Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of Acute Transcutaneous Vagal Stimulation on the EEG Power Maps, EEG Sources Distribution and Steadiness of Quiet and Sensory-conflicted Stance

Transcutaneous vagal stimulation (t-VNS) is a prospective method as a cheap and noninvasive alternative of surgical cervical vagal stimulation widely used for treatment of refractory epilepsy, depression etc. Data on its application in healthy people are scarce. A lot of problems concerning the acting mechanisms and cortical representation are unsolved. We did acute t-VNS and studied the standing balance steadiness, EEG absolute power maps and sources distribution. We found improvement of the steadiness of standing with eyes open (EO), but no changes in the eyes closed (EC) series. In EO Delta and Theta power in the right frontal area increased and Beta and Gamma bands of EEG absolute power in the left and right parieto-occipital areas also increased, which sustained for 20 min after t-VNS. The distribution of maxima of EEG sources revealed by LORETA showed shifts to the right and occipital direction after t-VNS, while 20 min later the maxima were symmetrically located, but the occipital shift was preserved. Pre-treatment sources during EO were in multisensory fields: the inferior parietal lobule, superior temporal gyrus and precuneus, after t-VNS they were in the inferior parietal lobule, middle temporal gyrus, right posterior cingulate, precuneus, cuneus and right lingual gyrus. After 20 min the maxima of EEG sources were in the inferior parietal lobule, superior and middle temporal gyrus and left insula. In EC following t-VNS Delta power first decreased in the right frontal and occipital areas and in the central parietal area, 20 min later it was greater than in pre-treatment series in these areas. The results showed an increase of EEG absolute power in the Beta and Gamma ranges mainly in the occipital area and less expressed in the postero-parietal one. The increase was more expressed for Gamma than Beta band similarly to the EO series. However, this increase in Beta and Gamma EEG power in EC was mainly located in the left side of the cortex. After t-VNS we observed shifts of electrical sources locations to the occipital and top parts of the brain. Unlike, during the EO series we observed shift to the lower frequencies in the absolute power cortical maps. After 20 min a tendency to return to the pre-treatment coordinates occurred, the power, increased immediately after t-VNS, dropped much lower than its initial value. The locations of maxima of electrical sources during EC before t-VNS were in the middle and inferior frontal gyrus, right inferior parietal lobule, cingulate and precuneus. Immediately after tBozhidar Dimitrov and Plamen Gatev 46 VNS these locations were in the superior temporal gyrus, middle temporal gyrus, precuneus, cuneus and left inferior parietal lobule. After 20 min the locations of the maxima of electrical sources were in the anterior cingulate cortex, medial frontal gyrus, precuneus, cuneus and lin-
Decision Tree Extraction from Trained Neural Networks

Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) have proved both a popular and powerful technique for pattern recognition tasks in a number of problem domains. However, the adoption of ANNs in many areas has been impeded, due to their inability to explain how they came to their conclusion, or show in a readily comprehendible form the knowledge they have obtained. This paper presents an algorithm that addresses these problems. The algorithm achieves this by extracting a Decision Tree, a graphical and easily understood symbolic representation of a decision process, from a trained ANN. The algorithm does not make assumptions about the ANN’s architecture or training algorithm; therefore, it can be applied to any type of ANN. The algorithm is empirically compared with Quinlan’s C4.5 (a common Decision Tree induction algorithm) using standard benchmark datasets. For most of the datasets used in the evaluation, the new algorithm is shown to extract Decision Trees that have a higher predictive accuracy than those induced using C4.5 directly.
Where the Monotone Pattern (mostly) Rules

We consider pattern containment and avoidance with a very tight deenition that was used rst by Riordan more than 60 years ago. Using this deenition, we prove the monotone pattern is easier to avoid than almost any other pattern of the same length. We also show that with this deenition, almost all patterns of length k are avoided by the same number of permutations of length n. The corresponding statements are not known to be true for more relaxed deenitions of pattern containment. This is the rst time we know of that expectations are used to compare numbers of permutations avoiding certain patterns.
In Vivo Effects of Adipose-Derived Stem Cells in Inducing Neuronal Regeneration in Sprague-Dawley Rats Undergoing Nerve Defect Bridged with Polycaprolactone Nanotubes

