Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Smoking and the course of anxiety and depression

Smoking and nicotine dependence are associated with an onset or an increased severity of the symptoms of depression and anxiety disorders, and this association is well-established. However, the mechanisms underlying this association are not yet clear. In this thesis, we found that early-onset smokers have an early onset of an anxiety disorder. We also found that nicotine-dependent smokers have more severe symptoms of depression and anxiety than the other three groups, which are comparable in symptom severity. Moreover, the rate of improvement of symptoms in dependent smokers is slower than in the other groups. In a follow-up study with the same sample, we found that only those nicotine-dependent smokers have more severe symptoms of depression and anxiety who carry the Val66Val polymorphism of the BDNF gene. In individuals carrying the Val66Met genotype of the BDNF gene, there was no difference among the four smoking groups in symptoms severity. We further found that the levels of serum BDNF is higher in current smoking groups than in non-smoking groups. No association of nicotine dependence with serum BDNF was found. Finally, we investigated the moderating role of attentional control on smoking-related attentional bias, but no moderating effect was found. Smoking, Nicotine dependence, BDNFVal66Met, severity of depression/ anxiety, attentional control
Higher intakes of fish protein are related to a lower risk of microalbuminuria in young Swedish type 1 diabetic patients.

OBJECTIVE To examine the influence of dietary intake from various protein and fat sources on the occurrence of microalbuminuria in type 1 diabetic patients. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS In this nested case control study, 1,150 patients with diabetes duration >5 years reported dietary habits for the previous 12 months and submitted urinary samples for the analysis of albumin excretion rate (AER). A total of 75 cases of albuminuria (overnight AER > or = 15 microg/min) were identified and compared with 225 duration-matched control subjects. RESULTS Neither mean protein, fat intake, average fish protein intake (control subjects 4.56 +/- 3.83 g/day and cases 3.82 +/- 2.87 g/day; P = 0.12), nor intake of meat and vegetable protein differed between the cases of albuminuria and the control subjects. High consumers of fish protein (greater than the 75th percentile) (12 cases and 63 control subjects, mean intake 9.35 g fish protein/day, i.e., approximately 53 g fish/day) had lower odds ratios (ORs) for microalbuminuria than individuals consuming less fish protein (mean 2.72 g/day) (crude OR 0.49 and 95% CI 0.25-0.97). When adjusted for known confounding factors, such as HbA1c, mean arterial pressure, diabetes duration, age, sex, smoking, BMI, country region, and total energy, individuals with a high intake of fish protein and fish fat showed a reduction in the risk for microalbuminuria (OR 0.22 and 0.31, respectively; 95% CI 0.09-0.56 and 0.13-0.76, respectively). When fish protein and fat were adjusted for each other, a high intake of fish protein but not of fish fat was still significantly associated with a decrease in the risk for microalbuminuria. CONCLUSIONS Total protein and fat intake were not associated with the presence of microalbuminuria, but a diet including a high amount of fish protein seemed to lessen the risk.
Electro-capillary instability of a nematic-isotropic interface

We have studied the morphological instability under AC electric field of a nematic-isotropic interface confined between two electrodes set at different temperatures. The electrodes are treated for homeotropic anchoring so that, when the field is increased, the Ericksen elastic stress vanishes. In this limit, the instability resembles that observed in ordinary liquids. However, significant differences were observed.
Classification of the Lung Diseases from CT Scans by Advanced Segmentation Techniques using Genetic Algorithm

Lung diseases are the most common disease which causes mortality worldwide . In this study, the computed tomography images are used for the diagnosis of the lung diseases such as normal, small cell lung carcinoma, large cell lung carcinoma and non small cell lung carcinoma by the effective extraction of the global features of the images and feature selection techniques. The images are recognized with the statistical and the shape based features. The texture based features are extracted by Gabor filtering, the feature outputs are combined by watershed segmentation and the fuzzy C means clustering. Feature selection techniques such as Information Gain, correlation based feature selection are employed with Genetic algorithm which is used as an optimal initialisation of the clusters. The dataset of lung diseases for four classes are considered and the training and testing are done by the Naive Bayes and random forest classifier. Results of this work show an accuracy of above 80% for the correlation based feature selection method using naive bayes classifier. General Terms Dataset, Optimal, statistical, Texture, Training.
Frequency Splitting Analysis of Wireless Power Transfer System Based on T -type Transformer Model

