Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Regulation of a Blood-Brain Barrier—Specific Enzyme Expressed by Cerebral Pericytes (Pericytic Aminopeptidase N/pAPN) under Cell Culture Conditions

In this study we show that the aminopeptidase N of cerebral pericytes (pAPN) associated with the blood—brain barrier (BBB) is downregulated in pericytic cell cultures. This observation is in accordance with previous data describing comparable in vitro effects for BBB-specific enzymes of endothelial or pericytic origin, such as γ-glutamyl transpeptidase or alkaline phosphatase. By polymerase chain reaction and in situ hybridization we were able to determine that the downregulation of pAPN occurs at the posttranscriptional level. The mRNA of pAPN was found to be constitutively expressed even when the protein is no longer detectable. Culturing the pericytes in an endothelial cell—conditioned medium allowed pAPN to be reexpressed. However, the reexpression effect depended largely on the culturing conditions of the pericytes. Although purified pericytes deprived of endothelial cells did not reveal a reexpression effect, pericytes that were kept in contact with endothelial cells were able to acquire a pAPN-positive phenotype, indicating that endothelial cells constitute an essential requirement for the in vitro reexpression of pAPN. Astrocytes, however, were insufficient in exerting any reexpression effect.
Designing and Developing Simple Low Cost Mobile Robots for Autonomous Navigation

Abstract The aim of this azticle is to illustrate how it is possible to design and build low cost mobile robots by using only simple commercial electronic devices and toys. As suggested by Valentino Braitenberg [1] in his experiments on synthetic psychology we developed two simple and compact mobile robots, each capable of doing two different autonomous behaviors: the wall following (moving the robot at a constant distance from the wall on its left or right hand) and the obstacle avoidance (avoiding collision with obstacles during the path). Two different control systems have been developed and compared. The fast system is controlled by an analogical circuit obtained by using electronic components (transistors, diodes, resistors, capacitors .) whereas, the second is controlled by a digital circuit which employs amicro-processor boazd. Those platforms allow the robot configuration to be easily adapted to the specific requirement of each application. Their strengths and limitations are also detailed. Both.
Allocating power ground vias in 3D ICs for simultaneous power and thermal integrity

The existing work on via allocation in 3D ICs ignores power/ground vias' ability to simultaneously reduce voltage bounce and remove heat. This article develops the first in-depth study on the allocation of power/ground vias in 3D ICs with simultaneous consideration of power and thermal integrity. By identifying principal ports and parameters, effective electrical and thermal macromodels are employed to provide dynamic power and thermal integrity as well as sensitivity with respect to via density. With the use of sensitivity, an efficient via allocation simultaneously driven by power and thermal integrity is developed. Experiments show that, compared to sequential power and thermal optimization using static integrity, sequential optimization using the dynamic integrity reduces nonsignal vias by up to 18%, and simultaneous optimization using dynamic integrity further reduces nonsignal vias by up to 45.5%.
Explaining Failures Using Software Dependences and Churn Metrics

and Churn Metrics Nachiappan Nagappan, Thomas Ball ABSTRACT Commercial software development is a complex task that requires a thorough understanding of the architecture of the software system. We analyze the Windows Server 2003 operating system in order to assess the relationship between its software dependences, churn metrics and post-release failures. Our analysis indicates the ability of software dependences and churn metrics to be efficient predictors of post-release failures. Further, we investigate the relationship between the software dependences and churn metrics and their ability to assess failure-proneness probabilities at statistically significant levels.
Residual ductal carcinoma in situ in patients with complete eradication of invasive breast cancer after neoadjuvant chemotherapy does not adversely affect patient outcome.

