Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Supranormal Stimulation of D1 Dopamine Receptors in the Rodent Prefrontal Cortex Impairs Spatial Working Memory Performance

Although previous research has emphasized the beneficial effects of dopamine (DA) on functions of the prefrontal cortex (PFC), recent studies of animals exposed to mild stress indicate that excessive DA receptor stimulation may be detrimental to the spatial working memory functions of the PFC (Arnsten and Goldman-Rakic, 1990; Murphy et al., 1994, 1996a,b, 1997). In particular, these studies have suggested that supranormal stimulation of D1 receptors may contribute to the detrimental actions of DA in the PFC (Murphy et al., 1994, 1996a). The current study directly tested this hypothesis by examining the effects of infusing a full D1 receptor agonist, SKF 81297, into the PFC of rats performing a spatial working memory task, delayed alternation. SKF 81297 produced a dose-related impairment in delayed-alternation performance. The impairment was reversed by pretreatment with a D1 receptor antagonist, SCH 23390, consistent with drug actions at D1 receptors. SCH 23390 by itself had no effect on performance, although slightly higher doses impaired performance (Murphy et al., 1994, 1996a). There was a significant relationship between infusion location and drug efficacy; animals with cannulae anterior to the PFC were not impaired by SKF 81297 infusions. Taken together, these results demonstrate that supranormal D1 receptor stimulation in the PFC is sufficient to impair PFC working memory function. These cognitive data are consistent with recent electrophysiological studies of D1 receptor mechanisms affecting the PFC (Williams and Goldman-Rakic, 1995; Yang and Seamans, 1996). Increased D1receptor stimulation during stress may serve to take the PFC “off-line” to allow posterior cortical and subcortical structures to regulate behavior, but may contribute to the vulnerability of the PFC in many neuropsychiatric disorders.
Isolation and detection of multiple yeasts from a single clinical sample by use of Pagano-Levin agar medium

A total of 15,234 clinical samples were tested on modified Pagano-Levin agar medium to detect multiple yeast species within a single sample. Samples containing more than one yeast species were estimated to be 8.0% of the total. The most frequent combination of different yeasts was Candida albicans and Torulopsis glabrata.
Exploring and Engineering the Cell Surface Interface

Cells are inherently sensitive to local mesoscale, microscale, and nanoscale patterns of chemistry and topography. We review current approaches to control cell behavior through the nanoscale engineering of materials surfaces. Far-reaching implications are emerging for applications including medical implants, cell supports, and materials that can be used as instructive three-dimensional environments for tissue regeneration.
Partial discharge erosion of nano-filled enameled wires subjected to high frequency waveforms

The accelerated degradation under high frequency AC voltages of enameled wires that are nano-filled is compared to enameled wires without nano-fillers. The surface roughness and erosion depth of wire specimens, aged in the presence of partial discharge (PD), are studied using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Changes in the chemical bonding behavior of wire insulation due to PD erosion, are also assessed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). A comparative evaluation of the residual life of the wires, aged under high frequency AC waveforms reveals that the newly developed nano-filled enameled wires, especially those with fumed silica, attain a life that is twice that of conventional wires, which is a significant improvement
Absprachen im italienischen Strafverfahren

Abstract I. Vorbemerkung Seit der Strafverfahrensreform von 1989 hat sich die Idee der konsensualen Verfahrenserledigung in Italien weiter entwickelt. Angeklagten, die ganz oder teilweise darauf verzichten, ihre Verteidigungsrechte wahrzunehmen, verspricht das Gesetz mit erheblicher Großzügigkeit eine Verminderung der Strafe auch unter das gesetzliche Mindestmaß sowie weitere Vorteile.
Housing-related control beliefs and independence in activities of daily living in very old age

