Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Recovery of filamentous fungi from water in a paediatric bone marrow transplantation unit.

In order to determine whether water or water-related surfaces are a reservoir for opportunistic filamentous fungi, water sampling in the paediatric bone marrow transplantation (BMT) unit of the National Hospital University of Oslo, Norway was performed. During a six-month period 168 water samples and 20 samples from water-related surfaces were taken. The water samples were taken from the taps and showers in the BMT unit and from the main pipe supplying the paediatric department with water. In addition, 20 water samples were taken at the intake reservoir supplying the city of Oslo with drinking water. Filamentous fungi were recovered from 94% of all the water samples taken inside the hospital with a mean colony forming unit (cfu) count of 2.7/500mL of water. Aspergillus fumigatus was recovered from 49% and 5.6% of water samples from the taps and showers, respectively (mean 1.9 and 1.0cfu/500mL). More than one third (38.8%) of water samples from the main pipe revealed A. fumigatus (mean 2.1cfu/500mL). All water samples taken at the intake reservoir were culture positive for filamentous fungi, 85% of the water samples showed A. fumigatus (mean 3.1cfu/500mL). Twenty-five percent of water-related surfaces yielded filamentous fungi, but A. fumigatus was recovered from only two samples. We showed that filamentous fungi are present in the hospital water and to a lesser extent on water-related surfaces. The recovery of filamentous fungi in water samples taken at the intake reservoir suggests that the source of contamination is located outside the hospital.
License plate detection algorithm based on gentle AdaBoost algorithm with a cascade structure

This paper aims at automatically detection of car license plates via image processing techniques. The method used is a so-called gentle AdaBoost algorithm which is combined with a cascade structure. The gentle AdaBoost (GAB) algorithm is known to have a higher detection rate and a lower false positive rate than the basic discrete AdaBoost (DAB) which is currently reported being used for the license plate detection. The use of a cascade structure in the gentle AdaBoost algorithm saves the computation time. Several testing results are provided and the comparisons with other algorithms are made.
Green Synthesis of Smart Metal/Polymer Nanocomposite Particles and Their Tuneable Catalytic Activities

Herein we report a simple and green synthesis of smart Au and Ag@Au nanocomposite particles using poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)/polyethyleneimine (PNIPAm/PEI) core-shell microgels as dual reductant and templates in an aqueous system. The nanocomposite particles were synthesized through a spontaneous reduction of tetrachloroauric (III) acid to gold nanoparticles at room temperature, and in situ encapsulation and stabilization of the resultant gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) with amine-rich PEI shells. The preformed gold nanoparticles then acted as seed nanoparticles for further generation of Ag@Au bimetallic nanoparticles within the microgel templates at 60 °C. These nanocomposite particles were characterized by TEM, AFM, XPS, UV-vis spectroscopy, zeta-potential, and particle size analysis. The synergistic effects of the smart nanocomposite particles were studied via the reduction of p-nitrophenol to p-aminophenol. The catalytic performance of the bimetallic Ag@Au nanocomposite particles was 25-fold higher than that of the monometallic Au nanoparticles. Finally, the controllable catalytic activities of the Au@PNIPAm/PEI nanocomposite particles were demonstrated via tuning the solution pH and temperature.
A comparison study of four texture synthesis algorithms on regular and near-regular textures

We compare the performance of four texture synthesis algorithms on synthesizing regular and near-regular textures in this report. Our results show that the near-regular texture synthesis remains to be a challenging problem. This is because a near-regular texture demonstrates both global regularity and local randomness in its texture pattern. It is difficult to preserve both properties in the synthetic textures. The comparison indicates that a specially-designed texture synthesis algorithm that respects the nature of near-regular textures can produce more faithfully synthesized textures than general purpose state of the art synthesis algorithms.
High‐resolution crystal structures leverage protein binding affinity predictions

Predicting protein binding affinities from structural data has remained elusive, a difficulty owing to the variety of protein binding modes. Using the structure‐affinity‐benchmark (SAB, 144 cases with bound/unbound crystal structures and experimental affinity measurements), prediction has been undertaken either by fitting a model using a handfull of predefined variables, or by training a complex model from a large pool of parameters (typically hundreds). The former route unnecessarily restricts the model space, while the latter is prone to overfitting. We design models in a third tier, using 12 variables describing enthalpic and entropic variations upon binding, and a model selection procedure identifying the best sparse model built from a subset of these variables. Using these models, we report three main results. First, we present models yielding a marked improvement of affinity predictions. For the whole dataset, we present a model predicting Kd within 1 and 2 orders of magnitude for 48% and 79% of cases, respectively. These statistics jump to 62% and 89% respectively, for the subset of the SAB consisting of high resolution structures. Second, we show that these performances owe to a new parameter encoding interface morphology and packing properties of interface atoms. Third, we argue that interface flexibility and prediction hardness do not correlate, and that for flexible cases, a performance matching that of the whole SAB can be achieved. Overall, our work suggests that the affinity prediction problem could be partly solved using databases of high resolution complexes whose affinity is known. Proteins 2016; 84:9–20. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Developing generative frameworks using XML

