Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Fuzzy Nanoassemblies: Toward Layered Polymeric Multicomposites

Multilayer films of organic compounds on solid surfaces have been studied for more than 60 years because they allow fabrication of multicomposite molecular assemblies of tailored architecture. However, both the Langmuir-Blodgett technique and chemisorption from solution can be used only with certain classes of molecules. An alternative approach—fabrication of multilayers by consecutive adsorption of polyanions and polycations—is far more general and has been extended to other materials such as proteins or colloids. Because polymers are typically flexible molecules, the resulting superlattice architectures are somewhat fuzzy structures, but the absence of crystallinity in these films is expected to be beneficial for many potential applications.
Research of mechanical strength enhanced fibrin-PLGA hybrid scaffold with its effect on proliferation of rMSC

Abstract As a tissue engineering biomaterial, fibrin possesses outstanding biodegradable and biocompatible features except for its weak mechanical strength which limits its ranges of further application. In this study, hybrid scaffold was obtained by mixed fibrinogen and thrombin solution homogeneously in the presence of various amounts (0, 1, 2, and 4 mg, respectively) of non-woven fabric of PLGA fiber through traditional freeze-dried method to improve the mechanical strength while keeping its biological characters. The observation by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that all the fibrin sponges have porous and interconnected pore structure, irrespective of the amount of PLGA fiber incorporated. In the measurement of the scaffold shrinkage, the percent of shrinkage of fibrin sponge incorporating PLGA fiber decreased when the amount of PLGA fiber incorporated increased compared with the fibrin sponge without PLGA fiber. The compression test suggested that compression modulus of PLGA fiber incorporated fibrin sponge significantly increased against the fibrin sponge without PLGA fiber; the incorporation of PLGA fiber enabled the mechanical strength of fibrin sponge to be effectively enhanced. Rat mesenchymal stem cells (rMSCs), which is of high potential to induce tissue regeneration, was selected to seed and culture in the fibrin scaffolds with or without PLGA fiber, and the number of rMSC was tested by DNA assay and calculated to examine which sponge was more favourable for rMSC to proliferate. The results reveal that the incorporation of PLGA fiber reinforced the fibrin scaffolds and maintained their intraspace. MSCs proliferated in fibrin scaffold with PLGA fiber was obviously on average more than that without PLGA fiber in vitro.
Computing multiple diagnoses in large devices using Bayesian networks

We propose a method of diagnosis that tackles multiple diagnoses of reliable devices with large numbers of components. We use prior component failure probability and compute posterior probabilities of diagnoses. Bayesian networks allow to take into account the structure of the device but also knowledge about good and bad working order of each individual components and their reliability. The general reliability of such systems means that no list of breakdown scenarios can be exploited to guide the diagnosis. We exploit a list of observed values that reveal a failure of the system in order to find the states of the system that best explain these observations. The large number of components and the possibility of multiple failures mean that lots of sets of failing components can explain the observations. In order to rank them, we propose an algorithm to compute the best diagnoses and an approximation of their posterior probabilities.
Preparation of PANI–PVA composite film with good conductivity and strong mechanical property

The polyaniline (PANI)–polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) conductive composite films [doped with hydrochloride (HCl), dodecylbenzene sulphonic acid and amino sulphonic acid (NH2SO3H) aqueous solution] were synthesised by ‘in situ’ polymerisation, and their conductivities were compared. Among these composite films, HCl–PANI–PVA composite film possessed the highest conductivity that reached 1360 S·m− 1 [w(PVA) = 40%]. Meanwhile, the effects of PVA content, HCl concentration, oxidant ammonium persulphate (APS) dosage, reaction time and film drying temperature on tensile strength of the HCl–PANI–PVA composite films were studied. The tensile strength of the film was improved greatly due to effective mixture of PANI and PVA. When the PVA content was 40%, C(HCl) = 1.0 mol·L− 1, reaction time was 4.0 h, n(APS)/n(aniline) = 1.0 and film drying temperature was 80°C, and the tensile strength of the HCl–PANI–PVA composite film reached the maximum of 60.8 MPa. At the same time, the structure of composite materials was characterised and analysed through ultraviolet spectrum and SEM.
Tumor Angiogenesis: Pericytes and Maturation Are Not to Be Ignored

