Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
NO VEIN Mediates Auxin-Dependent Specification and Patterning in the Arabidopsis Embryo, Shoot, and Root[W]

Local efflux-dependent auxin gradients and maxima mediate organ and tissue development in plants. Auxin efflux is regulated by dynamic expression and subcellular localization of the PIN auxin-efflux proteins, which appears to be established not only through a self-organizing auxin-mediated polarization mechanism, but also through other means, such as cell fate determination and auxin-independent mechanisms. Here, we show that the Arabidopsis thaliana NO VEIN (NOV) gene, encoding a novel, plant-specific nuclear factor, is required for leaf vascular development, cellular patterning and stem cell maintenance in the root meristem, as well as for cotyledon outgrowth and separation. nov mutations affect many aspects of auxin-dependent development without directly affecting auxin perception. NOV is required for provascular PIN1 expression and region-specific expression of PIN7 in leaf primordia, cell type–specific expression of PIN3, PIN4, and PIN7 in the root, and PIN2 polarity in the root cortex. NOV is specifically expressed in developing embryos, leaf primordia, and shoot and root apical meristems. Our data suggest that NOV function underlies cell fate decisions associated with auxin gradients and maxima, thus establishing cell type–specific PIN expression and polarity. We propose that NOV mediates the acquisition of competence to undergo auxin-dependent coordinated cell specification and patterning, thereby eliciting context-dependent auxin-mediated developmental responses.
An all-silicon single-wafer micro-g accelerometer with a combined surface and bulk micromachining process

This paper reports an all-silicon fully symmetrical z-axis micro-g accelerometer that is fabricated on a single-silicon wafer using a combined surface and bulk fabrication process. The microaccelerometer has high device sensitivity, low noise, and low/controllable damping that are the key factors for attaining /spl mu/g and sub-/spl mu/g resolution in capacitive accelerometers. The microfabrication process produces a large proof mass by using the whole wafer thickness and a large sense capacitance by utilizing a thin sacrificial layer. The sense/feedback electrodes are formed by a deposited 2-3 /spl mu/m polysilicon film with embedded 25-35 /spl mu/m-thick vertical stiffeners. These electrodes, while thin, are made very stiff by the thick embedded stiffeners so that force rebalancing of the proof mass becomes possible. The polysilicon electrodes are patterned to create damping holes. The microaccelerometers are batch-fabricated, packaged, and tested successfully. A device with a 2-mm/spl times/1-mm proof mass and a full bridge support has a measured sensitivity of 2 pF/g. The measured sensitivity of a 1-mm/spl times/1-mm accelerometer with a cantilever support is 19.4 pF/g. The calculated noise floor of these devices at atmosphere are 0.23 /spl mu/g//spl radic/Hz and 0.16 /spl mu/g//spl radic/Hz, respectively.
Seeing the Forest From Left to Right

Everyday actions such as writing have been proven to produce consistent mental schemata, which are used to represent social interactions. The preference for depicting the agent of an action to the left of the recipient is known as the spatial agency bias (SAB) and has been related to writing direction. The question which we addressed through two studies is whether the mental construal level (CL) affects this embodied bias. We hypothesized that high-CL (vs. low-CL) priming increases the SAB, as it promotes the use of an abstract mental schema to represent the situation. We found that, when asked to depict two interacting targets, participants in a high-CL condition were more likely to adopt a left-to-right representation (Studies 1 and 2). In contrast, under low-CL, participants were more likely to follow the trajectory suggested by contextual details (Study 2). These findings shed light on boundary conditions for the SAB.
Ancestral Effect on HOMA-IR Levels Quantitated in an American Population of Mexican Origin

