Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Neuroprotective effects of cyclooxygenase-2 inhibitor celecoxib against toxicity of LPS-stimulated macrophages toward motor neurons

AbstractAim:To establish an in vitro injured motor neuronal model and investigate the neuroprotective effects and possible mechanism of celecoxib, a selective cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor, on this model.Methods:After macrophages were stimulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS)+interferon-γ (IFN-γ) in the presence or absence of celecoxib for 24 h, the cell-free supernatant of LPS-stimulated macrophages was transferred to the culture of NSC34 cells. Viability of NSC34 cells was assessed by MTT assay after a further 24 h and 72 h incubation. After macrophages were stimulated by LPS+IFN-γ for 12 h or 24 h, the release of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2), nitric oxide (NO), reactive oxygen species (ROS), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) from macrophages was measured by radioimmunoassay, Griess assay, fluorescence assay and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, respectively. The mRNA levels of COX-2, inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), TNF-α and IL-1β in macrophages were determined by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction after macrophages were stimulated for 6 h and 12 h.Results:The supernatant of LPS-stimulated mouse macrophages induced the death of NSC34 cells and celecoxib protected the NSC34 cells against this toxicity. The LPS-induced increases in the release of PGE2, NO, TNF-α and IL-1β from macrophages were attenuated by pre-treatment with celecoxib. However, celecoxib showed no effect on the ROS levels upregulated by LPS+IFN-γ in the macrophage supernatant. The mRNA levels of COX-2, iNOS, TNF-α and IL-1β were increased in LPS-activated macrophages and, except COX-2, reduced by pre-treatment with celecoxib.Conclusion:An in vitro injured motor neuronal model was established by using the toxicity of LPS-stimulated mouse macrophages toward motor neuronal NSC34 cells. In this model, celecoxib exerted neuroprotective effects on motor neurons via an inhibition of the neurotoxic secretions from activated macrophages.
The evaluation metric in generative grammar

The subject which I would like to treat in this paper is the evaluation metric in generative grammar. Why? Arguably, the evaluation metric is both the most novel and the most important concept in the development of generative grammar by Noam Chomsky. And yet it is at the same time one of the least recognized and surely most misunderstood of the core concepts of generative grammar. So there you are: the evaluation metric is critically important, it is arguably novel, it is misunderstood, and at some times and in some places, it has even been reviled. What better reasons could there be for spending our time today talking about it? I would like, first, to explain the idea of the evaluation metric in early generative grammar; this will mean exploring the separate ideas of (1) a prior over the set of grammars and (2) a measure of goodness of fit to the data. Second, I will very briefly trace how those two ideas have been developed in the world of machine learning over the last few decades, and as you will see, the picture I see is one of lost opportunity for us linguists, though the opportunities remain open to us. To repeat, then: The notion of an evaluation metric played a central role in the first decades of generative grammar. The idea of an evaluation metric was tightly bound up with the notion of explanatory adequacy. I am going to sketch an idealized picture of what I take it that Noam Chomsky proposed in his early work, The Logical Structure of Linguistic Theory [notably in Chapters 2 and 4 there] and Syntatic Structures. First, a grammar can be thought of as a scientific theory of a language, and any grammar’s predictions can be tested against real data (whether corpus-based or judgment-based), and in most cases we can compare any pair of grammars on the basis of linguistic data. If that were the whole story, though, we would not need an evaluation metric. But there is more. Early on in the lifespan of the enterprise, we linguists learn about the formal properties of the very best grammars, and as we do so, we develop a higher-order description language, a language in which grammars are written; and as we do this, we will ensure that those phenomena which are common across grammars can be expressed in a compact way, so that within a brief period of disciplinary evolution, a metalanguage will emerge in which compactness of expression will fit well with what is found in a wide range of languages. Out of this process will naturally emerge a body of meta-knowledge about the nature of language, and this body of meta-knowledge lies simply in the way in which grammars are written. This conception of the scientific character of linguistic research—of linguistics as a science—was developed explicitly to counter three tendencies that were present or in any event that seemed to be present, either explicitly or just below the surface, in the work of a number of linguists working in the Sapir-Bloomfield tradition:
Preliminary evaluation of a controlled-brake orthosis for FES-aided gait

A hybrid functional-electrical stimulation (FES) gait system that incorporates a computer-controlled orthosis system has been developed to address the problems of rapid muscle fatigue and poor movement control that are characteristic of FES-aided gait. The orthosis is a long-leg brace that contains controllable friction brakes at both hip and knee joints. The system achieves desirable limb trajectories by utilizing the stimulated muscles as a source of unregulated power and regulating the power at each joint by computer control of the friction brakes. Muscle fatigue is reduced by locking the controllable brakes to provide the isometric joint torques necessary during stance. The hybrid gait system was evaluated and compared to conventional four channel FES-aided gait using four subjects with paraplegia. The results demonstrated significant reduction in muscle fatigue and improvement in trajectory control when using the orthosis combined with FES compared to using FES alone. Results for distance and speed improvements varied across subjects. Considerable work remains in the design of the hardware before the system is feasible for use outside the laboratory.
Solution and high-pressure NMR studies of the structure, dynamics and stability of the cross-reactive allergenic cod parvalbumin Gad m 1