Angiogenesis, an essential component of tumor growth and survival, is regulated by complex interactions between several cell types and soluble mediators. Heterogeneous tumor vasculature originates from the collective effect of the nature of carcinoma and the complexity of the angiogenic network. Although the application of angiogenesis inhibitors in some types of cancers has shown clinical benefits, predictive markers to assess treatment effects have yet to be established. In this review, we focus on tumor vessel maturity as a potential marker for evaluating treatment response.
Mesh saliency via spectral processing

We propose a novel method for detecting mesh saliency, a perceptually-based measure of the importance of a local region on a 3D surface mesh. Our method incorporates global considerations by making use of spectral attributes of the mesh, unlike most existing methods which are typically based on local geometric cues. We first consider the properties of the log-Laplacian spectrum of the mesh. Those frequencies which show differences from expected behaviour capture saliency in the frequency domain. Information about these frequencies is considered in the spatial domain at multiple spatial scales to localise the salient features and give the final salient areas. The effectiveness and robustness of our approach are demonstrated by comparisons to previous approaches on a range of test models. The benefits of the proposed method are further evaluated in applications such as mesh simplification, mesh segmentation, and scan integration, where we show how incorporating mesh saliency can provide improved results.
The Link between Protein Kinase CK2 and Atypical Kinase Rio1

The atypical kinase Rio1 is widespread in many organisms, ranging from Archaebacteria to humans, and is an essential factor in ribosome biogenesis. Little is known about the protein substrates of the enzyme and small-molecule inhibitors of the kinase. Protein kinase CK2 was the first interaction partner of Rio1, identified in yeast cells. The enzyme from various sources undergoes CK2-mediated phosphorylation at several sites and this modification regulates the activity of Rio1. The aim of this review is to present studies of the relationship between the two different kinases, with respect to CK2-mediated phosphorylation of Rio1, regulation of Rio1 activity, and similar susceptibility of the kinases to benzimidazole inhibitors.
Synthesis of hardware components for vertical-group parallel neural networks

The model and structure of formal neuron with vertical-group multiplexing of data bus have been developed, which provides coordination of data flow intensity with computing ability of neural element by changing bit-width of channel and number of digits in a group of factors that simultaneously analyzed for the formation of partial products. The main stages and methods of synthesis of parallel vertical neuro element of group type with high efficiency of equipment use have been reviewed.
A strategic perspective of electronic democracy

principle of democracy—efficiency. Efficient government keeps at bay the populists and demagogues who appeal to those who want the trains to run on time. The goal of electronic democracy is to deploy information technology to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of democracy [8]. On the efficiency side, the intention is to increase the convenience and timeliness of citizen/government interactions and reduce their cost. Information will be more readily available and transaction costs significantly reduced. Our initial studies of property tax payments indicate that Webenabled payment reduces processing costs from more than $5 to around 22 cents per transaction. The potential savings of e-democracy could be as much as $110 billion
Fast converging iterative kalman filtering for speech enhancement using long and overlapped tapered windows with large side lobe attenuation

In this paper, we propose an iterative Kalman filtering scheme that has faster convergence and introduces less residual noise, when compared with the iterative scheme of Gibson, et al. This is achieved via the use of long and overlapped frames as well as using a tapered window with a large side lobe attenuation for linear prediction analysis. We show that the Dolph-Chebychev window with a −200 dB side lobe attenuation tends to enhance the dynamic range of the formant structure of speech corrupted with white noise, reduce prediction error variance bias, as well as provide for some spectral smoothing, while the long overlapped frames provide for reliable autocorrelation estimates and temporal smoothing. Speech enhancement experiments on the NOIZEUS corpus show that the proposed method outperformed conventional iterative and non-iterative Kalman filters as well as other enhancement methods such as MMSE-STSA and PSC. Index Terms: speech enhancement, Kalman filtering
Gravity in the 3+1-split formalism: I. Holography as an initial value problem

