Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Corneal Biomechanical Properties and their Correlates with Healing Process after Descemetic versus Pre-Descemetic Lamellar Keratoplasty

Purpose To evaluate the influence of the wound-healing process on corneal biomechanics in patients after 2 types of deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty: Descemetic with total stromal resection vs pre-Descemetic with deep stromal dissection. Methods This prospective comparative study consisted of 32 eyes of 32 patients. Patients were divided into 2 groups: Descemetic (17 eyes) and pre-Descemetic (15 eyes). Reichert ocular response analyzer was used to measure corneal hysteresis (CH) and corneal resistance factor (CRF) at 1 and 3 months postoperatively. Central corneal thickness (CCT) was measured using ultrasonic pachymetry. In vivo confocal microscopy was also used to study the corneal wound-healing process and to correlate these events with the corneal biomechanics postoperatively in both groups. Results Both mean CH and mean CRF were significantly lower in the Descemetic than the pre-Descemetic group at 1 and 3 months postoperatively (p≤0.0001). The reflectivity of activated keratocytes at both the interface and wound edge was less in the Descemetic than the pre-Descemetic group at all times as revealed by the confocal microscopy. No statistically significant difference in mean CCT was found between both groups at 1 and 3 months. Subsequent and progressive decrease in interface reflectivity of activated keratocytes was presented in both groups. Conclusions Healing process at the interface is key to optimal corneal integrity. In the pre-Descemetic group, stroma-to-stroma healing stimulated more activated keratocytes and hence stronger healing response, providing superior corneal biomechanics. Significant positive correlation between the intensity of the keratocyte activation and corneal integrity was found.
Detecting and segmenting sound sources by using microphone array

This paper describes microphone array that can be used for sound localization and sound capture. The system has omni-directional sensitivity, and can be as a tele-microphone for apropriate direction. Sound capture by microphone array is achieved by Sum and Delay Beam Former (SDBF). SimuIation of sound pressure distribution of 32 & 64ch circular microphone array are shown. According to simulation results, dedicated Firewire (IEEE1394) 32-channel board are developed with maximum sampling rate of llkHz sample. The 32ch circular microphone array system is evaluated by using frequency components of the sound.
Mechanism of Resistance of Hepatitis C Virus Replicons to Structurally Distinct Cyclophilin Inhibitors

ABSTRACT The current standard of care for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, pegylated alpha interferon in combination with ribavirin, has a limited response rate and adverse side effects. Drugs targeting viral proteins are in clinical development, but they suffer from the development of high viral resistance. The inhibition of cellular proteins that are essential for viral amplification is thought to have a higher barrier to the emergence of resistance. Three cyclophilin inhibitors, the cyclosporine analogs DEBIO-025, SCY635, and NIM811, have shown promising results for the treatment of HCV infection in early clinical trials. In this study, we investigated the frequency and mechanism of resistance to cyclosporine (CsA), NIM811, and a structurally unrelated cyclophilin inhibitor, SFA-1, in replicon-containing Huh7 cells. Cross-resistance between all clones was observed. NIM811-resistant clones were selected only after obtaining initial resistance to either CsA or SFA-1. The time required to select resistance against cyclophilin inhibitors was significantly longer than that required for resistance selection against viral protein inhibitors, and the achievable resistance level was substantially lower. Resistance to cyclophilin inhibitors was mediated by amino acid substitutions in NS3, NS5A, and NS5B, with NS5A mutations conferring the majority of resistance. Mutation D320E in NS5A mediated most of the resistance conferred by NS5A. Taken together, the results indicate that there is a very low frequency and level of resistance to cyclophilin-binding drugs mediated by amino acid substitutions in three viral proteins. The interaction of cyclophilin with NS5A seems to be the most critical, since the NS5A mutations have the largest impact on resistance.
The Vomeronasal Complex of Nocturnal Strepsirhines and Implications for the Ancestral Condition in Primates

