Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
AN EVALUATION OF EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURES USED IN A FUNDAMENTAL STUDY OF HUMAN LOCOMOTION

A cntical evaluation of an experimental study of locomotion should include a consideration of the following elements. First, why is such a study undertaken and of what use will be the information obtained from it? Second, what techniques may be utiiized, and what are the advantages, i i i t a tions, and shortcomings of the procedures employed? The final evaluation of an experimental procedure in respect to the abovementioned elements can only be reached after the techniques have been actually employed. Some of the techniques which we envisioned as yielding fundamental information have proved disappointing because of the failure to consider a11 factors before their employrnent. Other techniques which we felt would be of limited value were found to be singularly significant as a source of fundamental information. Because of our experience, we feel that a review of the techniques employed and a critical evaluation of the experimental procedures would prove of value to other investigators who might enter the field of human locomotion and assist in the interpretation of results from the work st i i i in progress. Remoias for the Study of Auman Locomoiion. The reasons for studying human locomotion may be divided into four main categories. (i) The orthopedic surgeon is called upon frequentiy to attempt surgical procedures in order to improve the function of the locomotor system in individuals who have suffered damage to it. This includes not only fractures, but damage to joints and muscles. T t is obvious that any attempted surgicai procedure with any hope of success must depend upon an accurate knowledge of the functions of the parts involved. (2) Tlie physiotherapist has definite need of similar information in order to provide adequate treatment and proper functional training of impaired parts. (3) ? %en portions of the locomotor system are irreparably injured, the surgeon must rely upon externa1 support. These supporting braces must be designed for the work demanded of them without restraining the remaining normal functions if they are to prove of value. (4) M'ith the loss of a part, as in the amputee, an attempt is made to replace the lost portion with a prosthesis. How poorly we have succeeded in duplicaiing nature is evidenced daily by the individual who is in contact with the amputee. It is apparent that any improvement, either in surgical and physiotherapeutic procedures, or in braces and prostheses, must depend upon better knowledge of the function of the locomotor system.
Bringing epidemiology into the Semantic Web

Epidemiology is a domain of knowledge interconnected with many other domains, thus making it a good candidate for reusing existing ontologies that, despite having been created for different purposes, characterize information frequently manipulated by epidemiologists and public health scientists. This paper presents an evaluation of existing ontologies for the semantic annotation of epidemiological resources. We selected a set of ontologies and proposed a Network of Epidemiology-Related Ontologies (NERO), which can form the core of semantic annotation for data-intensive epidemiology-related information systems, such as epidemic forecasting infrastructures. To support this selection, we defined a set of requirements for inclusion of ontologies in NERO, based on good ontology practice, the interdisciplinary nature of the epidemiological domain and support of semantic web technologies. Most of the selected NERO ontologies are current candidates or members of the Open Biological and Biomedical Ontologies initiative.
Visual servoing based on dynamic vision

This paper deals with the way to achieve positioning tasks by visual servoing in the case of planar and motionless objects whose shape is unknown. In fact, we consider here complex objects like those one can encounter in the agrifood industry. A 3D reconstruction phase is first considered yielding to the parameters of the plane. This computation is based on the measurement of the 2D velocity in a region of interest and on the measurement of the camera velocity. Once the parameters of the plane are sufficiently stable, a visual servoing scheme is used to control the orientation of the camera with respect to the object and to ensure that it remains in the camera field of view for any desired orientation. This 3D reconstruction phase is maintained active during the servoing to improve the accuracy of the parameters and, consequently, to obtain a small positioning error. Finally, experimental results validate the proposed approach as well as for its effectiveness than for the obtained accuracy.
Heparin-binding epidermal growth factor-like growth factor is a potent regulator of invasion activity in oral squamous cell carcinoma

Heparin-binding epidermal growth factor (EGF)-like growth factor (HB-EGF) has been shown to stimulate the growth of various cell types in an autocrine or paracrine manner. Although HB-EGF is widely expressed in tumors when compared with normal tissue, its contribution to cancer progression remains obscure. The objective of this study was to explore the effects of HB-EGF on proliferation, invasion activity and MMP-9 levels of an oral squamous cell carcinoma cell line, HSC3, in vitro. MTT assays, Matrigel invasion assays and RT-PCR in combination with RNA interference (RNAi) were used in this study. An RNAi-mediated decrease in HB-EGF expression reduced invasion activity and MMP-9 mRNA levels, but not proliferation, in HSC3 cells. The addition of purified HB-EGF to cell culture medium upregulated MMP-9 mRNA levels in HSC3 cells. Furthermore, the TACE inhibitor TAPI-2 or EGFR inhibitor AG1478 decreased MMP-9 mRNA levels in HSC3 cells. These data indicate that HB-EGF released from HSC3 cells by TACE stimulates EGFR in an autocrine manner, which in turn activates invasion activity via MMP-9 upregulation.
Maths Anxiety Self-assessment as a Quality Assurance Measure

