Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Benefit of kidney transplantation beyond 70 years of age

Background. Kidney transplantation generally improves long-term survival in patients with end-stage renal disease. However, in patients older than 70 years of age, only limited data are available that directly compare the potential survival benefit of transplantation versus dialysis. Methods. All patients aged above 70 years who started dialysis between 1990 and 2005 and were waitlisted for kidney transplantation were included in the study. They were categorized according to time periods of inclusion (1990–99 vs 2000–05). Survival rates of altogether 286 dialysis patients were analyzed with a Kaplan–Meier model, as well as with a time-dependent Cox model. Comparisons were made between those who received a transplant and those who did not, and further between the two time periods. Results. Median age at inclusion was 73.6 years (interquartile range 72.3–75.6). Two hundred and thirty-three patients (81%) received a kidney transplant during follow-up. Transplant recipients experienced an increased mortality in the first year after transplantation when compared to waitlisted patients. Patients starting dialysis between 1990 and 1999 had no significant long-term benefit of transplantation; HR for death 1.01 (0.58–1.75). In contrast, there was a substantial long-term benefit of transplantation among those starting dialysis after 2000; HR for death 0.40 (0.19–0.83), P = 0.014. Conclusions. Survival after kidney transplantation in patients over 70 years has improved during the last decade and offers a survival advantage over dialysis treatment. Our experience supports the use of kidney transplantation in this age group if an increased early post-operative risk is accepted. This transplant policy may be challenged for priority reasons.
RESTORATION OF ARCHIVED TELEVISION PROGRAMMES FOR DIGITAL BROADCASTING

The increasing number of television channels and the demands for access to ‘national heritage of old films’ has caused demands for restoration which can be applied so as to enable a wider range of archived material to be used. This paper begins by explaining the drawbacks of the current methods of archive restoration and concludes that successful exploitation of the vast archive possessed by broadcasters will be achieved only by an automated system able to work in real time but being capable of manual intervention. This is the starting point of the European AURORA consortium whose work is then described. The nature of common defects is discussed, together with the specification of user requirements of the system. Prototype hardware is then described, composed of two units which deal with large-area and localised effects, respectively. Finallly, mention is made of assessment techniques, but it is too early to quote results as the project has not yet reached completion.
Molecular Systems Biology Peer Review Process File Stress-response Balance Drives the Evolution of a Network Module and Its Host Genome Transaction Report

(Note: With the exception of the correction of typographical or spelling errors that could be a source of ambiguity, letters and reports are not edited. The original formatting of letters and referee reports may not be reflected in this compilation.) Thank you again for submitting your work to Molecular Systems Biology. We have now heard back from the two referees who agreed to evaluate your manuscript. As you will see from the reports below, the referees acknowledge that the presented findings seem potentially interesting. However, they raise a series of concerns, which should be carefully addressed in a revision of the manuscript. The referees' recommendations are clear and therefore there is no need to repeat the points listed below. We would like however to raise your attention to some of the more fundamental issues raised:-Reviewer #2 refers to the need to perform additional analyses to better support the main findings and provides constructive suggestions in this regard. -Reviewer #1 mentions that statistical support should be provided for some of the presented findings. -Both reviewers point out several cases of figure panels and parts of the text that need to be improved for clarity. Moreover, as referee #1 suggests, we think that a discussion on the broader relevance of the presented approach and analyses should be included. On a more editorial level, we would like to mention that while we generally encourage the submission of individual Supplementary Figure/Table files, in
The design and preliminary assessment of a new knee ligament arthrometer

The paper introduces a new knee ligament arthrometer with dual functions. The arthrometer provides not only the traditional function to test the laxity anterior/posterior cruciate ligaments, but also the function to test the laxity of the medial/lateral collateral ligaments. The preliminary assessment about the data reproducibility was conducted. It showed that the new arthrometer performed well in the aspect of data reproducibility. Further assessment of the arthrometer will be conducted, and the reliability need to be established by comparing with the existing arthrometer.
Antibodies against synthetic peptides and the topology of LamB, an outer membrane protein from Escherichia coli K12.