We present a detailed analysis of the 3+1-split formalism of gravity in the presence of a cosmological constant. The formalism helps in revealing the intimate connection between holography and the initial value formulation of gravity. We show that the various methods of holographic subtraction of divergences correspond just to different transformations of the canonical variables, such that the initial value problem is properly set up at the boundary. The renormalized boundary energy–momentum tensor is a component of the Weyl tensor.
Socio-Cultural Determinants of Health-Seeking Behaviour on the Kenyan Coast: A Qualitative Study

Background Severe childhood illnesses present a major public health challenge for Africa, which is aggravated by a suboptimal response to the child's health problems with reference to the health-seeking behaviour of the parents or guardians. We examined the health-seeking behaviour of parents at the Kenyan coast because understanding impediments to optimal health-seeking behaviour could greatly contribute to reducing the impact of severe illness on children's growth and development. Methods and Results Health-seeking behaviour, and the factors influencing this behaviour, were examined in two traditional communities. We held in-depth interviews with 53 mothers, fathers and caregivers from two rural clinics at the Kenyan Coast. Biomedical medicine (from health facilities and purchased over the counter) was found to be the most popular first point of treatment. However, traditional healing still plays a salient role in the health care within these two communities. Traditional healers were consulted for various reasons: a) attribution of causation of ill-health to supernatural sources, b) chronic illness (inability of modern medicine to cure the problem) and c) as prevention against possible ill-health. In developing an explanatory model of decision-making, we observed that this was a complex process involving consultation at various levels, with elders, but also between both parents, depending on the perceived nature and chronicity of the illness. However, it was reported that fathers were the ultimate decision makers in relation to decisions concerning where the child would be taken for treatment. Conclusions Health systems need to see traditional healing as a complementary system in order to ensure adequate access to health care. Importantly, fathers also need to be addressed in intervention and education programs.
Observation of the One-Dimensional Diffusion of Nanometer-Sized Dislocation Loops

Dislocations are ubiquitous linear defects and are responsible for many of the properties of crystalline materials. Studies on the glide process of dislocations in bulk materials have mostly focused on the response of dislocations with macroscopic lengths to external loading or unloading. Using in situ transmission electron microscopy, we show that nanometer-sized loops with a Burgers vector of ½〈111〉 in α-Fe can undergo one-dimensional diffusion even in the absence of stresses that are effective in driving the loops. The loop size dependence of the loop diffusivity obtained is explained by the stochastic thermal fluctuation in the numbers of double kinks.
Aberrant Intrinsic Connectivity of Hippocampus and Amygdala Overlap in the Fronto-Insular and Dorsomedial-Prefrontal Cortex in Major Depressive Disorder

Neuroimaging studies of major depressive disorder (MDD) have consistently observed functional and structural changes of the hippocampus (HP) and amygdale (AY). Thus, these brain regions appear to be critical elements of the pathophysiology of MDD. The HP and AY directly interact and show broad and overlapping intrinsic functional connectivity (iFC) to other brain regions. Therefore, we hypothesized the HP and AY would show a corresponding pattern of aberrant intrinsic connectivity in MDD. Resting-state functional MRI was acquired from 21 patients with MDD and 20 healthy controls. ß-Maps of region-of-interest-based FC for bilateral body of the HP and basolateral AY were used as surrogates for iFC of the HP and AY. Analysis of variance was used to compare ß-maps between MDD and healthy control groups, and included covariates for age and gender as well as gray matter volume of the HP and AY. The HP and AY of MDD patient’s showed an overlapping pattern of reduced FC to the dorsomedial-prefrontal cortex and fronto-insular operculum. Both of these regions are known to regulate the interactions among intrinsic networks (i.e., default mode, central executive, and salience networks) that are disrupted in MDD. These results provide the first evidence of overlapping aberrant HP and AY intrinsic connectivity in MDD. Our findings suggest that aberrant HP and AY connectivity may interact with dysfunctional intrinsic network activity in MDD.
Indeks Glikemik Beras Analog Berbahan Baku Menir dengan Penambahan Ekstrak Teh Hitam

