Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Signalling Minimization Framework for Short Data Packet Transmission in 5G

Current cellular networks are mainly designed for the transmission of broadband packet payloads. Due to this, signalling mechanisms are inefficient for small packet payloads. Future trends predict an explosion of sporadic small packet transmissions due to machine type and always-ON type applications. Therefore, we target signalling minimization in 5G. In particular, we define user and service centric connection and mobility management by 5G radio access network (5G-RAN). The key idea is to anchor the core network connection for a user in 5G-RAN with the help of a user centric mobility area. This area is dynamically managed by 5G-RAN for each user. For a mobile user within this area, we minimize the core network signalling related to connection transitions, paging and handover. We present the performance assessment of our proposal with the help of simulations. The results show significant gains in terms of signalling reduction with respect to 4G-LTE approach.
Estimating Systematic Risk under Extremely Adverse Market Conditions

This paper considers the problem of estimating a linear model between two heavy-tailed variables if the explanatory variable has an extremely low (or high) value. We propose an estimator for the model coefficient by exploiting the tail dependence between the two variables and prove its asymptotic properties. Simulations show that our estimation method yields a lower mean squared error than regressions conditional on tail observations. In an empirical application we illustrate the better performance of our approach relative to the conditional regression approach in projecting the losses of industry-specific stock portfolios in the event of a market crash.
Bestrophin 1 is indispensable for volume regulation in human retinal pigment epithelium cells

Significance First insight into the molecular identity of volume-regulated anion channel (VRAC) emerged only recently by demonstrating a role for leucine-rich repeats containing 8A (LRRC8A) in channel activity. Our results now expand on VRAC biology, suggesting a model where VRAC subunit composition is cell type- or tissue-specific rather than a single ubiquitous channel formed solely by LRRC8A. Here, we show that bestrophin 1 (BEST1), but not LRCC8A, is crucial in cell volume regulation in retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells differentiated from human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs). VRAC-mediated currents were strongly reduced in hiPSC-RPE from macular dystrophy patients with pathologic BEST1 mutations. Our model is further supported by in vivo effects of Best1 deficiency in the mouse that manifest as severe subfertility phenotype due to enhanced abnormal sperm morphology related to impaired volume regulation. In response to cell swelling, volume-regulated anion channels (VRACs) participate in a process known as regulatory volume decrease (RVD). Only recently, first insight into the molecular identity of mammalian VRACs was obtained by the discovery of the leucine-rich repeats containing 8A (LRRC8A) gene. Here, we show that bestrophin 1 (BEST1) but not LRRC8A is crucial for volume regulation in human retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) cells. Whole-cell patch-clamp recordings in RPE derived from human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) exhibit an outwardly rectifying chloride current with characteristic functional properties of VRACs. This current is severely reduced in hiPSC-RPE cells derived from macular dystrophy patients with pathologic BEST1 mutations. Disruption of the orthologous mouse gene (Best1−/−) does not result in obvious retinal pathology but leads to a severe subfertility phenotype in agreement with minor endogenous expression of Best1 in murine RPE but highly abundant expression in mouse testis. Sperm from Best1−/− mice showed reduced motility and abnormal sperm morphology, indicating an inability in RVD. Together, our data suggest that the molecular identity of VRACs is more complex—that is, instead of a single ubiquitous channel, VRACs could be formed by cell type- or tissue-specific subunit composition. Our findings provide the basis to further examine VRAC diversity in normal and diseased cell physiology, which is key to exploring novel therapeutic approaches in VRAC-associated pathologies.
Inhibitors of bacterial virulence identified in a surrogate host model

