:D-hexose-6-phosphotransferase, EC 2.7.1.1) method for plasma glucose has been mentioned by Tiffany et al. (1). We have adapted and evaluated linear fixed-time kinetic methods for plasma glucose with use of both the hexokinase/glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (D-glucose-6-phosphate:NADP 1-oxidoreductase, EC 1.1.1.49) coupled enzyme assay (2) and the glucose oxidase (-D-glucose:oxygen oxidoreductase, EC 1.1.3.4) method of Trinder (3).
A novel approach to ARQ error control mechanisms for wireless LANs communications

Communications in high-speed wireless mobile networks have to deal with large varying transmission and service requirement conditions, often needing complex radio modulations and concatenated error control functions. For the latter, it is usual to implement forward error correction and automatic repeat request (ARQ) mechanisms in, respectively, the physical (PHY) and the data link control (DLC) layers. Even so, the communication requirements of medium/high quality real-time services may be hard to meet under hostile transmission conditions. In this paper an analysis of some improvements over current ARQ error control schemes is presented, envisaging more efficient communications in high-speed wireless LANs. It is shown that high performance ARQ schemes can be used at the DLC layer of wireless LANs by carrying critical control information in more robust physical modes. Performance comparisons for current and proposed ARQ schemes, and some protocol implementation aspects, are the main focuses of analysis.
Analysis of acidic peptides with a matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry using positive and negative ion modes with additive monoammonium phosphate

Acidic PTMs such as phosphorylation and sulfonation of proteins are known to play important roles in many cellular processes including signal transductions and protein–protein interactions. In MS, the acidic modified peptides, that have negative charge, are observable in negative ion mode rather than in positive ion mode. Moreover, addition of ammonium salt into MALDI matrix solution improves the relative intensity of ionization of the phosphorylated peptide to unmodified one. We demonstrate that a combination of the negative ion mode and addition of ammonium salt is more effective in the ionization of the acidic modified peptides. We applied this method to 2‐DE separated proteins of Caenorhabditis elegans. As a result, 42 spots were identified as modified proteins, of which 34 proteins were nonoverlapping unique proteins. Furthermore, our study revealed that pI shifts of the DIM‐1 and MLC‐1 proteins in the 2‐DE gel were attributed to the presence of the acidic modifications. The negative ion mode together with the addition of ammonium salt provides us a useful method to detect the phosphorylation and/or sulfonation of protein in a simple manner.
Cogging torque minimization in double sided axial flux magnetic gear

Magnetic gears (MGs) have received little attention due to their low torque density and low torque quality. A way to increasing torque density in MGs is using axial flux configuration which increases permanent magnet surface while reducing the required iron core. An axial flux MGs can be designed as a single or dual sided one. The solution to the high axial forces in-between the disks, preferably is a dual sided design. This paper focuses on the double sided axial flux MG structure, by studying the effects of skewing PMs and modulators as an effective passive method to suppress the cogging torque caused by interaction between high speed PMs and ferromagnetic pole pieces. The simulations and comparisons of different skewing methods using percentage of cogging torque to average torque are implemented by 3-D Finite Element Method.
Resource allocation, interference management, and mode selection in device‐to‐device communication: A survey

For us to meet the demands of fifth generation technologies, device‐to‐device (D2D) communication is foreseen to be an important part of fifth generation networks. Device‐to‐device communication brings significant improvement in user's throughput, battery life, communication delay, and resource usage. Device‐to‐device links share the same resource with the cellular links that results in interference between cellular users and D2D user equipments. This interference can be managed by suitable resource allocation algorithms. The selection of D2D or cellular communication mode is also a hot research issue. Many research works are available in literature on the aforementioned issues regarding D2D communication, but there is no survey available in the literature. To facilitate the researchers, we present a detailed and systematic survey on resource allocation, interference management, and mode selection in D2D communication in this paper. Initially, the taxonomy based overview of D2D communication is provided, and the classification of the works is outlined. Then, the works regarding mode selection are reviewed in detail. Furthermore, interference management schemes to handle the interference caused by the underlying nature are also surveyed. Then, the available literature on resource allocation schemes in D2D perspective are presented. Finally, some open research problems are identified that deserve further research.
Effect of genistein on replication of bovine herpesvirus type 1.

