Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
EphA4 is associated with multiple cell types in the marmoset primary visual cortex throughout the lifespan

Ephs form the largest family of receptor tyrosine kinases. They interact with the membrane‐bound ligands – ephrins – to control crucial aspects of brain development. EphA4 is the most prominent member of the family in terms of versatility and ability to bind most ephrin ligands. EphA4 regulates brain development by modulating neuronal migration and connectivity. In the present study, we address the involvement of EphA4 in patterning the primary visual cortex (V1) of the marmoset monkey by characterizing the cellular expression profile of EphA4 from late embryonic stages to adulthood. We identified continuous expression on neurons in the cortical plate and mature neocortical layers, similar to that described in the mouse, excluding a role for EphA4 in the formation of borders between visual areas in the marmoset neocortex. In addition to neurons, we also report expression of EphA4 on glial populations, including radial glia and astrocytes. In contrast to what is seen in the mouse, EphA4 expression on astrocytes persists in the adult marmoset V1, including around blood vessels and in the white matter. Robust expression by glial populations, which retain neurogenic properties in the postnatal marmoset, indicates that EphA4 may have acquired additional roles during evolution, with important implications for the benefits of EphA4‐blocking therapies following brain injury.
Relationship between personality and health symptoms: Use of the MMPI-2 in medical assessments

The Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 is a broadband measure of psychopathology and personality that has a long tradition in assessment of medical patients. Beginning in the 1940's the MMPI was used in the study of psychological factors in medical conditions and an extensive research base for the MMPI, and its successor the MMPI-2, in medical applications has developed. The current theoretical study will review that history of the MMPI for assessment of medical patients with an emphasis on cross national application of the MMPI-2 in medical assessments and the international use of the MMPI-2 in the identification of personality factors important in the identification and treatment of medical conditions. The types of medical problems addressed will include: the differentiation between functional and organic conditions, assessment of chronic organic conditions, asthma, chronic pain, coronary heart disease, headache, eating disorders, and others. Additionally, information regarding the use of the MMPI-2 in screening for organ transplant and the identification of personality traits that lend a vulnerability to the development of coronary artery disease will be presented.
Human skin‐derived fibroblasts used as a ‘Trojan horse’ for drug delivery

Drug toxicity currently represents the main challenge of tumour chemotherapy. Our group recently developed a new method for drug delivery inspired by the ‘Trojan Horse’ concept. Human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) have been shown to play the role of new ‘horses’ in delivering anti‐tumour agents, without involving any genetic manipulation. As human stromal dermal fibroblasts (hSDFs) represent an interesting alternative to hMSCs, being easy to isolate, they could be an ideal candidate for this kind of procedure.
Efficient Compressive Sensing Detectors for Generalized Spatial Modulation Systems

Generalized spatial modulation (GSM) is a novel multiple-input–multiple-output (MIMO) technique, which relies on a sparse use of radio-frequency (RF) front ends at the transmitter. In this paper, low-complexity and compressive-sensing (CS)-based detectors for GSM systems are proposed. First, an extension of the normalized CS detector (E-NCS) based on the orthogonal matching pursuit (OMP) algorithm is proposed, which is shown to be suitable for large-scale GSM implementations, due to its low complexity. Furthermore, to mitigate the error floor effect of the E-NCS detector, two efficient CS (ECS) detectors based on the OMP algorithm are designed with the aid of a preset threshold. Specifically, different searching algorithms are designed, whose objective is to balance computational complexity and system performance. An upper bound for the average bit error probability (ABEP) of the first ECS detector is derived and used to optimize the preset threshold. Simulation results show that the proposed ECS detectors are capable of achieving a considerable reduction in computational complexity, compared with other near-optimal algorithms, with a negligible performance loss.
Modelling, simulation and control of Modular Multilevel Converter

This paper describes first the mathematical model of the Modular Multilevel Converter with n submodules based on differential equations. Secondly, by using this model the simulation block diagram in Simulink is presented. After that, the special output AC voltage control of this converter is analysed, considering the capacitors' voltage control loop that usually is included in this topology. The modulation that also performs the capacitors' voltage balancing is not deeply studied in this paper. Finally, simulation results show that the proposed model can be useful to simulate the MMC topology with a large number of submodules, while on the other hand, the proposed AC voltage control is valid to regulate the total voltage of the converter capacitors as well as to exchange sinusoidal currents at any operation mode.
Effect of natural and artificial sweeteners on the hemolymph glucose level (HGL) in Drosophila melanogaster.

