Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The involvement of cation leaks in the storage lesion of red blood cells

Stored blood components are a critical life-saving tool provided to patients by health services worldwide. Red cells may be stored for up to 42 days, allowing for efficient blood bank inventory management, but with prolonged storage comes an unwanted side-effect known as the “storage lesion”, which has been implicated in poorer patient outcomes. This lesion is comprised of a number of processes that are inter-dependent. Metabolic changes include a reduction in glycolysis and ATP production after the first week of storage. This leads to an accumulation of lactate and drop in pH. Longer term damage may be done by the consequent reduction in anti-oxidant enzymes, which contributes to protein and lipid oxidation via reactive oxygen species. The oxidative damage to the cytoskeleton and membrane is involved in increased vesiculation and loss of cation gradients across the membrane. The irreversible damage caused by extensive membrane loss via vesiculation alongside dehydration is likely to result in immediate splenic sequestration of these dense, spherocytic cells. Although often overlooked in the literature, the loss of the cation gradient in stored cells will be considered in more depth in this review as well as the possible effects it may have on other elements of the storage lesion. It has now become clear that blood donors can exhibit quite large variations in the properties of their red cells, including microvesicle production and the rate of cation leak. The implications for the quality of stored red cells from such donors is discussed.
miRNA in mycosis fungoides and skin inflammation

In this mini‐review, progress in our understanding of the link between miRNAs and cytokines in inflammatory skin diseases is highlighted with focus on miR‐155 in mycosis fungoides (MF). MF is the most common variant of cutaneous T‐cell lymphoma (CTCL) and is characterized by malignant T‐cell proliferation in a chronic inflammatory environment in affected skin. Recent data show that miR‐155 is expressed in situ by both malignant and non‐malignant T cells, induced via the STAT5 signal pathway and IL‐2Rbeta/gamma cytokines, and thus suggest the importance of miR‐155 in malignant proliferation, clinical diagnosis, and prognosis in CTCL.
Characterization of the Signaling Capacities of the Novel gp130-like Cytokine Receptor*

The gp130-like receptor (GPL) is a recently cloned member of the family of type I cytokine receptors. The name reflects its close relationship to gp130, the common receptor subunit of the interleukin (IL)-6-type cytokines. Indeed, the recently proposed ligand for GPL, IL-31, is closely related to the IL-6-type cytokines oncostatin M, leukemia inhibitory factor, and cardiotrophin-1. The second signal transducing receptor for IL-31 seems to be the oncostatin M receptor β (OSMRβ). The present study characterizes in depth the molecular mechanisms underlying GPL-mediated signal transduction. GPL is a strong activator of STAT3 and STAT5, whereas STAT1 is only marginally tyrosine-phosphorylated. We identify tyrosine residues 652 and 721 in the cytoplasmic region of the longest isoform of GPL (GPL745) as the major STAT5- and STAT3-activating sites, respectively. Additionally, we demonstrate Jak1 binding to GPL and its activation in heteromeric complexes with the OSMRβ but also in a homomeric receptor complex. Most interesting, unlike OSMRβ and gp130, GPL is insufficient to mediate ERK1/2 phosphorylation. We propose that this is due to a lack of recruitment of the tyrosine phosphatase SHP-2 or the adaptor protein Shc to the cytoplasmic domain of GPL.
Exact analysis of bit error rate of maximum-distance-separable codes

We present a formula to calculate the bit error rate (BER) of maximum-distance-separable (MDS) codes based on the weight distributions of the codes. Because of the exact number of a certain weight of the codes, the probabilities of decoding error and decoding failure can be achieved for an incomplete decoder. The proposed formula is built by summing up all the probabilities of decoding error and decoding failure properly. Two MDS codes, RS (7,5) and RS (63,45) codes, with a 8PSK modulation scheme in the AWGN channel are chosen to verify the formula. Compared with the conventional upper bound formula, our proposed formula is more consistent with the simulated results, no matter short codes or long codes. The formula can be used widely to calculate the accurate BER of MDS codes.
Id1 Restrains p21 Expression to Control Endothelial Progenitor Cell Formation