LamB, an outer membrane protein from Escherichia coli K12, is involved in the transport of maltose and maltodextrins across the outer membrane and constitutes a receptor for a number of bacteriophages. A recent folding model proposes that LamB spans the outer membrane through a number of transmembranous segments separated by regions exposed either to the cell exterior or to the periplasm. This model is essentially based on predictions of structure and genetic arguments relying on the hypothesis that the mutations studied did not alter the folding of the protein. In order to obtain direct evidence with the unaltered protein, we elicited polyclonal antibodies against synthetic peptides corresponding to several LamB sequences. We chose four regions. Three of them [aa 147-161 (peptide 2), aa 371-385 (peptide 3), and aa 399-413 (peptide 4)] are predicted to face the outside of the cell, and the fourth (aa 19-33 (peptide 1)] is predicted to be periplasmic. By immunoblotting against extracts of various mutants, these antibodies were shown to be specific for LamB and targeted to the selected regions. In some cases, the recognition sites for antibodies were narrowed down to parts of a region. In vivo, on intact cells, anti-peptides 2, 3, and 4 reacted with LamB in an ELISA; this confirmed that regions of peptide 2 and 3 are located, at least in part, at the cell exterior and provided the first proof for a similar, situation of the region of peptide 4. Under the same conditions, anti-peptide 1 did not react with LamB. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Performance Comparison of Filtering Techniques for Real Time Traffic Density Estimation under Indian Urban Traffic Scenario

Real time traffic state estimation is important to facilitate better traffic management in urban areas and is a prime concern from a traffic engineer's viewpoint. Traffic density is a key traffic variable that can be used to characterize the traffic system and can be a valuable input to the functional areas of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS). However, measurement of density in the field is difficult due to several practical limitations. This creates a need for inferring density from other traffic variables that are easily measurable in the field. In this paper, model based approaches for the estimation of traffic density are discussed. The non-linear model equations are based on the conservation principle and the fundamental traffic flow. The technique used for recursive estimation of density in real time plays a key role in terms of estimation accuracy. The Extended Kalman Filter (EKF) is a common tool for recursive estimation for nonlinear systems. This study investigates the application of particle filter (PF) and Unscented Kalman Filter (UKF) as alternatives to (EKF) for non-linear traffic state estimation in the context of traffic conditions in India. The estimated density values were corroborated using manually extracted field density values. The performance of these methods was also compared with a base model, where the fundamental traffic flow equation was used for calculating density. The convergence properties of these filters were also analyzed.
Robotic machining: material removal rate control with a flexible manipulator

Practical material removal rate (MRR) control strategies for industrial robot are presented in this paper. Based on a force control platform, both force signal and spindle power information could be used for MRR measurement. Three different control methods, PI control, adaptive control and fuzzy control, are implemented to satisfy various process requirements. Performance and experimental results are presented and compared. With controlled material removal rate (CMRR), the productivity of robotic machining process could be increased dramatically.
Arsenic pollution of groundwater in Vietnam exacerbated by deep aquifer exploitation for more than a century

Arsenic contamination of shallow groundwater is among the biggest health threats in the developing world. Targeting uncontaminated deep aquifers is a popular mitigation option although its long-term impact remains unknown. Here we present the alarming results of a large-scale groundwater survey covering the entire Red River Delta and a unique probability model based on three-dimensional Quaternary geology. Our unprecedented dataset reveals that ∼7 million delta inhabitants use groundwater contaminated with toxic elements, including manganese, selenium, and barium. Depth-resolved probabilities and arsenic concentrations indicate drawdown of arsenic-enriched waters from Holocene aquifers to naturally uncontaminated Pleistocene aquifers as a result of > 100 years of groundwater abstraction. Vertical arsenic migration induced by large-scale pumping from deep aquifers has been discussed to occur elsewhere, but has never been shown to occur at the scale seen here. The present situation in the Red River Delta is a warning for other As-affected regions where groundwater is extensively pumped from uncontaminated aquifers underlying high arsenic aquifers or zones.
High Cord Blood Levels of the T-Helper 2-Associated Chemokines CCL17 and CCL22 Precede Allergy Development During the First 6 Years of Life

Exposure to a strong T-helper 2 (Th2)-like environment during fetal development may promote allergy development. Increased cord blood (CB) levels of the Th2-associated chemokine CCL22 were associated with allergy development during the first 2 y of life. The aim of the present study was to determine whether CB Th1- and Th2-associated chemokine levels are associated with allergy development during the first 6 y of life, allowing assessment of respiratory allergic symptoms usually developing in this period. The CB levels of cytokines, chemokines, and total IgE were determined in 56 children of 20 women with allergic symptoms and 36 women without allergic symptoms. Total IgE and allergen-specific IgE antibody levels were quantified at 6, 12, 24 mo, and 6 y of age. Increased CB CCL22 levels were associated with development of allergic sensitization and asthma and increased CCL17 levels with development of allergic symptoms, including asthma. Sensitized children with allergic symptoms showed higher CB CCL17 and CCL22 levels and higher ratios between these Th2-associated chemokines and the Th1-associated chemokine CXCL10 than nonsensitized children without allergic symptoms. A pronounced Th2 deviation at birth, reflected by increased CB CCL17 and CCL22 levels, and increased CCL22/CXCL10 and CCL17/CXCL10 ratios might promote allergy development later in life.
Bone Regeneration Induced by Strontium Folate Loaded Biohybrid Scaffolds

