Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Long-term safety and efficacy of infliximab for the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis

The introduction of TNFα blockers has revolutionized the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis (AS). The objectives of this review are to summarize the most up-to-date data on long-term efficacy and safety of infliximab in AS, with special emphasis on axial and extra-articular disease, predictors of response, and radiological response. The general consensus of this literature search was that infliximab is highly efficacious in the treatment of AS. Most studies have demonstrated good clinical outcomes after 3 years of treatment, as measured by Spondyloarthritis International Society response in 75%–85% of treated AS patients. Reports on the long-term effects of infliximab as documented by radiological findings, however, are controversial. While some studies reported a similar progression rate as that of the historical OASIS cohort, others have suggested that infliximab may halt new bone formation. The long-term safety of infliximab is well known, mainly from data stored in national registries. While it has been suggested that side effects of infliximab may be fewer in AS compared to rheumatoid arthritis, data on this issue are sparse, with most of the information on long-term safety pertaining to rheumatoid arthritis. It can however be concluded that the long-term efficacy of infliximab is apparently maintained in AS and with an acceptable safety profile.
An empirical investigation on search engine ad disclosure

This representative study of German search engine users (N = 1,000) focuses on the ability of users to distinguish between organic results and advertisements on Google results pages. We combine questions about Google's business with task‐based studies in which users were asked to distinguish between ads and organic results in screenshots of results pages. We find that only a small percentage of users can reliably distinguish between ads and organic results, and that user knowledge of Google's business model is very limited. We conclude that ads are insufficiently labelled as such, and that many users may click on ads assuming that they are selecting organic results.
Pothole detection system using 2D LiDAR and camera

Automatic Pothole detection is important task for determining proper strategies of asphalt-surfaced pavement maintenance. In this paper, we develop a pothole detection system and method using 2D LiDAR and Camera. To improve the pothole detection accuracy, the combination of heterogeneous sensor system is used. By using 2D LiDAR, the distance and angle information of road are obtained. The pothole detection algorithm includes noise reduction pre-processing, clustering, line segment extraction, and gradient of pothole data function. Next, image-based pothole detection method is used to improve the accuracy of pothole detection and to obtain pothole shape. Image-based algorithm includes noise filtering, brightness control, binarization, addictive noise filtering, edge extraction, and object extraction and pothole detection. To show the pothole detection performance, experiments of pothole detection system using 2D LiDAR and camera are performed.
Exercise Training Improves but Does Not Normalize Left Ventricular Systolic and Diastolic Function in Adolescents With Type 1 Diabetes

OBJECTIVE To determine the impact of 20 weeks of exercise training in aerobic capacity on left ventricular function and glycemic control in adolescents with and without type 1 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Fifty-three adolescents with type 1 diabetes (aged 15.6 years) were divided into two groups: exercise training (n = 38) and nontraining (n = 15). Twenty-two healthy adolescents without diabetes (aged 16.7 years) were included and, with the 38 participants with type 1 diabetes, participated in a 20-week exercise-training intervention. Assessments included VO2max and body composition. Left ventricular parameters were obtained at rest and during acute exercise using MRI. RESULTS Exercise training improved aerobic capacity (10%) and stroke volume (6%) in both trained groups, but the increase in the group with type 1 diabetes remained lower than trained control subjects. Increased stroke volume in adolescents with type 1 diabetes resulted from greater left ventricular contractility (9% increase in ejection fraction and an 11% reduction in end-systolic volumes) and, to a lesser extent, improved left ventricular filling (6%), suggesting that impaired diastolic function can be affected by exercise training in adolescents with type 1 diabetes. Insulin use decreased by ∼10%, but no change in glycemic status was observed. CONCLUSIONS These data demonstrate that in adolescents, the impairment in left ventricular function seen with type 1 diabetes can be improved, although not normalized, with regular intense physical activity. Importantly, diastolic dysfunction, a common mechanism causing heart failure in older subjects with diabetes, appears to be partially reversible in this age group.
Performance at two rearing temperatures of White Leghorn lines selected for increased and decreased survival under heat stress.

