Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of Wild Peanut Species and Their Allotetraploids for Resistance against Thrips and Thrips-Transmitted Tomato Spotted Wilt Orthotospovirus (TSWV)

Thrips-transmitted tomato spotted wilt orthotospovirus (TSWV) causes spotted wilt disease in peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) and limits yield. Breeding programs have been developing TSWV-resistant cultivars, but availability of sources of resistance against TSWV in cultivated germplasm is extremely limited. Diploid wild Arachis species can serve as important sources of resistance, and despite ploidy barriers (cultivated peanut is tetraploid), their usage in breeding programs is now possible because of the knowledge and development of induced interspecific allotetraploid hybrids. This study screened 10 wild diploid Arachis and six induced allotetraploid genotypes via thrips-mediated TSWV transmission assays and thrips’ feeding assays in the greenhouse. Three parameters were evaluated: percent TSWV infection, virus accumulation, and temporal severity of thrips feeding injury. Results indicated that the diploid A. stenosperma accession V10309 and its derivative-induced allotetraploid ValSten1 had the lowest TSWV infection incidences among the evaluated genotypes. Allotetraploid BatDur1 had the lowest thrips-inflicted damage at each week post thrips release, while diploid A. batizocoi accession K9484 and A. duranensis accession V14167 had reduced feeding damage one week post thrips release, and diploids A. valida accession GK30011 and A. batizocoi had reduced feeding damage three weeks post thrips releasethan the others. Overall, plausible TSWV resistance in diploid species and their allotetraploid hybrids was characterized by reduced percent TSWV infection, virus accumulation, and feeding severity. Furthermore, a few diploids and tetraploid hybrids displayed antibiosis against thrips. These results document evidence for resistance against TSWV and thrips in wild diploid Arachis species and peanut-compatible-induced allotetraploids.
Architecting Descriptive Models for MBSE

Model‐Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) is becoming increasingly recognized as a critical enabler for significantly improving the effectiveness and efficiency of systems engineering. While MBSE is seeing significant growth in its application to complex system development programs, the growth of MBSE adoption and realized value is often stymied by the growth of technical debt in the descriptive models that serve as the foundation of knowledge capture and communication in an MBSE environment. Just as a good system architect or software architect makes key decisions early in the life of a system or software product to maximize the likelihood of stakeholder satisfaction throughout its life, a good model architect can provide that same invaluable function for descriptive models. The methods and practices of system and software architecting can be readily adapted to address the technical debt growth problem often seen in the development of descriptive models. This paper describes the emerging discipline of “model architecting,” comparing and contrasting it with system and software architecting practices. The paper describes a representative set of model architecting patterns that illustrate model architecting principles, then identifies some of the key roles, responsibilities, and competencies required of the model architect.
CSF Inflammation Markers Associated with Asymptomatic Viral Escape in Cerebrospinal Fluid of HIV-Positive Individuals on Antiretroviral Therapy

