Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Endocrine disruptors and human health--is there a problem? An update.

It has been hypothesized that environmental exposure to synthetic estrogenic chemicals and related endocrine-active compounds may be responsible for a global decrease in sperm counts, decreased male reproductive capacity, and breast cancer in women. Results of recent studies show that there are large demographic variations in sperm counts within countries or regions, and analyses of North American data show that sperm counts have not decreased over the last 60 years. Analyses of records for hypospadias and cryptorchidism also show demographic differences in these disorders before 1985; however, since 1985 rates of hypospadias have not changed and cryptorchidism has actually declined. Temporal changes in sex ratios and fertility are minimal, whereas testicular cancer is increasing in most countries; however, in Scandinavia, the difference between high (Denmark) and low (Finland) incidence areas are not well understood and are unlikely to be correlated with differences in exposure to synthetic industrial chemicals. Results from studies on organochlorine contaminants (DDE/PCB) show that levels were not significantly different in breast cancer patients versus controls. Thus, many of the male and female reproductive tract problems linked to the endocrine-disruptor hypothesis have not increased and are not correlated with synthetic industrial contaminants. This does not exclude an endocrine-etiology for some adverse environmental effects or human problems associated with high exposures to some chemicals. ImagesFigure 1
Psychosocial versus pharmacological treatments for deliberate self harm.

OBJECTIVES To identify and synthesise the findings from all randomised controlled trials that have examined the effectiveness of treatments of patients who have deliberately harmed themselves. SEARCH STRATEGY Electronic databases screened: MEDLINE (from 1966-February 1999); PsycLit (from 1974-March 1999); Embase (from 1980-January 1999); The Cochrane Controlled Trials Register (CCTR) No.1 1999. Ten journals in the field of psychiatry and psychology were hand searched for the first version of this review. We have updated the hand search of three specialist journals in the field of suicidal research until the end of 1998. Reference lists of papers were checked and trialists contacted. SELECTION CRITERIA All RCTs of psychosocial and/or psychopharmacological treatment versus standard or less intensive types of aftercare for patients who shortly before entering a study engaged in any type of deliberately initiated self-poisoning or self-injury, both of which are generally subsumed under the term deliberate self-harm. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS Data were extracted from the original reports independently by two reviewers. Studies were categorized according to type of treatment. The outcome measure used to assess the efficacy of treatment interventions for deliberate self-harm was the rate of repeated suicidal behaviour. We have been unable to examine other outcome measures as originally planned (e.g. compliance with treatment, depression, hopelessness, suicidal ideation/thoughts, change in problems/problem resolution). MAIN RESULTS A total of 23 trials were identified in which repetition of deliberate self-harm was reported as an outcome variable. The trials were classified into 11 categories. The summary odds ratio indicated a trend towards reduced repetition of deliberate self-harm for problem-solving therapy compared with standard aftercare (0.70; 0.45 to 1.11) and for provision of an emergency contact card in addition to standard care compared with standard aftercare alone (0.45; 0.19 to 1.07). The summary odds ratio for trials of intensive aftercare plus outreach compared with standard aftercare was 0.83 (0.61 to 1.14), and for antidepressant treatment compared with placebo was 0.83 (0. 47 to 1.48). The remainder of the comparisons were in single small trials. Significantly reduced rates of further self-harm were observed for depot flupenthixol vs. placebo in multiple repeaters (0. 09; 0.02 to 0.50), and for dialectical behaviour therapy vs. standard aftercare (0.24; 0.06 to 0.93). REVIEWER'S CONCLUSIONS There still remains considerable uncertainty about which forms of psychosocial and physical treatments of self-harm patients are most effective, inclusion of insufficient numbers of patients in trials being the main limiting factor. There is a need for larger trials of treatments associated with trends towards reduced rates of repetition of deliberate self-harm. The results of small single trials which have been associated with statistically significant reductions in repetition must be interpreted with caution and it is desirable that such trials are also replicated.
Robust grasping for an under-actuated anthropomorphic hand under object position uncertainty