Control beliefs, i.e. a person's perceived control over his or her own behaviour, are important predictors of psychological functioning in old age. The aim of this study is to examine the mediating effect of housing-related control beliefs on the relationship between housing accessibility and independence in activities of daily living (ADL). Moreover, cross-national differences in five European countries were analysed, based on data from the ENABLE-AGE Project. Data were collected at home visits with 1 918 very old people aged 75–89 years, living alone at home in Swedish, German, British, Hungarian, and Latvian urban areas. Assessments were based on standardized instruments with good psychometric properties. Correlations showed small to medium relationships between accessibility, housing-related control beliefs, and ADL independence. Further, multi-group structural equation modelling revealed that not only housing accessibility but housing-related control beliefs explain unique portions of variation in the independent performance of daily activities. In particular, participants with lower external control beliefs performed more independently in ADL. Though some differences among countries were observed, cross-national similarity in correlative patterns existed regarding control beliefs and independence in ADL. Introducing the concept of housing-related control beliefs into occupational therapy, comprehensively and cross-nationally, has the potential to increase our professional understanding of older people's housing situation.
Telephone Depression Care Management for Latino Medicaid Health Plan Members: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

The objective of this pilot study was to provide a preliminary test of feasibility, acceptability, and efficacy of telephone depression care management among Latino Medicaid health plan members. Thirty-eight depressed primary care patients were enrolled in a pilot randomized trial of telephone depression care management + treatment as usual (TAU) versus TAU only. Bilingual care managers conducted care management for 3 months following an antidepressant prescription. For 1 year, research staff attempted to contact 929 potentially eligible members and enrolled 38. Qualitative analyses suggested that, of the participants we interviewed, most expressed satisfaction with the program. Participants suggested ways to improve recruitment, such as face-to-face contact. When compared with the group receiving TAU, there was a trend for the intervention group to experience less depression in time. This pilot study suggests that this program may be promising; however, there is need to investigate ways to better reach those who might find the program helpful.
The Upregulation of p 27 Kip 1 by Rapamycin Results in G 1 Arrest in Exponentially Growing T-Cell Lines

An immunosuppressant Rapamycin (Rap) has been reported to cause G1 arrest by inhibiting p70 S6 kinase and G1 cyclin/cdks kinase activities when added to quiescent cells with mitogens. However, antiproliferative effects of Rap on exponentially growing cells have been poorly investigated. We examined the intracellular events after the treatment of Rap in exponentially growing T cells and found that Rap upregulated a cdks inhibitor, p27Kip1 at both mRNA and protein levels in Rap-sensitive cells. Antiproliferative effect of Rap was mainly ascribed to the inhibition of cyclin E/cdk2 kinase activity through the formation of cyclin E/cdk2p27Kip1 complex rather than inhibition of p70 S6 kinase activity. Furthermore, we showed that Rap-sensitive cells with elevated p27Kip1 expression lost sensitivity to Rap when antisense p27Kip1 was introduced, which indicates that the basal level of p27Kip1 is one of the limiting factors that determine the sensitivity to Rap in already cycling cells. These data suggest the presence of a putative threshold level of p27Kip1 at late G1 phase in already cycling cells. Rap may cause G1 arrest by upregulating the amount of p27Kip1 beyond the threshold in some Rap-sensitive cells that are exponentially growing. r 1998 by The American Society of Hematology.
The diminishing variance algorithm for real‐time reduction of motion artifacts in MRI

A technique has been developed whereby motion can be detected in real time during the acquisition of data. This enables the implementation of several algorithms to reduce or eliminate motion effects from an image as it is being acquired. One such algorithm previously described is the acceptance/rejection method. This paper deals with another real‐time algorithm called the diminishing variance algorithm (DVA). With this method, a complete set of preliminary data is acquired along with information about the relative motion position of each frame of data. After all the preliminary data are acquired, the position information is used to determine which data frames are most corrupted by motion. Frames of data are then reacquired, starting with the most corrupted one. The position information is continually updated in an iterative process; therefore, each subsequent reacquisition is always done on the worst frame of data. The algorithm has been implemented on several different types of sequences. Preliminary in vivo studies indicate that motion artifacts are dramatically reduced.
Seeing beyond reading: a survey on visual text analytics

