Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Stylometric Anonymity: Is Imitation the Best Strategy?

Stylometry analysis of given electronic texts can allow for the extraction of information about their authors by analyzing the stylistic choices the authors make to write their texts. Such extracted information could be the identity of suspect authors or their profile attributes such as their gender, age group, ethnicity group, etc. Therefore, when preserving the anonymity of an author is critical, such as that of a whistle blower, it is important to ensure the stylistic anonymity of the conveyed text itself in addition to anonymizing communication channels (e.g. Tor, or the minimization of application fingerprints). Currently, only two stylistic anonymization strategies are known, namely: imitation and obfuscation attacks. A long-term objective is to find automated methods that reliably transform given input texts such that the output texts maximize author anonymity while, reasonably, preserving the semantics of the input texts. Before one proceeds with such long-term objective, it is important to first identify effective strategies that maximize stylistic anonymity. The current state of the literature implies that imitation attacks are better at preserving the anonymity of authors than obfuscation. However, we argue that such evaluations are limited and should not generalize to stylistic anonymity as they were only executed against AA solvers, a closed-set problem. In this study, we extend such evaluations against state-of-the-art AV solvers, an open-set problem. Our results show that imitation attacks degrade the classification accuracy of AV solvers more aggressively than that of AA solvers. We argue that such reduction in accuracy below random chance guessing renders imitation attacks as inferior strategies relative to obfuscation attacks. Furthermore, as we present a general formal notation of stylometry problems, we conjecture that the same observations apply to all stylometry problems (AA, AV, AP, SI).
In vitro metabolism : Applications in pharmacology and toxicology

In the planned REACH project about 30,000 available chemicals have to be registered, evaluated and authorised regarding their properties, including their toxic, carcinogenic, mutagenic, and teratogenic potential. The determination of all required data using in vivo experiments would mean the use of an immense number of animals. Hence, especially with regard to the concept of the 3Rs, in vitro methods are regarded to be a much wanted alternative. However, a significant number of substances show toxic effects in vivo but not in vitro. Well known examples are polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (e.g. benzo(a)pyrene), cyclophosphamide, aflatoxin B1, Vitamin A and acrylamide. These substances are not directly toxic, but must be activated to reactive metabolites, which then exert their toxic potential by reacting with constituents of the cell, especially proteins and nucleic acids. Aflatoxin B1, for instance, is metabolised to aflatoxin-8,9epoxide by CYP 3A4 and CYP 1A2 in a phase I reaction. This intermediate product can then be detoxified by a subsequent phase II reaction to the GSH-conjugate or undergo covalent binding to the DNA and thus be mutagenic (see fig. 1). Although for the given examples metabolic activation pathways are well established, for most compounds it is unknown whether metabolic activation plays a role.
Procaspase-3 regulates fibronectin secretion and influences adhesion, migration and survival independently of catalytic function

ABSTRACT Caspase-3 is an effector caspase that is activated downstream of mitochondrial outer-membrane permeabilization (MOMP) during apoptosis. However, previous work has demonstrated that caspase-3-deficient mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) are resistant to mitochondrially mediated cell death and display a delay in the mitochondrial events of apoptosis, including Bax activation, MOMP and release of cytochrome c. Here, we show that caspase-3 regulates fibronectin secretion and impacts on cell morphology, adhesion and migration. Surprisingly, the catalytic activity of caspase-3 is not required for these non-apoptotic functions. Moreover, we found that caspase-3-deficient MEFs are not resistant to death by anoikis and that exogenous fibronectin protects wild-type MEFs from cell death induced by serum withdrawal. Taken together, our data indicate that procaspase-3 has a non-apoptotic function; it regulates the secretion of fibronectin and influences morphology, adhesion and migration. Furthermore, this novel procaspase-3 function might alter the apoptotic threshold of the cell.
A physical interference adapting hardware system using MIA arm and humanoid surface covers

