Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
NF-κB Mediates Tumor Necrosis Factor α-Induced Expression of Optineurin, a Negative Regulator of NF-κB

Optineurin is a ubiquitously expressed multifunctional cytoplasmic protein encoded by OPTN gene. The expression of optineurin is induced by various cytokines. Here we have investigated the molecular mechanisms which regulate optineurin gene expression and the relationship between optineurin and nuclear factor κB (NF-κB). We cloned and characterized human optineurin promoter. Optineurin promoter was activated upon treatment of HeLa and A549 cells with tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα). Mutation of a putative NF-κB-binding site present in the core promoter resulted in loss of basal as well as TNFα-induced activity. Overexpression of p65 subunit of NF-κB activated this promoter through NF-κB site. Oligonucleotides corresponding to this putative NF-κB-binding site showed binding to NF-κB. TNFα-induced optineurin promoter activity was inhibited by expression of inhibitor of NF-κB (IκBα) super-repressor. Blocking of NF-κB activation resulted in inhibition of TNFα-induced optineurin gene expression. Overexpressed optineurin partly inhibited TNFα-induced NF-κB activation in Hela cells. Downregulation of optineurin by shRNA resulted in an increase in TNFα-induced as well as basal NF-κB activity. These results show that optineurin promoter activity and gene expression are regulated by NF-κB pathway in response to TNFα. In addition these results suggest that there is a negative feedback loop in which TNFα-induced NF-κB activity mediates expression of optineurin, which itself functions as a negative regulator of NF-κB.
Breaking down the barriers: the gut microbiome, intestinal permeability and stress-related psychiatric disorders

The emerging links between our gut microbiome and the central nervous system (CNS) are regarded as a paradigm shift in neuroscience with possible implications for not only understanding the pathophysiology of stress-related psychiatric disorders, but also their treatment. Thus the gut microbiome and its influence on host barrier function is positioned to be a critical node within the brain-gut axis. Mounting preclinical evidence broadly suggests that the gut microbiota can modulate brain development, function and behavior by immune, endocrine and neural pathways of the brain-gut-microbiota axis. Detailed mechanistic insights explaining these specific interactions are currently underdeveloped. However, the concept that a “leaky gut” may facilitate communication between the microbiota and these key signaling pathways has gained traction. Deficits in intestinal permeability may underpin the chronic low-grade inflammation observed in disorders such as depression and the gut microbiome plays a critical role in regulating intestinal permeability. In this review we will discuss the possible role played by the gut microbiota in maintaining intestinal barrier function and the CNS consequences when it becomes disrupted. We will draw on both clinical and preclinical evidence to support this concept as well as the key features of the gut microbiota which are necessary for normal intestinal barrier function.
Saccharomyces cerevisiae Ngl3p is an active 3′–5′ exonuclease with a specificity towards poly-A RNA reminiscent of cellular deadenylases

Deadenylation is the first and rate-limiting step during turnover of mRNAs in eukaryotes. In the yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, two distinct 3′–5′ exonucleases, Pop2p and Ccr4p, have been identified within the Ccr4-NOT deadenylase complex, belonging to the DEDD and Exonuclease–Endonuclease–Phosphatase (EEP) families, respectively. Ngl3p has been identified as a new member of the EEP family of exonucleases based on sequence homology, but its activity and biological roles are presently unknown. Here, we show using in vitro deadenylation assays on defined RNA species mimicking poly-A containing mRNAs that yeast Ngl3p is a functional 3′–5′ exonuclease most active at slightly acidic conditions. We further show that the enzyme depends on divalent metal ions for activity and possesses specificity towards poly-A RNA similar to what has been observed for cellular deadenylases. The results suggest that Ngl3p is naturally involved in processing of poly-adenylated RNA and provide insights into the mechanistic variations observed among the redundant set of EEP enzymes found in yeast and higher eukaryotes.
Enzyme-Catalyzed Modifications of Polysaccharides and Poly(ethylene glycol)

