Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
VOLUME RECONSTRUCTION OF BREAST ECHOGRAPHY FROM ANISOTROPICALLY DEGRADATED SCANS

This paper presents a technique to reconstruct 3D breast ultrasound images at high resolution from anisotropically degradated volume acquisitions. Volumes are acquired by scanning the breast tissue with a 2D probe at different angles, showing different directional degradations induced by the point spread functions. We present a new technique to reconstruct the original volume based on estimating the spatial degradation from orthogonal views, and reconstructing the original volume through a regularized optimization technique. Results on synthetic and i vivo data show a better performance of this method in comparison to other spatial compounding techniques.
Classification of traffic signs using artificial neural networks

A traffic sign classification method based on artificial neural network is proposed in this paper. The proposed method for classifying traffic signs first detects traffic signs by using on the property of color probability model and then classifies the detected traffic signals. In both of detection and classification processes, two artificial neural network models are utilized. Experiments on practical image data sets show that the proposed method can detect and classify traffic signs with favorable accuracy.
Symmetry breaking and preliminary results about a Hopf bifurcation for incompressible viscous flow in an expansion channel

This computational study shows, for the first time, a clear transition to two-dimensional Hopf bifurcation for laminar incompressible flows in symmetric plane expansion channels. Due to the well-known extreme sensitivity of this study on computational mesh, the critical Reynolds numbers for both the known symmetry-breaking (pitchfork) bifurcation and Hopf bifurcation were investigated for several layers of mesh refinement. It is found that under-refined meshes lead to an overestimation of the critical Reynolds number for the symmetry breaking and an underestimation of the critical Reynolds number for the Hopf bifurcation.
EVOLUTION IN HAWAIIAN DROSOPHILIDAE : CHROMOSOMAL PHYLOGENY OF THE DROSOPHILA CRASSIFEMUR COMPLEX

The family Drosophilidae is most remarkably developed in the Hawaiian Islands, and represents one of the most unusual faunas in the world. About one-fourth of the described species of Drosophila and one half of those of the genus Scaptomyza are endemic to the Hawaiian archipelago (Wheeler and Hamilton, 1972). Although these genera are distinctly separated wherever they occur in mainland populations, they intergrade in Hawaiian populations (Hardy, in Carson, et al., 1970). The Drosophila crassijemur species complex is of special interest since it is intermediate between Drosophila and Scaptomyza. Thus, the D. crassijemur species complex was placed in the subgenus Engiscaptomyza by Kaneshiro (1969) on the basis of its typical Scaptomyza-like internal morphology, egg characteristics (Throckmorton, 1966), mating behavior (Spieth, 1966) , and metaphase karyotypes (Clayton, 1966, 1968), but left in the genus Drosophila on the basis of external morphology; there are distinct differences in male genitalia (Takada, 1966; Kaneshiro, 1969). Each of the four described "sibling" species of the D. crassijemur complex is endemic to one of the major islands of the Hawaiian archipelago. D. amplilobus Hardy is found on Kauai (Hardy, 1966); D. in/latus Kaneshiro is found on Oahu (Kaneshiro, 1969); D. crassiiemur Grimshaw is on the Maui complex (Hardy, 1965, 1966) , and D. reducta Hardy is known only from the island of Hawaii (Hardy, 1965).
Altered intracellular targeting properties associated with mutations in the Legionella pneumophila dotA gene

Legionella pneumophila dot mutations cause defects in intracellular targeting of the microorganism within cultured macrophages. Each of the previously characterized dot mutations was shown to be complemented by a single open reading frame designated dotA. The defects caused by the mutations appear to be due to disrupted function of the predicted 1048‐amino‐acid residue DotA protein, and not by polarity effects on a downstream gene. Complementation studies indicated that the product of the dotA53 mutation results in a partially functional DotA protein, consistent with a stable N‐terminal fragment having biological activity.
Roles of Pseudomonas aeruginosa las and rhl quorum-sensing systems in control of elastase and rhamnolipid biosynthesis genes

