Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Unraveling the redox properties of the global regulator FurA from Anabaena sp. PCC 7120: disulfide reductase activity based on its CXXC motifs.

UNLABELLED Cyanobacterial FurA works as a global regulator linking iron homeostasis to photosynthetic metabolism and the responses to different environmental stresses. Additionally, FurA modulates several genes involved in redox homeostasis and fulfills the characteristics of a heme-sensor protein whose interaction with this cofactor negatively affects its DNA binding ability. FurA from Anabaena PCC 7120 contains five cysteine residues, four of them arranged in two redox CXXC motifs. AIMS Our goals were to analyze in depth the putative contribution of these CXXC motifs in the redox properties of FurA and to identify potential interacting partners of this regulator. RESULTS Insulin reduction assays unravel that FurA exhibits disulfide reductase activity. Simultaneous presence of both CXXC signatures greatly enhances the reduction rate, although the redox motif containing Cys(101) and Cys(104) seems a major contributor to this activity. Disulfide reductase activity was not detected in other ferric uptake regulator (Fur) proteins isolated from heterotrophic bacteria. In vivo, FurA presents different redox states involving intramolecular disulfide bonds when is partially oxidized. Redox potential values for CXXC motifs, -235 and -238 mV, are consistent with those reported for other proteins displaying disulfide reductase activity. Pull-down and two-hybrid assays unveil potential FurA interacting partners, namely phosphoribulokinase Alr4123, the hypothetical amidase-containing domain All1140 and the DNA-binding protein HU. INNOVATION A novel biochemical activity of cyanobacterial FurA based on its cysteine arrangements and the identification of novel interacting partners are reported. CONCLUSION The present study discloses a putative connection of FurA with the cyanobacterial redox-signaling pathway.
Development of configurations for lookup table–based Embryonics using graphic mapping: A case study

This article presents the development of configurations for bio-inspired self-healing cellular arrays known as Embryonics (embryonic electronics). In the Embryonics design, the configurations are employed to define the functionality and connections of each cell. However, developing configurations of the Embryonics is a time-consuming and challenging work due to lack of effective tools. In this article, an approach is proposed to develop configurations using graphic mapping, which also optimizes the length of configurations for the Embryonics. Using metric embedding, the problem of configurations is exactly formulated to binary quadratic assignment problem and routing problem with constraint of the Embryonics architecture. Since binary quadratic assignment problem is nondeterministic polynomial-time hard, a genetic algorithm is used to tackle this problem for achieving high-quality placement. Due to the limitation of communication bandwidth, how to resolve congestion is also an important issue. An improved ant colony algorithm is presented to realize routing of the Embryonics based on the result of placement. Configurations of the Embryonics are formed according to the result of placement and routing. Experimental result on a 4 × 4 multiplier demonstrates that developing configurations for lookup table–based Embryonics using graphic mapping can lower the difficulty of the Embryonics design and optimize placement and routing of Embryonics.
Parametric Control Surface Modeling During Early Design Stages in Pacelab(TM) Suite

uring the design of conventional vehicles the controls and flight dynamics disciplines are most active in late preliminary or detailed design phases. This can be for several reasons. One is that the level of detail and knowledge of the vehicle needed to perform their tasks is too demanding for conceptual design. Also, this indicates that the problems these disciplines solve (such as achieving trimmed flight) are not generally considered critical design challenges for most conventional configurations. Consideration of these disciplines in conceptual design is limited to statistical or simple analyses. For example, an empennage may frequently be sized using only historical tail volume coefficients for a given configuration. Control surfaces have similar historical trends or heuristic methods that can be followed. Analysis of stability and control characteristics is typically performed after conceptual design is complete when a baseline configuration has been selected. Revolutionary and unconventional vehicle concepts suffer from a lack of historical data, rules of thumb, or other guidelines to aid in early design. For these configurations some of the work performed by the controls and flight dynamics disciplines must be elevated to conceptual design in order to prevent expensive design changes downstream caused by incorrect assumptions or unexpected problems. For instance the types of missions, maneuvers, or trajectories a vehicle can fly are constrained in part by control surface effectiveness and whether the vehicle can achieve trimmed flight. Recent literature concerning Reusable Booster Systems (RBS) flying rocketback trajectories highlights this issue [1,2,3,4,5,6]. Design of trimmable RBS vehicles is challenging due to the particularly large flight envelope (hypersonic through subsonic flight), high angles of attack and the extreme rearward center of gravity during the return trajectory. A research effort by the Aerospace Systems Design Laboratory (ASDL) explored a design space consisting of a parametric outer mold line and control surfaces [7,8]. The purpose of this research was to develop a methodology to quantify the trim characteristics of a large variety of potential designs. By investigating the
Goal-oriented synthesis of switching functions

