Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
In vitro reconstruction of an autologous, watertight, and resistant vesical equivalent.

PURPOSE Currently, bladder repair is performed using gastrointestinal segments; however, this technique has a high morbidity rate, and new alternatives are thus needed. The lack of native or synthetic tissue with similar properties of the bladder led us to develop autologous vesical substitutes entirely made by tissue engineering and without exogenous matrices. Watertight function and mechanical resistance are fundamental for the model. The aim of this study was to determine the structural and functional characteristics of our vesical equivalent (VE). MATERIALS AND METHODS Porcine VEs are produced in 55 days. The cellular types that make up the vesical wall are extracted and purified simultaneously from a small porcine bladder biopsy. Dermal fibroblasts are extracted and cultured in vitro to form cellular sheets. Endothelial cells were seeded on the fibroblast sheets before their superimposition. Urothelial cells are then seeded onto this cellular construction. VEs are characterized by histology, immunostaining, electron microscopy, and cell viability. Mechanical properties of the reconstructed substitutes are evaluated by uniaxial tensile tests, and tissue absorption is verified with (14)C-urea, which quantifies the degree of impermeability. RESULTS This process allowed us to obtain a highly structured tissue with a total fusion of the fibroblast layers. As expected, histological observations showed a pseudostratification of the urothelium developing on an organized self-secreted extracellular matrix. Positive markers for cytokeratin 8/18 in immunostaining confirmed the presence of a urinary epithelium. Electron microscopy confirmed the normal aspect of urothelial cells. Our VE's permeability to (14)C-urea was significantly similar to porcine bladder, and characterization of the mechanical properties indicated that our tissue could be suitable for grafting since its ultimate tensile strength compares favorably with a native porcine bladder. CONCLUSION The construction of a VE using this method seems very promising in meeting the needs in the urological field. Our substitute has proven its efficiency as a barrier to urea and has a sufficient mechanical resistance to support suturing. Additionally, this model is completely autologous, and its possible endothelialization could promote the early vascularization process after grafting and thus significantly reducing inflammation and possible rejection.
Recombinant human butyrylcholinesterase from milk of transgenic animals to protect against organophosphate poisoning

Dangerous organophosphorus (OP) compounds have been used as insecticides in agriculture and in chemical warfare. Because exposure to OP could create a danger for humans in the future, butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) has been developed for prophylaxis to these chemicals. Because it is impractical to obtain sufficient quantities of plasma BChE to treat humans exposed to OP agents, the production of recombinant BChE (rBChE) in milk of transgenic animals was investigated. Transgenic mice and goats were generated with human BChE cDNA under control of the goat β-casein promoter. Milk from transgenic animals contained 0.1–5 g/liter of active rBChE. The plasma half-life of PEGylated, goat-derived, purified rBChE in guinea pigs was 7-fold longer than non-PEGylated dimers. The rBChE from transgenic mice was inhibited by nerve agents at a 1:1 molar ratio. Transgenic goats produced active rBChE in milk sufficient for prophylaxis of humans at risk for exposure to OP agents.
Exposure to an environmentally relevant mixture of organochlorine compounds and polychlorinated biphenyls Promotes hepatic steatosis in male Ob/Ob mice

Hepatic steatosis is recognized as an independent risk factor for the development of cardiovascular disease. While obesity and type 2 diabetes are well‐established risk factors in the development of hepatic steatosis, recent studies have revealed exposure to mixtures of persistent organic pollutants (POPs), which are environmental contaminants in various fatty foods, can promote steatosis. Thus, the present study was designed to determine if exposure to a defined mixture of prevalent polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and organochlorine (OC) pesticides or their metabolites promote hepatic steatosis in a genetically induced model of type 2 diabetes, the leptin‐deficient ob/ob mouse. Male C57BL/6J wild type (WT) or ob/ob mice were administered an environmentally relevant mixture of PCBs and OCs for 7 weeks via oral gavage. Exposure to POPs did not significantly alter fasting serum glucose or insulin levels. However, POPs exposure significantly increased hepatic triglyceride content in ob/ob animals, while decreasing serum triglyceride levels. This POPs‐mediated increase in hepatic triglyceride content did not appear to be associated with significantly increased inflammation in either the liver or adipose. Exposure to POPs significantly induced the expression of cytochrome P450 3a11 in WT animals, yet the expression of this cytochrome was significantly downregulated in ob/ob animals regardless of POPs exposure. Taken together, the present data indicate exposure to an environmentally relevant mixture of both PCBs and OC pesticides in ob/ob mice promotes hepatic steatosis while decreasing hypertriglyceridemia, which demonstrates exposure to a defined mixture of POPs alters systemic lipid metabolism in a genetically induced model of obesity and type 2 diabetes. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol 32: 1399–1411, 2017.
An imaging genetics approach to understanding social influence