Beta‐parvalbumins from different fish species have been identified as the main elicitors of IgE‐mediated reactions in fish‐allergic individuals. Here, we report for the first time the NMR determination of the structure and dynamics of the major Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) allergen Gad m 1 and compare them with other known parvalbumins. Although the Gad m 1 structure and accessibility of putative IgE epitopes are similar to parvalbumins in mackerel and carp, the charge distribution at the putative epitopes is different. The determination of the Gad m 1 structure contributes to a better understanding of cross‐reactivity among fish parvalbumins. In addition, the high‐pressure NMR and temperature variation experiments revealed the important contribution of the AB motif and other regions to the protein folding. This structural information could assist the future identification of hot spots for targeted mutations to develop hypoallergenic Ca2+‐free forms for potential use in immunotherapy. Proteins 2014; 82:3032–3042. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Road course estimation in unknown, structured environments

The road course is an essential feature for many driver assistance systems and for autonomously-maneuvering vehicles. It is commonly stored in a map and hence assumed to be known a-priori. There are however situations in which the map data can become invalid, such as in road construction sites. In other situations, localization in the map might not be accurate enough, which can happen, for example, in dense urban areas. In this work, a novel approach to road course estimation is presented that is based on path planning through grid maps under non-holonomic and velocity constraints. With this approach, it is possible to estimate the road boundaries on a wide range of roads, including roads with continuous as well as discontinuous borders, roads exhibiting strong curvatures or S-shapes and road junctions. Furthermore, a plausibility measure is given to validate the road course and it is shown how the road center can be smoothed.
Downlink MIMO in LTE-advanced: SU-MIMO vs. MU-MIMO

Single-user multi-antenna technologies are well upported in current standard specifications like LTE Release 8/9. Further development of the specification (LTE-Advanced) is expected to conform to the requirements for IMT-Advanced systems. One of the key enabling features of LTE-Advanced to meet IMT-Advanced downlink performance requirements is multi-user MIMO, where a transmitter serves multiple users simultaneously on the same frequency resource, primarily relying on spatial separation. In general, multi-user MIMO is beneficial for improving average user spectral efficiency. However, cell edge user spectral efficiency may be reduced if multi-user MIMO is used exclusively, due to residual inter-user interference arising from practical multi-user beamforming and reduced transmit power allocated to each user. Therefore, it should be possible to configure the UE-specific transmission mode to support dynamic switching between single-user MIMO and multi-user MIMO to balance the cell edge user spectral efficiency as well as the average cell user spectral efficiency. In this article, we study various aspects of multi-user MIMO including design philosophy, multi-user precoding, and control signaling. The associated feedback schemes, including those that facilitate dynamic switching, are discussed. Performance evaluation is conducted to demonstrate the gain of dynamically switched single-user and multiuser MIMO as opposed to traditional single-user MIMO.
Simple design strategy for modular input-series output-series converters

This paper analyzes the behavior of a modular system of DC/DC converters with input-series output-series connections. Modularization is a good alternative to provide higher voltage capability, reduce the cost by using the same module to build different power converters or even increase the performance in some cases. However, the control of the converters should be considered carefully, since the system becomes more complex and there are some unstable behaviors that must be avoided. The goal of this work is to explore a simple solution that provides an inherent stable operation thanks to the operation mode of the converters (all of them working as loss-free resistors but on that works in continuous conduction mode). This proposal allows the modular system to operate with a control scheme dramatically simplified.
Placental CRH Modulates Maternal Pituitary‐Adrenal Function in Human Pregnancy a

Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH), a 41 amino acid neuropeptide synthesized primarily in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus, has a major role in regulating pituitary-adrenal function and the physiological response to stress. '. 2 During pregnancy, the placenta, decidua, and fetal membranes are additional sites of CRH synthesis from approximately 8 to 10 weeks gestation ~ n w a r d . ~ . ~ The expression of placental CRH rises exponentially during gestation, and it is released into maternal, fetal, and amniotic compartments. '-' Although placental CRH is identical to hypothalamic CRH in structure, immunoreactivity, and bioactivity,* and CRH levels during midto late gestation in maternal plasma are comparable to those capable of stimulating pituitary activity in vitro'j6 and in uivo:g'o there are conflicting views and findings about the possible role of placental CRH in regulating maternal pituitary-adrenal function during pregnancy. On the one hand, although levels of pituitary [adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), P-endorphins (PE)] and adrenal (cortisol) products are elevated in maternal plasma during pregnancy, the magnitude of their elevation, which ranges from a twoto fourfold increase over nonpregnant levels, is much less than that of plasma CRH, which ranges from a several hundred-fold to a thousand-fold increase over nonpregnant Some correlational studies have failed to find associations between CRH and ACTH or cortisol levels during and administration of a 100 pg CRH bolus and a 1 pg/kg dose of exogenous CRH at 38-40 weeks gestation failed to evoke a significant pituitary or adrenal response.Is*I6 A CRH-binding protein (CRH-BP), apparently unique to humans, has been found in maternal plasma during pregnancy and is thought to reduce the bioactivity of peripherally circulating CRH.17. '8 On the other hand, the relatively modest increase of ACTH and cortisol during pregnancy is consistent with findings from studies of long-term administration of exogenous CRH in nonpregnant human^. ^. '^ Other correlational studies have found significant associations between CRH, ACTH, PE, and cortisol during p r e g n a n ~ y ; " . ' ~ ~ ~ a 100 pg CRH bolus during mid-gestation and a 2 pg/kg dose of exogenous CRH at 38-40 weeks gestation have been shown to evoke normal pituitary and adrenal response^. '^,^^ Last, in contrast to the exponentially
Examining role change: A qualitative study of catholic sisters who became family caregivers

Summary Women in Catholic religious institutes are members of organizations that prohibited family caregiving until the late twentieth century. Forty‐six women from 11 non‐cloistered religious institutes participated in a qualitative study focused on understanding their parent care experiences from the perspective of role theory. Embedded in a society experiencing an era of extended longevity, the study participants appear to have expanded the role of Catholic sister to include the ministry of family elder care.
Commensurate 4a0-period charge density modulations throughout the Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8+x pseudogap regime

Significance Strong Coulomb interactions between electrons on adjacent Cu atoms result in charge localization in the cuprate Mott-insulator state. When a few percent of electrons are removed, both high-temperature superconductivity and exotic charge density modulations appear. Identifying the correct fundamental theory for superconductivity requires confidence on whether a particle-like or a wave-like concept of electrons describes this physics. To address this issue, here we take the approach of using the phase of charge modulations, available only from atomic-scale imaging. It reveals a universal periodicity of the charge modulations of four crystal unit cells. These results indicate that the particle-like concept of strong interactions in real-space provides the intrinsic organizational principle for cuprate charge modulations, implying the equivalent for the superconductivity. Theories based upon strong real space (r-space) electron–electron interactions have long predicted that unidirectional charge density modulations (CDMs) with four-unit-cell (4a0) periodicity should occur in the hole-doped cuprate Mott insulator (MI). Experimentally, however, increasing the hole density p is reported to cause the conventionally defined wavevector QA of the CDM to evolve continuously as if driven primarily by momentum-space (k-space) effects. Here we introduce phase-resolved electronic structure visualization for determination of the cuprate CDM wavevector. Remarkably, this technique reveals a virtually doping-independent locking of the local CDM wavevector at |Q0|=2π/4a0 throughout the underdoped phase diagram of the canonical cuprate Bi2Sr2CaCu2O8. These observations have significant fundamental consequences because they are orthogonal to a k-space (Fermi-surface)–based picture of the cuprate CDMs but are consistent with strong-coupling r-space–based theories. Our findings imply that it is the latter that provides the intrinsic organizational principle for the cuprate CDM state.
Conceptualizing Change in the Institutional Diversity of U.S. Colleges and Universities

The paper describes a study of change in the diversity of U.S. colleges and universities from 1972–2002. Replicating the methods used by Birnbaum, the study uses institutional theory and its concepts to explore why the larger system of colleges and universities in U.S. grew less diverse during this period.
Towards a formal model for security policies specification and validation in the selinux system

This paper presents a formal model, called SELAC, for analyzing an arbitrary security policy configuration for the SELinux system. A security policy for SELinux is complex and large: it is made by many configuration rules that refer to the access control sub-models implemented in the system. Among the rules composing a security policy configuration, many relationships occur and it is extremely difficult to understand their overall effects in the system. Our aim is to define semantics for the constructs of the SELinux configuration language and to model the relationships occurring among sets of configuration rules. Finally, we develop an algorithm based upon SELAC, which can verify whether, given an arbitrary security policy configuration, a given subject can access a given object in a given mode.
Isolation and characterization of microsatellite loci from Arthropodium cirratum (Asparagaceae)1

