Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Phase II Study of the Oral MEK Inhibitor Selumetinib in Advanced Acute Myelogenous Leukemia: A University of Chicago Phase II Consortium Trial

Purpose: The clinical relevance of targeting the RAS/RAF/MEK/ERK pathway, activated in 70% to 80% of patients with acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), is unknown. Experimental Design: Selumetinib is an oral small-molecule inhibitor of MAP–ERK kinase (MEK)-1/2. Forty-seven patients with relapsed/refractory AML or 60 years old or more with untreated AML were enrolled on a phase II study. Patients were stratified by FLT3 ITD mutation status. The primary endpoint was response rate (complete, partial, and minor). Leukemia cells were analyzed for extracellular signal—regulated kinase (ERK) and mTOR phosphorylation. Results: Common drug-related toxicities were grade 1–2 diarrhea, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, and skin rash. In the FLT3 wild-type cohort, six of 36 (17%) patients had a response [one partial response, three minor responses, two unconfirmed minor responses (uMR)]. No patient with FLT3 ITD responded. NRAS and KRAS mutations were detected in 7% and 2% of patients, respectively. The sole patient with KRAS mutation had uMR with hematologic improvement in platelets. Baseline p-ERK activation was observed in 85% of patients analyzed but did not correlate with a response. A single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs3733542 in exon 18 of the KIT gene was detected in significantly higher number of patients with response/stable disease compared with nonresponders (60% vs. 23%; P = 0.027). Conclusions: Selumetinib is associated with modest single-agent antileukemic activity in advanced AML. However, given its favorable toxicity profile, combination with drugs that target other signaling pathways in AML should be considered. The potential association of SNP rs3733542 in exon 18 of the KIT gene with antileukemic activity of selumetinib is intriguing, but will require validation in larger trials. Clin Cancer Res; 20(2); 490–8. ©2013 AACR.
Plant-Based Assessment of Inherent Soil Productivity and Contributions to China’s Cereal Crop Yield Increase since 1980

Objective China’s food production has increased 6-fold during the past half-century, thanks to increased yields resulting from the management intensification, accomplished through greater inputs of fertilizer, water, new crop strains, and other Green Revolution’s technologies. Yet, changes in underlying quality of soils and their effects on yield increase remain to be determined. Here, we provide a first attempt to quantify historical changes in inherent soil productivity and their contributions to the increase in yield. Methods The assessment was conducted based on data-set derived from 7410 on-farm trials, 8 long-term experiments and an inventory of soil organic matter concentrations of arable land. Results Results show that even without organic and inorganic fertilizer addition crop yield from on-farm trials conducted in the 2000s was significantly higher compared with those in the 1980s — the increase ranged from 0.73 to 1.76 Mg/ha for China’s major irrigated cereal-based cropping systems. The increase in on-farm yield in control plot since 1980s was due primarily to the enhancement of soil-related factors, and reflected inherent soil productivity improvement. The latter led to higher and stable yield with adoption of improved management practices, and contributed 43% to the increase in yield for wheat and 22% for maize in the north China, and, 31%, 35% and 22% for early and late rice in south China and for single rice crop in the Yangtze River Basin since 1980. Conclusions Thus, without an improvement in inherent soil productivity, the ‘Agricultural Miracle in China’ would not have happened. A comprehensive strategy of inherent soil productivity improvement in China, accomplished through combining engineering-based measures with biological-approaches, may be an important lesson for the developing world. We propose that advancing food security in 21st century for both China and other parts of world will depend on continuously improving inherent soil productivity.
Security validation of smartcard: MCOS

The National Fuel subsidy system planning in Malaysia should it persist would have elevated the Multi-purpose of MyKad. Malaysian government is planning for a new MyID system that can retrieve governmental related documents when dealing with 760 governments and agencies nationwide (The Star, 2010). This move will leverage the existing infrastructure of MyKad. The wider usage of MyKad may raise public concern regarding its security. Thus, there is a need for assessing the security of MyKad by an independent third party.This paper will first discuss vulnerability of smartcard by using the attack potential model (CCDB, 2008), and then the appropriateness of the current methods and tools to test the security of smartcard will be investigated.The study concludes that there is no yet a standard of security testing tool imposed on smartcard in Malaysia.The study promotes the developing of security testing tool for MyKad.
Remifentanil-induced pronociceptive effect and its prevention with pregabalin