Antibiotic resistance continues to reduce the number of available antibiotics, increasing the need for novel antibacterial drugs. Since the seminal work of Sir Alexander Fleming, antibiotic identification has been based exclusively on the inhibition of bacterial growth in vitro. Recently, inhibitors of bacterial virulence which interfere with bacterial pathogenesis mechanisms have been proposed as an alternative to antibiotics, and a few were discovered using assays targeting specific virulence mechanisms. Here we designed a simple surrogate host model for the measurement of virulence and systematic discovery of anti‐virulence molecules, based on the interaction of Tetrahymena pyriformis and Klebsiella pneumoniae cells. We screened a library of small molecules and identified several inhibitors of virulence. In a mouse pneumonia model we confirmed that an anti‐virulence molecule displayed antibacterial activity against Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, by reducing dramatically the bacterial load in the lungs. This molecule did not inhibit bacterial growth in vitro but prevented biosynthesis of the Klebsiella capsule and lipopolysaccharides, a key requirement for virulence. Our results demonstrate that anti‐virulence molecules represent an alternative to antibiotics and those can be discovered using non‐animal host models.
Black plane solutions in four-dimensional spacetimes.

The static, plane symmetric solutions and cylindrically symmetric solutions of Einstein-Maxwell equations with a negative cosmological constant are investigated. These black configurations are asymptotically anti-de Sitter-type not only in the transverse directions, but also in the membrane or string directions. Their causal structure is similar to that of Reissner-Nordstr\"om black holes, but their Hawking temperature goes with ${M}^{\frac{1}{3}}$, where $M$ is the ADM mass density. We also discuss the static plane solutions in Einstein-Maxwell-dilaton gravity with a Liouville-type dilaton potential. The presence of the dilaton field changes drastically the structure of solutions. They are asymptotically "anti-de Sitter-" or "de Sitter-type" depending on the parameters in the theory.
Validation study of self-reported measures of fat distribution.

OBJECTIVE To determine the validity of self-reported body circumferences and indices of body fatness in comparison with the same variables measure by technicians. DESIGN Cross-sectional survey. SUBJECTS 66 women aged 40-81 years. MEASUREMENTS Self-reported weight and height and waist, hip, chest and bust circumferences, by mail questionnaire. The same measurements taken by a trained technician during a clinic visit. Derived variables of body mass index, waist-to-hip ratio, and conicity index, based on both self-reports and technician measurements. RESULTS Mean differences between technician measurements and self measurements indicated that, on average, women tended to systematically underestimate their body circumferences. Age-adjusted Pearson correlations between technician measurements and self measurements ranged from 0.93 (95% confidence interval: 0.89, 0.96) for hips to 0.99 (95% Cl: 0.98, 0.99) for weight. For derived variables (quotients of measures), the highest agreement (r = 0.98, 95% Cl: 0.97, 0.99) was observed for body mass index (weight in kg/height in m2). The ratio of circumferences of the waist and hips was correlated less strongly (r = 0.76, 95% Cl: 0.63, 0.85). The correlation for conicity index, a measure of fat distribution that is independent of hip measurement variability, was 0.82 (95% Cl: 0.72, 0.88). Overall, accuracy of self measurements did not appear to vary according to age. There was an indication that with increasing values of weight and waist measurements, there was an increasing tendency for women to underestimate the measurement. This was also reflected in the accuracy of the derived variables body mass index and waist-to-hip ratio, but not the conicity index. CONCLUSIONS These results indicate that self measurements of these anthropometric variables are highly accurate even when used to formulate derived variables, and are therefore appropriate for epidemiologic studies.
The relationship between a dissociated optic nerve fibre layer appearance after macular hole surgery and Muller cell debris on peeled internal limiting membrane

A dissociated optic nerve fibre layer (DONFL) is a characteristic change noted in inner retinal morphology after internal limiting membrane (ILM) peeling. It is thought to be due to trauma to Muller cells as the ILM is peeled from their attached end plates. In this study, we aimed to determine the extent and size of Muller cell debris on the retinal side of excised ILM and assess whether this correlated with the extent of DONFL observed postoperatively.
Mucosal healing in inflammatory bowel diseases: a systematic review

