Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Chapter 7 Analysis of Brain Recurrence

Analysis of Brain Recurrence (ABR) is a method for extracting physiologically significant information from the electroencephalogram (EEG), a non-stationary electrical output of the brain, the ultimate complex dynamical system. ABR permits quantification of temporal patterns in the EEG produced by the non-autonomous differential laws that govern brain metabolism. In the context of appropriate experimental and statistical designs, ABR is ideally suited to the task of interpreting the EEG. Present applications of ABR include discovery of a human magnetic sense, increased mechanistic understanding of neuronal membrane processes, diagnosis of degenerative neurological disease, detection of changes in brain metabolism caused by weak environmental electromagnetic fields, objective characterization of the quality of human sleep, and evaluation of sleep disorders. ABR has important beneficial implications for the development of clinical and experimental neuroscience. C. Frilot II School of Allied Health Professions, LSU Health Sciences Center, Shreveport, LA, USA P.Y. Kim • D.E. McCarty • A.L. Chesson Jr. • A.A. Marino ( ) Department of Neurology, LSU Health Sciences Center, P.O. Box 33932, Shreveport, LA 71130-3932, USA e-mail: andrewamarino@gmail.com S. Carrubba Natural Sciences Department, Daemen College, Amherst, NY, USA C.L. Webber, Jr. and N. Marwan (eds.), Recurrence Quantification Analysis, Understanding Complex Systems, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-07155-8__7, © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2015 213 214 C. Frilot II et al.
TEM Stereometric Analyses of Glomeruli in Aging OVE26 Transgenic Diabetic Mice

Background/Aims: Glomerular lesions in diabetic nephropathy (DN) have been studied in numerous murine diabetic models, but the critical feature of aging is often absent. Since histopathology indicates that in mice, DN glomerular lesions may just begin to develop at about 5 months of age, we utilized the long-lived OVE26 transgenic diabetic model for stereometric analyses of DN glomerulopathic aging. Methods: Albuminuria was determined by ELISA, and transmission electron microscopy stereometry was utilized exclusively to demonstrate changes in glomerular cell density and number, and alterations in the glomerular filtration barrier in OVE26 mice at 60, 150, and 450 days of age. Results: Compared to age-matched controls, albuminuria in diabetic mice is significant at 60 days. At 150 days, glomerular volume and mesangial, endothelial and total cell numbers, and podocyte effacement are significantly increased, while podocyte, endothelial, and total cell density are significantly decreased. Endothelial fenestrations are decreased, and glomerular basement membrane thickness is increased. At 450 days, stereometric alterations are exacerbated. Conclusion: Our data
The Effect of pH on Electroless Ni-Fe-P Alloy Plating on Poplar Veneer

Ni-Fe-P alloy coating was fabricated on poplar veneer substrates by an electroless plating method. The influence of pH on coating structure, elementary composition, thickness, crystal structure, surface resistivity, and magnetism were evaluated. The results indicated that when the plating solution pH was 9.5, the Ni-Fe-P coating had a crystal structure. The coating consisted of lamellar metal particles, and the thickness increased to 111 μm. This plated veneer showed soft magnetic properties. In contrast, when the plating solution pH was 4.5, the Ni-Fe-P coating had mainly an amorphous structure. The coating consisted of spherical metal particles, and the thickness was 67 μm. After 600 °C heat treatment, this plated veneer shifted to a crystalline structure and exhibited soft magnetic properties. In two kinds of plated veneers, the lateral direction resistivity was two times greater than the longitudinal direction resistivity.
Broad cross-reactive IgG responses elicited by adjuvanted vaccination with recombinant influenza hemagglutinin (rHA) in ferrets and mice