Frequency splitting is a key characteristic of wireless power transfer system. With the increases of coupling coefficient, the power transferred to load drops sharply. The resonant frequency splits from one into two within splitting region. Previous reports about frequency splitting mainly focused on the analysis of coupled mode theory or the solutions of ridge equations. In this work, we presented the analytical results based on a simply T-type circuit model. With impedance analysis, the even and odd splitting frequencies were derived. In addition, the frequency splitting phenomena were analysed with output voltage curves at different coupling by the aid of simulation. Furthermore, the frequency splitting and the frequency bifurcation discussed frequently in inductively coupled wireless power transfer system were analysed comparatively based on the circuit model. Then, a half-bridge inverter based wireless power system was constructed to demonstrate the experimental results. Finally, the simulation and experimental results validated the theoretical analysis. DOI: http://dx.doi. org/10.5755/j01.eee. 19.10. 5455
Elimination of the Fast Transient in Superior Cervical Ganglion Neurons with Expression of KV4.2W362F: Molecular Dissection ofIA

Electrophysiological and molecular studies have revealed considerable heterogeneity in voltage-gated K+currents and in the subunits that underlie these channels in mammalian neurons. At present, however, the relationship between native K+ currents and cloned subunits is poorly understood. In the experiments here, a molecular genetic approach was exploited to define the molecular correlate of the fast transient outward K+ current,IAf, in sympathetic neurons and to explore the functional role of IAf in shaping action potential waveforms and controlling repetitive firing patterns. Using the biolistic gene gun, cDNAs encoding a dominant negative mutant Kv4.2 α-subunit (Kv4.2W362F) and enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) were introduced into rat sympathetic neuronsin vitro. Whole-cell voltage-clamp recordings obtained from EGFP-positive cells revealed that IAfis selectively eliminated in cells expressing Kv4.2W362F, demonstrating that Kv4 α-subunits underlie IAf in sympathetic neurons. In addition, IAfdensity is increased significantly in cells overexpressing wild-type Kv4.2. In cells expressing Kv4.2W362F, input resistances are increased and (current) thresholds for action potential generation are decreased, demonstrating that IAf plays a pivotal role in regulating excitability. Expression of Kv4.2W362F and elimination ofIAf also alters the distribution of repetitive firing patterns observed in response to a prolonged injection of depolarizing current. The wild-type superior cervical ganglion is composed of phasic, adapting, and tonic firing neurons. Elimination of IAf increases the percentage of adapting cells by shifting phasic cells to the adapting firing pattern, and increased IAf density reduces the number of adapting cells.
A 5.8GHz, 47% efficiency, linear outphase power amplifier with fully integrated power combiner

This paper presents an outphase power amplifier, consisting of two class-E power amplifiers and a power combiner. Using shielded coplanar striplines, the first low-loss, fully integrated 5.8 GHz Wilkinson combiner is realized with excellent isolation for a robust outphase PA. The outphase power amplifier, fabricated in IBM 7WL SiGe BiCMOS, achieves a peak efficiency of 47% at the maximum output power of 18.5dBm. For an orthogonal frequency division multiplexing input signal of 32 sub-channels of 64-QAM, the adjacent channel power leakage ratio is better than 32dBc
Q Methodology of Gender Identity for Sport Participants

This Article examines Q as an empirical methodology for use in gender identity. The subjects of this article were adults who had participated in a sports activity for one year or more. I prepared a Q sample for advanced research and, special publication, using an open questionnaire and in-depth interviews. In this way, I applied the suggested gender identity types using, Q. I distributed Q statements to the sample and then generated the results using principal component factor analysis. I categorized gender identity among the sports participants by four attitude types ‘open’, ‘conservative’, ‘subjective’, and ‘extroverted’.
ErbB signaling is required for the proliferative actions of GLP-2 in the murine gut.

BACKGROUND & AIMS Glucagon-like peptide-2 (GLP-2) is a 33-amino acid peptide hormone secreted by enteroendocrine cells in response to nutrient ingestion. GLP-2 stimulates crypt cell proliferation leading to expansion of the mucosal epithelium; however, the mechanisms transducing the trophic effects of GLP-2 are incompletely understood. METHODS We examined the gene expression profiles and growth-promoting actions of GLP-2 in normal mice in the presence or absence of an inhibitor of ErbB receptor signaling, in Glp2r(-/-) mice and in Egfr(wa2) mice harboring a hypomorphic point mutation in the epidermal growth factor receptor. RESULTS Exogenous GLP-2 administration rapidly induced the expression of a subset of ErbB ligands including amphiregulin, epiregulin, and heparin binding (HB)-epidermal growth factor, in association with induction of immediate early gene expression in the small and large bowel. These actions of GLP-2 required a functional GLP-2 receptor because they were eliminated in Glp2r(-/-) mice. In contrast, insulin-like growth factor-I and keratinocyte growth factor, previously identified mediators of GLP-2 action, had no effect on the expression of these ErbB ligands. The GLP-2-mediated induction of ErbB ligand expression was not metalloproteinase inhibitor sensitive but was significantly diminished in Egfr(wa2) mice and completed abrogated in wild-type mice treated with the pan-ErbB inhibitor CI-1033. Furthermore, the stimulatory actions of GLP-2 on crypt cell proliferation and bowel growth were eliminated in the presence of CI-1033. CONCLUSIONS These findings identify the ErbB signaling network as a target for GLP-2 action leading to stimulation of growth factor-dependent signal transduction and bowel growth in vivo.
Cancer Cells Hijack PRC2 to Modify Multiple Cytokine Pathways

