Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Roof Reconstruction from Airborne Laser Scanning Data Based on Image Processing Methods

Abstract. The paper presents a new data-driven approach to generate CityGML building models from airborne laser scanning data. The approach is based on image processing methods applied to an interpolated height map and avoids shortcomings of established methods for plane detection like Hough transform or RANSAC algorithms on point clouds. The improvement originates in an interpolation algorithm that generates a height map from sparse point cloud data by preserving ridge lines and step edges of roofs. Roof planes then are detected by clustering the height map’s gradient angles, parameterizations of planes are estimated and used to filter out noise around ridge lines. On that basis, a raster representation of roof facets is generated. Then roof polygons are determined from region outlines, connected to a roof boundary graph, and simplified. Whereas the method is not limited to churches, the method’s performance is primarily tested for church roofs of the German city of Krefeld because of their complexity. To eliminate inaccuracies of spires, contours of towers are detected additionally, and spires are rendered as solids of revolution. In our experiments, the new data-driven method lead to significantly better building models than the previously applied model-driven approach.
Comparing parent and provider priorities in discussions of early detection and intervention for infants with and at risk of cerebral palsy.

BACKGROUND Although literature suggests that parents need support when their child is diagnosed with cerebral palsy (CP), it is unclear to what extent providers implement these supports in practice and what parental perspectives surround provider early diagnosis and management of CP. Therefore, we aimed to characterize and compare experiences of providers and parents of children with CP with regards to early detection and intervention. METHOD Seventeen parents participated in day-long world-café style workshops focused on categories extracted from the International Classification of Function (ICF) framework and recent systematic reviews of early detection for CP. Thirty regional providers (generalists, specialists, therapists) caring for infants with CP completed surveys with scaled-score and open-ended questions. Quantitative and qualitative data were independently assessed by two reviewers to identify prominent themes. RESULTS All parents (100%) stated early diagnosis or high-risk for CP classification was beneficial compared to only 50% of providers who often gave early CP diagnoses before 12 months. Top parent priorities were honesty and positively-phrased messages. Providers most often addressed cognition, primary care need, motor and feeding issues (80%, 62%, 54%, 54% frequently/sometimes). Matching priorities for discussion were neuroimaging timing/risk/benefit, cognition, primary care, motor and feeding/nutrition. Discordance occurred for participation, parent wellbeing, pain and vision, with parents wanting more education and resources. CONCLUSIONS Receiving early diagnoses or high-risk for CP classification is a parent priority. Alignment between parents and providers exists for ICF domains of body functions/structures and activity, but less for those of environment, personal and participation.
Selection for feed efficiency does not change the selection for growth and carcass traits in Nellore cattle.

The objectives were to conduct a genetic evaluation of residual feed intake (RFI) and residual feed intake adjusted for fat (RFIFat) and to analyse the effect of selection for these traits on growth, carcass and reproductive traits. Data from 945 Nellore bulls in seven feed efficiency tests in a feedlot were analysed. Genetic evaluation was performed using an animal model in which the feed efficiency test and age of the animal at the beginning of the test were considered as a systematic effect. Direct additive genetic and residual effects were considered as random effects. Correlations and genetic gains were estimated by two-trait analysis between feed efficiency measures (RFI and RFIFat) and other traits. Feed conversion showed low heritability (0.06), but dry matter intake (DMI), average daily gain, RFI, RFIFat, metabolic body weight and scrotal circumference measured at 450 days of age (SC450) showed moderate to high heritability (0.49, 0.28, 0.33, 0.36, 0.38 and 0.80, respectively). Similarly, ribeye area, backfat thickness, rump cap fat thickness, marbling score and subcutaneous fat thickness also had high heritability values (0.46, 0.37, 0.57, 0.51 and 0.47, respectively). Genetic correlations between RFI and SC450 were null, and between RFIFat and SC450 were strongly positive. Genetic and phenotypic correlations of RFI and RFIFat with carcass traits were not different from zero, as correlated responses for carcass traits were also not different from zero. The Nellore selection for feed efficiency by RFI or RFIFat allows the recognition of feed efficient animals, with DMI reduction and without significant changes in growth and carcass traits. However, because of the observed results between RFIFat and SC450, selection of animals should be analysed with caution and a preselection for reproductive traits is necessary to avoid reproductive impairments in the herd.
Factors influencing automatic segmental alignment of sociophonetic corpora

