Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Tandem bispecific neutralizing antibody eliminates HIV-1 infection in humanized mice

The discovery of an HIV-1 cure remains a medical challenge because the virus rebounds quickly after the cessation of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART). Here, we investigate the potential of an engineered tandem bispecific broadly neutralizing antibody (bs-bnAb) as an innovative product for HIV-1 prophylactic and therapeutic interventions. We discovered that by preserving 2 single-chain variable fragment (scFv) binding domains of each parental bnAb, a single gene–encoded tandem bs-bnAb, BiIA-SG, displayed substantially improved breadth and potency. BiIA-SG neutralized all 124 HIV-1–pseudotyped viruses tested, including global subtypes/recombinant forms, transmitted/founder viruses, variants not susceptible to parental bnAbs and to many other bnAbs with an average IC50 value of 0.073 &mgr;g/ml (range < 0.001–1.03 &mgr;g/ml). In humanized mice, an injection of BiIA-SG conferred sterile protection when administered prior to challenges with diverse live HIV-1 stains. Moreover, whereas BiIA-SG delayed viral rebound in a short-term therapeutic setting when combined with cART, a single injection of adeno-associated virus–transferred (AAV-transferred) BiIA-SG gene resulted dose-dependently in prolonged in vivo expression of BiIA-SG, which was associated with complete viremia control and subsequent elimination of infected cells in humanized mice. These results warrant the clinical development of BiIA-SG as a promising bs-bnAb–based biomedical intervention for the prevention and treatment of HIV-1 infection.
Anaesthesia Type, Gender and Anxiety

The number of patients treated by elective day-case surgery in the UK is growing. Patient preoperative anxiety can be considerable, although the opportunity to help to reduce fears is minimal. Day surgery patients (n=674) were surveyed and 82% were found to be anxious. General anaesthesia patients were more anxious than local anaesthesia patients and females more anxious than males. The results indicate that general anaesthesia patients may require more preoperative information, and gender differences associated with waiting may need to be given greater consideration.
Energy aware routing for Internet of Things with heterogeneous devices

This paper focuses on the impact of intelligent topology formation and routing on resilient mesh topologies consisting of heterogeneous devices in Internet of Things (IoT) networks. We consider a Bluetooth network comprising of low-power short-range devices that are heterogeneous in terms of energy source (e.g. the mains or coin-cell). In the first step, a resilient mesh topology is created by taking into account device characteristics such as energy sources and parameters related to neighbors. The Bluetooth devices negotiate master and slave roles, and form piconets which are then connected through multiple bridge nodes thus forming a scatternet. An energy aware algorithm is proposed to select the routing paths for packet forwarding between connected devices. The performance of topology and routing is evaluated through simulations in a large indoor office scenario based on realistic channel models and propagation characteristics. Results show that intelligent topology formation, in conjunction with the proposed energy aware routing algorithm leads to a significant gain (more than 100%) in terms of network lifetime, when compared to the baseline approaches.
Electrochemical biosensors and nanobiosensors

Electrochemical techniques have great promise for low-cost miniaturised easy-to-use portable devices for a wide range of applications–in particular, medical diagnosis and environmental monitoring. Different techniques can be used for biosensing, with amperometric devices taking the central role due to their widespread application in glucose monitoring. In fact, glucose biosensing takes an approximately 70% share of the biosensor market due to the need for diabetic patients to monitor their sugar levels several times a day, making it an appealing commercial market. In this review, we present the basic principles of electrochemical biosensor devices. A description of the different generations of glucose sensors is used to describe in some detail the operation of amperometric sensors and how the introduction of mediators can enhance the performance of the sensors. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy is a technique being increasingly used in devices due to its ability to detect variations in resistance and capacitance upon binding events. Novel advances in electrochemical sensors, due to the use of nanomaterials such as carbon nanotubes and graphene, are presented as well as future directions that the field is taking.
Developing and validating a Taiwan version of the female sexual function index for pregnant women.

