Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Double-Coupled Systems for IPT Roadway Applications

Dynamic powering of in-motion electric vehicles (EVs) using inductive power transfer (IPT) can potentially solve many of the problems currently faced by EVs: in particular range, cost, and charging rate. However, there is currently limited research focused on suitable IPT primary supply-side infrastructure for such roadway IPT systems, and most proposed systems so far have limitations that affect their usefulness and/or suitability. This paper presents a new roadway IPT system using a double-coupled system that can largely resolve these limitations. The proposed system introduces an intermediary coupler circuit (ICC) with frequency changing capability between the power supply primary track and each ground transmitter pad/coil arrangement. Individual charging sections on the roadway can be controlled independently using the ICCs and only turned ON when required, and as such minimize unwanted magnetic leakage fields. The proposed system provides isolation between the power supply and all of the ground transmitter pads, and allows the power supply to run at a lower frequency while the power transfer takes place at a higher frequency. The system can also potentially reduce the impact of dynamic EV charging on the electrical grid at the times of traffic congestion. A laboratory scale prototype system has been constructed and tested. The intermediary coupler achieved an efficiency of 92.5% at an output power of 5 kW with full system operability.
Complement and the control of HIV infection: an evolving story

Purpose of reviewThirty years ago, investigators isolated and later determined the structure of HIV-1 and its envelope proteins. Using techniques that were effective with other viruses, they prepared vaccines designed to generate antibody or T-cell responses, but they were ineffective in clinical trials. In this article, we consider the role of complement in host defense against enveloped viruses, the role it might play in the antibody response and why complement has not controlled HIV-1 infection. Recent findingsComplement consists of a large group of cell-bound and plasma proteins that are an integral part of the innate immune system. They provide a first line of defense against microbes and also play a role in the immune response. Here we review the studies of complement-mediated HIV destruction and the role of complement in the HIV antibody response. SummaryHIV-1 has evolved a complex defense to prevent complement-mediated killing reviewed here. As part of these studies, we have discovered that HIV-1 envelope, on administration into animals, is rapidly broken down into small peptides that may prove to be very inefficient at provident the type of antigenic stimulation that leads to an effective immune response. Improving complement binding and stabilizing envelope may improve the vaccine response.
[Activity of natural coagulation inhibitor proteins in the acute phase of ischaemic stroke].

INTRODUCTION Decreased activity of natural anticoagulants (antithrombin-lll, protein C, protein S) rarely causes cerebral ischaemia, however it can be found frequently in acute phase of ischaemic stroke. The authors' aim was to investigate whether the decreased activity of natural anticoagulants is accompanied by worsening of symptoms in ischaemic stroke. PATIENTS AND METHOD Sixty-eight acute ischaemic stroke patients were investigated. Severity of symptoms were assessed and followed by the NIH Stroke Scale. Antithrombin-Ill, protein C, protein S activities, and concentration of C-reactive protein (CRP) were measured within 48 hours after onset of ischaemic stroke. RESULTS Progressing stroke was found in 29% of patients. Decreased activity of at least one natural anticoagulant proteins was present in 31% of patients. Progression of stroke symptoms occurred in 76% of patients with decreased natural anticoagulant activity, while this proportion was only 9% in those with normal natural coagulation inhibitor protein activity (p < 0.01). Progressing stroke was also more frequent in patients with elevated CRP value (60%) than in those with normal CRP level (11%; p < 0.05). Decreased activity of natural anticoagulants was more frequent in patients with elevated CRP concentration compared with patients with normal CRP. CONCLUSION The results demonstrate the importance of decreased activity of natural anticoagulants in acute phase of ischaemic stroke. This abnormality was present in about 1/3 of stroke patients. The decreased activity of natural coagulant inhibitor proteins may play an important role in development of progressing stroke thus indicating unfavourable outcome.
What Sortition Can and Cannot Do

