Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Improved Sensitivity of Lyme disease Western Blots Prepared with a Mixture of Borrelia burgdorferi Strains 297 and B31

Testing for Borrelia burgdorferi (BB), the spirochetal agent of Lyme disease, is problematic due to poor sensitivity of commercially available serological tests. We evaluated an in-house Western Blot (WB) prepared with a mixture of two strains of BB, B31 and 297. Sensitivity and specificity of IgG and IgM testing using the two-strain WB was compared to testing with a commercial single-strain WB, and interpretation of the in-house WB using in-house criteria was compared to interpretation using criteria recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A total of 364 control and patient sera (including 88 from treated patients with confirmed Lyme disease) were tested. The sensitivity of the combined IgG and IgM commercial WB using CDC criteria was 77.1%. When the in-house IgG and IgM WB and CDC criteria were used, the combined sensitivity improved to 88.6%, while use of the in-house IgG and IgM WB and in-house interpretation criteria resulted in a combined sensitivity that increased to 97.1%. Using CDC criteria, the specificity of the in-house IgG and IgM WB was 100% and 97.1%, respectively; using in-house criteria; the specificity was 95.3% and 93.1% respectively. By removal of patients who reacted to band 31kDa but tested negative for antibodies to recombinant OspA antigen, in-house IgG and IgM WB specificity increased to >97%. Based on these results, we conclude that the use of the two-strain IgG and IgM WB and in-house interpretation criteria significantly increased the combined sensitivity of the test without significant loss of specificity. In patients with indeterminate WB results, a confirmation test with recombinant OspA is recommended.
Kinetics, subcellular localization, and contribution to parasite virulence of a Trypanosoma cruzi hybrid type A heme peroxidase (TcAPx-CcP)

Significance Trypanosoma cruzi, the causative agent of Chagas disease, affects 8–10 million people in Latin America. Parasite antioxidant systems are essential for parasite survival and infectivity in the vertebrate host. Herein, we characterized the enzymic properties, subcellular localization, and contribution to parasite virulence of a T. cruzi hybrid type A member of class I heme peroxidases. The enzyme reacts fast with hydrogen peroxide and utilizes both ferrocytochrome c and ascorbate as reducing substrates [T. cruzi ascorbate peroxidase (TcAPx)-cytochrome c peroxidase (CcP)]. A unique subcellular distribution of TcAPx-CcP in the infective stages suggests a role during parasite–host interactions. Infection of macrophages and cardiomyocytes, as well as in mice, confirmed the involvement of TcAPx-CcP in pathogen virulence as part of the parasite antioxidant armamentarium. The Trypanosoma cruzi ascorbate peroxidase is, by sequence analysis, a hybrid type A member of class I heme peroxidases [TcAPx-cytochrome c peroxidase (CcP)], suggesting both ascorbate (Asc) and cytochrome c (Cc) peroxidase activity. Here, we show that the enzyme reacts fast with H2O2 (k = 2.9 × 107 M−1⋅s−1) and catalytically decomposes H2O2 using Cc as the reducing substrate with higher efficiency than Asc (kcat/Km = 2.1 × 105 versus 3.5 × 104 M−1⋅s−1, respectively). Visible-absorption spectra of purified recombinant TcAPx-CcP after H2O2 reaction denote the formation of a compound I-like product, characteristic of the generation of a tryptophanyl radical-cation (Trp233•+). Mutation of Trp233 to phenylalanine (W233F) completely abolishes the Cc-dependent peroxidase activity. In addition to Trp233•+, a Cys222-derived radical was identified by electron paramagnetic resonance spin trapping, immunospin trapping, and MS analysis after equimolar H2O2 addition, supporting an alternative electron transfer (ET) pathway from the heme. Molecular dynamics studies revealed that ET between Trp233 and Cys222 is possible and likely to participate in the catalytic cycle. Recognizing the ability of TcAPx-CcP to use alternative reducing substrates, we searched for its subcellular localization in the infective parasite stages (intracellular amastigotes and extracellular trypomastigotes). TcAPx-CcP was found closely associated with mitochondrial membranes and, most interestingly, with the outer leaflet of the plasma membrane, suggesting a role at the host–parasite interface. TcAPx-CcP overexpressers were significantly more infective to macrophages and cardiomyocytes, as well as in the mouse model of Chagas disease, supporting the involvement of TcAPx-CcP in pathogen virulence as part of the parasite antioxidant armamentarium.
Internal model control for a class of uncertain time-delay systems