There have been many attempts for regeneration of peripheral nerve injury. In this study, we examined the in vivo effects of non-differentiated and neuronal differentiated adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs) in inducing the neuronal regeneration in the Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats undergoing nerve defect bridged with the PCL nanotubes. Then, we performed immunohistochemical and histopathologic examinations, as well as the electromyography, in three groups: the control group (14 sciatic nerves transplanted with the PCL nanotube scaffold), the experimental group I (14 sciatic nerves with the non-differentiated ADSCs at a density of 7×105 cells/0.1 mL) and the experimental group II (14 sciatic nerves with the neuronal differentiated ADSCs at 7×105 cells/0.1 mL). Six weeks postoperatively, the degree of the neuronal induction and that of immunoreactivity to nestin, MAP-2 and GFAP was significantly higher in the experimental group I and II as compared with the control group. In addition, the nerve conduction velocity (NCV) was significantly higher in the experimental group I and II as compared with the control group (P=0.021 and P=0.020, respectively). On the other hand, there was no significant difference in the NCV between the two experimental groups (P>0.05). Thus, our results will contribute to treating patients with peripheral nerve defects using PCL nanotubes with ADSCs.
Pro�?Competitive Rationing in Multi�?Unit Auctions

In multi-unit auctions, such as auctions of commodities and securities, and financial exchanges, it is necessary to specify rationing rules to break ties between multiple marginal bids. The standard approach in the literature and in practice is to ration marginal bids proportionally. This paper shows how bidding can be made more competitive if the rationing rule instead gives increasing priority to bidders with a small volume of marginal bids at clearing prices closer to the reservation price. In comparison to standard rationing, such a rule can have almost the same effect on the competitiveness of bids as a doubling of the number of bidders.
Efficacy of DA-9701 (Motilitone) in Functional Dyspepsia Compared to Pantoprazole: A Multicenter, Randomized, Double-blind, Non-inferiority Study

Background/Aims The effect of proton pump inhibitors (PPI) in Asian functional dyspepsia (FD) patients has not been well established as in Western countries. DA-9701, a novel prokinetic agent, stimulates gastric emptying and modulates visceral hypersensitivity in vivo and in human studies. This study was conducted to compare the efficacy of DA-9701 with a conventional PPI in mono or combination therapy in patients with FD. Methods In this double-blind, randomized, non-inferiority trial, 389 patients diagnosed with FD using Rome III criteria were allocated among 3 groups: 30-mg DA-9701 t.i. d (means 3 times a day), 40-mg pantoprazole, and 30-mg DA-9701 t.i. d + 40-mg pantoprazole. The primary efficacy end-point was a global assessment of the patient binary response or response on a 5-Likert scale after 4 weeks. Results The global symptomatic improvement was 60.5% in the DA-9701 group, 65.6% in the pantoprazole group, and 63.5% in the DA-9701 + pantoprazole group using a 5-Likert scale at week 4 with no significant difference among 3 groups (P = 0.685). Symptom improvement measured by binary outcome was significantly achieved in each of the 3 groups, but not different among groups. Patients in all treatment groups reported significant improvement in the response rate and symptoms according to FD subtypes and dyspepsia-related quality of life (P < 0.001), but there were no significant differences among the 3 groups. Conclusions DA-9701 improves global and individual symptoms and increases dyspepsia-specific quality of life in patients with FD. The efficacy of DA-9701 monotherapy is comparable with pantoprazole and there is no additive effect with combination of DA-9701 and pantoprazole in patients with FD.
Countermeasures for unintentional and intentional video watermarking attacks