Two quorum-sensing systems (las and rhl) regulate virulence gene expression in Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The las system consists of a transcriptional activator, LasR, and LasI, which directs the synthesis of the autoinducer N-(3-oxododecanoyl) homoserine lactone (PAI-1). Induction of lasB (encoding elastase) and other virulence genes requires LasR and PAI-1. The rhl system consists of a putative transcriptional activator, RhlR, and RhlI, which directs the synthesis of N-butyryl homoserine lactone (PAI-2). Rhamnolipid production in P. aeruginosa has been reported to require both the rhl system and rhlAB (encoding a rhamnosyltransferase). Here we report the generation of a delta lasI mutant and both delta lasI delta rhlI and delta lasR rhlR::Tn501 double mutants of strain PAO1. Rhamnolipid production and elastolysis were reduced in the delta lasI single mutant and abolished in the double-mutant strains. rhlAB mRNA was not detected in these strains at mid-logarithmic phase but was abundant in the parental strain. Further RNA analysis of the wild-type strain revealed that rhlAB is organized as an operon. The rhlAB transcriptional start was mapped, and putative sigma 54 and sigma 70 promoters were identified upstream. To define components required for rhlAB expression, we developed a bioassay in Escherichia coli and demonstrated that PAI-2 and RhlR are required and sufficient for expression of rhlA. To characterize the putative interaction between PAI-2 and RhlR, we demonstrated that [3H]PAI-2 binds to E. coli cells expressing RhlR and not to those expressing LasR. Finally, the specificity of the las and rhl systems was examined in E. coli bioassays. The las system was capable of mildly activating rhlA, and similarly, the rhl system partly activated lasB. However; these effects were much less than the activation of rhlA by the rhl system and lasB by the las system. The results presented here further characterize the roles of the rhl and las quorum-sensing systems in virulence gene expression.
Nutritional stimulation of commensal oral bacteria suppresses pathogens: the prebiotic concept

AIM To identify potential oral prebiotics that selectively stimulate commensal, albeit beneficial bacteria of the resident oral microbial community while suppressing the growth of pathogenic bacteria. MATERIAL AND METHODS Using Phenotype MicroArrays as a high-throughput method, the change in respiratory activity of 16 oral bacteria in response to 742 nutritional compounds was screened. Most promising prebiotic compounds were selected and applied in single species growth and biofilm formation assays, as well as dual species (beneficial-pathogen) competition assays. RESULTS Increased respiratory activity could not always be related to an increase in growth or biofilm formation. Six compounds were used in dual species competition assays to directly monitor if selective nutritional stimulation of the beneficial bacterium results in the suppression of the pathogenic bacterium. Two compounds, beta-methyl-d-galactoside and N-acetyl-d-mannosamine, could be identified as potential oral prebiotic compounds, triggering selectively beneficial oral bacteria throughout the experiments and shifting dual species biofilm communities towards a beneficial dominating composition at in vitro level. CONCLUSION Our observations support the hypothesis that nutritional stimulation of beneficial bacteria by prebiotics could be used to restore the microbial balance in the oral cavity and by this promote oral health.
Acculturation and its association with health-risk behaviors in a rural Latina population.

PURPOSE To evaluate the performance of proxy measures of acculturation and to examine the association between acculturation and selected health-risk behaviors. METHODS Participants were 1062 Latina pregnant women who received prenatal care at clinics in San Joaquin County, California between 1999 and 2001. We used the receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve to characterize the sensitivity and specificity of proxy measures and regression analysis to examine health-risk behaviors. RESULTS Using the ARSMA-II short version scale as a reference, age at immigration had the highest percentage of correctly classified individuals. Acculturation was significantly associated with a lifetime history of substance use, risky sexual behavior, low fruit consumption, and high fast-food meal consumption. CONCLUSIONS Acculturation is an important predictor of health-risk behavior among women. Further research is needed to better understand the phenomenon and to avert associated adverse health consequences.
Childhood Sexual Abuse and Depressive Symptom Severity: The Role of Neuroticism