A method for the multilevel synthesis of combinational functions involves the use of a goal function that is similar to the function being synthesized but can be implemented by a single logic gate. Then a cascade of mapping stages is derived to transform the function being synthesized into the goal function. The resulting circuits are comparable in size with those obtained by prime implicant minimization, but goal-oriented synthesis is faster and offers more flexibility in the choice of gates. <<ETX>>
Active bipolar concentric ring sensor for surface Laplacian ECG

A highly sensitive active bipolar concentric ring sensor was developed for a 31 lead surface Laplacian ECG (LECG) mapping system. The sensor is integrated into a 13 mm square PC board. The active sensor is capable of providing a common-mode rejection ratio (CMRR) of up to 125 dB, a typical signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 25, and an input impedance of up to 100 G/spl Omega/, thereby eliminating the need for skin preparation prior to measurement.
Missing White Woman Syndrome

In this experiment, the study of missing white woman syndrome is extended to video coverage to determine whether visual framing and race have an effect on the emotions of viewers. Missing white woman syndrome relates to the idea that stories about attractive, young, white females who go missing are more prevalent in the news to the exclusion of similar stories about other demographics. This study examined the relationship between race and framing effects through a factorial design experiment and posttest questionnaire. Experimental conditions compared television news stories about women of different demographics who are portrayed differently in both visual and nonvisual frames. Results showed that visual framing did affect the emotions of viewers, but the race of the missing person did not.
Conjugate gradient learning algorithms for multilayer perceptrons

Learning complex tasks in a multilayer perceptron is a nonlinear optimization problem that is often very difficult and painstakingly slow. The use of conjugate gradient methods to speed up convergence rates is proposed. These methods result in a very moderate increase in storage and computational complexity compared to the commonly used backpropagation algorithm. The algorithm used is a modified conjugate gradient method that uses inexact line searches. This reduces the number of function evaluations necessary in the line search part of the algorithm. Simulation results that show the improved convergence rate compared to the backpropagation algorithm are presented. <<ETX>>
Inheritance of resistance to lettuce infectious yellows virus in melon.

Lettuce infectious yellows virus (LIYV), transmitted by the sweetpotato whitefly, (Bemisia tabaci Genn.), seriously affected melon ( Cucumis melo L.) production in the lower desert areas of the southwest United States from 1981 through 1990. Melon plant introduction (PI) 313970 was previously found resistant to LIYV in naturally infected field tests and controlled-inoculation greenhouse tests. Data from F 1 and segregating genera- tions from crosses of PI 313970 with LIYV-susceptible lines indicated that resistance in this accession is conditioned by a dominant allele at a single locus designated Lettuce infectious yellows (Liy).
Evaluation of Fungicides for Control of Rapid Blight of Poa trivialis (2003)

