Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The H275Y Neuraminidase Mutation of the Pandemic A/H1N1 Influenza Virus Lengthens the Eclipse Phase and Reduces Viral Output of Infected Cells, Potentially Compromising Fitness in Ferrets

ABSTRACT The H275Y amino acid substitution of the neuraminidase gene is the most common mutation conferring oseltamivir resistance in the N1 subtype of the influenza virus. Using a mathematical model to analyze a set of in vitro experiments that allow for the full characterization of the viral replication cycle, we show that the primary effects of the H275Y substitution on the pandemic H1N1 (H1N1pdm09) strain are to lengthen the mean eclipse phase of infected cells (from 6.6 to 9.1 h) and decrease (by 7-fold) the viral burst size, i.e., the total number of virions produced per cell. We also find, however, that the infectious-unit-to-particle ratio of the H275Y mutant strain is 12-fold higher than that of the oseltamivir-susceptible strain (0.19 versus 0.016 per RNA copy). A parallel analysis of the H275Y mutation in the prior seasonal A/Brisbane/59/2007 background shows similar changes in the infection kinetic parameters, but in this background, the H275Y mutation also allows the mutant to infect cells five times more rapidly. Competitive mixed-strain infections in vitro, where the susceptible and resistant H1N1pdm09 strains must compete for cells, are characterized by higher viral production by the susceptible strain but suggest equivalent fractions of infected cells in the culture. In ferrets, however, the mutant strain appears to suffer a delay in its infection of the respiratory tract that allows the susceptible strain to dominate mixed-strain infections.
The Power of Kawaii: Viewing Cute Images Promotes a Careful Behavior and Narrows Attentional Focus

Kawaii (a Japanese word meaning “cute”) things are popular because they produce positive feelings. However, their effect on behavior remains unclear. In this study, three experiments were conducted to examine the effects of viewing cute images on subsequent task performance. In the first experiment, university students performed a fine motor dexterity task before and after viewing images of baby or adult animals. Performance indexed by the number of successful trials increased after viewing cute images (puppies and kittens; M ± SE = 43.9±10.3% improvement) more than after viewing images that were less cute (dogs and cats; 11.9±5.5% improvement). In the second experiment, this finding was replicated by using a non-motor visual search task. Performance improved more after viewing cute images (15.7±2.2% improvement) than after viewing less cute images (1.4±2.1% improvement). Viewing images of pleasant foods was ineffective in improving performance (1.2±2.1%). In the third experiment, participants performed a global–local letter task after viewing images of baby animals, adult animals, and neutral objects. In general, global features were processed faster than local features. However, this global precedence effect was reduced after viewing cute images. Results show that participants performed tasks requiring focused attention more carefully after viewing cute images. This is interpreted as the result of a narrowed attentional focus induced by the cuteness-triggered positive emotion that is associated with approach motivation and the tendency toward systematic processing. For future applications, cute objects may be used as an emotion elicitor to induce careful behavioral tendencies in specific situations, such as driving and office work.
Implication du striatum et du pallidum ventral dans le traitement de l'information aversive : approche électrophysiologique et pharmacologique chez le primate non-humain