INTRODUCTION Health professionals should pay more attention to the sexual concerns of pregnant women. An assessment instrument for female sexual function is needed for pregnant women in the Taiwanese population. AIM To translate the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) from English to traditional Chinese, and to evaluate the reliability and validity of this new version for pregnant women. METHODS Test-retest reliability of the newly developed Taiwan version of the FSFI for pregnant women was assessed in 55 pregnant women who completed this version of the questionnaire at two time points within 4 weeks. The internal consistency reliability and construct validity of the Taiwan version of the FSFI in a medical center in Taiwan were evaluated using a random sample of 121 pregnant women. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Reliability was tested using Cronbach's alpha coefficient, Kappa statistics, McNemar's test, and Pearson's correlation coefficient. Construct validity was verified by factor analysis using the principal component option. RESULTS The Taiwan version of the FSFI showed adequate test-retest reliability for pregnant women. The Pearson correlation coefficient of the total score was 0.69, Kappa statistics showed good reproducibility for most items, and McNemar's test confirmed that there were no significant differences in the test-retest pair for the 19 items of the scale. The internal consistency reliability of the scale was excellent (Cronbach's [alpha] = 0.96). Three factors were identified with eigenvalues > or =1.03, explaining 87.10% of the total variance. The first, second, and third factors were "coitus,""satisfaction," and "desire", accounting for 72.32%, 9.37%, and 5.42% of the variance, respectively. CONCLUSION The results provided evidence of the validity and reliability of the Taiwan version of the FSFI for pregnant women. The questionnaire is a suitable instrument for measuring the sexual function of pregnant women and will be useful in research, teaching, and clinical practice.
Novel Control Strategy of Wave Energy Converter Using Linear Permanent Magnet Synchronous Generator

This study proposes a damping control strategy for high-speed operation of a wave energy converter (WEC). The control strategy of WEC is based on the heave-motion (up/down motion) mechanism of buoy. The applied WEC system extracts power through damping control of the permanent magnet linear generator, which is directly connected to the buoy. This study first analyzed the mechanical dynamics of a WEC system. Further, a damping control method that could improve the extracted power for a wide speed range is examined. The results showed that the operating region could be expanded and the power extraction could be maximized using only the proposed software implementation, without requiring additional hardware. The validity and benefits of the proposed control algorithm were experimentally verified using a down-scaled WEC model.
Within-Population Distribution of Trimethoprim Resistance in Escherichia coli before and after a Community-Wide Intervention on Trimethoprim Use

ABSTRACT A 2-year prospective intervention on the prescription of trimethoprim reduced the use by 85% in a health care region with 178,000 inhabitants. Here, we performed before-and-after analyses of the within-population distribution of trimethoprim resistance in Escherichia coli. Phylogenetic and population genetic methods were applied to multilocus sequence typing data of 548 consecutively collected E. coli isolates from clinical urinary specimens. Results were analyzed in relation to antibiotic susceptibility and the presence and genomic location of different trimethoprim resistance gene classes. A total of 163 E. coli sequence types (STs) were identified, of which 68 were previously undescribed. The isolates fell into one of three distinct genetic clusters designated BAPS 1 (E. coli phylogroup B2), BAPS 2 (phylogroup A and B1), and BAPS 3 (phylogroup D), each with a similar frequency before and after the intervention. BAPS 2 and BAPS 3 were positively and BAPS 1 was negatively associated with trimethoprim resistance (odds ratios of 1.97, 3.17, and 0.26, respectively). In before-and-after analyses, trimethoprim resistance frequency increased in BAPS 1 and decreased in BAPS 2. Resistance to antibiotics other than trimethoprim increased in BAPS 2. Analysis of the genomic location of different trimethoprim resistance genes in isolates of ST69, ST58, and ST73 identified multiple independent acquisition events in isolates of the same ST. The results show that despite a stable overall resistance frequency in E. coli before and after the intervention, marked within-population changes occurred. A decrease of resistance in one major genetic cluster was masked by a reciprocal increase in another major cluster.
TrkB-containing exosomes promote the transfer of glioblastoma aggressiveness to YKL-40-inactivated glioblastoma cells

The neurotrophin receptors are known to promote growth and proliferation of glioblastoma cells. Their functions in spreading glioblastoma cell aggressiveness to the microenvironment through exosome release from glioblastoma cells are unknown. Considering previous reports demonstrating that YKL-40 expression is associated with undifferentiated glioblastoma cancer stem cells, we used YKL-40-silenced cells to modulate the U87-MG differentiated state and their biological aggressiveness. Herein, we demonstrated a relationship between neurotrophin-receptors and YKL-40 expression in undifferentiated cells. Differential functions of cells and derived-exosomes were evidenced according to neurotrophin receptor content and differentiated cell state by comparison with control pLKO cells. YKL-40 silencing of glioblastoma cells impairs proliferation, neurosphere formation, and their ability to induce endothelial cell (HBMEC) migration. The modulation of differentiated cell state in YKL-40-silenced cells induces a decrease of TrkB, sortilin and p75NTR cellular expressions, associated with a low-aggressiveness phenotype. Interestingly, TrkB expressed in exosomes derived from control cells was undetectable in exosomes from YKL-40 -silenced cells. The transfer of TrkB-containing exosomes in YKL-40-silenced cells contributed to restore cell proliferation and promote endothelial cell activation. Interestingly, in U87 MG xenografted mice, TrkB-depleted exosomes from YKL-40-silenced cells inhibited tumor growth in vivo. These data highlight that TrkB-containing exosomes play a key role in the control of glioblastoma progression and aggressiveness. Furthermore, TrkB expression was detected in exosomes isolated from plasma of glioblastoma patients, suggesting that this receptor may be considered as a new biomarker for glioblastoma diagnosis.
Improved Discourse Parsing with Two-Step Neural Transition-Based Model

