Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prognostic importance of anaemia in HIV-1 infected patients starting antiretroviral therapy: collaborative analysis of prospective cohort studies in industrialized countries

Background— In HIV-1 infected patients starting highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), the prognostic value of haemoglobin when starting HAART, and of changes in haemoglobin levels, are not well defined. Methods— We combined data from 10 prospective studies of 12,100 previously untreated individuals (25% women). A total of 4,222 patients (35%) were anaemic: 131 patients (1.1%) had severe (<8.0 g/dl), 1120 (9%) had moderate (males: 8.0 to <11.0 g/dl, females 8.0 to <10.0 g/dl) and 2971 (25%) had mild anaemia (males 11.0 to <13.0 g/dl, females 10.0 to <12.0 g/dl). We separately analyzed progression to AIDS or death from baseline and six months using Weibull models, adjusting for CD4 cell count, age, sex, and other variables. Results— During 48,420 person-years of follow-up 1,448 patients developed at least one AIDS event and 857 patients died. Anaemia at baseline was independently associated with higher mortality: the adjusted hazard ratio (95% confidence interval) for mild anaemia was 1.42 (1.17– 1.73), for moderate anaemia 2.56 (2.07–3.18) and for severe anaemia 5.26 (3.55–7.81). Corresponding figures for progression to AIDS were 1.60 (1.37–1.86), 2.00 (1.66–2.40) and 2.24 (1.46–3.42). At 6 months the prevalence of anaemia had declined to 26%. Baseline anaemia continued to predict mortality (and to a lesser extent progression to AIDS) in patients with normal haemoglobin or mild anaemia at 6 months. Conclusions— Anaemia at the start of HAART is an important prognostic factor for short and long term prognosis, including in patients whose haemoglobin levels improve or normalize during the first 6 months of HAART.
Cloning and characterization of developmental endothelial locus-1: An embryonic endothelial cell protein that binds the (cid:97) v (cid:98) 3 integrin receptor

We have taken advantage of an enhancer trap event in a line of transgenic mice to identify a unique developmentally regulated endothelial cell locus ( Del1 ). The protein encoded in this locus contains three EGF-like repeats homologous to those in Notch and related proteins, including an EGF-like repeat that contains an RGD motif, and two discoidin I-like domains. Del1 is shown to be a matrix protein and to promote adhesion of endothelial cells through interaction with the (cid:97) v (cid:98) 3 integrin receptor. Embryonic endothelial-like yolk sac cells expressing recombinant Del1 protein, or grown on an extracellular matrix containing Del1 protein, are inhibited from forming vascular-like structures. Expression of Del1 protein in the chick chorioallantoic membrane leads to loss of vascular integrity and promotes vessel remodeling. Del1 is thus a new ligand for the (cid:97) v (cid:98) 3 integrin receptor and may function to regulate vascular morphogenesis or remodeling in embryonic development.
The regenerative supply chain: a framework for developing circular economy indicators

There are widely differing experiences and practices in the development of indicators to monitor, report and communicate progress towards the implementation of the circular economy (CE). We present a framework for developing CE indicators which link to the core goals, principles and building blocks of a CE. To do this we utilise the Ellen MacArthur Foundation butterfly model as a coherent systems overview of key material stocks and flows, and representation of relationships between inputs, outputs, recovery processes, emissions, energy and value loops in physical and financial measures which constitute the CE supply chain. Based on nine multinational organisations and four cases of leading companies engaged with CE activity, we address the types of indicators being used and make recommendations for indicators to reflect key goals and principles of CE. Our research on the development and expansion of circular practices leads to the question of what new opportunities and challenges CE raises for such companies in terms of competitive business advantage and resultant requirements for supply chain redesign and indicator development, over and above pre-existing closed-loop production.
Cancer and Zebrafish: Mechanisms, Techniques, and Models: Chemical Genetics

