Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Patterning of thin poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone) films on silicon substrates by electron beam lithography

Poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) is a widely used biocompatible polymer. PVP can be crosslinked by electron beam irradiation even in dry state. In contact with water it forms hydrogels. In a previous work we analyzed the crosslinking behavior of PVP bulk gels and thin PVP films on silicon wafers under electron beam irradiation. In this work, we applied the electron beam lithography on dry PVP films. Different patterns with a width of less than 100 nm were written into the film with the e-beam of a scanning electron microscope. The topography of the patterned film is investigated by atomic force microscopy. For further applications, we tried to create a gradient of crosslinking density within the film using a combination of e-beam irradiation and e-beam lithography. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2007
Polysaccharide intercellular adhesin in biofilm: structural and regulatory aspects

Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis are the leading etiologic agents of implant-related infections. Biofilm formation is the main pathogenetic mechanism leading to the chronicity and irreducibility of infections. The extracellular polymeric substances of staphylococcal biofilms are the polysaccharide intercellular adhesin (PIA), extracellular-DNA, proteins, and amyloid fibrils. PIA is a poly-β(1-6)-N-acetylglucosamine (PNAG), partially deacetylated, positively charged, whose synthesis is mediated by the icaADBC locus. DNA sequences homologous to ica locus are present in many coagulase-negative staphylococcal species, among which S. lugdunensis, however, produces a biofilm prevalently consisting of proteins. The product of icaA is an N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase that synthetizes PIA oligomers from UDP-N-acetylglucosamine. The product of icaD gives optimal efficiency to IcaA. The product of icaC is involved in the externalization of the nascent polysaccharide. The product of icaB is an N-deacetylase responsible for the partial deacetylation of PIA. The expression of ica locus is affected by environmental conditions. In S. aureus and S. epidermidis ica-independent alternative mechanisms of biofilm production have been described. S. epidermidis and S. aureus undergo to a phase variation for the biofilm production that has been ascribed, in turn, to the transposition of an insertion sequence in the icaC gene or to the expansion/contraction of a tandem repeat naturally harbored within icaC. A role is played by the quorum sensing system, which negatively regulates biofilm formation, favoring the dispersal phase that disseminates bacteria to new infection sites. Interfering with the QS system is a much debated strategy to combat biofilm-related infections. In the search of vaccines against staphylococcal infections deacetylated PNAG retained on the surface of S. aureus favors opsonophagocytosis and is a potential candidate for immune-protection.
Génétique des lipodystrophies congénitales Genetics of congenital lipodystrophies

Congenital lipodystrophies are heterogeneous genetic diseases, leading to the loss of adipose tissue. This loss of adipose tissue can be generalized or partial, thus defining different phenotypes. These lipodystrophies have a major metabolic impact, secondary to lipotoxicity. This lipotoxicity is responsible for insulin resistance, dyslipidemia and hepatic steatosis. The severity of the metabolic impact correlates with the severity of the loss of adipose tissue. Mutations in 15 predisposition genes are currently described; BSCL2 and AGPT2 genes are the major genes in the generalized forms. On the contrary, LMNA and PPARG gene mutations are recovered in partial lipodystrophies forms. These different genes encode for proteins involved in adipocyte physiology, altering adipocyte differentiation, triglycerides synthesis and lysis or playing a major role in the lipid droplet formation. Congenital lipodystrophies treatment is based on the management of metabolic comorbidities but recombinant leptin therapy appears to have promising results. These different points have been recently discussed during the 2015 Endocrine Society Congress, notably by S. O’Rahilly and are highlighted in this review. © 2015 Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved. Mots clés : Lipodystrophies généralisées ; Lipodystrophies partielles ; Génétique ; Syndrome de SHORT ; Lipotoxicité
An upper bound on the ergodic mutual information in Rician fading MIMO channels