This study investigates the vomeronasal organ in extant nocturnal strepsirhines as a model for ancestral primates. Cadaveric samples from 10 strepsirhine species, ranging from fetal to adult ages, were studied histologically. Dimensions of structures in the vomeronasal complex, such as the vomeronasal neuroepithelium (VNNE) and vomeronasal cartilage (VNC) were measured in serial sections and selected specimens were studied immunohistochemically to determine physiological aspects of the vomeronasal sensory neurons (VSNs). Osteological features corresponding to vomeronasal structures were studied histologically and related to 3‐D CT reconstructions. The VNC consistently rests in a depression on the palatal portion of the maxilla, which we refer to as the vomeronasal groove (VNG). Most age comparisons indicate that in adults VNNE is about twice the length compared with perinatal animals. In VNNE volume, adults are 2‐ to 3‐fold larger compared with perinatal specimens. Across ages, a strong linear relationship exists between VNNE dimensions and body length, mass, and midfacial length. Results indicate that the VNNE of nocturnal strepsirhines is neurogenic postnatally based on GAP43 expression. In addition, based on Olfactory Marker Protein expression, terminally differentiated VSNs are present in the VNNE. Therefore, nocturnal strepsirhines have basic similarities to rodents in growth and maturational characteristics of VSNs. These results indicate that a functional vomeronasal system is likely present in all nocturnal strepsirhines. Finally, given that osteological features such as the VNG are visible on midfacial bones, primate fossils can be assessed to determine whether primate ancestors possessed a vomeronasal complex morphologically similar to that of modern nocturnal strepsirhines. Anat Rec, 296:1881–1894, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Age diversity management: Its beauty is in the eye of the beholder

An ageing population has led to calls for greater consideration of age in the social, economic, political and market arenas. Little is known about which age diversity policies, practices and programs are effective in which types of organizations or for what outcomes. This paper proposes and tests a positive relationship between three elements of age diversity management (diversity policies and systems, age diversity practices, and work-life programs) and one organisational outcomes namely, corporate social responsibility. It also proposes and tests for a moderating effect of the organizations’ diversity perspective (fairness, access or learning). Data were collected from 248 medium to large sized for profit organizations, private or publicly listed on the Australian Securities Exchange. The results suggest the use of different policies, practices, and work-life programs for appropriate and meaningful age diversity management for different business propositions. Some aspects of age diversity management may be seen by employees as transactional such as work-life programs with an age focus; while others, such as age diversity policies and systems may provide real opportunities for substantive transformational organizational learning.
Hybridization Between Brassica napus and B. rapa on a National Scale in the United Kingdom

Measures blocking hybridization would prevent or reduce biotic or environmental change caused by gene flow from genetically modified (GM) crops to wild relatives. The efficacy of any such measure depends on hybrid numbers within the legislative region over the life-span of the GM cultivar. We present a national assessment of hybridization between rapeseed (Brassica napus) and B. rapa from a combination of sources, including population surveys, remote sensing, pollen dispersal profiles, herbarium data, local Floras, and other floristic databases. Across the United Kingdom, we estimate that 32,000 hybrids form annually in waterside B. rapa populations, whereas the less abundant weedy populations contain 17,000 hybrids. These findings set targets for strategies to eliminate hybridization and represent the first step toward quantitative risk assessment on a national scale.
Use of methylene blue in the prevention of recurrent intra-abdominal postoperative adhesions