OBJECTIVE To study the antiviral activity of genistein, a soya isoflavone, on in vitro replication of bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BHV-1). SAMPLE POPULATION Madin-Darby bovine kidney (MDBK) cells. PROCEDURE Effects of genistein on the magnitude and kinetics of inhibition of BHV-1 phosphorylation of glycoprotein E (gE) and in vitro replication of BHV-1 in MDBK cells were evaluated. Antiviral activity of genistein was compared with 2 compounds, estradiol-17beta (EST) and tamoxifen (TAM), that have estrogenic and antiestrogenic activity, respectively. High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to determine the concentration of genistein in medium from infected and uninfected MDBK cultures. RESULTS Genistein reduced BHV-1, but not gE-deleted BHV-1 (BHV-1gEdelta3.1), replication by 90% at 18 hours after inoculation. This inhibition was not sustained through 24 hours after inoculation. The genistein concentration in media from MDBK cells was decreased by 40% during BHV-1 infection, compared with 16% for uninfected cells, at 24 hours after inoculation. Genistein inhibited gE phosphorylation and BHV-1 replication in a dose-dependent manner. Dosing with 25 microM genistein at 0 and 12 hours after inoculation of BHV-1 was optimal for decreasing BHV-1 replication. Estradiol-17beta EST and TAM did not affect BHV-1 replication. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE The decrease in genistein concentration was a viral infection-dependent event. Genistein is an inhibitor of BHV-1 replication because of its ability to inhibit tyrosine kinase activity. A possible application may be for the control of BHV-1 infection in cattle by feeding soya products rich in genistein prior to or during periods of stress.
An enhanced stationary reference frame control for grid-connected distributed power generation systems

This paper presents an enhanced stationary reference frame control scheme that enables the grid-connected distributed power generation systems (DPGS) to provide high quality electric power under unbalanced input voltage conditions. In the proposed scheme, the positive and negative sequence components of currents are regulated based on stationary frame current references. Since the current references are expressed in α-β frame, proportional-resonant (PR) controllers are employed to achieve zero steady state error. Detailed mathematical derivation is presented. A fast and accurate active notch filter based (ANF-based) symmetrical component extractor is employed to extract the symmetrical components of the 3-phase voltages and currents. An extra module is introduced and added in order to enhance the system to compensate the grid harmonic currents. Simulations results verify the validity of the proposed control approach and its performance.
Experiments on chromosomal variability in Drosophila robusta.

OST species of Drosophila so far studied in this respect are polyM morphic for gene arrangements in their chromosomes. In D. pseudoobscura, D. persimilis, and D. funebris, this polymorphism is adaptive ( DOBZHANSKY 1943, 1947, 194Sa, 194Sb, 1948c; DOBZHANSKY and EPLING 1944; DUBININ and TINIAKOV 1945, 1946a, 1946b; SPIESS 1950). The adaptive nature of the chromosomal polymorphism is shown by three types of evidence. (1) The frequencies of the gene arrangements often show clear geographic and altitudinal gradients. (2) Cyclic seasonal changes in relative frequencies of gene arrangements are observed in some localities. (3) Experiments on the behavior of chromosomes with different gene arrangements in artificial populations in the laboratory show that inversion heterozygotes possess, as a rule, a much higher fitness than do the corresponding inversion homozygotes. CARSON and STALKER (1947, 1949) STALKER and CARSON ( 1948) have discovered chromosomal polymorphism also in D. robusta Sturtevant, a species common in forested regions of the eastern United States. In addition to the usual paracentric inversions, D. robusta populations contain also at least two pericentric and two cytologically apparently terminal ones. Geographic and altitudinal clines have been demonstrated for certain gene arrangements, but seasonal cyclic variations are small or absent in the populations living near St. Louis, Missouri. The work reported in the present paper is a study of natural and experimental populatioiis of D. robusta in the New York City area. The evidence shows that the chromc~somal polymorphism in this species is also adaptive, inversion heterozygotes possessing higher adaptive values than do the homozygotes. The work was started during the summer of 1947. Preliminary collections showed that the gene arrangements 2L, 2L-1 and 2L-3 in the left arm of the second chromosome would be especially suitable for experimental study. Experimental populations with different combinations of the gene arrangements were created, and the ensuing changes in the relative frequencies of the chromosomal types in these populations were recorded by means of periodic sampling. In the spring and fall of 1948 and in the spring of 1949 systematic collecting was made in a single locality in New Jersey to detect possible seasonal variations in the incidence of the gene arrangements and to obtain a larger number of strains for further experimental populations.
A Fibre Bragg Grating sensor as a receiver for acoustic communications signals