Polycomb Repressive Complex 2 (PRC2) is an epigenetic regulator induced in many cancers. It is thought to drive tumorigenesis by repressing division, stemness, and/or developmental regulators. Cancers evade immune detection, and diverse immune regulators are perturbed in different tumors. It is unclear how such cell-specific effects are coordinated. Here, we show a profound and cancer-selective role for PRC2 in repressing multiple cytokine pathways. We find that PRC2 represses hundreds of IFNγ stimulated genes (ISGs), cytokines and cytokine receptors. This target repertoire is significantly broadened in cancer vs non-cancer cells, and is distinct in different cancer types. PRC2 is therefore a higher order regulator of the immune program in cancer cells. Inhibiting PRC2 with either RNAi or EZH2 inhibitors activates cytokine/cytokine receptor promoters marked with bivalent H3K27me3/H3K4me3 chromatin, and augments responsiveness to diverse immune signals. PRC2 inhibition rescues immune gene induction even in the absence of SWI/SNF, a tumor suppressor defective in ~20% of human cancers. This novel PRC2 function in tumor cells could profoundly impact the mechanism of action and efficacy of EZH2 inhibitors in cancer treatment.
Speech signal processing using neural networks mapping the phonology of Sanskrit language using neural networks

This paper introduces and motivates the use of artificial neural networks (ANN) for recognition of speaker independent phoneme in voice signal. It shows the utilization of neural network's parallel characteristics as well as self-learning characteristics in phoneme recognition using the Kohonen learning rule. It demonstrates the utility of machine learning algorithms in signal processing by trying to emulate biological neuron arrangements. Therefore, different types of neural networks are used at every stage of the whole process. Artificial neural network's implementation has improved the performance of feature extraction, and matching techniques of phoneme recognition. This solution based on self organizing clustering of speech features on time axis forming phonemes and unsupervised learning of these clusters together attains an accuracy of 97.77 % giving 3 seconds clean speech input and an accuracy of 98.88% giving 15 seconds of clean speech input. Speech samples were taken from 9 speakers.
The effect of phonotactic constraints in German-speaking children with delayed phonological acquisition: Evidence from production of word-initial consonant clusters

In this study the effect of phonotactic constraints concerning word-initial consonant clusters in children with delayed phonological acquisition was explored. Twelve German-speaking children took part (mean age 5;1). The spontaneous speech of all children was characterized by the regular appearance of the error patterns fronting, e.g., Kuh“cow” /ku:/ →[tu:], or stopping, e.g., Schaf“sheep” /a:f/ →[ta:f], which were inappropriate for their chronological age. The children were asked to produce words (picture naming task, word repetition task) with initial consonant clusters, in which the application of the error patterns would violate phonotactic sequence constraints. For instance, if fronting would apply in /kl-/, e.g., Kleid“dress”, it would be realized as the phontactically illegal consonant cluster /tl-/. The results indicate that phonotactic constraints affect word production in children with delayed phonological developments. Surprisingly, we found that children with fronting produced the critical consonants correctly significantly more often in word-initial consonant clusters than in words in which they appeared as singleton onsets. In addition, the results provide evidence for a similar developmental trajectory of acquisition in children with typical development and in children with delayed phonological acquisition.
A novel hybrid audio steganography for imperceptible data hiding

In recent years, extensive research has been taken for hiding data into digital audio signal because of advantages of psycho acoustical masking phenomenon of human auditory system [HAS]. This paper presents a novel method based on audio steganography by integrating optimal steganography and two level cryptographic methods. Improvement of imperceptibility of data hiding and increased security level for the secret data has been provided. In optimal steganography the random positions of the samples in audio signal are generated by a polynomial expression as a function of cover media to improve the data hiding capability. Imperceptibility of proposed method is validated using subjective and objective measures. Experimental results show that the proposed method is best suitable for hiding data in audio.
Smoking, Drinking, and Income

In an effort to increase understanding of the “alcohol/income puzzle”—the finding that drinking appears to lead to higher income—this paper presents maximum simulated likelihood estimates of a system of limited dependent variables governing smoking and drinking patterns and income. With all else held constant, moderate drinking is associated with 10 percent higher income, and heavy drinking associated with 12 percent higher income, than drinking abstention. Smoking is associated with larger effects on income than drinking: Single-equation estimates suggest smokers earn 8 percent less than nonsmokers, and the smoking penalty rises to 24 percent after correcting for endogeneity.
Bidding for Firms : An Asymmetric Auction Model of Interjurisdictional Competition