HIV establishes a viral reservoir in the CNS despite viral suppression in the blood on antiretroviral therapy (ART). In a minority of people with HIV (PWH), HIV RNA is detectable in CSF when HIV RNA in plasma is undetectable or HIV RNA levels are higher in CSF compared with plasma, an event termed CSF viral escape that can occur with or without neurological symptoms. Asymptomatic CSF viral escape occurs in 3–20% of PWH on ART, yet associated biomarkers are unclear. To identify biomarkers associated with asymptomatic CSF viral escape, we performed a matched group study of PWH on ART with vs. without CSF viral escape (n = 10 and n = 60, respectively, matched for age, duration of HIV infection, nadir CD4 count, and ART regimen) and 50 HIV-negative controls. PWH were on 3 or more ART drugs for >1 year, and the group with no CSF viral escape was suppressed below 50 copies/mL in plasma and CSF. Biomarkers of inflammation (IFN-γ, IL-1β, IL-6, IL-8, IL-15, IP-10, MCP-1, VEGF), cell adhesion (ICAM-1, VCAM-1), CNS injury (NFL), and glial activation (GFAP, YKL-40) were measured in paired plasma and CSF using the Meso Scale Discovery platform. PWH with vs. without CSF viral escape had more individuals (40%) with a plasma viral load (VL) > 50 copies/mL, higher CSF VL (median 156 vs. 40 copies/mL; p < 0.0001), lower CD4 count (318 vs. 512; p = 0.045), and higher CSF WBC (median [IQR] 4 [0–22] vs. 2 [0–4] cells/µL; p = 0.15) but similar proportions with HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND) (50% vs. 47%). CSF viral escape was associated with increased IL-1β, IFN-γ, IP-10, ICAM-1, and VCAM-1 in CSF but not plasma; IP-10 had the strongest association (p = 0.0008). CSF VL and WBC correlated with IFN-γ, IP-10, ICAM-1, and VCAM-1 (p < 0.05). Although markers of CNS injury showed no significant association with asymptomatic CSF viral escape, CSF YKL-40 correlated positively with CSF IL-1β (p = 0.003), IFN-γ (p = 0.0008), IP-10 (p < 0.0001), and NFL (p = 0.06) and negatively with neurocognitive T scores (p = 0.02). These findings identify CSF inflammation and glial activation markers that may serve as surrogate measures of HIV persistence in the CNS for future studies on therapeutics targeting the CNS reservoir.
Multimedia security : watermarking, steganography, and forensics

Part I: Multimedia Mining and Classification Multimedia Duplicate Mining toward Knowledge Discovery, X. Wu, S. Poullot, and S. Satoh Discriminative Learning-Assisted Video Semantic Concept Classification, Q. Zhu, M. -L. Shyu, and S. Chen An Improved Feature Vocabulary-Based Method for Image Categorization, F.Y. Shih and A. Sheppard Part II: Watermarking Automatic Detection and Removal of Visible Image Watermarks, H. Su, Y. Cheng, and S. Lai Digital Watermarking Based on Chaotic Map and Reference Register, Y. -T. Wu and F.Y. Shih A Pseudo-Random Pixel Rearrangement Algorithm Based on Gaussian Integers for Image Watermarking, A. Koval, F.Y. Shih, and B.S. Verkhovsky Reversible Data-Hiding Techniques for Digital Images, Z. -H. Wang, M. -T. Sun, and C. -C. Chang Watermarking Based on Local Binary Pattern Operators, W. Zhang and F.Y. Shih Authentication of JPEG Images Based on Genetic Algorithms, V. Gopal Edupuganti and F.Y. Shih An Efficient Block-Based Fragile Watermarking System for Tamper Localization and Recovery, V. Gopal Edupuganti, F.Y. Shih, and I-C. Chang Part III: Steganography Survey of Image Steganography and Steganalysis, M. Bachrach and F.Y. Shih Digital Steganographic Schemes Based on Image Vector Quantization, S.D. Lin and S. -C. Shie A Differential Evolution-Based Algorithm for Breaking the Visual Steganalytic System, F.Y. Shih and V. Gopal Edupuganti Genetic Algorithm-Based Methodology for Breaking the Steganalytic Systems, Y. -T. Wu and F.Y. Shih Part IV: Forensics Image Inpainting Using an Enhanced Exemplar-Based Algorithm,I-C. Chang and C. -W. Hsu A Comparison Study on Copy-Cover Image Forgery Detection, F.Y. Shih and Y. Yuan A Chaos-Based Hash Function with Both Modification Detection and Localization Capabilities, D. Xiao, F.Y. Shih, and X. Liao Video Forensics, H. -R. Tyan and H. -Y. Mark Liao Using the Self-Synchronizing Method to Improve Security of the Multi-Chaotic Systems-Based Image Encryption, D. Xiao and F.Y. Shih Behavior Modeling of Human Objects in Multimedia Content, Y. Yin and H. Man
Creación y supervivencia de las nuevas empresas en las manufacturas y los servicios