Polysaccharides are used extensively in various industrial applications, such as food, adhesives, coatings, construction, paper, pharmaceuticals, and personal care. Many polysaccharide structures need to be modified in order to improve their end-use properties; this is mostly done through chemical reactions. In the past 20 years many enzyme-catalyzed modifications have been developed to supplement chemical derivatization methods. Typical reactions include enzymatic oxidation, ester formation, amidation, glycosylation, and molecular weight reduction. These reactions are reviewed in this paper, with emphasis placed on the work done by the authors. The polymers covered in this review include cellulosic derivatives, starch, guar, pectin, and poly(ethylene glycol).
COAST: A Connected Open plAtform for Smart objecTs

Quick reactions and rescues are critical requirements in disaster and emergency management. However, the decision on how to react should be taken based on the correct judgment on the disaster situation. Nowadays ICT plays a pivotal role in the decision-making in disasters management. Particularly, the IoT technology is indispensable for information collection and analysis. Despite the rapid development in the ICT domain, the real-time analysis and response in certain emergency is still impossible. This is mainly due to the lack of computation power of thin smart objects and the vertical isolation among IoT applications. In this work, we will introduce the Connected Open plAtform for Smart objecTs (COAST) that gives smart objects, such as robots, drones and smartphones, the capability to autonomously negotiate and deploy additional resources on itself, on other objects or in the cloud. The overall goal of the COAST platform is to give the capability to smart object applications to self-adapt to the runtime context by providing an interoperable platform for real-time discovery, negotiation and on-the-fly allocation of additional resources. These resources can be provided by remote sensors, by on-demand deployment of additional - possibly 3rd party - services on the same or another smart object, or by outsourcing computation to edge cloud infrastructure tailored for high-performance and real-time computation. COAST provides the necessary platform services supporting run-time adaptation, monitoring, big data analytics. To allow the secure deployment of 3rd party application components on smart objects, the COAST provides a novel virtualization layer that supports high-performance execution through hardware accelerators. Expected performance will be reported to highlight the benefits of introducing such a platform to the IoT services in disaster management.
Filtering: the case for "noisier" data

Suppose there is some discrete variable X of interest, which can only be observed after passing through 2 channels (Q and R). You are limited to n noisy observations of X and then must estimate the value of X. Your one control is a parameter k which determines the level of correlation in your observed data. Specifically, X is first transmitted through the channel Q n/k times to yield variables Y/sub 1/,. , Y/sub n/k/ and then each Y/sub i/ is transmitted through channel R k times to yield variables Z/sub i/,/sub 1/,. , Z/sub I,k/. How should k be chosen to maximize the probability of successfully guessing the correct value of X? While k /spl equiv/ 1 yields data points Z/sub i,1/ which are conditionally independent given the value of X, we find that this does not always mean that k /spl equiv/ 1 is the optimal choice. In fact, many simple situations yield cases where the optimal value of k is greater than 1. We explore this phenomenon and present both theoretical and empirical results.
Integrating Service Quality with System and Information Quality: An Empirical Test in the E-Service Context

Wixom and Todd (2005) integrated the user satisfaction and the technology acceptance literatures to theorize about and account for the influence of the information technology artifact on usage. Based on Wixom and Todd's integrated model of technology usage, we propose the 3Q model by investigating the role of service quality (SQ), in addition to system quality (SysQ) and information quality (IQ), in website adoption. Attention to SQ is critical, as consumer websites have increasingly become the target of SQ assessment made by consumers, not just traditional SysQ and IQ evaluations. As part of our study, we further theorize and empirically test the relationships among these three types of quality constructs and hypothesize that perceived SysQ influences perceived IQ and perceived SQ, and perceived IQ influences perceived SQ. Our study extends the Wixom and Todd model in the e-service context and is the first of its kind to empirically examine the combined impact of perceived SQ, perceived SysQ, and perceived IQ on usage intention. Our study advances the theoretical understanding of SQ and the relationships among perceptions of SysQ, IQ, and SQ in the e-service context. The results also inform practitioners that high IQ and SysQ can directly or indirectly improve SQ in the e-service context.
International Conference on Virtual and Augmented Reality in Education Study on Parents ’ Acceptance of the Augmented Reality Use for Preschool Education