Many students come to preservice mathematics teacher education programs with considerable anxiety and fear of mathematics. The challenge is to provide students with the necessary skills, knowledge and understanding for teaching, and to positively impact upon their belief systems. In this study 429 preservice students rated change of beliefs about mathematics through a self-assessment questionnaire. Results indicated a strong positive change, and together with interview data, highlighted key contributing aspects of the program and thus provided a measure of program quality assurance.
Expression of Monoamine Transporters, Nitric Oxide Synthase 3, and Neurotrophin Genes in Antidepressant-Stimulated Astrocytes

Background: There is increasing evidence that glial cells play a role in the pathomechanisms of mood disorders and the mode of action of antidepressant drugs. Methods: To examine whether there is a direct effect on the expression of different genes encoding proteins that have been implicated in the pathophysiology of affective disorders, primary astrocyte cell cultures from rats were treated with two different antidepressant drugs, imipramine and escitalopram, and the RNA expression of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (Bdnf), serotonin transporter (5Htt), dopamine transporter (Dat), and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (Nos3) was examined. Results: Stimulation of astroglial cell culture with imipramine, a tricyclic antidepressant, led to a significant increase of the Bdnf RNA level whereas treatment with escitalopram did not. In contrast, 5Htt was not differentially expressed after antidepressant treatment. Finally, neither Dat nor Nos3 RNA expression was detected in cultured astrocytes. Conclusion: These data provide further evidence for a role of astroglial cells in the molecular mechanisms of action of antidepressants.
BIOCHEMICAL CHANGES IN THE BRAIN IN RATS POISONED WITH AN ALKYLMERCURY COMPOUND, WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE INHIBITION OF PROTEIN SYNTHESIS IN BRAIN CORTEX SLICES

The incorporation of [U‐14C]leucine into the protein of brain cortex slices from rats poisoned with methylmercury thioacetamide was markedly inhibited before the development of neurological symptoms and when the oxygen consumption, aerobic and anaerobic glycolysis and sulphydryl enzyme activities were unchanged.
Construct validity of cognitive reserve in a multiethnic cohort: The Northern Manhattan Study

Abstract Cognitive reserve is a hypothetical construct that has been used to inform models of cognitive aging and is presumed to be indicative of life experiences that may mitigate the effects of brain pathology. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the construct validity of cognitive reserve by examining both its convergent and its discriminant validity across three different samples of participants using structural equation modeling. The cognitive reserve variables were found to correlate highly with one another (thereby providing evidence of convergent validity), but demanding tests of discriminant validity indicated that, in two of the samples, the cognitive reserve construct was highly related to an executive functioning construct. (JINS, 2009, 15, 558–569.)
Women with Epilepsy are more Likely to have Suffered Abuse and are Less Likely to Receive Treatment for Depression: How does this Affect Their Pregnancies?

Commentary This article, using data obtained from the Medical Birth Registry of Norway, compared the rates of onset of depression and anxiety during and after pregnancy in a group of women with epilepsy (n=706) and a group of pregnant women without epilepsy (n=106,511). Pregnant women with chronic disease were also a comparator group, but they were a subset of women without epilepsy. Rates of receiving antidepressive treatment were also compared. The investigators found that women with epilepsy had rates of peripartum depression or anxiety nearly 50% higher than that of women without epilepsy and 20% higher than women with other chronic diseases. Risk factors for depression included those associated with more severe epilepsy, such as high antiepileptic drug (AED) doses or levels, frequent seizures, and use of multiple AEDs. Other factors were adverse socioeconomic factors, including lower educational level, low household income, and single parenthood; previous loss of a child; unplanned pregnancy; and prepregnancy depression and/or anxiety. In the investigators’ backward stepwise multiple logistic regression analysis, the variables that remained were “AED use during pregnancy (OR [odds ratio] 1.6, CI [confidence interval]1.1–2.3), sexual and/or physical abuse (OR 2.2, CI 1.4–3.3), previous psychiatric history (OR 3.9, CI 2.7–5.7), and adverse socioeconomic factors (OR 1.9, CI 1.2–3.0). ” That the identified epilepsy-associated factors affect depression and anxiety rates is not unexpected, as the investigators point out in their discussion. Even the disadvantaged socioeconomic factors are not unexpected risk factors for depression and anxiety during pregnancy; decline in income levels and cohabitation status are associated with increased rates of onset of major depression (1). What was unexpected, however, was the high rate of physical and/or sexual abuse in women with epilepsy. As the investigators point out, a history of abuse is often discussed in association with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures rather than with epilepsy. Notably, the rate of abuse was higher in women Depression and Anxiety in Women With Epilepsy During Pregnancy and After Delivery: A Prospective Population-Based Cohort Study on Frequency, Risk Factors, Medication, and Prognosis
The protein threading problem with sequence amino acid interaction preferences is NP-complete.

