Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Asynchronous Power Flow on Graphic Processing Units

Asynchronous iterations can be used to implement fixed-point methods such as Jacobi and Gauss-Seidel on parallel computers with high synchronization costs. However, they are rarely considered in practice due to the slow convergence rate. This paper describes an implementation on GPUs of a novel Power Flow analysis model using asynchronous iterations. We present our model for the solution of the Power Flow analysis problem, prove its convergence and evaluate its performance for a GPU execution.
New early zygotic regulators expressed in endomesoderm of sea urchin embryos discovered by differential array hybridization.

Genes that are upregulated by LiCl treatment of sea urchin embryos and/or downregulated by injection into the egg of mRNA encoding an internal fragment of cadherin (Cad) were detected in a differential macroarray screen. The method was that recently described by J. P. Rast et al. (2000, Dev. Biol. 228, 270-296). Almost 10(5) clones from a 12-h cDNA library were screened. Measurements on internal standards showed that the screening procedure was sufficiently sensitive to afford detection of differentially expressed mRNAs of the most rare class, those present in only a few copies per average cell. The injection of Cad mRNA, which specifically blocks nuclearization of beta-catenin, resulted in many-fold decreases in the levels of transcripts of a suite of marker genes expressed zygotically during endomesoderm specification. These measurements substantiated the use of Cad mRNA as the basis for a differential screen for discovery of new endomesodermal genes. By use of the newly developed BioArray software for analysis of macroarray screens, 1106 clones representing differentially expressed genes and yielding useful sequence were recovered. The 367 clones that gave significant BLASTX matches to known cellular proteins fell into 264 nonredundant sequence classes. Those of particular interest for this work were clones encoding DNA-binding transcription factors, signal transduction pathway components, proteases, kinases, and phosphatases. Quantitative PCR analysis of 66 such selected clones revealed that the large majority of these clones had been selected because they are upregulated by LiCl treatment, which affects the expression of a much greater diversity and number of genes than are involved in endomesoderm specification. Seven transcript species were identified that responded sharply to injection of Cad mRNA, and that are not represented in maternal mRNA. Six of those encode transcription factors. We focused on three transcription factor genes of this set that were previously unknown in sea urchin embryos. By whole-mount in situ hybridization, these genes are expressed in specific domains of the endomesodermal territory. They are: (1) Speve, an evenskipped orthologue expressed very early in all vegetal blastomeres and then gradually shifting to veg(1) derivatives by the mesenchyme blastula stage; (2) Spgcm, an orthologue of the fruit fly gene glial cells missing, which is first expressed specifically and exclusively in part of the prospective secondary mesenchyme (mesodermal) domain at late-cleavage blastula stage; and (3) Spfoxc, which is first expressed in the early blastula only in the four small micromeres, and later only expressed in that coelomic pouch which gives rise to the mesoderm of the ventral surface of the adult rudiment.
Effect of copper on antioxidant ability and nutrient metabolism in broiler chickens stimulated by lipopolysaccharides

The aim of the experiment was to investigate the interaction between Cu intake, inflammatory challenge and oxidative stress in broiler chickens. Furthermore, it was tested whether plasma ceruloplasmin (Cp) could be a sensible parameter for dietary Cu. One hundred forty-four day old chickens were raised on a basal control diet without added copper (Group Cu-6.5, basal Cu content 6.5 mg/kg diet) or a diet supplemented with Cu at 8 or 50 mg/kg (Groups Cu-14.5 and Cu-56.5, respectively) with four replicates of 12 animals for each treatment. Starting on day 21, chickens were injected intraperitoneally with lipopolysaccharides (LPS) once a day for 3 days. Before this challenge, Group Cu-14.5 had the lowest gain and the feed to gain ratio was the highest. After injection of LPS, however, chickens of Group Cu-14.5 had the best zoo-technical performance. For chickens of Group Cu-6.5, LPS injection resulted in elevated rectal temperature, and lower erythrocyte superoxide dismutase (CuZn-SOD) activity, compared with the other groups. LPS injection increased plasma uric acid in Group Cu-6.5 significantly, but was without influence in Group Cu-56.5. At all Cu-levels, LPS injection increased erythrocyte CuZn-SOD activity and decreased thiobarbituric acid reacting substances. No significant difference in plasma Cp was found in chickens fed different dietary Cu. LPS injection significantly increased plasma Cp in Group Cu-56.5. The results suggest that varying dietary Cu levels seem to modulate the parameters involved in immunological responses and oxidant stress and that plasma Cp is not a reliable parameter for dietaryCu.
Partial Differential Equation Models and Numerical Simulations of RNA Interactions and Gene Expression