Parental influence on children’s development is commonly accepted as essential, while the way how parents affect preschool students’ information and communication technology (ICT) use at school needs a further exploration. This exploratory study is aimed to contribute to a better understanding of parental influence on children’s Augmented Reality (AR) use at preschool education by analyzing interview data collected from parents whose children have worked at school with both; AR didactical resources and traditional didactical resources. The study identified and organized parent ́s perspective into five components: motivation, knowledge, reading and writing, creativity and degree of satisfaction. The relationships among these components were often complex with intriguing similarities and differences among the participants. According to parents, the findings suggest that there are a lot of benefits in using a technological competitive tool based on AR: the integration of several components in order to achieve a common goal, the possibility of managing the execution of the exercises in several contexts, or the system availability. © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. Selection and/or peer-review under responsibility of the programme committee of the 2013 International Conference on Virtual and Augmented Reality in Education.
Detection and length and orientation measurement of extended targets

A method for rapid detection of extended targets and for measuring the length and the orientation in 2D angle space is presented. The detector and the measurements are based on the distribution of the generalized monopulse ratio. The statistical performance of the estimators is given. This method facilitates the initialization of group tracking algorithms and handling partially connected convoy targets. The performance measures may be used as a priori knowledge in tracking.
Pathway specific modulation of S1P1 receptor signalling in rat and human astrocytes

The sphingosine 1‐phosphate receptor subtype 1 (S1P1R) is modulated by phosphorylated FTY720 (pFTY720), which causes S1P1R internalization preventing lymphocyte migration thus limiting autoimmune response. Studies indicate that internalized S1P1Rs continue to signal, maintaining an inhibition of cAMP, thus raising question whether the effects of pFTY720 are due to transient initial agonism, functional antagonism and/or continued signalling. To further investigate this, the current study first determined if continued S1P1R activation is pathway specific.
The role of neurological and psychological explanations in legal judgments of psychopathic wrongdoers

Abstract Although brain imaging has recently taken center stage in criminal legal proceedings, little is known about how neuroscience information differentially affects people’s judgments about criminal behavior. In two studies of community participants (N = 1161), we examined how mock jurors sentence a fictional psychopathic defendant when presented with neurological or psychological research of equal or ambiguous scientific validity. Across two studies, we (a) found that including images of the brain did not alter mock jurors’ sentencing judgments, (b) reported two striking non-replications of previous findings that mock jurors recommend less severe punishments to defendants when a neuroscientific explanations are proffered, and (c) found that participants rated a psychopathic individual as more likely to benefit from treatment and less dangerous when a neurological explanation for his deficits was provided. Overall, these results suggest that neuroscience information provided by psychiatrists in hypothetical criminal situations may not broadly transform mock jurors’ intuitions about a psychopathic defendant’s sentence, but they provide novel evidence that brain-based information may influence people’s judgments about treatability and dangerousness.
The oxford handbook of metamemory