In recent years a number of writers have argued that sortition (the random selection of citizens for public office by lot) should augment the institutions of electoral democracy, but there is little agreement on the precise role that it should play. At one end of the spectrum James Fishkin (Fishkin, 2009) has argued that sortive bodies should be limited to an advisory or educative role; whereas radical democrats have argued that sortive bodies can do anything an elected chamber currently does (Callenbach & Phillips, 2008; O'Leary, 2006). In this paper I argue that sortition could only serve an aggregative judgment role and could therefore only ever be one element in a mixed constitution. Any attempt to extend its use beyond this aggregate judgment function undermines any claim that sortition may have to democratic legitimacy. My case is based on fundamental conceptual distinctions derived from (Griffiths & Wollheim, 1960; Pitkin, 1967). The paper concludes with a brief discussion of two additional supposed functions of sortition: the ‘sanitization’ of the political process from corruption and partisanship, and the ‘epistemic’ benefits of a diverse decision-making base.
Stable Symbiodinium Composition in the Sea Fan Gorgonia ventalina During Temperature and Disease Stress

Like most Caribbean octocorals, Gorgonia ventalina, the common sea fan, harbors endosymbiotic dinoflagellates belonging to the genus Symbiodinium. When stressed, the host can lose these algal symbionts, a phenomenon termed “bleaching. ” Many cnidarians host multiple types of algal symbionts within the genus Symbiodinium, and certain types of algae may be more tolerant of stress than others. We examined the effects of temperature, temperature-induced bleaching, and infection by Aspergillus sydowii, a fungal pathogen, on Symbiodinium types harbored by the sea fan Gorgonia ventalina in the Florida Keys. Symbiont type, identified on the basis of variation in small subunit nuclear ribosomal genes or large subunit chloroplast ribosomal genes, did not vary with temperature treatment or infection status. Although allelic variation based on one microsatellite locus was found among samples and reef site, it did not consistently correlate with temperature, treatment, or disease status, suggesting that the symbiont-host relationship is stable. An aberrant PCR product was found in samples collected at one site and could be used to differentiate Symbiodinium populations among sites in the Florida Keys.
Understanding the Effect of Multiple Factors on a Parallel File System's Performance

This research work presents an investigation of the impact of a wide range of factors on the performance of parallel file systems (PFSs). It is the result of an extensive test campaign with three distinct computing platforms and value variations for eleven factors that advance the understanding of PFSs' behaviour under different conditions. Our main contributions are the characterization of effects not fully explained or misunderstood in the literature previously. First, we demonstrate that no significant performance variation (≈ 6%) is observed when choosing one among four TCP congestion-avoidance algorithms. Second, we detail the effect of the page cache of I/O nodes on a PFS's write throughput and how it relates to other factors.
Characterization and function of medium and large extracellular vesicles from plasma and urine by surface antigens and Annexin V

Medium/large extracellular vesicles (m/lEVs) are released by most cell types and are involved in multiple basic biological processes. Analysis of m/lEV levels in blood or urine may help unravel pathophysiological findings in many diseases. However, it remains unclear how many naturally-occurring m/lEV subtypes exist as well as how their characteristics and functions differ from one another. Here, we identified m/lEVs pelleted from plasma and urine samples by differential centrifugation and showed by flow cytometry that they typically possessed diameters between 200 nm and 800 nm. Using proteomic profiling, we identified several proteins involved in m/lEV biogenesis including adhesion molecules, peptidases and exocytosis regulatory proteins. In healthy human plasma, we could distinguish m/lEVs derived from platelets, erythrocytes, monocytes/macrophages, T and B cells, and vascular endothelial cells using various surface antigens. m/lEVs derived from erythrocytes and monocytes were Annexin V positive. In urine, 50% of m/lEVs were Annexin V negative but contained various membrane peptidases derived from renal tubular villi. Urinary m/lEVs, but not plasma m/lEVs, showed peptidase activity. The method we have developed to characterize cell-derived m/lEVs suggests the possibility of clinical applications.
Nucleoprotein architecture and ColE1 dimer resolution: a hypothesis

