Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Design and Evaluation Criteria for High Power Drives

The need to increase the amount of mineral being processed has originated the use of high power converters (HPC), many of them in the Megawatt range. There are several design aspects which must fulfill the operational requirements, which mean technical challenges for designers, manufacturers and operators. This paper presents the general requirements for high power drives applied to the most used industrial topologies (cycloconverters, current source inverters, neutral point clamped and H-Bridge cascade), and the design aspect for these converters. This paper includes evaluation criteria and some practical experiences.
Increased Eicosanoid Levels in the Sugen/Chronic Hypoxia Model of Severe Pulmonary Hypertension

Inflammation and altered immunity are recognized components of severe pulmonary arterial hypertension in human patients and in animal models of PAH. While eicosanoid metabolites of cyclooxygenase and lipoxygenase pathways have been identified in the lungs from pulmonary hypertensive animals their role in the pathogenesis of severe angioobliterative PAH has not been examined. Here we investigated whether a cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) inhibitor or diethylcarbamazine (DEC), that is known for its 5-lipoxygenase inhibiting and antioxidant actions, modify the development of PAH in the Sugen 5416/hypoxia (SuHx) rat model. The COX-2 inhibitor SC-58125 had little effect on the right ventricular pressure and did not prevent the development of pulmonary angioobliteration. In contrast, DEC blunted the muscularization of pulmonary arterioles and reduced the number of fully obliterated lung vessels. DEC treatment of SuHx rats, after the lung vascular disease had been established, reduced the degree of PAH, the number of obliterated arterioles and the degree of perivascular inflammation. We conclude that the non-specific anti-inflammatory drug DEC affects developing PAH and is partially effective once angioobliterative PAH has been established.
An Appraisal of the Classic Forest Succession Paradigm with the Shade Tolerance Index

In this paper we revisit the classic theory of forest succession that relates shade tolerance and species replacement and assess its validity to understand patch-mosaic patterns of forested ecosystems of the USA. We introduce a macroscopic parameter called the “shade tolerance index” and compare it to the classic continuum index in southern Wisconsin forests. We exemplify shade tolerance driven succession in White Pine–Eastern Hemlock forests using computer simulations and analyzing approximated chronosequence data from the USDA FIA forest inventory. We describe this parameter across the last 50 years in the ecoregions of mainland USA, and demonstrate that it does not correlate with the usual macroscopic characteristics of stand age, biomass, basal area, and biodiversity measures. We characterize the dynamics of shade tolerance index using transition matrices and delimit geographical areas based on the relevance of shade tolerance to explain forest succession. We conclude that shade tolerance driven succession is linked to climatic variables and can be considered as a primary driving factor of forest dynamics mostly in central-north and northeastern areas in the USA. Overall, the shade tolerance index constitutes a new quantitative approach that can be used to understand and predict succession of forested ecosystems and biogeographic patterns.
Deiodinases, Organic Anion Transporter Polypeptide Polymorphisms, and Thyroid Hormones in Patients with Myocardial Infarction.

AIM To investigate the association among deiodinases (DIO), organic anion-transporting polypeptide 1C1 (OATP1C1) gene polymorphisms, and thyroid hormones (THs) in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). METHODS In summary, 290 patients with AMI were evaluated for sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, coronary artery disease (CAD) risk factors, and comorbidities, as well as circulating thyroid-stimulating hormone and TH (triiodothyronine [T3], thyroxine [T4], free T3, free T4, and reverse T3) levels. Ten single nucleotide polymorphisms for thyroid axis related genes: DIO1 (rs11206244-C/T, rs12095080-A/G, rs2235544-A/C), DIO2 (rs225014-T/C, rs225015-G/A), DIO3 (rs945006-T/G), and OATP1C1 (rs10444412-T/C, rs10770704-C/T, rs1515777-A/G, rs974453-G/A) were genotyped. RESULTS Marginal associations were observed between the DIO1, DIO2, and OATP1C1 gene polymorphisms and almost all analyzed THs (p's < 0.05). After controlling for potential confounders, the OATP1C1 rs1515777-A/G minor allele homozygous genotype (G/G) was associated with a decrease in circulating free T3 and free T3/free T4. In the AMI cohort, associations between: DIO1 rs12095080 and hypertension; DIO2 rs225015 and diabetes mellitus; and the OATP1C1 rs974453 genotype, and AMI type were established. CONCLUSIONS DIO1 and DIO2 gene polymorphisms are mainly associated with T3, free T4, free T3/free T4, and [natural-log transformed (ln)] reverse T3 levels, while the OATP1C1 minor allele homozygous genotype is associated with free T3 and free T3/free T4 in CAD patients after AMI.
Origin of Nonideal Graphene-Silicon Schottky Junction