Les ganglions de la base, auxquels appartiennent le striatum et le globus pallidus, sont un ensemble de structures sous-corticales impliquees dans des fonctions motrices, cognitives et motivationnelles. Il a egalement ete montre qu’ils font partie du systeme de recompense, systeme assurant la motivation d’un organisme a initier des comportements d’approche, de facon a obtenir une recompense, puis a renforcer les activites ayant produit ces comportements pour pouvoir les reproduire par la suite, ce qui constitue la base de l’apprentissage instrumental. Or, dans certaines situations, le comportement a initier va dependre d’une motivation a fuir ou a eviter un evenement ou une situation aversive. Longtemps, on a pense que le systeme du traitement des informations aversives etait distinct de celui de la recompense, en termes de reseau et de regions cerebrales. Pourtant, de plus en plus d’etudes montrent a present que les ganglions de la base ont certainement un role a jouer, non negligeable, dans le traitement des situations aversives. Dans ce travail de these, nous avons realise chez le primate non-humain des enregistrements d’activite neuronale et des perturbations pharmacologiques locales dans deux regions du systeme de recompense, le striatum anterieur et le pallidum ventral, au cours d’une tâche comportementale necessitant tour a tour l’initiation de comportements d’approche vers une recompense et de comportements d’evitement d’un evenement aversif. Nous avons montre l’existence d’un codage de l’information aversive dans ces regions tant pour un stimulus predicteur d’un evenement aversif, la preparation ou l’initiation d’un comportement d’evitement de cet evenement, que pour l’anticipation et la reception de cet evenement. Par ailleurs, les experiences de perturbations locales ont demontre qu’une atteinte du fonctionnement normal du striatum anterieur et du pallidum ventral affectait les comportements inities normalement en contexte aversif. L’ensemble de ces resultats indique clairement que ces deux structures cerebrales, si elles sont impliquees dans la motivation a initier des comportements diriges vers un but recompensant et l’apprentissage appetitif, le sont aussi dans la motivation aversive
Role of PKA in the anti‐Thy‐1 antibody‐induced neurite outgrowth of dorsal root ganglionic neurons

Thy‐1 is highly expressed in the mammalian nervous system. Our previous study showed that addition of anti‐Thy‐1 antibody to cultured dorsal root ganglionic (DRG) neurons promotes neurite outgrowth. In this study, we identified a novel signaling pathway mediating this event. Treatment with function‐blocking anti‐Thy‐1 antibodies enhanced neurite outgrowth of DRG neurons in terms of total neurite length, longest neurite length, and total neurite branching points. To elucidate the possible signal transduction pathway involved, activation of kinases was evaluated by Western blotting. Transient phosphorylation of protein kinase A (PKA) and mitogen‐activated kinase kinase (MEK) was induced after 15 min of anti‐Thy‐1 antibody treatment. Pretreatment with a PKA inhibitor (PKI) or an MEK inhibitor, PD98059, significantly decreased the neurite outgrowth response triggered by anti‐Thy‐1 antibody, indicating the involvement of both kinases. In addition, anti‐Thy‐1 antibody treatment also induced transient phosphorylation of cyclic AMP‐response element‐binding protein (CREB) and this effect was also blocked by a PKI or PD98059. Furthermore, the fact that PKI abolished anti‐Thy‐1 antibody‐induced MEK phosphorylation showed that PKA acts upstream of the MEK‐CREB cascade. In summary, the PKA‐MEK‐CREB pathway is a new pathway involved in the neurite outgrowth‐promoting effect of anti‐Thy‐1 antibody. J. Cell. Biochem. 101: 566–575, 2007. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Rapamycin reduces disease activity and normalizes T cell activation-induced calcium fluxing in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVE Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease of unknown origin. Current treatment options are often ineffective or poorly tolerated. Recent observations have revealed mitochondrial hyperpolarization and enhanced Ca2+ fluxing in T cells from SLE patients. Rapamycin, a lipophilic macrolide antibiotic that regulates mitochondrial transmembrane potential and Ca2+ fluxing, has been used safely and effectively to treat renal transplant rejection since 1999. In addition, rapamycin has been shown to ameliorate T cell function and to prolong survival in lupus-prone MRL/lpr mice. We therefore undertook the present study to investigate whether rapamycin is beneficial in patients with SLE. METHODS Nine patients with clinically active SLE that had been treated unsuccessfully with other immunosuppressive medications began therapy with rapamycin, 2 mg/day orally. Disease activity was assessed with the British Isles Lupus Assessment Group (BILAG) score, SLE Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI), and requirement for prednisone therapy. Mitochondrial transmembrane potential and Ca2+ fluxing were assessed by flow cytometry. RESULTS In patients treated with rapamycin, the BILAG score was reduced by a mean +/- SEM of 1.93 +/- 0.9 (P = 0.0218), the SLEDAI by 5.3 +/- 0.8 (P = 0.00002), and concurrent prednisone use by 26.4 +/- 6.7 mg/day (P = 0.0062) compared with pre-rapamycin treatment. While mitochondrial hyperpolarization persisted, pretreatment cytosolic and mitochondrial Ca2+ levels and T cell activation-induced rapid Ca2+ fluxing were normalized in rapamycin-treated patients. CONCLUSION Rapamycin appears to be a safe and effective therapy for SLE that has been refractory to traditional medications. Mitochondrial dysfunction and Ca2+ fluxing could serve as biomarkers to guide decisions regarding future therapeutic interventions in SLE.
The neural basis of religion.