Author(s): Hohn, Maryann Elisabeth | Abstract: Our genetic information is stored in the nucleus of our cells via a double helical chain of nucleotides called deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). DNA is transcribed into a single chain of nucleotides called ribonucleic acid (RNA) which is then translated into proteins. New discoveries of other non-coding macromolecules and their functions along with a new understanding of post-transcriptional protein regulation have influenced the study of these processes. For example, small, non-coding RNAs (sRNA) such as microRNA (miRNA) or small interfering RNA (siRNA) regulate developmental events through certain interactions with messenger RNA (mRNA). By binding to specific sites on a strand of mRNA, sRNA may cause a gene to be activated or suppressed which may turn a gene "on" or "off. " To understand these interactions, we developed a mathematical model which consists of N+1 coupled partial differential equations that describe mRNA and sRNA interactions across cells and tissue. These equations illustrate how one small, non-coding RNA segment and N target mRNA segments interact with each other depending on transcription rates, independent and dependent degradation rates, and the rate of intercellular mobility of each species. By varying diffusion coefficients (mobility of each species) and time dependence (creating a steady state), the system of N+1 coupled PDEs can be studied as three separate well-posed systems of equations : a single, nonlinear diffusion equation; coupled diffusion equations at steady state; and coupled diffusion equations with time dependence. This dissertation analyzes the mathematical models created and shows the implementation of consistent, efficient numerical methods such as modified finite difference methods and a form of alternating iteration to solve these equations. The numerical simulations show that when sRNA has mobility across tissue, the concentration profiles of mRNA display a sharp interface between tissue with high mRNA concentration and tissue with low mRNA concentration. If mRNA mobility across tissue is added, the concentration profile of mRNA is smoothed across the tissue. These simulations suggest that the mobilities of sRNA and mRNA contribute to the behavior of mRNA concentrations across tissue. In addition, this model may be utilized to illustrate similar types of interactions between multiple chemical species
Conservation of the paired domain in metazoans and its structure in three isolated human genes.

Sequences homologous to the paired domain of Drosophila melanogaster have been conserved in species as distantly related as nematodes, sea urchins, or man. In particular, paired domains of three human genes, HuP1, HuP2 and HuP48, have been isolated and sequenced. Together with four Drosophila paired domains, they fall into two separate paired domain classes named according to their Drosophila members, paired–gooseberry and P29 class. The P29 class includes the mouse Pax 1 and the human HuP48 gene which are nearly identical in their sequenced portions and hence might be true homologues. In addition to the paired domain, the two human genes HuP1 and HuP2 share the highly conserved octapeptide HSIAGILG with the two gooseberry genes of Drosophila. Possible functions of the paired domain are discussed in the light of a predicted helix‐turn‐helix structure in its carboxy‐terminal portion.
Evolutionary Duplication of a Hepatic Control Region in the Human Apolipoprotein E Gene Locus