Nowadays, regenerative medicine has paid special attention to research (in vitro and in vivo) related to bone regeneration, specifically in the treatment of bone fractures or skeletal defects, which is rising worldwide and is continually demanding new developments in the use of stem cells, growth factors, membranes and scaffolds based on novel nanomaterials, and their applications in patients by using advanced tools from molecular biology and tissue engineering. Strontium (Sr) is an element that has been investigated in recent years for its participation in the process of remodeling and bone formation. Based on these antecedents, this is a review about the Strontium Folate (SrFO), a recently developed non-protein based bone-promoting agent with interest in medical and pharmaceutical fields due to its improved features in comparison to current therapies for bone diseases.
Worry-free encryption: functional encryption with public keys

In this work, we put forward the notion of Worry-Free Encryption. This allows Alice to encrypt confidential information under Bob's public key and send it to him, without having to worry about whether Bob has the authority to actually access this information. This is done by encrypting the message under a hidden access policy that only allows Bob to decrypt if his credentials satisfy the policy. Our notion can be seen as a functional encryption scheme but in a public-key setting. As such, we are able to insist that even if the credential authority is corrupted, it should not be able to compromise the security of any honest user. We put forward the notion of Worry-Free Encryption and show how to achieve it for any polynomial-time computable policy, under only the assumption that IND-CPA public-key encryption schemes exist. Furthermore, we construct CCA-secure Worry-Free Encryption, efficiently in the random oracle model, and generally (but inefficiently) using simulation-sound non-interactive zero-knowledge proofs.
A quantitative architectural evaluation of synchronization algorithms and disciplines on ccNUMA systems: the case of the SGI Origin2000

This paper assesses the performance and scalability of several software synchronization algorithms, as well as the interrelationship between synchronization, multiprogramming and parallel job scheduling, on ccNUMA systems. Using the SGl Origin2000, we evaluate synchronization algorithms for spin locks, lock-free concurrent queues, and barriers. We analyze the sensitivity of synchronization algorithms to the hardware implementation of elementary synchronization primitives and investigate in-depth the architectural implications and particularly the tradeoffs between implementing synchronization primitives with cacheable synchronization variables or at-memory. The architectural study enables us to contribute scalable, customized implementations of synchronization algorithms, including a hybrid scheduler-conscious queue lock and a lock-free queue. We also evaluate different combinations of synchronization algorithms, synchronization disciplines that cope with the effects of multiprogramming and different parallel job scheduling strategies, using the Cellular IEUX operating system as a case study.
Covariance Estimation in Decomposable Gaussian Graphical Models

Graphical models are a framework for representing and exploiting prior conditional independence structures within distributions using graphs. In the Gaussian case, these models are directly related to the sparsity of the inverse covariance (concentration) matrix and allow for improved covariance estimation with lower computational complexity. We consider concentration estimation with the mean-squared error (MSE) as the objective, in a special type of model known as decomposable. This model includes, for example, the well known banded structure and other cases encountered in practice. Our first contribution is the derivation and analysis of the minimum variance unbiased estimator (MVUE) in decomposable graphical models. We provide a simple closed form solution to the MVUE and compare it with the classical maximum likelihood estimator (MLE) in terms of performance and complexity. Next, we extend the celebrated Stein's unbiased risk estimate (SURE) to graphical models. Using SURE, we prove that the MSE of the MVUE is always smaller or equal to that of the biased MLE, and that the MVUE itself is dominated by other approaches. In addition, we propose the use of SURE as a constructive mechanism for deriving new covariance estimators. Similarly to the classical MLE, all of our proposed estimators have simple closed form solutions but result in a significant reduction in MSE.
The therapeutic monoclonal antibody market

Since the commercialization of the first therapeutic monoclonal antibody product in 1986, this class of biopharmaceutical products has grown significantly so that, as of November 10, 2014, forty-seven monoclonal antibody products have been approved in the US or Europe for the treatment of a variety of diseases, and many of these products have also been approved for other global markets. At the current approval rate of ∼ four new products per year, ∼70 monoclonal antibody products will be on the market by 2020, and combined world-wide sales will be nearly $125 billion.
Magnetic Remanence Prediction of NdFeB Magnets Based on a Novel Machine Learning Intelligence Approach Using a Particle Swarm Optimization Support Vector Regression