This study examined neuroticism's role in the association between childhood sexual abuse and severity of depressive symptoms in a sample of 105 psychiatric patients 50 years of age and older diagnosed with major depressive disorder. As hypothesized, men and women who reported histories of childhood sexual abuse had more severe depressive symptoms than those without abuse histories. Further, neuroticism partially accounted for the association between severe childhood sexual abuse and depressive symptom severity. Self-consciousness, a facet of neuroticism conceptually related to shame, also partially accounted for that relationship. These findings suggest that neuroticism may be one way in which childhood sexual abuse contributes to depressive symptoms in later life. Prospective studies are needed.
Room categorization using local receptive fields-based extreme learning machine

For indoor mobile robots, the ability to identify different scenes correctly is an important condition for them to complete a variety of tasks. In this paper, we propose a method which is based on range measurements to solve the problem of room categorization for mobile robots using Local Receptive Fields Based Extreme Learning Machine. We download the DR Dataset which was gathered by a Pioneer P3-DX robot equipped with a Hokuyo URG laser range-finder and extract the range data characteristics in three different ways. Finally, six different types of experiments are carried out in two different scenarios, and the results show the effectiveness of the method in different scenarios.
Human Vascular Endothelial Cells Stimulate a Lower Frequency of Alloreactive CD8+ Pre-CTL and Induce Less Clonal Expansion than Matching B Lymphoblastoid Cells: Development of a Novel Limiting Dilution Analysis Method Based on CFSE Labeling of Lymphocytes1

We have previously shown that human endothelial cells (EC) are less efficient than professional APC, e.g., B lymphoblastoid cells (BLC), at stimulating allogeneic CD8+ T cells to develop into CTL. In this study we describe FACS-based limiting dilution analyses using the dilution of the intracellular dye CFSE as an indicator of CD8+ T cell alloactivation and expansion with significantly increased sensitivity compared with conventional, cytotoxicity-based assays. In addition, this assay permits the relative size of clonal CTL populations that are generated in individual CD8+ T cell cultures to be determined (clonal burst size). We have applied this method to quantitatively compare the generation of CTL at the clonal level following stimulation of allogeneic CD8+ T cells by either BLC or HUVEC derived from the same donor. CD8+ T cells expanded by allostimulation were identified as CD8+, CFSElow cells and were categorized as CTL by the expression of intracellular perforin and IFN-γ. Precursor frequencies for EC-stimulated CTL were 5- to 40-fold (mean, 7.5-fold) lower compared with BLC-stimulated CTL (p < 0.01). Concomitantly, the average clonal burst sizes in EC-stimulated CTL cultures were significantly smaller than those in conventional CTL cultures, primarily due to the occurrence of some very large clone sizes exclusively with BLC stimulation. Although EC-stimulated CTL were generated only from the memory subset of CD8+ T cells, BLC-stimulated very large burst sizes of CTL were observed from both naive and memory CD8+ T cell precursors. These data establish that both a lower frequency of reactive precursors and more limited clonal expansion, but not regulatory T cells, contribute to the reduced capacity of EC to promote alloreactive CTL differentiation compared with that of professional APC.
Feasibility of gaming console exercise and its effect on endurance, gait and balance in people with an acquired brain injury

Abstract Objective: To determine feasibility of gaming console exercise and its effect on endurance, gait and balance in people following acquired brain injury (ABI). Method: Twenty-one people following ABI were recruited to an 8-week randomized cross-over trial where 4 weeks of gaming console exercise in addition to usual therapy and 4 weeks of usual therapy alone were received. Feasibility measures included compliance, session duration and adverse events. Measures included endurance measured using a 6-minute walk test, spatiotemporal gait parameters (GAITRite) and balance using Balance Outcome Measure for Elder Rehabilitation (BOOMER). Motivation was measured using the Change Assessment Questionnaire. Results: Compliance with gaming console exercise was high (99%), the majority of sessions reached duration target (82%) and there were no adverse events. There were small, though non-significant increases in 6-minute walk distance (18 metres, 95% CI = −33 to 69), gait speed (0.11 m s−1, 95% CI = −0.18 to 0.29) and balance compared to after usual therapy after gaming console exercise. Conclusions: Gaming console exercise appears feasible in people with ABI. Four weeks of gaming console exercise in addition to usual therapy appears to result in similar improvements in endurance, gait and balance compared to usual therapy alone and may enhance active engagement in therapy.
New ESC/ESA Guidelines on non-cardiac surgery: cardiovascular assessment and management.

