Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Bio-inspired wearable soft upper-limb exoskeleton robot for stroke survivors

Over the years, the exoskeleton robot has become an effective technical means in the field of limb action function recovery. In this paper, a bionic wearable upper limb exoskeleton robot is proposed for stroke survivors. The robot is designed on the basis of anatomy and biomechanics. Based on the skeletal structure of the human body, the bones and muscles of the human body movement system are modeled. The skeletal muscle and the muscle tendon are simulated by the tension line and the flexible band respectively. The robot is tested on a humanoid platform. Test results show that the joint motion range and trajectory curve are highly similar to the human body. The effectiveness of the bionic design is proved. The whole device motion chain has a similar motion configuration of the human body, and the drive mode conforms to the principle of human driving, so that the wearer's movement conforms to the normal mode of the human body. The robot is wearable and light in structure. This work will assist the upper-limbs in both activities of daily livings (ADLs) and physical therapy, and improve the life confidence and self-care ability of patients with movement ability disorders.
Synthesis and Biodegradation of Poly(l-lactide-co-β-propiolactone)

Although the copolymerizations of l-lactide (LA) with seven- or six-membered ring lactones have been extensively studied, the copolymerizations of LA with four-membered ring lactones have scarcely been reported. In this work, we studied the copolymerization of LA with β-propiolactone (PL) and the properties of the obtained copolymers. The copolymerization of LA with PL was carried out using trifluoromethanesulfonic acid as a catalyst and methanol as an initiator to produce poly(LA-co-PL) with Mn of ~50,000 and PL-content of 6–67 mol %. The Tg values of the copolymers were rapidly lowered with increasing PL-contents. The Tm and ΔHm of the copolymers gradually decreased with increasing PL-contents, indicating their decreased crystallinity. Biodegradation test of the copolymers in compost demonstrated their improved biodegradability in comparison with the homopolymer of LA.
Vehicle counting and traffic flow analysis with UAV by low rank representation

We propose to synergize the motion and appearance information within a block-sparse robust principal component analysis (RPCA) framework for the estimation and analysis of traffic flow. The images are captured by a UAV with a downward looking camera, and the processing of images are performed on the measure line, called virtual gantry, resulting in much improved efficiency. Enforcing the low rank constraint on the spatiotemporal image which is generated via stacking image pixels on virtual gantry over time, we introduce the block-sparse RPCA algorithm in which the motion cue is leveraged to facilitate vehicle detection, followed by flow normalization to classify vehicles into light, small, medium, and large categories. Benefiting from the low rank representation, our detection method is parameter insensitive, robust to illumination changes, and requires no training. Lots of experiments have been carried out in a campus scenario, the UAV is launched and controlled to hover above roadways to capture images. Our method achieves nearly 100% accuracy in vehicle counting and classification, and significantly outperforms the available methods. Meanwhile, insightful observations of the obtained traffic information are given, which could be very valuable to the users, especially to the traffic management sectors.
Spatio-temporal analysis of molecular delivery through the blood–brain barrier using focused ultrasound

The deposition of gadolinium through ultrasound-induced blood–brain barrier (BBB) openings in the murine hippocampus was investigated. First, wave propagation simulations through the intact mouse skull revealed minimal beam distortion while thermal deposition simulations, at the same sonication parameters used to induce BBB opening in vivo, revealed temperature increases lower than 0.5 °C. The simulation results were validated experimentally in ex vivo skulls (m = 6) and in vitro tissue specimens. Then, in vivo mice (n = 9) were injected with microbubbles (Optison™; 25–50 µl) and sonicated (frequency: 1.525 MHz, pressure amplitudes: 0.5–1.1 MPa, burst duration: 20 ms, duty cycle: 20%, durations: 2–4 shots, 30 s per shot, 30 s interval) at the left hippocampus, through intact skin and skull. Sequential, high-resolution, T1-weighted MRI (9.4 Tesla, in-plane resolution: 75 µm, scan time: 45–180 min) with gadolinium (Omniscan™; 0.5 ml) injected intraperitoneally revealed a threshold of the BBB opening at 0.67 MPa and BBB closing within 28 h from opening. The contrast-enhancement area and gadolinium deposition path were monitored over time and the influence of vessel density, size and location was determined. Sonicated arteries, or their immediate surroundings, depicted greater contrast enhancement than sonicated homogeneous brain tissue regions. In conclusion, gadolinium was delivered through a transiently opened BBB and contained to a specific brain region (i.e., the hippocampus) using a single-element focused ultrasound transducer. It was also found that the amount of gadolinium deposited in the hippocampal region increased with the acoustic pressure and that the spatial distribution of the BBB opening was determined not only by the ultrasound beam, but also by the vasculature of the targeted brain region.
The Effects of Emotional Visual Context on the Encoding and Retrieval of Body Odor Information