Background Experimental and clinical studies have suggested that remifentanil probably causes acute tolerance or postinfusion hyperalgesia. This study was designed to confirm whether remifentanil given during propofol anesthesia induced postoperative pain sensitization, and we wanted to investigate whether pregabalin could prevent this pronociceptive effect. Methods Sixty patients who were scheduled for total abdominal hysterectomy were randomly allocated to receive (1) a placebo as premedication and an intraoperative saline infusion (control group), (2) a placebo as premedication and an intraoperative infusion of remifentanil at a rate of 3-4 ng/ml (remifentanil group), or (3) pregabalin 150 mg as premedication and an intraoperative infusion of remifentanil at a rate of 3-4 ng/ml (pregabalin-remifentanil group). Postoperative pain was controlled by titration of fentanyl in the postanesthetic care unit (PACU), followed by patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) with fentanyl. The patients were evaluated using the visual analogue scale (VAS) for pain scores at rest and after cough, consumption of fentanyl, sedation score and any side effects that were noted over the 48 h postoperative period. Results The fentanyl titration dose given in the PACU was significantly larger in the remifentanil group as compared with those of the other two groups. At rest, the VAS pain score in the remifentanil group at 2 h after arrival in the PACU was significantly higher than those in the other two groups. Conclusions The results of this study show that remifentanil added to propofol anesthesia causes pain sensitization in the immediate postoperative period. Pretreatment with pregabalin prevents this pronociceptive effect and so this may be useful for the management of acute postoperative pain when remifentanil and propofol are used as anesthetics.
Analysis and management of interference in 5G reverse TDD HetNets

This work analyzes a heterogeneous network (HetNet), which comprises a macro base station (BS) equipped with a large number of antennas and an overlaid dense tier of small cell access points (SCAs) using a wireless backhaul for data traffic. The static and low mobility user equipments (UEs) are associated with the SCAs while those with medium-to-high mobility are served by the macro BS. A reverse time division duplexing (TDD) protocol is used by the two tiers. We evaluate and characterize the performance of the system through the power consumption of uplink (UL) and downlink (DL) transmissions under the assumption that target rates must be satisfied and imperfect channel state information is available. The large system analysis is used to provide concise formulae for the asymptotic UL and DL transmit powers and precoding vectors under the above assumptions. Numerical results are used to validate the analysis in different settings and to make comparisons with alternative network architectures.
A Novel Mechanism of Chemoprotection by Sulforaphane

Sulforaphane (SFN), a compound found at high levels in broccoli and broccoli sprouts, is a potent inducer of phase 2 detoxification enzymes and inhibits tumorigenesis in animal models. SFN also has a marked effect on cell cycle checkpoint controls and cell survival and/or apoptosis in various cancer cells, through mechanisms that are poorly understood. We tested the hypothesis that SFN acts as an inhibitor of histone deacetylase (HDAC). In human embryonic kidney 293 cells, SFN dose-dependently increased the activity of a β-catenin-responsive reporter (TOPflash), without altering β-catenin or HDAC protein levels. Cytoplasmic and nuclear extracts from these cells had diminished HDAC activity, and both global and localized histone acetylation was increased, compared with untreated controls. Studies with SFN and with media from SFN-treated cells indicated that the parent compound was not responsible for the inhibition of HDAC, and this was confirmed using an inhibitor of glutathione S-transferase, which blocked the first step in the metabolism of SFN, via the mercapturic acid pathway. Whereas SFN and its glutathione conjugate (SFN-GSH) had little or no effect, the two major metabolites SFN-cysteine and SFN-N-acetylcysteine were effective HDAC inhibitors in vitro. Finally, several of these findings were recapitulated in HCT116 human colorectal cancer cells: SFN dose-dependently increased TOPflash reporter activity and inhibited HDAC activity, there was an increase in acetylated histones and in p21Cip1/Waf1, and chromatin immunoprecipitation assays revealed an increase in acetylated histones bound to the P21 promoter. Collectively, these findings suggest that SFN may be effective as a tumor-suppressing agent and as a chemotherapeutic agent, alone or in combination with other HDAC inhibitors currently undergoing clinical trials.
Improving Video Delivery over Wireless Multimedia Sensor Networks Based on Queue Priority Scheduling