Some explain religion as the viral propagation of false beliefs (Dawkins, 2006). 1 Recent cognitive neuroscience suggests, however, that belief-centered approaches to religion may be too narrow. Preliminary evidence shows that religious cognition depends on practices, goals, complex emotional and embodied states, and contextual and developmental variables. Much about these fascinating dependencies remains poorly understood, yet this much remains clear:
Mixture of Ferric Sodium Ethylenediaminetetraacetate (NaFeEDTA) and Ferrous Sulfate: An Effective Iron Fortificant for Complementary Foods for Young Chinese Children

Background Ferric sodium ethylenediaminetetraacetate (NaFeEDTA) enhances iron absorption in the presence of phytate. However, the amount of NaFeEDTA that would have to be added to a complementary food to provide the necessary intake of iron for an infant or young child if NaFeEDTA were the sole iron fortificant exceeds the Acceptable Daily Intake (ADI) of EDTA for this age group. EDTA increases iron absorption at a molar ratio EDTA:iron of less than 1:1. Objective To determine whether iron absorption is enhanced with a mixture of ferrous sulfate (FeSO4) and NaFeEDTA. Methods Two studies with a crossover design were conducted in separate groups of 14 and 15 children aged 24 to 31 months. A complementary food consisting of millet porridge with cabbage, tofu, and pork-filled wheat flour dumplings was fortified with 2 mg iron as either FeSO4 or NaFeEDTA (study 1) or 4 mg iron as FeSO4 or a mixture of 2 mg each of FeSO4 and NaFeEDTA (study 2). Iron absorption was determined based on erythrocyte incorporation of stable iron isotopes. Results In study 1, the geometric mean (± SD) iron absorption was 8.0% (3.1, 20.8) and 9.2% (3.1, 27.0) from food fortified with FeSO4 and NaFeEDTA, respectively. In study 2, iron absorption was significantly higher from food fortified with 4 mg iron as 1:1 mixture of FeSO4/NaFeEDTA than from food fortified with FeSO4; the geometric mean iron absorption was 6.4% (3.0, 13.5) and 4.1% (1.9, 8.9), respectively. Conclusions The enhancing effect of EDTA on iron absorption is less strong in composite meals containing enhancers; nevertheless, the equal mixture of FeSO4 and NaFeEDTA significantly enhanced iron absorption and can be a strategy to ensure adequate iron absorption from phytate-containing complementary foods.
Vaccination with a Recombinant Vesicular Stomatitis Virus Expressing an Influenza Virus Hemagglutinin Provides Complete Protection from Influenza Virus Challenge

ABSTRACT Since the development of a system for generating vesicular stomatitis virus (VSV) from plasmid DNAs, our laboratory has reported the expression of several different glycoproteins from recombinant VSVs. In one of these studies, high-level expression of an influenza virus hemagglutinin (HA) from a recombinant VSV-HA and efficient incorporation of the HA protein into the virions was reported (E. Kretzschmar, L. Buonocore, M. J. Schnell, and J. K. Rose, J. Virol. 71:5982–5989, 1997). We report here that VSV-HA is an effective intranasal vaccine vector that raises high levels of neutralizing antibody to influenza virus and completely protects mice from bronchial pneumonia caused by challenge with a lethal dose of influenza A virus. Additionally, these recombinant VSVs are less pathogenic than wild-type VSV (serotype Indiana). This vector-associated pathogenicity was subsequently eliminated through introduction of specific attenuating deletions. These live attenuated recombinant VSVs have great potential as vaccine vectors.
Possible Role of Endothelin-1 in the Rabbit Urinary Bladder Hyperplasia Secondary to Partial Bladder Outlet Obstruction