Conditions during information encoding and retrieval are known to influence the sensory material stored and its recapitulation. However, little is known about such processes in olfaction. Here, we capitalized on the uniqueness of body odors (BOs) which, similar to fingerprints, allow for the identification of a specific person, by associating their presentation to a negative or a neutral emotional context. One hundred twenty-five receivers (68 F) were exposed to a male BO while watching either criminal or neutral videos (encoding phase) and were subsequently asked to recognize the target BO within either a congruent or an incongruent visual context (retrieval phase). The results showed that criminal videos were rated as more vivid, unpleasant, and arousing than neutral videos both at encoding and retrieval. Moreover, in terms of BO ratings, we found that odor intensity and arousal allow to distinguish the target from the foils when congruent criminal information is presented at encoding and retrieval. Finally, the accuracy performance was not significantly different from chance level for either condition. These findings provide insights on how olfactory memories are processed in emotional situations.
Cystatin A suppresses tumor cell growth through inhibiting epithelial to mesenchymal transition in human lung cancer

Cystatin A (CSTA), belonging to type 1 cystatin super-family, is expressed primarily in epithelial and lymphoid tissues for protecting cells from proteolysis of cytoplasmic and cytoskeletal proteins by cathepsins B, H and L. CSTA acts as a tumor suppressor in esophageal cancer, however, its role in lung cancer has not yet been elucidated. Here we found that CSTA was down-regulated in all lung cancer cell lines compared to normal lung epithelial cells. CSTA was restored in most lung cancer cell lines after treatment with demethylation agent 5-aza-2-deoxycytidine and deacetylation agent Trichostatin. Bisulfite sequencing revealed that CSTA was partially methylated in the promoter and exon 1. In primary lung tumors, squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) significantly expressed more CSTA compared to adenocarcinoma (p<0.00001), and higher expression of CSTA was significantly associated with lower tumor grade (p<0.01). CSTA stable transfection reduced the activity of cathepsin B and inhibited the ability of colony formation, migration and invasion, and enhanced gemcitabine-induced apoptosis. CSTA overexpression resulted in reduced activity of ERK, p-38, and AKT. Additionally, CSTA overexpression led to a mesenchymal to epithelial transition (MET) and prevented the TGF-β1-induced epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) through inhibiting the ERK/MAPK pathway. In conclusion, our date indicate 1) epigenetic regulation is associated with CSTA gene silencing; 2) CSTA exerts tumor suppressive function through inhibiting MAPK and AKT pathways; 3) Overexpression of CSTA leads to MET and prevents TGF-β1-induced EMT by modulating the MAPK pathway; 4) CSTA may be a potential biomarker for lung SCC and tumor differentiation.
Observing and measuring strain in nanostructures and devices with transmission electron microscopy

The evolution of elastic strain engineering in nanostructures and devices requires characterization tools that can be used to not only observe but also quantify the actual strain in a sample, whether this strain is intrinsic or applied. Strain contrast in crystalline samples has always been one of the primary contrast mechanisms used for imaging the microstructure of a material in a transmission electron microscope (TEM). In this regard, TEM is a particularly powerful tool due to its ability to spatially resolve strain information with high precision and spatial resolution. This article reviews the techniques currently available for directly measuring strain in the TEM. Examples are given for measuring strain in semiconductor devices using imaging, diffraction, and holographic techniques. For strain measurement during in situ mechanical testing, two general methods are presented: the conversion of displacement from an actuation device or the direct measurement of strain using image features during deformation.
Dense 3D Point Cloud Generation from Multiple High-resolution Spherical Images

The generation of virtual models of cultural heritage assets is of high interest for documentation, restoration, development and promotion purposes. To this aim, non-invasive, easy and automatic techniques are required. We present a technology that automatically reconstructs large scale scenes from panoramic, high-resolution, spherical images. The advantage of the spherical panoramas is that they can acquire a complete environment in one single image. We show that the spherical geometry is more suited for the computation of the orientation of the panoramas (Structure from Motion) than the standard images, and introduce a generic error function for the epipolar geometry of spherical images. We then show how to produce a dense representation of the scene with up to 100 million points, that can serve as input for meshing and texturing software or for computer aided reconstruction. We demonstrate the applicability of our concept with reconstruction of complex scenes in the scope of cultural heritage documentation at the Chinese National Palace Museum of the Forbidden City in Beijing.
Structure-property relationships in flow formed discontinuous fiber reinforced composites