Rapid blight is a new disease of cool season turf grasses that has occurred on over a dozen golf courses in Arizona. It is now known to be caused by Labyrinthula terrestris, an organism in a group referred to as the marine slime molds. A trial was conducted in fall 2003 and winter 2004 to evaluate efficacy of selected fungicides for control of rapid blight at a golf course in central Arizona with a previous history of disease. Plots were established in late October2003 on a practice green on which Bermuda was overseeded with Poa trivialis. Treatments included Compass, Insignia, Fore, Bordeaux, Kocide 2000, Microthiol Disperss, Ecoguard and Floradox in various combinations and application dates. Disease symptoms appeared about 6 weeks after the first mowing and were evaluated in mid January. Results indicate that applications of Fore, Insignia and tank mixes of Insignia and Compass with Fore gave excellent control. Bordeaux, Compass alone, Compass alternated with Fore, Insignia alone, and Kocide gave good control. Microthiol Disperss, Floradox and Ecoguard gave poor control.
Clinical Chemistry & Metabolic Medicine

Requesting laboratory tests and interpreting the results Water and sodium The kidneys Acid-base disturbances Potassium Calcium, phosphate and magnesium The hypothalamus and pituitary gland The adrenal cortex The reproductive system Pregnancy and infertility Thyroid function Carbohydrate metabolism Plasma lipids and lipoproteins Nutrition Vitamins, trace elements and metals The gastrointestinal tract Liver disorders and gallstones Plasma enzymes in diagnosis (clinical enzymology) Proteins in plasma and urine Purine and urate metabolism Disorders of haem metabolism: iron and the porphyrias Cardiovascular disease Cerebrospinal and pleural fluid Metabolic effects of tumours Therapeutic drug monitoring and poisoning Clinical biochemistry at the extremes of age Inborn errors of metabolism Genetics and DNA-based technology in clinical biochemistry Patient sample collection and use of the laboratory Point of care testing Appendix 1 Units in clinical chemistry
γδ T Cell Immune Manipulation during Chronic Phase of Simian HIV Infection Confers Immunological Benefits1

Vγ2Vδ2 T cells, a major human γδ T cell subset, recognize the phosphoantigen (E)-4-hydroxy-3-methyl-but-2-enyl pyrophosphate (HMBPP) produced by mycobacteria and some opportunistic pathogens, and they contribute to innate/adaptive/homeostatic and anticancer immunity. As initial efforts to explore Vγ2Vδ2 T cell-based therapeutics against HIV/AIDS-associated bacterial/protozoal infections and neoplasms, we investigated whether a well-defined HMBPP/IL-2 therapeutic regimen could overcome HIV-mediated immune suppression to massively expand polyfunctional Vγ2Vδ2 T cells, and whether such activation/expansion could impact AIDS pathogenesis in simian HIV (SHIV)-infected Chinese rhesus macaques. While HMBPP/IL-2 coadministration during acute or chronic phase of SHIV infection induced massive activation/expansion of Vγ2Vδ2 T cells, the consequences of such activation/expansions were different between these two treatment settings. HMBPP/IL-2 cotreatment during acute SHIV infection did not prevent the increases in peak and set-point viral loads or the accelerated disease progression seen with IL-2 treatment alone. In contrast, HMBPP/IL-2 cotreatment during chronic infection did not exacerbate disease, and more importantly it could confer immunological benefits. Surprisingly, although viral antigenic loads were not increased upon HMBPP/IL-2 cotreatment during chronic SHIV infection, HMBPP activation of Vγ2Vδ2 T cells boosted HIV Env-specific Ab titers. Such increases in Abs were sustained for >170 days and were immediately preceded by increased production of IFN-γ, TNF-α, IL-4, and IL-10 during peak expansion of Vγ2Vδ2 T cells displaying memory phenotypes, as well as the short-term increased effector function of Vγ2Vδ2 T cells and CD4+ and CD8+ αβ T cells producing antimicrobial cytokines. Thus, HMBPP/Vγ2Vδ2 T cell-based intervention may potentially be useful for combating neoplasms and HMBPP-producing opportunistic pathogens in chronically HIV-infected individuals.
Handwritten English character recognition using neural network