In this paper, a comprehensive new concept concerning situations where robots physically contact with human such as tactile contacts and collisions is proposed, which is named physical interference (PIF). In order to realize PIF adaptation with human, it is required for robots to recognize PIF with human as well as secure human safety. First, information of PIF with human for recognizing PIF in detail is specified. Next, a hybrid PIF adapting hardware system composed of a mechanical passive compliant arm and PIF recognizing covers with viscoelastic materials is proposed and was developed. Finally, in order to evaluate the hardware system, experiments of adapting to PIF with human, using an arm equipped with MIA (mechanical impedance adjuster) and the developed surface covers, were carried out. From the results of the evaluation experiments, the validity of the developed hardware system for basic PIF adaptation with human was confirmed.
Developer-Specific Awareness of External Changes

It is often assumed that developers’ view of their system and its environment is always consistent with everyone else’s. In certain situations that arise in practice, this assumption is false, and current development practice does not adequately address the resulting shortcomings. This paper examines when the assumption does not hold, and the implications for developers. A method for helping developers understand and cope with these situations is described and an evaluation of this method is proposed.
It's in your hands: the value of handsearching in conducting systematic reviews of public health interventions.

BACKGROUND While there is an emerging evidence base in public health, the evidence can often be difficult to find. Indexing of journals in MEDLINE has assisted those conducting systematic reviews to more easily identify published studies. However, information technology and the processes associated with indexing are not infallible. Studies may not be correctly marked by study design which may mean they are missed in the electronic searching process. Handsearching for evidence of intervention effectiveness has therefore become a recognized tool in the systematic review process. METHODS Resources to guide handsearching activity currently are clinically focused, and may not be sensitive to the characteristics of public health studies where study terminology may differ. In response to this issue, the Cochrane Health Promotion and Public Health Field (the Field) developed and implemented a small study to recruit and support handsearchers from around the world to identify health promotion and public health trials and systematic reviews. A strategic framework was developed to recruit and support handsearchers to search six public health-related journals. RESULTS In total, 131 trials and 21 systematic reviews were identified. The greatest value of handsearching was found to be in supplement editions and abstract sections of journals CONCLUSIONS The study focused exclusively on indexed journals with the intention that tools and methods developed could be used to explore the potential for handsearching in non-indexed journals and for unpublished studies. The findings from this study will continue to support handsearching efforts and in doing so contribute to high quality systematic reviews of public health interventions.
Adaptive imaging using principal-component-synthesized aperture data

Sidelobe contribution from off-axis scatterers degrades image quality in ultrasound imaging. Focusing errors resulting from sound-velocity inhomogeneities in tissues, also known as phase aberrations, reduce coherence of the received signals and thus elevates the sidelobe level degrading the contrast resolution. In this study, we proposed a novel adaptive sidelobe-reduction technique using aperture data synthesized from mainlobe-dominant principal components. Principal component analysis of aperture data with proper delay being applied is performed here by singular value decomposition where the singular values are in order of large to small. These singular values describe how much energy of the aperture data is accounted for by the associated principal component. Because of the high coherence, the mainlobe-contributed energy in the aperture data concentrates on the principal components associated with the first few singular values whereas the one from sidelobe contribution spreads over all the principal components. In our method, the first few principal components are used to synthesize a new aperture data where undesired sidelobe contributions are partly reduced and then beamsum is performed on this new aperture data; thus reducing the effect of focusing errors and compensating the degraded image quality. Real array data are used to evaluate the efficacy of the proposed technique. The proposed technique offers contrast enhancement from 0.4 (no distortion) dB to 5 dB (2x distortion) and improvement of contrast-to-noise ratio from 2.5 % (no distortion) to 24 % (2x distortion) in real ultrasound data. It is demonstrated that the proposed technique effectively reduces sidelobes contribution and thus improves the contrast resolution.
Arbitrarily located microwave discharges as a means of cleansing the atmosphere of impurities that destroy the ozone layer

