Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Excitonic energy transfer with long-range interactions Can it be realized in ultracold Rydberg gases ?

This thesis deals with the simulation of networks of non-radiatively interacting bosons. The coupling between the bosons causes excitations to propagate. Our numerical implementation allows us to analyze arbitrary two-dimensional patterns coupled by nearest neighbor interaction or 1/R-potentials. We study how crucially the propagation of excitations depends on network geometries and interaction potentials. To gain a better understanding of observed phenomena, several dispersion relations are extracted from simulation data. A comparison with analytically calculated dispersion relations reveals finite-size effects. The analytic results are also used to validate the simulation program. As a specific implementation of such coupled networks, we investigate systems of Rydberg excitations. We analyze how promising the approach is, to experimentally study energy transfer with the help of so-called superatoms. It becomes apparent that their physical extension causes dephasing.
HIV-1 gag recruits PACSIN2 to promote virus spreading

Significance The structural Gag proteins of HIV-1 and other retroviruses contain regions that hijack a cellular membrane fission machinery to facilitate virus release. We now show that these Gag regions additionally recruit a host protein called PACSIN2, which has been shown to remodel cellular membranes and the actin cytoskeleton. Our data indicate that PACSIN2 is recruited indirectly by binding to a small regulatory protein called ubiquitin that becomes attached to Gag. Knockdown and reconstitution experiments revealed a critical role of PACSIN2 in HIV-1 spreading, although it was not required for a single cycle of replication. Overall, our study indicates that PACSIN2 promotes the cell-to-cell spreading of HIV-1, which constitutes the predominant mode of transmission but is poorly understood. The p2b domain of Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) Gag and the p6 domain of HIV-1 Gag contain late assembly (L) domains that engage the ESCRT membrane fission machinery and are essential for virus release. We now show that the PPXY-type RSV L domain specifically recruits the BAR domain protein PACSIN2 into virus-like particles (VLP), in addition to the NEDD4-like ubiquitin ligase ITCH and ESCRT pathway components such as TSG101. PACSIN2, which has been implicated in the remodeling of cellular membranes and the actin cytoskeleton, is also recruited by HIV-1 p6 independent of its ability to engage the ESCRT factors TSG101 or ALIX. Moreover, PACSIN2 is robustly recruited by NEDD4-2s, a NEDD4-like ubiquitin ligase capable of rescuing HIV-1 budding defects. The NEDD4-2s–induced incorporation of PACSIN2 into VLP correlated with the formation of Gag-ubiquitin conjugates, indicating that PACSIN2 binds ubiquitin. Although PACSIN2 was not required for a single cycle of HIV-1 replication after infection with cell-free virus, HIV-1 spreading was nevertheless severely impaired in T cell lines and primary human peripheral blood mononuclear cells depleted of PACSIN2. HIV-1 spreading could be restored by reintroduction of wild-type PACSIN2, but not of a SH3 domain mutant unable to interact with the actin polymerization regulators WASP and N-WASP. Overall, our observations indicate that PACSIN2 promotes the cell-to-cell spreading of HIV-1 by connecting Gag to the actin cytoskeleton.
A preliminary study towards automatic detection of failures in myocontrol