This paper presents a grasp execution strategy for grasping an object with one trial when there is uncertainty in the object position. This strategy is based on three grasping components: 1) robust grasp trajectory planning which can cope with reasonable amount of initial object position error, 2) sensor-based grasp adaptation, and 3) compliant characteristics of the under actuated mechanism. This strategy is implemented and tested on the iCub humanoid robot. Two experiments and a demo of the iCub robot playing the Towers of Hanoi game are carried out to verify our system. The results demonstrate that the iCub using this approach can successfully grasp objects under certain position error with its under-actuated anthropomorphic hand.
The Rapamycin-sensitive Phosphoproteome Reveals That TOR Controls Protein Kinase A Toward Some But Not All Substrates

In yeast TOR and PKA pathways both control cell growth but how TORC1 and PKA signaling are linked is unknown. Here we show that TORC1 inhibition prevents the phosphorylation of some but not all PKA targets. We further demonstrate that TORC1 controls PKA by inhibiting the phosphorylation of the PKA regulatory subunit BCY1 by the MAP kinase MPK1.
Lupus anticoagulant testing: analyzing fresh samples after a single centrifugation and after a 6–8 h delay

Abstract Background: For automation it is important to know the effect of analyzing fresh samples after a single rather than after two centrifugations, and to determine test stability. Methods: This study compared silica clotting times (SCT) and dilute Russel’s viper venom tests (dRVVT) after one and two centrifugations in 50 fresh plasma samples. Then it compared test results within 4 h to those after 6–8 h of blood drawing in 40 samples. Means, minimums, maximums and quartiles of the paired screen were compared, test ratios were confirmed and correlations, linear regressions and Bland-Altman statistics were calculated. Results: The distributions of test results were nearly identical, regardless of the number of centrifugations or timing of the analysis. The first centrifugation explained 97.7% and 94.8% of the variance of tests results after the second centrifugation for the SCT and dRVVT, respectively. The test results after 6–8 h explained 98.3% and 96.3% of the variance of the SCT-ratios and dRVVT-ratios, respectively, tested within 4 h. Inter-day coefficients of correlation of ratio comparisons were similar to those of the controls values. Conclusions: Testing of fresh samples after a single centrifugation might replace batch testing of frozen samples after double centrifugation, providing timelier reporting of results and resulting in savings of technician time.
Robust Order Scheduling in the Discrete Manufacturing Industry: A Multiobjective Optimization Approach

Order scheduling is of vital importance in discrete manufacturing industries. This paper takes fashion industry as an example and discusses the robust order scheduling problem in the fashion industry. In the fashion industry, order scheduling focuses on the assignment of production orders to appropriate production lines. In reality, before a new order can be put into production, a series of activities known as preproduction events need to be completed. In addition, in real production process, owing to various uncertainties, the daily production quantity of each order is not always as expected. In this paper, by considering the preproduction events and the uncertainties in the daily production quantity, robust order scheduling problems in the fashion industry are investigated with the aid of a multiobjective evolutionary algorithm called nondominated sorting adaptive differential evolution (NSJADE). The experimental results illustrate that it is of paramount importance to consider preproduction events in order scheduling problems in the fashion industry. We also unveil that the existence of the uncertainties in the daily production quantity heavily affects the order scheduling.
Is Internet Pornography Causing Sexual Dysfunctions? A Review with Clinical Reports

