Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Lymph node cortical sinus organization and relationship to lymphocyte egress dynamics and antigen exposure

Recent studies have identified cortical sinuses as sites of sphingosine-1-phosphate receptor-1 (S1P1)-dependent T- and B-cell egress from the lymph node (LN) parenchyma. However, the distribution of cortical sinuses in the entire LN and the extent of lymph flow within them has been unclear. Using 3D reconstruction and intravital two-photon microscopy we describe the branched organization of the cortical sinus network within the inguinal LN and show that lymphocyte flow begins within blunt-ended sinuses. Many cortical sinuses are situated adjacent to high endothelial venules, and some lymphocytes access these sinuses within minutes of entering a LN. However, upon entry to inflamed LNs, lymphocytes rapidly up-regulate CD69 and are prevented from accessing cortical sinuses. Using the LN reconstruction data and knowledge of lymphocyte migration and cortical sinus entry dynamics, we developed a mathematical model of T-cell egress from LNs. The model suggests that random walk encounters with lymphatic sinuses are the major factor contributing to LN transit times. A slight discrepancy between predictions of the model and the measured transit times may be explained by lymphocytes undergoing a few rounds of migration between the parenchyma and sinuses before departing from the LN. Because large soluble antigens gain rapid access to cortical sinuses, such parenchyma–sinus shuttling may facilitate antibody responses.
Propagating Trust In The Web Services Framework

In this paper, we discuss one possible way of establishing trust between a user entity and a web service. We will assume that the user entity is machine-based (i.e. some software, a mobile agent or even perhaps a web service). After a brief introduction, we will consider the concept of Trust and the Web Services framework in two separate sections. In the case of Trust, we will show that two aspects are important: on the one hand it is possible to quantify trust in order to establish a trust relationship, and on the other hand we stress the relevance of the context for which you wish to establish the trust relationship. One possible context includes security. In the case of the Web Services framework, we will show that a web service can have an extremely complex structure, which complicates the propagation of trust. The paper will conclude with a description of one possible model, which could be used to establish a trust relationship between a user entity and a complex web service. The model makes use of the underlying XML structure of Web services. It allows the user to specify parameters, which reflects the trust context as well as the users’ interpretation of the various aspects of a trust relationship.
Effect of an allergy prevention programme on incidence of atopic symptoms in infancy

A total of 105 “high‐risk” infants born in 1988 were studied prospectively from birth to 18 months of age. The infants were recommended breastfeeding and/or hypoallergenic formula (Nutramigen or Profylac) combined with avoidance of solid foods during the first 6 months of life. All mothers had unrestricted diet. Avoidance of daily exposure to tobacco smoke, furred pets and dust‐collecting materials in the bedroom were advised. This prevention group was compared with a control group consisting of 54 identically defined “high‐risk” infants born in 1985 in the same area. All infants had either severe single atopic predisposition combined with cord blood IgE ≥ 0.5 KU/1 or biparental atopic predisposition. The control group had unrestricted diet and was not advised about environmental factors. Apart from the prevention programme and year of birth the prevention group and the control group were comparable. The parents were highly motivated and compliance was good. The rate of participation was 97%, and 85% followed the dietary measures strictly. The cumulative prevalence of atopic symptoms was significantly lower at 18 months in the prevention group (32%), as compared with the control group (74%) (p<0.01), due to reduced prevalence of recurrent wheezing (13%, versus 37%; p<0.01), atopic dermatitis (14% versus 31%; p<0.01), vomiting/diarrhoea (5% versus 20%; p<0.01) and infantile colic (9% versus 24 %; p<0.01). The cumulative prevalence of food allergy was significantly lower in the prevention group (6% versus 17%; p<0.05). In both high‐risk groups daily exposure to tobacco smoke increased the risk of recurrent wheezing significantly (p<0.01). The main difference between the prevention group and the control group was the diet. Thus, feeding with breastmilk and/or hypoallergenic formula combined with avoidance of solid foods until the age of 6 months appeared to reduce the cumulative prevalence of atopic symptoms during the first 18 months of life.
Authentication protocol runtime evaluation in distributed AAA framework for Mobile Ad-Hoc Networks

Access control AAA infrastructures are traditionally used by the service providers so as to charge their subscribers. Given the easiness and the cheapness of MANET deployment and provided that charging is possible, service providers are likely to offer their services over MANET. In previous works [1] and [2], we presented a distributed AAA framework for MANET. We propose to evaluate the runtime of this framework authentication protocol by modeling and simulating typical cases that are fairly representative of the reality and can easily be extended.
Nonvolatile Memory Elements Based on Organic Materials

Many organic electronic devices exhibit switching behavior, and have therefore been proposed as the basis for a nonvolatile memory (NVM) technology. This Review summarizes the materials that have been used in switching devices, and describes the variety of device behavior observed in their charge–voltage (capacitive) or current–voltage (resistive) response. A critical summary of the proposed charge‐transport mechanisms for resistive switching is given, focusing particularly on the role of filamentary conduction and of deliberately introduced or accidental nanoparticles. The reported device parameters (on–off ratio, on‐state current, switching time, retention time, cycling endurance, and rectification) are compared with those that would be necessary for a viable memory technology.
Oxidized glutathione as a marker of ischemia reperfusion associated with single lung transplantation.