Dimers of plasmid ColE1 are converted to monomers by site‐specific recombination, a process that requires 240 bp of DNA (cer ) and four host‐encoded proteins (XerC, XerD, ArgR and PepA). Here, we propose structures for nucleoprotein complexes involved in cer–Xer recombination based upon existing knowledge of the structures of component proteins and computational analyses of protein structure and DNA curvature. We propose that, in the nucleoprotein complex at a single cer site, a PepA hexamer acts as an adaptor, connecting the heterodimeric recombinase (XerCD) to an ArgR hexamer. This provides a protein core around which the cer site wraps, its exact path being defined by strong sequence‐specific interactions with ArgR and XerCD, weak interactions with PepA and sequence‐dependent flexibility of cer. The initial association of single‐site complexes (pairing) is proposed to occur via an ArgR–PepA interaction. Pairing between sites in a plasmid dimer is stabilized by DNA supercoiling and is followed by a structural isomerization to form a recombination‐proficient synaptic complex. We propose that paired structures formed between sites in trans are too short‐lived to permit synaptic complex formation. There is thus an energetic barrier to inappropriate recombination reactions. Our proposals are consistent with a wide range of experimental observations.
Acceptability of a vocational advice service for patients consulting in primary care with musculoskeletal pain: A qualitative exploration of the experiences of general practitioners, vocational advisers and patients

Aims: Using qualitative interviews, this study explored the experiences of GPs, vocational advisers and patients towards a new vocational advice (VA) service in primary care. Methods: This study was nested within the Study of Work and Pain (SWAP) cluster randomised controlled trial. The SWAP trial located a VA service within three general practices in Staffordshire. Interviews took place with 10 GPs 12 months after the introduction of the VA service, four vocational advisers whilst the VA service was running and 20 patients on discharge from the VA service. The data were analysed using the constant comparative method, which is a variation of grounded theory. Results: The key factors determining the acceptability and perceived effectiveness of the VA service from the perspective of the three groups of stakeholders were (1) the timing of referrals to the VA, (2) the perceived lack of patient demand for the service and (3) role uncertainty experienced by VAs. Conclusions: Early vocational intervention may not be appropriate for all musculoskeletal patients with work difficulties. Indeed, many patients felt they did not require the support of a VA, either because they had self-limiting work difficulties and/or already had support mechanisms in place to return to work. Future VA interventions may be better implemented in a targeted way so that appropriate patients are identified with characteristics which can best be addressed by the VA service.
Incidence of gastric carcinoma at King Faisal Specialist Hospital- Jeddah Saudi Arabia: a hospital-based study

Stomach cancer is the fifth most common cancer worldwide, and the third leading cause of death from cancer making up 7% of cases and 9% of deaths. The present study aimed at providing an image of the incidence of gastric carcinoma, with all its epidemiological and pathological characteristics including their trends during the last decade in a tertiary care hospital in the western region of Saudi Arabia. After obtaining an Institutional Review Board approval to conduct this retrospective study in King Faisal Specialist Hospital, a tertiary care institution in the western part of Saudi Arabia; the charts of 76 consecutive patients diagnosed with gastric cancer between January 2002 and 2013, were abstracted. Forty seven patients were included in the study. The charts were reviewed for demographic data, clinical data, diagnostic tools, endoscopic location of the tumour, size of the tumour, the imaging performed, the pathological features, the treatment given, and the final outcome. Forty seven patients were included in the study, thirty three (70%) of them were males, and the mean age of all patients was 57.55 ± 19.24 years. Forty three of the patients (91.5%) had intestinal type, thirty two (68.1%) had poorly differentiated cancer. Fourteen out of the 47 had palliative chemotherapy and twenty two patients out of 47 underwent surgery with curative intent. Two out of the 22 who had surgery received neoadjuvant chemotherapy, while only 7 had adjuvant chemotherapy. Fifteen out of the 22 who underwent surgery died, seven out of the 22 had a recurrence. Median overall survival for the 47 patients was 7 months, and the overall survival for the 22 patients who underwent surgery was 24 months. The median overall survival for the 25 patients, who did not undergo surgery was 2 months (Log rank, p-value=0.0005). Gastric cancer is among the deadliest forms of cancer in Saudi Arabia, with gradual increase in the incidence over the last decade, but its incidence still considered low in comparison to other countries worldwide. The outcome of our patients was poor, and we believe this is due to late presentation in the majority of our patients. Surgery is the mainstay of treatment for resectable gastric cancer, while perioperative and adjuvant chemotherapy, as well as chemoradiation, can improve outcome of resectable gastric cancer with extended lymph node dissection. Further research is required to study the epidemiology and the pathological features and the mode of presentation of gastric cancer in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Kinematic modelling of a robotic gait device for early rehabilitation of walking