Recent studies have identified mucosal healing on endoscopy as a key prognostic parameter in the management of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), thus highlighting the role of endoscopy for monitoring of disease activity in IBD. In fact, mucosal healing has emerged as a key treatment goal in IBD that predicts sustained clinical remission and resection-free survival of patients. The structural basis of mucosal healing is an intact barrier function of the gut epithelium that prevents translocation of commensal bacteria into the mucosa and submucosa with subsequent immune cell activation. Thus, mucosal healing should be considered as an initial event in the suppression of inflammation of deeper layers of the bowel wall, rather than as a sign of complete healing of gut inflammation. In this systematic review, the clinical studies on mucosal healing are summarised and the effects of anti-inflammatory or immunosuppressive drugs such as 5-aminosalicylates, corticosteroids, azathioprine, ciclosporin and anti-TNF antibodies (adalimumab, certolizumab pegol, infliximab) on mucosal healing are discussed. Finally, the implications of mucosal healing for subsequent clinical management in patients with IBD are highlighted.
Leaving Homelessness Behind: Housing Decisions Among Families Exiting Shelter

Because homelessness assistance programs are designed to help families, it is important for policymakers and practitioners to understand how families experiencing homelessness make housing decisions, particularly when they decide not to use available services. This study explores those decisions using in-depth qualitative interviews with 80 families recruited in shelters across four sites approximately six months after they were assigned to one of four conditions (permanent housing subsidies, project-based transitional housing, community-based rapid re-housing, or usual care). Familiar neighborhoods near children's schools, transportation, family and friends, and stability were important to families across conditions. Program restrictions on eligibility constrained family choices. Subsidized housing was the most desired intervention, and families leased up at higher rates than in other studies of poor families. Respondents were least comfortable in and most likely to leave transitional housing. Uncertainty associated with community-based rapid re-housing generated considerable anxiety. Across interventions, many families had to make unhappy compromises, often leading to further moves. Policy recommendations are offered.
Des agents virtuels sociaux et émotionnels pour l'interaction humain-machine

To maintain the user's interest into a human-machine interaction using a virtual agent, we endowed this agent with communicative and interactive abilities, and allowed this agent to communicate socially and emotionally with the user. To this end, we present different models from giving an agent the ability to perceive its environment, to the ability display emotions.
Improved Wealth Measures in the Health and Retirement Study: Asset Reconciliation and Cross-Wave Imputation

In this report, we present improved wealth measures for the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), which aim to reduce the effect of observation error on wealth levels and changes in wealth. The new wealth measures take account of the asset verification section in the HRS and use cross-wave information, most notably the value of the same asset in adjacent waves, in the imputation models, so imputed values better preserve serial correlation in the asset values. We document how we dealt with several methodological challenges in the implementation of these improvements. The corrections from the asset verification data reduce the standard deviations of wave-to-wave changes by substantial amounts (up to 57 percent for total wealth). The most important effect of the cross-wave imputations is a considerable reduction of the number of spikes and trenches (large changes in value followed by large changes back).
Money Financed Deficit Spending: A Reinterpretation

The conventional IS-LM treatment of government deficit spending financed by money creation is so well known as to require no elaboration. Yet in spite of its familiarity, we will argue that the approach is subject to major conceptual difficulties which are not generally recognized. Furthermore, these difficulties are so basic that they seriously weaken the conceptual basis for the conclusions generated by the model. These problems do not stem from any inherent deficiencies of the model itself, but from particular interpretations placed on the model.
Contribution of muscle afferents to the hemodynamic, autonomic, and ventilatory responses to exercise in patients with chronic heart failure: effects of physical training.