Body weight and percent mortality resulting from heat stress at 40.6 C were determined on two lines selected for resistance and susceptibility to heat stress by the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station and reared from 5 to 9 weeks of age in two temperatures, 32.2 C and 21.1 C. The resistant line was significantly smaller in body weight at 5 and 9 weeks of age and had less gain in weight from 5 to 9 weeks of age than the heat susceptible line. Birds reared in the cold environment had significantly larger 9-week body weight and gain from 5 to 9 weeks of age than those reared in the hot environment. At 9 weeks of age the birds were heat stressed at 40.6 C and 50% relative humidity. The heat resistant line had a significantly lower percent mortality than the heat susceptible line. Birds reared at 21.1 C had a significantly greater percent mortality when heat stressed than those reared at 32.2 C. No interaction occurred between the selected lines and the temperatures in which they were reared for percent mortality or any of the body weight traits. Comparison with other experiments involving the same base population from which the Florida lines were selected indicated that the response to selection for resistance was greater than that to selection for susceptibility. It is suggested that natural selection for heat resistance could be responsible for the asymmetry of response. An estimate of the genetic correlations (rG) was derived as the geometric mean of the ratios of correlated to direct responses. The estimate of rG between body weight gain from 5 to 9 weeks of age and percent mortality under heat stress was . 16.
Dynamic Pilot Allocation Channel Estimation with Spatial Multiplexing for MIMO-OFDM Systems

In this paper, we investigate a dynamic pilot allocation algorithm for Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT)-based channel estimation in MIMO-OFDM systems, which employs feedback to adapt pilot locations to mobile channels for different receivers (ZF-linear, ZF-SIC, MMSElinear, MMSE-SIC). The pilot allocation is dynamically controlled by feedback of the pilot allocation index so to optimize SER performance. Furthermore, mathematical expressions of the instantaneous signal to interference and noise ratio (SINR) in the presence of channel estimation error for different receivers are derived to obtain the error probabilities of data subcarriers through an approximate error probability function for MPSK modulation. The pilot locations are based on these error probabilities to avoid data symbols transmitted over these subcarriers with high error probabilities instead of pilots over them. Simulation results are provided to illustrate the performance gains achieved with these receivers by this dynamic pilot allocation.
Airport Detection in Large-Scale SAR Images via Line Segment Grouping and Saliency Analysis

The detection of airports using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images has attracted considerable attention. Traditional methods locate airports by connecting pairs of line segments or directly applying saliency analysis to an entire SAR image. These methods are either time-consuming or can easily result in false detection. Considering these issues, a method using line segment grouping and saliency analysis is proposed in this letter. First, line segments are obtained via an improved line segment detector (LSD). After line segment grouping, airport support regions are extracted. Then, selective nonmaximum suppression is proposed to obtain potential airport regions. Finally, airport regions are located by false alarm control and saliency analysis. Experiments on large-scale SAR images prove that our proposed algorithm has a better performance and higher efficiency in airport detection compared with traditional methods.
Thromboxane mimics the pulmonary but not systemic vascular responses to bolus HCl injections in broiler chickens.

Bolus i.v. injections of 1.2 N HCl elicit a rapid but transient pulmonary vasoconstriction in broiler chickens. In mammals, the pulmonary vasoconstrictive response to bolus acid injection depends on increased synthesis of thromboxane A2; however, the vascular responsiveness of domestic fowl to thromboxane previously had not been evaluated. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that, if HCl triggers pulmonary vasoconstriction by stimulating thromboxane A2 synthesis in broilers, then bolus i.v. injections of the potent thromboxane A2 mimetic U44069 (9,11-dideoxy-9alpha,11alpha-epoxy-methanoprostaglandin++ + F2alpha; 1 micromol/mL; 0.5 mL injected volume) should trigger hemodynamic responses similar to those elicited by HCl (1.2 N; 1.5 mL injected volume). Both HCl and the thromboxane mimetic elicited twofold or greater increases in pulmonary vascular resistance, which in turn increased pulmonary arterial pressure by 50% despite concurrent reductions in cardiac output. The reductions in cardiac output were associated with reductions in stroke volume but not heart rate. The thromboxane mimetic also increased the total peripheral resistance, which minimized the reduction in mean systemic arterial pressure associated with the decrease in cardiac output. In contrast, HCl injections did not increase total peripheral resistance; consequently, the reduction in cardiac output caused the mean systemic arterial pressure to decrease by 30 mm Hg. Mannitol (2.5%; 1.5 mL) was injected i.v. as a volume control, and had no influence on any of the variables. This study provides the first direct evidence that thromboxane is a potent pulmonary vasoconstrictor in broilers, and provides support for the hypothesis that thromboxane mediates the pulmonary vasoconstrictive response to bolus i.v. injections of HCl. The differential response of the systemic vasculature to the thromboxane mimetic and HCl may indicate that cardiopulmonary responses to HCl injections are not mediated solely via thromboxane production. Alternatively, a direct dilatory effect of elevated hydrogen ion concentrations on the systemic vasculature may have counteracted any tendency for simultaneously evolved endogenous thromboxane to elicit systemic vasoconstriction.
IMASS: An Intelligent Microblog Analysis and Summarization System

This paper presents a system to summarize a Microblog post and its responses with the goal to provide readers a more constructive and concise set of information for efficient digestion. We introduce a novel two-phase summarization scheme. In the first phase, the post plus its responses are classified into four categories based on the intention, interrogation, sharing, discussion and chat. For each type of post, in the second phase, we exploit different strategies, including opinion analysis, response pair identification, and response relevancy detection, to summarize and highlight critical information to display. This system provides an alternative thinking about machine-summarization: by utilizing AI approaches, computers are capable of constructing deeper and more user-friendly abstraction.
Strain comparison of turkey egg components.