Traditional factors that once explained men’s sexual difficulties appear insufficient to account for the sharp rise in erectile dysfunction, delayed ejaculation, decreased sexual satisfaction, and diminished libido during partnered sex in men under 40. This review (1) considers data from multiple domains, e.g., clinical, biological (addiction/urology), psychological (sexual conditioning), sociological; and (2) presents a series of clinical reports, all with the aim of proposing a possible direction for future research of this phenomenon. Alterations to the brain's motivational system are explored as a possible etiology underlying pornography-related sexual dysfunctions. This review also considers evidence that Internet pornography’s unique properties (limitless novelty, potential for easy escalation to more extreme material, video format, etc.) may be potent enough to condition sexual arousal to aspects of Internet pornography use that do not readily transition to real-life partners, such that sex with desired partners may not register as meeting expectations and arousal declines. Clinical reports suggest that terminating Internet pornography use is sometimes sufficient to reverse negative effects, underscoring the need for extensive investigation using methodologies that have subjects remove the variable of Internet pornography use. In the interim, a simple diagnostic protocol for assessing patients with porn-induced sexual dysfunction is put forth.
Nerve conduction during Wallerian degeneration in the baboon

Conduction in the lateral popliteal nerve of the baboon was studied during the course of Wallerian degeneration. Six nerves were examined. In each case the muscle response to nerve stimulation and the ascending nerve action potential were recorded daily until the nerve became inexcitable. The muscle response to nerve stimulation disappeared after four to five days, but ascending nerve action potentials could be recorded for a further two to three days. There was no change in maximal motor conduction velocity or in distal latency until the muscle response to nerve stimulation was severely reduced in amplitude. At this stage there was a consistent increase in distal latency, sometimes associated with a mild reduction in maximal motor velocity in the leg. There was no change in the velocity of ascending nerve action potentials. Histological studies confirmed the presence of degeneration in the terminal parts of the intramuscular nerve fibres at a time when the proximal parts of the same fibres were relatively normal.
A Lower Bound on the Transposition Diameter

Sorting permutations by transpositions is an important and difficult problem in genome rearrangements. The transposition diameter $TD(n)$ is the maximum transposition distance among all pairs of permutations in $S_n$. It was previously conjectured [H. Eriksson et al., Discrete Math., 241 (2001), pp. 289-300] that $TD(n)\leq\lceil\frac{n+1}{2}\rceil$. This conjecture was disproved by Elias and Hartman [IEEE/ACM Trans. Comput. Biol. Bioinform. , 3 (2006), pp. 369-379] by showing $TD(n)\geq\lfloor\frac{n+1}{2}\rfloor+1$. In this paper we improved the lower bound to $TD(n)\geq\frac{17}{33}n+\frac{1}{33}$ via computation.
Heme oxygenase‐1, a protective gene that prevents the rejection of transplanted organs

Summary: Endothelial cells (EC) play a pivotal role in regulating inflammatory reactions such as those involved in the rejection of transplanted organs. This occurs through the expression of a series of pro‐ and anti‐inflammatory genes that are associated with the activation of these cells. Presumably, the expression of pro‐inflammatory genes promotes events that lead to graft rejection, while expression of anti‐inflammatory (protective) genes suppresses those events and thus contributes in sustaining graft survival. Understanding how the expression of these genes is regulated and their mechanism of action are important issues for the development of new therapeutic strategies to suppress graft rejection. We have studied this phenomenon using experimental models of transplantation in rats. We discuss here data that supports the concept that grafts can express anti‐inflammatory (protective) genes that mitigate inflammatory reactions leading to graft rejection. The data reviewed focus on the role of one of such genes, the stress responsive gene heme oxygenase‐1, and of its byproduct carbon monoxide, which can suppress graft rejection and lead to long‐term graft survival.
Genetic polymorphisms in the nucleotide excision repair pathway and lung cancer risk: A meta-analysis