The research presented in this dissertation provides advances to the state of the art in the area of discontinuous fiber composites. The focus of this work is on stiffness prediction for materials containing curved fibers with quasi-random orientation in space. The dissertation contains five papers highlighting newly developed model formulation accounting for curved fibers, experimental techniques, and experimental results for comparison with model predictions. Exploratory experiments with injection-molded samples suggested the presence of curved fibers. The effect of fiber curvature on composite stiffness had not been rigorously addressed prior to the developments detailed in this dissertation. A new definition of fiber configuration and configuration averaging allows us to calculate the fully anisotropic stiffness tensor for discontinuous fiber composites. The development of X-ray and optical based experimental techniques was also necessary to provide quantifiable data for model-experiment comparison. The experimental results are obtained using novel X-ray micro-tomography setup allowing observation of material microstructure under load. It is demonstrated that new model provides better match with experimental results when compared to theory relying on the assumption of straight fibers.
Role of CCT chaperonin in the disassembly of mitotic checkpoint complexes

Significance The mitotic checkpoint system has an important role in ensuring correct segregation of chromosomes in mitosis. As long as not all chromosomes are attached correctly to the mitotic spindle, a mitotic checkpoint complex (MCC) is assembled and prevents chromosome separation by inhibiting the action of the ubiquitin ligase anaphase-promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C). When the mitotic checkpoint system is turned off, MCC is disassembled to allow chromosome separation, but the mechanisms of MCC disassembly are poorly understood. Here we show that an important pathway in MCC disassembly is mediated by chaperonin containing TCP1, a complex previously known to play a role only in protein folding. The present study provides insight into molecular events responsible for mitotic checkpoint inactivation. The mitotic checkpoint system prevents premature separation of sister chromatids in mitosis and thus ensures the fidelity of chromosome segregation. When this checkpoint is active, a mitotic checkpoint complex (MCC), composed of the checkpoint proteins Mad2, BubR1, Bub3, and Cdc20, is assembled. MCC inhibits the ubiquitin ligase anaphase promoting complex/cyclosome (APC/C), whose action is necessary for anaphase initiation. When the checkpoint signal is turned off, MCC is disassembled, a process required for exit from checkpoint-arrested state. Different moieties of MCC are disassembled by different ATP-requiring processes. Previous work showed that Mad2 is released from MCC by the joint action of the TRIP13 AAA-ATPase and the Mad2-binding protein p31comet. Now we have isolated from extracts of HeLa cells an ATP-dependent factor that releases Cdc20 from MCC and identified it as chaperonin containing TCP1 or TCP1–Ring complex (CCT/TRiC chaperonin), a complex known to function in protein folding. Bacterially expressed CCT5 chaperonin subunits, which form biologically active homooligomers [Sergeeva, et al. (2013) J Biol Chem 288(24):17734–17744], also promote the disassembly of MCC. CCT chaperonin further binds and disassembles subcomplexes of MCC that lack Mad2. Thus, the combined action of CCT chaperonin with that of TRIP13 ATPase promotes the complete disassembly of MCC, necessary for the inactivation of the mitotic checkpoint.
Microcystins affect zooplankton biodiversity in oxbow lakes

The authors tested the hypothesis that zooplankton diversity and density are affected by the presence of cyanotoxins in the water. The authors focused on 4 oxbow lakes of the Vistula River in southern Poland, which are subjected to mass cyanobacterial development. In 2 of the oxbows (Piekary and Tyniec), microcystins released into the water were found. The highest concentration of microcystins (0.246 μg/L) was observed for microcystins LR. Zooplankton diversity showed a weak response to the presence of microcystins released into the water. The Shannon index (H') of total zooplankton diversity decreased in the Piekary and Tyniec oxbows during periods when the microcystin concentrations were highest. The same trend was noted for diversity of rotifers in both oxbows and for diversity of copepods in Piekary, but not for copepods in Tyniec. No such trends were found for the diversity of cladocerans in any of the oxbows, nor was a relationship found between density of zooplankton and microcystins. Statistical analyses showed that the number of species in individual samples was negatively correlated with the levels of sulfates, phosphates, and ammonia, but the microcystin concentration was positively related to those levels. This points to the complexity of the interactions and synergies among toxins, abiotic factors, and zooplankton biodiversity. In focusing on the problem of cyanotoxins, conservation studies should pay attention to this complexity. Environ Toxicol Chem 2017;36:165–174. © 2016 SETAC
Epicardial fat and atrial fibrillation: current evidence, potential mechanisms, clinical implications, and future directions

Obesity is increasingly recognized as a major modifiable determinant of atrial fibrillation (AF). Although body mass index and other clinical measures are useful indications of general adiposity, much recent interest has focused on epicardial fat, a distinct adipose tissue depot that can be readily assessed using non-invasive imaging techniques. A growing body of data from epidemiological and clinical studies has demonstrated that epicardial fat is consistently associated with the presence, severity, and recurrence of AF across a range of clinical settings. Evidence from basic science and translational studies has also suggested that arrhythmogenic mechanisms may involve adipocyte infiltration, pro-fibrotic, and pro-inflammatory paracrine effects, oxidative stress, and other pathways. Despite these advances, however, significant uncertainty exists and many questions remain unanswered. In this article, we review our present understanding of epicardial fat, including its classification and quantification, existing evidence implicating its role in AF, potential mechanisms, implications for clinicians, and future directions for research.
Joint domain based massive access for small packets traffic of uplink wireless channel

