Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Achieving consensus on networks with antagonistic interactions

Consensus protocols achieve an agreement among agents thanks to the collaborative efforts of all agents, expresses by a (connected) communication graph with nonnegative weights. The question we ask in this paper is the following: is it possible to achieve a form of agreement in presence of antagonistic interactions, modeled as negative weights on the communication graph? The answer to this question is affirmative: on signed networks all agents can converge to a consensus value which is the same for all except for the sign. Necessary and sufficient conditions are obtained to describe the cases when this is possible.
An Optimization Approach for Approximate Nash Equilibria

In this paper we propose a new methodology for determining approximate Nash equilibria of noncooperative bimatrix games, and based on that, we provide an efficient algorithm that computes 0.3393-approximate equilibria, the best approximation to date. The methodology is based on the formulation of an appropriate function of pairs of mixed strategies reflecting the maximum deviation of the players' payoffs from the best payoff each player could achieve given the strategy chosen by the other. We then seek to minimize such a function using descent procedures. Because it is unlikely to be able to find global minima in polynomial time, given the recently proven intractability of the problem, we concentrate on the computation of stationary points and prove that they can be approximated arbitrarily closely in polynomial time and that they have the above-mentioned approximation property. Our result provides the best ε to date for polynomially computable ε-approximate Nash equilibria of bimatrix games. Furthermore, our methodology for computing approximate Nash equilibria has not been used by others.
The Fine Structure of the Retina Studied with the Electron Microscope

The morphogenesis of the outer segments of retinal rods was studied mainly in the kitten before the opening of the eye, and the probable sequence of the morphogenetic stages is deduced. Since the development of retinal rods is not synchronous, the deductions were based on observations of many single and serial sections. One centriole extends ciliary tubules of about 0.5 µ long, in the growing primitive cilium. Beyond this length, each ciliary tubule becomes a row of small vesicles (called "ciliary vesicles" in this paper), which penetrate into the distal region of the cilium. Where the ciliary vesicles establish contact with the plasma membrane of the distal region of the cilium, more or less deep infoldings of the plasma membrane are observed. In the distal region can be seen rows of tubular or vesicular structures. A few of these membranous structures are continuous with the bottoms of the infoldings. At the following stage, the infoldings disappear and the ciliary vesicles lose contact with the distal plasma membrane. Nonetheless, the formation of the tubular structures continues in the distal region of the primitive outer segment. The tubular structures appear to be transformed into the primitive rod sacs by sidewise enlargement. At a subsequent time, presumably, these primitive rod sacs flatten and are rearranged into a position perpendicular to the long axis of the outer segment. The detailed structure of the basal body of the connecting cilium was also studied by means of serial sections.
A Proposed Framework of eWOM and eTrust in Online Hotel Booking: The Influence of an e-Intermediary

Internet has become deeply rooted in our daily life and is affecting the way people behave and the way they impact their communities. Hotel industry worldwide is among the first industries that adopt the new technology quickly and make online hotel room booking available. Evidences however show that consumers are still reluctant to use online transaction due to various factors. This study will first analyses factors that may influence travelers' online hotel booking intention and then proposes a research framework for further study.
Posttransplant Lymphoproliferative Disorders

Posttransplant lymphoproliferative disorders (PTLDs) are a group of diseases that range from benign polyclonal to malignant monoclonal lymphoid proliferations. They arise secondary to treatment with immunosuppressive drugs given to prevent transplant rejection. Three main pathologic subsets/stages of evolution are recognised: early, polymorphic, and monomorphic lesions. The pathogenesis of PTLDs seems to be multifactorial. Among possible infective aetiologies, the role of EBV has been studied in depth, and the virus is thought to play a central role in driving the proliferation of EBV-infected B cells that leads to subsequent development of the lymphoproliferative disorder. It is apparent, however, that EBV is not solely responsible for the “neoplastic” state. Accumulated genetic alterations of oncogenes and tumour suppressor genes (deletions, mutations, rearrangements, and amplifications) and epigenetic changes (aberrant hypermethylation) that involve tumour suppressor genes are integral to the pathogenesis. Antigenic stimulation also plays an evident role in the pathogenesis of PTLDs. Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (PDCs) that are critical to fight viral infections have been thought to play a pathogenetically relevant role in PTLDs. Furthermore, regulatory T cells (Treg cells), which are modulators of immune reactions once incited, seem to have an important role in PTLDs where antigenic stimulation is key for the pathogenesis.
CALL SYSTEM FOR JAPANESE STUDENTS OF ENGLISH USING PRONUNCIATION ERROR PREDICTION AND FORMANT STRUCTURE ESTIMATION