BACKGROUND A neural linkage between peripheral abnormalities and the exaggerated exercise responses in chronic heart failure (CHF) was postulated. We studied the ergoreceptors (afferents sensitive to skeletal muscle work) in CHF and whether training can affect their activity. METHODS AND RESULTS In 12 stable CHF patients (ejection fraction [EF] = 26.4%) and 10 control subjects (EF = 55.3%), we compared the responses to dynamic handgrip and during a 3-minute period of posthandgrip regional circulatory occlusion (PH-RCO). The ergoreflex contribution was quantified as the percentage responses to exercise maintained by PH-RCO compared with recovery without PH-RCO. Patients showed ergoreflex overactivation compared with control subjects in terms of ventilation (86.5% versus 54.5%), diastolic pressure (97.8% versus 53.5%), and leg vascular resistance (108.1% versus 48.9%) (all P < .05). The contribution of the ergoreflex to vagal withdrawal (high frequency of RR variability) and sympathetic activation (low frequency of RR, pressure variability) was evident in both groups. Nine control subjects and nine CHF patients participated in 6 weeks of forearm training. Training reduced the ergoreflex contributions more in CHF than in control subjects: diastolic pressure (-33.2% versus -4.6%), ventilation (-57.6% versus -24.6%), and leg vascular resistance (-59.9% versus -8.0%) (all P < .05). CONCLUSIONS (1) The ergoreflex role has a larger effect on the responses to exercise in CHF than in control subjects. (2) Training may reduce this exaggerated ergoreflex activity, thereby improving the responses to exercise.
SPECIFIC MECHANISM FOR BLOOD INFLOW STIMULATION IN BRAIN AREA PRONE TO ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE LESIONS

The present study describes the specific two-stage mechanism that intensifies blood supply to the brain area comprising amygdala, hippocampus, olfactory bulb, entorhinal cortex, and neocortex (AHBC). Cholinergic neurons from the nuclei of basal forebrain induce vasodilatory effect through release of acetylcholine. In physiological aging the efficacy of this neuronal system declines, while intensive formation of amyloidogenic peptides starts. These peptides at low, picomolar concentrations activate alpha7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, thus enhancing angiogenesis and in so doing restoring blood supply to the AHBC area.
Integral role of GDF‐9 and BMP‐15 in ovarian function

The oocyte plays an important role in regulating and promoting follicle growth, and thereby its own development, by the production of oocyte growth factors that predominantly act on supporting granulosa cells via paracrine signaling. Genetic studies in mice demonstrated critical roles of two key oocyte‐derived growth factors belonging to the transforming growth factor‐β (TGF‐β) superfamily, growth and differentiation factor‐9 (GDF‐9) and bone morphogenetic protein‐15 (BMP‐15), in ovarian function. The identification of Bmp15 and Gdf9 gene mutations as the causal mechanism underlying the highly prolific or infertile nature of several sheep strains in a dosage‐sensitive manner also highlighted the crucial role these two genes play in ovarian function. Similarly, large numbers of mutations in the GDF9 and BMP15 genes have been identified in women with premature ovarian failure and in mothers of dizygotic twins. The purpose of this article is to review the genetic studies of GDF‐9 and BMP‐15 mutations identified in women and sheep, as well as describing the various knockout and overexpressing mouse models, and to summarize the molecular and biological functions that underlie the crucial role of these two oocyte factors in female fertility. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 78:9–21, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Utility of Schistosoma bovis Adult Worm Antigens for Diagnosis of Human Schistosomiasis by Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay and Electroimmunotransfer Blot Techniques

ABSTRACT Immunodiagnostic methods based on the detection of antibodies continue to be the most effective and practical methods for the diagnosis of imported schistosomiasis. Schistosoma bovis is a species whose final natural hosts are bovines, ovines, caprines, and small wild ruminants. Different studies have demonstrated the analogies existing between S. bovis and other Schistosoma species which affect humans. The objective of this work was to evaluate the utility of S. bovis adult worm antigens (AWA) for the diagnosis of imported human schistosomiasis by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and electroimmunotransfer blotting (EITB) techniques. By detecting eggs, the ELISA for S. bovis AWA was able to definitively detect imported cases with a sensitivity of 94%. The specificity of the ELISA for S. bovis AWA was 97%. There were no differences between the results of the S. bovis AWA ELISA for patients infected with Schistosoma mansoni and those infected with Schistosoma haematobium. The EITB technique showed bands of 85, 37, and 20 kDa, which are characteristic of infections with Schistosoma spp. Specific bands to indicate infection by different species of Schistosoma have not been detected. The combined use of the ELISA for S. bovis AWA and EITB increased the global sensitivity of the study to 97%. Our findings suggest that the ELISA for S. bovis AWA is a useful test for the immunodiagnosis of imported schistosomiasis and that EITB for detecting S. bovis AWA permits the confirmation of diagnosis when the ELISA for S. bovis AWA is positive.
Gaussian adaptation based parameter adaptation for differential evolution