Chemical genetics is the use of small molecules to perturb biological pathways. This technique is a powerful tool for implicating genes and pathways in developmental programs and disease, and simultaneously provides a platform for the discovery of novel therapeutics. The zebrafish is an advantageous model for in vivo high-throughput small molecule screening due to translational appeal, high fecundity, and a unique set of developmental characteristics that support genetic manipulation, chemical treatment, and phenotype detection. Chemical genetic screens in zebrafish can identify hit compounds that target oncogenic processes– including cancer initiation and maintenance, metastasis, and angiogenesis–and may serve as cancer therapies. Notably, by combining drug discovery and animal testing, in vivo screening of small molecules in zebrafish has enabled rapid translation of hit anti-cancer compounds to the clinic, especially through the repurposing of FDA-approved drugs. Future technological advancements in automation and high-powered imaging, as well as the development and characterization of new mutant and transgenic lines, will expand the scope of chemical genetics in zebrafish. genetic screening of large small molecule libraries is a powerful tool for implicating previously unidentified genes and pathways in disease.
SIW-tapered slot antenna for broadband MIMO applications

A substrate-integrated waveguide (SIW) tapered slot antenna for broadband multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) applications is presented in this study. The proposed MIMO antenna consists of two broadband tapered slot antenna elements, two SIW structures for feeding and two microstrip-to-SIW transitions. Four circular openings are designed on both sides of the SIW to improve the antenna's performance. The slots are etched on the connection of SIW and tapered slot antenna to adjust the input impedance of the antenna. The SIW structure and the shorting pin are used to isolate the feed lines and elements. Simulated and measured results verify the performance of the antenna. It shows that the proposed antenna has a broad bandwidth of | S 11 | <; -10 dB and | S 12 | <; -17 dB from 8.0 to 15.0 GHz covering the X-band and the lower K u -band.
Discovery of Ligands for βγ Subunits from Phage-Displayed Peptide Libraries

Heterotrimeric G protein βγ subunits bind to many different effector proteins.1 The detailed protein–protein interactions involved in βγ binding to these targets are not well understood. One proposed model for interaction between βγ subunits and effectors suggests that each effector may have shared and unique binding sites on the βγ surface. Evidence in favor of this hypothesis is that activation of all effectors is blocked by GDP bound α subunits, yet specific site-directed mutants can be found that block activation of some effectors while having little effect on others.2–3 That unique binding interactions may exist for various effectors suggests that specific ligands could be identified that bind to some of these unique interaction sites and thus specifically inhibit the activation of some effectors by βγ subunits.
Optimal Utility of Vehicles in LTE-V Scenario: An Immune Clone-Based Spectrum Allocation Approach

With the surge service requirements from vehicular users, especially for automated driving, providing real-time high-rate wireless connections to fast-moving vehicles is ever demanding. This motivates the development of the emerging LTE-V network, a 5G cellular-based vehicular technology. However, note that the vehicular user group is typically of a very large scale, whereas the bandwidth spectrum available for vehicular communications is very limited. To efficiently allocate and utilize the slim spectrum resource to vehicle users are therefore important. This paper develops a service priority oriented spectrum allocation scheme in an LTE-V network, which explores the features of vehicular networks toward economic yet QoS guaranteed spectrum allocation. Specifically, the work exploits two features of the vehicular networks. First, vehicles in the proximity typically have similar information requirements, e.g., road conditions. As a result, the location-based multicast (i.e., geocast) could be applied to save the spectrum. Second, different types of vehicles, e.g., ambulances, buses, and private cars, are of different bandwidth and service requirements. Therefore, differential services and spectrum allocations should be applied. By jointly considering the above features, we develop a 2-D service importance oriented framework for LTE-V network spectrum allocations. The spectrum allocation issue is finally modeled as a mixed integer programming problem to maximize the system utility, and solved using an immune clonal based algorithm. The convergence of the proposed algorithm is proved, and using numerical results, we show that our proposal can outperform the typical heuristics-based spectrum resource allocation in terms of convergence and average delay.
A Prospective Study of Sedentary Behavior and Changes in the BMI Distribution