We proposeaneffectivepronunciationlearningsystemusing speechprocessingandrecognitiontechnologies.For automaticphonemicerrordetection,weperformpronunciation error predictionwith orthographictext. To improve its reliability, weadoptspeakeradaptationandsegmentinput pair-wise classifierfor effective feedbackto generate personalizedinstruction.We alsoadoptformantfrequency normalizationtechnique(ML-VTLN andMMSE). Theeffectof adaptationandnormalizationis addressedin thepaper.
SILUMOD: A Simulation Language for User Mobility Models Definition in Multihop Networks

In this paper, we present SILUMOD, an open source (LGPL) internal domain-specific language that we developed to facilitate the study and deployment of users mobility models for multihop wireless networks. Based on Scala 1 , SILUMOD uses the same syntax and the same libraries as this language, while adding a series of keywords and operators reflecting the common characteristics of the movements of mobile nodes. SILUMOD combines ease of use and efficiency by ensuring rapid and easy implementation of most mobility models.
Monoclonal antibodies distinguish several differentially phosphorylated states of the two largest rat neurofilament subunits (NF-H and NF-M) and demonstrate their existence in the normal nervous system of adult rats

A new panel of greater than 300 monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) was prepared to the high, middle, and low Mr rat neurofilament (NF) subunits (NF-H, NF-M and NF-L, respectively). NF proteins were purified both from native, i.e., phosphorylated rat NFs and from enzymatically dephosphorylated rat NFs. The resulting mAbs were used to biochemically and immunochemically distinguish and characterize distinct and differentially phosphorylated isoforms of NF subunits. By immunoblot, all mAbs specific for NF-L and some mAbs specific for NF-M detected their specific NF subunit regardless of whether or not the NFs had been treated with alkaline phosphatase, and such antibodies were termed “phosphate-independent” or P[ind] mAbs. The other mAbs were specific for NF-M, NF-H, or for both NF-M and NF-H, and they recognized epitopes in the COOH termini of these subunits. Significantly, the latter mAbs could discriminate different isoforms of NF-M and NF-H, depending on the phosphorylation state of each variant. Such mAbs were assigned to one of 4 distinct categories on the basis of their performance in immunoblots of progressively dephosphorylated rat NF samples and by immunohistochemistry of various adult rat nervous tissues: (1) P[-] mAbs preferentially stained neuronal perikarya and dendrites, and they recognized only extensively dephosphorylated (and nonphosphorylated) NF- H; (2) P[+] mAbs stained axons more strongly than perikarya, and primarily blotted phosphorylated, but not nonphosphorylated, forms of NF-H and NF-M; (3) P[++] mAbs stained axons almost to the exclusion of perikarya, and in blots recognized only the extensively phosphorylated forms of NF-H and NF-M (i.e., subunits subjected to limited enzymatic dephosphorylation); (4) P[ ] mAbs also predominantly stained axons, but the briefest alkaline phosphatase treatment abolished the NF-M and NF-H immunobands produced by these mAbs. Two-dimensional gel analysis and immunoblotting of total proteins from adult rat dorsal root ganglion verified mAb specificity in situ, and showed that differentially phosphorylated isoforms of NF-M and NF-H occur in vivo. This provided additional evidence that mAbs can detect all 4 phosphorylation- dependent endogenous isoelectric variants of NF-H and NF-M. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Loss of Cofilin 1 Disturbs Actin Dynamics, Adhesion between Enveloping and Deep Cell Layers and Cell Movements during Gastrulation in Zebrafish