Natural sweeteners are used by consumers to enhance the flavor of food while artificial sweeteners were developed for the same purpose with the added benefit of minimizing the risk of hyperglycemia. Fasting HGL (hemolymph glucose level) of Drosophila melanogaster were measured and followed a normal curve distribution. Female flies fasted for 8 hours were fed with reagent-grade and consumer-grade sweeteners and their hemolymph was collected after 1 hour for glucose determination. There was no significant difference in HGL between fasted flies and the flies fed with artificial sweeteners (aspartame, acesulfame-K, saccharin, and sucralose). Flies fed with natural sweeteners increased their HGL in the following order: white sugar > light brown sugar > dark brown sugar > muscovado sugar > coconut sugar > stevia = fasting level. Except for stevia, all the tested natural sweeteners significantly increased HGL compared to fasting HGL (P < 0.05). Our study shows that among the natural sweeteners, coconut- and stevia-derived sweeteners, along with muscovado sugar, do not increase HGL as much as the white and brown varieties of cane sugars in D. melanogaster. This is the first report to test the effects of an extensive list of sweeteners on circulating glucose levels in a single experimental organism, unlike previous reports. Our findings reveal the suitability of natural sweeteners stevia, coconut sugar, and muscovado sugar as healthier substitutes for white sugar, and may be beneficial for individuals on low calorie diets or those with, or at risk of, hyperglycemia or diabetes mellitus.
Electrostatic Exploration of Membrane Cofactor Protein (MCP) using Computational Alanine Scans, Poisson-Boltzmann Electrostatics and Experimental Mutagenesis Data

The complement system is part of innate immunity and a link between innate and adaptive immunities. One of the functions of the complement system is tagging foreign pathogens by coating their surfaces with the protein C3b. The complement system discriminates “self” from “nonself” through tight regulation, which involves cleavage of C3b when it coats self-tissues. The membrane cofactor protein (MCP) contributes to the regulation of the complement system by cleaving the protein C3b, with the aid of Factor I, a process called cofactor activity. The interaction between MCP and C3b is driven by charge hotspots, which are localized in specific MCP modules and C3b domains. To delineate the role of each charged amino acid in the MCPC3b interaction, we performed computational alanine scans, Poisson-Boltzmann electrostatic potential calculations, and hierarchical clustering of spatial distributions of electrostatic potentials. Based on our physicochemical analysis and existing experimental data, we present a model for the MCP-C3b interaction, by focusing on the whole MCP and individual contributions of the four MCP modules. Introduction Membrane Cofactor Protein (MCP; CD46) is a transmembrane glycoprotein ubiquitously expressed by nucleated cells except for human erythrocytes. Initially identified as a C3b and C4b binding protein of human red blood cells, MCP has now proven to have more roles in the human system. MCP is a member of the regulators of the complement activation (RCA) proteins and is composed of four N-terminal complement control proteins (CCP) called CCP modules, followed by a Serine, Threonine, Proline (STP) transmembrane domain and one of two spliced cytoplasmic tails. MCP protects the host cells from autoimmunity by regulating the complement system. It effectively accomplishes regulation through the process of cofactor activity, which involves MCP as a cofactor for the Factor I-mediated cleavage of C3b molecules that are deposited on host cells (Fig. 1). The convertase complex C3bBb, which is the cleaving
Ultrafast Self-Compton Cooling

We investigate the synchrotron self-Compton process in a planar shell taking the shock structure into account. We find that the energy density of the seed photons could deviate from the one-zone estimate by an order of unity depending on the shock velocity and the electron cooling time. We also find that as the electron cooling becomes faster, the seed photons are increased more, so that the inverse Compton cooling becomes more efficient. This "ultrafast" cooling may work in sources such as gamma-ray bursts, blazars, and microquasars.
SLIDING SPOTLIGHT BISTATIC SYNTHETIC APERTURE RADAR IMAGE FORMATION ALGORITHM BASED ON DIRECT-PATH SIGNAL COMPENSATION