This study provides an overview of two important aspects of industrial dynamics in Spanish manufacturing and service firms between 1994 and 2005: the market turnover and the determinants of survival during the first years from a cohort of firms created in 1994. The semiparametric results show that the likelihood of a firm to fail increases in R&D intensive sectors and it decreases when the price-cost margins are high. Of the individual firm characteristics, the initial size and the growth of the surviving firms increase the likelihood of survival of the firms belonging to the cohort during their infancy.
THE EFFECTS OF A TART CHERRY SUPPLEMENT ON RECOVERY FROM EXHAUSTIVE EXERCISE A Thesis By DOLORES ORTEGA

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of a tart cherry supplement on recovery from exercise-induced muscle damage. Seventeen recreationally active women (mean age ± SD = 22.2 ± 3.3 years, height = 162.0 ± 6.0 cm, body mass = 65.1 ± 11.1 kg, BMI = 24.7 ± 3.5 kg·m) supplemented with 2 powdered tart cherry capsules or a placebo for eight consecutive days. An overload protocol of 8 x 10 maximal effort knee extensions at a velocity of 60°∙s was performed on the fourth day of supplementation. Testing sessions consisted of a muscle function test (MFT) to examine preand post-testing peak torque, peak power, total work, time to peak torque, mean power, muscle activation of the quadriceps, and muscle soreness at baseline and post-testing 0 h, 24 h, 48 h, and 72 h. A second trial of testing was repeated two weeks after using the opposite supplement than the one assigned for the first trial. No significant interaction for time × condition × velocity (p = 0.916) and no significant main effect for condition (p = 0.557) were demonstrated for peak torque. However, there were main effects for time and velocity for concentric quadriceps peak torque (p < 0.001). For muscle soreness, there was no two-way interaction for time x condition (p > 0.05) and no main effect of condition (p > 0.05), but there was a main effect for time (p < 0.001). In conclusion, a tart cherry supplement did not attenuate losses in isokinetic muscle peak torque, peak power, total work, time-to-peak torque, muscle soreness, or quadriceps muscle activation.
The Net Neutrality Debate in the United States

ABSTRACT In 2006, a major telecommunications bill was held up because it did not include guarantees for something called “net neutrality. ” Republicans strongly opposed these guarantees, while Democrats strongly favored them. The debate over net neutrality continued during the long campaign leading up to the 2008 presidential election. When the Obama Administration took office in 2009, the new chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Julius Genachowski revived the idea of codifying net neutrality rules. In April 2010, the U.S. Court of Appeals in the District of Columbia Circuit ruled that the FCC did not have the authority to regulate Internet service providers under its own interpretation of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. The FCC adopted a new strategy because of the Court's action. It opted not to undertake a major revision of the Telecommunications Act, but instead to attempt to regulate Internet service provision under modified “common carriage” rules, just as basic telephone services had been previously. An attempt will be made here to explain these choices.
The Association of Alzheimer’s Disease-related Blood-based Biomarkers with Cognitive Screening Test Performance in the Congolese Population in Kinshasa

Background: Alzheimer's Disease (AD), the primary cause of dementia, poses a significant global burden. Diagnosis typically involves invasive and costly methods like neuroimaging or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarker testing of phosphorylated tau (p-tau) and amyloid-{beta}42/40. Such procedures are especially impractical in resource-constrained regions, such as the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Blood-based biomarker testing may provide a more accessible screening opportunity. Objective: This study aims to examine if AD-related blood-based biomarkers are associated with cognitive test performance in the Congolese population, where limited research has been conducted. Methods: In this cross-sectional study of 81 Congolese individuals, cognitive assessments (Alzheimer's Questionnaire (AQ) and Community Screening Interview for Dementia (CSID)) distinguished dementia cases from controls. Blood draws were taken to assess p-tau 181 and amyloid-{beta}42/40 biomarkers. Relationships between the biomarkers and cognitive performance were analyzed using multiple linear regression models. Results: Plasma amyloid-{beta}42/40 was significantly associated with lower CSID scores and higher AQ scores, indicative of AD (p<0.001). These relationships were observed in healthy controls (CSID p=0.01, AQ p=0.03), but not in dementia cases. However, p-tau 181 did not exhibit significant associations with either measure. Factors such as age, sex, education, presence of APOE e4 allele, did not alter these relationships. Conclusion: Understanding relationships between AD-related screening tests and blood-biomarkers is a step towards utilization of blood-based biomarker tests as a screening tool for AD, especially in resource-limited regions. Further research should be conducted to evaluate blood biomarker test efficacy in larger samples and other populations.
Precise genome editing of the Kozak sequence enables bidirectional and quantitative modulation of protein translation to anticipated levels without affecting transcription