Normative social influences shape nearly every aspect of our lives, yet the biological processes mediating the impact of these social influences on behavior remain incompletely understood. In this Hypothesis, we outline a theoretical framework and an integrative research approach to the study of social influences on the brain and genetic moderators of such effects. First, we review neuroimaging evidence linking social influence and conformity to the brain's reward system. We next review neuroimaging evidence linking social punishment (exclusion) to brain systems involved in the experience of pain, as well as evidence linking exclusion to conformity. We suggest that genetic variants that increase sensitivity to social cues may predispose individuals to be more sensitive to either social rewards or punishments (or potentially both), which in turn increases conformity and susceptibility to normative social influences more broadly. To this end, we review evidence for genetic moderators of neurochemical responses in the brain, and suggest ways in which genes and pharmacology may modulate sensitivity to social influences. We conclude by proposing an integrative imaging genetics approach to the study of brain mediators and genetic modulators of a variety of social influences on human attitudes, beliefs, and actions.
User model and system model: the yin and yang in user-centered software development

Software systems can be viewed from both external and internal perspectives. They are called user model and system model respectively in the human-computer interaction community. In this paper, we employ the yin-yang principle as an analytical tool for reviewing the relationship between the user model and the system model. In the traditional system-centered approach, the engineer is more concerned with the system model and does not pay much attention to the user model. However, as the user-centered approach has gained increasing acceptance in a number of projects, we claim that the user model and system model are the yin and yang in user-centered software development and, following the yin-yang principle, call for equal emphasis on both models. Particularly, we propose using video-based scenarios as the representation of user models and reveal the benefits of the use of video in software development. As a case study, we describe how we have employed scenario videos in a project course and share best practices that we have identified for the creation of demo scenario videos.
A General Framework Based on Composite Granules for Mining Association Rules

At present many algorithms for mining association rules have been proposed, but most of them are only suitable for discovering specific frequent itemsets from characteristic data sets on the appointed environments, namely, these algorithms are not general enough when mining association rules. In this paper, a general framework based on composite granules for mining association rules is proposed, which is a general data mining model without appointed restriction from frequent itemsets, data sets or mining environments and so on. An iterative method is efficiently applied to the general mining framework for discovering frequent itemsets, which adopts repartitioning frequent attributes to iteratively reconstruct the mixed radix information system for reducing a relational database. In order that the framework for discovering frequent itemsets has a generality, in discussing and establishing the general mining framework, this paper introduces a novel conception and data model, namely, a mixed radix information system is applied to describe a relational database, and a composite granules is used to build a specific relationship between an information system and a mixed radix information system, which can hold the same extension and simultaneously exist in two different information systems. The mixed radix information system can help the general framework to reduce information data and improve the performance of the framework for generating frequent itemsets. The composite granules model can create a relationship between an information granule and a digital information granule, and help the framework for computing the support to avoid reading the database repeatedly or using the complex data structure. Finally, a new taxonomy is presented to verify the generality and the high efficiency of the mining framework and all the experiments based on the taxonomy indicate that the general mining framework has the required generality, and the performance of the framework is better than these classical mining frameworks.
The molecular basis of the coloration mechanism in lobster shell: β-Crustacyanin at 3.2-Å resolution

The binding of the carotenoid astaxanthin (AXT) in the protein multimacromolecular complex crustacyanin (CR) is responsible for the blue coloration of lobster shell. The structural basis of the bathochromic shift mechanism has long been elusive. A change in color occurs from the orange red of the unbound dilute AXT (λmax 472 nm in hexane), the well-known color of cooked lobster, to slate blue in the protein-bound live lobster state (λmax 632 nm in CR). Intriguingly, extracted CR becomes red on dehydration and on rehydration goes back to blue. Recently, the innovative use of softer x-rays and xenon derivatization yielded the three-dimensional structure of the A1 apoprotein subunit of CR, confirming it as a member of the lipocalin superfamily. That work provided the molecular replacement search model for a crystal form of the β-CR holo complex, that is an A1 with A3 subunit assembly including two bound AXT molecules. We have thereby determined the structure of the A3 molecule de novo. Lobster has clearly evolved an intricate structural mechanism for the coloration of its shell using AXT and a bathochromic shift. Blue/purple AXT proteins are ubiquitous among invertebrate marine animals, particularly the Crustacea. The three-dimensional structure of β-CR has identified the protein contacts and structural alterations needed for the AXT color regulation mechanism.
Macrophage activation in murine African trypanosomiasis