Purpose— We aimed to determine if baseline sedentary behavior was associated with changes in BMI over 9 years. Methods— Participants were enrolled into the NIH-AARP Diet and Health study in 1995–1996 (median age 63) and BMI was reported at baseline and 9 years later (n=158,436). Sitting time (<3 [referent], 3–4, 5–6, 7–8 or ≥9 h/d), television viewing (None, <1, 1–2, 3–4, 5–6, 7–8, or ≥9 h/d) and the covariates (age, sex, race, education, smoking, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, caloric intake, and sleep duration) were reported at baseline. We used longitudinal quantile regression to model changes at the 10 th , 25 th , 50 th , 75 th and 90 th BMI percentiles. Results— More sitting at baseline was associated with additional increases in BMI over time and the association was stronger at the upper BMI percentiles (e.g. <3h/d [referent] vs. 5–6 h/d sitting additional increases: 50 th percentile = 0.41 kg/m 2 , 95% CI: 0.34, 0.48 & 90 th percentile = 0.85 kg/m 2 , 95% CI: 0.72, 0.98). Similar associations were observed between more television viewing at baseline and additional increases in BMI over time (e.g., no television [referent] vs. 3–4 h/d
Design and optimization of three-resonator locally resonant metamaterial for impact force mitigation

In this paper, we propose a three-resonator metamaterial (TRM) to enhance the attenuation effect of impact stress waves. Based on the theoretical analysis, the width of the negative effective mass frequency regions of TRM is wider than that of single-resonator metamaterial (SRM) and dual-resonator metamaterial (DRM). In numerical cases, the superior performance of TRM is validated based on the impact wave model and the multi-corner thin-walled column crash model compared with SRM and DRM. It is found that the high attenuation effects of frequency spectrum and impact force can be achieved with TRM. In addition, the multi-objective optimization analyses of TRM are also conducted to minimize the metamaterial mass, body acceleration and impact force in two practical examples including the structural crashworthiness of the thin-walled column model and the trolley model.
Magnetic Leakage Field Study of a 7 kW Wireless Electric Vehicle Charging System

This paper presents a study of the magnetic leakage field of a 7 kW wireless electric vehicle charging (WEVC) system. The leakage field was measured in different test configurations and environments. Typical system parameters, such as coil offset and air gap were evaluated in order to determine their influence on the leakage field distribution. All measured results were then validated by magnetic field simulations. Based on the results of this study, a magnetic leakage field assessment method based on simulation is proposed.
Is laminin gamma-1 ( LAMC1 ) a candidate gene for advanced pelvic organ prolapse?

Objectives— 1) To determine allele frequencies of 3 LAMC1 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in Caucasian and African-American (AA) women with > Stage II POP (cases) and in ethnicity-matched controls with < Stage 2 POP. 2) To determine if LAMC1 is associated with POP within ethnic groups. Study design— Allelic discrimination was performed for LAMC1 SNPs rs10911193 (C/T), rs20563 (A/G), and rs20558 (T/C). SNP and haplotype-specific tests were used to examine associations between POP, ethnicity, and LAMC1 . Results— 411 women were enrolled. Significant differences in allele and haplotype frequencies existed amongst AA and Caucasians: rs10911193 “T” (p=0.0014); rs20563 “G” (p<0.0001); rs20558 “C” (p<0.0001); rs20563, rs20558 “GC” (p<0.0001); and rs20563, rs20558 “AT” (p<0.0001). No significant associations between POP and LAMC1 SNPs or haplotypes were found within ethnicities. Conclusions— While significant differences were identified between AA and Caucasian women, no associations were found between any LAMC1 gene variant and advanced POP. Significant ethnic differences in allele and haplotype frequencies for 3 LAMC1 gene single nucleotide polymorphisms exist, but none was associated with advanced pelvic organ prolapse.
A Simple Method for Correction of CD Spectra Obtained from Membrane-Containing Samples