Loss of Id1 in the bone marrow (BM) severely impairs tumor angiogenesis resulting in significant inhibition of tumor growth. This phenotype has been associated with the absence of circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) in the peripheral blood of Id1 mutant mice. However, the manner in which Id1 loss in the BM controls EPC generation or mobilization is largely unknown. Using genetically modified mouse models we demonstrate here that the generation of EPCs in the BM depends on the ability of Id1 to restrain the expression of its target gene p21. Through a series of cellular and functional studies we show that the increased myeloid commitment of BM stem cells and the absence of EPCs in Id1 knockout mice are associated with elevated p21 expression. Genetic ablation of p21 rescues the EPC population in the Id1 null animals, re-establishing functional BM-derived angiogenesis and restoring normal tumor growth. These results demonstrate that the restraint of p21 expression by Id1 is one key element of its activity in facilitating the generation of EPCs in the BM and highlight the critical role these cells play in tumor angiogenesis.
Strategic Divisionalization, Product Differentiation and International Competition *

This paper constructs a simple international differentiated duopoly model that involves a divisionalization decision. It will be shown that the number of third market divisions of a parent firm with a cost advantage is relatively large. The results imply that the cost competitiveness of the firm of one country will be magnified through divisionalization decisions.
Subband Architecture for Hybrid Filter Bank A/D Converters

Hybrid filter bank (HFB) A/D converters (ADCs) are a candidate to realize the wideband ADC for future telecommunication systems. The classical HFB-based ADCs are simulated in both time and frequency domains using simply-realizable analog filters in this paper. The high sensitivity of HFBs to realization errors of an analysis filter bank is studied and it is shown that a new HFB architecture is necessary to employ the blind techniques for correcting the analog imperfections. Using the discrete-time model of HFB, a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) model is proposed for the HFB so that a new architecture called subband HFB-based ADC is obtained. The subband HFB ADC not only leads to a better resolution but is less sensitive to realization errors than the classical case. Besides, a linear-time invariant (LTI) system represents the input-output relation of subband HFB without any spectral overlapping in contrary to the classical HFB. Thus, blind techniques may be used for correcting the realization errors in the subband HFB.
Control and dynamics of constant-power-loss-based operation of permanent-magnet synchronous motor drive system

The operational envelope of electrical machines is limited by the maximum permissible power loss of the machine at any given speed. The control and dynamics of the permanent-magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) drive operating with a maximum power loss versus speed profile is proposed in this paper. The proposed operational strategy is modeled and analyzed. Its comparison to the conventional strategy of limiting current and power to rated values demonstrates the superiority of the proposed scheme. The implementation of the proposed strategy is developed. It is achieved with an outer power loss feedback control loop. This has the advantage of retrofitting the present PMSM drives with the least amount of software/hardware effort. The PMSM drives in this case then can use the existing controllers to implement any torque control criteria, such as constant torque angle, unity power factor, constant air-gap flux linkages, maximum torque per unit current, or maximum-efficiency operation. Experimental verification of the new operational strategy is provided. The concepts presented in this paper can be applied to all other types of motor drives.
Large-Scale Sparsified Manifold Regularization

Semi-supervised learning is more powerful than supervised learning by using both labeled and unlabeled data. In particular, the manifold regularization framework, together with kernel methods, leads to the Laplacian SVM (LapSVM) that has demonstrated state-of-the-art performance. However, the LapSVM solution typically involves kernel expansions of all the labeled and unlabeled examples, and is slow on testing. Moreover, existing semi-supervised learning methods, including the LapSVM, can only handle a small number of unlabeled examples. In this paper, we integrate manifold regularization with the core vector machine, which has been used for large-scale supervised and unsupervised learning. By using a sparsified manifold regularizer and formulating as a center-constrained minimum enclosing ball problem, the proposed method produces sparse solutions with low time and space complexities. Experimental results show that it is much faster than the LapSVM, and can handle a million unlabeled examples on a standard PC; while the LapSVM can only handle several thousand patterns.
Selective Labeling of Proteins on Living Cell Membranes Using Fluorescent Nanodiamond Probes