Reliability is still the main issue in myocontrol: enforcing (dexterous) grasping, releasing and moving exactly and only when the wearer desires it. One specific path towards the solution of this problem is incremental machine learning, leading to interactive myocontrol, in which unreliability is taken care of via on-demand model updates, requested by the experimenter and/or the subject herself/himself. One natural drawback of this approach is that an “oracle” is needed at all times, stopping the prediction and calling for an update whenever this is deemed to be the case; an automated oracle, as reliable as possible, is therefore very desirable. This work shows the results of a preliminary study in which we tried to find features of the control signals and predictions, as well as environmental information (inertial sensors and motor currents) to automatically identify the failures of the myocontrol system. The outcome is promising, showing that a classifier can match the observer’s judgement with an overall average accuracy of slightly more than 75%.
The Effectiveness and Safety of Corticosteroids Therapy in Adult Critical Ill Patients with Septic Shock: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the effectiveness and safety of corticosteroids therapy in adult critical ill patients with septic shock. METHODS The PUBMED, EMBASE, Web of Science, Cochrane Library databases were systematically searched from the inception dates to March 24, 2018. To identify randomized controlled trials that evaluating the role of corticosteroids therapy in adult critical ill patients with septic shock. The primary outcome was 28-day mortality. The second outcomes included 90-day mortality, ICU mortality, In-hospital mortality, length of stay in ICU, length of stay in hospital, reversal of shock and superinfection. RESULTS A total of eighteen randomized controlled trials involving 8128 adult critical ill patients with septic shock fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The outcomes of this meta-analysis showed that corticosteroids therapy didn't significantly reduce the 28-day mortality [RR = 0.94; 95%CI, 0.84 to 1.05; Z = 1.07(P = 0.285)]. However, corticosteroids therapy was associated with a significantly shorter length of stay in ICU [WMD = -1.55; 95%CI, -2.19 to -0.91; Z = 4.74(P = 0.000)]. 90-day mortality, ICU mortality, In-hospital mortality, length of stay in hospital, reversal of shock and superinfection had no significantly difference between the corticosteroids therapy and placebo therapy(p > 0.05). Similar results were obtained in subgroups of trials stratified according to the dose of corticosteroids (high dose or low does). CONCLUSIONS Based on the results of this meta-analysis, corticosteroids therapy was associated with a significantly shorter length of stay in ICU among adult cirtical ill patients with septic shock. The mortality was similar between the corticosteroids therapy and placebo.
Foot Strike Detection of a Hexapod Walking Robot Using Inertial Measurements

In this thesis, the possible usage of the inertial measurements for the foot-strike detection of the hexapod walking robot in rough terrains is examined. We show that affordable accelerometers attached to robot’s legs can be utilized for a reliable foot-strike detection and thus allow the robot to crawl irregular terrains. Furthermore, we examine the possible advantages of two operation modes of the accelerometers and the underlying foot-strike detection pipeline. Namely, the footstrike event detection in a continuous stream of data from accelerometers. And interrupt-based mode, in which the accelerometers filters data at the hardware level to provide only relevant data around the foot-strike event. We also investigate the possibility of using the accelerometers for the terrain classification. The proposed utilization of the interrupt-based mode provides significantly better performance. The presented foot-strike detector supports generalization from the data collected using the slow locomotion to faster locomotion where the inertial signals slightly change. The speed of the hexapod walking robot in both flat and rough terrains is improved in comparison to the adaptive motion gate that uses a force threshold-inspired position controller for the foot-strike detection. Both the foot-strike detection and the terrain classification have been experimentally tested using a real hexapod walking robot.
Adaptive MPC for Autonomous Lane Keeping

This paper proposes an Adaptive Robust Model Predictive Control strategy for lateral control in lane keeping problems, where we continuously learn an unknown, but constant steering angle offset present in the steering system. Longitudinal velocity is assumed constant. The goal is to minimize the outputs, which are distance from lane center line and the steady state heading angle error, while satisfying respective safety constraints. We do not assume perfect knowledge of the vehicle lateral dynamics model and estimate and adapt in real-time the maximum possible bound of the steering angle offset from data using a robust Set Membership Method based approach. Our approach is even well-suited for scenarios with sharp curvatures on high speed, where obtaining a precise model bias for constrained control is difficult, but learning from data can be helpful. We ensure persistent feasibility using a switching strategy during change of lane curvature. The proposed methodology is general and can be applied to more complex vehicle dynamics problems.
Similarity joins for high‐dimensional data using Spark