African trypanosomiasis is accompanied by a profound general immunosuppression in which both suppressive T cells and macrophages (M phi) have been implicated. The present studies define changes in the M phi surface, endocytic and secretory properties, during the infection of mice by Trypanosoma brucei. Peritoneal M phi obtained after the control of the first wave of parasitemia displayed characteristics similar to those activated by intracellular pathogens, such as Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette-Guérin, e.g., the enhanced expression of Ia antigen, decreased M phi-specific antigens, receptors mediating the pinocytosis of mannose-terminal glycoproteins, and an increased ability to secrete plasminogen activator, superoxide anion, and H2O2. Some markers of macrophage activation persisted during the subpatent period before the recurrence of parasitemia, whereas others reverted to normal. Mature T cell function appears not to be essential for M phi activation by T. brucei since the infection of athymic nude mice also induced Ia antigens and plasminogen activator. These studies show that M phi activated by different pathways express common features which may contribute to immune dysfunction observed in trypanosomiasis, as well as in other infections.
Ineffectiveness of Glucose, Potassium, and Insulin Infusion During Pacing Stress in Chronic Ischemic Heart Disease

Eight patients with coronary artery disease and positive exercise electrocardiograms undergoing cardiac catheterization were subjected to periods of atrial pacing-induced tachycardia at identical rates, before and during a glucose, potassium, and insulin (GKI) infusion. Steady state elevation of glucose and insulin was obtained prior to repeating the atrial pacing test in the GKI state. With each patient serving as his own control, five developed augmented clinical signs of acute ischemia during the paced GKI state, two no change, and one subjective improvement. Left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (LVEDP) was elevated in all patients (1-8 mm Hg) at rest during GKI infusion as compared to the rest control state. LVEDP during pacing was greater during the GKI paced state as compared to the control paced state in three of the eight patients whereas after pacing LVEDP was higher in four of eight patients during GKI. ST-segment depression was less during pacing in the GKI as compared to control state in four patients. A decrease in ST-segment depression was noted in two patients after pacing in the GKI state as compared to this measure after pacing in the control state. Augmented myocardial glucose uptake was demonstrated in the paced GKI state but lactate analysis failed to demonstrate a stoichiometric relationship between enhanced glucose uptake and lactate production.It is concluded that tolerance to ischemia is not extended and in the majority of cases may be adversely affected by GKI.
Vitamin D and Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Vitamin D deficiency has been recognized as an environmental risk factor for Crohn's disease since the early 80s. Initially, this finding was correlated with metabolic bone disease. Low serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels have been repeatedly reported in inflammatory bowel diseases together with a relationship between vitamin D status and disease activity. Subsequently, low serum vitamin D levels have been reported in various immune-related diseases pointing to an immunoregulatory role. Indeed, vitamin D and its receptor (VDR) are known to interact with different players of the immune homeostasis by controlling cell proliferation, antigen receptor signalling, and intestinal barrier function. Moreover, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D is implicated in NOD2-mediated expression of defensin-β2, the latter known to play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of Crohn's disease (IBD1 gene), and several genetic variants of the vitamin D receptor have been identified as Crohn's disease candidate susceptibility genes. From animal models we have learned that deletion of the VDR gene was associated with a more severe disease. There is a growing body of evidence concerning the therapeutic role of vitamin D/synthetic vitamin D receptor agonists in clinical and experimental models of inflammatory bowel disease far beyond the role of calcium homeostasis and bone metabolism.
Probability and the Westgard Rules.

Shewhart introduced industry to the concept of three standard deviation (3S) limits for quality control and Levey, Jennings, Henry, and Westgard adapted this idea to clinical laboratory medicine. Westgard ultimately formulated a system of rules to enable clinical laboratory scientists to decide whether the tests they were doing were "in control" and reportable, or "out of control. " The present communication explains mathematically how Shewhart's "beyond 3S" (ie, > 1 chance in 370) is an indication for corrective laboratory action.
Connective tissue growth factor-mediated upregulation of neuromedin U expression in trabecular meshwork cells and its role in homeostasis of aqueous humor outflow.