We have identified a second hepatic control region (HCR-2) in the human apolipoprotein (apo) E gene locus that confers liver expression of the human apoE gene in transgenic mice. This HCR-2 sequence is located 27 kilobases downstream of the apoE gene and 10 kilobases downstream of the previously described liver-specific enhancer (HCR-1). Nucleotide sequence analysis of the HCR-2 region revealed a sequence that shares 85% identity to the functional 319-base pair domain of HCR-1. To test its activity, transgenic mice were prepared with a fusion construct containing a human apoE gene fragment, which is not normally expressed in the liver, ligated to a 632-base pair region containing the HCR-2 sequence. This construct resulted in high levels of liver-specific apoE transgene expression, indicating that HCR-2 can function as a hepatic enhancer and has an activity similar to that of HCR-1. Hence, these findings suggest that there are at least two hepatic control regions, HCR-1 and HCR-2, capable of controlling the liver expression of this human apolipoprotein gene locus.
Inactivation of Cdc42 Is Necessary for Depolymerization of Phagosomal F-Actin and Subsequent Phagosomal Maturation1

Phagocytosis is a complex process involving the activation of various signaling pathways, such as the Rho GTPases, and the subsequent reorganization of the actin cytoskeleton. In neutrophils, Rac and Cdc42 are activated during phagocytosis but less is known about the involvement of these GTPases during the different stages of the phagocytic process. The aim of this study was to elucidate the role of Cdc42 in phagocytosis and the subsequent phagosomal maturation. Using a TAT-based protein transduction technique, we introduced dominant negative and constitutively active forms of Cdc42 into neutrophil-like HL60 (human leukemia) cells that were allowed to phagocytose IgG-opsonized yeast particles. Staining of cellular F-actin in cells transduced with constitutively active Cdc42 revealed that the activation of Cdc42 induced sustained accumulation of periphagosomal actin. Moreover, the fusion of azurophilic granules with the phagosomal membrane was prevented by the accumulated F-actin. In contrast, introducing dominant negative Cdc42 impaired the translocation per se of azurophilic granules to the periphagosomal area. These results show that efficient phagosomal maturation and the subsequent eradication of ingested microbes in human neutrophils is dependent on a strictly regulated Cdc42. To induce granule translocation, Cdc42 must be in its active state but has to be inactivated to allow depolymerization of the F-actin cage around the phagosome, a process essential for phagolysosome formation.
TRANSCRIPTIONAL PROFILES OF HUMAN EPITHELIAL CELLS IN RESPONSE TO HEAT: COMPUTATIONAL EVIDENCE FOR NOVEL HEAT SHOCK PROTEINS

We hypothesized that broad-scale expression profiling would provide insight into the regulatory pathways that control gene expression in response to stress and potentially identify novel heat-responsive genes. HEp2 cells, a human malignant epithelial cell line, were heated at 37°C to 43°C for 60 min to gauge the heat shock response, using as a proxy inducible Hsp70 quantified by Western blot analysis. Based on these results, microarray experiments were conducted at 37°C, 40°C, 41°C, 42°C, and 43°C. Using linear modeling, we compared the sets of microarrays at 40°C, 41°C, 42°C, and 43°C with the 37°C baseline temperature and took the union of the genes exhibiting differential gene expression signal to create two sets of "heat shock response" genes, each set reflecting either increased or decreased RNA abundance. Leveraging human and mouse orthologous alignments, we used the two lists of coexpressed genes to predict transcription factor binding sites in silico, including those for heat shock factor (HSF) 1 and HSF2 transcription factors. We discovered HSF1 and HSF2 binding sites in 15 genes not previously associated with the heat shock response. We conclude that microarray experiments coupled with upstream promoter analysis can be used to identify novel genes that respond to heat shock. Additional experiments are required to validate these putative heat shock proteins and facilitate a deeper understanding of the mechanisms involved during the stress response.ABBREVIATIONS EMEM-Eagles Minimal Essential media with Earle's BSS and 2 mM l-glutamine; PBS-phosphate-buffered saline; MTT-3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyl-tetrazolium bromide
Does implementation of a JIT-with-customers strategy change an organization's structure?