Using multipath routing protocols results in more efficient data transmission than single path routing protocols in Wireless Multimedia Sensor Networks (WMSNs). In this paper, we propose a new mechanism for improving video transmission over WMSN based on queue priority scheduling. We assume that network has high CBR traffic with no video data in addition to video packets. In our mechanism, intermediate nodes buffer (queue) is scheduled for quick and righteously transmission of video packets compared with the other packets in network. Simulation results show that our proposed scheduling improves important Quality-of-Service (QoS) metrics such as end-to-end delay and frame loss percentage for video streaming.
Intra- and extra-personal variability in person recognition

ABSTRACT Despite the fact that observers typically exhibit considerable expertise at familiar face recognition, unfamiliar faces are recognized and discriminated from one another very poorly. In particular, recent results demonstrate that a key difficulty observers face when attempting to sort unfamiliar faces by identity is how to “tell faces together”. That is, different images of the same individual are frequently assigned different labels, especially when natural viewing conditions introduce substantial appearance variation. By comparison, observers are generally well able to “tell faces apart”: Images of different individuals are rarely assigned the same label. Accurate face recognition depends on avoiding both kinds of error (failing to tell people apart or failing to “tell them together”). Unfamiliar face recognition suffers in particular from a reduced ability to reliably identify the former. Here, we used an unconstrained identity sorting task to examine how intra- and extra-personal variability are recognized in unfamiliar faces, bodies, and images depicting both the face and the body. Specifically, we investigated whether observers make quantitatively similar errors when attempting to sort faces and bodies by identity, and whether these errors are substantially attenuated when face and body appearance can be integrated to achieve person recognition in natural scenes. We address these issues by introducing a novel method for quantifying sorting errors of both types that facilitates direct comparison within and across tasks and makes it possible to quantify sorting performance within a signal detection framework.
Vulnerability-Based Backdoors: Threats from Two-step Trojans

Attackers like to install trojans in a target system to control it. However, it becomes more and more difficult to deceive a user into installing such trojans. One reason is that antivirus software uses more strict policies on the first run of unknown software. The other reason is that users also become more cautious. Some attackers try to find system vulnerabilities to evade the antivirus software and users. But it is not easy to find suitable vulnerabilities because they are usually patched in a short time. In this paper, we present a new type of threat called vulnerability-based backdoor (VBB). It is a two-step trojan. In the first step, attackers deceive users into installing an application. This application is transformed from the original one such as “Adobe PDF Reader” by only creating one or more vulnerabilities in it. It runs as a normal one without any malicious code. So it can escape the detection of antivirus software and users. In the second step, attackers can make use of the vulnerability and control the target system just as they use a pre-existing vulnerability. We present a method to automatically create a VBB in several minutes. In this process, no source code is needed. VBB is stable enough to reside in a system for a long time since it does not conflict with operating systems, antivirus software, other backdoors or even other VBBs. We also show how to prevent VBBs.
PIASx Is a MEF2 SUMO E3 Ligase That Promotes Postsynaptic Dendritic Morphogenesis

Postsynaptic morphogenesis of dendrites is essential for the establishment of neural connectivity in the brain, but the mechanisms that govern postsynaptic dendritic differentiation remain poorly understood. Sumoylation of the transcription factor myocyte enhancer factor 2A (MEF2A) promotes the differentiation of postsynaptic granule neuron dendritic claws in the cerebellar cortex. Here, we identify the protein PIASx as a MEF2 SUMO E3 ligase that represses MEF2-dependent transcription in neurons. Gain-of-function and genetic knockdown experiments in rat cerebellar slices and in the postnatal cerebellum in vivo reveal that PIASx drives the differentiation of granule neuron dendritic claws in the cerebellar cortex. MEF2A knockdown suppresses PIASx-induced dendritic claw differentiation, and expression of sumoylated MEF2A reverses PIASx knockdown-induced loss of dendritic claws. These findings define the PIASx-MEF2 sumoylation signaling link as a key mechanism that orchestrates postsynaptic dendritic claw morphogenesis in the cerebellar cortex and suggest novel functions for SUMO E3 ligases in brain development and plasticity.
Mindfulness: Funciones ejecutivas, autocompasión y estados emocionales en estudiantes universitarios

