Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Regulation of satiety quiescence: Cyclic GMP, TGF beta, and the ASI neuron

Regulation of Satiety Quiescence: cyclic GMP, TGF beta, and the ASI Neuron By Thomas L. Gallagher A Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University. Virginia Commonwealth University, 2013 Major Director: Young-Jai You, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology ix The worm Caenorhabditis elegans is a well-studied model organism in numerous aspects of its biology. This small free living nematode has less than 1,000 cells, but shows clear conservation in both signaling and behavior to mammals in aspects of appetite control. This is of importance to humans, where failure of appetite control is a major factor in the unprecedented obesity epidemic that we see today. In general, worm behavior reflects its internal nutritional state and the availability and quality of food. Specifically, worms show a behavioral state that mimics aspects of the mammalian behavioral satiety sequence, which has been termed satiety quiescence. We have used locomotion tracking and Hidden Markov Model analysis to identify worm behavioral state over time, finding quiescence along with the established worm locomotive behaviors roaming and dwelling. Using this analysis as well as more conventional cell biology and genetic approaches we have further investigated satiety signaling pathways. We have found that the neuron ASI is a major center of integration of signals regarding the internal nutritional state of the worms as well as the nutritional content of its environment. Our results show that cGMP causes levels of the TGFβ ligand to be increased in fasted worms, which is then released and binds to its receptor on the RIM and RIC neurons. This signaling connects nutritional state to behavioral response, promoting the sleep-like behavioral state satiety quiescence. Additionally, we have begun a candidate approach examining several other groups of signaling molecules for potential roles in satiety quiescence signaling including cannabinoids, multidrug resistance proteins, and neuropeptides. The result of this investigation is a better understanding of mechanisms of x satiety quiescence signaling as well as a new tool that provides highly quantitative, unbiased, and automated data to aid in our ongoing work.
Multichannel microelectrode recording influences final electrode placement in pallidal deep brain stimulation for Parkinson's disease: report of twenty consecutive cases.

AIM Stereotactic placement of the permanent deep brain stimulating electrode can be based upon imaging guidance with or without microelectrode recordings (MER). MATERIAL AND METHODS We conducted a retrospective study of 20 PD patients who underwent bilateral pallidal DBS placement with MER. There were 14 males and 6 females. The mean age at implantation was 67 years (range 42 - 80 years). Paired t-tests were used to compare initial imaging target coordinates versus final electrode coordinates based on intraoperative MER. United Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) scores pre-operatively (medication off) and at 6 months post-operatively (medication off, stimulation on) and daily levodopa equivalents preoperatively and 6 months post-operatively were analyzed. RESULTS The mean difference between calculated imaging target and final electrophysiological target was 3 mm (SD + 1.53 mm; p < 0.0001) in the dorsal-ventral plane and 1.2 mm the axial plane, resulting in a calculated final electrophysiology-based target adjustment of 3.4 mm (SD = 1.4 mm). Patients' average daily levodopa equivalent dose dropped by 52% at six months post-operatively (SD=40.9; p = 0.002). UPDRS scores dropped 26.9 points six months postoperatively (SD=20.4; p = 0.0003). CONCLUSION In our experience intraoperative microelectrode recordings can facilitate final electrode placement.
Angiotensin Receptor Neprilysin Inhibition Compared With Enalapril on the Risk of Clinical Progression in Surviving Patients With Heart Failure

Background— Clinical trials in heart failure have focused on the improvement in symptoms or decreases in the risk of death and other cardiovascular events. Little is known about the effect of drugs on the risk of clinical deterioration in surviving patients. Methods and Results— We compared the angiotensin-neprilysin inhibitor LCZ696 (400 mg daily) with the angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor enalapril (20 mg daily) in 8399 patients with heart failure and reduced ejection fraction in a double-blind trial. The analyses focused on prespecified measures of nonfatal clinical deterioration. In comparison with the enalapril group, fewer LCZ696-treated patients required intensification of medical treatment for heart failure (520 versus 604; hazard ratio, 0.84; 95% confidence interval, 0.74–0.94; P=0.003) or an emergency department visit for worsening heart failure (hazard ratio, 0.66; 95% confidence interval, 0.52–0.85; P=0.001). The patients in the LCZ696 group had 23% fewer hospitalizations for worsening heart failure (851 versus 1079; P<0.001) and were less likely to require intensive care (768 versus 879; 18% rate reduction, P=0.005), to receive intravenous positive inotropic agents (31% risk reduction, P<0.001), and to have implantation of a heart failure device or cardiac transplantation (22% risk reduction, P=0.07). The reduction in heart failure hospitalization with LCZ696 was evident within the first 30 days after randomization. Worsening of symptom scores in surviving patients was consistently more common in the enalapril group. LCZ696 led to an early and sustained reduction in biomarkers of myocardial wall stress and injury (N-terminal pro–B-type natriuretic peptide and troponin) versus enalapril. Conclusions— Angiotensin-neprilysin inhibition prevents the clinical progression of surviving patients with heart failure more effectively than angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibition. Clinical Trial Registration— URL: http://www.clinicaltrials. gov. Unique identifier: NCT01035255.
Joule heating effects and the experimental determination of temperature during CE