NUR SOFIA WARDANI YAHYA. Glycemic Index of Analog Rice from Broken Rice with Black Tea Extract Addition. Supervised by DEDE R ADAWIYAH and NURHENI S PALUPI. Rice is a staple food for most Indonesian people. The Indonesian rice has different glycemic index (GI) according to variety and process which applied to rice. Rice usually is processed through milling process. There are 5% broken rice produced from milling process. The utilization of broken rice still limited in Indonesia. The main objective of this research was to develop analog rice based on broken rice and the addition of polyphenolic substances from black tea extract by using extrusion technology. Hopefully it would reduce the analog rice GI. So the product will be suitable not only for people who have Diabetes Mellitus (DM) which need to select their carbohydrate food source, but also for normal and health people. The addition of 4% (b/v) black tea extract to broken rice was conducted with 4 treatments: (1) without the addition of tea extract (as control); (2) during rice soaking before milling; (3) before the extrusion process; and (4) both of treatment 2 and 3. Starch digestibility (SD) analyzed by using in vitro method to determine the best treatment of black tea extract addition in lowering the digestibility of starch. The result showed that the fourth addition treatment of black tea extract had the lowest SD value as 58.32% ± 0.38% . These data correlated to GI conducted with in vivo analysis. GI of analog rice result was 44.19±10.75 (low GI), whereas the GI of broken rice was 71.16±15.41 (high GI). The addition of black tea extract significantly reduced the GI of analog rice from broken rice.
Human biological monitoring of suspected endocrine-disrupting compounds

Endocrine-disrupting compounds are exogenous agents that interfere with the natural hormones of the body. Human biological monitoring is a powerful method for monitoring exposure to endocrine disrupting compounds. In this review, we describe human biological monitoring systems for different groups of endocrine disrupting compounds, polychlorinated biphenyls, brominated flame retardants, phthalates, alkylphenols, pesticides, metals, perfluronated compounds, parabens, ultraviolet filters, and organic solvents. The aspects discussed are origin to exposure, metabolism, matrices to analyse, analytical determination methods, determinants, and time trends.
Transcriptome Analysis and Postprandial Expression of Amino Acid Transporter Genes in the Fast Muscles and Gut of Chinese Perch (Siniperca chuatsi)

The characterization of the expression and regulation of growth-related genes in the muscles of Chinese perch is of great interest to aquaculturists because of the commercial value of the species. The transcriptome annotation of the skeletal muscles is a crucial step in muscle growth-related gene analysis. In this study, we generated 52 504 230 reads of mRNA sequence data from the fast muscles of the Chinese perch by using Solexa/Illumina RNA-seq. Twenty-one amino acid transporter genes were annotated by searching protein and gene ontology databases, and postprandial changes in their transcript abundance were assayed after administering a single satiating meal to Chinese perch juveniles (body mass, approximately 100 g), following fasting for 1 week. The gut content of the Chinese perch increased significantly after 1 h and remained high for 6 h following the meal and emptied within 48–96 h. Expression of eight amino acid transporter genes was assayed in the fast muscles through quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction at 0, 1, 3, 6, 12, 24, 48, and 96 h. Among the genes, five transporter transcripts were markedly up-regulated within 1 h of refeeding, indicating that they may be potential candidate genes involved in the rapid-response signaling system regulating fish myotomal muscle growth. These genes display coordinated regulation favoring the resumption of myogenesis responding to feeding.
Enriched sublexical representations to access morphological structures. A psycho-computational account