During gastrulation, cohesive migration drives associated cell layers to the completion of epiboly in zebrafish. The association of different layers relies on E-cadherin based cellular junctions, whose stability can be affected by actin turnover. Here, we examined the effect of malfunctioning actin turnover on the epibolic movement by knocking down an actin depolymerizing factor, cofilin 1, using antisense morpholino oligos (MO). Knockdown of cfl1 interfered with epibolic movement of deep cell layer (DEL) but not in the enveloping layer (EVL) and the defect could be specifically rescued by overexpression of cfl1. It appeared that the uncoordinated movements of DEL and EVL were regulated by the differential expression of cfl1 in the DEL, but not EVL as shown by in situ hybridization. The dissociation of DEL and EVL was further evident by the loss of adhesion between layers by using transmission electronic and confocal microscopy analyses. cfl1 morphants also exhibited abnormal convergent extension, cellular migration and actin filaments, but not involution of hypoblast. The cfl1 MO-induced cell migration defect was found to be cell-autonomous in cell transplantation assays. These results suggest that proper actin turnover mediated by Cfl1 is essential for adhesion between DEL and EVL and cell movements during gastrulation in zebrafish.
Emotion attribution to basic parametric static and dynamic stimuli

The following research investigates the effect of basic visual stimuli on the attribution of basic emotions by the viewer. In an empirical study (N = 33) we used two groups of visually minimal expressive stimuli: dynamic and static. The dynamic stimuli consisted of an animated circle moving according to a structured set of movement parameters, derived from emotion expression literature. The parameters are direction, expansion, velocity variation, fluency, and corner bending. The static stimuli consisted of the minimal visual form of a smiley. The varied parameters were mouth openness, mouth curvature, and eye rotation. The findings describing the effect of the parameters on attributed emotions are presented. This paper shows how specific viewer affect attribution can be included in men machine interaction using minimal visual material.
Implication of Human UGT2B7, 2B15, and 2B17 in 19-Norandrosterone Metabolism

Nandrolone (19-nortestosterone) is an anabolic androgenic steroid commonly abused for doping purposes. Nandrolone is mainly metabolized in the liver into 19-norandrosterone prior to glucuronidation and excretion through urine over an extended period of time. Several UGTs (i.e., UGT2B7, UGT2B15, and UGT2B17) are thought to be the major enzymes responsible for conjugation of androgens in human. An in vitro study using recombinant enzymes expressed in insect cells showed that UGT1A4 and UGT2B7 are the two main enzymes responsible of 19-norandrosterone glucuronidation. However, the identity of the enzyme involved in nandrolone metabolism in vivo together with their relative contribution and regulation remain unknown. Inhibition assays using human liver microsomes (HLM) incubated with 19-norandrosterone and selective inhibitors confirmed that UGT2B7 and UGT2B15 are involved in 19-norandrosterone glucuronidation, since the presence of the specific UGT2B7 and UGT2B15 inhibitors gemfibrozil and valproic acid inhibited the 19-norandrosterone glucuronidation by 35 and 45%, respectively. HLM were genotyped for UGT2B15 D85Y, UGT2B7 H268Y, and the UGT2B17 deletion polymorphism. The glucuronidation activity on 19-norandrosterone was significantly higher in UGT2B15 DD than in the other UGT2B15 genotypes (p < 0.05). Moreover, human liver cancer HepG2 cells were exposed to androgens to determine if the transcriptional activity of the genes of interest was affected. Only UGT2B7 mRNA expression was significantly increased (1.8-folds) after incubation with nandrolone decanoate. These results show that the UGT2B7 and UGT2B15 are involved in 19-norandrosterone glucuronidation and that the UGT2B15 polymorphism (D85Y) is the only UGT genetic variation that influences the glucuronidation activity. This could partly explain the inter-individual variation in 19-norandrosterone excretion.
Adaptive packet classification for constant perceptual quality of service delivery of video streams over time-varying networks