Objective To evaluate the efficacy of methylene blue in preventing recurrent symptomatic postoperative adhesions. Methods Patients with a history of >2 surgeries for intra-abdominal adhesion-related complications were selected for this study. Adhesiolysis surgery was subsequently performed using administration of 1% methylene blue. The follow-up period was 28.5 ± 11.1 months. Results Data were available from 20 patients (seven men and 13 women) whose mean ± SD age was 51.2 ± 11.4 years. Adhesions took longer to become symptomatic after the first abdominal surgery when the initial pathology was malignant compared with benign. However, the recurrence of adhesions after a previous adhesiolysis surgery had a similar time onset regardless of the initial disease. Following adhesiolysis surgery with methylene blue, the majority of patients did not present with symptoms associated with adhesion complications (i.e., chronic abdominal pain, bowel obstruction) for the length of the follow-up period. Conclusions The use of methylene blue during adhesiolysis surgery appears to reduce the recurrence of adhesion-related symptoms, suggesting a beneficial effect in the prevention of adhesion formation.
Water Shadow Price Calculation and Forecasted Models Research

China is short of water resources.The distribution of water resources is uneven.Water is used in low efficiency.Serious water waste and water pollution are mainly caused by unreasonable price. Based on Chinese nine major river basins water conservancy input-holding-output tablesin 1999,this paper constructs a linear programming model to calculate shadow price of industrial water(IP) and productive water(PP) for Chinese nine major river basins.Based on the results of linear programming and correlative coefficient analysis,two nonlinear regression models are designed which can be used to calculate IP and PP easily and simply.Finally the shadow prices in the year 2000 of industrial water and productive water in China and its nine river basins in 2020 and 2030 are forecasted.The results Provide a scientific reference to make reasonable water prices,and then through the price mechanism,the rational allocation and the sustainable use of water resources can be realixed.
A Low-Phase Noise and High Output Swing RF LC-VCO in CMOS Technology

This paper presents the design of a 1.8-V, 3.5GHz CMOS complementary cross-coupled LC-VCO designed for WLAN IEEE 802.11a, two step frequency up-conversion applications with integrated stacked planar inductor. The tuning range of the VCO spans from 3.38 GHz to 3.55 GHz achieved through a depletion mode pMOS based varactor and the corresponding core circuit current consumption is 2.5mA. Implemented in a 0.18mum standard CMOS process the VCO is integrated with a high gain cross-coupled open drain buffer and measures a close in 1/f3 phase noise of -57 dBc/Hz at 10 kHz of offset frequency. The far out phase noise, 1/f2 is -116 dBc/Hz at 1 MHz of offset frequency
Prevalence of feline leukaemia virus and antibodies to feline immunodeficiency virus in cats in the United Kingdom

A representative sample of the pet cat population of the United Kingdom was surveyed. Blood samples from 1204 sick and 1007 healthy cats of known breed, age and sex were tested for antibodies to feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) and feline leukaemia virus (FeLV). The prevalence of FIV was 19 per cent in sick cats and 6 per cent in healthy cats, and the prevalence of FeLV was 18 per cent in sick cats and 5 per cent in healthy cats; both infections were more common in domestic cats than in pedigree cats. Feline immunodeficiency virus was more prevalent in older cats but FeLV was more prevalent in younger cats. There was no difference between the prevalence of FeLV in male and female cats but male cats were more likely to be infected with FIV than female cats. No interaction was demonstrated between FIV and FeLV infections. Of the cats which were in contact with FIV in households with more than one cat, 21 per cent had seroconverted. The prevalence of FeLV viraemia in cats in contact with FeLV was 14 per cent. The clinical signs associated with FIV were pyrexia, gingivitis/stomatitis and respiratory signs, and with FeLV, pyrexia and anaemia. It was concluded that both viruses were significant causes of disease, and that the cats most likely to be infected with FIV were older, free-roaming male cats and for FeLV, younger, free-roaming cats.
Adipose-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells Prevent Systemic Bone Loss in Collagen-Induced Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is an autoimmune disease characterized by chronic inflammatory synovitis leading to joint destruction and systemic bone loss. The inflammation-induced bone loss is mediated by increased osteoclast formation and function. Current antirheumatic therapies primarily target suppression of inflammatory cascade with limited or no success in controlling progression of bone destruction. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) by virtue of their tissue repair and immunomodulatory properties have shown promising results in various autoimmune and degenerative diseases. However, the role of MSCs in prevention of bone destruction in RA is not yet understood. In this study, we investigated the effect of adipose-derived MSCs (ASCs) on in vitro formation of bone-resorbing osteoclasts and pathological bone loss in the mouse collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) model of RA. We observed that ASCs significantly inhibited receptor activator of NF-κB ligand (RANKL)–induced osteoclastogenesis in both a contact-dependent and -independent manner. Additionally, ASCs inhibited RANKL-induced osteoclastogenesis in the presence of proinflammatory cytokines such as TNF-α, IL-17, and IL-1β. Furthermore, treatment with ASCs at the onset of CIA significantly reduced clinical symptoms and joint pathology. Interestingly, ASCs protected periarticular and systemic bone loss in CIA mice by maintaining trabecular bone structure. We further observed that treatment with ASCs reduced osteoclast precursors in bone marrow, resulting in decreased osteoclastogenesis. Moreover, ASCs suppressed autoimmune T cell responses and increased the percentages of peripheral regulatory T and B cells. Thus, we provide strong evidence that ASCs ameliorate inflammation-induced systemic bone loss in CIA mice by reducing osteoclast precursors and promoting immune tolerance.
A new approach to parameter extraction for on-chip symmetric transformers