These last years, the rapidly growing digital multimedia market has revealed an urgent need for effective copyright protection mechanisms. Therefore, digital audio, image and video watermarking has recently become a very active area of research, as a solution to this problem. Many important issues have been pointed out, one of them being the robustness to non-intentional and intentional attacks. This paper studies some attacks and proposes countermeasures applied to videos. General attacks are lossy copying/transcoding such as MPEG compression and digital/analog (D/A) conversion, changes of frame-rate, changes of display format, and geometrical distortions. More specific attacks are sequence edition, and statistical attacks such as averaging or collusion. Averaging attack consists of averaging locally consecutive frames to cancel the watermark. This attack works well for schemes which embed random independent marks into frames. In the collusion attack the watermark is estimated from single frames (based on image denoising), and averaged over different scenes for better accuracy. The estimated watermark is then subtracted from each frame. Collusion requires that the same mark is embedded into all frames. The proposed countermeasures first ensures robustness to general attacks by spread spectrum encoding in the frequency domain and by the use of an additional template. Secondly, a Bayesian criterion, evaluating the probability of a correctly decoded watermark, is used for rejection of outliers, and to implement an algorithm against statistical attacks. The idea is to embed randomly chosen marks among a finite set of marks, into subsequences of videos which are long enough to resist averaging attacks, but short enough to avoid collusion attacks. The Bayesian criterion is needed to select the correct mark at the decoding step. Finally, the paper presents experimental results showing the robustness of the proposed method.
The Restraint of Bovine Sperm Cell Motility Increases Survival: Role of Extracellular Calcium in the Phenomena

Sperm cells are complex models for handling in vitro, their viability is limited, and their physiology is complex. The study of their properties is of great application in the animal production industry, to improve the selection of gametes, control pathologies and for the development of cryobiology protocols. It is therefore important to have viable and functional gametes. Consequently, it has been demonstrated that the increase of sperm cell mortality is related to the increase of the Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS), and ROS is secondary to normal metabolic processes of the cell, i.e., special motility. One of the processes where the mature sperm cells’ main activity is the consumption of more energy, it is the flagellar movement through which high ATP consumption generates high quantities of ROS in the seminal plasma. There is evidence of strategies that lead to reduced metabolic activity for different variables (temperature, pH and other), the intention being that seminal plasma protects the sperm cells and reduces the mortality, and thus it is correct to suggest reducing mortality by reducing motility. It has to be considered that flagellar movement is a complex action that involves energy consumption, regulated by calcium. The phenomenon has not been fully characterized, but it is established that in certain mammalian models, the entry of calcium in specific channels such as CATsper or voltage-dependent channels is a signal for flagellar movement to occur. Reduce the motility of bovine spermatozoa using calcium channel blockers can increase cell survival and we hypothesized that: the general blockade of the calcium channel generated reduced the calcium entry into bovine sperm cells, restricting motility and increased survival of these cells. We propose to in the future explore whether the modulation of calcium channels in bovine sperm cells can reduce motility and increase the survival of these cells in experimental conditions, to reduce the mortality of the sample and improve laboratory manipulation.
Modeling roughness effects in turbulent boundary layers by elliptic relaxation

The modeling of roughness effects in turbulent boundary layers (TBLs) is considered using the elliptic relaxation method of Durbin (1993), which takes into account non-local, wall-blocking effects. His approach considers a term, analogous to energy redistribution, that combines the effects of the near-wall velocity-pressure gradient correlation and the anisotropic dissipation rate and, by extension, the near-wall stress anisotropy and the non-local pressure-strain effects. An extensive experimental data-set comprising smoothwall and various rough-wall TBLs over distributed three-dimensional roughness (George 2005) is used to quantify this term and its response to roughness. Further, this data-set is used to estimate appropriate length and time scales for rough-wall, which are used to modify the elliptic relaxation in the v − f model framework. A priori testing of eddy viscosity using the data confirms that wall-normal stress (v) is a more appropriate velocity scale than turbulence kinetic energy in rough-wall computations.
Investigating Sub-Spine Actin Dynamics in Rat Hippocampal Neurons with Super-Resolution Optical Imaging