Similarity join on high‐dimensional data is a primitive operation. It is used to find all data pairs that with distance no more than ϵ from the given data set according to a specific distance measure. As the data set scale and dimension increase, computation cost increases vastly. Hadoop and Spark have become the popular platforms for big‐data analysis. Because Spark has native advantages in iterative computations, we adopted it as our platform to perform similarity joins on high‐dimensional data sets. In order to resolve problems such as data imbalance, data duplication, and redundant computation of existing works, we have proposed a new algorithm based on Symbolic aggregation and vertical decomposition. We first conduct dimension‐reduction using symbolic aggregation method. Then, we applied vertical partition operation on processed data. The join operations are performed on each vertical partition in parallel manner and the proposed new filters are utilized to prune false positives in early stage. Finally, the partial results generated from each partition will be aggregated and verified to get final results. Our proposed algorithm can significantly improve the efficiency of similarity joins on high‐dimensional data. In order to verify the efficiency and scalability of our methods, we implemented it using MapReduce and Spark. We compared our methods with existing works on public data sets, and the experimental results showed that the new methods were more efficient and scalable under different running environments.
Noninvasive Ventilation After Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting in Subjects With Left-Ventricular Dysfunction

BACKGROUND: The use of noninvasive ventilation in patients with left-ventricular dysfunction may increase cardiac performance by decreasing inspiratory effort and left-ventricular afterload. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the acute effects of noninvasive ventilation on central-venous oxygen saturation (Scv̄O2) and blood lactate in subjects with left-ventricular dysfunction during the early postoperative phase of coronary artery bypass grafting. METHODS: This study included 100 subjects during the postoperative phase of elective coronary artery bypass grafting. Blood samples, at 5 time points, were collected to assess tissue perfusion markers (ie, Scv̄O2 and blood lactate) as follows: (1) the intraoperative period (after anesthesia induction); (2) 20 min after ICU arrival, under intermittent mandatory ventilation; (3) 20 min after extubation with spontaneous breathing; (4) after 1 h of noninvasive ventilation; and (5) 20 min after discontinuation of noninvasive ventilation. RESULTS: A significant increase in the blood lactate and a drop in the Scv̄O2 were observed on arrival to the ICU compared with intraoperative values (P < .001). After extubation, during spontaneous breathing, the Scv̄O2 significantly decreased (P = .02), whereas the blood lactate increased, although not significantly (P = .21) compared with intermittent mandatory ventilation on arrival to the ICU. During the application of noninvasive ventilation, the Scv̄O2 significantly increased (P = .048) and the blood lactate significantly decreased (P = .008) compared with spontaneous breathing values after extubation. After noninvasive ventilation discontinuation, the Scv̄O2 and blood lactate did not change compared with measures taken during noninvasive ventilation; higher values of Scv̄O2 were maintained compared with those obtained after extubation (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS: The acute application of noninvasive ventilation improved Scv̄O2 and decreased the blood lactate in subjects with left-ventricular dysfunction during the early postoperative phase after coronary artery bypass grafting. (ClinicalTrials.gov registration NCT02767687.)
Mechanical load increase–induced changes in cytoskeletal structure and cellular barrier function in human cerebral endothelial cells

Globally, approximately a billion patients are estimated to suffer from neurological disorders. Although there are many therapeutic candidates for the central nervous system, treatment of brain disorders is restricted by the blood–brain barrier (BBB), which is a highly selective membrane that protects the brain from exogenous substances. This study was undertaken to develop a novel strategy to overcome the BBB and improve the efficiency of drug delivery to the brain by mechanical load increase using hypergravity. Human cerebral microvascular endothelial cells were exposed three times to 20 min hypergravity (10g), with a 20‐min rest period between each exposure. The applied hypergravity reversibly decreased the cellular metabolic activity and increased the permeation rate of fluorescein sodium salt, fluorescein isothiocyanate–labeled dextran (FD‐4), and fluorescein‐labeled jacalin. Following the exposure to hypergravity, we also observed structural changes of the cytoskeleton and tight junctions, and an alteration in the expression levels of related genes. These results indicate that increased mechanical load due to the applied hypergravity affects the cytoskeletal arrangement and tight junctions, thereby weakening the cell barrier function and enhancing the permeability of the paracellular pathway. Thus, the mechanical load increase by hypergravity has the potential of being used as a novel strategy to overcome the BBB for brain drug delivery.
The Risk of Termination Shock From Solar Geoengineering