OBJECTIVE An elevated insulin resistance index (homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance [HOMA-IR]) is more commonly seen in the Mexican American population than in European populations. We report quantitative ancestral effects within a Mexican American population, and we correlate ancestral components with HOMA-IR. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS We performed ancestral analysis in 1,551 participants of the Cameron County Hispanic Cohort by genotyping 103 ancestry-informative markers (AIMs). These AIMs allow determination of the percentage (0–100%) ancestry from three major continental populations, i.e., European, African, and Amerindian. RESULTS We observed that predominantly Amerindian ancestral components were associated with increased HOMA-IR (β = 0.124, P = 1.64 × 10−7). The correlation was more significant in males (Amerindian β = 0.165, P = 5.08 × 10−7) than in females (Amerindian β = 0.079, P = 0.019). CONCLUSIONS This unique study design demonstrates how genomic markers for quantitative ancestral information can be used in admixed populations to predict phenotypic traits such as insulin resistance.
Releasing the Brake on Oncolytic Viral Therapy

Oncolytic virus that selectively targets and eradicates tumor cells and immune checkpoint blockade that unleashes host antitumor immune responses show synergistic effects against cancer. This combination holds great promise for future treatment of a broad range of cancers in patients. Clin Cancer Res; 21(24); 5417–9. ©2015 AACR. See related article by Rojas et al., p. 5543
Effects of simulated flue gas on growth of microalgae

Studies have demonstrated that the atmospheric carbon dioxide level is increasing on a global scale due to the emissions from increased combustion of fossil fuels. Current CO{sub 2} emissions due to combustion of fossil fuels are estimated to be 2 x 10{sup 10} tons/yr. These emissions are implicated as a major contributor to the 1-2 ppm annual increase in atmospheric CO{sub 2} concentration; the present level of atmospheric CO{sub 2} is 360 ppm. Efforts are now under way to develop possible methods to minimize CO{sub 2} emissions. One method proposed for minimizing the CO{sub 2} emissions from power plants is to grow microalgae in flue gas streams, converting CO{sub 2} to algal biomass which could then be converted to fuels, chemicals, and foods. Algae can utilize CO{sub 2} efficiently, yielding three to five times more biomass per land area than typical crops and terrestrial plants. Flue gas contains not only CO{sub 2} but also oxides of sulfur and nitrogen that may be toxic to algal growth either by lowering the pH of solutions or by direct inhibition. High levels of CO{sub 2} (10-15 %) found in flue gas could also be inhibitory to algal growth.
Becoming a Single Parent

Using a longitudinal sample of 4,010 mothers and fathers from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, we examine factors that predict whether children are living with both parents, only their mother, or only their father when the child is 3 years old. We considered parental characteristics and resources and couple\family-level characteristics and found that although many factors increased the odds of parents living together—including the financial resources of each parent, having a supportive relationship, and having a disability-free child—even more factors disproportionately increased the likelihood of either single fatherhood or single motherhood, including parents’ multiple-partner fertility and depression, mother’s drug use, and mother’s greater alcohol use. Our findings suggest that although most children living with a single parent live with their mothers, they are more likely to do so if their fathers exhibit problem behaviors, and more likely to live with their father if their mothers do so.
Social Health Signals

Recently Twitter, has emerged as one of the primary medium for sharing and seeking of the latest information related to variety of the topics including health information. Although Twitter is an excellent information source, identification of useful information from the deluge of tweets is one of the major challenge. Twitter search is limited to keyword based techniques to retrieve information for a given query and sometimes the results do not contain real-time information. Moreover, Twitter does not utilize semantics to retrieve results. To address these challenges, we developed a system (Social Health Signals) by leveraging rich domain knowledge to extract relevant and reliable health information from Twitter in near real-time. We have used semantics based techniques 1) to retrieve relevant and reliable health information shared on Twitter in real-time 2) to enable question answering 3) to rank results based on relevancy, popularity and reliability 4) to semantically categorize the information.
In Vitro Repression of Brca1-associated RING Domain Gene, Bard1, Induces Phenotypic Changes in Mammary Epithelial Cells