Rehabilitation of walking is an essential element in the treatment of incomplete spinal cord injured (SCI) patients. During the early post injury period, patients find it challenging to practice upright walking. Simulating stepping movements in a supine posture may be easier and promote earlier rehabilitation. A robotic orthotic device for early intervention in spinal cord injury that does not require the patient to be in an upright posture has been modelled. The model comprises a two-bar mechanical system that is configured and powered to provide limb kinematics that approximate normal overground walking. The modelling work has been based on gait analysis performed on healthy subjects walking at 50 per cent, 75 per cent, and 100 per cent of normal cadence. Simulated angles of hip, knee, and ankle joints show a comparable range of motion (ROM) to the experimental walking data measured in healthy subjects. The model provides operating parameters for a prospective recumbent gait orthosis that could be used in early walking rehabilitation of incomplete SCI patients.
Single Quantum Dot Tracking Reveals that an Individual Multivalent HIV-1 Tat Protein Transduction Domain Can Activate Machinery for Lateral Transport and Endocytosis

ABSTRACT The mechanisms underlying the cellular entry of the HIV-1 Tat protein transduction domain (TatP) and the molecular information necessary to improve the transduction efficiency of TatP remain unclear due to the technical limitations for direct visualization of TatP's behavior in cells. Using confocal microscopy, total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy, and four-dimensional microscopy, we developed a single-molecule tracking assay for TatP labeled with quantum dots (QDs) to examine the kinetics of TatP initially and immediately before, at the beginning of, and immediately after entry into living cells. We report that even when the number of multivalent TatP (mTatP)-QDs bound to a cell was low, each single mTatP-QD first locally induced the cell's lateral transport machinery to move the mTatP-QD toward the center of the cell body upon cross-linking of heparan sulfate proteoglycans. The centripetal and lateral movements were linked to the integrity and flow of actomyosin and microtubules. Individual mTatP underwent lipid raft-mediated temporal confinement, followed by complete immobilization, which ultimately led to endocytotic internalization. However, bivalent TatP did not sufficiently promote either cell surface movement or internalization. Together, these findings provide clues regarding the mechanisms of TatP cell entry and indicate that increasing the valence of TatP on nanoparticles allows them to behave as cargo delivery nanomachines.
A wakeup rush current and charge-up time analysis method for programmable power-gating designs

Programmable power-gating structure is often implemented in advance low-power designs where switch cells are connected into a number of separate daisy chains which can be configured into a trickle charge chain and a main chain. The main chain can also be programmed with desired turn-on time to achieve short charge-up time while meeting max rush current constraints during wakeup. A chain latency annotation method is presented in this paper to model the chain configurations and programmable main-chain turn-on time of complex power-gating designs in the wakeup rush current and charge-up time analysis.
Neural Precursor Cycling at Sonic Speed: N-Myc Pedals, GSK-3 Brakes

Signaling by the sonic hedgehog (Shh) pathway is essential for neural precursor population expansion during normal central nervous system (CNS) development, and is implicated in the childhood brain tumor, medulloblastoma. The proto-oncogene N-myc plays essential roles as a downstream effector of Shh proliferative effects in neural precursors of the cerebellum, where medulloblastomas arise. It is likely that N-Myc has analogous functions in medulloblastomas and other CNS tumors where it is highly expressed due to altered regulation or gene amplification. Myc destabilization occurs in response to phosphorylation by GSK-3β. N-Myc degradation is required for cerebellar neural precursors to exit the cell cycle. During mitosis in cerebellar neural precursors, levels of N-Myc primed for phosphorylation by GSK-3β increase, due to cdk1 complex activity towards N-Myc. GSK-3β is kept in check by insulin-like growth factor signaling, which also plays critical roles in brain development and cancer. These findings indicate that therapeutic strategies targeting N-myc and the IGF pathway might be effective against medulloblastoma.
The Conversion of ApoB100 Low Density Lipoprotein/High Density Lipoprotein Particles to ApoB100 Very Low Density Lipoproteins in Response to Oleic Acid Occurs in the Endoplasmic Reticulum and Not in the Golgi in McA RH7777 Cells*