If solar geoengineering were to be deployed so as to mask a high level of global warming, and then stopped suddenly, there would be a rapid and damaging rise in temperatures. This effect is often referred to as termination shock, and it is an influential concept. Based on studies of its potential impacts, commentators often cite termination shock as one of the greatest risks of solar geoengineering. However, there has been little consideration of the likelihood of termination shock, so that conclusions about its risk are premature. This paper explores the physical characteristics of termination shock, then uses simple scenario analysis to plot out the pathways by which different driver events (such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters, or political action) could lead to termination. It then considers where timely policies could intervene to avert termination shock. We conclude that some relatively simple policies could protect a solar geoengineering system against most of the plausible drivers. If backup deployment hardware were maintained and if solar geoengineering were implemented by agreement among just a few powerful countries, then the system should be resilient against all but the most extreme catastrophes. If this analysis is correct, then termination shock should be much less likely, and therefore much less of a risk, than has previously been assumed. Much more sophisticated scenario analysis—going beyond simulations purely of worst‐case scenarios—will be needed to allow for more insightful policy conclusions.
Grapevine, esca complex, and environment: the disease triangle

This review compiles the available knowledge on the triple impact of host-pathogens-environment in the progress of the esca disease complex of grapevine. The perennial crop grapevine encounters different biotic and abiotic factors responsible for numerous changes at the various growth stages. This review provides increased understanding of the esca disease complex, with emphasis on (1) the nature of esca-associated fungi as endophytes or pathogens in grapevine, (2) the importance of grapevine genotype and age in relation to resistance or susceptibility to the pathogens, (3) the significant effects of climatic changes, especially drought, on pathogen development and symptomatology, and (4) the physio-biochemical changes in the grapevines arising from the biotic and abiotic interactions. Drought often provides conditions favouring disease development in plants. Physiological and biochemical changes in plants play critical roles in this topic. The constantly increasing economic impacts of esca disease in many grape-producing countries, and the broad lack of knowledge so far, require precise studies on the transcriptional responses to biotic and abiotic factors in grapevines, as effects of “climate change” develop. On the viticultural side, improved management of water and adjusted nutrition balance in vineyards may become useful strategies to mitigate the widespread damage caused by grapevine wood pathogens.
Online tactile myography for simultaneous and proportional hand and wrist myocontrol

Tactile myography is a promising method for dexterous myocontrol. It stems from the idea of detecting muscle activity, and hence the desired actions to be performed by a prosthesis, via the muscle deformations induced by said activity, using a tactile sensor on the stump. Tactile sensing is high-resolution force / pressure sensing; such a technique promises to yield a rich flow of information about an amputated subject’s intent. In this work we propose a preliminary comparison between tactile myography and surface electromyography enforcing simultaneous and proportional control during an online target-reaching experiment. Six intact subjects and a trans-radial amputee were engaged in repeated hand opening / closing, wrist flexion / extension and wrist pronation / supination, to various degrees of activation. Albeit limited, the results we show indicate that tactile myography enforces an almost uniformly better performance than sEMG.
Functional characterization of the partially purified Sac1p independent adenine nucleotide transport system (ANTS) from yeast endoplasmic reticulum