PURPOSE To determine whether residual ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) after completion of preoperative chemotherapy affects the outcome of patients with histologically defined complete eradication of invasive cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS Retrospective analysis of a database including 2,302 breast cancer patients treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy at The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center between 1980 and 2004 was performed. The overall survival (OS), disease-free survival (DFS), and local recurrence-free survival were compared for patients with no residual invasive or in situ cancer (pathologic complete response [pCR]) and patients with no residual invasive cancer but persistent in situ disease (pCR+DCIS). RESULTS The mean follow-up time was 250 months. Of the 2,302 treated patients, 78 (3.4%) had pCR, 199 (8.6%) had pCR+DCIS, and 2,025 (88%) had residual invasive cancer. For patients with pCR and pCR+DCIS, the 5-year DFS rates (87.1% in both groups) and 10-year DFS rates (81.3% v 81.7%, respectively) were similar; the 5-year OS rates (91.9% v 92.5%, respectively) and 10-year OS rates (91.8% v 92.5%, respectively) were also similar and significantly better than the rate of patients with residual invasive cancer (74.4%; P < .001). The 5-year locoregional recurrence-free survival rates were also not different between patients with pCR (92.8%; 95% CI, 86.1% to 96.4%) and patients with pCR+DCIS (90.9%; 95% CI, 77.3% to 96.5%; P = .63). CONCLUSION Residual DCIS in patients who experience complete eradication of the invasive cancer in the breast and lymph nodes does not adversely affect survival or local recurrence rate. Inclusion of patients with residual DCIS in the definition of pCR is justified when this outcome is used as an early surrogate for long-term survival.
News Information Processing as Mediator of the Relationship between Motivations and Political Knowledge

The cognitive mediation model of learning from the news proposes that motivations for news use influence the processing to which the news information is put, and that this processing is the proximal determinant of learning. The role of motivations in learning from the news, then, is indirect through information processing. Secondary analysis of data indicate substantial support for the model. The relationship between motivations and knowledge was reduced by the introduction of the mediating cognitive variables, news attention, and news elaboration. Both attention and elaboration were significantly related to knowledge, even after controlling all other variables in the model.
Trading Directional Accuracy for Realism in a Virtual Auditory Display

In a virtual auditory display, reverberant energy is important for cuing source distance and creating sounds that are externalized (perceived as coming from outside the listener’s head). The benefits of adding reverberation to a virtual auditory display are seen even for small levels of reverberant energy, like that in an ordinary, small room. While previous studies have shown that large amounts of reverberant energy can disrupt speech intelligibility and degrade localization accuracy, systematic deficits have not been observed in most studies conducted in or simulating typical small rooms, like classrooms. Moreover, while past studies have measured either distance or directional perception in virtual auditory displays, little is known about how these two dimensions interact when both vary. The dual goals of the current study were to see whether 1) increasing the task demands by having subjects simultaneously judge both distance and direction (compared to judging either distance or direction) interfered with their ability to judge each dimension, and 2) the value of one stimulus dimension affected how well listeners could judge the other dimension. Results show that mean judgments of distance and direction are independent of task demands. However, localization judgments are more variable if subjects must simultaneously judge distance and direction compared to when they are only asked to judge only one dimension. This “dual-task cost” is larger for distance judgments than for directional judgments. Mean perceived distance is independent of source direction; however, directional accuracy for lateral sources depends on the source distance: judgments of source laterality become increasingly more biased towards midline as source distance increases. These results show that directional abilities degrade with the inclusion of even modest amounts of reverberation (which are needed to encode source distance) and highlight the importance of understanding the goals of a particular application when designing a spatial auditory display. When creating a virtual auditory display, directional accuracy trades off directly with distance accuracy and realism.
Detecting Rejection after Mouse Islet Transplantation Utilizing Islet Protein-Stimulated ELISPOT