During the last 16 months, a Task Force established by the Guideline Committees of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) and European Society of Anaesthesiology (ESA) has been working on a new Guideline document on cardiovascular assessment and management of patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery. The clinical scenario is common and the optimal management strategy for these patients is discussed by cardiologists, anaesthesiologists, surgeons, and other doctors and health personnel in our daily practice. The field is wide and complex, and is evolving with many new developments. The ESC decided in December 2012 to write a new Guideline on perioperative care, and established, together with the ESA, a new task force of experts co-chaired by Professor Steen D. Kristensen, Aarhus, Denmark ( Figure 1 ) and Professor Juhani Knuuti, Turku, Finland ( Figure 2 ). Figure 1 Professor Steen D. Kristensen. Figure 2 Professor Juhani Knuuti. The Guideline will cover the entire field including surgical risk assessment, pre-operative evaluation, and optimal perioperative management, and will also address relevant cardiological and anaesthesiological issues in patients with specific cardiac diseases and common co-morbidities scheduled to undergo non-cardiac surgery. The goal is to provide optimal guidance in the clinical decision-making process for patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery. Key areas with …
Bacteriophage WO‐B and Wolbachia in natural mosquito hosts: infection incidence, transmission mode and relative density

Bacteriophages of Wolbachia bacteria have been proposed as a potential transformation tool for genetically modifying mosquito vectors. In this study, we report the presence of the WO‐B class of Wolbachia‐associated phages among natural populations of several mosquito hosts. Eighty‐eight percent (22/25) of Wolbachia‐infected mosquito species surveyed were found to contain WO‐B phages. WO‐B phage orf7 sequence analysis suggested that a single strain of WO‐B phage was found in most singly (23/24) or doubly (1/1) Wolbachia‐infected mosquitoes. However, the single Wolbachia strain infecting Aedes perplexus was found to harbour at least two different WO‐B phages. Phylogenetic analysis suggested that horizontal transmission of WO‐B phages has occurred on an evolutionary scale between the Wolbachia residing in mosquitoes. On an ecological scale, a low trend of co‐transmission occurred among specific WO‐B phages within Wolbachia of each mosquito species. Assessment of the density of WO‐B phage by real‐time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RTQ‐PCR) revealed an average relative density of 7.76 × 105± 1.61 × 105 orf7 copies per individual mosquito for a single Wolbachia strain infecting mosquitoes, but a threefold higher density in the doubly Wolbachia‐infected Aedes albopictus. However, the average combined density of WO‐B phage(s) did not correlate with that of their Wolbachia hosts, which varied in different mosquito species. We also confirmed the presence of WO‐B‐like virus particles in the laboratory colony of Ae. albopictus (KLPP) morphologically, by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The viral‐like particles were detected after purification and filtration of Ae. albopictus ovary extract, suggesting that at least one WO‐B‐like phage is active (temperate) within the Wolbachia of this mosquito vector. Nevertheless, the idea of utilizing these bacteriophages as transformation vectors still needs more investigation and is likely to be unfeasible.
Race/ethnicity and other risk of factors associated with cryptosporidiosis as an initial AIDS-defining condition in California, 1980–99