Joule heating is ubiquitous in electrokinetic separations. This review is in two major parts. The first part documents the effects of Joule heating on the physical properties of the electrolyte and efficiency of separations and the second part focuses on advances in the determination of electrolyte temperatures that have been described in the literature over the past 5 years. The focus is on methods that can be applied by practitioners without the need for elaborate experimental requirements. Although the emphasis is on CE, many of the conclusions also apply to microfluidic formats.
SURE: A Novel Approach for Self Healing Battery Starved Users Using Energy Harvesting

Radio Frequency (RF) energy harvesting holds a promising future for energizing low power mobile devices in next generation wireless networks. Harvesting from a dedicated RF energy source acquires much more energy than simply harvesting from ambient RF sources. In this paper, novel Self-healing of Users equipment by RF Energy transfer scheme is introduced between the network operator and battery starved users to heal and extend their battery life time by sending dedicated energy from different sources in order to be aggregated and harvested by starved users. This approach depends on the concept of Energy as a Service where the network operator delivers energy to battery starved users in the next generation networks. A mixed integer non-linear optimization problem is formulated and solved efficiently using three heuristic algorithms. Simulation results prove that sufficient amounts of energy can be delivered to starved users while minimizing their uplink power requirements and guaranteeing a minimum uplink data rate.
The Ultimate Love-Hate Relationship: Examining Sport Commitment in Collegiate Track & Field Athletes

The purpose of this study was to examine sport commitment among collegiate track and field athletes in order to determine what factors influence continued participation throughout an entire college career. A survey was administered to 431 track and field athletes across each of the three NCAA divisions. The survey included a modified version of the Athletes’ Opinion Survey based on the Sport Commitment Model (Scanlan et al., 1993), which measures the relationship between sport commitment, sport enjoyment, personal investments, social constraints, social support, involvement alternatives and involvement opportunities. Additionally, the survey included a modified version of the Exercise Commitment Scale (Wilson et al., 2004), measuring commitment in terms of attraction-based commitment versus entrapment-based commitment. Regression results revealed that enjoyment was the strongest predictor for sport commitment among the overall collegiate track and field population. Results also revealed satisfaction as the stronger predictor of attraction-based commitment, followed by involvement opportunities. Involvement alternatives, however, proved to have the strongest negative impact on attraction-based commitment. Findings from this study provide essential information to athletic programs and coaches aiming to both recruit and retain athletes for a full four years.
Collecting Information for Rating Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF): Sources of Information and Methods for Information Collection

Introduction: Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) is an assessment instrument that is known worldwide. It is widely used for rating the severity of illness. Results from evaluations in psychiatry should characterize the patients. Rating of GAF is based on collected information. The aim of the study is to identify the factors involved in collecting information that is relevant for rating GAF, and gaps in knowledge where it is likely that further development would play a role for improved scoring. Methods: A literature search was conducted with a combination of thorough hand search and search in the bibliographic databases PubMed, PsycINFO, Google Scholar, and Campbell Collaboration Library of Systematic Reviews. Results: Collection of information for rating GAF depends on two fundamental factors: the sources of information and the methods for information collection. Sources of information are patients, informants, health personnel, medical records, letters of referral and police records about violence and substance abuse. Methods for information collection include the many different types of interview – unstructured, semi-structured, structured, interviews for Axis I and II disorders, semistructured interviews for rating GAF, and interviews of informants – as well as instruments for rating symptoms and functioning, and observation. The different sources of information, and methods for collection, frequently result in inconsistencies in the information collected. The variation in collected information, and lack of a generally accepted algorithm for combining collected information, is likely to be important for rated GAF values, but there is a fundamental lack of knowledge about the degree of importance. Conclusions: Research to improve GAF has not reached a high level. Rated GAF values are likely to be influenced by both the sources of information used and the methods employed for information collection, but the lack of research-based information about these influences is fundamental. Further development of GAF is feasible and proposals for this are presented.
Beware of friends: The cultural psychology of relational mobility and cautious intimacy