Automatically time-aligning utterances at the segmental level is increasingly common practice in phonetic and sociophonetic work because of the obvious benefits it brings in allowing the efficient scaling up of the amount of speech data that can be analysed. The field is arriving at a set of recommended practices for improving alignment accuracy, but methodological differences across studies (e.g., the use of different languages and different measures of accuracy) often mean that direct comparison of the factors which facilitate or hinder alignment can be difficult. In this paper, following a review of the state of the art in automatic segmental alignment, we test the effects of a number of factors on its accuracy. Namely, we test the effects of: (1) the presence or absence of pause markers in the training data, (2) the presence of overlapping speech or other noise, (3) using training data from single or multiple speakers, (4) using different sampling rates, (5) using pre-trained acoustic models versus mo.
Glut 1 in Cancer Cells and the Inhibitory Action of Resveratrol as A Potential Therapeutic Strategy

An important hallmark in cancer cells is the increase in glucose uptake. GLUT1 is an important target in cancer treatment because cancer cells upregulate GLUT1, a membrane protein that facilitates the basal uptake of glucose in most cell types, to ensure the flux of sugar into metabolic pathways. The dysregulation of GLUT1 is associated with numerous disorders, including cancer and metabolic diseases. There are natural products emerging as a source for inhibitors of glucose uptake, and resveratrol is a molecule of natural origin with many properties that acts as antioxidant and antiproliferative in malignant cells. In the present review, we discuss how GLUT1 is involved in the general scheme of cancer cell metabolism, the mechanism of glucose transport, and the importance of GLUT1 structure to understand the inhibition process. Then, we review the current state-of-the-art of resveratrol and other natural products as GLUT1 inhibitors, focusing on those directed at treating different types of cancer. Targeting GLUT1 activity is a promising strategy for the development of drugs aimed at treating neoplastic growth.
Estimation of Energy Intake by a Food Frequency Questionnaire: Calibration and Validation with the Doubly Labeled Water Method in Japanese Older People

Accurate assessments of a target population’s energy intake (EI) are essential to prevent poor nutritional status. However, self-reported dietary records (DRs) or food frequency questionnaires (FFQs) are not always accurate, thereby requiring validation and calibration studies. This study aimed to validate the EI estimated by a FFQ using the doubly labeled water (DLW) method. Participants were 109 Japanese older adults (50 women and 59 men) aged 65–88 years. The EI was obtained by a DR and 47-item FFQ over 1 year. The total energy expenditure (TEE) was measured by DLW for ~2 weeks. EI was significantly lower than TEE (p < 0.01); ratios of EI assessed by DR and FFQ against TEE were 0.91 ± 0.17 and 0.82 ± 0.22, respectively. TEE was significantly and moderately correlated with the EI estimated by the DR (r = 0.45, p < 0.01) and FFQ (r = 0.37, p < 0.01). Furthermore, the EI correlation coefficients estimated by DR and the FFQ in this study were not significantly different (p = 0.46). The EI/TEE ratio was significantly and negatively correlated with the body mass index (BMI). In conclusion, EI estimated with a DR or FFQ modestly correlated with TEE, and calibrating EI with a developed equation in this study can attenuate the underestimation of EI.
Evaluating adaptive, carry-over and plastic antipredator responses across a temporal gradient in Pacific chorus frogs.