Morphological changes in dendritic spines represent an important mechanism for synaptic plasticity which is postulated to underlie the vital cognitive phenomena of learning and memory. These morphological changes are driven by the dynamic actin cytoskeleton that is present in dendritic spines. The study of actin dynamics in these spines traditionally has been hindered by the small size of the spine. In this study, we utilize a photo-activation localization microscopy (PALM)–based single-molecule tracking technique to analyze F-actin movements with ∼30-nm resolution in cultured hippocampal neurons. We were able to observe the kinematic (physical motion of actin filaments, i.e., retrograde flow) and kinetic (F-actin turn-over) dynamics of F-actin at the single-filament level in dendritic spines. We found that F-actin in dendritic spines exhibits highly heterogeneous kinematic dynamics at the individual filament level, with simultaneous actin flows in both retrograde and anterograde directions. At the ensemble level, movements of filaments integrate into a net retrograde flow of ∼138 nm/min. These results suggest a weakly polarized F-actin network that consists of mostly short filaments in dendritic spines.
Effectiveness of HBV Vaccination in Infants and Prediction of HBV Prevalence Trend under New Vaccination Plan: Findings of a Large-Scale Investigation

Background Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection remains a severe public health problem. Investigating its prevalence and trends is essential to prevention. Methods To evaluate the effectiveness of HBV vaccination under the 1992 Intervention Program for infants and predicted HBV prevalence trends under the 2011 Program for all ages. We conducted a community-based investigation of 761,544 residents of 12 counties in Zhejiang Province selected according to their location, population density, and economic development. The HBV prevalence trends were predicted by a time-shifting approach. HBV surface antigen (HBsAg) and alanine amino transferase (ALT) were determined. Results Of the 761,544 persons screened for HBsAg, 54,132 were positive (adjusted carrier rate 6.13%); 9,455 had both elevated ALT and a positive HBsAg test (standardized rate 1.18%). The standardized HBsAg carrier rate for persons aged ≤20 years was 1.51%. Key factors influencing HBV infection were sex, age, family history, drinking, smoking, employment as a migrant worker, and occupation. With the vaccination program implemented in 2011, we predict that by 2020, the HBsAg carrier rate will be 5.27% and that for individuals aged ≤34 years will reach the 2% upper limit of low prevalence according to the WHO criteria, with a standardized rate of 1.86%. Conclusions The national HBV vaccination program for infants implemented in 1992 has greatly reduced the prevalence of HBV infection. The 2011 program is likely to reduce HBV infection in Zhejiang Province to a low moderate prevalence, and perinatal transmission is expected to be controlled by 2020.
Systematic Gene Function Prediction Using a Fuzzy Nearest-Cluster Method on Gene Expression Data

Quantitative simultaneous monitoring of the expression levels of thousands of genes under various experimental conditions is now possible using microarrays. However, there are still gaps toward whole-genome functional annotation of genes using gene expression data. In this paper, we propose a novel technique called fuzzy nearest clusters for functional annotation of unclassified genes. The technique consists of two steps: a hierarchical clustering step to detect homogeneous co-expressed gene clusters in each possibly heterogeneous functional class; followed by a classification step to predict the functional roles of unclassified genes based on their similarities to these clusters. Our experimental results with yeast gene expression data showed that the proposed method can accurately predict the genes' functions, even those with multiple functional roles, and the performance is most independent of the heterogeneity of the complex functional classes, as compared to other approaches
A Possible Role for WNT5A Hypermethylation in Pediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

Objective: WNT5A is one of the most studied noncanonical WNT ligands and is shown to be deregulated in different tumor types. Our aim was to clarify whether hypermethylation might be the cause of low WNT5A mRNA levels and whether we could restore this downregulation by reversing the event. Materials and Methods: The expression of WNT5A mRNA was studied in a large acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) patient group (n=86) by quantitative real-time PCR. The methylation status was detected by methylation-specific PCR (MSPCR) and bisulphate sequencing. In order to determine whether methylation has a direct effect on WNT5A expression, disease-representative cell lines were treated by 5’-aza-20-deoxycytidine. Results: Here we designed a validation experiment of the WNT5A gene, which was previously examined and found to be differentially expressed by microarray study in 31 T-cell ALL patients. The expression levels were confirmed by quantitative real-time PCR and the expression levels were significantly lower in T-cell ALL patients than in control thymic subsets (p=0.007). MSPCR revealed that 86% of the patients were hypermethylated in the WNT5A promoter region. Jurkat and RPMI cell lines were treated with 5’-aza-20-deoxycytidine and WNT5A mRNA expression was restored after treatment. Conclusion: According to our results, WNT5A hypermethylation does occur in ALL patients and it has a direct effect on mRNA expression. Our findings show that epigenetic changes of WNT signaling can play a role in ALL pathogenesis and reversing methylation might be useful as a possible treatment of leukemia.
Transfer Operator Theory and Inter-Reciprocity of Non-Reciprocal Multiport Antennas