This paper analyzes firm-specific interjurisdictional competition as an auction. Before choosing a site, a firm solicits bids (i.e., subsidies, tax breaks) from several jurisdictions. Its costs differ across locations so, unlike in standard high-bid auction models, the seller (i.e., the firm) has preferences over who among the bidders (i.e., the regions) wins. Using mechanism design, it is shown that the firm’s optimal location decision rule solves a trade-off between subsidy extraction and cost minimization in a way that is inconsistent with total surplus maximization, so the firm’s location can be inefficient. Positive implications of the model are shown to be consistent with some recent stylized facts. Extensions of the basic model discuss the political economy of bidding and the impact of negative interjurisdictional spillovers from location decisions. Should bidding wars be banned? The model frames the current policy debate by suggesting that the policymaker typically faces an efficiency/equity trade-off. Whether or not location contests are positive-sum games from society’s standpoint hinges primarily on whether the local benefits from business locations vary sufficiently across locations to outweigh the welfare costs of interjurisdictional bidding.
Oxidant species trigger late preconditioning against myocardial stunning in conscious rabbits.

Conscious rabbits underwent six 4-min occlusion and 4-min reperfusion cycles for 3 consecutive days (day 1, 2, and 3); on day 1, rabbits received intravenous vehicle [preconditioning (PC)] (group I, n = 6), superoxide dismutase (SOD; group II, n = 5), catalase (group III, n = 6), or the hydroxyl radical (. OH) and peroxynitrite (ONOO-)) scavenger N-2-mercaptopropionyl glycine (MPG [group IV], n = 6). In the PC group, the recovery of systolic wall thickening (WTh) after the sixth reperfusion was markedly improved on days 2 and 3 compared with day 1 and the total deficit of WTh was correspondingly reduced, indicating a late PC effect against myocardial stunning. Neither SOD nor catalase had any significant effect on the severity of stunning on day 1 or on the development of late PC on days 2 and 3, despite high plasma levels. In contrast, MPG markedly attenuated the severity of stunning on day 1 and prevented the development of late PC on day 2. Two additional groups of rabbits received an intracoronary infusion of vehicle (group V, n = 4) or the reactive oxygen species (ROS) generating solution [cumene hydroperoxide (CuOOH, group VI, n = 7)] on day 0, and were then subjected to the six occlusion/reperfusion cycles on days 1, 2, and 3. In group VI, infusion of CuOOH elicited a late PC effect 24 h later (on day 1). Taken together, these results demonstrate that oxidant species play an essential role in triggering the development of late PC against stunning in conscious rabbits. The fact that late PC was blocked by MPG and mimicked by CuOOH implicate ONOO- and/or . OH as the oxygen species responsible for the initiation of this phenomenon. In addition, the finding that exogenous ROS (CuOOH) reproduced the phenotype of late PC indicates that ROS are not only necessary but also sufficient to trigger this defensive adaptation of the heart to stress.
Divided-attention task on driving simulator: comparison among three groups of drivers

Introduction: Driving is a complex and dynamic task that requires performing simultaneously several sub-tasks, as traffic management and vehicle control. Driving involves both automatic and controlled processing depending on situation met and drivers? experience. Method: Three groups of drivers with different driving experience were submitted to a divided-attention task in order to assess the interference linked to a secondary task on driving behaviour. The main task was a car-following task and the secondary task was a number identification task which could appear on central or peripheral vision. Results and discussion: Results showed that driving performances increase with experience. Indeed, novice drivers, compared to more experienced drivers, took more time to brake and had more difficulties to maintain a stable position in the lane. This task allowed to differentiate driving behaviour depending on experience and could be used in training of novice drivers.
A Two-Phase Framework based on 2-D feature extraction algorithms

In this paper, we proposed a two-phase framework based 2-D feature extraction algorithms to overcome the common disadvantage which 2-D algorithms have. To verify the validity of the framework, a series of experiments were performed on the ORL database based on three 2-D algorithms: 2DPCA, 2DLDA and 2DLEM. The results show that the 2-P framework can reduce the coefficients effectively and have achieved the approximate performance to direct 2-D algorithms. The experiments have also indicated that 2DLEM has outstanding performance not only in the direct 2-D algorithms but in the 2-P framework
Status and Perspective of GaN-based Technology in Japan

Present status and perspective of GaN-based technology in Japan have been presented. An AlGaN/GaN HEMT is expanding its application field from L to W bands and it will replace the Si and GaAs based power amplifiers used in mobile phone base stations, terrestrial/satellite microwave communication systems, and collision avoidance car radar systems. A GaN-based rectifier diode will be used in AC/DC converters and also rectenna circuits due to its high breakdown voltage and low on resistance. Recently developed several process technologies are also described.