Previous research has contrasted patterns of cautious or prevention-oriented relationality in various West African settings with patterns of growth or promotion-oriented relationality in many North American settings. The present research draws upon the concept of relational mobility to test the hypothesis that different patterns of relationality have their source in respective affordances for embedded interdependence or abstracted independence. Study 1 investigated the relationship between cautious intimacy and perception of relational mobility among a sample of Hong Kong students. Study 2 compared students in Hong Kong and North American settings to test whether differences in perception of relational mobility mediated the hypothesized differences in caution about friends. Study 3 used an experimental manipulation among a sample of Hong Kong students to test the hypothesis that increased perception of relational mobility reduces caution about friends. Results reveal broad support for the hypotheses. Whether as a measured variable or as an experimental treatment, the perception of relational mobility was negatively related to caution about friends. Moreover, this relationship mediated hypothesized cross-national differences in caution about friendship. A discussion of the results considers intersections of cultural and ecological approaches to psychology and implications for theoretical conceptions of interdependence.
Limitations of the HOMA-B score for assessment of beta-cell functionality in interventional trials-results from the PIOglim study.

BACKGROUND Drugs with unspecific stimulating effects on beta-cell secretion increase the homeostasis model assessment (HOMA)-B score, indicating improved beta-cell "function. " We investigated whether the beta-cell protection provided by adding pioglitazone (PIO) to glimepiride (GLIM) in comparison to up-titrating the GLIM dose alone is reflected by appropriate changes in several measures of beta-cell function, including HOMA-B score. METHODS This double-blind, parallel prospective 6-month study was performed with 82 patients (47 men, 35 women; age, 61 +/- 9 years; duration of disease, 5.3 +/- 4.4 years; body mass index, 32.6 +/- 6.0 kg/m(2); hemoglobin A1c [HbA1c], 7.3 +/- 0.7%) with GLIM monotherapy (1-3 mg). They were randomized to receive a GLIM + PIO combination with up-titration (2 mg + 30 mg/4 mg + 30 mg/4 mg + 4 mg) or to remain on GLIM (up-titration 4/5/6 mg). Observation parameters determined at baseline and end point included HOMA-B, HOMA-IR, HbA1c, glucose, insulin, and intact proinsulin. RESULTS There was a slight increase in the HOMA-B score in the GLIM group but not in the GLIM + PIO arm (baseline/end point: for GLIM, 71 +/- 48/88 +/- 64; for PIO + GLIM, 74 +/- 56/69 +/- 52). Improvements in the other observation parameters were predominantly detected in the PIO + GLIM group (HbA1c, 7.20 +/- 0.61%/6.36 +/- 0.90%; HOMA-IR, 7.0 +/- 4.5/4.1 +/- 2.1; intact proinsulin, 12.4 +/- 10.3/7.6 +/- 4.8 pmol/L [all P < 0.05 vs. baseline]) compared with the GLIM group (HbA1c, 7.45 +/- 0.69%/7.15 +/- 0.97% [P < 0.05]; HOMA-IR, 7.4 +/- 4.5/7.5 +/- 4.3 [not significant]; intact proinsulin, 17.3 +/- 21.6/16.3 +/- 15.5 pmol/L [not significant]). CONCLUSIONS The PIO + GLIM combination led to overall improvement of laboratory biomarkers for beta-cell function, except for HOMA-B. Glimepiride up-titration had no such effects but increased the HOMA-B score. HOMA-B seems to provide misleading results when used as a diagnostic tool in patients treated with sulfonylurea drugs. A corrective term for consideration of proinsulin in the HOMA-B equation may address this limitation.
De l'impersonnel au personnel, du pérenne à l'éphémère: retours d'expérience de Cocoon

This paper deals with context-aware mobile information systems. From an analysis of types of information delivered by such systems, it proposes the PIPE (Personal, Impersonal, Perennial, Ephemeral) taxonomy, and characterizes 9 systems accordingly. This shows that focus has been mostly set on impersonal information (museums, restaurants, music, etc.) so far while neglecting personal information related to individuals' life stories and contexts. This motivated the design, implementation and evaluation of Cocoon, a context-aware information system that fully covers the PIPE taxonomy. Evaluation of Cocoon shows that personal information is more important to users than impersonal information. However, as there is currently no source for personal information, the paper proposes the concept of Life Trees.
Trauma exposure in pre-school children in a war zone

Background There has been little reported research into the effect of war on the behaviour and emotional well-being of pre-school children. Aims To investigate the relationship between exposure to war trauma and behavioural and emotional problems among pre-school children. Method Atotal of 309 children aged 3–6 years were selected from kindergartens in the Gaza Strip, and were assessed by parental reports in regard to their exposure to war trauma, using the Gaza Traumatic Checklist, and their behavioural and emotional problems, using the Behaviour Checklist (BCL) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ). Results Pre-school children were exposed to a wide range of traumatic events. The total number of traumatic events independently predicted total BCL and SDQ scores. Exposure to day raids and shelling of the children's houses by tanks were significantly associated with total behavioural and emotional problems scores. Conclusions Direct and non-direct exposure to war trauma increases the risk of behavioural and emotional problems among pre-school children, which may present as non-specific psychopathology.
International Conference on Computational Science , ICCS 2011 Parallel GMRES Incomplete Orthogonalization Auto-Tuning