Improved posttransplant monitoring and on-time detection of rejection could improve islet transplantation outcome. The present study explored the possibility of detecting harmful events after mouse islet transplantation measuring the immune responsiveness against islet extracts. Mouse islet transplantations were performed using various donor/recipient combinations, exploring autoimmune (NOD/SCID to NOD, n = 6) and alloimmune events (C57BL/6 to BALB/c, n = 20), a combination of both (C57BL/6 to NOD, n = 8), the absence of both (BALB/c to BALB/c, n = 21), or naive, nontransplanted control mice (n = 14). The immune reactivity was measured by ELISPOT, looking at the ex vivo release of IFN-γ from splenocytes stimulated by islet donor extracts (sonicated islets). The immune reactivity was not altered in the syngeneic and autoimmune models, demonstrating similar levels as nontransplanted controls (p = 0.46 and p = 0.6). Conversely, the occurrence of an allogeneic rejection alone or in combination to autoimmunity was associated to an increase in the level of immune reactivity (p = 0.023 and p = 0.003 vs. respective controls). The observed increase was transient and lost in the postrejection period or after treatment with CTLA4-Ig. Overall, allogeneic rejection was associated to a transient increase in the reactivity of splenocytes against islet proteins. Such a strategy has the potential to improve islet graft monitoring in human and should be further explored.
Enhanced Endoglucanase Production by Bacillus aerius on Mixed Lignocellulosic Substrates

Selected carbon sources including soluble carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), insoluble microcrystalline cellulose (MCC), and single (SS)/mixed lignocellulosic substrates (MS), were evaluated for endoglucanase production by B. aerius S5.2. The lignocellulosic substrates of oil palm empty fruit bunch (EFB), oil palm frond (OPF), rice husk (RH), and their mixture (MS) supported growth of the strain better than CMC and MCC. The maximum endoglucanase activity on MS was 7.3-, 2.6-, 1.7-, and 1.2-fold higher than those recorded on MCC, CMC, EFB/OPF, and RH, respectively. While the reducing sugar concentration of the CMC medium was comparable to that of the EFB and MS media, wide variability was observed in the reducing sugar concentrations among the lignocellulosic substrates. Extremely low levels of sugar were detected in the MCC medium, reflecting its poor digestibility and hence unsuitability for growth and endoglucanase production. Endoglucanase production was predominantly extracellular when the strain was grown on CMC and MS. After seven days of fermentation, there was an approximately 25% reduction in MS dry weight. These findings show that the use of mixed lignocellulosics could potentially reduce the cost of cellulase production. Certain novel aspects of the cellulase system of B. aerius are reported in this study.
Novel PLL scheme for grid connection of three-phase power converters

Basic phase-locked loop (PLL) schemes used for the grid connection of three-phase static converters suffer from line voltage harmonics and unbalance. To overcome this shortcoming, the operation of the basic PLL schemes is improved by supplementing them with blocks that pre or post-processes the line voltages. This paper presents a novel improved PLL scheme that, in spite of its simplicity, offers excellent performance. The scheme is composed by two stages, namely a block, termed as StHFPSC, that rejects the harmonics and the negative-sequence component of the line voltages by processing the voltages in the stationary reference frame, and the basic PLL scheme formulated according to the instantaneous p-q power theory (pPLL). The capability of the StHFPSC block in extracting the fundamental harmonic of the positive-sequence component of the line voltages combined with the capability of the pPLL in synthesizing the grid angle give rise to a PLL scheme, termed as stationary reference frame improved pPLL (StI-pPLL), which joins the merits of the two constituent stages. After reviewing the basic and the main improved PLL schemes, the paper describes the StI-pPLL scheme. Then the scheme is tested by simulation under distorted and unbalanced grid conditions to demonstrate its effectiveness. Comparison of the results to those obtained from the pPLL scheme improved in the traditional way points out the superior performance of the novel scheme.
Around Device Interaction for Inconspicuous Authentication?

New interactive technologies tend to bring new challenges and opportunities for designing inconspicuous interaction. In this short paper we discuss the viability of Around Device Interaction (ADI) as a method for inconspicuous user interaction. We firstly review related work in the HCI field in ADI, and then propose challenges and opportunities for ADI when applied to inconspicuous interaction.
Aligning letters and phonemes for speech synthesis

A common requirement in speech technology is to align two different symbolic representations of the same linguistic ‘message’. For instance, we often need to align letters of words listed in a dictionary with the corresponding phonemes specifying their pronunciation. As dictionaries become ever bigger, manual alignment becomes less and less tenable yet automatic alignment is a hard problem for a language like English. In this paper, we describe use of a form of the expectation-maximization (EM) algorithm to achieve automatic alignment of English text and phonemes. The quality of alignment is assessed by the performance of a pronunciation by analogy system using the aligned dictionary data. We find excellent performance—the best so far reported in the literature of letter-phoneme conversion—independent of the start point for alignment, indicating that the EM search space is strongly convex.
Calbindin‐D28K and ischemic damage of pyramidal cells in rat hippocampus