BRCA1-associated RING domain (BARD1) was identified as a protein interacting with the breast cancer gene product BRCA1. The identification of tumorigenic missense mutations within BRCA1 that impair the formation of BARD1–BRCA1 complexes, and of BARD1 mutations in breast carcinomas, sustain the view that BARD1 is involved in BRCA1-mediated tumor suppression. We have cloned the murine Bard1 gene and determined that its expression in different tissues correlates with the expression profile of Brca1. To investigate the function of Bard1, we have reduced Bard1 gene expression in TAC-2 cells, a murine mammary epithelial cell line that retains morphogenetic properties characteristic of normal breast epithelium. Partial repression of Bard1, achieved by the transfection of TAC-2 cells with plasmids constitutively expressing ribozymes or antisense RNAs, resulted in marked phenotypic changes, consisting of altered cell shape, increased cell size, high frequency of multinucleated cells, and aberrant cell cycle progression. Furthermore, Bard1-repressed cell clones overcame contact inhibition of cell proliferation when grown in monolayer cultures and lost the capacity to form luminal structures in three-dimensional collagen gels. These results demonstrate that Bard1 repression induces complex changes in mammary epithelial cell properties which are suggestive of a premalignant phenotype.
Americans' Perceptions Toward Immigrants: Test of Contact Theory and Protestant Work Ethic

The discordant nature of American values, attitudes, and behaviors toward immigrants has been the subject of a substantial body of research. Attitudes toward immigrants are best characterized as ambivalent; that is, they contain both positive and negative elements. While attitudes toward immigrants have often been marked by hostility and discrimination, many Americans espouse a belief that the United States is a nation of immigrants, and that cultural diversity is one of America’s foremost strengths. While on the one hand, Americans value egalitarianism ‐ characterized by social equality, social justice, and concern for others in need ‐ they also value the Protestant Work Ethic (PWE), an individualistic belief in hard work, self-discipline, and individual achievement. This study analyzed the data on Americans’ attitudes toward immigrants (n=382). The results of repeated measures ANOVA indicated a significant effect of ethnic origin (p<0.001), with European immigrants perceived most positively and Middle Eastern immigrants least positively. The results of regression analyses also revealed that egalitarianism was associated with positive attitudes toward immigrants and PWE with negative attitudes (p<0.001). Further, close contact was associated with positive attitudes toward immigrants (p<0.01), whereas impersonal contact did not have impacts on attitudes toward immigrants. Implications for intercultural education are discussed.
Noise, spur characteristics and in-lock error reduction of DLL-based frequency synthesizers

Noise transfer characteristics of a delay-locked loop and the spur characteristics of a DLL-based frequency synthesizer are analyzed in this paper. Analysis shows that the DLL itself has no ability to suppress the external noise and the in-lock error greatly affects the output spur of a DLL-based frequency synthesizer. The technique for in-lock error reduction, which employs a highly symmetric charge pump phase comparator, is thus introduced and compared with a conventional one. This technique is verified by the measurement results.
Methylseleninic Acid Superactivates p53-Senescence Cancer Progression Barrier in Prostate Lesions of Pten-Knockout Mouse

Monomethylated selenium (MM-Se) forms that are precursors of methylselenol, such as methylseleninic acid (MSeA), differ in metabolism and anticancer activities in preclinical cell and animal models from seleno-methionine that had failed to exert preventive efficacy against prostate cancer in North American men. Given that human prostate cancer arises from precancerous lesions such as high-grade prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (HG-PIN), which frequently have lost phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) tumor suppressor permitting phosphatidylinositol-3-OH kinase (PI3K)–protein kinase B (AKT) oncogenic signaling, we tested the efficacy of MSeA to inhibit HG-PIN progression in Pten prostate-specific knockout (KO) mice and assessed the mechanistic involvement of p53-mediated cellular senescence and of the androgen receptor (AR). We observed that short-term (4 weeks) oral MSeA treatment significantly increased expression of P53 and P21Cip1 proteins and senescence-associated-β-galactosidase staining, and reduced Ki67 cell proliferation index in Pten KO prostate epithelium. Long-term (25 weeks) MSeA administration significantly suppressed HG-PIN phenotype, tumor weight, and prevented emergence of invasive carcinoma in Pten KO mice. Mechanistically, the long-term MSeA treatment not only sustained P53-mediated senescence, but also markedly reduced AKT phosphorylation and AR abundance in the Pten KO prostate. Importantly, these cellular and molecular changes were not observed in the prostate of wild-type littermates which were similarly treated with MSeA. Because p53 signaling is likely to be intact in HG-PIN compared with advanced prostate cancer, the selective superactivation of p53-mediated senescence by MSeA suggests a new paradigm of cancer chemoprevention by strengthening a cancer progression barrier through induction of irreversible senescence with additional suppression of AR and AKT oncogenic signaling. Cancer Prev Res; 9(1); 35–42. ©2015 AACR.
FROM SINGLE-PULSE TO FULL-WAVEFORM AIRBORNE LASER SCANNERS: POTENTIAL AND PRACTICAL CHALLENGES