CD spectroscopy is an important technique in structural biology for examining folding and conformational changes of proteins in solution. However, the use of CD spectroscopy in a membrane-medium (and also in a non-homogeneous medium) is limited by i) high light scattering and ii) differential scattering of incident left and right circularly polarized light, especially at lower wavelengths (<200 nm). We report a novel methodology to estimate the distortion of circular dichroism (CD) spectra caused by light scattering for membrane-bound peptides and proteins. The method is applied to three proteins with very different secondary structures to illustrate the limits of its capabilities when calibrated with a simple soluble peptide ([Ac]ANLKALEAQKQKEQRQAAEELANAK[OH]: std. peptide) with a balanced secondary structure. The method with this calibration standard was quite successful in estimating α -helix but more limited when it comes to proteins with very high β -sheet of β -turn content.
User-Innovated eHealth Solutions for Service Delivery to Older Persons With Hearing Impairment

Purpose: The successful design and innovation of eHealth solutions directly involve end users in the process to seek a better understanding of their needs. This article presents user-innovated eHealth solutions targeting older persons with hearing impairment. Our research question was: What are the key users ’ needs, expectations, and visions within future hearing rehabilitation service delivery? Method: We applied a participatory design approach to facilitate the design of future eHealth solutions via focus groups. We involved older persons with hearing impairment ( n = 36), significant others ( n = 10), and audiologists ( n = 8) following 2 methods: (a) human-centered design for interactive systems and (b) user innovation management. Through 3 rounds of focus groups, we facilitated a process progressing from insights and visions for requirements (Phase 1), to app such as paper version wireframes (Phase 2), and to digital prototypes envisioning future eHealth solutions (Phase 3). Each focus group was video-recorded and photographed, resulting in a rich data set that was analyzed through inductive thematic analysis. Results: The results are presented via (a) a storyboard envisioning future client journeys, (b) 3 key themes for future eHealth solutions, (c) 4 levels of interest and willingness to invest time and effort in digital solutions, and (d) 2 technical savviness types and their different preferences for rehabilitation strategies. Conclusions: Future eHealth solutions must offer personalized rehabilitation strategies that are appropriate for every person with hearing impairment and their level of technical savviness. Thus, a central requirement is anchoring of digital support in the clients ’ everyday life situations by facilitating easy access to personalized information, communication, and learning milieus. Moreover, the participants ’ visions for eHealth solutions call for providing both traditional analogue and digital services. Supplemental Material: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha. We present participatory to patient participation and self-management in hearing rehabilitation service Our research What are the key users ’ needs, expectations, and visions within future hearing rehabilitation service delivery?
Interference management using direct sequence spread spectrum (DSSS) technique in LTE-Wi-Fi network

In this paper, an enhance DSSS technique was proposed which considers both serving and its neighbouring base stations in the network. New coefficients, chip rate coefficient ( a ) and radius fraction coefficient ( b ) were applied in DSSS technique in order to improve the SINR value. First, SINR MUE and SINR WUE for the standard DSSS were simulated. Then, by using the obtained analysis, the enhance DSSS technique was proposed. As the results, the SINR at MUE using a -coefficient gives better SINR than standard around 4%~5% improvement. On the other hand, the SINR at WUE using a -coefficient also gives better SINR than standard around 9%~10% improvement. Other than that, by applying both a -coefficient and b -coefficient into the proposed DSSS based on modified interference power, the improvement for SINR MUE increases to 11%~13%. For SINR WUE, the percentage spikes to 74%~84%.
Application of Mobile Laser Scanning for Lean and Rapid Highway Maintenance and Construction