La palabra Mindfulness ha sido traducida al espanol como atencion plena o consciencia plena. Es un concepto que proviene de la filosofia budista. Fue popularizado en Occidente por el Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn, quien lo define como “prestar atencion de un modo particular: a proposito, en el momento presente y sin establecer juicios de valor”. Siegel (2010) define “despertarse de una vida en piloto automatico y ser sensible a la novedad en nuestras experiencias cotidianas”. Desde una perspectiva psicologica, la practica de atencion plena se entiende como un proceso de autoregulacion de la atencion, que se enfoca en percibir la experiencia inmediata de manera sostenida momento a momento y que se caracteriza por mantener un estado de curiosidad, apertura y a ceptacion de esa experiencia inmediata (Bishop et al, 2004). El programa MBSR (Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction) ha sido utilizado como modelo en diversas adaptaciones realizadas para atender las necesidades psicologicas de estudiantes universitarios. Los resultados obtenidos tienden a evidenciar beneficios positivos para los participantes. La meditacion de atencion plena no solo ayuda a atender sintomas de dolor, estres y ansiedad, sino que ademas su uso consistente puede producir cambios en el cerebro en regiones asociadas al aprendizaje y memoria, regulacion de emociones y sentido del yo. Mindfulness es una tecnica que podria resultar especialmente util Entre los multiples ambitos donde Mindfulness demostro ser efectivo, es el ambito educativo, asi como en diferentes problemas relacionados con el control y la regulacion del malestar y el bienestar emocional. Mindfulness resulta util y eficaz en la prevencion y tratamiento del sindrome de burnout, en la reduccion del cansancio emocional en estudiantes y en el desarrollo de unos adecuados niveles de engagement en los universitarios.
Using a Rapid Appraisal Approach in a Nationwide, Multisite Public Involvement Study in Scotland

This article reflects on the use of a multisite rapid appraisal (RA) approach with reference to the (to-date) largest qualitative study gathering the views of cancer and cancer care in a cross-section of the Scottish population. A series of ten RAs were conducted in ten communities across Scotland, reflecting the geographical and socioeconomic spread of the Scottish population and involving 507 members of the public, including the views of people who are often termed “hard to reach. ” The research method is evaluated with reference to principles of RA approaches: the inductive approach, triangulation, assessment and response, and participation. Presentation of the methods adopted in this study demonstrates the value of the rapid appraisal approach in engaging with members of the public in health-related issues, which belies the “quick and dirty” reputation of RA approaches and offers a model for future public involvement work in health care. This makes the reflections on the method utilized particularly relevant to policy makers and researchers wishing to achieve meaningful public involvement and/or consider a method not previously used in this context.
Gastrodin inhibits cell proliferation in vascular smooth muscle cells and attenuates neointima formation in vivo

Vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation plays a critical role in the development of vascular diseases. In the present study, we tested the efficacy and the mechanisms of action of gastrodin, a bioactive component of the Chinese herb Gastrodia elata Bl, in relation to platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB)-dependent cell proliferation and neointima formation after acute vascular injury. Cell experiments were performed with VSMCs isolated from rat aortas. WST and BrdU incorporation assays were used to evaluate VSMC proliferation. Eight-week-old C57BL/6 mice were used for the animal experiments. Gastrodin (150 mg/kg/day) was administered in the animal chow for 14 days, and the mice were subjected to wire injury of the left carotid artery. Our data demonstrated that gastrodin attenuated the VSMC proliferation induced by PDGF-BB, as assessed by WST assay and BrdU incorporation. Gastrodin influenced the S-phase entry of VSMCs and stabilised p27Kip1 expression. In addition, pre-incubation with sinomenine prior to PDGF-BB stimulation led to increased smooth muscle-specific gene expression, thereby inhibiting VSMC dedifferentiation. Gastrodin treatment also reduced the intimal area and the number of PCNA-positive cells. Furthermore, PDGF-BB-induced phosphorylation of ERK1/2, p38 MAPK, Akt and GSK3β was suppressed by gastrodin. Our results suggest that gastrodin can inhibit VSMC proliferation and attenuate neointimal hyperplasia in response to vascular injury. Furthermore, the ERK1/2, p38 MAPK and Akt/GSK3β signalling pathways were found to be involved in the effects of gastrodin.
Evaluating the suitability of specific RFID tags for IoT applications through a new characterization platform