We consider Rician fading multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) channels where the transmitted signal has complex Gaussian distribution, iid across the transmit antennas. Based on expected values of elementary symmetric functions of complex noncentral Wishart matrices, we derive an upper bound on the average (ergodic) mutual information for arbitrary SNR, arbitrary rank of the deterministic line-of-sight matrix, and arbitrary number of transmit/receive antennas. The Rayleigh fading signal component is allowed to have spatial correlation at one end of the link. Upper bounds for the cases of rank-1 line-of-sight component and pure Rayleigh fading emerge as special instances of the general result
A Text Mining Based on Refined Feature Selection to Predict Sentimental Review

This paper proposed an additional feature set and reduced the data dimension by SVD and PCA in order to increase accuracy and decrease executing time in text mining. The contribution of this study has: (i) proposed a preprocessing algorithm for sentiment classification, (ii) refined a feature set by adding adjective and adverb feature for sentiment classification, and (iii) utilized SVD then PCA to reduce data dimension for manager identified the sentimental labels. The experimental results show that the proposed model can obtain the better accuracy and the additional features make the better performance. Moreover, the dimension reduction can reduce the executing time effectively.
Edge-dependent structural, electronic and magnetic properties of MoS2 nanoribbons

Two-dimensional materials have various applications in next-generation nanodevices because of their easy fabrication and particular properties. In this work, we studied the effects of edge structures on the edge stability, and electronic and magnetic properties of MoS2 nanoribbons by first-principles calculations. We predicted that S-terminated zigzag nanoribbons are the most stable even without hydrogen saturation because of their low and negative edge energies, although hydrogen saturation of the edge states can stabilize other nanoribbons with different edge structures. MoS2 zigzag nanoribbons are metallic and ferromagnetic. Importantly, their conductivity may be semiconducting (n- or p-type) or half metallic by controlling the edge structures saturated with H atoms. The magnetic states of the MoS2 zigzag nanoribbons are enhanced by H-saturation and are much stronger than those of graphene zigzag nanoribbons. The armchair nanoribbons are semiconducting, with bandgaps increased by the hydrogen saturation of their edge states, and are nonmagnetic. These MoS2 nanoribbons with versatile functions may have applications in spintronics, nanodevices, and energy harvesting.
The omni-directional treadmill: a locomotion device for virtual worlds

The Omni-Directional Treadmill (ODT) is a revolutionary device for locomotion in large-scale virtual environments. The device allows its user to walk or jog in any direction of travel. It is the third generation in a series of devices built for this purpose for the U.S. Army’s Dismounted Infantry Training Program. We first describe the device in terms of its construction and operating characteristics. We then report on an analysis consisting of a series of locomotion and maneuvering tasks on the ODT. We observed user motions and system responses to those motions from the perspective of the user. Each task is described in terms of what causes certain motions to trigger unpredictable responses causing loss of balance or at least causing the user to become consciously aware of their movements. We conclude that the two primary shortcomings in the ODT are its tracking system and machine control mechanism for centering the user on the treads.
MSNS: A Top-Down MPI-Style Hierarchical Simulation Framework for Network-on-Chip

As the scale of System-on-Chip (SoC) grows rapidly in recent years, the communication burden between on-chip elements becomes much greater than before. Network-on-Chip (NoC) has been proposed as a solution for this issue. However, it is difficult to use mathematical models to analyze the application-specific NoC with various topologies, switching architectures and routing algorithms. Existing simulators tend to divide the whole simulation flow into independent stages. This division causes inaccurate simulation results in packet delay, traffic load, power consumption, etc. In this paper, we propose a top-down Message passing Interface (MPI) style hierarchical simulation framework, MSNS (MPI Style NoC Simulator), for the NoC systems. It integrates the layers from application down to network infrastructure. This simulation framework can achieve more reliable and accurate simulation results for application-specific NoC system. It is based on SystemC to adapt to both high level abstraction and RTL (Register Transfer Level) implementation. In order to achieve the generality, MPI standard for parallel processes is used as the communication interface. Both a specific parallel computation system and the NoC infrastructure can be evaluated in this simulation framework. The more accurate simulation results can be achieved with dynamic traffic in MSNS. The availability of MSNS is proved with case study.
Multi-View 3 D Geometry Reconstruction : Exploiting Massive Parallelism