To study whether African-Americans are less likely than whites to present with cryptosporidiosis as an AIDS-defining condition (ADC), a case-control study was conducted using a large, population-based surveillance registry of AIDS patients in California. Data from January 1980 through June 1999 were analysed using risk factor stratification and multivariate logistic regression to evaluate confounding by other risk factors such as gender, injection drug use (IDU), CD4 counts, age and sexual orientation. Cases included 1373 subjects with cryptosporidiosis as an ADC and controls included 97419 subjects with other ADC. The results indicate a significantly lower risk for presentation with cryptosporidiosis as an ADC among African-Americans compared with whites (OR vs. whites = 0·5, 95% CI 0·4, 0·7). Additionally, there is evidence that heterosexuals are less likely than homosexual/bisexual males to present with cryptosporidiosis (OR = 0·5, 95% CI 0·4, 0·7). Our analyses also suggest a decreasing risk with increasing age. The possibility that there may be biologic factors or differential lifetime exposures that account for the difference between the racial/ethnic groups merits further investigation.
A germanium NMOSFET process integrating metal gate and improved hi-/spl kappa/ dielectrics

A simple and novel self-aligned gate-last MOS process integrating metal gates and high-k dielectrics on Ge has been demonstrated. Improved surface passivation for excellent gate dielectric and field isolation, and n-type dopant incorporation with high surface concentration and shallow junctions has been developed. Conventional VLSI type Ge n-MOSFETs have been fabricated.
Promoting Science Literacy through an Interdisciplinary Approach.

Recognition of the value of a scientifically literate citizenry has driven American science education reform since the 1950s. We have seen some improvement in the comprehension of science facts in the past 10-20 years, but far less improvement in Americans’ understanding of the nature of science. College science courses are ideal venues for promoting science literacy. However, in an effort to condense a complicated subject into a single semester, the nature of science is often lost amidst the facts presented in a freshman survey course, often the entirety of a non-science major’s experience in science. We argue that an interdisciplinary approach that integrates the sciences and the humanities can attract non-science majors, increasing these students' exposure to scientific concepts by relating them to students' existing interests and knowledge. This fosters science literacy by teaching students that science is a process of human inquiry with a distinct methodology, instead of simply a litany of facts. We recommend that a successful interdisciplinary course should present an engaging topic with which students can identify, incorporate opportunities for student research, and offer site visits to working laboratories.
A Random Walk Approach to Query Informative Constraints for Clustering

This paper presents a random walk approach to the problem of querying informative constraints for clustering. The proposed method is based on the properties of the commute time, that is the expected time taken for a random walk to travel between two nodes and return, on the adjacency graph of data. Commute time has the nice property of that, the more short paths connect two given nodes in a graph, the more similar those nodes are. Since computing the commute time takes the Laplacian eigenspectrum into account, we use this property in a recursive fashion to query informative constraints for clustering. At each recursion, the proposed method constructs the adjacency graph of data and utilizes the spectral properties of the commute time matrix to bipartition the adjacency graph. Thereafter, the proposed method benefits from the commute times distance on graph to query informative constraints between partitions. This process iterates for each partition until the stop condition becomes true. Experiments on real-world data show the efficiency of the proposed method for constraints selection.
Nucleotide sequence of Xenopus homeobox gene, En-1.

engrailed is a homeobox gene which is involved in segmentation and neurogenesis of embryos (1). Higher organisms contain two engrailed class genes, En-] and En-2, both of which encode the homeodomain consisting of 60 amino acids near the C-terminal region (2). In Xenopus, one of the engrailed class genes, En-2, has been characterized (3). However, no complete sequences of En-i including the homeodomain have been described so far. a we the sequence of conserved motifs adjacent
MS lesion segmentation using a multi-channel patch-based approach with spatial consistency

This paper presents an automatic method for segmentation of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) in Magnetic Resonance Images (MRI) of the brain. The approach is based on similarities between multi-channel patches (T1, T2 and FLAIR). An MS lesion patch database is built using training images for which the label maps are known. For each patch in the testing image, k similar patches are retrieved from the database. The matching labels for these k patches are then combined to produce an initial segmentation map for the test case. Finally a novel iterative patch-based label refinement process based on the initial segmentation map is performed to ensure spatial consistency of the detected lesions. A leave-one-out evaluation is done for each testing image in the MS lesion segmentation challenge of MICCAI 2008. Results are shown to compete with the state-of-the-art methods on the MICCAI 2008 challenge.