The impeccable photostability of fluorescent nanodiamonds (FNDs) is an ideal property for use in fluorescence imaging of proteins in living cells. However, such an application requires highly specific labeling of the target proteins with FNDs. Furthermore, the surface of unmodified FNDs tends to adsorb biomolecules nonspecifically, which hinders the reliable targeting of proteins with FNDs. Here, we combined hyperbranched polyglycerol modification of FNDs with the β-lactamase-tag system to develop a strategy for selective imaging of the protein of interest in cells. The combination of these techniques enabled site-specific labeling of Interleukin-18 receptor alpha chain, a membrane receptor, with FNDs, which eventually enabled tracking of the diffusion trajectory of FND-labeled proteins on the membrane surface.
Diffraction Structural Biology Synchrotron Radiation Sub-millisecond Time-resolved Saxs Using a Continuous-flow Mixer and X-ray Microbeam

Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) is a well established technique to probe the nanoscale structure and interactions in soft matter. It allows one to study the structure of native particles in near physiological environments and to analyze structural changes in response to variations in external conditions. The combination of microfluidics and SAXS provides a powerful tool to investigate dynamic processes on a molecular level with sub-millisecond time resolution. Reaction kinetics in the sub-millisecond time range has been achieved using continuous-flow mixers manufactured using micromachining techniques. The time resolution of these devices has previously been limited, in part, by the X-ray beam sizes delivered by typical SAXS beamlines. These limitations can be overcome using optics to focus X-rays to the micrometer size range providing that beam divergence and photon flux suitable for performing SAXS experiments can be maintained. Such micro-SAXS in combination with microfluidic devices would be an attractive probe for time-resolved studies. Here, the development of a high-duty-cycle scanning microsecond-time-resolution SAXS capability, built around the Kirkpatrick–Baez mirror-based microbeam system at the Biophysics Collaborative Access Team (BioCAT) beamline 18ID at the Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, is reported. A detailed description of the microbeam small-angle-scattering instrument, the turbulent flow mixer, as well as the data acquisition and control and analysis software is provided. Results are presented where this apparatus was used to study the folding of cytochrome c. Future prospects for this technique are discussed.
Impact of Mesoscale Eddy Transfer on Heat Uptake in an Eddy-Parameterizing Ocean Model

Using a set of experiments with an eddy-parameterizing ocean model, it is found that the strength of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (AMOC) intensifies with the decrease of the density-dependent mesoscale eddy transfer. However, the intensification is weaker than that suggested by simple scaling relationships previously applied. Perturbing the model control sea surface temperature (SST) to mimic its change in response to doubling of CO2, it is shown that the associated ocean heat uptake (OHU) increases and penetrates deeper with the decrease of the mesoscale eddy transfer. It is shown that the OHU correlates with the AMOC strength, and both these quantities are affected by the mesoscale eddy transfer. Passive tracer experiments in the ocean model provide a possible explanation for the finding in coupled-model climate simulations that the ocean heat uptake efficiency (OHUE) increases with the AMOC strength and decreases with the eddy energy generated from the mean state. It is also found that the OHU in the SST-perturbation experiments scales with the net downward advection of heat. The contribution of the AMOC to the downward heat flux is illustrated using a streamfunction in depth–temperature space.
Utilisation des bols colorés en Martinique (Antilles françaises) : quelles possibilités pour l’inventaire et le suivi des Insectes pollinisateurs des agrosystèmes fruitiers ?