Airborne laser scanning, often referred to as lidar or laser altimetry, is a remote sensing technique which measures the round-trip time of emitted laser pulses to determine the topography of the Earth’s surface. While the first commercially available airborne laser scanners recorded only the time of one backscattered pulse, state-of-the-art systems measure first and last pulse; some are able to measure up to five pulses. This is because there may be several objects within the travel path of the laser pulse that generate multiple echoes. Pulse detection is then used to determine the location of these individual scatterers. In this paper we discuss the physical measurement process and explain the way how distributed targets (such as trees or inclined surfaces) transform the emitted pulse. It is further shown through theoretical experiments that different detectors may yield quite different height information, depending on the type of the target. For example, even in the simple case of a tilted roof (with a tilt angle of 45°) the range values obtained by using different detectors may vary by ~ 0.4 m for a laser footprint size of 1 m. Airborne laser scanner systems that digitise the full waveform of the backscattered pulse would give more control to the user in the interpretation process. It would e.g. be possible to pre-classify the acquired data with respect to the shape of the echoes, to use different detection methods depending on surface cover and the intended application, and to employ more physically-based retrieval methods. * Corresponding author
Direct detection of hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA from whole blood, and comparison with HCV RNA in plasma and peripheral blood mononuclear cells

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) requires reverse transcriptase‐polymerase chain reaction (RT‐PCR) or branched DNA signal amplification assays to be detected in patient samples. Although conventional methods of RNA isolation are employed for samples of serum, plasma, and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), whole blood is generally considered an unsuitable source of RNA because of abundant RNases and poly‐merase inhibitors. Using a cationic surfactant, Catrimox‐14, we adapted a procedure for RNA isolation from whole blood, plasma, and PBMCs that yields RNA template suitable for HCV RT‐PCR. RNA isolation required less than 2 hr, and HCV sequences were easily detected in sample volumes of 50 μl whole blood or plasma, and in less than 1 × l04 PBMC. Following the addition of blood to Catrimox, HCV RNA was stable in the mixture when incubated for at least 7 days at room temperature prior to RNA extraction. Comparison of whole blood HCV RNA and plasma HCV RNA from individuals with chronic hepatitis suggests that HCV RNA can be more reliably detected in whole blood. Three of 15 HCV antibody positive patients (20%) had HCV RNA present in whole blood but simultaneously obtained plasma samples were negative. Two of five HCV antibody negative individuals with chronic hepatitis contained HCV RNA in whole blood, yet one of these patient's plasma was negative for viral RNA. The Catrimox‐I4 method of RNA purification is useful for detecting HCV RNA in whole blood and blood subfractions, and provides a practical method of measuring plasma and PBMC HCV RNA from clinical specimens. © 1995 WiIey‐Liss, Inc.
Rapid Surface Motility in Bacillus subtilis Is Dependent on Extracellular Surfactin and Potassium Ion

ABSTRACT Motility on surfaces is an important mechanism for bacterial colonization of new environments. In this report, we describe detection of rapid surface motility in the wild-type Bacillus subtilis Marburg strain, but not in several B. subtilis 168 derivatives. Motility involved formation of rapidly spreading dendritic structures, followed by profuse surface colonies if sufficient potassium ion was present. Potassium ion stimulated surfactin secretion, and the role of surfactin in surface motility was confirmed by deletion of a surfactin synthase gene. Significantly, this motility was independent of flagella. These results demonstrate that wild-type B. subtilis strains can use both swimming and sliding-type mechanisms to move across surfaces.
Identification of Triadin 1 as the Predominant Triadin Isoform Expressed in Mammalian Myocardium*