In this paper, we investigate the origin of the nonideal turn- ON characteristics of the graphene-silicon Schottky junction. Native oxide (SiO2) is proved to play a critical role in determining the behavior of a graphene-Si junction. Within the metal–oxide–semiconductor structure, the effective voltage drop across the junction degrades due to the capacitor network, which contributes to an increased ideality factor. Residual metal catalysts are detected, which act as recombination centers in the silicon and further degrade the ideality factor by enhancing the recombination current. The recombination current is found to be the dominant factor in making the junction nonideal. Forming gas annealing and the insertion of an interfacial dielectric restore the ideality of a graphene-Si junction by reducing the interface states and bulk recombination centers.
Experimental conditions improving in‐solution target enrichment for ancient DNA

High‐throughput sequencing has dramatically fostered ancient DNA research in recent years. Shotgun sequencing, however, does not necessarily appear as the best‐suited approach due to the extensive contamination of samples with exogenous environmental microbial DNA. DNA capture‐enrichment methods represent cost‐effective alternatives that increase the sequencing focus on the endogenous fraction, whether it is from mitochondrial or nuclear genomes, or parts thereof. Here, we explored experimental parameters that could impact the efficacy of MYbaits in‐solution capture assays of ~5000 nuclear loci or the whole genome. We found that varying quantities of the starting probes had only moderate effect on capture outcomes. Starting DNA, probe tiling, the hybridization temperature and the proportion of endogenous DNA all affected the assay, however. Additionally, probe features such as their GC content, number of CpG dinucleotides, sequence complexity and entropy and self‐annealing properties need to be carefully addressed during the design stage of the capture assay. The experimental conditions and probe molecular features identified in this study will improve the recovery of genetic information extracted from degraded and ancient remains.
Acoustic noise mitigation of switched reluctance machines with windows in both stator and rotor poles

Switched Reluctance Machines (SRMs) have been studied by many researchers as an alternative to other types of electrical machines for use in electric and hybrid vehicle applications. SRMs are fault tolerant and have wide speed operating range. However, they suffer from several disadvantages including high vibration, acoustic noise and torque ripple. In this paper, placement of rectangular windows in both the rotor and stator poles is proposed to reduce the vibration and acoustic noise of SRMs. The position and the dimensions of the windows are optimized through Electromagnetic Finite Element Analysis (FEA). Multi-physics FEA is also performed to predict the vibration and acoustic noise of the optimized design. The results of this study confirm that placing windows in both the stator and the rotor of the SRMs can significantly reduce the acoustic noise compared to conventional SRMs.
Multiple cytoskeletal pathways and PI3K signaling mediate CDC-42-induced neuronal protrusion in C. elegans

Rho GTPases are key regulators of cellular protrusion and are involved in many developmental events including axon guidance during nervous system development. Rho GTPase pathways display functional redundancy in developmental events, including axon guidance. Therefore, their roles can often be masked when using simple loss-of-function genetic approaches. As a complement to loss-of-function genetics, we constructed a constitutively activated CDC-42(G12V) expressed in C. elegans neurons. CDC-42(G12V) drove the formation of ectopic lamellipodial and filopodial protrusions in the PDE neurons, which resembled protrusions normally found on migrating growth cones of axons. We then used a candidate gene approach to identify molecules that mediate CDC-42(G12V)-induced ectopic protrusions by determining if loss of function of the genes could suppress CDC-42(G12V). Using this approach, we identified 3 cytoskeletal pathways previously implicated in axon guidance, the Arp2/3 complex, UNC-115/abLIM, and UNC-43/Ena. We also identified the Nck-interacting kinase MIG-15/NIK and p21-activated kinases (PAKs), also implicated in axon guidance. Finally, PI3K signaling was required, specifically the Rictor/mTORC2 branch but not the mTORC1 branch that has been implicated in other aspects of PI3K signaling including stress and aging. Our results indicate that multiple pathways can mediate CDC-42-induced neuronal protrusions that might be relevant to growth cone protrusions during axon pathfinding. Each of these pathways involves Rac GTPases, which might serve to integrate the pathways and coordinate the multiple CDC-42 pathways. These pathways might be relevant to developmental events such as axon pathfinding as well as disease states such as metastatic melanoma.
Effect of Curcumin on Systemic T Helper 17 Cell Response; Gingival Expressions of Interleukin-17 and Retinoic Acid Receptor-Related Orphan Receptor γt; and Alveolar Bone Loss in Experimental Periodontitis.