We review recent visualization techniques aimed at supporting tasks that require the analysis of text documents, from approaches targeted at visually summarizing the relevant content of a single document to those aimed at assisting exploratory investigation of whole collections of documents.Techniques are organized considering their target input material—either single texts or collections of texts—and their focus, which may be at displaying content, emphasizing relevant relationships, highlighting the temporal evolution of a document or collection, or helping users to handle results from a query posed to a search engine.We describe the approaches adopted by distinct techniques and briefly review the strategies they employ to obtain meaningful text models, discuss how they extract the information required to produce representative visualizations, the tasks they intend to support and the interaction issues involved, and strengths and limitations. Finally, we show a summary of techniques, highlighting their goals and distinguishing characteristics. We also briefly discuss some open problems and research directions in the fields of visual text mining and text analytics. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Recent Progress in Challenges of Wireless Biomedical Sensor Network

Wireless biomedical sensor network (WBSN) improves monitoring conditions, community medical and health services remarkably. Meanwhile, it poses prominent characteristics and challenges for its particular medical application. This paper highlights the recent researches and achievements in this field and also gives a guide to pivotal challenges of WBSN for researchers and engineers.
Perceived Barriers to Healthy Eating and Physical Activity Among Participants in a Workplace Obesity Intervention

Objective: To characterize barriers to healthy eating (BHE) and physical activity (BPA) among participants in a workplace weight management intervention. Methods: Steps to health participants completed a questionnaire to ascertain barriers to physical activity and healthy eating faced. Exploratory factor analysis was used to determine the factor structure for BPA and BHE. The relationships of these factors with accelerometer data and dietary behaviors were assessed using linear regression. Results: Barriers to physical activity included time constraints and lack of interest and motivation, and to healthy eating, lack of self-control and convenience, and lack of access to healthy foods. Higher BHE correlated with higher sugary beverage intake but not fruit and vegetable and fat intake. Conclusions: To improve their effectiveness, workplace weight management programs should consider addressing and reducing barriers to healthy eating and physical activity.
Antigenicity of Helicobacter pylori lipopolysaccharides

An investigation of the sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) profiles of lipopolysaccharides (LPSs) extracted from seven strains of Helicobacter pylori revealed that these molecules were silver stainable and exhibited a high degree of variability in their patterns. Two strains synthesized a variety of sizes of LPS molecules such that fractionation by SDS-PAGE resulted in a stepwise gradation of bands which extended from the top to the bottom of the silver-stained gel. The LPSs from the remaining five strains were made up of molecules which were more homogeneous in size and clustered around two separate areas of the gel. Antigenic analyses of phenol-water-extracted LPSs by immunoblotting and the passive hemagglutination assay suggested that, in addition to strain-specific antigens, all of the LPSs carried a common antigen. Antibodies to this common antigen could be removed from antisera by absorption, and the resulting antisera were used to differentiate strains on the basis of their O antigens by the passive hemagglutination assay technique. The finding that LPSs from 3 of 10 clinical isolates reacted specifically in one or two of the typing antisera suggested that the development of a scheme for differentiating H. pylori on the basis of O antigens is feasible.
A taxonomy of see-through tools: the video

At the CHI’94 conference we presented a new user interface paradigm, the See-Through litterfaceTM, that allows movable tools to readily be brought to computer-based work. On a computer display, see-through tools appear on a semi-transparent sheet that can be positioned over applications using either hand. The tools are applied by clicking through them with a cursor controlled by the dominant hand. This video quickly reviews the see-through paradigm, and then ilhtstrates a taxonomy of see-through tools [1, 4] with examples from graphical editing and text editing tasks.
Multiple distributed generator allocation by Harmony search algorithm for loss reduction

The objective of the paper is to reduce the losses and improve the voltage profile of the radial distribution system with optimally placing the multiple distributed generator in the system. In this paper analytical expressions for optimal siting of distributed generators (DG). The optimal sizing of distributed generators by Improved Analytical (IA) method and Harmony search algorithm. The analysis is carried out on IEEE-33 bus and IEEE-69 bus systems.
Determination of menopausal status in women: the NHLBI-sponsored Women's Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation (WISE) Study.