The Oxford Handbook of Metamemory Edited by John Dunlosky and Sarah K. Tauber Part I. Preface (R. Bjork) Part II. Introduction to Metamemory 1. A Brief History of Metamemory Research and Handbook Overview (Tauber and Dunlosky) 2. Methodology for Investigating Human Metamemory: Problems and Pitfalls (Dunlosky, Mueller, and Thiede) 3. Internal Mapping and Its Impact on Measures of Absolute and Relative Metacognitive Accuracy (Higham, Zawadzka, and Hanczakowski) Part III. Metamemory Monitoring: Classical Judgments 4. Judgments of Learning: Methods, Data, and Theory (Rhodes) 5. Introspecting on the Elusive: The Uncanny State of the Feeling of Knowing (Thomas, Lee, and Hughes) 6. Tip-of-the-Tongue States, Deja Vu Experiences, and Other Odd Metacognitive Experiences (Schwartz and Cleary) 7. Sources of Bias in Judgment and Decision Making (Tidwell, Buttaccio, Chrabaszcz, and Dougherty) 8. The Self-Consistency Theory of Subjective Confidence (Koriat and Adiv) 9. Metacognitive Aspects of Source Monitoring (Kuhlmann and Bayen) Part IV. Metamemory Monitoring: Special Issues 10. Monitoring and Regulation of Accuracy in Eyewitness Memory: Time to Get Some Control (Hollins and Weber) 11. Metamemory and Education (Soderstrom, Yue, and Bjork) 12. Prospective Memory: A Framework for Research on Metaintentions (Smith) 13. Metamemory and Affect (Efklides) 14. Do Nonhuman Animals Have Metamemory? (Washburn) 15. Looking Back and Forward on Hindsight Bias (Bernstein, Assfalg, Kumar, and Ackerman) Part V. Control of Memory 16. The Metacognitive Foundations of Effective Remembering (Fiechter, Benjamin, and Unsworth) 17. Self-Regulated Learning: An Overview of Theory and Data (Kornell and Finn) 18. The Need for Metaforgetting: Insights for Directed Forgetting (Sahakyan and Foster) 19. Quality Control in Memory Retrieval and Reporting (Goldsmith) 20. Three Pillars of False Memory Prevention: Orientation, Evaluation, and Corroboration (Gallo and Lampinen) Part VI. Neurocognition of Metamemory 21. The Ghost in the Machine: Self-Reflective Consciousness and the Neuroscience of Metacognition (Metcalfe and Schwartz) 22. The Cognitive Neuroscience of Source Monitoring (Mitchell) 23. Anosognosia and Metacognition in Alzheimer's Disease: Insights from Experimental Psychology (Ernst, Moulin, Souchay, Mograbi, and Morris) 24. Metamemory in Psychopathology (Izaute and Bacon) Part VII. Development of Metamemory 25. The Development of Metacognitive Knowledge in Children and Adolescents (Schnieder and Loffler) 26. Monitoring Memory in Old Age: Impaired, Spared, and Aware (Castel, Middlebrooks, and McGillivray) 27. Development of Control Processes in Adulthood (Hertzog) Index
Nutritive value and chemical composition of pseudocereals as gluten-free ingredients

The only treatment available for patients with coeliac disease is a lifelong elimination of food products containing gluten. The gluten-free products currently available in the market are considered of low quality and poor nutritional value. In the present study, the pseudocereals amaranth, quinoa and buckwheat were studied as potential healthy ingredients for improving the nutritional quality of gluten-free breads. The pseudocereal seeds and pseudocereal-containing gluten-free breads were evaluated in terms of their protein, fat, total starch, dietary fibre, ash and mineral content as well as their fatty acid composition. The pseudocereal containing gluten-free breads showed significantly higher levels of protein, fat, fibre and minerals than the control bread. The attributes of these breads conform to the expert's nutritional recommendations for the gluten-free diet and gluten-free foods. These results suggest that the pseudocereals amaranth, quinoa and buckwheat can represent a healthy alternative to frequently used ingredients in gluten-free products.
Analysis of the mutational effects of the COP/DET/FUS loci on genome expression profiles reveals their overlapping yet not identical roles in regulating Arabidopsis seedling development