Pan trapping in Martinique (French West Indies): what are the possibilities for studying pollinators in fruit agrosystems? Conservation of pollinators and their pollination service is a major issue in the world today. Surveys for inventorying and monitoring of pollinators communities require simple fi eld methods which are effi cient and standardized for each biogeographical area. Pan trapping of pollinators (Apoidea Latreille, 1802 and Syrphidae Latreille, 1802) with white, blue and yellow bowls is compared to one selective and one non-selective net trapping in fruit agrosystems in Martinique. We investigated the preference of pollinators on the color of the bowl trap used. Catches of pollinators in white and blue bowls are more important than in the yellow bowls. Halictid bees (Halictidae Th omson, 1869) were the most abundant insect pollinators captured by pan trap (76 %). Fourteen species of pollinators were inventoried with all used methods but syrphid species were not captured by colored bowls. Blue and white pan trap showed a mean of species richness similar to net trapping. Th e results of species composition showed that the no-selective net trapping and pan trapping are the most complementary methods. Pan trapping is an effi cient fi eld method for inventorying and monitoring pollinators in fruit agrosystems in Martinique but its bias must be taken account.
Empowering regional economy with a spectacular space: mega-events, over-drafted capital and momentary growth in China’s metropolises

ABSTRACT China’s leading city-region governments have actively pursued momentary economic growth and spectacular spatial development by hosting mega-events. The cases of the Beijing and Guangzhou show that mega-events have functioned as instruments (ab)used by municipal governments to expedite land sales, relocate old state-owned industries, and drive migrant workers and the urban underclass out of the city centre. Improved environmental quality was found to be short lived. Hosting mega-events was a temporary stimulus prolonging the cycle of regional economic growth (and decline). The competitive edge of the central city was further enhanced at the expense of the disadvantaged and marginalized periphery. The findings of this research call for a critical re-evaluation of perceptions of space and place in studies of urban and regional development.
Autonomous Development of singing-like Intonations by interacting babbling robots

A group of interactive autonomous singing robots were programmed to develop a shared repertoire of vocal singing-like intonations from scratch, after a period of spontaneous creations, adjustments and memory reinforcements. The robots are furnished with a physical model of the vocal tract, which synthesises vocal singing-like intonations, and a listening mechanism, which extracts pitch sequences from audio signals. The robots learn to imitate each other by babbling heard intonation patterns in order to evolve vectors of motor control parameters to synthesise the imitations.
Exploiting I/Q Imbalance in Direct Conversion Transceivers for Improving the Performance of a V-BLAST OFDM System

A receiver for a MIMO OFDM communication system using direct conversion transceivers is proposed. The novel receiver takes advantage of the I/Q imbalance inherent to the direct conversion operation. It can be shown that the I/Q imbalance in multicarrier communication systems creates an additional frequency diversity. By adequately exploiting such diversity at the receiver, the overall performance can be considerably improved. Simulation results considering a MIMO OFDM system using VBLAST show that, when exploiting the I/Q imbalance, gains of up to 5 dB at a BER of 10−4 can be obtained with respect to the ideal system, without I/Q imbalance.
Evidence of transport, sedimentation and coagulation mechanisms in the relaxation of post-volcanic stratospheric aerosols

Spatio-temporal distributions of stratospheric aerosols, measured by the ORA instrument from August 1992 until May 1993, are presented in the latitude range (40 S-40 N). Particle total number density, mode radius and distribution width are derived and interpreted. The re- spective roles of advection, sedimentation and coagulation are discussed. We also identify clear transport/sedimentation patterns and we show the enhancement of coagulation in stagnation regions. Efficient transport of aerosol particles up to 50 km is suggested.
Wire Retiming Problem With Net Topology Optimization