Annual immunization against influenza virus is a large international public health effort. Accumulating evidence suggests that antibody mediated cross-reactive immunity against influenza hemagglutinin (HA) strongly correlates with long-lasting cross-protection against influenza virus strains that differ from the primary infection or vaccination strain. However, the optimal strategies for achieving highly cross-reactive antibodies to the influenza virus HA have not yet to be defined. In the current study, using Luminex-based mPlex-Flu assay, developed by our laboratory, to quantitatively measure influenza specific IgG antibody mediated cross-reactivity, we found that prime-boost-boost vaccination of ferrets with rHA proteins admixed with adjuvant elicited higher magnitude and broader cross-reactive antibody responses than that induced by actual influenza viral infection, and this cross-reactive response likely correlated with increased anti-stalk reactive antibodies. We observed a similar phenomenon in mice receiving three sequential vaccinations with rHA proteins from either A/California/07/2009 (H1N1) or A/Hong Kong/1/1968 (H3N2) viruses admixed with Addavax, an MF59-like adjuvant. Using this same mouse vaccination model, we determined that Addavax plays a more significant role in the initial priming event than in subsequent boosts. We also characterized the generation of cross-reactive antibody secreting cells (ASCs) and memory B cells (MBCs) when comparing vaccination to viral infection. We have also found that adjuvant plays a critical role in the generation of long-lived ASCs and MBCs cross-reactive to influenza viruses as a result of vaccination with rHA of influenza virus, and the observed increase in stalk-reactive antibodies likely contributes to this IgG mediated broad cross-reactivity.
Light absorption spectra for lubricate oil quality tracking in the combustion engine

The important role in the proper functioning of combustion engines plays the quality of lubricates oil. However, the quality of oil changes with the time of exploitation. Therefore, several parameters for examination of oil quality were determined; however, the indicator for quick and efficient tracking of evolution of oil with exploitation time is still searched. Taking into account the complex composition of oils, the ability of oils components to absorb light in various wavelengths is considered. In the article absorption properties of oils is discussed in relation to the time of circulation of oil in the engine lubricate system. For this study, two lubricate oils designated to lubricate the cylinder of vessel engines with different brightness and transparency were used. Oil samples were dissolved in organic solvent – n-hexane and several oil concentration were prepared based on dilution method. Absorbance spectra for each samples of oil were registered in the range of wavelength 240-600 nm. Obtained results indicate the changes of value of absorbance in relation to the kind of oil; however, the shape of absorbance spectra is independent from the kind of oil. For studied kinds of oil, characteristic peak independent from the kind of oil located at 260 nm was determined. Based on Lambert-Beer law absorption coefficient was identified as a potential indicator to oil quality evaluation with the time of exploitation in the engine system. Preliminary test for two fresh lubricate oils allow to conclude that absorption coefficient for selected wavelength located at 260 nm could be a sensitive parameter for quick estimating the degree of deterioration of the oil in engine system.
Let-7b/c Enhance the Stability of a Tissue-Specific mRNA during Mammalian Organogenesis as Part of a Feedback Loop Involving KSRP

Gene silencing mediated by either microRNAs (miRNAs) or Adenylate/uridylate-rich elements Mediated mRNA Degradation (AMD) is a powerful way to post-transcriptionally modulate gene expression. We and others have reported that the RNA–binding protein KSRP favors the biogenesis of select miRNAs (including let-7 family) and activates AMD promoting the decay of inherently labile mRNAs. Different layers of interplay between miRNA– and AMD–mediated gene silencing have been proposed in cultured cells, but the relationship between the two pathways in living organisms is still elusive. We conditionally deleted Dicer in mouse pituitary from embryonic day (E) 9.5 through Cre-mediated recombination. In situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, and quantitative reverse transcriptase–PCR revealed that Dicer is essential for pituitary morphogenesis and correct expression of hormones. Strikingly, αGSU (alpha glycoprotein subunit, common to three pituitary hormones) was absent in Dicer-deleted pituitaries. αGSU mRNA is unstable and its half-life increases during pituitary development. A transcriptome-wide analysis of microdissected E12.5 pituitaries revealed a significant increment of KSRP expression in conditional Dicer-deleted mice. We found that KSRP directly binds to αGSU mRNA, promoting its rapid decay; and, during pituitary development, αGSU expression displays an inverse temporal relationship to KSRP. Further, let-7b/c downregulated KSRP expression, promoting the degradation of its mRNA by directly binding to the 3′UTR. Therefore, we propose a model in which let-7b/c and KSRP operate within a negative feedback loop. Starting from E12.5, KSRP induces the maturation of let-7b/c that, in turn, post-transcriptionally downregulates the expression of KSRP itself. This event leads to stabilization of αGSU mRNA, which ultimately enhances the steady-state expression levels. We have identified a post-transcriptional regulatory network active during mouse pituitary development in which the expression of the hormone αGSU is increased by let7b/c through downregulation of KSRP. Our study unveils a functional crosstalk between miRNA– and AMD–dependent gene regulation during mammalian organogenesis events.
Endoscopic diagnosis and treatment of biliary complications after orthotopic liver transplantation