Robust stability synthesis of a class of uncertain parameter-varying first-order time-delay systems is presented in this paper. Internal model principle is used to design a robust control using ℋ∞ small-gain theorem. The closed-loop system robustness is investigated against bounded variation of the parameters and sensitivity analysis is performed to determine the stability conditions and provide a systematic framework to derive an explicit delay-dependent stability bound for the tuning parameter. The tuning parameter is further refined through performance analysis incorporating the complementary sensitivity function. Finally, the closed-loop response of a typical delay system is demonstrated for various operating conditions and parameters variations.
Market orientation and corporate performance: The mediated effect of marketing capability

Market orientation is regarded as one of the executive tools of marketing concept, and having been one of the most important research topics in academia, including its antecedents and consequences and the relationship between market orientation and corporate performance. The existing theories are not unanimous about the impact of market orientation on corporate performance. The underlying causation lies on the relationship between market orientation and corporate performance is not direct, but some mediums are in existent. This paper focuses on the mediated effect of marketing capability on the relationship between Market orientation and corporate performance, constructing a mediated model and testing it empirically based on Chinese companies. According to the conclusions, we indicate that companies must actively transform their market orientations into marketing capabilities effectively, so as to gain excellent performances and persistent competitive advantages.
Diurnal change in trees as observed by optical and microwave sensors: the EOS synergism study

The EOS Synergism Study examined the temporal variability of the optical reflectance and microwave backscatter due to diurnal change in canopy properties of interest to eco- system modelers. The experiment was designed specifically to address diurnal changes in canopy water status (including water potential and content) that relate to transpiration. Multispectral optical and multifrequency, multipolarization microwave measurements were acquired using boom-truck- based systems over a 2-week period in August 1987. Sensor and canopy properties were collected around the clock. The canopy under study was a walnut orchard in the San Joaquin Valley of California. The results demonstrate large diurnal variations in the di- electric properties of the tree (the stem, or bole, specifically) that in turn produce significant diurnal changes in the micro- wave backscatter. The change in dielectric constant is related to the diural change in water potential, although the specific physical or physiological relationship has not yet been estab- lished. A diurnal change in optical reflectance could be attrib- uted primarily to sun angle-view angle change. Although some changes in canopy spectral properties were also observed, these could not be distinguished from edge effects of the canopy. The results suggest that permanently orbiting spaceborne sensors such as those on EOS should be placed in orbits that are optimized for the individual sensor and need not be tied together by a tight simultaneity requirement on the order of minutes to hours for the purpose of monitoring ecosystem properties. Microwave sensors, although able to image day or night, are sensitive to the diurnal pattern of change in vegeta- tion canopies and, therefore, should be in sun synchronous or- bits with a node crossing time selected to optimize sensitivity to the diurnal patterns (4-6 p.m. for this canopy and season). Furthermore, comparison of the long-term spaceborne syn- thetic aperture radar (SAR) data sets collected with SAR in different equator crossing time orbits must consider potential diurnal variation in the surface properties and the effects on the backscatter. Optical reflectance is affected more by sun-an- glehiew angle variations than a diurnal change in canopy water properties. Therefore, based on the results of this study, opti- cal sensors should be placed in orbits which minimize the influ- ence of clouds on terrestrial data acquisition.
Electronic structure calculations at macroscopic scales using orbital-free DFT