Krylov linear solvers are widely used to solve various kind of scientific problems. They are entitled to many optimization in order to reduce the processing time needed to attain solution. However, these optimisations are mainly problems specific and do not always fit well in parallel. Tuning them can sometimes require and heavy work to extract sustainable performances. Auto-tuning helps the users to tune their solver with little effort and at a small cost. We present a general parallel auto-tuned linear solver approach in order to reduce the time of computation needed for a solver to attain solution. Our new approach is based on the tuning of the Arnoldi incomplete orthogonalization process within GMRES by monitoring the convergence thanks to a simple heuristic. We obtained promising results by reducing significantly the time of computation on different cases in serial and parallel processing using a cluster, involving both real and complex valued linear systems. Our work enlight the emergence of incomplete Arnoldi orthogonalization auto-tuning as a possible optimization for iteratives methods.
Climate change and the northern Russian treeline zone

The Russian treeline is a dynamic ecotone typified by steep gradients in summer temperature and regionally variable gradients in albedo and heat flux. The location of the treeline is largely controlled by summer temperatures and growing season length. Temperatures have responded strongly to twentieth-century global warming and will display a magnified response to future warming. Dendroecological studies indicate enhanced conifer recruitment during the twentieth century. However, conifers have not yet recolonized many areas where trees were present during the Medieval Warm period (ca AD 800–1300) or the Holocene Thermal Maximum (HTM; ca 10 000–3000 years ago). Reconstruction of tree distributions during the HTM suggests that the future position of the treeline due to global warming may approximate its former Holocene maximum position. An increased dominance of evergreen tree species in the northern Siberian forests may be an important difference between past and future conditions. Based on the slow rates of treeline expansion observed during the twentieth century, the presence of steep climatic gradients associated with the current Arctic coastline and the prevalence of organic soils, it is possible that rates of treeline expansion will be regionally variable and transient forest communities with species abundances different from today's may develop.
The production of gesture and speech

Introduction Research topics in the field of speech-related gesture that have received considerable attention are the function of gesture, its synchronization with speech, and its semiotic properties. While the findings of these studies often have interesting implications for theories about the processing of gesture in the human brain, few studies have addressed this issue in the framework of information processing. In this chapter, I will present a general processing architecture for gesture production. It can be used as a starting point for investigating the processes and representations involved in gesture and speech. For convenience, I will use the term ‘model'when referring to ‘processing architecture’ throughout this chapter. Since the use of information-processing models is not believed by every gesture researcher to be an appropriate way of investigating gesture (see, e.g., McNeill 1992), I will first argue that information-processing models are essential theoretical tools for understanding the processing involved in gesture and speech. I will then proceed to formulate a new model for the production of gesture and speech, called the Sketch Model. It is an extension of Levelt's (1989) model for speech production. The modifications and additions to Levelt's model are discussed in detail. At the end of the section, the working of the Sketch Model is demonstrated, using a number of illustrative gesture/speech fragments as examples. Subsequently, I will compare the Sketch Model with both McNeill's (1992) growth-point theory and with the information-processing model by Krauss, Chen & Gottesman (this volume). While the Sketch Model and the model by Krauss et al. are formulated within the same framework, they are based on fundamentally different assumptions.
The effects of body weight support treadmill walking for older adults with lumbar spinal stenosis compared to standard back stabilization exercises

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Accurate Human Tissue Characterization for Energy-Efficient Wireless On-Body Communications

The demand for Wireless Body Sensor Networks (WBSNs) is rapidly increasing due to the revolution in wearable systems demonstrated by the penetration of on-the-body sensors in hospitals, sports medicine and general health-care practices. In WBSN, the body acts as a communication channel for the propagation of electromagnetic (EM) waves, where losses are mainly due to absorption of power in the tissue. This paper shows the effects of the dielectric properties of biological tissues in the signal strength and, for the first time, relates these effects with the human body composition. After a careful analysis of results, this work proposes a reactive algorithm for power transmission to alleviate the effect of body movement and body type. This policy achieves up to 40.8% energy savings in a realistic scenario with no performance overhead.
Quality Physical Intervention Activity for Persons with Down Syndrome

Persons with Down syndrome (DS) are at risk for a life of inactivity that can result in a multitude of medical problems including heart and vascular diseases. This review presents findings regarding the physical status of individuals with DS, as well as proper interventions found to improve the physical fitness and general health for this population. This review was written with the intent to suggest practical directions in planning and implementing quality physical intervention programs for this population.