Purpose – Manufacturers have begun to develop and implement strategies that focus on strengthening the operations/marketing interface with customers. Claycomb et al. originally identified and described one such strategy, just‐in‐time (JIT)‐with‐customers, and assessed its impact on organizational structure. Generally, this study seeks to replicate their original work with two primary differences: marketing, rather than logistics executives, are surveyed and structural equation modeling, rather than regression analysis, is used to analyze the data.Design/methodology/approach – Data collected from 180 marketing executives are analyzed using a structural equation modeling approach to assess the impact of JIT‐with‐customers on the organizational structure dimensions of integration, performance control, specialization and decentralization.Findings – Results of this study indicate that JIT‐with‐customers impacts integration, performance control and specialization but is not related to decentralization.Research .
Development of displacement of centre of mass during independent walking in children

The aims of this study were to assess the characteristics of three‐dimensional displacement of the centre of mass of the body (CMb) during walking in healthy children and to compare it with those of young adults. Twenty‐one children (11 males, 10 females; age range 1 to 9 years) were recruited from the nursery and school attached to the Université catholique de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium; and three young adults (one male, two females; mean age 26 years 4 months) were recruited from the Rehabilitation and Physical Medicine Unit of the same university. Displacement of CMb was assessed at different walking velocities in the children and adults by two successive mathematical integrations of ground reaction forces, measured by a large strain‐gauge force platform. Displacement of CMb was controlled for leg length of the participant to eliminate the scaling effect that is dependent on growth. Results showed that vertical and lateral amplitudes of the CMb when controlled for leg length were greater for children before 4 years of age and that the forward amplitude when controlled for leg length was greater for children before 7 years of age. We conclude that the development of mature human CMb displacement during independent walking is a gradual neural process, evolving until the age of 7 years.
Seismic evidence for widespread serpentinized forearc mantle along the Mariana convergence margin

Seismic imaging of subduction zones can provide constraints on mineral reactions in the slab and surrounding regions. We use P‐to‐S converted phases from teleseisms recorded at broadband stations in the Mariana Islands to image the forearc and arc regions of the Mariana convergent margin. The subducting oceanic crust is observed between 75 and 110 km depth as a thin low velocity zone overlying the subducting Moho, demonstrating that the basalt to eclogite phase transition must occur at a greater depth. A low velocity zone (LVZ), approximately 10−25 km thick, whose upper boundary is imaged at about 40−55 km depth, is detected in the forearc region of the mantle wedge along the entire margin. The anomaly is located too shallow to represent subducted oceanic crust. We interpret the LVZ as a serpentinized region in the forearc mantle, resulting from hydration by slab‐expelled water. The inferred S‐wave velocity in the LVZ of as low as ∼3.6 km/s represents a level of serpentinization of 30−50%, corresponding to a chemically bound water content of about 4−6 wt%.
A Modified Multilevel Scheme for Internal and External Constraints in Virtual Environments

Multigrid algorithms are gaining popularity in virtual reality simulations as they have a theoretically optimal performance that scales linearly with the number of degrees of freedom of the simulation system. We propose a multilevel approach that combines the efficiency of the multigrid algorithms with the ability to resolve multi-body constraints during interactive simulations. First, we develop a single level modified block Gauss-Seidel (MBGS) smoother that can incorporate constraints. This is subsequently incorporated in a standard multigrid V-cycle with corrections for constraints to form the modified multigrid V-cycle (MMgV). Numerical results show that the solver can resolve constraints while achieving the theoretical performance of multigrid schemes.
Capacitive coupled rectangular microstrip patch antenna for Ku band

This Paper has presented a new approach to design and simulation for Ku band. This proposed designed antenna is very useful for satellite communication. Coplanar capacitive coupled feeding technique was used to reduce probe inductance. This feeding technique is mutually coupled with this patch and feeding patch. This microstrip rectangular patch antenna has two dielectric substrates First substrate which is just below the patch is RT Duroid (ε=3) and above the ground second dielectric is Air(ε=1). Both dielectric materials has sandwich. So that bandwidth of the antenna. The resonating frequency of capacitive coupled double dielectric rectangular patch is 16GHz. Design and analysis of this rectangular patch antenna has been done in HFSS software. Bandwidth of simulated antenna is 4.5GHz. Return loss of this antenna is around-30dB.
Autophagy Genes Are Essential for Dauer Development and Life-Span Extension in C. elegans