3D geometric reconstruction from digital images captured from consumer cameras is an inexpensive, but computationally demanding application. In this experimental study, we have explored parallelism in the best known public domain software (Bundler and PMVS2) and found that massive parallelism exists at various levels that can be exploited on various computer architectures (such as multi-cores, distributed memory and GPU machines). Although in this report, we present results for multi-core and distributed memory machines, but we believe that similar results could be obtained on vector machines and GPU architectures as well. We have tested our MPI codes on a large clusters of 500 Linux nodes. Having shown almost linear scalability, we stress upon the need of improvements in sequential algorithms to enhance the quality of generated models.
Towards Linked Open Gene Mutations Data

Motivation The Semantic Web (1) is gaining momentum as a framework for the development of next-generation bioinformatics data integration tools since its standards and technologies have now reached enough maturity to be considered a viable solution for data integration challenges. The vision of the Semantic Web is to evolve the Web into a distributed knowledge base, and this vision relies on the evolution of the Web into a Web of Data (2). A relevant contribution to this evolution comes from the conversion into a viable representation of data stored in Relational Databases (RDB). The Resource Description Framework (RDF) is able to describe semantic rich information on the web. It is based on the composition of simple predicates such as ‘Subject’ ‘Predicate’ ‘Object’ (3). Many research works have been focused on the mapping of data from RDB to RDF and have led to the implementation of both mapping tools and domain specific applications. Some mappings are automatically generated via a simple conversion where the name of the relational table is mapped to an RDF class node and the names of the columns are used as RDF predicates: entities and relations, and their meaning, reflect the RDB schema. Usually, knowledge of these schema is needed to understand the exported information. In other mappings, relations and entities of the original databases are converted to a representation which is based on a shared conceptualization. Even though simple mappings do not capture complex semantics, they can serve as a starting point to create customized, domain’ specific mappings. Here, we present the development of a mapping between the IARC TP53 Somatic Mutation database (IARCDB) to RDF. Although several mutation and variation databases exist, to our knowledge this kind of information is still scarce in the Web of Data. The IARCDB has been developed and maintained at the International Agency for Research on Cancer in Lyon since 1994 (4). The database compiles all TP53 mutations that have been reported in the published literature since 1989. We have therefore implemented a prototype server publishing TP53 mutation data in RDF with the aim of studying all issues related to the publication of mutation data on the Linked Open Data cloud.
Effects of nitric oxide inhibitor on prostacyclin biosynthesis in portal hypertensive rats.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effects of nitric oxide inhibitor on prostacyclin (PGI2) biosynthesis and the role of PGI2 in hyperhemodynamics of portal hypertension. METHODS Sprague Dawley rats were divided into four groups: intrahepatic portal hypertension (IHPH) by injection of CCl4, prehepatic portal hypertension (PHPH) by stenosis of the portal vein, end-to-side portacaval shunt (PCS), and sham-operated controls (SO). Animals of each group were subdivided into 2 groups: systemic administration of nitric oxide inhibitor L-NMMA and vehicle. The radioactive microsphere method was used for hemodynamic study. The level of plasma PGI2 (6-keto-PGF1 alpha) was measured by radioimmunoassay. RESULTS The characteristics of hyperdynamic circulatory state including increased cardiac output and splanchnic blood flow, decreased mean arterial blood pressure, total peripheral vascular resistance, and splanchnic vascular resistance were observed in IHPH, PHPH and PCS rats. The magnitude of hyperhemodynamics was in the order of PCS > PHPH > IHPH rats. The hyperdynamic circulatory state in IHPH, PHPH and PCS rats could be effectively reversed by L-NMMA to the baseline values of hemodynamics in SO rats. The baseline concentrations of plasma 6-keto-PGF1 alpha (ng/ml) in PHPH, IHPH, PCS, and SO rats were 6.93 +/- 2.43, 5.09 +/- 2.27, 2.36 +/- 1.01 and 1.56 +/- 0.61, respectively. The concentrations of plasma 6-Keto-PGF1 alpha in PHPH, IHPH and PCS rats were significantly higher than those in SO rats. Moreover, the concentrations were significantly higher in PHPH and IHPH rats than in PCS rats (P < 0.05). After administration of L-NMMA, the concentrations of plasma 6-Keto-PGF1 alpha (ng/ml) in PHPH, IHPH, PCS and SO rats were 7.69 +/- 2.98, 5.68 +/- 2.66, 5.50 +/- 0.79, 5.02 +/- 2.86, respectively. As compared to the baseline value, the concentrations of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha rats were slightly increased in IHPH, PHPH rats (P > 0.05), but significantly increased in PCS and SO rats (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS In this study, the hyperdynamic circulatory state in portal hypertensive rats and portacaval shunt rats was completely reversed by L-NNMA to normal, but the level of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha was still elevated. The results indicate that PGI2 is not involved in hyperhemodynamics of portal hypertension.
On the number of OTA antenna elements for plane-wave synthesis in a MIMO-OTA test system involving a circular antenna array