Triadin is an integral membrane protein of sarcoplasmic reticulum shown to interact with the ryanodine receptor/Ca2+ release channel, junctin, and calsequestrin. Several triadin isoforms have been postulated to exist in cardiac muscle, but to date none has been conclusively identified. Here, we show that only triadin 1 is significantly expressed. We cloned and sequenced cDNAs encoding canine cardiac triadin 1 and 3 but found no evidence for triadin 2. From deduced primary structures, antibodies against domains common to all triadins and an antibody against the unique C terminus of triadin 1 were raised. All antibodies detected two prominent proteins of molecular masses 35 and 40 kDa on immunoblots from cardiac microsomes, including the antibody that recognizes only triadin 1. The 40-kDa mobility form was shown to correspond to the glycosylated form of triadin 1, not a distinct triadin 2 isoform as previously hypothesized. Confirming this, overexpression of triadin 1 in transgenic mouse hearts produced both the 35-kDa deglycosylated and the 40-kDa glycosylated mobility forms. The glycosylation site of triadin 1 was localized to asparagine residue 75, and its bitopic arrangement in the membrane was confirmed. Although a 92-kDa immunoreactive protein could be tentatively identified in myocardium as triadin 3, its expression level was insignificant (≤5%) compared with that of triadin 1. We conclude that triadin 1 is the triadin isoform most likely to play a role in Ca2+ release in heart.
Prognostic role of coronary calcification in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVES To study the predictive value of coronary calcification score (CCS) for future cardiovascular (CVS) events as detected by multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT) in patients with rheumatoid arthritis(RA) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). METHODS A total of 152 patients with RA and SLE, and 106 healthy controls underwent MDCT to measure CCS. All patients were prospectively followed up for major CVS events. RESULTS Compared with controls, patients with RA and SLE had a significantly higher mean CCS (42.2±154.3 vs. 1.4±13.0, p<0.01) and prevalence of CCS 1-10, CCS 11-100 and CCS>100 (all p<0.05). After a mean period of 4.3±0.6 years, major CVS events occurred in 10 patients with RA and SLE. In patients with RA and SLE, a higher major CVS events rate occurred in patients with CCS 1-10 (5.0%), CCS 11-100 (14.3%) and CCS >100 (40.0%) than those with CCS=0 (1.0%, p<0.01). Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that hypercholesterolemia (hazard ratio (HR) 11.2, confidence interval (CI 1.4-89.3, p=0.02) and CCS>100 (HR 11.1, CI 1.31-95.0, p=0.03) were independent predictors of combined events. CONCLUSIONS Coronary calcification detected by MDCT independently predicts CVS events in patients with RA and SLE. Risk stratification by assessment of CCS may have an important role in patients with systemic inflammatory disease.
A supportive approach in psychodynamic-oriented psychotherapy. An empirically supported single case study.

This paper evaluates process and outcome in a 2 years supportive psychotherapy psychodynamic-oriented of a young adult self-referred for concerns about University choice. The diagnosis was Panic Attack Disorder (DSM-IV) with features of obsessive-compulsive and narcissistic personality disorder (PDM). Twenty-eight verbatim transcripts of the sessions were coded with the Psychodynamic Intervention Rating Scales, the Collaborative Interactions Scale and Defense Mechanism Rating Scale. A log linear analysis model showed the trends of process variables during the treatment. A hierarchical regression analysis evaluated the importance of tailoring the clinician interventions in respect to the average level of defenses. Outcome results showed how patient's diagnosis changed and symptoms decreased.
Identity management in hybrid cloud

Cloud Computing is a platform that relies on sharing resources, software and information between remote servers and users over the network. Since cloud computing share distributed resources in open environment, it must be considered from privacy and security viewpoints. In this paper, we have discussed the security risks and concerns, key management, and mutual authentication of cloud computing. The paper also includes some models to tackle the challenges like regulatory, security and privacy to some extent. Next we discuss some solutions to mitigate these challenges along with a brief description on future work in cloud computing deployment.