A new approach to parameter extraction for on-chip symmetric transformers based on measured four-port S-parameters is proposed. Based on circuit analysis, open-loaded and short-loaded Y parameters are first used to derive the coupling parameters and all the other model parameters are derived from the corresponding analytical equations. As verified by a set of transformers fabricated on a standard 0. 18μm RFCMOS technology, by a careful comparison of S-parameters and other figure-of-merits between measured data and simulated data, the extracted parameters can predict the performance of on-chip transformers with a high precision up to 10GHz. Since no iterations are needed in the fitting procedures, it can substantially increase the time efficiency of compact circuit modeling for on-chip transformers.
Absence of β2 Integrins Impairs Regulatory T Cells and Exacerbates CD4+ T Cell-Dependent Autoimmune Carditis

The immunopathogenic mechanisms mediating inflammation in multiorgan autoimmune diseases may vary between the different target tissues. We used the K/BxN TCR transgenic mouse model to investigate the contribution of CD4+ T cells and β2 integrins in the pathogenesis of autoimmune arthritis and endocarditis. Depletion of CD4+ T cells following the onset of arthritis specifically prevented the development of cardiac valve inflammation. Genetic absence of β2 integrins had no effect on the severity of arthritis and unexpectedly increased the extent of cardiovascular pathology. The exaggerated cardiac phenotype of the β2 integrin-deficient K/BxN mice was accompanied by immune hyperactivation and was linked to a defect in regulatory T cells. These findings are consistent with a model in which the development of arthritis in K/BxN mice relies primarily on autoantibodies, whereas endocarditis depends on an additional contribution of effector T cells. Furthermore, strategies targeting β2 integrins for the treatment of systemic autoimmune conditions need to consider not only the role of these molecules in leukocyte recruitment to sites of inflammation, but also their impact on the regulation of immunological tolerance.
Case Study: Design and Implementation of IEC 61850 From Multiple Vendors at CFE La Venta II