Discourse parsing aims to identify structures and relationships between different discourse units. Most existing approaches analyze a whole discourse at once, which often fails in distinguishing long-span relations and properly representing discourse units. In this article, we propose a novel parsing model to analyze discourse in a two-step fashion with different feature representations to characterize intra sentence and inter sentence discourse structures, respectively. Our model works in a transition-based framework and benefits from a stack long short-term memory neural network model. Experiments on benchmark tree banks show that our method outperforms traditional 1-step parsing methods in both English and Chinese.
Semantic filtering for video stabilization

Moving objects pose a challenge to every video stabilization algorithm. We present a novel, efficient filtering technique that manages to remove outlier motion vectors caused from moving objects in a per-pixel smoothing setting. We leverage semantic information to change the calculation of optical flow, forcing the outliers to reside in the edges of our semantic mask. After a ‘content-preserving warping’ and a smoothing step we manage to produce stable and artifact-free videos.
High precision laser processing of sensitive materials by Microjet

Material laser cutting is well known and widely used in industrial processes, including micro fabrication. An increasing number of applications require nevertheless a superior machining quality than can be achieved using this method. A possibility to increase the cut quality is to opt for the water-jet guided laser technology. In this technique the laser is conducted to the work piece by total internal reflection in a thin stable water-jet, comparable to the core of an optical fiber. The water jet guided laser technique was developed originally in order to reduce the heat damaged zone near the cut, but in fact many other advantages were observed due to the usage of a water-jet instead of an assist gas stream applied in conventional laser cutting. In brief, the advantages are three-fold: the absence of divergence due to light guiding, the efficient melt expulsion, and optimum work piece cooling. In this presentation we will give an overview on several industrial applications of the water-jet guided laser technique. These applications range from the cutting of CBN or ferrite cores to the dicing of thin wafers and the manufacturing of stencils, each illustrates the important impact of the water-jet usage.
Transformation Toughening in Zirconia‐Containing Ceramics

The recognition of the potential for enhanced fracture toughness that can be derived from controlled, stress-activated tetragonal (t) to monoclinic (m) transformation in ZrO2-based ceramics ushered in a new era in the development of the mechanical properties of engineering ceramics and provided a major impetus for broader-ranging research into the toughening mechanisms available to enhance the fracture properties of brittle-matrix materials. ZrO2-based systems have remained a major focal point for research as developments in understanding of the crystallography of the t→m transformation have led to more-complete descriptions of the origins of transformation toughening and definition of the features required of a transformation-toughening system. In parallel, there have been significant advances in the design and control of microstructure required to optimize mechanical properties in materials developed commercially. This review concentrates on the science of the t→m transformation in ZrO2 and its application in the modeling of transformation-toughening behavior, while also summarizing the microstructural control needed to use the benefits in ZrO2-toughened ceramics.
Enhanced B‐cell activation mediated by TLR4 and BCR crosstalk

Despite the important role of B lymphocytes as a bridge between the innate and the adaptive immune system, little is known regarding lipopolysaccharide (LPS) recognition, activation of signalling networks or conceivable cooperation between LPS and the B‐cell antigen receptor (BCR). Here, we show that primary B cells can efficiently discriminate between different LPS chemotypes, responding with at least 100‐fold higher sensitivity to rough‐form LPS compared with smooth‐form LPS. Using genetically modified mice, we demonstrate that B lymphocytes recognize all LPS chemotypes via Toll‐like receptor 4 (TLR4). In addition, we dissect the signalling pathways that lead to CD69 upregulation upon TLR4 and BCR activation in primary B cells. Our data suggest that TLR4 and BCR induce CD69 transcription via two distinct sets of signalling molecules, exerting quantitative and qualitative differences in B‐cell activation. Finally, we show that simultaneous stimulation of TLR4 and BCR additively elevates B‐cell activation. In contrast, co‐engagement of TLR4 and BCR by antigen‐coupled LPS synergistically enhances activation of B cells, pointing out attractive targets for signalling crosstalk in B lymphocytes.
A Computer Vision System for Virtual Rehabilitation

A Kinect-based pose estimation system is presented for the study of movement problems within a rehab context. The performance of the system is compared to ground-truth data obtained by an expensive MoCap system. The results show that the proposed system performs well and could be used within a virtual rehabilitation context synchronized with other systems (e.g., robots).
Surgical aspects of thoracic tuberculosis: a contemporary review--part 1.