Recently proposed Quasi-Continuum Orbital Free Density Functional Theory (QC-OFDFT) is a seamless multi-scale scheme that has enabled the computation of electronic structure at macroscopic scales, and has paved the way for an accurate electronic structure study of defects in materials. It combines a real-space formulation of OFDFT with a finite-element discretization that is amenable to coarse-graining. The initial development of QC-OFDFT, for the purpose of demonstration, used Thomas-Fermi-Weizsacker family of kinetic energy functionals. However, more accurate kinetic energy functionals have been proposed in the form of kernel energies that are non-local in real-space. In the first part of this talk, we will present the development of a local variational formulation for these kernel energies through a system of coupled Helmholtz equations. We incorporate these kernel energies into the quasi-continuum framework and investigate the convergence of the method with respect to coarse-graining and cell-size through studies on mono-vacancy and di-vacancies in aluminum. Our results show remarkable cell-size effects in the energetics of vacancies, and suggest much larger computational domains than those considered previously are necessary in electronic structure studies on defects. We further discuss the behavior of vacancies, in their dilute limit, from electronic structure calculations. In the second part of the talk, we will present a mathematical analysis of QC-OFDFT. In particular, by using perturbation method and multiple scale analysis, we provide a formal justification for the validity of the coarsegraining of electronic fields, which is central to the quasicontinuum reduction of OFDFT. Further, we derive the homogenized equations that govern the behavior of electronic fields in regions of smooth deformations. Using Fourier analysis, we determine the far-field solutions for these fields in the presence of local defects, and subsequently estimate cell-size effects in computed defect energies.
Immunoglobulin treatment in refractory myasthenia gravis

Failure to induce and maintain remission in severe exacerbations of myasthenia gravis (MG), despite optimal care, is a common problem. We evaluated the efficacy and safety of high‐dose intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIg) therapy in an open‐label study of 10 patients with severe generalized myasthenia and an acute deterioration unresponsive to conventional therapy including high‐dose corticosteroids, cyclosporine, and azathioprine. Intravenous Ig at a loading dose of 400 mg/kg was administered daily for 5 consecutive days, with maintenance IVIg treatment at a dose of 400 mg/kg, once every 6 weeks. Significant improvement occurred in all patients, beginning at 6 ± 2 days of treatment as measured by the Osserman scale, fatigue variables, muscle strength, and respiratory function tests. No side effects were observed during induction of remission. Further IVIg treatments were highly efficacious in maintaining the remission. The severity of the disease decreased by 2.5 ± 0.8 grades of the Osserman scale over a period of 1 year (P <0.001), in parallel with reduction of immunosuppressive therapy as well as a decrease in acetylcholine receptor antibody titers (P < 0.01). Intravenous Ig therapy seems to be highly potent for inducing rapid improvement in refractory myasthenia during acute deterioration as well as for maintaining remission. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Muscle Nerve 23: 551–555, 2000.
A broadband circular microstrip antenna with two pairs of slots

A novel broadband circular microstrip antenna with two pairs of slots is proposed in this paper. Due to the two pairs of embedded slots in the circular patch, two resonant modes of similar radiation characteristics are found to be excited. The two closely excited resonant modes can cause the enhancement of the impedance bandwidth of the proposed circular microstrip antenna. The proposed antenna design and obtained broadband performance are presented. The measured bandwidth of 15.2% is achieved with small sizes, and the good radiation characteristic for operating frequencies within the impedance bandwidth is also observed.
Oral Infections and Cytokine Levels in Patients with Alzheimer's Disease and Mild Cognitive Impairment Compared with Controls.

BACKGROUND Oral infections are prevalent in the adult population. Their impact includes the implication as a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD), altering its progression. One of the potential mechanisms involves immune mediators such as circulating cytokines. OBJECTIVE The goal of the present study was to investigate the prevalence of oral infections and blood levels of IL-1β, TNF-α, and IL-6 in patients with AD, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and controls. METHODS Sixty-five elderly were evaluated (25 AD, 19 MCI, and 21 controls) by the following methods: Mini Mental State Exam, Questionnaire of Functional Activities, periodontal and oral evaluation, and blood concentrations of IL-1β, TNF-α and IL-6. RESULTS Patients with AD had high serum IL-6 levels (p = 0.029), and patients with periodontitis had high serum TNF-α levels (p = 0.005). There was an association between IL-6 and TNF-α in patients with AD/MCI and periodontitis (p = 0.023). CONCLUSION The increased levels of TNF-α and IL-6 in this study suggests their implication in the overlapping mechanisms between oral infections and AD. Longitudinal studies are necessary for further investigation.
A comparison of magnetic resonance imaging and cardiac biopsy in the evaluation of heart iron overload in patients with β‐thalassemia major