A B ST R A C T Neural Networks are being used for character recognition from last many years. This paper presents creating the Character Recognition System, in which Creating a Character Matrix and a corresponding Suitable Network Structure is key. The Feed Forward Algorithm gives insight into the enter workings of a neural network; followed by the Back Propagation Algorithm which compromises Training, Calculating Error, and Modifying Weights. We have made an attempt to recognize handwritten English characters by using a multilayer perceptron with one hidden layer. In addition, an analysis has been carried out to determine the number of hidden nodes to achieve high performance of back propagation network in the recognition of handwritten English characters. The results showed that the MLP networks trained by the error back propagation algorithm are superior in recognition accuracy and memory usage. The result indicates that the back propagation network provides good recognition accuracy of more than 70% of Handwritten English characters.
Research on security issues of privacy data under t he cloud

In the computing field, the cloud computing has bec ome one of the hottest topics , the development of which has been promoting the tremendous changes of the world of both computer and commerce. However, as the secu rity issues of the cloud computing highlighted increasin gly, it can not be ignored, especially the data sec urity and privacy protection under the cloud computing enviro nment. This paper introduces the conception and uni que characteristics of the cloud computing, and the sec urity issues and strategies under the virtual cloud environment, Furthermore, it proposes to build a single-line con nection between the virtual machine and the client by using the digital certificate technology with Elliptic Curves Cryptography, analyzes the mathematical principle of the Elliptic Curves Cryptography and describes the process of th e communication between the virtual machine and the client, so that people can achieve the protection and isolatio n of users’ privacy data under the cloud environmen t and the cloud computing technology can service users with m uch higher security.
Integrating instructional procedures into traditional congregate care situations for people with severe disabilities

Many institutional and community residential agencies experience difficulties in providing habilitative services when direct care staff are working with groups of people with severe disabilities. We evaluated a means of assisting direct care personnel in integrating instructional strategies into traditional congregate care situations. In Experiment 1, integrated teaching strategies were operationalized for two direct care staff persons. The strategies were based on individualized client habilitative goals and the use of brief response prompting and contingent reinforcement paradigms. The staff members integrated the teaching procedures into their group routines with clients upon implementation of an integrated-teaching staff training and management program. The program involved two staff training sessions and ongoing performance feedback. In Experiment 2, four staff members in another living unit integrated the strategies into their group routines upon implementation of a simplified version of the program. Additionally, while the program was in effect, adaptive behaviors increased in frequency for 19 of 20 clients with profound multiple disabilities. Results of the experiments demonstrate a means through which residential agencies may enhance provision of continuous active treatment in accordance with clinical and governmental guidelines. Suggestions for future rescarch are provided, focusing on overcoming obstacles residential personnel face in providing treatment services in congregate situations.
Hierarchical Models for Genetic Association Studies

It is well known that complex diseases are caused by a network of interacting factors and therefore statistically it makes more sense to consider multiple predictors (genetic variants and environmental covariates) simultaneously than to consider a single SNP (singlenucleotide polymorphism) [1,2]. Such joint analyses not only improve the power for detecting causal effects by explaining a substantial fraction of trait variation but also potentially lead to increased understanding about the genetics of the underlying traits or diseases [3]. The dramatic increase in genetic discoveries involving complex diseases has provided great opportunities for statisticians to contribute critical concepts and methods to the field [2,3]. However, analysis and interpretation of genetic association studies for jointly handling multiple genetic and environmental variables involves interesting statistical challenges [4-6]. First, with multiple SNPs and environmental factors, there are many possible main effects and interactions, most of which are likely to be null or at least negligible, leading to high-dimensional sparse models [7]. In addition, there are many more possible interactions than main effects, requiring different modeling and parameterization for main effects and interactions [2]. Second, genetic association studies usually genotype SNPs with strong linkage disequilibrium (LD), introducing highly correlated variables [7]. Third, SNP data often include genotypes with low frequencies that create predictors with near-zero variation [7]. Finally, separation, which arises when a predictor or a linear combination of predictors is completely aligned with the outcome, is a common phenomenon in case–control genetic association studies [7-9]. These complications result in challenges in terms of statistical modeling and computation and thus sophisticated techniques are required to handle them.
Conversion of meso-2,3-Butanediol into 2-Butanol by Lactobacilli. Stereochemical and Enzymatic Aspects