To provide background scientific information for the on-going development process of an over-the-air (OTA) test standard for MIMO (multiple input multiple output) terminals, this paper presents a theoretical study on the generation of the plane-wave conditions to the test zone with a finite number of OTA antennas. In particular, such a MIMO-OTA test system is considered, where the OTA antennas lie in the horizontal plane on a circle around the test zone.
An iterative approach to local-PCA

We introduce a greedy algorithm that works from coarse to fine by iteratively applying localized principal component analysis (PCA). The decision where and when to split or add new components is based on two antagonistic criteria. Firstly, the well known quadratic reconstruction error and secondly a measure for the homogeneity of the distribution. For the latter criterion, which we call “generation error”, we compared two different possible methods to assess if the data samples are distributed homogeneously. The proposed algorithm does not involve a costly multi-objective optimization to find a partition of the inputs. Further, the final number of local PCA units, as well as their individual dimensionality need not to be predefined. We demonstrate that the method can flexibly react to different intrinsic dimensionalities of the data.
Discriminative Graph Embedding for Label Propagation

In many applications, the available information is encoded in graph structures. This is a common problem in biological networks, social networks, web communities and document citations. We investigate the problem of classifying nodes' labels on a similarity graph given only a graph structure on the nodes. Conventional machine learning methods usually require data to reside in some Euclidean spaces or to have a kernel representation. Applying these methods to nodes on graphs would require embedding the graphs into these spaces. By embedding and then learning the nodes on graphs, most methods are either flexible with different learning objectives or efficient enough for large scale applications. We propose a method to embed a graph into a feature space for a discriminative purpose. Our idea is to include label information into the embedding process, making the space representation tailored to the task. We design embedding objective functions that the following learning formulations become spectral transforms. We then reformulate these spectral transforms into multiple kernel learning problems. Our method, while being tailored to the discriminative tasks, is efficient and can scale to massive data sets. We show the need of discriminative embedding on some simulations. Applying to biological network problems, our method is shown to outperform baselines.
Rio: a system solution for sharing i/o between mobile systems

Mobile systems are equipped with a diverse collection of I/O devices, including cameras, microphones, sensors, and modems. There exist many novel use cases for allowing an application on one mobile system to utilize I/O devices from another. This paper presents Rio, an I/O sharing solution that supports unmodified applications and exposes all the functionality of an I/O device for sharing. Rio's design is common to many classes of I/O devices, thus significantly reducing the engineering effort to support new I/O devices. Our implementation of Rio on Android consists of about 7100 total lines of code and supports four I/O classes with fewer than 500 class-specific lines of code. Rio also supports I/O sharing between mobile systems of different form factors, including smartphones and tablets. We show that Rio achieves performance close to that of local I/O for audio devices, sensors, and modem, but suffers noticeable performance degradation for camera due to network throughput limitations between the two systems, which is likely to be alleviated by emerging wireless standards.
Implementation of Virtual Tree Machines