This paper describes a technique to deliver video streams with constant perceptual quality of service (QoS) over time-varying packet erasure channels that support differentiated classes of service. During compression, the encoder estimates the distortion introduced at the decoder by each video packet both in case it is received and in case it is lost. Concealment and error propagation due to inter-frame prediction are taken into account. During transmission, an optimization algorithm assigns packets to different service classes according to the estimated distortion, the current channel status and a constraint on the desired quality at the receiver. This technique is compared with other video packet classification approaches in the specific case of a DiffServ IP network implementing the assured forwarding scheme. Network simulations show that the proposed technique delivers higher and more constant levels of perceptual QoS than traditional approaches. Moreover, the technique is characterized by reactiveness to congestion and fairness in the use of network resources.
Novel thermosensitive hydrogel injection inhibits post‐infarct ventricle remodelling

Myocardial infarction (MI) remains the commonest cause of cardiac‐related death throughout the world. Adverse cardiac remodelling and progressive heart failure after MI are associated with excessive and continuous damage of the extracellular matrix (ECM). In this study, we hypothesized that implantation of hydrogel into infarcted myocardium could replace the damaged ECM, thicken the infarcted wall, and inhibit cardiac remodelling.
Inhibitory control and working memory in children adopted from psychosocially depriving institutions

Children adopted internationally from institutions at older ages who were exposed to early psychosocial deprivation may have deficits in executive functioning (EF) which are related to their increased risk of attention and academic difficulties. This study examined inhibitory control and working memory in 8- to 17-year-old children adopted from psychosocially depriving Russian institutions after 14 months of age (n=34) and those adopted before 9 months (n=39). Children completed inhibitory control and working memory tasks, while their parents completed questionnaires on child attention problems and use of learning support services in school. Children adopted after 14 months of age were found to perform poorly on inhibitory control and working memory tasks relative to children adopted before 9 months of age after controlling for age at assessment. Significant group differences were found for the stop-signal, go/no-go, and spatial span tasks but not the spatial working memory, backward digit recall, or flanker tasks. Children adopted after 14 months also had significantly lower IQ than those adopted before 9 months, and they performed poorly on the stop-signal and spatial span tasks compared to never-institutionalized children from previous studies. Spatial span and stop-signal task performance was associated with parent-rated hyperactivity-impulsivity but not with inattention or the use of learning support services. These findings suggest that exposure to early psychosocial deprivation may be linked with deficits in inhibitory control and spatial working memory that are associated with persistent attention problems. These results may inform studies of neural development and the selection of services for children exposed to early deprivation.
Development of a tool for automatic classification of intratumoral heterogeneity of lung cancers based on PET/CT intensity values

Intratumoral heterogeneity, typical of solid tumors, results from the coexistence of various subpopulations of tumor cells with different biological characteristics. The objective of this work was to develop an algorithm for the analysis and classification of intratumoral heterogeneity in lung cancers. The classification algorithm was based on features obtained from PET/CT images of the tumors. Delimited regions containing the tumors were defined by experience observers, who also classified each tumor regarding its degree of heterogeneity using a scale of four levels for heterogeneity. Features were created based on the joint histogram built from CT and PET data, which were then used to implement two classifier algorithms: one ordinal regression exploiting the four levels of heterogeneity and a logistic regression checking only two. Statistical analysis was carried out using IBM-SPSS Statistics 20 with a level of significance of 0.05. The models developed show good accuracy, mainly the binary classification algorithm (90%).
Content Placement for Wireless Cooperative Caching Helpers: A Tradeoff Between Cooperative Gain and Content Diversity Gain

Depending on what and how caching helpers cache content in their finite storage, the caching helpers can offer either a content diversity gain by serving diverse content or a cooperative gain by jointly transmitting the same content. This paper identifies a tradeoff between the content diversity gain and the cooperative gain according to content placements and proposes a probabilistic content placement to optimally balance the tradeoff. Using stochastic geometry, we quantify this tradeoff by deriving the cache hit rate and the rate coverage probability. To efficiently control the tradeoff, we determine the near-optimal caching probabilities that maximize the average content delivery success probability with the cooperative caching helpers. Our analysis and numerical results reveal that our proposed content placement outperforms the conventional caching schemes, such as caching with uniform probabilities, caching the most popular contents, and caching the content maximizing the cache hit, in terms of the average content delivery success probability.
HCaRG/COMMD5 inhibits ErbB receptor-driven renal cell carcinoma