In this paper, we study the retiming problem of sequential circuits with net topology optimization. Both interconnect and gate delay are considered in retiming. Most previous retiming algorithms have assumed ideal conditions for the nonlogical portions of data paths, which are not sufficiently accurate to be used in high-performance circuits today. In our modeling, we assume that the delay of a wire is directly proportional to its length. This assumption is reasonable since the quadratic component of a wire delay is significantly smaller than its linear component when the more accurate Elmore delay model is used. A simple experiment was conducted to illustrate the validity of this assumption. We present two approaches to solve the retiming problem, both of which have polynomial time complexity. The first one can compute the optimal clock period, while the second one is an improvement over the first one in terms of practical applicability. The second approach gives solutions that are very close to the optimal (0.06% more than the optimal on average) but in a much shorter runtime. The optimally retimed circuit will then be realized physically by placing the registers and finding the net topologies. In contrast to many previous works [Proc. IEEE Int. Conf. Comput. -Aided Des. , p. 136, 1998], [IEEE Trans. Comput. -Aided Design Integr. Circuits Syst. , 22(7) Jul. 2003] that performed simple calculations to determine the register positions, our approach can preserve the optimal clock period that is obtained by the retiming step and utilize as few registers as possible. Minimization of register number saves both area and power in register and clock loading. Our topology optimization step is shown to be optimal for nets with four or fewer pins, and this type of nets constitutes over 90% of the nets in a sequential circuit on average. Using the ISCAS89 benchmark, we tested our algorithm with a 0.35-mum complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor standard cell library. Silicon Ensemble was used to layout the design with a row utilization of 50%. Experimental results showed that our algorithm could find the best sharing of registers for a net in most of the cases, i.e., using the minimum number of registers while preserving the target clock period that is obtained by the retiming step, within a minute run on an Intel Pentium IV 1.5 GHz PC with 512 MB RAM.
A Generalization of the Lifting Lemma for Logic Programming

Since the seminal work of J. A. Robinson on resolution, many lifting lemmas for simplifying proofs of completeness of resolution have been proposed in the literature. In the logic programming framework, they may also help to detect some infinite derivations while proving goals under the SLD-resolution. In this paper, we first generalize a version of the lifting lemma, by extending the relation "is more general than" so that it takes into account only some arguments of the atoms. The other arguments, which we call neutral arguments, are disregarded. Then we propose two syntactic conditions of increasing power for identifying neutral arguments from mere inspection of the text of a logic program.
Results and Efficiency of Programmed Ventricular Stimulation With Four Extrastimuli Compared With One, Two, and Three Extrastimuli

BackgroundConventional programmed ventricular stimulation protocols are inefficient compared with more recently proposed protocols. The purpose of the present study was to determine if additional efficiency could be derived from a 6-step programmed ventricular stimulation protocol that exclusively uses four extrastimuli. Methods and ResultsThe subjects were 209 consecutive patients with coronary artery disease and documented sustained monomorphic ventricular tachycardia, nonsustained ventricular tachycardia, aborted sudden death, or syncope. These patients underwent 159 electrophysiological tests in the absence of antiarrhythmic drug therapy and 105 electrophysiological tests in the presence of antiarrhythmic therapy. Programmed stimulation was performed with two protocols in random order in each patient. Both protocols used an eight-beat drive train, 4-s intertrain pause, and basic drive cycle lengths of 350, 400, and 600 ms. The 6-step protocol started with coupling intervals of 290, 280, 270, and 260 ms, which were shortened simultaneously in 10-ms steps until S2 was refractory. The 18-step protocol used one, two and three extrastimuli in conventional sequential fashion. The end points were 30 s of sustained monomorphic ventricular tachycardia, two episodes of polymorphic ventricular tachycardia requiring cardioversion, or completion of the protocol at two right ventricular sites. There was no significant difference in the yield of sustained monomorphic ventricular tachycardia using the two protocols, regardless of the clinical presentation or treatment with antiarrhythmic drugs. Polymorphic ventricular tachycardia occurred with the 18-step protocol twice as frequently as with the 6-step protocol (6% versus 3%, P < .001). The duration of the 18-step protocol was significantly longer than that of the 6-step protocol in patients with inducible ventricular tachycardia (5.5 ± 7 versus 2.3 ± 2 minutes, P < .001), as well as in patients without inducible ventricular tachycardia (25.4 ± 7 versus 6.9 ± 2 minutes, P < .001). ConclusionsA stimulation protocol that exclusively uses four extrastimuli improves the specificity and efficiency of programmed ventricular stimulation without compromising the yield of monomorphic ventricular tachycardia in patients with coronary artery disease.