Aim. The aim of the study was to investigate the endoscopic diagnostic and treatment techniques for biliary complications after orthotopic liver transplantation, their efficacy and safety. Material and methods. The study was based on the results of endoscopic treatment of 29 patients with biliary complications occurred after orthotopic liver transplantation in N.V. Sklifosovsky Research Institute for Emergency Medicine in the period from December 2001 to January 2017. Conclusions. The state-of-the-art methods of therapeutic endoscopy enable a successful treatment of most cases of biliary strictures and biliary-biliary anastomosis incompetence, thus achieving good long-term results using a minimally invasive methodology.
Leukocyte Telomere Length in Relation to 17 Biomarkers of Cardiovascular Disease Risk: A Cross-Sectional Study of US Adults

Background Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) is a putative biological marker of immune system age, and there are demonstrated associations between LTL and cardiovascular disease. This may be due in part to the relationship of LTL with other biomarkers associated with cardiovascular disease risk. However, the strength of associations between LTL and adiposity, metabolic, proinflammatory, and cardiovascular biomarkers has not been systematically evaluated in a United States nationally representative population. Methods and Findings We examined associations between LTL and 17 cardiovascular biomarkers, including lipoproteins, blood sugar, circulatory pressure, proinflammatory markers, kidney function, and adiposity measures, in adults ages 20 to 84 from the cross-sectional US nationally representative 1999–2002 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) (n = 7,252), statistically adjusting for immune cell type distributions. We also examine whether these associations differed systematically by age, race/ethnicity, gender, education, and income. We found that a one unit difference in the following biomarkers were associated with kilobase pair differences in LTL: BMI -0.00478 (95% CI -0.00749–-0.00206), waist circumference -0.00211 (95% CI -0.00325–-0.000969), percentage of body fat -0.00516 (95% CI -0.00761–-0.0027), high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol 0.00179 (95% CI 0.000571–0.00301), triglycerides -0.000285 (95% CI -0.000555–-0.0000158), pulse rate -0.00194 (95% CI -0.00317–-0.000705), C-reactive protein -0.0363 (95% CI 0.0601–-0.0124), cystatin C -0.0391 (95% CI -0.0772–-0.00107). When using clinical cut-points we additionally found associations between LTL and insulin resistance -0.0412 (95% CI -0.0685–-0.0139), systolic blood pressure 0.0455 (95% CI 0.00137–0.0897), and diastolic blood pressure -0.0674 (95% CI -0.126–-0.00889). These associations were 10%–15% greater without controlling for leukocyte cell types. There were very few differences in the associations by age, race/ethnicity, gender, education, or income. Our findings are relevant to the relationships between these cardiovascular biomarkers in the general population but not to cardiovascular disease as a clinical outcome. Conclusions LTL is most strongly associated with adiposity, but is also associated with biomarkers across several physiological systems. LTL may thus be a predictor of cardiovascular disease through its association with multiple risk factors that are physiologically correlated with risk for development of cardiovascular disease. Our results are consistent with LTL being a biomarker of cardiovascular aging through established physiological mechanisms.
Vinothek - A Self-Service Portal for TOSCA