Hypertension-related, calcium-regulated gene (HCaRG/COMMD5) is highly expressed in renal proximal tubules, where it contributes to the control of cell proliferation and differentiation. HCaRG accelerates tubular repair by facilitating re-differentiation of injured proximal tubular epithelial cells, thus improving mouse survival after acute kidney injury. Sustained hyper-proliferation and de-differentiation are important hallmarks of tumor progression. Here, we demonstrate that cancer cells overexpressing HCaRG maintain a more differentiated phenotype, while several of them undergo autophagic cell death. Its overexpression in mouse renal cell carcinomas led to smaller tumor size with less tumor vascularization in a homograft tumor model. Mechanistically, HCaRG promotes de-phosphorylation of the proto-oncogene erythroblastosis oncogene B (ErbB)2/HER2 and epigenetic gene silencing of epidermal growth factor receptor and ErbB3 via promoter methylation. Extracellular signal-regulated kinase, AKT and mammalian target of rapamycin which mediate ErbB-dowstream signaling pathways are inactivated by HCaRG expression. In addition, HCaRG is underexpressed in human renal cell carcinomas and more expressed in normal tissue adjacent to renal cell carcinomas of patients with favorable prognosis. Taken together, our data suggest a role for HCaRG in the inhibition of tumor progression as a natural inhibitor of the ErbB signals in cancer and as a potential prognostic marker for renal cell carcinomas.
Template constrained posterior for verifying phone transcriptions

A new statistical confidence measure, template constrained posterior (TCP), is proposed for verifying phone transcriptions of speech databases. Different from generalized posterior probability (GPP), TCP is computed by considering string hypotheses that bear a focused unit, e.g., phone with partially matched left and right contexts. Parameters used for TCP include context window length, partial matching ratio, KLD threshold for selecting confusable phones, and verification threshold. They are determined by minimizing verification errors in a development set. Evaluated on a test set which contains 52.1% sentence errors and 0.62% phone errors, TCP achieves 92% and 88% error hit rate in rejected sentences, when the corresponding acceptance ratios are set at 90% and 80%, respectively.
Contribution of ABL Kinase Domain Mutations to Imatinib Resistance in Different Subsets of Philadelphia-Positive Patients: By the GIMEMA Working Party on Chronic Myeloid Leukemia

Purpose: ABL kinase domain mutations have been implicated in the resistance to the BCR-ABL inhibitor imatinib mesylate of Philadelphia-positive (Ph+) leukemia patients. Experimental Design: Using denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography and sequencing, we screened for ABL kinase domain mutations in 370 Ph+ patients with evidence of hematologic or cytogenetic resistance to imatinib. Results: Mutations were found in 127 of 297 (43%) evaluable patients. Mutations were found in 27% of chronic-phase patients (14% treated with imatinib frontline; 31% treated with imatinib post-IFN failure), 52% of accelerated-phase patients, 75% of myeloid blast crisis patients, and 83% of lymphoid blast crisis/Ph+ acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) patients. Mutations were associated in 30% of patients with primary resistance (44% hematologic and 28% cytogenetic) and in 57% of patients with acquired resistance (23% patients who lost cytogenetic response; 55% patients who lost hematologic response; and 87% patients who progressed to accelerated phase/blast crisis). P-loop and T315I mutations were particularly frequent in advanced-phase chronic myeloid leukemia and Ph+ ALL patients, and often accompanied progression from chronic phase to accelerated phase/blast crisis. Conclusions: We conclude that (a) amino acid substitutions at seven residues (M244V, G250E, Y253F/H, E255K/V, T315I, M351T, and F359V) account for 85% of all resistance-associated mutations; (b) the search for mutations is important both in case of imatinib failure and in case of loss of response at the hematologic or cytogenetic level; (c) advanced-phase chronic myeloid leukemia and Ph+ ALL patients have a higher likelihood of developing imatinib-resistant mutations; and (d) the presence of either P-loop or T315I mutations in imatinib-treated patients should warn the clinician to reconsider the therapeutic strategy.