Abstract None of the existing approaches for regulating gene expression can bidirectionally and quantitatively fine-tune gene expression to desired levels. Here, on the basis of precise manipulations of the Kozak sequence, which has a remarkable influence on translation initiation, we proposed and validated a novel strategy to directly modify the upstream nucleotides of the translation initiation codon of a given gene to flexibly alter the gene translation level by using base editors and prime editors. When the three nucleotides upstream of the translation initiation codon (named KZ3, part of the Kozak sequence), which exhibits the most significant base preference of the Kozak sequence, were selected as the editing region to alter the translation levels of proteins, we confirmed that each of the 64 KZ3 variants had a different translation efficiency, but all had similar transcription levels. Using the ranked KZ3 variants with different translation efficiencies as predictors, base editor- and prime editor-mediated mutations of KZ3 in the local genome could bidirectionally and quantitatively fine-tune gene translation to the anticipated levels without affecting transcription in vitro and in vivo. Notably, this strategy can be extended to the whole Kozak sequence and applied to all protein-coding genes in all eukaryotes.
Sound Pressure Field Reconstruction for Airborne Ultrasound Tactile Display Encountering Obstacles

Airborne ultrasound tactile display (AUTD) is used to provide non-contact tactile sensations with specific foci sound fields through the optimization of transducer phases. However, most existing optimization approaches are not directly applicable in case of an inhomogeneous medium, such as in the presence of obstacles between the AUTD and objective sound field. Certain methods can perform optimizations by considering the sound-scattering surfaces of the obstacles to compute the transmission matrix, which requires several complex measurements. This study proposed two methods to reconstruct the sound field under an inhomogeneous medium, wherein the need to calculate the impact of the obstacles was eliminated. The two methods are Bayesian optimization and greedy algorithm with brute-force search. Further, the process of the foci field generation was assumed as a black box. The proposed methods require only the pressure intensity at the control point generated by the input phases, discarding the need for transmission matrix in the presence of obstacles. Moreover, these methods offer the advantage of optimization of the phases in the presence of obstacles. This study explains the working of proposed methods in different forms of foci fields encountering obstacles.
Episodic memory and recognition are influenced by cues’ sensory modality: comparing odours, music and faces using virtual reality

ABSTRACT Most everyday experiences are multisensory, and all senses can trigger the conscious re-experience of unique personal events embedded in their specific spatio-temporal context. Yet, little is known about how a cue’s sensory modality influences episodic memory, and which step of this process is impacted. This study investigated recognition and episodic memory across olfactory, auditory and visual sensory modalities in a laboratory-ecological task using a non-immersive virtual reality device. At encoding, participants freely and actively explored unique and rich episodes in a three-room house where boxes delivered odours, musical pieces and pictures of face. At retrieval, participants were presented with modality-specific memory cues and were told to 1) recognise encoded cues among distractors and, 2) go to the room and select the box in which they encountered them at encoding. Memory performance and response times revealed that music and faces outperformed odours in recognition memory, but that odours and faces outperformed music in evoking encoding context. Interestingly, correct recognition of music and faces was accompanied by more profound inspirations than correct rejection. By directly comparing memory performance across sensory modalities, our study demonstrated that despite limited recognition, odours are powerful cues to evoke specific episodic memory retrieval.
PDLA a potential new potent topical analgesic: a case report