Generative programming methods provide some significant advantages for the repeated deployment of product line architectures. The paper considers XML as a tool for building and describing applications that use generative programming methods. It describes techniques for the creation of a generative framework, presents a case study and discusses the results of practical application of these methods in a real world, enterprise scale, product line architecture. The paper presents the advantages of using an XML descriptor that can be easily transformed to generate both static and dynamically configurable software components for direct deployment in an application framework. Two implementation approaches are considered: an indirect approach using XSL for the transformations; and a direct approach where the XML descriptor is parsed and dealt with programmatically. The relative advantages of these two approaches are discussed. The paper provides practical examples and presents lessons learned from the application of the techniques.
Subchronic Oral Toxicity Study of Furan in B6C3F1 Mice

Furan is a heterocyclic organic compound formed during heat treatment for processing and preservation of various types of food. Rodent studies have previously shown that furan is a hepatocarcinogen. Those studies were conducted over a high dose range, which induced tumors at nearly 100% incidence at all doses. This ninety-day gavage study in mice was conducted to extend the dose to a lower range (0.0, 0.03, 0.12, 0.5, 2.0, and 8.0 mg/kg body weight [bw] per day) to identify a no-observed adverse effect level for hepatotoxicity and to characterize non-neoplastic effects, including those affecting clinical biochemistry, hematology, tissue morphology, and histopathology. The liver was the primary target organ with dose-dependent toxicity. Liver weights were increased at the 8.0 mg/kg bw dose in females only. Levels of the serum enzyme alanine transaminase, representative of liver damage, were increased three-fold at the highest dose. Histological changes in the liver were observed at 2.0 and 8.0 mg/kg bw in both sexes. Although clinical parameters were also altered for the kidney, these differences were not accompanied by histological changes. Based on these clinical biochemical and histological changes, a no-observed adverse effect level of 0.12 mg/kg bw per day of furan in mice is suggested.
Vote based correspondence for 3D point-set registration

Given two views of a static scene, estimation of correspondences between them is required for various computer vision tasks, such as 3D reconstruction and registration, motion and structure estimation, and object recognition. Without loss of generality, this paper treats the correspondence-estimation problem in the context of feature-based rangescan registration of widely separated views and presents a novel approach to obtain globally consistent set of correspondences. In this paper, we define the notion of a weak feature, and follow the approach that avoids early commitment to the "best" match. It instead considers multiple candidate matches for each feature, and eventually models and solves correspondence-estimation as an optimization problem viz. weighted bipartite matching. We focus on developing a robust approach that suceeds in the presence of significant noise and sparsity in the input.
The Concept of Mode of Exchange

The neoclassical economic concept of the marketfails to consider social relations and structures. I present a sociological concept of "mode of exchange" as an alternative and distinguish four modes of exchange based on whether trade is open to popular participation and whether trade is primarily within a region or across regions. The social structural conditions that underlie each mode of exchange include the level of stratification and political centralization. The power struggle among groupsfor control over trade, rather than individual utility maximization, is a critical factor in commercial development. I apply this framework to commercial development of England and Japan.
[Endometrioid carcinoma with sex cord-like formations and hyalinization of the uterine corpus: a clinicopathologic analysis of 5 cases].

OBJECTIVE Endometrioid carcinoma with sex cord-like formations and hyalinization of the uterine corpus is a rare morphological variant of endometrioid carcinoma. The biphasic morphological features may cause confusion with carcinosarcoma of the uterus, leading to misdiagnosis. The aim of this article is to elucidate the clinicopathological characteristics of such endometrial carcinoma to avoid misdiagnosis. METHODS The clinical and pathological data of 5 cases of endometrioid carcinoma with sex cord-like formations and hyalinization of the uterine corpus were collected and analyzed. RESULTS The age of the 5 patients ranged from 29 to 39 years, with a mean age of 33 years. Four patients underwent surgery of radical hysterectomy, the other dilation and curettage biopsy. Among the former, 3 patients were at FIGO stageⅠA, the other ⅢC1. Microscopically, all 5 tumors contained endometrioid carcinoma components, 4 of which were FIGO gradeⅠ, the remaining one was grade Ⅱ. Each tumor was of variable proportions of corded and hyalinized areas ranging from 10% to 60%. The cells in the corded and hyalinized areas were epithelioid, fusiform and spindle in morphology, admixed with the endometrioid carcinoma component, resulting in a biphasic pattern. The corded and hyalinized component exhibited distinctively different immunophenotypical feature from that by the conventional endometrioid carcinoma component. The results of follow-up for 4 patients of 7 to 68 months (mean=26.5 months) revealed that all patients were alive without recurrence of the malignancy. CONCLUSIONS Endometrioid carcinoma with sex cord-like formations and hyalinization of the uterine corpus presents unique morphology, and the patients are usually young with relatively favorable prognosis. The definite mechanism for the pathogenesis of the sex cord-like formations and hyalinization needs further investigation.
System Integration Using Model-Driven Engineering