Radio-frequency identification (RFID) is one of the most promising technologies to enable new smart applications in the framework of the Internet of Things (IoT). Nevertheless, from the electromagnetic point of view, the performance of the RFID tags is generally dependent on the context, so that the selection of the most suitable tag for the specific application becomes the key point. In this work, a cost-effective but accurate characterization system for the performance evaluation of UHF RFID tags is first presented and then validated on the IoT-related relevant case of RFID-based interaction with buildings.
Performance analysis for spectrum sensing over fading reporting channels

Cognitive radio (CR) technology is an emerging technology to improve the utilization of radio spectrum. Cooperative sensing is used to enhance the efficiency of the cognitive radio network (CRN). In this paper, we consider the probability of detection or false alarm under constant detection rate and constant false alarm rate scenarios over the imperfect reporting channels. We illustrate that all secondary users in the network don't achieve the optimal performance in cooperative spectrum sensing.
Do Extragalactic Cosmic Rays Induce Cycles in Fossil Diversity?

Recent work has revealed a 62 ± 3 Myr cycle in fossil diversity in the past 542 Myr; however, no plausible mechanism has been found. We propose that the cycle may be caused by modulation of cosmic-ray (CR) flux by the solar system vertical oscillation (64 Myr period) in the Galaxy, the Galactic north-south anisotropy of CR production in the Galactic halo/wind/termination shock (due to the Galactic motion toward the Virgo Cluster), and the shielding by Galactic magnetic fields. We revisit the mechanism of CR propagation and show that CR flux can vary by a factor of about 4.6 and reach a maximum at northernmost displacement of the Sun. The very high statistical significance of (1) the phase agreement between solar northward excursions and the diversity minima and (2) the correlation of the magnitude of diversity drops with CR amplitudes through all cycles provide solid support for our model. Various observational predictions which can be used to confirm or falsify our hypothesis are presented.
Evolution of Clusters in Cold plus Hot Dark Matter Models

We use N-body simulations to study evolution of galaxy clusters over the redshift interval 0 <= z <= 0.5 in cosmological models with a mixture of cold and hot dark matter (CHDM). Four different techniques are utilized: the cluster-cluster correlation function, axial ratios and quadrupoles of the dark matter distribution in individual clusters, and virial properties. We find that the correlation function for clusters of the same mass limit was larger and steeper at high redshifts. The slope increases from 1.8 at z=0 to 2.1 at z=0.5. Comoving correlation length r_c scales with the mass limit M within comoving radius 1.5 h^-1 Mpc and the redshift z as r_c ~= 20(1+z)(M/M_*)^1/3, where M_* = 3*10^14 h^-1 M_sun. When the correlation length is normalized to the mean cluster separation d_c, it remains almost constant: r_c~=(0.45-0.5) d_c. For small masses (M_clust <2*10^14 h^-1 M_sun) there is an indication that r_c goes slightly above the relation with the constant of proportionality being ~= 0.55-0.6. Anisotropy of density distribution in a cluster shows no change over redshift with axial ratios remaining constant around 1.2. In other words, clusters at present are as elongated as they were at the epoch of their first appearance. While the anisotropy of clusters does not change with time, the density profile shows visible evolution: the slope of density profile changes from gamma ~= -3.5 at z=0.5 to gamma ~= -2.5 at the present. We find that the core of a cluster remains essentially the same over time, but the density of the outlying regions increases noticeably. The virial relation M ~ v^2 is a good approximation, but there is a large fraction of clusters with peculiar velocities greater than given by this relation, and clusters with the same rms velocities have smaller masses in the past, a factor of 2 at z=0.5.