The TOSCA standard provides a means to describe Cloud applications and their management in a portable way. TOSCA-based applications can be deployed on various standard-compliant TOSCA Runtimes. Vinothek is a Web-based Self-Service Portal that hides the technical details of TOSCA Runtimes and provides end users a simple graphical interface to provision Cloud applications on demand. This demonstration shows how Vinothek supports automated provisioning of applications and how it facilitates integrating TOSCA Runtimes.
Effect of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase supplementation in the extender on chilled semen of fertile and hypofertile dogs

This study investigated the correlation between oxidative stress status and key canine sperm parameters and the effect of addition of a superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) combination in egg yolk tris-citrate glucose (EYT-G) extender on semen during 10 days of storage at 4℃. Ten Boxer dogs were divided into two groups, fertile (F) and hypofertile (H), depending on pregnancy and live birth rate status in the previous year. Semen evaluation was performed on the day of collection (D0) and after 5 (D5) and 10 (D10) days of cooled storage. Sperm motility, kinetic parameters, and DNA integrity were assessed. A correlation between oxidative status and key semen parameters in both F and H groups was observed. Total and progressive motilities were significantly higher in the treated (SOD, CAT, and GPx addition) versus control groups at D10 in both F and H groups, and at D5 in the H group. DNA integrity was significantly higher in both treated groups (H and F) at D5 and D10. In conclusion, the addition of SOD, CAT, and GPx in the extender allows preservation of semen quality for up to 10 days of storage at 4℃ in both fertile and hypofertile dogs.
Endothelial glycocalyx thickness and platelet-vessel wall interactions during atherogenesis

Summary The endothelial glycocalyx (EG), the luminal cover of endothelial cells, is considered to be atheroprotective. During atherogenesis, platelets adhere to the vessel wall, possibly triggered by simultaneous EG modulation. It was the objective of this study to investigate both EG thickness and platelet-vessel wall interactions during atherogenesis in the same experimental model. Intravital fluorescence microscopy was used to study platelet-vessel wall interactions in vivo in common carotid arteries and bifurcations of C57bl6/J (B6) and apolipoprotein E knock-out (ApoE-/-) mice (age 7 – 31 weeks). At the same locations, EG thickness was determined ex vivo using two-photon laser scanning microscopy. In ApoE-/- bifurcations the overall median level of adhesion was 48 platelets/mm2 (interquartile range: 16 – 80), which was significantly higher than in B6 bifurcations (0 (0 – 16), p = 0.001). This difference appeared to result from a significant age-dependent increase in ApoE-/- mice, while no such change was observed in B6 mice. At the same time, the EG in ApoE-/- bifurcations was significantly thinner than in B6 bifurcations (2.2 vs. 2.5 μm, respectively; p < 0.05). This resulted from the fact that in B6 bifurcations EG thickness increased with age (from 2.4 μm in young mice to 3.0 μm in aged ones), while in bifurcations of ApoE-/- mice this growth appeared to be absent (2.2 μm at all ages). During atherogenesis, platelet adhesion to the wall of the carotid artery bifurcation increases significantly. At the same location, EG growth with age is hampered. Therefore, glycocalyx-reinforcing strategies could possibly ameliorate atherosclerosis.
The Common Currency of Psychological Distance

People’s thoughts often go beyond what is right in front of them. In so doing, they mentally traverse psychological distance: They think about the past or the future, other places, other people, and wonder about the impossible. These four dimensions all tap into the same common construct of distancing from immediate experience. As a result, people associate each type of distance with the others and infer that anything far in one way will be far in all the other ways. Furthermore, distance causes further distance to shrink in the mind’s eye, even if in a different form than the first. We consider potential differences whereby certain distances might be understood in terms of other distances, and then we evaluate additional contenders that might qualify as distinct dimensions of distance in their own right. Throughout, we highlight implications of these principles for everyday judgment and decision making.
Integration of risk factors for Parkinson disease in 2 large longitudinal cohorts