In recent protein structure prediction research there has been a great deal of interest in using amino acid interaction preferences (e.g. contact potentials or potentials of mean force) to align ('thread') a protein sequence to a known structural motif. An important open question is whether a polynomial time algorithm for finding the globally optimal threading is possible. We identify the two critical conditions governing this question: (i) variable-length gaps are admitted into the alignment, and (ii) interactions between amino acids from the sequence are admitted into the score function. We prove that if both these conditions are allowed then the protein threading decision problem (does there exist a threading with a score < or = K? ) is NP-complete (in the strong sense, i.e. is not merely a number problem) and the related problem of finding the globally optimal protein threading is NP-hard. Therefore, no polynomial time algorithm is possible (unless P = NP). This result augments existing proofs that the direct protein folding problem is NP-complete by providing the corresponding proof for the 'inverse' protein folding problem. It provides a theoretical basis for understanding algorithms currently in use and indicates that computational strategies from other NP-complete problems may be useful for predictive algorithms.
Sensor Lattices : A Preimage-Based Approach to Comparing Sensors

This paper addresses the sensing uncertainty associated with the many-to-one mapping from a physical state space onto a sensor observation space. By studying preimages of this mapping for each sensor, a notion of sensor dominance is introduced, which enables interchangeability of sensors and a clearer understanding of their tradeoffs. The notion of a sensor lattice is also introduced, in which all possible sensor models are arranged into a hierarchy that indicates their power and gives insights into the construction of filters over time and space.
Inhibitory effects of tiotropium on rhinovirus infection in human airway epithelial cells

Infection by rhinoviruses (RVs) causes exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The long-acting anti-cholinergic agent tiotropium reduces the frequency of COPD exacerbations, but the inhibitory effects of tiotropium on the COPD exacerbations induced by RVs are unclear. Likewise, the effects of tiotropium on RVs infection remain to be studied. To examine the effects of tiotropium on RV infection and RV infection-induced airway inflammation, human tracheal epithelial cells were infected with a major group RV, type 14 RV (RV14). RV14 infection increased the viral titre and the amount of pro-inflammatory cytokines, including interleukin (IL)-1&bgr; and -6, in supernatant fluids and the amount of RV14 RNA in cells. Tiotropium reduced RV14 titres, RNA and cytokine concentrations, and susceptibility to RV14 infection. Tiotropium reduced the expression of intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1, the receptor for RV14, and the number of cellular acidic endosomes, which allow RV14 RNA to enter the cytoplasm. Tiotropium inhibited the activation of nuclear factor-&kgr;B proteins, including p50 and p65, in the nuclear extracts, and it increased the cytosolic amount of inhibitory &kgr;B-&agr;. Tiotropium may inhibit RV14 infection by reducing the levels of ICAM-1 and acidic endosomes and may also modulate airway inflammation in rhinovirus infection.
Women, Crime and Drugs

Abstract As more women are brought into the criminal justice system for crimes related to drug usage, it is necessary to understand how the unique position of addicted female offenders may affect their successful participation in conventional drug treatment programs. This study examines the influence of social organization and systems of support on the female inmate's ability to successfully re-integrate, stay clean, and remain free of crime upon release from prison. Using data from a prison-based therapeutic community called CREST, serving male and female offenders in Delaware, this study compares the ability of female treatment program participants (test group) and work release participants (control group) to form networks of support and stability once released from prison. Additionally, this study examines the influence of systems of support on rates of recidivism or returning to drug use. By using a two-pronged study of social support building and recidivism for female offenders, the overall effectiveness of therapeutic communities for a unique and important population can be examined.
The Cdc42 Effector Kinase PAK4 Localizes to Cell-Cell Junctions and Contributes to Establishing Cell Polarity

The serine/threonine kinase PAK4 is a Cdc42 effector whose role is not well understood; overexpression of PAK4 has been associated with some cancers, and there are reports that correlate kinase level with increased cell migration in vitro. Here we report that PAK4 is primarily associated with cell-cell junctions in all the cell lines we tested, and fails to accumulate at focal adhesions or at the leading edge of migrating cells. In U2OS osteosarcoma and MCF-7 breast cancer cell lines, PAK4 depletion did not affect collective cell migration, but affected cell polarization. By contrast, Cdc42 depletion (as reported by many studies) caused a strong defect in junctional assembly in multiple cells lines. We also report that the depletion of PAK4 protein or treatment of cells with the PAK4 inhibitor PF-3758309 can lead to defects in centrosome reorientation (polarization) after cell monolayer wounding. These experiments are consistent with PAK4 forming part of a conserved cell-cell junctional polarity Cdc42 complex. We also confirm β-catenin as a target for PAK4 in these cells. Treatment of cells with PF-3758309 caused inhibition of β-catenin Ser-675 phosphorylation, which is located predominantly at cell-cell junctions.
Updates on Oxaliplatin-Induced Peripheral Neurotoxicity (OXAIPN)