An antibody against rat calbindin‐D28K, a calcium‐binding protein present at high concentration in certain neurons of the central and peripheral nervous systems, was used to determine the progression of the pathological events in the rat hippocampus following experimental cerebral ischemia. Calbindin‐D28K immunoreactivity is present in dentate granule cells and in the CA1–CA2 pyramidal cells. CA1 subfield contains a higher proportion of calbindin‐D28K‐positive pyramidal cells than does the CA2 subfield and CA1 cells are more immunoreactive than the CA2 cells. The pyramidal cells of the CA1 and CA2 subfields are vulnerable to ischemia. The cells in the C A 1 became necrotic within 3–4 days after ischemia while those of the CA2 became necrotic within 2 days. There was a concomitant decrease in calbindin‐D28K immunoreactivity in the whole hippocampal regio superior after ischemia which peaked 3 days postischemia. The difference in CA2 and CA1 vulnerability seemed to be inversely correlated with the calbindin‐D28K contents of the CA2 and CA1 pyramidal cells. The decrease in the calbindin‐D28K contents of these neurons was accompanied by cell damage. We therefore suggest that calbindin‐D28K is an important factor for the survival of pyramidal cells in the hippocampal formation after ischemia.
Clinical and Taxonomic Status of Pathogenic Nonpigmented or Late-Pigmenting Rapidly Growing Mycobacteria

SUMMARY The history, taxonomy, geographic distribution, clinical disease, and therapy of the pathogenic nonpigmented or late-pigmenting rapidly growing mycobacteria (RGM) are reviewed. Community-acquired disease and health care-associated disease are highlighted for each species. The latter grouping includes health care-associated outbreaks and pseudo-outbreaks as well as sporadic disease cases. Treatment recommendations for each species and type of disease are also described. Special emphasis is on the Mycobacterium fortuitum group, including M. fortuitum, M. peregrinum, and the unnamed third biovariant complex with its recent taxonomic changes and newly recognized species (including M. septicum, M. mageritense, and proposed species M. houstonense and M. bonickei). The clinical and taxonomic status of M. chelonae, M. abscessus, and M. mucogenicum is also detailed, along with that of the closely related new species, M. immunogenum. Additionally, newly recognized species, M. wolinskyi and M. goodii, as well as M. smegmatis sensu stricto, are included in a discussion of the M. smegmatis group. Laboratory diagnosis of RGM using phenotypic methods such as biochemical testing and high-performance liquid chromatography and molecular methods of diagnosis are also discussed. The latter includes PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis, hybridization, ribotyping, and sequence analysis. Susceptibility testing and antibiotic susceptibility patterns of the RGM are also annotated, along with the current recommendations from the National Committee for Clinical Laboratory Standards (NCCLS) for mycobacterial susceptibility testing.
Pathophysiology of Diabetic Nephropathy: Involvement of Multifaceted Signalling Mechanism

Diabetic nephropathy is a major cause of end-stage renal failure and the mortality rate due to this disease is continuously progressing worldwide. The multifaceted signalling mechanisms have been identified to be involved in the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy. Despite the modern therapies like antidiabetics, antihypertensives, and antioxidants available to treat diabetic nephropathy; most of patients continue to show progressive renal damage. It suggests that the key pathogenic mechanism involved in the induction and progression of diabetic nephropathy is still remaining active and unmodified by the present therapies. The purpose of this review is to bring together the current information concerning the signalling systems involved in the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy.
Identification of the Protein Kinases Pyk3 and Phg2 as Regulators of the STATc-Mediated Response to Hyperosmolarity