Objective To prospectively examine how selected lifestyle factors and family history of Parkinson disease (PD) combine to determine overall PD risk. Methods We derived risk scores among 69,968 women in the Nurses' Health Study (NHS) (1984–2012) and 45,830 men in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (HPFS) (1986–2012). Risk scores were computed for each individual based on the following factors previously associated with PD risk: total caffeine intake, smoking, physical activity, and family history of PD for the NHS, and additionally total flavonoid intake and dietary urate index for the HPFS. Hazard ratios were estimated using Cox proportional hazards models. In addition, we performed tests of interactions on both the multiplicative and additive scale between pairs of risk factors. Results We documented 1,117 incident PD cases during follow-up. The adjusted hazard ratios comparing individuals in the highest category of the reduced risk score to those in the lowest category were 0.33 (95% confidence interval: 0.21, 0.49; ptrend < 0.0001) in the NHS and 0.18 (95% confidence interval: 0.10, 0.32; ptrend < 0.0001) in the HPFS. Results were similar when applying the risk scores computed by summing the predictors weighted by the log of their individual effect sizes on PD risk in these cohorts. Additive interaction was present between no family history of PD and caffeine in men and between caffeine and physical activity in women. Conclusions Our results suggest that known protective factors for PD tend to have additive or superadditive effects, so that PD risk is very low in individuals with multiple protective risk factors.
Reliability of the Danish version of the short questionnaire to assess health-enhancing physical activity (SQUASH)

ABSTRACT Objective: To translate and cross-cultural adapt the short questionnaire to assess health-enhancing physical activity (SQUASH) to Danish, and to investigate the Danish version’s reliability. Methods: The study was conducted according to the COSMIN guidelines. The reliability was evaluated in 53 healthy subjects, mean age 47.1 ± 12.4 years and mean period 37.8 ± 14.8 days between test and retest. Results: For the total activity score ICC was 0.73 (0.57 to 0.83), SEM was 2316 (24% of the grand mean), and SDC was 6419 (67% of the grand mean). Conclusion: The relative reliability was acceptable and indicates that the Danish version of SQUASH can be used to distinguish between individuals; however, the absolute reliability was poor and SQUASH is not considered suitable for measuring physical activity on an individual level.
CLASSIFICATION OF SINGLE TRIAL EEG SIGNALS BY A COMBINED PRINCIPAL + INDEPENDENT COMPONENT ANALYSIS AND PROBABILISTIC NEURAL NETWORK APPROACH

In this paper, an attempt is made to classify the EEG signals of letter imagery tasks using a combined independent component analysis and probabilistic neural network. The role of the principal/independent component analysis is to mitigate the effect of EOG artifacts within each single-trial EEG pattern. Experimental results show an overall performance improvement of around in terms of the pattern classification accuracy, in comparison with the LPC spectral analysis which is commonly employed in speech recognition tasks.
Scenario-based video event recognition by constraint flow

We present a novel approach to representing and recognizing composite video events. A composite event is specified by a scenario, which is based on primitive events and their temporal-logical relations, to constrain the arrangements of the primitive events in the composite event. We propose a new scenario description method to represent composite events fluently and efficiently. A composite event is recognized by a constrained optimization algorithm whose constraints are defined by the scenario. The dynamic configuration of the scenario constraints is represented with constraint flow, which is generated from scenario automatically by our scenario parsing algorithm. The constraint flow reduces the search space dramatically, alleviates the effect of preprocessing errors, and guarantees the globally optimal solution for recognition. We validate our method to describe scenario and construct constraint flow for real videos and illustrate the effectiveness of our composite event recognition algorithm for natural video events.
Dynamic modulus and damping of boron, silicon carbide, and alumina fibers

The dynamic modulus and damping capacity for boron, silicon carbide, and silicon carbide coated boron fibers were measured from-190 to 800 C. The single fiber vibration test also allowed measurement of transverse thermal conductivity for the silicon carbide fibers. Temperature dependent damping capacity data for alumina fibers were calculated from axial damping results for alumina-aluminum composites. The dynamics fiber data indicate essentially elastic behavior for both the silicon carbide and alumina fibers. In contrast, the boron based fibers are strongly anelastic, displaying frequency dependent moduli and very high microstructural damping. Ths single fiber damping results were compared with composite damping data in order to investigate the practical and basic effects of employing the four fiber types as reinforcement for aluminum and titanium matrices.