Oxaliplatin-induced peripheral neuropathy (OXAIPN) is of great clinical interest as it ranks among the most common dose limiting toxicities of oxaliplatin (OXA) administration with an obvious impact on the outcome of cancer patients. In addition, OXAIPN has a detrimental effect on the quality of life of cancer patients because it can be long lasting or even permanent. It has a unique spectrum of clinical presentation, being manifested with two distinct syndromes: the acute neurotoxicity that appears soon after OXA administration and is usually transient, and the chronic cumulative syndrome that resembles the characteristics of all platinum compounds. Despite advances in research in relation to the elucidation of the true OXAIPN pathogenesis, characteristics and management, there are still several open issues to be addressed. One of the most important open issues is to determine reliable biomarkers to allow prompt identification of patients at high risk to develop OXAIPN and towards this view well designed genome wide analyses are warranted to adequately address this gap in knowledge. Recent updates are provided in this article in relation to the pathogenesis, clinical characteristics, pharmacogenetics and management of OXAIPN.
Analiza neželjenih efekata u MIMO predajnicima sa više antenna

In this paper, an analysis of undesired effects in multi-antenna MIMO transmitters such as PA nonlinearity, IQ imbalance and nonlinear crosstalk is presented. An impact of these effects on signal quality is demonstrated through simulations. The obtained results are given in numerical and graphical forms using metrics in time and frequency domains.
Kekeliruan mengecam huruf b-d-p-q di kalangan kanak-kanak pra-sekolah

Kajian ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji tiga jenis kekeliruan huruf b-d-p-q di kalangan kanak-kanak pra-sekolah, iaitu jenis inverted reversal, jenis inverted dan jenis mirror image. Seramai 61 orang kanak-kanak pra-sekolah yang berbangsa Melayu mengambil bahagian dalam kajian ini. Pertamanya, setiap subjek diarah untuk menulis perkataan b-d-p-q dalam kertas yang berasingan untuk menguji kekeliruan huruf b-d-p-q dari segi penulisan. Kemudiannya, setiap subjek disuruh untuk mengecam plat-plat ujian yang terdiri daripada 12 pasangan huruf b-d-p-q seperti b-q, p-d, q-d dan seterusnya untuk menguji kekeliruan huruf b-d-p-q dari segi pengecaman. Hasil kajian kami menunjukkan bahawa pengecaman plat untuk setiap jenis kekeliruan huruf b-d-p-q, iaitu jenis inverted reversal, jenis inverted dan jenis mirror image bertambah baik secara signifikan (p<0.05) dengan peningkatan umur dari usia 4 hingga 6 tahun. Kesalahan menulis huruf b-d-p-q adalah 0% di kalangan kanak-kanak yang berumur 5 dan 6 tahun manakala hanya sebanyak 20% melakukan kesalahan pada mereka yang berumur 4 tahun. Kekeliruan huruf b-d-p-q tidak kira sama ada jenis inverted reversal, jenis inverted ataupun jenis mirror image di kalangan kanak-kanak pra-sekolah dari segi penulisan dan pengecaman adalah dipengaruhi oleh umur.
Exponential Decay Estimates for the Stability of Boundary Layer Solutions to Poisson-Nernst-Planck Systems: One Spatial Dimension Case

With a small parameter $\epsilon$, Poisson-Nernst-Planck (PNP) systems over a finite one-dimensional (1D) spatial domain have steady state solutions, called 1D boundary layer solutions, which profiles form boundary layers near boundary points and become at in the interior domain as $\epsilon$ approaches zero. For the stability of 1D boundary layer solutions to (time-dependent) PNP systems, we estimate the solution of the perturbed problem with global electroneutrality. We prove that the $H^{-1}_x$ norm of the solution of the perturbed problem decays exponentially (in time) with exponent independent of $\epsilon$ if the coefficient of the Robin boundary condition of electrostatic potential has a suitable positive lower bound. The main difficulty is that the gradients of 1D boundary layer solutions at boundary points may blow up as $\epsilon$ tends to zero. The main idea of our argument is to transform the perturbed problem into another parabolic system with a new and useful energy law for the proof of the exponential decay estimate.