The report describes an environment for performing experiments in distributed processing. Our system offers researchers an easy way to design, implement and test parallel algorithms. It provides software tools which make possible a variety of tree-structured connections between processes. These process structures are said to form a "Virtual Tree Machine" (implemented on a local area network of VAX 11/780’s and SUN-2 processors). We show how these tools have been used both to aid parallel algorithm development and to explore different computer interconnection methods. [Regenerated from files dated 13 Dec 1987 in /tony/Reports/TR85.9/TR85-9]
The Puzzle of Muslim Advantage in Child Survival in India

The socioeconomic status of Indian Muslims is, on average, considerably lower than that of upper-caste Hindus. Muslims nevertheless exhibit substantially higher child survival rates, and have done for decades. This paper analyses this seeming puzzle. A decomposition of the survival differential confirms that some compositional effects favour Muslims but that, overall, differences in characteristics and especially the Muslim deficit in parental education predict a Muslim disadvantage. The results of this study contribute to a recent literature that debates the importance of socioeconomic status (SES) in determining health and survival. They augment a growing literature on the role of religion or culture as encapsulating important unobservable behaviours or endowments that influence health, indeed, enough to reverse the SES gradient that is commonly observed.
Effects of laser sintering processing time and temperature on changes in polyamide 12 powder particle size, shape and distribution

In laser sintering (LS) un-molten Polyamide 12 (PA12) powder is usually re-used (recycled) in further processes. However, LS processing time at powder bed temperature leads to material property changes. As a consequence, un-molten PA12 powder that is re-used or recycled in further processes leads to process and part properties deviations. In this context, powder particle size, shape and distribution is assumed to affect surface roughness and porosity of LS parts. In order to investigate this process effect on changes in powder size, shape and distribution, PA12 powder was systematically aged in a vacuum oven at conditions close to the LS process. According to this procedure, polymeric powder was obtained with aging times up to 120 hours and analyzed by dynamic image analysis. At first, fresh powder was investigated as a reference. The effect of LS processing time and temperature, i.e. powder bed temperature of approx. 174°C was measured with respect to changes in size distribution and shape whereas partic.
Interleukin-6 Modulates the Expression of the Bone Morphogenic Protein Receptor Type II Through a Novel STAT3–microRNA Cluster 17/92 Pathway

Dysregulated expression of bone morphogenetic protein receptor type II (BMPR2) is a pathogenetic hallmark of pulmonary hypertension. Downregulation of BMPR2 protein but not mRNA has been observed in multiple animal models mimicking the disease, indicating a posttranscriptional mechanism of regulation. Because microRNAs (miRNAs) regulate gene expression mainly through inhibition of target gene translation, we hypothesized that miRNAs may play a role in the modulation of BMPR2. Performing a computational algorithm on the BMPR2 gene, several miRNAs encoded by the miRNA cluster 17/92 (miR-17/92) were retrieved as potential regulators. Ectopic overexpression of miR-17/92 resulted in a strong reduction of the BMPR2 protein, and a reporter gene system showed that BMPR2 is directly targeted by miR-17-5p and miR-20a. By stimulation experiments, we found that the miR-17/92 cluster is modulated by interleukin (IL)-6, a cytokine involved in the pathogenesis of pulmonary hypertension. Because IL-6 signaling is mainly mediated by STAT3 (signal transducer and activator of transcription 3), the expression of STAT3 was knocked down by small interfering RNA, which abolished the IL-6–mediated expression of miR-17/92. Consistent with these data, we found a highly conserved STAT3-binding site in the promoter region of the miR-17/92 gene (C13orf25). Promoter studies confirmed that IL-6 enhances transcription of C13orf25 through this distinct region. Finally, we showed that persistent activation of STAT3 leads to repressed protein expression of BMPR2. Taken together, we describe here a novel STAT3–miR-17/92—BMPR2 pathway, thus providing a mechanistic explanation for the loss of BMPR2 in the development of pulmonary hypertension.