The present article expounds a formalism for the representation of multi-port non-reciprocal antenna structures in an arbitrary surrounding linear medium. In the most general approach the antenna, the waveguides connected to it, as well as the surrounding medium may contain any distribution of anisotropic magneto-electric media. Furthermore, an arbitrary external fleld is taken into consideration which need not be of plane wave form. A reciprocally adjoint system is introduced to derive relations which describe the antenna under such general conditions. Since the antenna may contain media which prohibit the use of ordinary scattering, admittance or impedance matrices, an approach by means of generalized scattering matrices, or by a generalized admittance and a generalized impedance matrix, is applied. This leads to an n-port description of the whole waveguide-antenna-environment where transfer operators render the interaction between the external fleld and the state of the ports. These operators are the generalizations of efiective length vectors. For its importance the case of reciprocal re∞ection-symmetric waveguides is treated in detail, including a derivation of the consequences of abstract network reciprocity and complex power relation for voltage-current representations. The formalism is adequate for the description of radar and radio astronomy antennas, in particular when wave polarization plays a crucial role and/or a magnetized plasma environment is present (which is responsible for anisotropy and non-reciprocal conditions).
Approximation Complexity of Nondense Instances of MAX-CUT

We prove existence of approximation schemes for instances of MAXCUT with Ω( 2 ∆ ) edges which work in 2 O ( ∆ e2 ) nO(1) time. This entails in particular existence of quasi-polynomial approximation schemes (QPTASs) for mildly sparse instances of MAX-CUT with Ω( n 2 polylogn) edges. The result depends on new sampling method for smoothed linear programs that approximate MAX-CUT. On the other hand, we rule out existence of polynomial time approximation schemes (PTASs) for MAX-CUT instances with Ω(n2−δ) edges for all δ > 0, under the standard complexity theoretic assumptions.
Hypoxia Induces a Prothrombotic State Independently of the Physical Activity

Hypoxia (oxygen deprivation) is known to be associated with deep vein thrombosis and venous thromboembolism. We attempted to get a better comprehension of its mechanism by going to high altitude, thereby including the potential contributing role of physical activity. Two groups of 15 healthy individuals were exposed to hypoxia by going to an altitude of 3900 meters, either by climbing actively (active group) or transported passively by cable car (passive group). Both groups were tested for plasma fibrinogen, von Willebrand factor and factor VIII levels, fibrinolysis, thrombin generating capacity, heart rate, oxygen saturation levels and blood pressure. As a control for the passive group, 7 healthy volunteers stayed immobile in bed for 7 days at normoxic conditions. The heart rate increased and oxygen saturation levels decreased with increasing altitude. Fibrinolysis and fibrinogen levels were not affected. Factor VIII and von Willebrand factor levels levels increased significantly in the active group, but not in the passive group. Plasma thrombin generation remained unchanged in both the active and passive group with increasing altitude and during 7 days of immobility in healthy subjects. However, by applying whole blood thrombin generation, we found an increased peak height and endogenous thrombin potential, and a decreased lagtime and time-to-peak with increasing levels of hypoxia in both groups. In conclusion, by applying whole blood thrombin generation we demonstrated that hypoxia causes a prothrombotic state. As thrombin generation in plasma did not increase, our results suggest that the cellular part of the blood is involved in the prothrombotic phenotype induced by hypoxia.