PURPOSE Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) is a matricellular protein presumed to be involved in the pathobiology of various fibrotic diseases, including glaucoma. We investigated the effects of Rho GTPase-dependent actin cytoskeletal integrity on CTGF expression and CTGF-induced changes in gene expression profile in human trabecular meshwork (HTM) cells. METHODS CTGF levels were quantified by immunoblotting and ELISA. CTGF-induced changes in gene expression, actin cytoskeleton, myosin light chain (MLC) phosphorylation, and extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins were evaluated in trabecular meshwork (TM) cells by cDNA microarray, q-PCR, fluorescence microscopy, and immunoblot analyses. The effects of neuromedin U (NMU) on aqueous humor (AH) outflow were determined in enucleated porcine eyes. RESULTS Expression of a constitutively active form of RhoA (RhoAV14), activation of Rho GTPase by bacterial toxin, or inhibition of Rho kinase by Y-27632 in HTM cells led to significant but contrasting changes in CTGF protein levels that were detectable in cell lysates and cell culture medium. Stimulation of HTM cells with CTGF for 24 hours induced actin stress fiber formation, and increased MLC phosphorylation, fibronectin, and laminin levels, and NMU expression. NMU independently induced actin stress fibers and MLC phosphorylation in TM cells, and decreased AH outflow facility in perfused porcine eyes. CONCLUSIONS These data revealed that CTGF influences ECM synthesis, actin cytoskeletal dynamics, and contractile properties in TM cells, and that the expression of CTGF is regulated closely by Rho GTPase. Moreover, NMU, whose expression is induced in response to CTGF, partially mimics the effects of CTGF on actomyosin organization in TM cells, and decreases AH outflow facility, revealing a potentially important role for this neuropeptide in the homeostasis of AH drainage.
Hierarchical Compliance Control of a Soft Ankle Rehabilitation Robot Actuated by Pneumatic Muscles

Traditional compliance control of a rehabilitation robot is implemented in task space by using impedance or admittance control algorithms. The soft robot actuated by pneumatic muscle actuators (PMAs) is becoming prominent for patients as it enables the compliance being adjusted in each active link, which, however, has not been reported in the literature. This paper proposes a new compliance control method of a soft ankle rehabilitation robot that is driven by four PMAs configured in parallel to enable three degrees of freedom movement of the ankle joint. A new hierarchical compliance control structure, including a low-level compliance adjustment controller in joint space and a high-level admittance controller in task space, is designed. An adaptive compliance control paradigm is further developed by taking into account patient’s active contribution and movement ability during a previous period of time, in order to provide robot assistance only when it is necessarily required. Experiments on healthy and impaired human subjects were conducted to verify the adaptive hierarchical compliance control scheme. The results show that the robot hierarchical compliance can be online adjusted according to the participant’s assessment. The robot reduces its assistance output when participants contribute more and vice versa, thus providing a potentially feasible solution to the patient-in-loop cooperative training strategy.
New results on robust exponential stability for uncertain system with interval delay

This paper is concerned with the robust exponential stability analysis of the continuous system with interval time-varying delay and norm-bounds uncertainties. By using Lyapunov-Krasovskii functional method and employing some novel techniques to overcome the disadvantages of the method in existing references, several delay-range-dependent conditions are derived in term of the linear matrix inequalities. The merits of the proposed criteria lie in the decay rate being a free value and the less conservativeness. Finally, some numerical examples are illustrated to show the improvement of this paper.
DATA WAREHOUSE: CONCEPTUAL AND LOGICAL SCHEMA -SURVEY-

The Data Warehouse (DW) is considered as a repository that contains data collected from different sources. Its design is one of many issues treated in the literature. It is considered as the most important since it influences the quality of DW projects. Despite the number of works that have done, the design still suffers from many problems such as the lack of a consistent methodology that assists the user. In this work, we present a survey. It contains a presentation of the conceptual design models and the different logical schemas that exist.
Dependently typed programming with singletons

Haskell programmers have been experimenting with dependent types for at least a decade, using clever encodings that push the limits of the Haskell type system. However, the cleverness of these encodings is also their main drawback. Although the ideas are inspired by dependently typed programs, the code looks significantly different. As a result, GHC implementors have responded with extensions to Haskell's type system, such as GADTs, type families, and datatype promotion. However, there remains a significant difference between programming in Haskell and in full-spectrum dependently typed languages. Haskell enforces a phase separation between runtime values and compile-time types. Therefore, singleton types are necessary to express the dependency between values and types. These singleton types introduce overhead and redundancy for the programmer. This paper presents the singletons library, which generates the boilerplate code necessary for dependently typed programming using GHC. To compare with full-spectrum languages, we present an extended example based on an Agda interface for safe database access. The paper concludes with a detailed discussion on the current capabilities of GHC for dependently typed programming and suggestions for future extensions to better support this style of programming.