uberculosis (TB) has been an affliction of humanity throughout recorded istory, dating back 15,000 years. The distinctive hump of spinal TB Pott’s disease) has been recognized in the remains of Egyptian mumies. The archeological evidence from Stone Age skeletons, Chinese omen’s mummified bodies, and Native American Indians all support the volution of TB and the global dissemination via migration. It also trengthens the argument that disease resulted from direct human contact, ithout an intermediate host. Through the years, neither fame nor ortune has prevented disease. Notable victims include John Keats, Edgar llen Poe, D.H. Lawrence, Frederic Chopin, Robert Lewis Stevenson, ugene O’Neill, and Eleanor Roosevelt. Formerly the primary cause of mortality in Western society, it remains of the most common causes of serious infectious disease worldwide. hthisology (from the Greek word for wasting, decaying, or consumpion) is the study of TB, and remains an important and vital discipline. uberculosis has a narrow host range affecting only humans, primates, nd rodents. It became a major problem during the crowded conditions f the Industrial Revolution in London during the 19th century. More than 5% of all deaths were attributed to TB. A poor understanding of this isease created fear and the development of a strange mythology of evenants and vampires, in an attempt to explain the course of this llness. A better understanding of TB evolved with Laennec’s uniting of ulmonary and extrapulmonary disease. It was verified as communicable y Villemin in 1865. Koch’s isolation of the tubercle bacillus and eproduction of the disease with the isolate in 1882 (Koch’s postulates), nd Roentgen’s discovery of the x-ray in 1895, for which both received he Nobel Prize, completed the final recognition and importance of TB. Currently, nearly one third of the world population of 6.5 billion is nfected. The incidence is more than 9 million new cases annually, of
Prognostic value of the new high sensitive cardiac troponin T assay (hs-cTnT) after coronary artery bypass grafting

Background The aim of the study was to assess the value of post-operative cardiac troponin T-levels, measured with a new highly sensitive assay (hs-cTnT), as a suitable parameter to predict patients’ outcome after cardiac surgery. With the introduction of the new hs-cTnT assay the correlation between measured levels and the post-operative patient’s outcome remains to be evaluated. Methods Patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (n = 213) were included. Perioperative measurements of hs-cTnT and CK-MB were correlated to parameters of clinical outcome and further explored. Patients with an uneventful course were compared with those with post-operative complications, including need of repeat revascularization (RR) or death (RR/death), cardiogenic shock (CS) or death (CS/death) and a combination of all (RR/CS/death). Results Significant results were observed in patients after isolated CABG, where CS/death and RR/CS/death patients had higher post-operative hs-cTnT levels (P < 0.01). Moreover, multivariate analysis of the CABG-group revealed that acute renal failure (OR =14.7, 95% CI =2.7-79.1, P < 0.001), early post-operative hs-cTnT levels higher than the upper quintile (> 1,476.8 pg/ml) (OR =8.1, 95% CI =3.0-22.2, P < 0.001) and unstable angina pectoris (OR =2.4, 95% CI =1.1-5.7, P < 0.05) were the most powerful independent predictors of post-operative complications. Upon discriminant analysis the application of hs-cTnT almost doubled the sensitivity of the outcome prediction. Conclusions The new hs-cTnT assay is a useful diagnostic tool that may significantly enhance the prediction of adverse events after CABG. In our study a hs-cTnT-value >1,476.8 pg/ml proved to be a reliable marker for ongoing post-operative complications.
A high-content EMT screen identifies multiple receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors with activity on TGFβ receptor

An epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) enables epithelial tumor cells to break out of the primary tumor mass and to metastasize. Understanding the molecular mechanisms driving EMT in more detail will provide important tools to interfere with the metastatic process. To identify pharmacological modulators and druggable targets of EMT, we have established a novel multi-parameter, high-content, microscopy-based assay and screened chemical compounds with activities against known targets. Out of 3423 compounds, we have identified 19 drugs that block transforming growth factor beta (TGFβ)-induced EMT in normal murine mammary gland epithelial cells (NMuMG). The active compounds include inhibitors against TGFβ receptors (TGFBR), Rho-associated protein kinases (ROCK), myosin II, SRC kinase and uridine analogues. Among the EMT-repressing compounds, we identified a group of inhibitors targeting multiple receptor tyrosine kinases, and biochemical profiling of these multi-kinase inhibitors reveals TGFBR as a thus far unknown target of their inhibitory spectrum. These findings demonstrate the feasibility of a multi-parameter, high-content microscopy screen to identify modulators and druggable targets of EMT. Moreover, the newly discovered “off-target” effects of several receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors have important consequences for in vitro and in vivo studies and might beneficially contribute to the therapeutic effects observed in vivo.