Microarray gene expression profiling was used to examine the role of pleiotropic COP/DET/FUS loci as well as other partially photomorphogenic loci during Arabidopsis seedling development and genome expression regulation. Four types of lethal, pleiotropic cop/det/fus mutants exhibit qualitatively similar gene expression profiles, yet each has specific differences. Mutations in COP1 and DET1 show the most similar genome expression profiles, while the mutations in the COP9 signalosome (CSN) and COP10 exhibit increasingly diverged genome expression profiles in both darkness and light. The genome expression profiles of the viable mutants of COP1 and DET1 in darkness mimic those of the physiological light-regulated genome expression profiles, whereas the genome expression profiles of representative lethal mutants belong to another clade and significantly diverge from the normal light control of genome expression. Instead, these lethal pleiotropic mutants show genome expression profiles similar to those from seedlings growth under high light intensity stress. Distinct lethal pleiotropic cop/det/fus mutants also result in distinct expression profiles in the small portion of genes examined and exhibit similar relatedness in both light and darkness. The partial cop/det/fus mutants affected expression of both light regulated and non-light regulated genes. Our results suggest that pleiotropic COP/DET/FUS loci control is largely overlapping but also has separable roles in plant development. The partially photomorphogenic loci regulate a subset of photomorphogenic responses as well as other non-light regulated processes.
Influence of a "coupling factor" on the spectrum of a noisy oscillator

The effect of a so called "coupling factor", /spl alpha/, on the spectrum of a simple 2D oscillator is investigated. An exact analytical solution for the spectrum of this oscillator is presented. We find that the position of the peak of the oscillator spectrum can be moved according to the value of /spl alpha/. Also, nonLorentzian line shapes are shown to appear in the phase noise spectrum as a result of varying /spl alpha/. These phenomenon have not been described previously in the context of phase noise in oscillators. All results are verified by an experimental 2D oscillator constructed using standard components.
The Ideology of the Imperial Corporation: “Informal” Empire Revisited

Abstract Ever since its introduction into the vernacular of imperial historiography over a half century ago, the concept of “informal empire” has had a profound influence on how historians have understood the size and nature of British expansion in the modern world. While offering a crucial corrective to definitions of empire that had focused exclusively on “formal” colonial holdings, such a division has also obscured other frameworks through which we might understand the contours of imperial power, while also underscoring traditional bifurcations between early modern and modern forms of empire. This paper suggests instead an approach that privileges schema that take into account the different institutional and constitutional forms that shaped imperial expansion, and specifically argues that the corporation was one such form, in competition with others including the monarchical and national state. Looking specifically at the early modern East India Company and its modern legacies, particularly George Goldie’s Royal Niger Company, it also suggests that institutional approaches that de-emphasize distinctions between behavioral categories, such as commerce and politics, allow the possibility of excavating deep ideological connections across the history of empire, from its seventeenth-century origins through the era of decolonization.
The Moneyball Problem

Athletes in most sports now have access to an abundance of information about the situational tendencies of their opponent(s) but it is currently unclear how effectively this information can be used or how to best present it. Three different methods for presenting situational information about a baseball pitcher were compared for college baseball players hitting in a batting simulator: Build-Up (shown cumulative pitch distributions), Full (shown complete distributions) and Control (shown no distributions). Initially, both the Build-Up and Full groups had significantly higher batting averages than the control group, however, the Full group had significantly lower batting performance when the pitcher was changed. Providing situational probability information gives a significant advantage to a batter, however, there is a trade-off (between short-term effectiveness and negative transfer) which depends on how the information is presented.
An Improved Camera Calibration Method Using the Fiducial Marker System

Above all, we pointed out that the basis of the calibration algorithm based on the grid points is the matrix, which indicates the mapping relationship between the target surface and the image surface. But to our disappointment, it is the correspondence problem of the calibration points that exists in the current way to calculate it. Therefore, the fiducial marker system is used for reference here, which includes the definition of selection criteria of fiducial markers, analysis of their recognition rate from the environment, and the wrong recognition rate from each other. Next, a improved method is brought up including the extraction of the calibration points, the calculation of their image coordinates, and a group of related formulas. In the end, we consider our algorithm is very proper for indoor environments which can be controlled easily, and proved it with great efficiency and liability by the experiments as well.