Objectives: Urinary bladder hypertrophy and hyperplasia are common features of bladder outlet obstruction (BOO). The urinary bladder is known to synthesize endothelin-1 (ET-1), which is a potent vasoconstrictor peptide with mitogenic properties. Using an animal model of partial BOO, we investigated the potential role of ET-1 and its receptor subtypes (ETA and ETB) in bladder smooth muscle cell (SMC) proliferation. Materials and methods: Partial BOO was produced in adult male New Zealand White rabbits. After 3 weeks, the bladder was removed and SMCs from the dome and bladder neck were grown using standard explant methodology. At passage 2, the cells were made quiescent and then further incubated in foetal calf serum (FCS), control age-matched rabbit serum (CRS) or partial BOO serum (BRS) in the presence or absence of ETA-antagonist (BQ123) or ETB-antagonist (BQ788). SMC proliferation was then measured 24 h later with 5-bromo-2'deoxy-uracil and by cell counting using a haemocytometer at 48 h. Immunostaining for alpha-actin was performed on detrusor and bladder neck cells to confirm the presence of smooth muscle cells. Results: BQ123 and BQ788 did not influence detrusor or bladder neck SMC proliferation in FCS or CRS. However, in the presence of BRS, BQ123 and BQ788 (100 nmol/L) significantly (p = 0.008) inhibited detrusor and bladder neck SMC proliferation. Cell counts were significantly reduced from the detrusor (p = 0.03, p = 0.01 with BQ123 and BQ788, respectively) and bladder neck (p = 0.01 for both BQ123 and BQ78). Conclusions: These results suggest that ET antagonists may have a role in preventing SMC hyperplasia associated with partial BOO.
FSS-Inspired Transmitarray for Two-Dimensional Antenna Beamsteering

A novel two-dimensional (2-D) beamsteering transmitarray inspired on frequency selective surfaces is proposed in this paper. Individual phase range is applied to each transmitarray element and thus enabling the steering of the main lobe of an original antenna pattern in both elevation and azimuth planes (2-D-beamsteering). This has been demonstrated on a 5 × 5 unit-cell stacked structure, loaded with surface mount capacitors, coupled to the aperture of a standard gain horn antenna. Additionally, a complete parametric study based on electromagnetic (EM) simulations using CST Microwave Studio is presented to evaluate and characterize unit-cell parameters and the behavior of the array with various numbers of stacked layers and separation distances. Antenna beamsteering with ranges up to Az = 25° and El = 25° are achieved by means of EM simulations and validated against experimental results performed on a physical prototype at 5.3 GHz. The comparisons yield positive results and clearly demonstrate the potential and limitations of using such structures for beamsteering purposes.
The Design of DWEB

Data warehouse architectural choices and optimization techniques are critical to decision support query performance. To facilitate these choices, the performance of the designed data warehouse must be assessed. This is usually done with the help of benchmarks, which can either help system users comparing the performances of different systems, or help system engineers testing the effect of various design choices. While the TPC standard decision support benchmarks address the first point, they are not tuneable enough to address the second one and fail to model different data warehouse schemas. By contrast, our Data Warehouse Engineering Benchmark (DWEB) allows to generate various adhoc synthetic data warehouses and workloads. DWEB is fully parameterized to fulfill data warehouse design needs. However, two levels of parameterization keep it relatively easy to tune. Finally, DWEB is implemented as a Java free software that can be interfaced with most existing relational database management systems. A sample usage of DWEB is also provided in this paper.
State of product detection method applicable to Industry 4.0 manufacturing models with small quantities and great variety: An example with springs