The site where bulk lipid is added to apoB100 low density lipoproteins (LDL)/high density lipoproteins (HDL) particles to form triglyceride-enriched very low density lipoproteins (VLDL) has not been identified definitively. We employed several strategies to address this question. First, McA RH7777 cells were pulse-labeled for 20 min with [35S]methionine/cysteine and chased for 1 h (Chase I) to allow study of newly synthesized apoB100 LDL/HDL remaining in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). After Chase I, cells were incubated for another hour (C2) with/without brefeldin A (BFA) and nocodazole (Noc) (to block ER to Golgi trafficking) and with/without oleic acid (OA). OA treatment alone during C2 increased VLDL secretion. This was prevented by the addition of BFA/Noc in C2. When C2 media were replaced by control media for another 1-h chase (C3), VLDL formed during OA treatment in C2 were secreted into C3 medium. Thus, OA-induced conversion of apoB100 LDL/HDL to VLDL during C2 occurred in the ER. Next, newly synthesized apoB100 lipoproteins were trapped in the Golgi by treatment with Noc and monensin during Chase I (C1), and C2 was carried out in the presence of BFA/Noc with/without OA and without monensin. Under these conditions, OA treatment during C2 did not stimulate VLDL secretion. The same pulse/chase protocols were followed by iodixanol subcellular fractionation, extraction of lipoproteins from ER and Golgi, and sucrose gradient separation of extracted lipoproteins. Cells treated with BFA/Noc and OA in C2 had VLDL in the ER. In the absence of OA, only LDL/HDL were present in the ER. The density of Golgi lipoproteins in these cells was not affected by OA. Similar results were obtained when ER were immuno-isolated with anti-calnexin antibodies. In conclusion, apoB100 bulk lipidation, resulting in conversion of LDL/HDL to VLDL, can occur in the ER, but not in the Golgi, in McA RH7777 cells.
Quantifying Optical Feedback Into Semiconductor Lasers via Thermal Profiling

We show that thermal profiling can be used to monitor optical feedback into semiconductor lasers in photonic integrated circuits, where direct optical access is impractical. The optical output power of a laser, both free-running and when exposed to optical feedback, can be quantitatively determined from thermal measurements alone, without recourse to direct optical measurements. Furthermore, the shift in threshold current resulting from optical feedback can be determined from the thermal measurements, enabling quantitative determination of the feedback coupling efficiency into the laser.
Left atrial volume predicts cardiovascular events in patients originally diagnosed with lone atrial fibrillation: three-decade follow-up.

We read with great interest the study of Osranek et al. on the left atrial volume as a predictor of cardiovascular events in patients originally diagnosed with lone atrial fibrillation (AF). Patients diagnosed with lone AF and normal left atria volume have a benign clinical course, in contrast to patients with increased left atrial volume who developed adverse events, i.e. death, cerebral infarction, myocardial infarction, and congestive heart failure, during the three-decade follow-up. The authors suggest the use of left atrial volume measurement for risk stratification and monitoring of patients with AF. Unfortunately, in this study, diastolic function, as underlying aetiology of AF, was not measured. Although difficult to measure, diastolic dysfunction is known as risk factor for AF, and earlier studies have shown that diastolic dysfunction is present in patients diagnosed with lone AF. In this study, it remains uncertain, whether the patients with enlarged left atrial volume, indicating elevated left ventricular filling pressures are correctly diagnosed as lone AF. The notion exists that this might represent patients with underlying diastolic dysfunction, rather than lone AF, with a different clinical course.