Abstract: Objectives: To apply magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for the assessment of myocardial iron deposition in patients with β‐thalassemia and compare the results with cardiac biopsy data. Background: Myocardial iron accumulation is the main cause for cardiac complications in β‐thalassemia. Methods: Twenty‐five consecutive thalassemic patients were studied using a 0.5‐T (Tesla) system, ECG‐gated, with echo time (TE) = 17–68 ms. T2 relaxation time of the interventricular septum was calculated assuming simple monoexponential decay. A heart T2 relaxation time value of 32 ms was used for the discrimination between high and low iron deposition. Heart biopsy was performed within a week after the MRI study. Patients with stainable iron in more than 50% of the myofibrils were graded as having severe iron deposition. A serum ferritin level below 2000 ng/mL was considered as an indication of successful chelation. Results: Seven of the 25 patients had heart biopsy indicative of low iron deposition (Group L) and the remaining 18 patients had heart biopsy indicative of high iron deposition (Group H). T2 relaxation time of the heart (T2H) was lower in Group H compared to Group L (31.5 ± 3.9 (range: 28–40) ms vs. 35.7 ± 3.7 (range: 29–40) ms, P = 0.026). The T2H was in agreement with heart biopsy in 86% of the patients in Group L and in 78% of the patients in Group H (overall agreement 80%). Similarly, serum ferritin levels were in agreement with heart biopsy in 28% and 88%, respectively (overall agreement 72%). In Group L, MRI was in better agreement with biopsy compared to serum ferritin (86% vs. 28%, P < 0.05). A receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC) analysis confirmed that a T2 relaxation time of 32 ms had the highest discriminating ability for the corresponding biopsy outcome. Conclusions: Heart T2 relaxation time appears in agreement with cardiac biopsy, both in high and low iron deposition, and may become a useful non‐invasive index in β‐thalassemia.
Fuzzy logic based pattern recognition technique for non-intrusive load monitoring

This paper introduces a new algorithm for detecting the type of domestic (household) electrical load coming onto the power system and the duration for which it persists on the system. It is based on the fuzzy logic theory for pattern recognition. It is a completely non-intrusive type of load monitoring system. The algorithm is simpler in implementation. The period of operation of a device can also be calculated by taking the difference of the instants at which its starting and stopping transients occur. Knowing this, the energy consumed by a device can be calculated.
Th Cell-Deficient Mice Control Influenza Virus Infection More Effectively Than Th- and B Cell-Deficient Mice: Evidence for a Th-Independent Contribution by B Cells to Virus Clearance1

The notion that MHC class I- restricted CD8+ T (Tc) cells are capable of resolving autonomously infections with influenza virus is based largely on studies testing virus strains of low pathogenicity in CD4+ T (Th) cell-deficient/depleted mice. To test whether this holds also for pathogenic strains and to exclude possible contributions by B cells, we analyzed PR8 infection in Th cell-depleted B cell-deficient (μMT) mice. These mice, termed μMT (−CD4), showed 80% mortality after infection with a small dose of PR8, which resulted in insignificant mortality in intact or Th cell-depleted BALB/c mice. Infection of μMT(−CD4) mice with a virus of low pathogenicity was resolved without mortality, but, compared with intact BALB/c mice, with delay of ∼5 and ∼20 days from lung and nose, respectively. The low mortality of Th cell-depleted BALB/c mice suggested that B cells contributed to recovery in a Th-independent manner. This was verified by showing that transfer of 8–10 million T cell-depleted naive spleen cells into μMT(−CD4) mice 1 day before infection reduced mortality to 0%. The mechanism by which B cells improved recovery was investigated. We found no evidence that they operated by improving the lung-associated Tc response. Treatment of infected μMT(−CD4) mice with normal mouse serum spiked with hemagglutinin-specific IgM did not reduce mortality. Taken together, the data show that 1) the Tc response is capable of resolving autonomously (in conjunction with innate defenses) influenza virus infections, although with substantial delay compared with intact mice, and 2) B cells can contribute to recovery by a Th-independent mechanism.
Vein-on-a-chip: A Microfluidic Platform for Functional Assessments and Staining of Intact Veins