Various DNA alterations can be caused by exposure to environmental and endogenous carcinogens. Most of these alterations, if not repaired, can result in genetic instability, mutagenesis and cell death. DNA repair mechanisms are important for maintaining DNA integrity and preventing carcinogenesis. Recent lung cancer studies have focused on identifying the effects of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in candidate genes, among which DNA repair genes are increasingly being studied. Genetic variations in DNA repair genes are thought to modulate DNA repair capacity and are suggested to be related to lung cancer risk. We identified a sufficient number of epidemiologic studies on lung cancer to conduct a meta-analysis for genetic polymorphisms in nucleotide excision repair pathway genes, focusing on xeroderma pigmentosum group A (XPA), excision repair cross complementing group 1 (ERCC1), ERCC2/XPD, ERCC4/XPF and ERCC5/XPG. We found an increased risk of lung cancer among subjects carrying the ERCC2 751Gln/Gln genotype (odds ratio (OR) = 1.30, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.14 - 1.49). We found a protective effect of the XPA 23G/G genotype (OR = 0.75, 95% CI = 0.59 - 0.95). Considering the data available, it can be conjectured that if there is any risk association between a single SNP and lung cancer, the risk fluctuation will probably be minimal. Advances in the identification of new polymorphisms and in high-throughput genotyping techniques will facilitate the analysis of multiple genes in multiple DNA repair pathways. Therefore, it is likely that the defining feature of future epidemiologic studies will be the simultaneous analysis of large samples.
Testability alternatives exploration through functional testing

The aim of this paper is to show the effectiveness of a high-level approach to testability analysis and test pattern generation, when analyzing different classes of architectures implementing the same specification. A unique test set is derived on the behavioral specification, based on a functional error model, which shows a high correlation with the single stuck-at-gate-level fault model. Such a test set is then tailored to the particular gate-level implementation by transforming it into a specific test sequence, based on the scheduling adopted by the high-level synthesis. Experimental results show that the application of such test sequences allows one to accurately evaluate the testability of the architecture in terms of gate-level fault coverage, in a fraction of the time required by a gate-level test pattern generator.
On the Stanley-Wilf Conjecture for the Number of Permutations Avoiding a Given Pattern

Consider, for a permutation $\sigma \in {\cal S}_k$, the number $F(n,\sigma)$ of permutations in ${\cal S}_n$ which avoid $\sigma$ as a subpattern. The conjecture of Stanley and Wilf is that for every $\sigma$ there is a constant $c(\sigma) We also discuss $n$-permutations, containing all $\sigma \in {\cal S}_k$ as subpatterns. We prove that this can be achieved with $n=k^2$, we conjecture that asymptotically $n \sim (k/e)^2$ is the best achievable, and we present Noga Alon's conjecture that $n \sim (k/2)^2$ is the threshold for random permutations.
An advantageous fabrication technology to integrate pressure sensor into multi-sensor for micro weather station

We present an advantageous fabrication technology for the integration of pressure sensor into the multi-sensor for micro weather station. Differing from traditional silicon piezoresistive or capacitive pressure sensor, we use platinum piezoresistive pressure sensor in the integration, which can greatly simplify the whole process and also has an excellent performance. We also use adhesive bonding with SU-8 to replace the traditional bonding methods. This bonding method outweighs the traditional bonding methods in many ways. The testing results of the pressure sensor indicate that this simple and convenient fabrication technology is advantageous for the integration.
Catalpol Ameliorates Sodium Taurocholate-Induced Acute Pancreatitis in Rats via Inhibiting Activation of Nuclear Factor Kappa B

Catalpol, an iridoid glucoside extracted from the traditional Chinese herbal medicine, Rehmannia glutinosa, is reported to exert neuroprotective, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor and anti-apoptotic effects. The main aim of the present study was to investigate whether catalpol ameliorates experimental acute pancreatitis (AP) induced by sodium taurocholate (STC). AP was induced in rats via retrograde injection of 4% STC (0.1 mL/100 g) into the biliopancreatic duct. Rats were pre-treated with saline or catalpol (50 mg/kg) 2 h before STC injection. At 12, 24 and 48 h after injection, the severity of AP was evaluated using biochemical and morphological analyses. Pretreatment with catalpol led to a significant reduction in serum amylase and lipase activities, pancreatic histological damage, myeloperoxidase (MPO) activity, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α levels, and activation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB). Moreover, administration of catalpol increased the viability of pancreatic acinar cells and inhibited NF-κB expression in vitro. Our results collectively support the potential of catalpol as a highly effective therapeutic agent for treatment of AP.
Ultrahigh Resolution and Spectroscopic OCT Imaging of Cellular Morphology and Function