BACKGROUND Previous data have shown that glutathione (GSH), an endogenous antioxidant, is converted to its oxidized form (GSSG) after oxidative ischemia-reperfusion events. As GSSG is toxic to cells and is extruded through an active mechanism dependent on intracellular GSSG levels, substance appears in plasma. STUDY DESIGN Single lung transplantation was performed upon 18 puppies, 3 to 5 kg, with a two hour ischemic time for the donor lung before reimplantation. Recipient animal plasma was obtained after anesthesia induction, pulmonary artery ligation, recipient pneumonectomy, reestablishment of blood flow to the donor lung, completion of transplant, and one, two, and three hours postoperatively. Donor lung bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) was obtained at the time of harvest, after perfusion of the donor lung with EuroCollins, immediately pretransplant, and after completion of the vascular anastomoses. Oxidized and total GSH levels in plasma and BALF samples were determined by a spectrophotometric assay. RESULTS After reimplantation of the ischemic donor lung, there was a statistically significant increase in both GSSG and GSH in plasma samples, and a statistically significant increase in GSSG in the BALF. CONCLUSIONS Compartmental differences between arterial and venous plasma, as well as the increase in GSSG in the BALF, implicated the lung that was transplanted as the source of oxygen free radical generation and GSSG release. Plasma GSSG levels seem to provide a sensitive, noninvasive, repeatable measure of ongoing tissue response and oxygen free radical production.
Impostors, Pseudo-instancing and Image Maps for GPU Crowd Rendering

— Rendering large crowds of characters requires a great amount of computational power. To increase the efficiency for this render, we propose the use of the graphics processor, in combination of two different level-of-detail techniques: impostors, for characters with low detail, and pseudo-instancing, for characters with full detail. In addition, different approaches are used to increase the diversity in appearance for these characters, and a shadow mapping technique is integrated into the simulation.
Assessing Predation Risk to Threatened Fauna from their Prevalence in Predator Scats: Dingoes and Rodents in Arid Australia

The prevalence of threatened species in predator scats has often been used to gauge the risks that predators pose to threatened species, with the infrequent occurrence of a given species often considered indicative of negligible predation risks. In this study, data from 4087 dingo (Canis lupus dingo and hybrids) scats were assessed alongside additional information on predator and prey distribution, dingo control effort and predation rates to evaluate whether or not the observed frequency of threatened species in dingo scats warrants more detailed investigation of dingo predation risks to them. Three small rodents (dusky hopping-mice Notomys fuscus; fawn hopping-mice Notomys cervinus; plains mice Pseudomys australis) were the only threatened species detected in <8% of dingo scats from any given site, suggesting that dingoes might not threaten them. However, consideration of dingo control effort revealed that plains mice distribution has largely retracted to the area where dingoes have been most heavily subjected to lethal control. Assessing the hypothetical predation rates of dingoes on dusky hopping-mice revealed that dingo predation alone has the potential to depopulate local hopping-mice populations within a few months. It was concluded that the occurrence of a given prey species in predator scats may be indicative of what the predator ate under the prevailing conditions, but in isolation, such data can have a poor ability to inform predation risk assessments. Some populations of threatened fauna assumed to derive a benefit from the presence of dingoes may instead be susceptible to dingo-induced declines under certain conditions.
A 20-W stereo class-D audio output power stage in 0.6-/spl mu/m BCDMOS technology

This paper presents a highly power efficient 2/spl times/20-W class-D audio output power stage implemented in 0.6-/spl mu/m BCDMOS technology. The presented power stage is capable of driving 2/spl times/8-/spl Omega/ loads from a 20-V power supply at a power efficiency approaching 90%. Circuit details of thermal detection, over-current protection, and startup speaker click/pop are also presented. The performance of open-loop Class-D output stages are limited by the distortion mechanisms present within the power stage itself. A third-order PWM modulator was prototyped and used to dramatically improve the performance of the Class-D output stage by using feedback. The results of this work are also presented.
MHV vertices and scattering amplitudes in gauge theory

The generic googly amplitudes in gauge theory are computed by using the Cachazo-Svrcek-Witten approach to perturbative calculation in gauge theory and the results are in agreement with the previously well-known ones. Within this approach we also discuss the parity transformation, charge conjugation and the dual Ward identity. We also extend this calculation to include fermions and the googly amplitudes with a single quark-anti-quark pair are obtained correctly from fermionic MHV vertices. At the end we briefly discuss the possible extension of this approach to gravity.
Less weight gain and hypoglycaemia with once-daily insulin detemir than NPH insulin in intensification of insulin therapy in overweight Type 2 diabetes patients: the PREDICTIVE BMI clinical trial.