PURPOSE Accurate classification of menopausal status is important to epidemiological research evaluating the role of reproductive hormones in disease processes. Algorithms relying on repeat hormone assays are unfeasible in large epidemiological studies. This paper summarizes the development of the Women's Ischemia Syndrome Evaluation (WISE) Hormonal menopausal status algorithm for determining premenopausal, perimenopausal, and postmenopausal status using menstrual and reproductive history and reproductive hormone levels obtained at a single clinic visit. METHODS The authors compared the accuracy of this algorithm with two currently used self-report algorithms: Menstrual, based only on months since last menstrual period, and Historical, which adds age and surgical history. RESULTS The study population consisted of 515 women (329 clearly postmenopausal) enrolled in the WISE study who were undergoing coronary angiography for suspected ischemia. A subgroup of 186, not clearly postmenopausal, was classified by these three algorithms. Results were evaluated against individualized expert consensus classification. The Menstrual and Historical classifications differed significantly (p < 0.0001) from expert consensus, with 32%-26% discordant classifications, respectively. For the WISE Hormonal classification, discordance was 4%. CONCLUSIONS The authors conclude that inaccurate classifications of menopausal status occur frequently in self-report algorithms. Use of the relatively simple WISE algorithm can improve the accuracy of menopausal status classification for epidemiological research.
XML Static Analyzer User Manual

Theme SYM | Systemes symboliquesEquipes-Projets WamRapport de recherche n° 6726 | December 18, 2008 | 17 pagesAbstract: This manual provides documentation for using the logical solverintroduced in [Geneves, 2006; Geneves et al., 2007]. Key-words: Static Analysis, Logic, Satis ability Solver, XML, Schema,XPath, Queries
Accuracy of Human Circadian Entrainment under Natural Light Conditions: Model Simulations

The patterns of light intensity to which humans expose their circadian pacemakers in daily life are very irregular and vary greatly from day to day. The circadian pacemaker can adjust to such irregular exposure patterns by daily phase shifts, such as summarized in a phase response curve. It is demonstrated in this paper on the basis of computer simulations applying actually recorded human light exposure patterns that the pacemaker can substantially improve its accuracy by an additional response to light: For that purpose, it should additionally change its angular velocity (and consequently its period [.tau]) in response to light. Reductions of [. tau] in response to light in the morning and increases of [. tau] in response to light in the evening can lead to an increase in entrained pacemaker accuracy with about 25%. Circadian pacemakers have evolved as accurate internal representations of external time, and investigated diurnal mammals all seem to respond to light by changing the period of their circadian pacemaker (in addition to shifting phase). The authors suggest that also human circadian systems take advantage of this possibility and that their pacemakers respond to light by shifting phase and changing period. As a consequence of this postulated mechanism, the simulations demonstrate that the period of the pacemaker under normally entrained conditions is 24 h. The maximum accuracy corresponds to a day-to-day standard deviation of the time of phase 0 of circa 15 min. This is considerably more accurate than the light signal humans usually perceive.
Active control of cell with microbubbles for cellular immunotherapy by acoustic force

Recently immunotherapy using therapeutic cells has attracted attention. Because the cells injected in human body disperse through the blood stream, there is a problem that small amount reaches to the diseased area. So we intend for in vivo cell delivery system. Microbubbles were attracted on the surface of cells for dynamic control of cells under ultrasound emission. The cells and microbubbles were observed under fluorescent excitation to be observed their behavior in a thin channel, where the cells were induced to boundary of the channel. Furthermore, mean velocity of the cells increased with maximum sound pressure of the ultrasound, where the highest velocity of 2.2 mm/s was confirmed when the maximum sound pressure of 500 kPa-pp was applied. Through the experiments there is a possibility of delivery of in vivo cells.
The Evolution of Extinction Risk: Past and Present Anthropogenic Impacts on the Primate Communities of Madagascar