In fixed-receiver bistatic synthetic aperture radar (SAR), the spaceborne SAR is used as an illuminator. The direct-path signal and bistatic SAR raw data are sampled by the fixed-receiver which is placed on the top of a building or a hill. As the direct-path signal has high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) advantage and almost the same synchronization error terms, it is used as the reference signal for the range matched filtering. Then the range compression can be realized with a time and frequency synchronization process. However, after range match filtering by the direct-path signal, the range history of point target consists of three square-root terms, for which it is hard to use the Principle of Stationary Phase (POSP). Meanwhile, the two-dimensional (2-D) spatial variation of the target’s 2-D frequency spectrum is serious. By combining azimuth preprocessing, direct-path signal compensation and nonlinear Chirp Scaling (NLCS) imaging algorithm, a new focusing algorithm is presented in this paper. Simulation results of point targets are presented to validate the efficiency and feasibility of the proposed imaging algorithm. Finally, this algorithm is also validated by the measured data which is obtained using the HITCHHIKER system.
Sensitivity of routine intensive care unit surveillance for detecting myocardial ischemia*

ObjectiveTo assess the effectiveness of routine intensive care unit surveillance compared with frequent 12-lead electrocardiogram monitoring for detecting electrocardiogram evidence suggestive of prolonged myocardial ischemia in vascular surgery patients. DesignProspective cohort trial. SettingIntensive care unit. ParticipantsWe studied 149 patients undergoing elective infrainguinal or aortic vascular surgery who were admitted to the intensive care unit postoperatively. InterventionsPatients were simultaneously monitored with a 10-electrode/12-lead electrocardiogram obtained every 2 mins (criterion standard) and routine intensive care unit surveillance that included standard monitoring (five-electrode/two-lead electrocardiogram with ST segment trends and routine 12-lead electrocardiogram) and clinical assessment for detecting myocardial ischemia. The results of the criterion standard were not available to the caregivers. Measurements and Main ResultsWe measured the ability of routine intensive care unit surveillance to detect the first 20 mins of electrocardiogram evidence suggestive of myocardial ischemia, defined as ST segment depression or elevation of ≥1 mm in two consecutive leads, during the first postoperative day. Seventeen patients (11%) had electrocardiogram evidence suggestive of prolonged myocardial ischemia, the majority of which occurred in leads V2–V4. The sensitivity of routine intensive care unit surveillance for detecting the first episode of electrocardiogram evidence suggestive of prolonged myocardial ischemia in a patient was 12% (95% confidence interval, 7–17%), and the specificity was 98% (95% confidence interval, 95–100%) with a positive predictive value of 40% (95% confidence interval, 32–48%), a negative predictive value of 90% (95% confidence interval, 85–94%), a positive likelihood ratio of 6, and a negative likelihood ratio of 1. The sensitivity of routine intensive care unit surveillance for detecting all episodes was 3% (95% confidence interval, 2–3%) and the specificity 99% (95% confidence interval, 99–100%) per 20-min monitoring interval, with a positive predictive value of 17% (95% confidence interval, 16–18%), negative predictive value of 95% (95% confidence interval, 95–96%), positive likelihood ratio of 3, and negative likelihood ratio of 1. ConclusionsRoutine intensive care unit surveillance has low sensitivity for detecting electrocardiogram evidence suggestive of prolonged myocardial ischemia compared with frequent 12-lead electrocardiograms. Because detecting electrocardiogram evidence suggestive of prolonged postoperative myocardial ischemia is important, physicians should consider alternative strategies to detect myocardial ischemia.
Ready, set? Go! Microscopy and image analysis of cell signalling in cell migration