OBJECTIVE To assess weight change when once-daily insulin detemir (detemir) or neutral protamine Hagedorn insulin (NPH) are used in already overweight Type 2 diabetes patients requiring intensified insulin therapy. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS This 26-week randomized, controlled trial included adults with Type 2 diabetes [glycated haemoglobin (HbA(1c)) 7.5-11.0%, body mass index (BMI) 25-40 kg/m(2)] who had received two daily doses of insulin (at least one a premix) for > or = 3 months. Subjects received either detemir (n = 125) or NPH (n = 146) once daily in the evening and insulin aspart at main meals. Concomitant treatment with metformin was allowed. Basal insulin was titrated to a pre-breakfast plasma glucose target of 6.1 mmol/l without unacceptable hypoglycaemia. Insulin aspart was also titrated (target, postprandial glucose < or = 10.0 mmol/l without unacceptable hypoglycaemia). RESULTS At 26 weeks, weight had increased significantly less with detemir (0.4 kg) than with NPH (1.9 kg; difference 1.5 kg, P < 0.0001). BMI increase was also less with detemir than with NPH (difference 0.6 kg/m(2), P < 0.0001). HbA(1c) decreased from 8.9 to 7.8% (detemir) and from 8.8 to 7.8% (NPH; not significant for between-treatment difference). Incidence of hypoglycaemia was lower with detemir [relative risks 0.62 (all events) and 0.43 (nocturnal); P < 0.0001 for both]. CONCLUSIONS PREDICTIVE BMI was the first study to examine the effect of once-daily detemir with weight as the primary endpoint in a large population of overweight Type 2 diabetes patients. Use of once-daily detemir for intensification of insulin therapy resulted in less weight gain, less hypoglycaemia and equivalent glycaemic control compared with NPH.
Towards effective user-controlled scheduling for microkernel-based systems

With μ-kernel based systems becoming more and more prevalent, the demand for extensible resource management raises - and with it the demand for flexible thread scheduling. In this paper, we investigate the benefits and costs of a μ-kernel that exports scheduling from the kernel to user level. A key idea of our approach is to involve the user level whenever the μ-kernel encounters a situation that is ambiguous with respect to scheduling, and to permit the kernel to resolve the ambiguity based on user decisions. A further key aspect is that we rely on a generic, protection domain neutral interface between kernel and applications. For evaluation, we have developed a hierarchical user level scheduling architecture for the L4 μ-kernel, and a virtualization environment running on its top. Our environment supports Linux 2.6. 9 guest operating systems on IA-32 processors. Experiments indicate an application overhead between 0 and 10 percent compared to a pure in-kernel scheduler solution, but also demonstrate that our architecture enables effective and accurate user-directed scheduling.
User‐friendly semiautomated assembly of accurate image mosaics in microscopy

We present a semiautomated software solution to the problem of extending the lateral field of view of a classical microscope. The initial requirements are a set of overlapping images, along with their user‐provided coarse mosaic. Our solution then refines this initial mosaic in a fully automatic fashion. We rely on a highly accurate registration engine to perform the pairwise registration of the individual images, and on an efficient strategy to minimize the amount of computations while maintaining the highest possible global quality. We describe these ingredients, which we make available as a free multiplatform user‐friendly software package. We also highlight why and how the specific aspects of the present microscopy application differ from those encountered while creating more common mosaics such as panoramas. Finally, we present experimental results that illustrate and validate our method on a real biological sample. We conclude by showing that we are able to reach subpixel accuracy. Microsc. Res. Tech., 2007. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A multichannel Wiener filter with partial equalization for distributed microphones

In speech enhancement applications, the multichannel Wiener filter (MWF) is widely used to reduce noise and thus improve signal quality. The MWF performs noise reduction by estimating the desired signal component in one of the microphones, referred to as the reference microphone. However, for distributed microphones, the selection of the reference microphone has a significant impact on the broadband output SNR of the MWF, largely depending on the acoustical transfer function (ATF) between the desired source and the reference microphone. In this paper, a multichannel Wiener filtering approach using a soft combined reference is presented. Simulation results show that the proposed scheme leads to a higher broadband output SNR compared to an arbitrarily selected reference microphone, moreover achieving a partial equalization of the overall acoustic system.
HIV testing and counselling for migrant populations living in high-income countries: a systematic review