BACKGROUND Curcumin has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects and is reported to have many biologic activities. The current study examines effect of curcumin on: 1) systemic T helper 17 (Th17) cell response; 2) gingival expressions of interleukin (IL)-17 and retinoic acid receptor-related orphan receptor (ROR) γt; and 3) alveolar bone loss (ABL) in experimental periodontitis. METHODS Thirty-eight male albino Wistar rats were divided into four groups: 1) group 1 = periodontitis; 2) group 2 = periodontitis with curcumin treatment; 3) group 3 = periodontally healthy with curcumin treatment; and 4) group 4 = periodontally healthy. Curcumin was administered via oral gavage (30 mg/kg/d) for 15 days. After sacrifice via exsanguination, the following serum levels were determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay: 1) IL-1β; 2) IL-6; 3) IL-17A; 4) IL-23; and 5) transforming growth factor- β. Morphometric evaluation of ABL was conducted and expression levels of IL-17 and RORγt in gingival tissues were evaluated immunohistochemically. RESULTS Group 2 had significantly lower ABL than group 1 (P <0.0125). Highest expression levels of IL-17 and RORγt were observed in group 1 and were significantly higher than those in all other groups (P <0.0125). The only serum biochemical parameter significantly different among groups was level of IL-23 (P <0.05). Serum IL-23 levels were higher in groups 1 and 2 than groups 3 and 4 (P <0.0125); however, they were not significantly different for groups 1 and 2 (P >0.0125). CONCLUSION Curcumin seems to be a promising host modulatory agent in periodontal disease pathogenesis regarding IL-17/IL-23 axis, with a decreasing effect on ABL and gingival expressions of IL-17 and RORγt.
Development of biodegradable solid polymer electrolytes incorporating different nanoparticles for electric double layer capacitor / Chong Mee Yoke

The increasing demand, rapid consumption of fossil fuels and undesirable consequences of environmental pollution are the alarming concerns from the last few decades. Therefore, much effort has been made to develop biodegradable solid polymer electrolyte (SPE) using natural polymer as host polymer for energy storage and energy conversion devices. The choice of natural polymers as host polymer for the preparation of SPE are hydroxylpropylmethyl cellulose (HPMC) and hydroxylethyl cellulose (HEC). As a result, HEC has been chosen in this study because it has huge amount of hydroxyl groups compared to cellulose and its derivatives. Consequently, it assists in the adsorption of charge carriers, which results in the improvement of charge storage capacity. However, preparation of biodegradable SPE by using solution casting technique exhibits low ionic conductivity. Thus, green ionic liquid (1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium trifluoromethanesulfonate (EMIMTf)) and nanoparticles (fumed silica (fumed SiO2), copper(II) oxide (CuO) and yttrium(III) oxide (Y2O3)) have been incorporated into the biodegradable SPE along with magnesium trifluoromethanesulfonate (MgTf2) salt as mobile charge carriers to improve its ionic conductivity for electric double layer capacitor (EDLC). Electric double layer capacitor has been chosen over batteries owing to their good thermal and chemical stability, higher potential window (which leads to high energy density) and longer cycling stability. Based on the findings, cell fabricated by inclusion of 2 wt. % of CuO nanoparticles obtained the highest specific capacitance (36.7 F/g) at scan rate of 5 mV/s along with the lowest charge transfer resistance (25.0 Ω) whereas cell fabricated by 2 wt. % of Y2O3 nanoparticles achieved the highest capacitance retention of 91.3 % over 3,000 cycles at current density of 0.4 A/g.
GROWTH OF SILVER NANOPARTICLES ON TRANSPARENT SUBSTRATES FROM LIQUID PRECURSORS: IMPROVEMENTS AND APPLICATIONS