The fifth generation (5G) communication scenarios such as the cellular network and the emerging machine type communications will produce massive small packets. To support massive connectivity and avoid signaling overhead caused by the transmission of those small packets, this paper proposes a novel method to improve the transmission efficiency for massive connections of wireless uplink channel. The proposed method combines compressive sensing (CS) with power domain NOMA jointly, especially neither the scheduling nor the centralized power allocation is necessary in the method. Both the analysis and simulation show that the method can support up to two or three times overloading.
An traffic intensity based media access control protocol with priorities

To improve the real-time performance of attacking time-sensitive targets, a MAC protocol based on traffic intensity is proposed. In this paper, the collision model of data packet is analyzed and the calculation formula of system throughput is given. Considering on the relationship between the traffic intensity of different data packets and network load, the threshold of each priority is reasonably set. Then the M/G/1 queuing model, with different customer rank and absolute priority, is applied to simplify and analyze the average queuing delay. Simulation results show the protocol achieves low latency for high priority, at the same time maintaining 97% success rate in the first chance. Meanwhile the performance of system throughput is improved.
Meta-scheduling techniques for energy-efficient robust and adaptive time-triggered systems

Many real-time embedded systems need to adapt to run-time events such as faults or changing environmental conditions. In time-triggered systems, which are prevalent in safety-critical applications, adaptivity can be realized by switching between static schedules, which are computed by scenario-based meta-scheduling techniques and tools. These tools exploit metadata and meta-scheduling models and algorithms. An example of an important event type is dynamic slack, which can be used to improve the system's energy efficiency by changing communication and execution plans. Likewise, the reaction to fault events involves the passivation of faulty components and the migration to spare resources. These mechanisms improve the robustness of time-triggered real-time systems and provide high potential for time and energy management. Nowadays, energy saving methods and algorithms are used in a wide-range of applications (e.g., mobiles phone), while their applicability in safety-critical systems is still limited. In this paper, we present meta-scheduling techniques and a meta-scheduler tool (MeS) to generate meta-schedules for time-triggered systems. We also experimentally evaluate the energy efficiency and timing based on slack events and fault events. Finally, results are visualized and validated with a meta-scheduling visualization tool (MeSViz).
Music Emotion Recognition based on Wigner-Ville Distribution Feature Extraction

There are several research carried out for study the effect of music on human brain which they indicate music can usicMimprove brain functions psychologically and physiologically. and also can impact mood by changing emotion, attention, learning based on neuroplasticity. In this study, classification of music genre ilehEEG signal have reported on recorded signal of participants w urolistening to music. To do end, EEG activities recorded from f py andpparticipants while listening to three categories of light, ha uralesad music. Wigner-Ville Distribution feature and artificial n classes network are used for feature extraction and classify of three of mood states. Experimental results shown effectiveness of eproposed system for recognizing different influenced cognitiv as states, and this results can be used in BCI ap-plication such users virtual reality, games and digital entertainment, or allowing to play a musical note by brain signals.
The CRISPR/Cas revolution reaches the RNA world: Cas13, a new Swiss Army knife for plant biologists

Application of the bacterial CRISPR/Cas systems to eukaryotes is revolutionizing biology. Cas9 and Cas12 (previously called Cpf1) are widely used as DNA nucleases for inducing site-specific DNA breaks for different kinds of genome engineering applications, and in their mutated forms as DNA-binding proteins to modify gene expression. Moreover, histone modifications, as well as cytosine methylation or base editing, were achieved with these systems in plants. Recently, with the discovery of the nuclease Cas13a (previously called C2c2), molecular biologists have obtained a system that enables sequence-specific cleavage of single-stranded RNA molecules. The latest experiments with this and also the alternative Cas13b system demonstrate that these proteins can be used in a similar manner in eukaryotes for RNA manipulation as Cas9 and Cas12 for DNA manipulations. The first application of Cas13a for post-transcriptional regulation of gene expression in plants has been reported. Recent results show that the system is also applicable for combating viral infection in plants. As single-stranded RNA viruses are by far the most abundant class of viruses in plants, the application of this system is of special promise for crops. More interesting applications are imminent for plant biologists, with nuclease dead versions of Cas13 enabling the ability to visualize RNA molecules in vivo, as well as to edit different kinds of RNA molecules at specific bases by deamination or to modify them by conjugation. Moreover, by combining DNA- and RNA-directed systems, the most complex of changes in plant metabolism might be achievable.