Er moet meer onderzoek gedaan worden om de complexiteit van de levende cel te doorgronden. Dit concludeert Daniel Lam in zijn onderzoek naar diverse onderwerpen rondom het thema microscopie en beeldanalyse van signalering in celmigratie. Onderzoek naar celhechting en celbeweging is belangrijk voor inzicht in de ontwikkeling en groei van weefsels en organen, het helen van wonden en ook voor de functie van gespecialiseerde cellen die betrokken zijn bij de afweer tegen ziekteverwekkers zoals bacterien. Een belangrijke rol voor het sturen van celbeweging is weggelegd voor de zogeheten Rho-GTPase-eiwitfamilie. Met name het RhoGTPase-eiwit Rac1 werkt in het cellulaire signaleringsnetwerk zoals een ‘hub’ of ‘switch’ in een computernetwerk: een plek waar signalen binnenkomen en op de juiste plaats worden doorgestuurd naar de eiwitten die het skelet van de cel in beweging zetten. Het Rac1-eiwit kan ‘uit’ of ‘aan’ staan, wat in de cel nauwkeurig wordt gereguleerd. Vanwege zijn rol als centrale schakelaar staat Rac1 dan ook in contact met een groot aantal eiwitten in de cel. Een van die eiwitten is SET. SET is voor het eerst ontdekt in cellen van een leukemiepatient, waarin SET een rol lijkt te spelen in het ontstaan van kanker. Lam laat zien dat SET - als het uit de kern komt - samen met Rac1 celbeweging kan bevorderen, een nieuwe functie die nog niet eerder was beschreven. Lam stelt dat er meer onderzoek nodig is naar de informatie-inhoud, en de chemische en fysische eigenschappen van de cel. Hierbij is besef van de beperking van wetenschappelijke objectiviteit belangrijk, merkt hij op.
Tax mutation associated with tropical spastic paraparesis/human T-cell leukemia virus type I-associated myelopathy

Tumaco, Colombia, is an area with elevated rates of tropical spastic paraparesis/human T-cell leukemia virus type I (HTLV-I)-associated myelopathy (TSP/HAM). We have identified a mutation in nucleotide 7959 of the tax gene of 14 Tumaco HTLV-I isolates (14 positive of 14 tested) that was present in 5 of 14 (35%) TSP/HAM patients from Japan and in 8 of 11 (72%) TSP/HAM patients from other geographic locations. In contrast, this mutation was found in only 2 of 21 (9.5%) HTLV-I-infected subjects outside of Tumaco who did not have TSP/HAM. tax clones with nucleotide mutations including one at nucleotide 7959 showed a greater ability to transactivate the HTLV-I U3 promoter. However, this effect was not observed when two clones that differed only in nucleotide 7959 were compared. These results suggest that HTLV-I-infected individuals carrying isolates with this tax mutation are at higher risk for developing TSP/HAM.
RB phosphorylation in sodium butyrate‐resistant HL‐60 cells: Cross‐resistance to retinoic acid but not vitamin D3

To examine the potential coupling between inducible cellular changes in RB (retinoblastoma) tumor suppressor protein phosphorylation and ability to G0 growth arrest and differentiate, HL‐60 promyelocytic leukemia cells were cultured in incremental sodium butyrate (NaB) concentrations and thereby made resistant to the growth inhibitory effects of sodium butyrate, which normally induces G0 arrest and monocytic differentiation in wild type HL‐60 cells. The resistant cells were also unable to differentiate in response to NaB, indicating that a regulatory function controlling both G0 growth arrest and differentiation had been affected. The induced resistance was not genetic in origin since the cells regained the ability to G0 arrest and differentiate after being recultured in medium free of sodium butyrate for only three days. The resistant cells had similar cell cycle phase durations as the original wild type cells. The resistant cells retained the ability to both G0 arrest and differentiate in response to 1,25‐dihydroxy vitamin D3 (VD3), normally an inducer of G0 arrest and monocytic differentiation in wild type cells. However, they were cross‐resistant to retinoic acid (RA), another ligand for the same steroid thyroid hormone receptor family, which induces G0 arrest and myeloid differentiation in wild type cells. The ability to G0 arrest and phenotypically differentiate in response to RA were both grossly impaired. Unlike wild type cells which undergo early down‐regulation and then hypophosphorylation of the RB protein when induced to differentiate, in resistant cells, hypophosphorylation of RB in response to NaB was grossly retarded. These changes in RB protein occurred faster when the cells were treated with VD3. In contrast, the changes in RB phosphorylation occurred significantly slower when the cells were treated with RA. The results suggest a coupling between the ability to G0 growth arrest and phenotypically convert and the ability to hypophosphorylate RB. © 1995 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Multimodal complex event detection framework for wide area surveillance