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) requires survey grade measurements for many projects such as bridge and pavement construction, major accident investigations, and roadside asset management tasks. Caltrans has started the use of a relatively new technology called Mobile Terrestrial Laser Scanning (MTLS), which enables surveyors to work safely from within a vehicle. Utilization of this technology has introduced several technical challenges including understanding the most cost effective options (in terms of purchasing and operating versus contracting) for utilizing this new technology, the need for guidelines for control point spacing to achieve certain accuracy, understanding the technical issues in utilizing different associated software packages with such systems, and finally identifying best methods of post-processing laser scan data to improve efficiency that can lead to leaner operations.
Teaching Engineering Process Management to Graduate Students in an Engineering Management Program

Work systems are combinations of workers, machines and information to perform useful work and, knowledge on how to define specific work systems for their use will greatly enhance engineering managers. Competence in method study and work measurement will greatly assist in carrying out or supervising method planning and work estimation. In order to enthuse students in learning traditional industrial engineering topics in work systems, method study, work measurement and workstation design, a three-stepped methodology was devised. In its first stage, the knowledge was introduced through lectures, assignments, and tutorials. In the second stage, a workshop involving a familiar device was given. This made students to become thorough with the theory. The lectures and workshop gave students sufficient confidence and competence they needed. They applied their knowledge in solving real-world problems in the third stage. This paper describes this methodology and its implementation.
High-throughput functional analysis distinguishes pathogenic, nonpathogenic, and compensatory transcriptional changes in a neurodegenerative disorder

Summary Discriminating transcriptional changes that drive disease pathogenesis from nonpathogenic and compensatory responses is a daunting challenge. This is particularly true for neurodegenerative diseases, which affect the expression of thousands of genes in different brain regions at different disease stages. Here we integrate functional testing and network approaches to analyze previously reported transcriptional alterations in the brains of Huntington’s Disease (HD) patients. We selected 312 genes whose expression is dysregulated both in HD patients and in HD mice, and then replicated and/ or antagonized each alteration in a Drosophila HD model. High-throughput behavioral testing in this model and controls revealed that transcriptional changes in synaptic biology and calcium signaling are compensatory, whereas alterations involving the actin cytoskeleton and inflammation drive disease. Knockdown of disease-driving genes in HD patient-derived cells lowered mutant Huntingtin levels and activated macroauthophagy, suggesting a mechanism for mitigating pathogenesis. Our multilayered approach can thus untangle the wealth of information generated by transcriptomics and identify early therapeutic intervention points.
Monte Carlo and Phantom Study of the Radiation Dose to the Body from Dedicated Computed Tomography of the Breast

Purpose— To prospectively determine the radiation dose absorbed by the organs and tissues of the body during a dedicated computed tomography of the breast (DBCT) study using Monte Carlo methods and a phantom. Materials and Methods— Using the Geant4 Monte Carlo toolkit, the Cristy anthropomorphic phantom and the geometry of a prototype DBCT was simulated. The simulation was used to track x-rays emitted from the source until their complete absorption or exit from the simulation limits. The interactions of the x-rays with the 65 different volumes representing organs, bones and other tissues of the anthropomorphic phantom that resulted in energy deposition were recorded. These data were used to compute the radiation dose to the organs and tissues during a complete DBCT acquisition relative to the average glandular dose to the imaged breast (ROD, relative organ dose), using the x-ray spectra proposed for DBCT imaging. The effectiveness of a lead shield for reducing the dose to the organs was investigated. Results— The maximum ROD among the organs was for the ipsilateral lung with a maximum of 3.25%, followed by the heart and the thymus. Of the skeletal tissues, the sternum received the highest dose with a maximum ROD to the bone marrow of 2.24%, and to the bone surface of 7.74%. The maximum ROD to the uterus, representative of that of an early-stage fetus, was 0.026%. These maxima occurred for the highest energy x-ray spectrum (80 kVp) analyzed. A lead shield does not protect substantially the organs that receive the highest dose from