Studies have shown that the chemical compositions affecting the magnetic properties of NdFeB magnets. In order to get the right NdFeB magnets, it is advantageous to have an accurate model with which one can predict the magnetic properties with different components. In this paper, according to an experimental dataset on the magnetic remanence of NdFeB, a predicting and optimizing model using support vector regression SVR combined with particle swarm optimization PSO was developed. The estimated result of SVR agreed with the experimental data well. Test results of leave-one-out cross validation show that the mean absolute error does not exceed 0.0036, the mean absolute percentage error is solely 0.53%, and the correlation coefficient is as high as 0.839. This implies that one can estimate an available combination of different proportion components by using support vector regression model to get suitable magnetic remanence of NdFeB.
Evolutionary Rate and Duplicability in the Arabidopsis thaliana Protein–Protein Interaction Network

Genes show a bewildering variation in their patterns of molecular evolution, as a result of the action of different levels and types of selective forces. The factors underlying this variation are, however, still poorly understood. In the last decade, the position of proteins in the protein–protein interaction network has been put forward as a determinant factor of the evolutionary rate and duplicability of their encoding genes. This conclusion, however, has been based on the analysis of the limited number of microbes and animals for which interactome-level data are available (essentially, Escherichia coli, yeast, worm, fly, and humans). Here, we study, for the first time, the relationship between the position of proteins in the high-density interactome of a plant (Arabidopsis thaliana) and the patterns of molecular evolution of their encoding genes. We found that genes whose encoded products act at the center of the network are more evolutionarily constrained than those acting at the network periphery. This trend remains significant when potential confounding factors (gene expression level and breadth, duplicability, function, and length of the encoded products) are controlled for. Even though the correlation between centrality measures and rates of evolution is generally weak, for some functional categories, it is comparable in strength to (or even stronger than) the correlation between evolutionary rates and expression levels or breadths. In addition, genes encoding interacting proteins in the network evolve at relatively similar rates. Finally, Arabidopsis proteins encoded by duplicated genes are more highly connected than those encoded by singleton genes. This observation is in agreement with the patterns observed in humans, but in contrast with those observed in E. coli, yeast, worm, and fly (whose duplicated genes tend to act at the periphery of the network), implying that the relationship between duplicability and centrality inverted at least twice during eukaryote evolution. Taken together, these results indicate that the structure of the A. thaliana network constrains the evolution of its components at multiple levels.
Interval Generalized Stochastic Petri Net Models in Performance Evaluation

Interval arithmetic has been applied to model uncertainties. Generalized stochastic Petri Net (GSPN) is one of most commonly applied timed Petri net models for performance and reliability evaluation. This paper describes the interval generalized stochastic Petri net (IGSPN) as an interval extension to the GSPN model. The IGSPN analysis takes into account the effects of variability on exponential transition rates and weights when calculating performance indices. Three case studies are presented for describing the model as well as for presenting the analysis methods. IGSPN analysis for performance evaluation may be useful for engineers and technicians as a tool for decision-making.
Intrinsic dielectric stack reliability of a high performance bulk planar 20nm replacement gate high-k metal gate technology and comparison to 28nm gate first high-k metal gate process

We compare the intrinsic reliability of the dielectric stack of a high performance bulk planar 20nm replacement gate technology to the reliability of high performance bulk planar 28 nm gate first high-k metal gate (HKMG) technology, developed within the IBM Alliance. Comparable N/PFET TDDB and comparable/improved NFET PBTI are shown to be achievable for similar Tinv. The choice to not include channel silicon germanium as a PFET performance element in the 20nm technology impact NBTI, driving a potential tradeoff between NBTI and PBTI. The complexity of integrating such performance elements while accounting for reliability/performance tradeoffs demands their selection during technology definition with due consideration to realistic product usage conditions.
Ein Beitrag zur Parameteridentifikation in örtlich verteilten Systemen / Contribution to Parameter Identification in Spatially Distributed Systems

Zusammenfassung Im Beitrag wird eine Methode zur Bestimmung der Parameter in linearen verteiltparametrischen Systemen vorgestellt. Der Ansatz basiert auf der Herleitung eines linearen Systems von Faltungsgleichungen aus der gegebenen Randwertaufgabe und der anschließenden Elimination nicht gemessener Systemgrößen aus diesem Gleichungssystem. Dies führt, im allgemeinen auch für parameterlineare Randwertaufgaben, auf bezüglich der Parameter nichtlineare Zusammenhänge. Diese endlichdimensionalen nichtlinearen Gleichungen werden mit geeigneten numerischen Verfahren gelöst. Der Nutzen der Methode wird anhand von Simulationsbeispielen und experimentellen Daten illustriert Summary The contribution presents a simple method for parameter identification in linear spatially distributed systems. The approach relies on a linear system of convolution equations associated with the originally given boundary value problem. Unknown signals are eliminated from these equations by means of simple algebraic computations. The resulting equations, the numerical identification scheme is based on, are in general nonlinear with respect to the unknown parameters even if the originally posed boundary value problem is linear w. r. t. to the latter. The method is illustrated by means of two simulation examples and experimental