The development of antipredator traits is dependent on the frequency and intensity of predator exposure over evolutionary and ecological time. We hypothesized that prey species would respond with increasing accuracy when exposed to predators across generational, ontogenetic and immediate timescales. We assessed larval Pacific chorus frog (PSRE; Pseudacris regilla) individuals that varied in population sympatry, embryonic conditioning, and immediate exposure to stocked populations of Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). Using PSRE populations from sites with and without resident Rainbow Trout, we conditioned embryos to trout odor, PSRE alarm cues, trout odor in combination with alarm cues, or control water. After being hatched and reared in control water, individuals were exposed to the four predator cue treatments using a fully factorial design. Tadpoles from populations with resident Rainbow Trout did not behave or develop differently than tadpoles originating from fishless sites. However, we found evidence that PSRE reduced predation risk with a combination of carry-over effect (i.e., transfer of information across life history stages) and within-life stage phenotypically plastic mechanisms. We found both developmental and behavioral carry-over effects: tadpoles conditioned with trout odor as embryos grew more slowly and took refuge more often than control animals. Within-life stage behavioral plasticity was observed in tadpoles from all treatment groups, responding to predator cues with increased refuge use. Potentially additive effects of predator exposure on prey response should be considered when predicting the ability of prey to recognize novel threats. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
The ACTB Variants and Alcohol Drinking Confer Joint Effect to Ischemic Stroke in Chinese Han Population

Aim: β-actin (ACTB) participates in the vascular remodeling and contributes to the cardiovascular diseases. Herein, we investigated the associations of ACTB with hypertension and stroke. Methods: Three single-nucleotide polymorphisms in ACTB were selected for genotyping in 2,012 hypertension cases and 2,210 controls. The associations of ACTB with hypertension and stroke were examined in another follow-up study. Logistic and Cox regression were performed in a case-control study and a follow-up study, respectively. Additive scale interaction was examined by calculating the relative excess risk due to interaction (RERI), attributable proportion due to interaction (AP) and synergy index (SI). The multiplicative interaction hazard ratio was calculated by fitting the Cox regression model. ACTB mRNA in peripheral blood mononuclear cells was measured in ischemic stroke (IS) cases and in controls. Results: The associations of rs852426 with hypertension and stroke had statistical significance in drinkers but not after Bonferroni correction. An additive interaction of rs852426 and drinking was observed for stroke incidence, the adjusted RERI was −0.907 (p = 4.108×10−4), and the multiplicative interaction was still sound (HR = 0.541, p = 0.048). Furthermore, the significant interaction was further replicated in a nested case-control study. In the drinking population, the relative expression of ACTB mRNA in IS was lower (0.99 ± 0.26) than that in controls (1.13 ± 0.20), with a p value of 0.026. Conclusions: ACTB rs852426 was significantly associated with alcohol consumption on stroke risk, and the expression of ACTB mRNA in IS who had a drinking habit was significantly down-regulated. This finding will provide a novel insight into the prevention of stroke.
An Air Bubble-Isolating Rotating Wall Vessel Bioreactor for Improved Spheroid/Organoid Formation.

Rotating wall vessel (RWV) bioreactors have been used to produce cell spheroids and organoids at a faster rate than in other bioreactor devices and with higher structural and functional fidelity. One of the limitations of traditional RWV systems is the well-documented tendency for air bubble formation during operation. The presence of these bubbles negates key features of the RWV environment, such as zero headspace, low -shear, and simulated microgravity. In this paper, we describe the design, construction, and testing of a novel RWV capable of constantly removing air bubbles from the system without interfering with the fluid dynamics that produce optimized cell culture conditions. We modeled this capacity using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and then validated the model with alginate beads and spheroid cultures of A549 human lung adenocarcinoma cells. The areas of spheroids assembled from A549 cells in the novel bioreactor in the presence of air bubbles were an order of magnitude larger than in conventional bioreactors when bubbles were present. Our results demonstrate the ability of the novel design to remove and isolate bubbles while avoiding damage to spheroid assembly, as observed in conventional RWV bioreactors in the presence of bubbles. We anticipate that the novel design will increase experimental reproducibility and consistency when using rotating wall vessel bioreactors.
Conditional deletion of glucocorticoid receptors in rat brain results in sex-specific deficits in fear and coping behaviors

Glucocorticoid receptors (GR) have diverse functions relevant to maintenance of homeostasis and adaptation to environmental challenges. Understanding the importance of tissue-specific GR function in physiology and behavior has been hampered by near-ubiquitous localization in brain and body. Here we use CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing to create a conditional GR knockdown in Sprague Dawley rats. To test the impact of cell- and region-specific GR knockdown on physiology and behavior, we targeted GR knockdown to output neurons of the prelimbic cortex. Prelimbic knockdown of GR in females caused deficits in acquisition and extinction of fear memory during auditory fear conditioning, whereas males exhibited enhanced active-coping behavior during forced swim. Our data support the utility of this conditional knockdown rat to afford high-precision knockdown of GR across a variety of contexts, ranging from neuronal depletion to circuit-wide manipulations, leveraging the behavioral tractability and enhanced brain size of the rat as a model organism.
Neutrophil Gelatinase-Associated Lipocalin2 Exaggerates Cardiomyocyte Hypoxia Injury by Inhibiting Integrin β3 Signaling