It is proposed to use intense microwave beams to cleanse the atmospheric pool of freon contaminants (CF{sub 2}Cl{sub 2}, CFCl{sub 3}, etc.), which act destructively on the earth`s ozone layer. The possibility of exciting an arbitrarily located microwave discharge in the troposphere is considered. A relation is established between the amount of freon destroyed and the discharge parameters, the energy expended for this purpose is estimated, and the possible undesirable consequences of the associated phenomena (e.g., the formation of nitrogen oxides) are analyzed. The mechanism of dissociative attachment of electrons produced in the cold decaying plasma of the pulsed microwave discharge is assumed to be the main mechanism leading to the dissociation of chlorofluorocarbons. Results are presented from a model laboratory experiment, in which the efficiency with which freon impurities are dissociated under the action of the discharge excited in air by a beam of high-power microwave radiation is studied under conditions close to those in free space. The results of the experiment are consistent with the conclusions that follow from analyzing the elementary processes responsible for destruction of the freon components. 32 refs., 7 figs.
A fixed switching frequency adaptive sliding mode controller for shunt active power filter system

The theory, design and simulation of a fixed frequency pulse width modulation (PWM) based adaptive sliding mode current control for single phase shunt active power filter (APF) to improve power quality is presented in this article. Artificial neural network (ANN) based modified control strategy is being used to control the DC capacitor voltage as well as to generate reference source current. The application of ANN enhances the convergence rate of APF and also makes it adaptive under variable load conditions. The instantaneous phase of the source voltage is extracted by a phase locked loop (PLL). The same phase is used by ANN for calculating the reference source current. That is why the proposed APF is applicable under both nominal and distorted voltage source. The complete non-linear system is analyzed and simulated using MATLAB/Simulink software. Simulation results are presented to validate the theory.
Epidermal Proteinases in the European Eel

A fluorescent‐sensitive assay demonstrated the exhaustive detection of proteinase activities in the dorsal skin of the European eel. Two distinct skin extracts were prepared from skin mucus and epidermal cell layers with no mutual contamination, so that the latter extract contained significant susceptibility of all tested substrates. Optimum hydrolysis pH's for susceptible substrates were found in acidic and neutral ranges, and optimum hydrolysis temperatures for the same substrates fell mainly in the 40°–50°C range. In addition, diverse inhibitory influences on these hydrolyses were prompted by several proteinase inhibitors and metal chlorides, and some other reagents specifically affected the individual hydrolysis; among them, the inhibitions of all activities by p‐tosyl‐L‐phenylalanyl‐chloromethylketone, CdCl2, CuCl2, HgCl2, and ZnCl2 were remarkable. Antipain, iodoacetamide, and CoCl2 induced a severe inhibition of all except three activities, whereas N‐ethyl‐maleimide markedly inhibited only these three activities. These findings suggest that epidermal cell layers of the European eel retain a party of proteolytic enzymes, and this party is judged from their exhibiting specificities to be composed of four distinct proteinases, presumably cathepsins L and B, a serine proteinase, and an aminopeptidase.
Example of Real‐Time Quantitative Reverse Transcription–PCR (Q‐RT‐PCR) Analysis of Bacterial Gene Expression during Mammalian Infection: Borrelia burgdorferi in Mouse Tissues

This unit provides a chronological in‐depth description of all protocols needed for quantitative reverse transcription–PCR (Q‐RT‐PCR) analysis of Borrelia burgdorferi gene expression within infected mouse tissues. Specifically, this unit discusses the extraction of RNA from infected mouse tissues, removal of contaminating genomic DNA from the purified RNA, preparation of cDNA and genomic DNA standards, LightCycler‐based PCR, and a relative quantification analysis of the cDNA. Q‐RT‐PCR as a highly relevant and powerful tool used to detect gene expression by bacteria within mammalian host tissues. It is also an invaluable technique used to measure and assess the small differences in expression that can exist among a set of genes, whereas this type of analysis is not feasible using less‐sensitive techniques such as indirect immunofluorescence analysis or qualitative RT‐PCR. Although the protocols described herein are tailored for B. burgdorferi, they are broadly applicable to other microbes.
Genetic analysis of craniofacial development in the vertebrate embryo