A Fibre Bragg Grating (FBG) acoustic sensor is used as a receiver for acoustic communications signals. Acoustic transmissions were generated in aluminium and Carbon Fibre Composite (CFC) panels. The FBG receiver was coupled to the bottom surface opposite a piezoelectric transmitter. For the CFC, a second FBG was embedded within the layup for comparison. We show the transfer function, frequency response, and transient response of the acoustic communications channels. In addition, the FBG receiver was used to detect Phase Shift Keying (PSK) communications signals, which was shown to be the most robust method in a highly resonant communications channel.
A methodology for virtual assessment of product ergonomics

This paper presents a method, which integrates digital human models (DHM) and virtual prototyping techniques to analyse ergonomic issues of devices to be used by workers. It is based on the comparison between the analysis of AS-IS and TO-BE scenarios with the aim of assessing design concepts, highlighting improvements or worsening and residual deficiencies to be faced. In particular, this paper refers to the case study of display units for groceries or supermarkets. Actually, workers who are in charge of filling the shelves perform highly repeated tasks, potentially dangerous for their health. The AS-IS and TO-BE analysis compares the actual practices with a new scenario in which workers are provided with lifting platforms to load the shelves. The method allows assessing several ergonomics parameters; in this study posture and fatigue are the most relevant. The results achieved with the simulations permitted to propose alternative solutions. Future works in this field concern the standardisation of domain dependant actions virtual human are asked to perform.
LuMPIS – A modified luminescence‐based mammalian interactome mapping pull‐down assay for the investigation of protein–protein interactions encoded by GC‐low ORFs

The GC content is highly variable among the genomes of different organisms. It has been shown that recombinant gene expression in mammalian cells is much more efficient when GC‐rich coding sequences of a certain protein are used. In order to study protein–protein interactions in Varicella zoster virus, a GC‐low herpesvirus, we have developed a novel luminescence‐based maltose‐binding protein pull‐down interaction screening system (LuMPIS) that is able to overcome the impaired protein expression levels of GC‐low ORFs in mammalian expression systems.
Analyses prospectives de mortalité : approches actuarielle et biomédicale

La duree de vie humaine augmente dans le monde depuis quelques siecles. Cette augmentation a ete plus importante que ne le predisaient les specialistes qui ont enonce des limites. Malgre les incertitudes importantes sur l'avenir de la longevite, la biologie du vieillissement et ses applications semblent en passe de faire chuter les taux de mortalite aux grands âges, similairement a la chute des taux de mortalite infantile il y a 150 ans.L’industrie pharmaceutique prend conscience du potentiel des innovations biomedicales issues de la biologie du vieillissement, rachete des biotechs et developpe des equipes en interne. Cela pourrait accelerer l'allongement de la vie.Cependant les tables des actuaires, a l'instar du modele de type Lee Carter, tendent a predire une deceleration artificielle de la longevite et les risques calcules sont loin de representer des avancees majeures issues de la biologie du vieillissement.Des modeles de mortalite future sont ici developpes sans produire cette deceleration. Il apparait qu'une augmentation voisine d'un trimestre par an etait jusqu'a present un meilleur predicteur que les tendances de chaque pays. D'autres modeles predisent des accelerations. Nous estimons les impacts sur les retraites.Les efforts pharmaceutiques en cours pour appliquer les resultats de la recherche biomedicale peuvent etre craints du fait de leurs impacts sur les retraites. Nous etudions dans quelle mesure un mega fonds de longevite peut a la fois aider a financer les retraites par capitalisation et un grand nombre de developpements pharmaceutiques: la mutualisation des risques cliniques permet de capter financierement des succes biomedicaux lies a la longevite