OF DISSERTATION GROWTH OF SILVER NANOPARTICLES ON TRANSPARENT SUBSTRATES FROM LIQUID PRECURSORS: IMPROVEMENTS AND APPLICATIONS Interest in controlling the synthesis of silver nanoparticles in colloidal solutions has increased during the last two decades. There is also growing interest in forming layers of silver nanoparticles on substrates, particularly for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy applications. However, methods to grow silver nanoparticles directly on substrates have not been studied extensively, and there are few techniques for controlling the size, shape, density, and location of the particles. This work presents a simple and reliable method to photodeposit silver nanoparticles onto transparent substrates. The size, shape and deposition density of the nanoparticles are influenced by the precursor solution, light intensity, and surface modification of the substrate. This allows control of the optical and electrical properties of the nanoparticle films. Furthermore, the particles can be patterned using direct laser exposure, scanning probe methods, and electron-beam lithography. Applications and advantages of this deposition method are proposed and explored.
Resistance Mechanisms to Targeted Therapies in ROS1+ and ALK+ Non–small Cell Lung Cancer

Purpose: Despite initial benefit from tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKIs), patients with advanced non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) harboring ALK (ALK+) and ROS1 (ROS1+) gene fusions ultimately progress. Here, we report on the potential resistance mechanisms in a series of patients with ALK+ and ROS1+ NSCLC progressing on different types and/or lines of ROS1/ALK–targeted therapy. Experimental Design: We used a combination of next-generation sequencing (NGS), multiplex mutation assay, direct DNA sequencing, RT-PCR, and FISH to identify fusion variants/partners and copy-number gain (CNG), kinase domain mutations (KDM), and copy-number variations (CNVs) in other cancer-related genes. We performed testing on 12 ROS1+ and 43 ALK+ patients. Results: One of 12 ROS1+ (8%) and 15 of 43 (35%) ALK+ patients harbored KDM. In the ROS1+ cohort, we identified KIT and β-catenin mutations and HER2-mediated bypass signaling as non-ROS1–dominant resistance mechanisms. In the ALK+ cohort, we identified a novel NRG1 gene fusion, a RET fusion, 2 EGFR, and 3 KRAS mutations, as well as mutations in IDH1, RIT1, NOTCH, and NF1. In addition, we identified CNV in multiple proto-oncogenes genes including PDGFRA, KIT, KDR, GNAS, K/HRAS, RET, NTRK1, MAP2K1, and others. Conclusions: We identified a putative TKI resistance mechanism in six of 12 (50%) ROS1+ patients and 37 of 43 (86%) ALK+ patients. Our data suggest that a focus on KDMs will miss most resistance mechanisms; broader gene testing strategies and functional validation is warranted to devise new therapeutic strategies for drug resistance. Clin Cancer Res; 24(14); 3334–47. ©2018 AACR.
Jasmonate Signaling: Toward an Integrated View

Oxylipins are biologically active signaling molecules derived from oxygenated polyunsaturated fatty acids and are found ubiquitously in most living organisms. In mammals, the eicosanoids, which include prostaglandins, are one of the best-studied groups of biologically important oxylipins. In
Alteration of Histone Acetylation Pattern during Long-Term Serum-Free Culture Conditions of Human Fetal Placental Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Increasing evidence suggests that the mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from placenta of fetal origin (fPMSCs) are superior to MSCs of other sources for cell therapy. Since the initial number of isolated MSCs is limited, in vitro propagation is often required to reach sufficient numbers of cells for therapeutic applications, during which MSCs may undergo genetic and/or epigenetic alterations that subsequently increase the probability of spontaneous malignant transformation. Thus, factors that influence genomic and epigenetic stability of MSCs following long-term expansions need to be clarified before cultured MSCs are employed for clinical settings. To date, the genetic and epigenetic stability of fPMSCs after long-term in vitro expansion has not been fully investigated. In this report, alterations to histone acetylation and consequence on the expression pattern of fPMSCs following in vitro propagation under serum-free conditions were explored. The results show that fPMSCs maintain their MSC characteristics before they reached a senescent state. Furthermore, acetylation modification patterns were changed in fPMSCs along with gradually increased global histone deacetylase (HDAC) activity and expression of HDAC subtypes HDAC4, HDAC5 and HDAC6, as well as a down-regulated global histone H3/H4 acetylation during in vitro culturing. In line with the acetylation alterations, the expression of oncogenes Oct4, Sox2 and TERT were significantly decreased over the propagation period. Of note, the down-regulation of Oct4 was strongly associated with changes in acetylation. Intriguingly, telomere length in fPMSCs did not significantly change during the propagating process. These findings suggest that human fPMSCs may be a safe and reliable resource of MSCs and can be propagated under serum-free conditions with less risk of spontaneous malignancy, and warrants further validation in clinical settings.
Host-Pathogen interactions modulated by small RNAs