Every cartilage and bone in the vertebrate skeleton has a precise shape and position. The head skeleton develops in the embryo from the neural crest, which emigrates from the neural ectoderm and forms the skull and pharyngeal arches. Recent genetic data from mice and zebrafish suggest that cells in the pharyngeal segments are specified by positional information in at least two dimensions, Hox genes along the anterior‐posterior axis and other homeobox genes along the dorsal‐ventral axis within a segment. Many zebrafish and human mutant phenotypes indicate that additional genes are required for the development of groups of adjacent pharyngeal arches and for patterning along the mediolateral axis of the skull. The complementary genetic approaches in humans, mice and fish reveal networks of genes that specify the complex morphology of the head skeleton along a relatively simple set of coordinates.
Diversity among beta-tubulins: a carboxy-terminal domain of yeast beta-tubulin is not essential in vivo

Sequences of genes for beta-tubulins from many different organisms demonstrate that they encode highly conserved proteins but that these proteins diverge considerably at their carboxyl termini. The patterns of interspecies conservation of this diversity suggest that it may have functional significance. We have taken advantage of the properties of Saccharomyces cerevisiae to test this hypothesis in vivo. The sole beta-tubulin gene of this species is one of the most divergent of all beta-tubulins and encodes 12 amino acids which extend past the end of most other beta-tubulin molecules. We have constructed strains in which the only beta-tubulin gene is an allele lacking these 12 codons. We show here that this carboxy-terminal extension is not essential. The absence of these 12 amino acids had no effect on a number of microtubule-dependent functions, such as mitotic and meiotic division and mating. It did confer dominant supersensitivity to a microtubule-depolymerizing drug.
Cognitive and Mood Assessment in Stroke Research: Focused Review of Contemporary Studies

Background and Purpose— International guidelines recommend cognitive and mood assessments for stroke survivors; these assessments also have use in clinical trials. However, there is no consensus on the optimal assessment tool(s). We aimed to describe use of cognitive and mood measures in contemporary published stroke trials. Methods— Two independent, blinded assessors reviewed high-impact journals representing: general medicine (n=4), gerontology/rehabilitation (n=3), neurology (n=4), psychiatry (n=4), psychology (n=4), and stroke (n=3) January 2000 to October 2011 inclusive. Journals were hand-searched for relevant, original research articles that described cognitive/mood assessments in human stroke survivors. Data were checked for relevance by an independent clinician and clinical psychologist. Results— Across 8826 stroke studies, 488 (6%) included a cognitive or mood measure. Of these 488 articles, total number with cognitive assessment was 408 (83%) and mood assessment tools 247 (51%). Total number of different assessments used was 367 (cognitive, 300; mood, 67). The most commonly used cognitive measure was Folstein's Mini-Mental State Examination (n=180 articles, 37% of all articles with cognitive/mood outcomes); the most commonly used mood assessment was the Hamilton Rating Scale of Depression(n=43 [9%]). Conclusions— Cognitive and mood assessments are infrequently used in stroke research. When used, there is substantial heterogeneity and certain prevalent assessment tools may not be suited to stroke cohorts. Research and guidance on the optimal cognitive/mood assessment strategies for clinical practice and trials is required.
NEUROLOGICAL DISORDERS IN PATIENTS WITH CHROMOSOMAL ANOMALIES