Differential Evolution (DE), a global optimization algorithm based on the concepts of Darwinian evolution, is popular for its simplicity and effectiveness in solving numerous real-world optimization problems in real-valued spaces. The effectiveness of DE is due to the differential mutation operator that allows DE to automatically adjust between the exploration/exploitation in its search moves. However, the performance of DE is dependent on the setting of control parameters such as the mutation factor and the crossover probability. Therefore, to obtain optimal performance preliminary tuning of the numerical parameters, which is quite timing consuming, is needed. Recently, different parameter adaptation techniques, which can automatically update the control parameters to appropriate values to suit the characteristics of optimization problems, have been proposed. However, most of the adaptation techniques try to adapt each of the parameter individually but do not take into account interaction between the parameters that are being adapted. In this paper, we introduce a DE self-adaptive scheme that takes into account the parameters dependencies by means of a multivariate probabilistic technique based on Gaussian Adaptation working on the parameter space. The performance of the DE algorithm with the proposed parameter adaptation scheme is evaluated on the benchmark problems designed for CEC 2014.
Testers learning requirements

When software testers talk about their job, they generally state that their task is to find defects as well as to ensure that no (major) defects exist in the main paths of business processes. They often add the comment they are doing this by checking the software (application under test) against existing requirements. Its common sense that testers should be familiar with understanding and interpreting requirements. But when it comes to creation and review of requirements testers are usually not involved. Now, taking into consideration that many errors in software development are due to improperly defined requirements, one might wonder if integrating testers directly into the phase of requirements creation would be a promising option. This lecture reports about a tester-specific training-program that directly touches that consideration. The training was held in practice for testers in the field of financial services in the year 2013 and 2014. It highlights the structure of the program as well as its benefits and practical value in the software development cycle. In addition commonly made shortcomings and their solutions are also covered.
Cholesterol Accumulates in Senile Plaques of Alzheimer Disease Patients and in Transgenic APPsw Mice

Mounting evidence suggests that cholesterol may contribute to the pathogenesis of Alzheimer disease (AD). We examined whether cholesterol might be present in senile plaques, a hallmark neuropathological feature of AD. We employed 2 different fluorometric-staining techniques (filipin staining and an enzymatic technique) for the determination of cholesterol in brains of postmortem confirmed AD patients and in nondemented, age-matched histopathologically normal controls. AD patient brains showed abnormal accumulation of cholesterol in congophilic/birefringent dense cores of senile plaques that was essentially absent in histopathologically normal controls. To determine whether increased senile plaque-associated cholesterol occurred generally in all plaques or was restricted to a specific subset, quantitative analysis was performed. Data indicate abnormal accumulation of cholesterol in cores of mature plaques but not in diffuse or immature plaques. Additionally, transgenic mice that overexpress the “Swedish” amyloid precursor protein (Tg APPsw, line 2576) exhibited a similar pattern of abnormal cholesterol accumulation in mature, congophilic amyloid plaques at 24 months of age that was absent in their control littermates or in 8-month-old Tg APPsw mice (an age prior to amyloid deposition). Taken together, our results imply a link between cholesterol and AD pathogenesis and suggest that cholesterol plays an important role in the formation and/or progression of senile plaques.