With the emergence of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) component middleware technologies software system integrators are increasing faced with the task of integrating heterogeneous enterprise distributed systems built using different COTS technologies. Although there are well-documented patterns and techniques for system integration using various middleware technologies, system integration is still largely a tedious and error-prone manual process. To improve this process, component developers and system integrators must understand key properties of the systems they are integrating, as well as the integration technologies they are applying. This paper provides three contributions to the study of functional integration of distributed enterprise systems. First, we describe the challenges associated with functionally integrating software for these types of systems. Second, we describe how the composition of domain-specific modeling languages (DSMLs) can simplify the functional integration of enterprise distributed systems by enabling the combination of diverse middleware technologies. Third, we demonstrate how composing DSMLs can solve functional integration problems in an enterprise distributed system case study by reverse engineering an existing CCM system and exposing it as web service(s) to web clients who use these services. This paper shows that functional integration done using (meta)model composition provides significant benefits with respect to automation and re-usability compared to conventional integration processes and methods.
Relative Profit - a New Metric to Evaluate the Performance of Stock Price Forecasting Models

Stock price forecasting models with lower Mean Squared Error (MSE) are more “welcome" than those who have higher MSE. However, this “welcome" may disappear when lower MSE leads to an unexpected loss whereas higher MSE leads to a positive profit in a practical investment. The reason is that MSE aims to evaluate models in the view of “accuracy", which has nothing to do with profit. We therefore propose the concept of “forecasting efficiency" that aims to evaluate models in the view of investment or profit. A comprehensive but concise metric: Relative Profit (RP) is designed to better evaluate which model really pleases investors. Finally, a comparison is made between RP and other popular metrics to demonstrate that RP is a good supplement to forecasting model evaluation.
YB-1 binds to CAUC motifs and stimulates exon inclusion by enhancing the recruitment of U2AF to weak polypyrimidine tracts

The human Y box-binding protein-1 (YB-1) is a deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)/ribonucleic acid (RNA)-binding protein with pleiotropic functions. Besides its roles in the regulation of transcription and translation, several recent studies indicate that YB-1 is a spliceosome-associated protein and is involved in alternative splicing, but the underlying mechanism has remained elusive. Here, we define both CAUC and CACC as high-affinity binding motifs for YB-1 by systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX) and demonstrate that these newly defined motifs function as splicing enhancers. Interestingly, on the endogenous CD44 gene, YB-1 appears to mediate a network interaction to activate exon v5 inclusion via multiple CAUC motifs in both the alternative exon and its upstream polypyrimidine tract. We provide evidence that YB-1 activates splicing by facilitating the recruitment of U2AF65 to weak polypyrimidine tracts through direct protein–protein interactions. Together, these findings suggest a vital role of YB-1 in activating a subset of weak 3′ splice sites in mammalian cells.
Using a virtual environment to study child pedestrian behaviours: a comparison of parents’ expectations and children's street crossing behaviour

Objective The aim of this study was to compare parents’ expectations for their children crossing streets with children's actual crossing behaviours and determine how accurately parents judge their own children's pedestrian behaviours to be. Method Using a fully immersive virtual reality system interfaced with a 3D movement measurement system, younger (7–9 years) and older (10–12 years) children's crossing behaviours were assessed. The parent viewed the same traffic conditions and indicated if their child would cross and how successful she/he expected the child would be when doing so. Results Comparing children's performance with what their parents expected they would do revealed that parents significantly overestimated the inter-vehicle gap threshold of their children, erroneously assuming that children would show safer pedestrian behaviours and select larger inter-vehicle gaps to cross into than they actually did; there were no effects of child age or sex. Child and parent scores were not correlated and a logistic regression indicated these were independent of one another. Conclusions Parents were not accurate in estimating the traffic conditions under which their children would try and cross the street. If parents are not adequately supervising when children cross streets, they may be placing their children at risk of pedestrian injury because they are assuming their children will select larger (safer) inter-vehicle gaps when crossing than children actually do.
Dissecting Heart Failure Through the Multiscale Approach of Systems Medicine