The IEC 61850 standard provides methods of developing best engineering practices for substation protection, integration, control, monitoring, metering, and testing. Comision Federal de Electricidad (CFE) chose to build their newest integrated transmission protection and control network with IEC 61850 and evaluated the technology for possible future inclusion into their design standards. The primary IEDs chosen for protection were selected from the devices that have been approved by the customer and that also support IEC 61850. For the La Venta II project, the primary focus was to include IEC 61850 devices from as many vendors as possible rather than using traditional design criteria. In addition to the primary protection and control equipment, the customer invited all vendors to submit IEDs to be connected to the network to demonstrate their ability to communicate IEC 61850. Additional IEDs were added in an auxiliary bay because the design constraints required that the core of the network be useful and effective; it is not a demonstration control system but a pilot project to gain experience with the new standard. This system integrated 24 devices from 9 different product platforms provided by 6 different vendors. The implementation was completed in four months and included newly released products from some vendors, involved staging device communications over the Internet, and relied on contributions from engineers in seven time zones. IEC 61850 is a very large standard with seven different protocols within it. End users implement different combinations of the protocols and the different features they provide. Therefore, it is important that end users not only specify that they want to use IEC 61850, but also what parts of the standard they want to use and, more importantly, how they want the system to perform. Throughout the implementation of this project, it became apparent that implementation details left to the discretion of the vendors and not dictated by the standard needed to be documented as requirements to attain the required system functionality. The following is a sample of these details: quantity of client/server associations to the device, quantity of peer-to-peer messages the device will publish or transmit, quantity of peer-to-peer messages the device will subscribe to or receive, number of characters allowed in the device name, run-time device diagnostics, configuration of the device via SCL (substation configuration language) XML files instead of settings
A Non‐pathogenic Recombinant Leishmania Expressing Lipophosphoglycan 3 Against Experimental Infection with Leishmania infantum

Visceral leishmaniasis (VL) is caused by Leishmania infantum in the Mediterranean basin and affects primarily children and immunosuppressed individuals. Various strategies of vaccination have so far been examined by either protein or DNA without achievable complete protection against the disease. The live non‐pathogenic lizard parasite, Leishmania tarentolae, expressing elected Leishmania antigens has recently provided a promising new approach as a safe and effective live vaccine candidate to prevent leishmaniasis. Here, we evaluated the immunoprotective potential of a live recombinant L. tarentolae expressing Lipophosphoglycan 3 (LPG3) antigen against L. infantum infection in BALB/c mice. Results indicated that the administration of live recombinant Leishmania produced a significant high level of IFN‐γ accompanied by reduced levels of IL‐10 as compared to wild‐type parasites as live vaccine control, thus suggesting the induction of a Th1‐type immune response in a mouse model of visceral leishmaniasis. Analysis of the IgG antibody response also showed high levels of IgG2a relative to IgG1 in sera of mice immunized with recombinant Leishmania parasites. However, immune responses elicited by this live vaccine conferred partial protection against infectious challenge. Therefore, further studies are required to increase its protective efficacy.
A compositional framework for the specification of interaction protocols in multiagent organizations

This paper addresses the notion of context in multiagent systems from an organisational point of view. Setting out from the RICA metamodel that shapes the agents' space of interaction on the basis of hierarchical organisational and communicative abstractions, we propose Interaction State Machines as a new formalism for the specification and enactment of multiagent interaction protocols. By means of examples from the FIPA interaction protocol library, we show how this formalism allows for a successive refinement of interaction protocols, and how this process is guided by the organisational model underlying a multiagent application.
Arginase: a key enzyme in the pathophysiology of allergic asthma opening novel therapeutic perspectives

Allergic asthma is a chronic inflammatory airways' disease, characterized by allergen‐induced early and late bronchial obstructive reactions, airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR), airway inflammation and airway remodelling. Recent ex vivo and in vivo studies in animal models and asthmatic patients have indicated that arginase may play a central role in all these features. Thus, increased arginase activity in the airways induces reduced bioavailability of L‐arginine to constitutive (cNOS) and inducible (iNOS) nitric oxide synthases, causing a deficiency of bronchodilating and anti‐inflammatory NO, as well as increased formation of peroxynitrite, which may be involved in allergen‐induced airways obstruction, AHR and inflammation. In addition, both via reduced NO production and enhanced synthesis of L‐ornithine, increased arginase activity may be involved in airway remodelling by promoting cell proliferation and collagen deposition in the airway wall. Therefore, arginase inhibitors may have therapeutic potential in the treatment of acute and chronic asthma. This review focuses on the pathophysiological role of arginase in allergic asthma and the emerging effectiveness of arginase inhibitors in the treatment of this disease.