Two experiments were conducted to quantify the composition of turkey hatching eggs in relation to strain of bird and age of breeder. In one experiment, 20 Nicholas and British United Turkeys of America (BUTA) eggs produced at 3, 12, and 24 wk of production were examined for physical and chemical components. Eggs from Nicholas hens were always some 4 g heavier (P < .05) due essentially to a larger albumen content. Although absolute components increased over time (P < .05), there were few changes in proportional composition (P > .05). Eggs from BUTA turkeys initially contained more yolk protein (P < .05). At 12 and 24 wk of production, eggs from Nicholas hens changed most rapidly and at these ages contained more yolk protein than the BUTA strain eggs (P < .05). At the end of the production cycle, BUTA eggs contained less lipid and protein in the yolk (P < .05). For both strains there was an increase in stearic acid content of yolk lipid with increased breeder age. In a second experiment, comparable studies were conducted on eggs obtained from male and female line BUTA breeding stock. Although male line eggs were heavier (87 vs 78 g), the smaller female line eggs exhibited proportionally more yolk (P < .05), as absolute yolk weight was similar for both strains (22.4 vs 22.5 g). It was concluded that only minor differences exist in components of eggs from different turkey strains.
Rearing Methods for the Black Soldier Fly (Diptera: Stratiomyidae)

Abstract The black soldier fly, Hermetia illucens (L.), is a nonpest tropical and warm-temperate region insect that is useful for managing large concentrations of animal manure and other biosolids. Manure management relying on wild fly oviposition has been successful in several studies. However, confidence in this robust natural system was low and biological studies were hampered by the lack of a dependable source of eggs and larvae. Larvae had been reared easily by earlier investigators, but achieving mating had been problematic. We achieved mating reliably in a 2 by 2 by 4-m screen cage in a 7 by 9 by 5-m greenhouse where sunlight and adequate space for aerial mating were available. Mating occurred during the shortest days of winter if the sun was not obscured by clouds. Adults were provided with water, but no food was required. Techniques for egg collection and larval rearing are given. Larvae were fed a moist mixture of wheat bran, corn meal, and alfalfa meal. This culture has been maintained for 3 yr. Maintainance of a black soldier fly laboratory colony will allow for development of manure management systems in fully enclosed animal housing and in colder regions.
Study on Frost resistance of High strength Concrete

In this paper, frost resistance of high strength concrete of C60, C80 and C100 has been studied from both of macro and micro respects. The macro study results indicate that the frost resistance of the high strength concrete of C60 does not reach 300 cycles of freezing and thawing. But the frost resistance of the air entrained and high strength concrete of C60 is much better, and 1 200 freezing thawing cycles can be exceeded by rapid frosting method. The frost resistance of the high strength concrete of C80 and C100 is also so good that 1 200 freezing thawing cycles can be exceeded by rapid frosting method too. Meanwhile, after a certain freezing thawing cycles, the flexural strength of high strength concrete drops remarkably. The micro study results indicate that the high strength concrete has super high performance of frost resistance when its mean radius of air void is less than 0.01 cm. In the freeze thaw process, the destruction of micro void is mainly that of the capillary pores for the high strength concrete of C60, but may be that of the very small capillary pores and the bigger gel pores for the high strength concrete of C80 or C100.
Anatomical and functional neuroimaging in awake, behaving marmosets

The common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) is a small New World monkey that has gained significant recent interest in neuroscience research, not only because of its compatibility with gene editing techniques, but also due to its tremendous versatility as an experimental animal model. Neuroimaging modalities, including anatomical (MRI) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), complemented by two‐photon laser scanning microscopy and electrophysiology, have been at the forefront of unraveling the anatomical and functional organization of the marmoset brain. High‐resolution anatomical MRI of the marmoset brain can be obtained with remarkable cytoarchitectonic detail. Functional MRI of the marmoset brain has been used to study various sensory systems, including somatosensory, auditory, and visual pathways, while resting‐state fMRI studies have unraveled functional brain networks that bear great correspondence to those previously described in humans. Two‐photon laser scanning microscopy of the marmoset brain has enabled the simultaneous recording of neuronal activity from thousands of neurons with single cell spatial resolution. In this article, we aim to review the main results obtained by our group and by our colleagues in applying neuroimaging techniques to study the marmoset brain. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 77: 373–389, 2017
Linking masculinity to negative drinking consequences: the mediating roles of heavy episodic drinking and alcohol expectancies.