In the last few years technical changes have taken place that have revolutionized the field of cytogenetics. With the widespread use of banding techniques it has been become possible to readily identify patients with a given chromosomal defect even though the clinical findings may be few or relatively nondiscriminating. This obviously facilitates the delineation of new chromosomal syndromes like partial trisomies and partial deletions. So the first reviews of new chromosomal disorders could be written (J. J. Yunis 1977, J. de Grouchy and C. Turleau 1977, R. L. Summitt 1978). Most chromosomal anomalies lead to neurological symptoms in the surviving patients. In this study I want to coordinate the new chromosomal syndromes to "specific" neurological disturbances, if possible. As may be easily understood the attempt must be incomplete, because some new chromosomal disorders are known only in a few instances and are incompletely documented from the authors. There exist another argument that luUSt previously discussed. There is a discuss about the exactly known chromosomal breakpoints and related phenotypic alterations. The Paris Conference of 1971 defined 320 bands in human metaphase chromosomes. Studies of prometaphase chromosomes allowed the discrimination of 1256 bands (J. J. Yunis 1976). Borgaonkar (1977) defined 1134 chromosomal breakpoints. "A chromosome abnormality does not generally imply a defect in the quality of genes but rather a quantitative abnormality in gene functions. Thus, the basis problem is a genetic imbalance, an aberration in gene dosage. " The control of morphogenesis is up to now not known. It seems to be a fact, that a loss of chromosomal material is more deleterious than an excess of genes. Today nobody can say why patients with chromosomal disorders demonstrate only in a few cases biochemical disturbances.
Vibrio cholerae O1 secretes an extracellular matrix in response to antibody-mediated agglutination

Vibrio cholerae O1 is one of two serogroups responsible for epidemic cholera, a severe watery diarrhea that occurs after the bacterium colonizes the human small intestine and secretes a potent ADP-ribosylating toxin. Immunity to cholera is associated with intestinal anti-lipopolysaccharide (LPS) antibodies, which are known to inhibit V. cholerae motility and promote bacterial cell-cell crosslinking and aggregation. Here we report that V. cholerae O1 classical and El Tor biotypes produce an extracellular matrix (ECM) when forcibly immobilized and agglutinated by ZAC-3 IgG, an intestinally-derived monoclonal antibody (MAb) against the core/lipid A region of LPS. ECM secretion, as demonstrated by crystal violet staining and scanning electron microscopy, occurred within 30 minutes of antibody exposure and peaked by 3 hours. Non-motile mutants of V. cholerae did not secrete ECM following ZAC-3 IgG exposure, even though they were susceptible to agglutination. The ECM was enriched in O-specific polysaccharide (OSP) but not Vibrio polysaccharide (VPS). Finally, we demonstrate that ECM production by V. cholerae in response to ZAC-3 IgG was associated with bacterial resistant to a secondary complement-mediated attack. In summary, we propose that V. cholerae O1, upon encountering anti-LPS antibodies in the intestinal lumen, secretes an ECM (or O-antigen capsule) possibly as a strategy to shield itself from additional host immune factors and to exit an otherwise inhospitable host environment.
D1 Dopamine Receptor‐Induced Cyclic AMP‐Dependent Protein Kinase Phosphorylation and Potentiation of Striatal Glutamate Receptors

Abstract : Dopamine receptor activation regulates cyclic AMP levels and is critically involved in modulating neurotransmission in the striatum. Others have shown that α‐amino‐3‐hydroxy‐5‐methyl‐4‐isoxazole propionate (AMPA)‐type glutamate receptor‐mediated current is potentiated by cyclic AMP‐dependent protein kinase (PKA) activation. We made whole‐cell patch clamp recordings from cultured striatal neurons and tested whether D1‐type dopamine receptor activation affected AMPA receptor‐mediated currents. After a 5‐min exposure to the D1 agonist SKF 81297 (1 μM), kainate‐evoked current amplitude was enhanced in ~75% of cells to 121 ± 2.5% of that recorded prior to addition of drug. This response was inhibited by the D1 antagonist SCH 23390 and mimicked by activators of PKA. Moreover, by western blot analysis using an antibody specific for the phosphorylated PKA site Ser845 of GluR1, we observed a marked increase in phosphorylated GluR1 following a 10‐min exposure of striatal neurons to 1 μM SKF 81297. Our data demonstrate that activation of D1‐type dopamine receptors on striatal neurons promotes phosphorylation of AMPA receptors by PKA as well as potentiation of current amplitude. These results elucidate one mechanism by which dopamine can modulate neurotransmission in the striatum.