The paper investigates the morphological impact of quantitative properties of lexical and sublexical structures in the decomposition of morphologically complex words by means of an activation-based simulation. A complex nucleus of blind-to-semantics relationships turns out to allow the emergence of proto-morphological representations and to provide a cognitively efficient route to complex word decomposition. A computational account of how this bundle of information is handled with in the lexical processing of complex pseudo-words is provided. The model is tested against an edit-distance algorithm and a non-word similarity rating task performed by a group of native speakers. RESUME. L'article analyse l'impact morphologique des proprietes quantitatives des structures lexicales et sous-lexicales dans la decomposition de mots morphologiquement complexes en faisant appel a une simulation basee sur des etats d'activation. Nous observons qu'il existe un noyau complexe de relations extra-semantiques capable d'activer des representations proto- morphologiques et de canaliser efficacement la decomposition des mot complexes. Nous pro- posons un modele de manipulation de ce noyau d'information dans l'elaboration lexicale de pseudo-mots complexes. Le modele est teste par rapport a un algorithme de distance d'edition et a des jugements sur la similarite de mots fournis par des locuteurs natifs.
Neuromodulation in neurogenic bladder

While neuromodulation is a well-established treatment option for patients with non-neurogenic overactive bladder and urinary retention, its applicability to the neurogenic bladder population has only recently been examined more in depth. In this article we will discuss the outcomes, contraindications, and special considerations of sacral and percutaneous tibial nerve stimulation (PTNS) in patients with neurogenic lower urinary tract dysfunction.
Over-Expression of the LH Receptor Increases Distant Metastases in an Endometrial Cancer Mouse Model

Objective: The aim of the present study was to define the role of luteinizing hormone receptor (LH-R) expression in endometrial cancer (EC), using preclinical mouse models, to further transfer these data to the clinical setting. Materials and Methods: The role of LH-R over-expression was studied using EC cells (Hec1A, e.g., cells with low endogenous LH-R expression) transfected with the LH-R (Hec1A-LH-R). In vitro cell proliferation was measured through the WST-1 assay, whereas cell invasion was measured trough the matrigel assay. The effects of LH-R over-expression in vivo were analyzed in an appropriately developed preclinical mouse model of EC, which mimicked postmenopausal conditions. The model consisted in an orthotopic xenograft of Hec1A cells into immunodeficient mice treated daily with recombinant LH, to assure high levels of LH. Results: In vitro data indicated that LH-R over-expression increased Hec1A invasiveness. In vivo results showed that tumors arising from Hec1A-LH-R cells injection displayed a higher local invasion and a higher number of distant metastases, mainly in the lung, compared to tumors obtained from the injection of Hec1A cells. LH withdrawal strongly inhibited local and distant metastatic spread of tumors, especially those arising from Hec1A-LH-R cells. Conclusion: The over-expression of the LH-R increases the ability of EC cells to undergo local invasion and metastatic spread. This occurs in the presence of high LH serum concentrations.
Ketamine versus Ketamine / magnesium Sulfate for Procedural Sedation and Analgesia in the Emergency Department: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Background: The present study was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of magnesium sulfate (MgSO4) in procedural sedation and analgesia (PSA) when combined with ketamine in patients with fractures in emergency departments and required short and painful emergency procedures. Materials and Methods: In this study, 100 patients with fractures and dislocations who were presented to the emergency departments and required PSA for short and painful emergency procedures were randomly allocated to groups of ketamine plus MgSO4or ketamine alone. Train of four (TOF) stimulation pattern was assessed using nerve stimulator machine and compared between groups. Results: The mean age of studied patients was 46.9 ± 9.3 years old. 48% were male and 52% were female. No significant differences were noted between groups in demographic variables. The status of TOF, 2 min after the injection of ketamine (1.5 mg/kg), in both groups was similar. After the injection of the second dose of ketamine (1 mg/kg) the status of TOF in four patients in ketamine plus MgSO4 (0.45 mg/kg) group changed, it was three quarters but in ketamine group, the status of TOF in all patients was four quarters. The difference between groups was not statistically significant (P = 0.12). Conclusion: The findings revealed that for muscle relaxation during medical procedures in the emergency department, ketamine in combination with MgSO4with this dose was not effective for muscle relaxation during procedures.