Abstract Several ATP-depending reactions take place in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Although in Saccharomyces cerevisiae ER the existence of a Sac1p-dependent ATP transport system was already known, its direct involvement in ATP transport was excluded. Here we report an extensive biochemical characterization of a partially purified adenine nucleotide transport system (ANTS) not dependent on Sac1p. Highly purified ER membranes from the wild-type and Δsac1 yeast strains reconstituted into liposomes transported ATP with the same efficiency. A chromatography on hydroxyapatite was used to partially purify ANTS from Δsac1 ER extract. The two ANTS-enriched transport activity eluted fractions showed essentially the presence of four bands, one having an apparent MW of 56 kDa, similar to that observed for ANTS identified in rat liver ER. The two fractions reconstituted into liposomes efficiently transported, by a strict counter-exchange mechanism, ATP and ADP. ATP transport was saturable with a Km of 0.28 mM. The ATP/ADP exchange mechanism and the kinetic constants suggest that the main physiological role of ANTS is to catalyse the transport of ATP into ER, where it is used in several energy-requiring reactions and to export back to the cytosol the ADP produced.
End-to-End Learning of Energy-Constrained Deep Neural Networks

Deep Neural Networks (DNN) are increasingly deployed in highly energy-constrained environments such as autonomous drones and wearable devices while at the same time must operate in real-time. Therefore, reducing the energy consumption has become a major design consideration in DNN training. This paper proposes the first end-to-end DNN training framework that provides quantitative energy guarantees. The key idea is to formulate the DNN training as an optimization problem in which the energy budget imposes a previously unconsidered optimization constraint. We integrate the quantitative DNN energy estimation into the DNN training process to assist the constraint optimization. We prove that an approximate algorithm can be used to efficiently solve the optimization problem. Compared to the best prior energy-saving techniques, our framework trains DNNs that provide higher accuracies under same or lower energy budgets.
Proxy Clouds for RGB-D Stream Processing: A Preview

Modern consumer depth cameras are widely used for 3D capture in indoor environments, for applications such as modeling, robotics or gaming. Nevertheless, their use is limited by their low resolution, with frames often corrupted with noise, missing data and temporal inconsistencies. In order to cope with all these issues, we present Proxy Clouds , a multiplanar superstructure for real-time processing of RGB-D data. By generating a single set of planar proxies from raw RGB-D data and updating it through time, several processing primitives can be applied to improve the quality of the RGB-D stream or lighten further operations. We illustrate the use of Proxy Clouds on several applications, including noise and temporal ﬂickering removal, hole ﬁlling, resampling, color processing and compression. We present experiments performed with our framework in indoor scenes of different natures captured with a consumer depth sensor.
Polyphenols from Tamarix nilotica: LC–ESI-MSn Profiling and In Vivo Antifibrotic Activity

Tamarix nilotica (Ehrenb.) Bunge (Tamaricaceae), an indigenous plant to the Middle East region, is well-known as a medicinal plant for treating many human ailments. The current study aimed at exploring the polyphenol profile of the alcohol soluble fraction of aqueous T. nilotica extract, assessing its in vivo antifibrotic activity and the possible underlying mechanism, to unravel the impact of quantitative difference of sulphated polyphenols content on the antifibrotic activity of T. nilotca grown in two different habitats. Polyphenol profiling of T. nilotica extracts was performed using HPLC-HRESI-QTOF-MS-MS. The major polyphenol components included sulphated flavonoids, phenolic acids and free aglycones. The antifibrotic activity was evaluated through carbon tetrachloride-induced liver fibrosis in rats. Biochemical evaluations revealed that both fractions ameliorated the increased levels of hepatic aminotransferases, lipid peroxidation, hydroxyproline, α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB). Moreover, both fractions reduced catalase activity (CAT) and enhanced hepatic glutathione (GSH) content. Histopathological imaging undoubtedly confirmed such results. In conclusion, the T. nilotica polyphenol-rich fraction exhibited potential antifibrotic activity in rats. Significant alterations in GSH levels were recorded based on the sulphated polyphenol metabolite content.