The ability to perform systematic studies on vein function and structure is of key importance for understanding many vascular diseases and the underlying mechanisms governing transport of cells and macromolecules through the blood vessel wall, both of which are beneficial for drug discovery. Available experimental methods are limited by poor optical access and limited microenvironmental control for in vivo studies, and a partial representation of blood vessel structure in the case of in vitro approaches. In this thesis, I present a microfluidic platform for the in vitro investigation of intact mouse mesenteric vein segment (200-300 μm diameter and 1.5-2 mm length) function under near-physiological conditions. The lumen of the pressurized vein segments are stained on-chip for CD31 to highlight the capacity of our platform for in-situ immunofluorescence staining without the otherwise required tissue processing and sectioning. The selected approach is automatable and reduces the time and staining solution consumption by an order of magnitude compared to traditional methods.
Isolation, Identification, and Characterization of a Feather-Degrading Bacterium

A feather-degrading culture was enriched with isolates from a poultry waste digestor and adapted to grow with feathers as its primary source of carbon, sulfur, and energy. Subsequently, a feather-hydrolytic, endospore-forming, motile, rod-shaped bacterium was isolated from the feather-degrading culture. The organism was Gram stain variable and catalase positive and demonstrated facultative growth at thermophilic temperatures. The optimum rate of growth in nutrient broth occurred at 45 to 50°C and at pH 7.5. Electron microscopy of the isolate showed internal crystals. The microorganism was identified as Bacillus licheniformis PWD-1. Growth on hammer-milled-feather medium of various substrate concentrations was determined by plate colony count. Maximum growth (approximately 109 cells per ml) at 50°C occurred 5 days postinoculation on 1% feather substrate. Feather hydrolysis was evidenced as free amino acids produced in the medium. The most efficient conditions for feather fermentation occurred during the incubation of 1 part feathers to 2 parts B. licheniformis PWD-1 culture (107 cells per ml) for 6 days at 50°C. These data indicate a potential biotechnique for degradation and utilization of feather keratin.
Raman scattering governed by dark resonant modes in silicon nanoparticles

Analyzing the modal content of resonant nanostructures using optical methods often becomes a sophisticated problem because of hidden dark resonances, which are uncoupled with far-field modes. The common methods of dark modes spectroscopy base on electron beam systems, such as cathodo-luminescence and, thus, are not very convenient in use. We suggest utilizing Raman spectroscopy to reveal the full modal structure of nanoresonators. The suggested approach is tested on silicon nanoparticles placed on top of gold substrate. It allows detecting magnetic quadrupole modes, which are hard to observe with common dark-field spectroscopy. The experimental results are verified with numerical simulations.
The Knockout Switch: A Simple, Modular Architecture for High-Performance Packet Switching

A new, high-performance packet-switching architecture, called the Knockout Switch, is proposed. The Knockout Switch uses a fully interconnected switch fabric topology (i.e., each input has a direct path to every output) so that no switch blocking occurs where packets destined for one output interfere with (i.e., block or delay) packets going to different Outputs. It is only at each output of the switch that one encounters the unavoidable congestion caused by multiple packets simultaneously arriving on different inputs all destined for the same output. Taking advantage of the inevitability of lost packets in a packet-switching network, the Knockout Switch uses a novel concentrator design at each output to reduce the number of separate buffers needed to receive simultaneously arriving packets. Following the concentrator, a shared buffer architecture provides complete sharing of all buffer memory at each output and ensures that all packets are placed on the output line on a first-in first-out basis. The Knockout Switch architecture has low latency, and is self-routing and nonblocking. Moreover, its Simple interconnection topology allows for easy modular growth along with minimal disruption and easy repair for any fault. Possible applications include interconnects for multiprocessing systems, high-speed local and metropolitan area networks, and local or toll switches for integrated traffic loads.