Background: The barriers to HIV testing and counselling that migrants encounter can jeopardize proactive HIV testing that relies on the fact that HIV testing must be linked to care. We analyse available evidence on HIV testing and counselling strategies targeting migrants and ethnic minorities in high-income countries. Methods: Systematic literature review of the five main databases of articles in English from Europe, North America and Australia between 2005 and 2009. Results: Of 1034 abstracts, 37 articles were selected. Migrants, mainly from HIV-endemic countries, are at risk of HIV infection and its consequences. The HIV prevalence among migrants is higher than the general population’s, and migrants have higher frequency of delayed HIV diagnosis. For migrants from countries with low HIV prevalence and for ethnic minorities, socio-economic vulnerability puts them at risk of acquiring HIV. Migrants have specific legal and administrative impediments to accessing HIV testing—in some countries, undocumented migrants are not entitled to health care—as well as cultural and linguistic barriers, racism and xenophobia. Migrants and ethnic minorities fear stigma from their communities, yet community acceptance is key for well-being. Conclusions: Migrants and ethnic minorities should be offered HIV testing, but the barriers highlighted in this review may deter programs from achieving the final goal, which is linking migrants and ethnic minorities to HIV clinical care under the public health perspective.
The mass action hypothesis: formation of Glut4 storage vesicles, a tissue‐specific, regulated exocytic compartment

Insulin stimulates glucose uptake into the target tissues of fat and muscle by recruiting or translocating Glut4 glucose transport proteins to their functional location at the cell surface. In the basal state, Glut4 is sequestered intracellularly in several vesicular compartments, one of which has come to be known as Glut4 storage vesicles (GSVs). The GSVs represent a tissue‐specific compartment that is an ultimate target of the insulin signalling cascade. Glut4 translocation has been extensively studied because of its intrinsic scientific importance to cell biology as well as its relevance to the pathology of type 2 diabetes mellitus. I review herein the ontogeny of GSVs and their composition as it relates to a tissue‐specific, hormone‐sensitive exocytic compartment and propose a mechanism for their formation.
Polymeric hydrogels for burn wound care: Advanced skin wound dressings and regenerative templates

Wound closure represents a primary goal in the treatment of very deep and/or large wounds, for which the mortality rate is particularly high. However, the spontaneous healing of adult skin eventually results in the formation of epithelialized scar and scar contracture (repair), which might distort the tissues and cause lifelong deformities and disabilities. This clinical evidence suggests that wound closure attained by means of skin regeneration, instead of repair, should be the true goal of burn wound management. The traditional concept of temporary wound dressings, able to stimulate skin healing by repair, is thus being increasingly replaced by the idea of temporary scaffolds, or regenerative templates, able to promote healing by regeneration. As wound dressings, polymeric hydrogels provide an ideal moisture environment for healing while protecting the wound, with the additional advantage of being comfortable to the patient, due to their cooling effect and non-adhesiveness to the wound tissue. More importantly, recent advances in regenerative medicine demonstrate that bioactive hydrogels can be properly designed to induce at least partial skin regeneration in vivo. The aim of this review is to provide a concise insight on the key properties of hydrogels for skin healing and regeneration, particularly highlighting the emerging role of hydrogels as next generation skin substitutes for the treatment of full-thickness burns.
Strategic Implementation Effectiveness: The Role of Knowledge Process and Infrastructure Capabilities

The creation and the use of knowledge have been regarded as important issues for management. A wide range of studies have investigated this topic during the last decade. Notwithstanding these contributions, little systematic attention has been paid to the linkages between knowledge capabilities and strategy implementation. Drawing from knowledge capabilities theory and strategy implementation literature, two aspects of knowledge capabilities in an organization and their effect on strategy implementation effectiveness are investigated; knowledge process capabilities KPC and knowledge infrastructure capabilities KIC. This study hypothesized that KPC affects strategy implementation effectiveness SIE and that KPC affects KIC. The third hypothesis proposed the effect of KIC on SIE by examining the mediating role played by KIC in linking KPC and SIE. 1,321 middle-managers were sent questionnaires via electronic mail and 162 were returned. The findings indicated the presence of a mediation effect of KIC on the relationship between KPC and SIE. This study provides guidelines for middle-managers to better understand how to develop activities of KPC and KIC for SIE. In this study, the authors enhance understanding of the strategic importance of knowledge in an organization, especially in the area of strategy implementation.
Central charge as the origin of holomorphic effective action in N=2 gauge theory

We show explicitly that the perturbative holomorphic contribution to the off-shell effective action of N=2 U(1) gauge supermultiplet is an entire effect of the minimal coupling to a hypermultiplet with the mass generated by a central charge in N = 2 superalgebra. The central charge is induced by a constant vacuum N = 2 gauge superfield strength spontaneously breaking the automorphism U(1)R symmetry of N = 2 superalgebra. We use the manifestly off-shell supersymmetric harmonic superspace techniques of quantum calculations with the central charge-massive hypermultiplet propagator.