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a promising optical microscopy technique which enables ultrahigh-resolution, spectroscopic, in vivo imaging in transparent and non-transparent biological specimens. This is achieved by exploiting the short temporal coherence of ultrabroad bandwidth light sources to image morphological features at subcellular resolution at depths beyond that of conventional bright-field and confocal microscopes. Extraction of spatially resolved spectroscopic information is feasible to improve image contrast and to obtain functional or biochemical properties of the investigated tissue. The potential for using OCT to image the morphological expression of genes involved in normal and abnormal development has been shown in common developmental biology animal models. In vivo imaging of single cell morphology, mitosis, and migration, as well as preliminary spectroscopic imaging, is demonstrated.
Two-step Kalman-filter-based AFC for direct conversion-type receiver in LEO satellite communications

We present a new two-step automatic frequency control (AFC) suited for direct conversion-type receivers to counteract large frequency offset with time variation in low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite communication systems. The proposed AFC scheme based on the Kalman-filter provides two steps of frequency estimations, i.e., coarse and fine estimations. Its performance is evaluated by computer simulation with the application to a differentially encoded QPSK/differential-detection system. The proposed scheme shows its excellent characteristic, extending the frequency acquisition range to even that comparable to or larger than the symbol rate. Furthermore, it can track well a time variation of frequency offset.
New Methods to Ensure Security to Increase User's Sense of Safety in Cloud Services

We discuss about cloud security. Because cloud computing service users must submit almost their entire store of data and programs to a certain cloud provider, they cannot escape from anxiety about the possibility of data and programs being abused or leaked. Those data and programs usually embody the entirety of a company's stored knowledge. We have studied some countermeasures against the abuse or leakage of data and programs caused by cloud providers' careless or intentional infractions. As one of such countermeasures, secret sharing and secure computation by secure multi-party method has been studied to date. And, it has been used practically in some applications. This conventional method can calculate secret addition or subtraction easily, but to do secret multiplication it requires rather complex processes. We proposed before a method to maintain secrecy by dividing data and programs. As described herein, we first provide classification of our approaches including conventional secure multi-party computation method. Then we propose a new idea to conduct arithmetic multiplication and division easily as well as addition and subtraction, without using complex computational processes. Additionally, we present some practical real-world examples of our proposed method, and verify it.
New Construction of Boolean Function with Maximum Algebraic Immunity

Focusing on algebraic normal form and the construction requirements of Boolean function,the conditions that Boolean function f does not exist annihator with deg(f)≤m are analysed and the sufficient conditions satisfied by Boolean function f with maximum algebraic immunity are obtained.Therefore a class of Boolean functions with optimal algebraic immunity are constructed,and the balanceness and count of the constructed functions are discussed.
Enhanced Agronomic Traits and Medicinal Constituents of Autotetraploids in Anoectochilus formosanus Hayata, a Top-Grade Medicinal Orchid

This study developed an efficient and reliable system for inducing polyploidy in Anoectochilus formosanus Hayata, a top-grade medicinal orchid. The resulting tetraploid gave a significant enhancement on various agronomic traits, including dry weight, fresh weight, shoot length, root length, leaf width, the size of stoma, and number of chloroplasts per stoma. A reduction of the ratio of length to width was observed in stomata and leaves of the tetraploid, and consequently, an alteration of organ shape was found. The major bioactive compounds, total flavonoid and gastrodin, were determined by the aluminum chloride colorimetric method and ultra performance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS), respectively. The tetraploid produced significantly higher contents of total flavonoid and gastrodin in the leaf, the stem, and the whole plant when compared with the diploid. The resulting tetraploids in this study are proposed to be suitable raw materials in the pharmaceutical industry for enhancing productivity and reducing cost.