Cellular adaptation to changes in environmental osmolarity is crucial for cell survival. In Dictyostelium, STATc is a key regulator of the transcriptional response to hyperosmotic stress. Its phosphorylation and consequent activation is controlled by two signaling branches, one cGMP- and the other Ca2+-dependent, of which many signaling components have yet to be identified. The STATc stress signalling pathway feeds back on itself by upregulating the expression of STATc and STATc-regulated genes. Based on microarray studies we chose two tyrosine-kinase like proteins, Pyk3 and Phg2, as possible modulators of STATc phosphorylation and generated single and double knock-out mutants to them. Transcriptional regulation of STATc and STATc dependent genes was disturbed in pyk3−, phg2−, and pyk3−/phg2− cells. The absence of Pyk3 and/or Phg2 resulted in diminished or completely abolished increased transcription of STATc dependent genes in response to sorbitol, 8-Br-cGMP and the Ca2+ liberator BHQ. Also, phospho-STATc levels were significantly reduced in pyk3− and phg2− cells and even further decreased in pyk3−/phg2− cells. The reduced phosphorylation was mirrored by a significant delay in nuclear translocation of GFP-STATc. The protein tyrosine phosphatase 3 (PTP3), which dephosphorylates and inhibits STATc, is inhibited by stress-induced phosphorylation on S448 and S747. Use of phosphoserine specific antibodies showed that Phg2 but not Pyk3 is involved in the phosphorylation of PTP3 on S747. In pull-down assays Phg2 and PTP3 interact directly, suggesting that Phg2 phosphorylates PTP3 on S747 in vivo. Phosphorylation of S448 was unchanged in phg2− cells. We show that Phg2 and an, as yet unknown, S448 protein kinase are responsible for PTP3 phosphorylation and hence its inhibition, and that Pyk3 is involved in the regulation of STATc by either directly or indirectly activating it. Our results add further complexities to the regulation of STATc, which presumably ensure its optimal activation in response to different environmental cues.
Comprehensive Multi-Disciplinary Assessment Protocol for Autism Spectrum Disorder

Legal mandates established under IDEA specify a student must be assessed in all areas of suspected disability. Never is this task more overwhelming than its application to the assessment of a student suspected of a diagnosis of autism. The assessment of an individual suspected of an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis is a complex task and is dependent on the integration of information gleaned from assessments conducted by an array of professionals, each with their own distinct area of expertise. The purpose of this article is to introduce the Comprehensive Multidisciplinary Assessment Protocols-Autism Spectrum Disorder, referred to as the CMAPs, as a mechanism for organizing multidisciplinary team assessments. The CMAPs were developed in response to the challenges experienced by school-based assessment teams in developing appropriate and legally defensible assessment plans. The CMAPs provide teams a systematic, organizational, and comprehensive platform to organize the assessment of students across the spectrum of the disorder with the goal of making the task less overwhelming. Each assessment protocol considers the assessment needs of individuals with ASD using their communication skills as a preliminary starting point.
Instrumental Performance following Reinforcer Devaluation Depends upon Incentive Learning

Conditioning an aversion to the reinforcer following instrumental training reduces performance in a subsequent extinction test. Three experiments examined whether this reinforcer-devaluation effect depends upon experience with the devalued reinforcer prior to the extinction test. In Experiments 1 and 2 thirsty rats were trained to press a lever for sucrose solution in a single session. All animals then received an injection of lithium chloride (LiCl) either immediately following the session or after a delay of 6 hr. On the next day either the sucrose solution or water was presented non-contingently either in the operant chamber without the lever present or in a separate drinking cage. In a subsequent extinction test only the animals that had received immediate LiCl and re-exposure to non-contingent sucrose pressed less than those in the delayed-LiCl control groups. Experiment 3 demonstrated that this difference depended, at least in part, on post-conditioning exposure to a contingent reinforcer. Lever pressing and chain pulling were reinforced concurrently with either a sucrose or a sodium chloride solution in a single session immediately before the administration of LiCl. All animals then received non-contingent presentations of one of the reinforcers in the absence of both manipulanda. Finally, performance of both actions was assessed in an extinction test. Re-exposure to a reinforcer produced a relative reduction in the performance of its associated action on test. These results are interpreted as evidence that the instrumental reinforcer devaluation effect depends upon a process of incentive learning.