There is an increasing demand for detecting complex events from heterogeneous sensor networks to support the Global War On Terror (GWOT). This paper presents a framework addressing several vital aspects of a multimodal complex event detection system for wide area surveillance. The paper discusses the key modules for an effective system including complex event specification, cross-camera tracking for wide area surveillance, simple and complex event detection from video and network data, and high-level complex event inference from multimodal data using Markov Logic Networks. A novel testing framework is also discussed for data collection, system debugging and performance evaluation.
Molecular Cloning, Expression, and Partial Characterization of Two Novel Members of the Ovalbumin Family of Serine Proteinase Inhibitors (*)

A human placental gt11 cDNA library was screened for sequences encoding proteins related to human proteinase inhibitor 6 (PI6), and two plaques were identified that displayed weak hybridization at high stringency. Isolation and characterization of the DNA inserts revealed two novel sequences encoding proteins composed of 376 and 374 amino acids with predicted molecular masses of 42 kDa. The novel proteins displayed all of the structural features unique to the ovalbumin family of intracellular serpins including the apparent absence of a cleavable N-terminal signal sequence. The degree of amino acid sequence identity between the novel serpins and PI6 (63-68%) significantly exceeds that of any other combination of known intracellular serpins. The two novel serpins encoded by the two novel cDNA sequences have been designated as proteinase inhibitor 8 (PI8) and proteinase inhibitor 9 (PI9). The putative reactive center P1-P1′ residues for PI8 and PI9 were identified as Arg-Cys and Glu-Cys, respectively. PI9 appears to be unique in that it is the first human serpin identified with an acidic residue in the reactive center P1 position. In addition, the reactive center loop of PI9 exhibits 54% identity with residues found in the reactive center loop of the cowpox virus CrmA serpin. Two PI8 transcripts of 1.4 kilobases (kb) and 3.8 kb were detected by Northern analysis in equal and greatest abundance in liver and lung, while the 1.4-kb mRNA was in excess over the 3.8-kb mRNA in skeletal muscle and heart. Two PI9 transcripts of 3.4 and 4.4 kb were detected in equal and greatest abundance in lung and placenta and were weakly detected in all other tissues. PI8 and PI9 were expressed in baby hamster kidney and yeast cells, respectively. Immunoblot analyses using rabbit anti-PI6 IgG indicated the presence of PI8 in the cytosolic fraction of stably transfected cells that formed an SDS-stable 67-kDa complex with human thrombin. PI9 was purified to homogeneity from the yeast cell lysate by a combination of heparin-agarose chromatography and Mono Q fast protein liquid chromatography and migrated as a single band in SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis with an apparent molecular mass of 42 kDa. Purified recombinant PI9 failed to inhibit the amidolytic activities of trypsin, papain, thrombin, or Staphylococcus aureus endoproteinase Glu-C and did not form an SDS-stable complex when incubated with thrombin. The cognate intracellular proteinases that interact with PI8 and PI9 are unknown.
Impact of negative bias temperature instability on digital circuit reliability

We have examined the impact of NBTI degradation on digital circuits through the stressing of ring oscillator circuits. By subjecting the circuit to pMOS NBTI stress, we have unambiguously determined the circuit reliability impact of NBTI. We demonstrate that the relative frequency degradation of the NBTI stressed ring oscillator increases as the voltage at operation decreases. This behavior can be explained by reduced transistor gate overdrive and reduced voltage headroom at the circuit level. We present evidence that donor interface state generation during NBTI stress is a significant component of the transistor degradation. Furthermore, we show that the Static Noise Margin of a SRAM memory cell is degraded by NBTI and the relative degradation increases as the operating voltage decreases.
Analysis of ecological footprint of Mengyin county during 1999–2008

The ecological footprints and ecological carrying capacity of Mengyin County between the years of 1999 and 2008 are calculated and analyzed based on the data of statistical yearbook of Mengyin and Land and Resources Bureau of Mengyin County. The results show that the average ecological footprint, capacity and deficit in this period are 2.0531 hm2/cap, 0.8949 hm2/cap and 1.1572 hm2/cap respectively, so it can be concluded that the city is in a state of unsustainable development.