Heart failure (HF) is a complex syndrome which can be the exit of different etiologies which lead to a common clinical picture. Treatment outcome is modest and new insights into pathophysiology are needed to improve effectively diagnosis, prognosis, and therapy. As a complex disease, it can really benefit from the new approach provided by molecular medicine where information about the cell program can deeply change the patient management. The comprehension of molecular mechanisms relies on new technologies which are able to provide data at the different levels of the cell workflow. A proper processing of these data is as essential as the generation of data itself, together with an integrative approach able to exploit observations at different scales, starting from the molecular levels up to an effective assessment of phenotype with cardiovascular and systemic parameters. In this paper, evidences concerning current understanding of HF, passing from one scale to another, are reported, to underline how functional genomics and systems biology perspective, fostered by the combination of biotechnologies and bioinformatic methods, may transform the concepts of diagnosis and, consequently, of treatment, toward the fulfillment of the invoked patient-specific medicine.
Bladder Cancer: Chemoprevention, complementary approaches and budgetary considerations

Bladder cancer results from complex and only partially understood host–environmental interactions. Tobacco smoking is the greatest risk factor for bladder cancer, but the actual risk to an individual reflects not only the amount of exposure to the carcinogens in tobacco smoke but also host susceptibility to these carcinogens and possibly other factors. Lifestyle may have a significant effect on the incidence of this disease. The forms of chemoprevention and their relevance to bladder cancer, the impact of lifestyle and complementary medicine, and the costs of diagnosing and treating bladder cancer are reviewed to provide a base for advances in decreasing the incidence, recurrence and costs of this disease.
Macular pigments lutein and zeaxanthin as blue light filters studied in liposomes.

Lutein and zeaxanthin are the predominant carotenoids in the human macula lutea. Epidemiological data suggest that an increased intake of a lutein-rich diet correlates with a diminished risk for age-related macular degeneration, a major cause of impaired vision in the elderly. Filtering of blue light has been proposed as a possible mechanism of protection. Here, the blue light filter efficacy of carotenoids was investigated in unilamellar liposomes loaded in the hydrophilic core space with a fluorescent dye, Lucifer yellow, excitable by blue light. Carotenoids were incorporated into the lipophilic membrane. Fluorescence emission in carotenoid-containing liposomes was lower than in carotenoid-free controls when exposed to blue light, indicating a filter effect. Filter efficacy was in the order lutein > zeaxanthin > beta-carotene > lycopene. Some of the difference in blue light filter efficacy of carotenoids is attributable to differences in extinction coefficients, and a major further contribution is suggested to be related to the orientation of the incorporated molecules in the liposomal membrane.
Men's Attraction to Women's Bodies Changes Seasonally

Humans exhibit seasonal variation in hormone levels, behaviour, and perception. Here we show that men's assessments of women's attractiveness change also seasonally. In five seasons (from winter 2004 to winter 2005) 114 heterosexual men were asked to assess the attractiveness of the same stimuli: photos of a female with three different waist-to-hip ratios; photos of female breasts, and photos of average-looking faces of young women. For each season, the scores given to the stimuli of the same category (body shape, breast, and face) were combined. Friedman's test revealed significant changes for body shape and breast attractiveness assessments across the seasons, but no changes for face ratings. The highest scores for attractiveness were given in winter and the lowest in summer. We suggest that the observed seasonality is related to the well-known ‘contrast effect’. More frequent exposure to women's bodies in warmer seasons might increase men's attractiveness criteria for women's body shape and breasts.
Racial/ethnic and socio‐economic biases in child maltreatment severity assessment in Spanish child protection services caseworkers

Evidence from several countries has shown the over-representation of racial/ethnic minority groups in child protection services (CPS). The objective of the present study was to explore whether racial/ethnic and socio-economic biases influence Spanish CPS caseworkers' judgements of the severity of child maltreatment. Moreover, the study attempted to explore the influence on these judgements of the use of structured instruments and professional experience. Two case vignettes of child maltreatment were presented to 405 CPS caseworkers and 169 students of social work and psychology. Family ethnic origin and income were manipulated in the vignettes. The findings showed no statistical evidence of biases related to family ethnic origin or socio-economic status (SES) in Spanish CPS caseworkers' judgements of maltreatment severity. Biases related to family SES were found for students for the vignettes of physical abuse. CPS caseworkers and students who did not use a structured instrument to assess maltreatment severity tended to underestimate the severity for the vignettes of parental incapacity to control child/adolescent behaviour and to overestimate it for the vignettes of physical abuse. CPS caseworkers who used a structured instrument showed higher percentages of accuracy and inter-rater agreement, supporting the relevance of structured tools in reducing potential caseworkers' biases. Language: en
A new real time and efficient method to automatically count plastic cards

This paper presents a new real time and efficient method dedicated to automatically count plastic cards. It is based on state of the art signal processing techniques: matched filtering and higher-order statistics. This method is for upgrading the SQ45, an industrial system designed by DatacardGroup. Results show that using our new technique, the SQ45 can now count in real time new type of cards. This new functionality could reinforce the position of DatacardGroup as a world leader in this specific domain.