A number of strains of Lactobacillus spp. from foods were screened for their ability to convert meso-2,3-butanediol into 2-butanol. Only three strains of L. brevis transformed the meso-diol into the secondary alcohol. These strains as well as the others unable to metabolize meso-2,3-butanediol exhibited the capacity to hydrogenate 2-butanone to 2-butanol. In both types of lactobacilli, an inverse relationship was observed between the diol or ketone concentration and the abundance of the R form of 2-butanol. This fact has been interpreted in terms of a co-occurrence of two dehydrogenases, both acting on the ketone with different kinetic parameters and opposite enantioselectivities. These results represent a further support to the assumption that 2-butanol present in distillates originates from the enzymatic activity of lactobacilli growing on mashes and give the most likely explanation of the enantiomeric excess of (R)-2-butanol generally found in distillates. Keywords: 2-Butanol; meso-2,3-butanediol; lact.
Horizontal Transfer and the Evolution of Host-Pathogen Interactions

Horizontal gene transfer has been long known in viruses and prokaryotes, but its importance in eukaryotes has been only acknowledged recently. Close contact between organisms, as it occurs between pathogens and their hosts, facilitates the occurrence of DNA transfer events. Once inserted in a foreign genome, DNA sequences have sometimes been coopted by pathogens to improve their survival or infectivity, or by hosts to protect themselves against the harm of pathogens. Hence, horizontal transfer constitutes a source of novel sequences that can be adopted to change the host-pathogen interactions. Therefore, horizontal transfer can have an important impact on the coevolution of pathogens and their hosts.
GABAergic axon terminals at perisomatic and dendritic inhibitory sites show different immunoreactivities against two GAD isoforms, GAD67 and GAD65, in the mouse hippocampus: A digitized quantitative analysis

Glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD), the γ‐aminobutyric acid (GABA)‐synthetic enzyme, consists of two isoforms, GAD67 and GAD65. Although distributions of the two GAD isoforms at the somatic level are known to be heterogeneous among different subpopulations of GABAergic neurons, those at the synaptic level have not been investigated. In order to analyze quantitatively the two GAD‐isoform immunoreactivities in axon terminals, we combined confocal laser scanning microscopy with digitized image analysis to measure the gray levels of immunofluorescent signals for the two GAD isoforms in a large number of individual boutons in each hippocampal and dentate layer of the mouse. Synaptic boutons exhibited lamina‐specific immunoreactivities against the GAD isoforms. Boutons in the principal cell layers (stratum pyramidale of the hippocampus proper and the granule cell layer of the dentate gyrus) showed more intense immunoreactivity against GAD67 than those in the dendritic layers (strata lacunosum‐moleculare, radiatum, and oriens of the hippocampus proper and the molecular layer of the dentate gyrus). By contrast, boutons in the dendritic layers showed more intense immunoreactivity against GAD65 than those in the principal cell layers. Such differential distributions could be correlated to the GAD‐isoform immunoreactivities in the axon terminals originating from parvalbumin‐containing neurons, a particular subpopulation of hippocampal GABAergic neurons mainly innervating the perisomatic domain of principal neurons. In addition to previously reported physiological and pharmacological differences between the GABAergic synapses on perisomatic domain and those on distal dendrites, the present results suggest a functional differentiation of GABAergic synapses between these two inhibitory sites. J. Comp. Neurol. 395:177–194, 1998. © 1998 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.