Both dauer formation (a stage of developmental arrest) and adult life-span in Caenorhabditis elegans are negatively regulated by insulin-like signaling, but little is known about cellular pathways that mediate these processes. Autophagy, through the sequestration and delivery of cargo to the lysosomes, is the major route for degrading long-lived proteins and cytoplasmic organelles in eukaryotic cells. Using nematodes with a loss-of-function mutation in the insulin-like signaling pathway, we show that bec-1, the C. elegans ortholog of the yeast and mammalian autophagy gene APG6/VPS30/beclin1, is essential for normal dauer morphogenesis and life-span extension. Dauer formation is associated with increased autophagy and also requires C. elegans orthologs of the yeast autophagy genes APG1, APG7, APG8, and AUT10. Thus, autophagy is a cellular pathway essential for dauer development and life-span extension in C. elegans.
THE UPLIFT OF SOIL NUTRIENTS BY PLANTS: BIOGEOCHEMICAL CONSEQUENCES ACROSS SCALES

Although the bulk of plant biomass contains relatively light, atmospherically derived elements (C, H, O, N, and S), 5-10% of biomass is composed of heavier elements from soil minerals, such as Ca, Mg, K, and P. Plant uptake and cycling transport these heavier elements to the soil surface, resulting in shallower vertical distributions for strongly cycled elements than for other elements. In this paper, we evaluate the biogeochemical consequences of this process at different spatial and temporal scales based on chronose- quence studies and soil database analyses. In the bare coastal dunes of Argentina, the vertical distributions of exchangeable K 1 (strongly cycled) and Na 1 (more weakly cycled) were similar initially but diverged 15 years after pine afforestation, with K distributions becoming significantly concentrated in the surface and Na distributions becoming deeper. To evaluate the effects of plant stoichiometry on micronutrient distributions, chronose- quences of paired native grasslands (low Mn cycling) and eucalypt plantations (high Mn cycling) in the pampas of Argentina were also used. Within 50 years, eucalypts dramatically redistributed Mn pools toward the soil surface, reducing total pools by half at medium depths (20-60 cm) and increasing concentrations by up to an order of magnitude at the surface. Globally, we used generalized contrasts among exchangeable K, Na, and Mg in 7661 soil profiles to estimate the global magnitude of K uplift due to plant activity. Based on this calculation, the exchangeable K pool in the top 20 cm of soils without plant uplift would be 4-6 3 10 15 g smaller globally, one-third to one-half smaller than its current size. Vegetation change alters the vertical distribution and bioavailability of mineral elements. Understanding how the stoichiometry of plant cycling affects soil nutrient distributions will help refine predictions of the biogeochemical consequences of current vegetation change.
Main Problems with the Taxation of Civil Society Organizations in Brazil: Certifications and Impact on Payroll

The objective of this paper is to identify and analyze the main problems in the taxation — regarding both taxes themselves and compliance costs of taxation — of civil society organizations in Brazil. This study is qualitative descriptive research. A multiple case study with 26 organizations was performed. The results show that the problems mainly affect organizations with lower revenue and that do not work in the areas of education, health or social care. The main problems involve the taxation of the payroll and the difficulties related to obtaining and maintaining certifications. The study concludes with suggestions for the improvement of the regulatory framework.
Moving object detection with an adaptive background model

Background modeling is a critical case for background-subtraction-based approaches and also for a wide range of applications. A background generation becomes difficult when the scene is complex or an object stay for more than half of the time in the scene. In this paper, we propose a block-based scene background initialization and modeling with low computational cost which making them feasible for Embedded Platform. In general, many background subtraction approaches are sensitive to sudden illumination changes in the scene and does not update the background model properly over time. The proposed background modeling approach analyzes the illumination change problem. From the quantitative evaluation selected through a suite of metrics, and compared results obtained by some existing methods, our approach is effective for background generation.