Background The neutrophil inflammatory protein, lipocalin-2 (NGAL), is elevated in certain forms of cardiac hypertrophy and acute heart failure. However, the specific role of NGAL in cardiac hypoxia injury is unclear. This study aimed to elucidate the functional role of NGAL in cardiomyocyte hypoxia injury. Material/Methods Neonatal rat cardiomyocytes were transfected with adenovirus [(Ad-NGAL] to overexpress human-NGAL and then were exposed to hypoxia for 24 h to establish a hypoxia model. Cell inflammation was detected by RT-PCT and ELISA assay. Cell apoptosis was detected by TUNEL assay. Oxidative stress was also detected by commercial kits. Results An increased inflammatory response, apoptosis, and augmented oxidative stress were observed after exposure to hypoxia, while NGAL overexpression in cells increased the expression and release of inflammatory cytokines. NGAL overexpression also increased the number of apoptotic cells and the imbalance of Bax/Bcl-2 protein expression. Moreover, NGAL overexpression increased the levels of reactive oxygen species and oxidase activity, but reduced anti-oxidase activity. Mechanistically, we found that NGAL decreased the expression of integrin β3, but not the expression of integrin avβ3 and avβ5, thus inhibiting the downstream protein AKT. When we used the constitutively activated AKT overexpression adenovirus to activate AKT, the deteriorated phenotype by NGAL was counteracted. Conclusions NGAL can directly affect cardiomyocytes and cause cardiomyocyte deteriorated hypoxia injury through inhibiting integrin β3 signaling.
Effects of finite armlength of LISA on analysis of gravitational waves from massive-black-hole binaries

Response of an interferometer becomes complicated for gravitational wave shorter than the arm-length of the detector, as nature of wave appears strongly. We have studied how parameter estimation for merging massive black hole binaries are affected by this complicated effect in the case of LISA. It is shown that three dimensional positions of some binaries might be determined much better than the past estimations that use the long wave approximation. For equal mass binaries this improvement is most prominent at $\sim 10^5\sol$.
The Activation of the Chymotrypsin-Like Activity of the Proteasome is Regulated by Soluble Adenyl Cyclase / cAMP / Protein Kinase a Pathway and Required for Human Sperm Capacitation.

One of the first events of mammalian sperm capacitation is the activation of the soluble adenyl cyclase / cAMP / protein kinase A (SACY/cAMP/PKA) pathway. Here, we evaluated whether the increase in PKA activity at the onset of human sperm capacitation is responsible for the activation of the sperm proteasome and whether this activation is required for capacitation progress. Viable human sperm were incubated with inhibitors of the SACY/cAMP/PKA pathway. The chymotrypsin-like activity of the sperm proteasome was evaluated using a fluorogenic substrate. Sperm capacitation status was evaluated using the chlortetracycline (CTC) assay and tyrosine phosphorylation. To determine whether proteasomal subunits were phosphorylated by PKA, the proteasome was immunoprecipitated and tested on a Western blot using an antibody against phosphorylated PKA substrates. Immunofluorescence microscopy analysis and co-immunoprecipitation were used to investigate an association between the catalytic subunit alpha of PKA (PKA-Cα) and the proteasome. The chymotrypsin-like activity of the sperm proteasome significantly increased after 5 min of capacitation (p<0.001) and remained high for the remaining incubation time. Treatment with H89, KT5720 or KH7 significantly decreased the chymotrypsin-like activity of the proteasome (p<0.001). Immunoprecipitation experiments indicated that PKA inhibition significantly modified phosphorylation of proteasome subunits. In addition, PKA-Cα colocalized with the proteasome in the equatorial segment and in the connecting piece, and co-immunoprecipitated with the proteasome. This is the first demonstration of sperm proteasome activity being directly regulated by SACY/PKA-Cα. This novel discovery extends our current knowledge of sperm physiology and may be used to manage sperm capacitation during assisted reproductive technology procedures.
Outage Probability Analysis for a Two-Way Relay Network with User Selection in the Presence of Interference