There are two possible approaches to understanding natural and human-induced changes in the primate communities of Madagascar. One is to begin with present-day and recent historic interactions and work backwards. A second is to begin with paleoecological records of Malagasy primate communities before and immediately following human arrival, and the associated evidence of human and nonhuman primate interactions, and work forwards. On the basis of biological and climatic studies, as well as historic and ethnohistoric records, we are beginning to understand the abiotic and biotic characteristics of Madagascar’s habitats, the lemurs’ ecological adaptations to these unique habitats, the extent of forest loss, fragmentation and hunting, and the differential vulnerability of extant lemur species to these pressures. On the basis of integrated paleoecological, archaeological and paleontological research, we have begun to construct a detailed chronology for late prehistoric Madagascar. We are beginning to understand the complex sequence of events that led to one of the most dramatic recent megafaunal extinction/extirpation events. Combining the perspectives of the past and the present, we see a complex set of interactions affecting an initially rich but vulnerable fauna. The total evidence refutes any simple, unicausal (e.g. hunting/habitat destruction/climate change) explanation of megafaunal extinctions, yet unequivocally supports a major role – both direct and indirect – for humans as the trigger of the extinction process. It also supports a change over time in the relative importance of hunting versus habitat loss, and in the trophic characteristics of the primate communities in Madagascar.
Negative Dielectrophoretic Particle Positioning in A Fluidic Flow

Abstract In this work, we report the control of a microparticle position within fluid flow based on its size by using a repulsive force generated with negative dielectrophoresis (n-DEP). The n-DEP based fluidic channel, which was consisted of navigator and separator electrodes, was used to manipulate the particle flow in the center of channel and to control the particle position in the fluidic flow. The mixture of 10 μm-and 20 μm-diameter particles was introduced into the channel with 30 μm height at 700 μm/s. On applying an AC voltage (23 V peak-peak and 7 MHz) to the navigator electrodes on the upper and lower substrates in a n-DEP frequency region, the suspended microparticles were guided to the center of the fluidic channel and then channelled through the passage gate positioned at the center of the channel. The AC electric field was also applied to separator electrodes, resulting in a formation of flow paths with low electric fields. The separator was consisted of the five band electrodes with the di.
Modal Analysis of a PMSG-Based DC Electrical Power System in the More Electric Aircraft Using Eigenvalues Sensitivity

This paper deals with the modeling and small-signal stability analysis of a dc-distribution electrical power system (EPS) sourced by a permanent magnet synchronous generator (PMSG). The topology employed here is one of the main candidates for future more electric aircraft (MEA). A detailed mathematical model is developed and comprehensive EPS modal analysis is performed. Eigenvalue sensitivity and participation factor are utilized to assess the effect of machine and control parameters, as well as system operating conditions, on EPS stability. Furthermore, this paper also presents comparative analysis of system models with and without the inclusion of system cabling. This crucial analysis shows that the tendencies in stability behavior can be significantly different with and without cabling. It is, therefore, shown that system simplification, by removal of cabling, can deliver remarkably misleading results. Time domain simulations are carried out to support the theoretical analysis. The comprehensive analysis presented in this paper provides EPS designers with an extremely useful methodology for the selection of appropriate EPS parameters at the early design stages.
KCF based 3D object tracking via RGB-D camera of a quadrotor

A real-time vision-based object tracking system embedded in a quadrotor is presented in this paper. The integrated system is expected to enable the quadrotor to track a target object and keep with a fixed distance. A robust object tracking method via improving Kernelized Correlation Filters algorithm is proposed to achieve accurate visual tracking. In addition, a PID controller is applied to utilize the data from a RGB-D Camera. And the effectiveness of our proposed method is verified by experimental results.