OBJECTIVE This study extends previous research on masculinity and negative drinking consequences among young men by considering mediating effects of heavy episodic drinking (HED) and alcohol expectancies. We hypothesized that masculinity would have a direct relationship with negative consequences from drinking as well as indirect relationships mediated by HED and alcohol expectancies of courage, risk, and aggression. METHOD A random sample of 1,436 college and university men ages 19-25 years completed an online survey, including conformity to masculine norms, alcohol-related expectancies, HED, and negative drinking consequences. Regression analyses and structural equation modeling were used. RESULTS Six of seven dimensions of masculinity and the alcohol expectancy scales were significantly associated with both HED and negative consequences. In multivariate regression models predicting HED and negative consequences, the playboy and violence dimensions of masculinity and the risk/aggression alcohol expectancy remained significant. HED and the risk-taking dimension of masculinity were also significant in the model predicting negative consequences. The structural equation model indicated that masculinity was directly associated with HED and negative consequences but also influenced negative consequences indirectly through HED and alcohol expectancies. CONCLUSIONS The findings suggest that, among young adult male college and university students, masculinity is an important factor related to both HED and drinking consequences, with the latter effect partly mediated by HED and alcohol expectancies. Addressing male norms about masculinity may help to reduce HED and negative consequences from drinking.
Localized surface plasmon resonance based biosensing

ABSTRACT Introduction: Bioanalytical sensing based on the principle of localized surface plasmon resonance experiences is currently an extremely rapid development. Novel sensors with new kinds of plasmonic transducers and innovative concepts for the signal development as well as read-out principles were identified. This review will give an overview of the development of this field. Areas covered: The focus is primarily on types of transducers by preparation or dimension, factors for optimal sensing concepts and the critical view of the usability of these devices as innovative sensors for bioanalytical applications. Expert commentary: Plasmonic sensor devices offer a high potential for future biosensing given that limiting factors such as long-time stability of the transducers, the required high sensitivity and the cost-efficient production are addressed. For higher sensitivity, the design of the sensor in shape and material has to be combined with optimal enhancement strategies. Plasmonic nanoparticles from bottom-up synthesis with a post-synthetic processing show a high potential for cost-efficient sensor production. Regarding the measurement principle, LSPRi offers a large potential for multiplex sensors and can provide a high-throughput as well as highly paralleled sensing. The main trends are expected towards optimal LSPR concepts which represent cost-efficient and robust point-of-care solutions, and the use of multiplexed devices for clinical applications.
Cyclical expression of GDNF is required for spermatogonial stem cell homeostasis

ABSTRACT In the murine testis, self-renewal of spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) requires glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) secreted from neighboring somatic cells. However, it not clear how GDNF promotes self-renewal in vivo or what downstream signaling pathways are required for SSC maintenance. We found that GDNF is normally expressed cyclically during spermatogenesis. Stage-specific ectopic expression of GDNF caused the accumulation of a GFRA1+ LIN28− Asingle population, which has enhanced SSC activity compared with wild type, suggesting that GDNF normally limits self-renewal to specific stages. Despite the increase in SSC cell number, EdU labeling during steady-stage spermatogenesis, and during recovery after busulfan-mediated spermatogonial depletion, indicated that GDNF promotes self-renewal by blocking differentiation and not by promoting proliferation. Increased GDNF signaling led to increased phosphorylation of AKT3 in undifferentiated spermatogonia, but not of AKT1 or AKT2, and was independent of RPS6 phosphorylation, suggesting that AKT3 functions in SSC self-renewal or progenitor cell expansion. Summary: Stage-specific overexpression of GDNF in mouse spermatagonial stem cells blocks their differentiation and promotes self-renewal, rather than promoting their proliferation.
BotGM: Unsupervised graph mining to detect botnets in traffic flows

Botnets are one of the most dangerous and serious cybersecurity threats since they are a major vector of large-scale attack campaigns such as phishing, distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, trojans, spams, etc. A large body of research has been accomplished on botnet detection, but recent security incidents show that there are still several challenges remaining to be addressed, such as the ability to develop detectors which can cope with new types of botnets. In this paper, we propose BotGM, a new approach to detect botnet activities based on behavioral analysis of network traffic flow. BotGM identifies network traffic behavior using graph-based mining techniques to detect botnets behaviors and model the dependencies among flows to trace-back the root causes then. We applied BotGM on a publicly available large dataset of Botnet network flows, where it detects various botnet behaviors with a high accuracy without any prior knowledge of them.