본 논문에서는 다수의 간섭자로부터의 간섭 신호가 존재할 때 양방향 중계 네트워크의 불능 확률을 분석하였다. 양방향 중계 네트워크에서 한사용자는 다른 선택된 사용자와 세 단계로 통신한다. 제안된 네트워크에서 사용자 선택 기준을 제시하였으며 불능 확률을 수식적으로 유도하였다. 컴퓨터 모의 실험을 통해 제안된 분석과 모의실험이 잘 일치함을 확인하였으며 유저 수와 간섭자의 수의 불능 확률에의 영향을 보였다.
A Population-Based Study of the Incidence and Survival of Anorectal Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor

Background Gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) is the most common type of primary gastrointestinal mesenchymal tumor, but GISTs arising in the anus and rectum are rare. This study aimed to undertake a population-based analysis of the incidence, patient demographics, and survival of patients with anorectal GIST compared with patients with GIST arising from other sites based on the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program database. Material/Methods The SEER database was used to identify all patients diagnosed with GIST and patients diagnosed with anorectal GIST from 2000 to 2015. The incidence of GIST, baseline clinical and demographic data, tumor stage, and patient survival data were analyzed, including overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS). Results A total of 277 patients with anorectal GIST were identified, with an incidence of 0.018 per 100,000. The incidence of GIST arising from other sites was 0.719 per 100,000. The median age at diagnosis for anorectal GIST was 57.5 years (range, 26–92 years), median tumor size was 6.55 cm (range, 0.6–20 cm), and surgery, but not chemotherapy, improved OS and CSS. Patients with anorectal GIST had a mean 1-year, 3-year, 5-year, and 10-year OS of 91.1%, 82.5%, 75.2%, and 58.5%, respectively. Patients with GIST arising at other sites had a mean 1-year, 3-year, 5-year, and 10-year OS of 88.3%, 76.4%, 66.5%, and 46.8%, respectively. Conclusions Anorectal GIST is a rare tumor that has a better outcome compared with GISTs arising at other sites in the gastrointestinal tract.
Effect of frailty on quality of life in elderly patients after hip fracture: a longitudinal study

Objectives The aims of this study were to examine the pattern of changes over time in health status (HS) and quality of life (QoL) in the first year after hip fracture and to quantify the association between frailty at the onset of hip fracture and the change in HS and QoL 1 year later. The major hypothesis was that frailty, a clinical state of increased vulnerability, is a good predictor of QoL in patients recovering from hip fracture. Design Prospective, observational, follow-up cohort study. Setting Secondary care. Ten participating centres in Brabant, the Netherlands. Participants 1091 patients entered the study and 696 patients completed the study. Patients with a hip fracture aged 65 years and older or proxy respondents for patients with cognitive impairment were included in this study. Main outcome measures The primary outcomes were HS (EuroQol-5 Dimensions questionnaire) and capability well-being (ICEpop CAPability measure for Older people). Prefracture frailty was defined with the Groningen Frailty Indicator (GFI), with GFI ≥4 indicating frailty. Participants were followed up at 1 month, 3 months, 6 months and 1 year after hospital admission. Results In total, 371 patients (53.3%) were considered frail. Frailty was negatively associated with HS (β −0.333; 95% CI −0.366 to −0.299), self-rated health (β −21.9; 95% CI −24.2 to −19.6) and capability well-being (β −0.296; 95% CI −0.322 to −0.270) in elderly patients 1 year after hip fracture. After adjusting for confounders, including death, prefracture HS, age, prefracture residential status, prefracture mobility, American Society of Anesthesiologists grading and dementia, associations were weakened but remained significant. Conclusions We revealed that frailty is negatively associated with QoL 1 year after hip fracture, even after adjusting for confounders. This finding suggests that early identification of prefracture frailty in patients with a hip fracture is important for prognostic counselling, care planning and the tailoring of treatment. Trial registration number NCT02508675