ABSTRACT Biological processes such as defense mechanisms and microbial offense strategies are regulated through RNA induced interference in eukaryotes. Genetic mutations are modulated through biogenesis of small RNAs which directly impacts upon host development. Plant defense mechanisms are regulated and supported by a diversified group of small RNAs which are involved in streamlining several RNA interference pathways leading toward the initiation of pathogen gene silencing mechanisms. In the similar context, pathogens also utilize the support of small RNAs to launch their offensive attacks. Also there are strong evidences about the active involvement of these RNAs in symbiotic associations. Interestingly, small RNAs are not limited to the individuals in whom they are produced; they also show cross kingdom influences through variable interactions with other species thus leading toward the inter-organismic gene silencing. The phenomenon is understandable in the microbes which utilize these mechanisms to overcome host defense line. Understanding the mechanism of triggering host defense strategies can be a valuable step toward the generation of disease resistant host plants. We think that the cross kingdom trafficking of small RNA is an interesting insight that is needed to be explored for its vitality.
Adaptive GPU resource scheduling on virtualized servers in cloud gaming

Cloud Gaming is a modern approach for providing high-quality gaming service to the user. Cloud Gaming renders the sophisticated game scene on powerful servers and streams the video in real-time to the thin clients. Cloud Based on-demand gaming provides an affordable and flexible solution to the users with limited computing resources and enables the gamer to play high-end graphic games on low-end thin clients without upgrading their existing system. Due to its advantages, it has attracted both researchers in academia and industry. Virtualization undertakes a key part in cloud gaming providing multiple users and application to share the resource. Yet the Graphical processing unit, on which these high-end games rely, is difficult to virtualize because of its sophisticated architecture design and different device drivers. Application of GPU virtualization is very limited in data centers due to its inefficient scheduling mechanism, i.e. First come First Serve algorithm. Due to this, the virtual machines are not able to satisfy their Service level agreement. Existing cloud gaming data centers rely on a non-virtualized environment with dedicated GPU and sophisticated hardware. In this paper, an adaptive scheduling mechanism of the virtual machine for cloud gaming is proposed to achieve efficient GPU resource management in data centers, hosting cloud gaming servers.
A Genetic Programming Model for Real-Time Crash Prediction on Freeways

This paper aimed at evaluating the application of the genetic programming (GP) model for real-time crash prediction on freeways. Traffic, weather, and crash data used in this paper were obtained from the I-880N freeway in California, United States. The random forest (RF) technique was conducted to select the variables that affect crash risk under uncongested and congested traffic conditions. The GP model was developed for each traffic state based on the candidate variables that were selected by the RF technique. The traffic flow characteristics that contribute to crash risk were found to be quite different between congested and uncongested traffic conditions. This paper applied the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve to evaluate the prediction performance of the developed GP model for each traffic state. The validation results showed that the prediction performance of the GP models were satisfactory. The binary logit model was also developed for each traffic state using the same training data set. The authors compared the ROC curve of the GP model and the binary logit model for each traffic state. The GP model produced better prediction performance than did the binary logit model for each traffic state. The GP model was found to increase the crash prediction accuracy under uncongested traffic conditions by an average of 8.2% and to increase the crash prediction accuracy under congested traffic conditions by an average of 4.9%.