Premise of the study: Microsatellite markers were developed for Arthropodium cirratum (Asparagaceae) to study population genetic structure and translocation of this species. These markers were tested for cross-amplification in two other Arthropodium species. Methods and Results: Sixteen microsatellite markers were developed from a genomic library and tested in three populations of A. cirratum. The loci exhibited one to five alleles per locus, with private alleles present in each of the populations. Cross-amplification tests in the two other New Zealand Arthropodium species revealed that many of the loci amplify and demonstrate polymorphism in A. bifurcatum. Conclusions: These markers will be useful for determining genetic structure in A. cirratum and for determining the origins of translocated populations of this species.
Research and Analysis of Key Technologies in Image Mosaic

Considering the traditional image match optimization algorithm is low efficiency, and ghosting artifact in the field of image stitching is a common problem and the elimination of it is not an easy task. In this paper, we presents that through cluster analysis for different scales of feature points to obtain the global and better stable affine transformation, and the matched feature points are filtered consistency by affine transformation, so it can eliminate the false matching points. An improved dynamic programming (DP) method is presented to find the best stitching line. The improved weighted average method is used to achieve smooth stitching results and eliminate intensity seam effectively. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm has good result of removing false matching and ghosting artifacts, it is robust.
Framing body size among African American women and girls

Obesity continues to affect African Americans in epidemic proportions, particularly among women and adolescent females. Perceptions, beliefs, behaviors, and body sizes of adolescents are associated with those of their mothers, yet little is known about the transgenerational meanings and experiences of obese African American adolescent girls and their mothers. An interpretive phenomenological study was conducted with seven African American adolescents between the ages of 11 and 17, and their adult female caregivers. Audio-taped interviews were transcribed and analyzed by a multicultural interpretive team. Two constitutive patterns and associated themes were identified. One pattern, ‘Framing: sizing it up; sizing it down’, with its three associated themes is presented. Mothers and daughters are engaged in multiple common practices in which they self-define body size, while protecting their self-esteem and self-image. This pattern illustrates how the women and girls created an image of their bodies as they confronted and acknowledged their self-perceptions, compared themselves to others in their environment, and evaluated themselves against specific parameters of acceptable size.
Janus kinase Inhibition and its effect upon the therapeutic landscape for myelofibrosis: from palliation to cure?

Following the discovery of the Janus kinase (JAK) 2 V617F mutation in 2005 the explosion of research and drug development activity has not only advanced our understanding of the pathogenesis of myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPNs) but also triggered debate about classification, allowed revised diagnostic and response criteria, provided a target for treatment and a mode of monitoring its success. These changes and the resultant clinical research are discussed in this article where we argue that discovery of the JAK2 V617F mutation has signalled the much delayed change in therapeutic paradigm for myelofibrosis and possibly other MPNs from palliation and allowing us to move closer to, but not yet attain, a cure.
Object removal in panoramic media

Due in large part to new consumer virtual reality systems, panoramic media is an increasingly popular image and video format. While the capture of panoramic media is well understood, editing still poses many challenges. In this paper we explore object removal in 360° images. First, a method is proposed in which field-of-view expansion using retargeting techniques is combined with Graphcut Textures to remove objects near the equator of the viewing sphere. Several extensions and refinements are proposed to improve this technique, including how it can be extended to removing objects anywhere on the viewing sphere. Secondly, inpainting in 360° images is examined, with an exploration of how the choice of projection affects the inpainting result. Finally, the latter technique is shown to work for video in certain situations.
The impact of the ‘Getting Practical: Improving Practical Work in Science’ continuing professional development programme on teachers’ ideas and practice in science practical work

Background: Despite the widespread use of practical work in school it has been recognised that more needs to be done to improve its effectiveness in developing conceptual understanding. The ‘Getting Practical’ CPD (Continuing Professional Development) programme was designed to contribute towards an improvement in the effectiveness of practical work through initiating changes in teachers’ predominantly ‘hands-on’ approach to practical work to one which manifests a more equitable balance between ‘hands-on’ and ‘minds-on’. Purpose: To evaluate the impact of the Getting Practical: Improving Practical Work in Science CPD programme on teachers’ ideas and practice in science practical work in primary and secondary schools in England. Programme description: The CPD programme was designed to improve the effectiveness of science practical work in developing conceptual understanding in primary and secondary schools in England. Sample: Ten teachers of primary science and 20 secondary science teachers. Design and methods: The study employed a condensed fieldwork strategy with data collected using interviews, observational field notes and pre- and post-CPD training observations in practical lessons within 30 schools. Results: Whilst the CPD programme was effective in getting teachers to reflect on the ideas associated with the Getting Practical programme, it was much less effective in bringing about changes in actual teaching practice. Conclusion: The findings suggest that if change, rather than only an enhanced awareness of the issues, is to be brought about in established teaching practice then there is a need for ongoing support over an extended period of time. Furthermore, the impact of such CPD is more likely to be effective if it is undertaken by a senior member of a department or school with the full support of the SMT.