A major feature of the manufacturing models in Industry 4.0 is smaller quantities and greater variety. In other words, each machine tool will produce multiple types of products, but each type in small numbers. This is just the opposite of the manufacturing models with large quantities and small variety in Industry 3.0. As a result, the conventional means of detecting the health of machines in Industry 3.0 models may not be applicable to Industry 4.0 models. This is because the conventional means involves collecting and analyzing data from numerous products and then using the results to determine the state of products in the future. However, in new manufacturing models, a production process may end before the data can even be collected, let alone the checking of machine health. For this reason, this study proposed a novel concept based on artificial recurrent neural networks to assist in the determination of machine health in Industry 4.0 manufacturing models with small quantities and increased variety. Experiments demonstrated the feasibility of the proposed approach.
Verified error bounds for real solutions of positive-dimensional polynomial systems

In this paper, we propose two algorithms for verifying the existence of real solutions of positive-dimensional polynomial systems. The first one is based on the critical point method and the homotopy continuation method. It targets for verifying the existence of real roots on each connected component of an algebraic variety V ∩ Rn defined by polynomial equations. The second one is based on the low-rank moment matrix completion method and aims for verifying the existence of at least one real roots on V ∩ Rn. Combined both algorithms with the verification algorithms for zero-dimensional polynomial systems, we are able to find verified real solutions of positive-dimensional polynomial systems very efficiently for a large set of examples.
Macromolecular Organization of the Cellulolytic Enzyme Complex of Clostridium thermocellum as Revealed by Electron Microscopy

Clostridium thermocellum JW20 and YM4 both synthesize cellulolytic enzyme complexes, cellulosomes, when grown on medium containing cellulose. Electron microscopic studies showed that, in the early stages of growth of strain JW20, clusters of tightly packed cellulosomes, i.e., polycellulosomes, were located on the cell surface and were bound to cellulose. The polycellulosome was estimated to have a particle mass of 50 × 106 to 80 × 106 daltons (Da), while that of the cellulosome was estimated to be 2 × 106 to 2.5 × 106 Da and to contain about 35 polypeptides ranging from 20 to 200 kDa. The cellulosome produced by strain YM4 was found to be somewhat larger, with the estimated particle mass being 3.5 × 106 Da, and the number of polypeptides was counted to be 45 to 50, ranging from 20 to 200 kDa. In the early stages of cultivation, the cellulosomes from both species exist as tightly packed complexes (tight cellulosomes). These subsequently decompose to loosely packed complexes (loose cellulosomes) and ultimately to free polypeptides. Examination of the loose cellulosomal particles showed that they contain rows of equidistantly spaced, similarly sized polypeptide subunits, with an apparently identical orientation arranged parallel to the major axis of the cellulosome. It is postulated that on binding of a cellulose chain alongside such a row of subunits a simultaneous multicutting event occurs that leads to the release of cellooligosaccharides of four cellobiose units in length (C4). Rows of smaller-sized subunits with lower center-to-center distances, which are also present in the cellulosome, subsequently cleave the C4 fragments (or cellulose) to C2 (cellotetraose) or C1 (cellobiose). In this way the cellulosome can catalyze the complete hydrolysis of cellulose.
Kármán–Howarth theorem for the Lagrangian-averaged Navier–Stokes–alpha model of turbulence

The Lagrangian averaged Navier–Stokes–alpha (LANS-α) model of turbulence is found to possess a Kármán–Howarth (KH) theorem for the dynamics of its second-order autocorrelation functions in homogeneous isotropic turbulence. This KH result implies that alpha-filtering in the LANS-α model of turbulence does not affect the exact Navier–Stokes relation between second and third moments at separation distances large compared to the model's length scale α. Moreover, at separations r that are smaller than α, the KH scaling between energy dissipation rate and longitudinal third-order autocorrelation changes to match the scaling found in two-dimensional incompressible flow. This is consistent with the corresponding change in scaling of the kinetic energy spectrum from k−5/3 for larger scales with kα < 1, which switches to k−3 for smaller scales with kα > 1, as discovered in Foias, Holm & Titi (2001).
Simulated Annealing for Location Area Planning in Cellular networks

LA planning in cellular network is useful for minimizing location management cost in GSM network. In fact, size of LA can be optimized to create a balance between the LA update rate and expected paging rate within LA. To get optimal result for LA planning in cellular network simulated annealing algorithm is used. Simulated annealing give optimal results in acceptable run-time.