Polymer D-lactic acid (PDLA) is a hydrogel that has been shown to sequester L-lactate (lactate). This reaction is rapid, spontaneous, and non-enzymatic. Lactate has been shown to have many functions within the nervous system including its use as a secondary fuel to sustain neural activity and as a neuromodulator. In the central nervous system, lactate is produced in glial cells and shuttled to neurons to be used mostly as a fuel. Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)1 is the predominant LDH isoform within neurons and unlike LDH5, it preferentially converts lactate to pyruvate which can be used to produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Considering that lactate is intimately involved in the sustenance of neural activity, PDLA was applied to an open wound and its effects were examined. The results showed that the application of PDLA induced topical analgesia. This may be the first report to demonstrate that sequestering lactate, a source of energy required to sustain the firing of action potentials in neurons, may produce analgesia.
DCX-EMAP is a core organizer for the ultrastructure of Drosophila mechanosensory organelles

Mechanoreceptor cells develop delicate subcellular structures in their mechanosensory organelle (MO) for optimal mechanosensitivity. Song et al. analyze the ultrastructure of fly mechanosensory cilia and reveal that DCX-EMAP is a core structural organizer of fly MOs.
Collaborative exploration for the construction of visual maps

We examine the problem of learning a visual map of the environment while maintaining an accurate pose estimate. Our approach is based on using two robots in a simple collaborative scheme. Without outside information, as a robot collects training images, its position estimate accumulates errors, thus corrupting its knowledge of the positions from which observations are taken. We address this problem by deploying a second robot to observe the first one as it explores, thereby establishing a virtual tether, and enabling an accurate estimate of the robot's position while it constructs the map. We refer to this process as cooperative localization. The images collected during this process are assembled into a representation that allows vision-based position estimation from a single image at a later date. In addition to developing a formalism and concept, we validate our results experimentally and present quantitative results demonstrating the performance of the method in over 90 trials.
Low-power Adiabatic Logic Circuit: Simulation and Energy Dissipation Comparison

This paper investigates the design approaches of low-power adiabatic logic gates in terms of energy dissipation associated with the input transition. A computer simulation using SPICE is carried out on several inverter circuits implemented using 0.18 μm CMOS technology. Driving pulse with the height equal to Vdd is supplied to the logic gates. The dissipation characteristics are also compared at the different load capacitance values.
Polo-like kinase-1 mediates hepatitis C virus-induced cell migration, a drug target for liver cancer

This study identifies PLK1 as a novel protein that promotes liver cancer in people with hepatitis C. The findings suggest a novel drug target for patients with liver cancer to reduce cancer spread and improve survival. Polo-like kinase 1 (PLK1) is a regulator of cell mitosis and cytoskeletal dynamics. PLK1 overexpression in liver cancer is associated with tumour progression, metastasis, and vascular invasion. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) NS5A protein stimulates PLK1-mediated phosphorylation of host proteins, so we hypothesised that HCV–PLK1 interactions might be a mechanism for HCV-induced liver cancer. We used a HCV cell-culture model (Jc1) to investigate the effects of virus infection on the cytoskeleton. In HCV-infected cells, a novel posttranslational modification in β-actin was observed with phosphorylation at Ser239. Using in silico and in vitro approaches, we identified PLK1 as the mediating kinase. In functional experiments with a phosphomimetic mutant form of β-actin, Ser239 phosphorylation influences β-actin polymerization and distribution, resulting in increased cell motility. The changes were prevented by treating cells with the PLK1 inhibitor volasertib. In HCV-infected hepatocytes, increased cell motility contributes to cancer cell migration, invasion, and metastasis. PLK1 is an important mediator of these effects and early treatment with PLK1 inhibitors may prevent or reduce HCC progression, particularly in people with HCV-induced HCC.