Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Site of synaptic depression during hypoxia: a patch-clamp analysis.

1. The effect of hypoxia on synaptic physiology was investigated in hippocampal slices from 16- to 23-day-old rats. CA1 pyramidal cells were examined by whole cell patch-clamp recording, and hypoxia was induced by switching perfusion of the slice from oxygenated artificial cerebrospinal fluid (ACSF) to ACSF saturated with 95% N2-5%CO2. Synaptic responses were assessed by stimulating the Schaffer collateral-commissural projection with an electrode in the stratum radiatum every 20 s. 2. Within 100-200 s of the onset of hypoxia, the orthrodromically elicited synaptic response of the CA1 cells was largely inhibited. In addition, a slow inward current was observed after the onset of hypoxia. A transient outward current, preceding the inward current, was observed in only 2 of 17 cells examined. The slow inward current culminated in an irreversible rapid inward current at approximately 140 s after hypoxia. This rapid inward current occurred simultaneously with spreading depression as measured by field potentials. Tetrodotoxin (TTX) had no effect on the onset of this current, whereas kynurenic acid significantly delayed its occurrence. 3. Before the onset of hypoxia, spontaneous transient inward currents were apparent. The frequency of these events increased by three- to fourfold after hypoxia. The transient inward currents persisted in slices incubated in TTX, but were almost completely inhibited in slices incubated with the mixed N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)/non-NMDA antagonist kynurenic acid. This identified the spontaneous events that were increased in frequency by hypoxia as glutamatergic miniature excitatory postsynaptic currents (mEPSCs). 4. The mean amplitude of the mEPSCs was not affected by hypoxia at a time at which the orthodromically elicited synaptic response was almost completely inhibited by hypoxia. In addition, the response of the postsynaptic cell to pressure ejection of glutamate was not inhibited under conditions of nearly complete blocked the synaptic response. Thus, by two measures, the postsynaptic response was not affected by hypoxia, indicating that the site of hypoxia-induced synaptic failure was at the presynaptic terminal. 5. The orthodromically elicited synaptic response consisted of an EPSC followed closely by an inhibitory postsynaptic current (IPSC). The IPSC portion of the elicited postsynaptic response was more sensitive to inhibition by hypoxia than was the EPSC. In some cells the EPSC exhibited a monophasic decline in amplitude during hypoxia. However, in a majority of cells, an initial decline in the amplitude of the EPSC was followed by a transient increase and subsequent depression. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Match me, if you can – Zum Einfluss von persönlichkeitsbasierter Ähnlichkeit zwischen Marke und Testimonial auf die wahrgenommene Passung und die Kaufwahrscheinlichkeit

Die Match-up-Hypothese besagt, dass eine fur ein Produkt werbende Person (Testimonial) dann besonders effektiv ist, wenn die Eigenschaften des Testimonials mit denen der Marke ubereinstimmen (z. B. Till & Busler, 2000). Die sparliche Forschung hierzu hat sich bislang mit Attraktivitat und Expertenwissen beschaftigt, das Image von Testimonial und Marke aber uberraschenderweise nicht berucksichtigt. Ein hierfur geeigneter Ansatz ist die Analyse der Personlichkeit von Testimonial und Marke. Drei kulturubergreifend stabile Markenpersonlichkeitsdimensionen (Aufrichtigkeit, Erregung und Kultiviertheit) aus der Brand Personality Scale (Aaker, 1997) wurden in einem experimentellen Design (N = 120) unter Verwendung zweier Testimonials untersucht. Die Versuchsteilnehmenden bewerteten die Marke und das Testimonial auf denselben Personlichkeitsdimensionen. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die wahrgenommene Passung zwischen Testimonial und Marke umso hoher ist, je groser die Ahnlichkeit auf den Personlichkeitsdimensionen ist. Zudem fuhrt eine hohe wahrgenommene Passung zu einem Anstieg der Kaufwahrscheinlichkeit. Implikationen fur die Anwendung in Werbekampagnen werden gegeben.
Multi‐minicore disease–searching for boundaries: Phenotype analysis of 38 cases

Multi‐minicore disease (MmD) is a congenital myopathy morphologically defined by the presence of multiple small zones of sarcomeric disorganization and lack of oxidative activity (“minicores”) in muscle fibers. The clinical expression of MmD is considered to be greatly variable, and the morphological lesions are nonspecific; therefore, its boundaries are poorly defined, and its molecular bases are not known. To better define the phenotypic characteristics of MmD, we analyzed a large series of 38 patients with multiple minicores in muscle fibers in the absence of any other potential cause. According to clinical features, 4 subgroups were identified. Most patients (30 cases) shared a common highly consistent phenotype marked by the axial predominance of muscle weakness and a high occurrence of severe respiratory insufficiency and scoliosis (“classical” form). Other forms were characterized by pharyngolaryngeal involvement and total lack of head control (2 cases), antenatal onset with arthrogryposis (3 cases), and slowly progressive weakness with marked hand amyotrophy (3 cases). Type 1 fiber predominance and hypotrophy as well as centrally located nuclei were found in every subgroup. MmD is thus phenotypically heterogeneous, but a typical recognizable phenotype does exist. This phenotype classification should be helpful when undertaking research into the molecular defects that cause MmD. Ann Neurol 2000;48:745–757
Repair of DNA interstrand cross‐links during S phase of the mammalian cell cycle

DNA interstrand cross‐linking (ICL) agents are widely used in anticancer chemotherapy regimens, yet our understanding of the DNA repair mechanisms by which these lesions are removed from the genome remains incomplete. This is at least in part due to the enormously complicated nature and variety of the biochemical pathways that operate on these complex lesions. In this review, we have focused specifically on the S‐phase pathway of ICL repair in mammalian cells, which appears to be the major mechanism by which these lesions are removed in cycling cells. The various stages and components of this pathway are discussed, and a putative molecular model is presented. In addition, we propose an explanation as to how this pathway can lead to the observed high levels of sister chromatid exchanges known to be induced by ICLs. Environ. Mol. Mutagen. , 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
REVIEW: Malaria in pregnancy

Malaria in pregnancy is one of the major causes of maternal morbidity worldwide, and leads to poor birth outcomes. There is a complex interaction between pregnancy and parasite—all favour the parasite and disadvantage the pregnant woman. Women who are semi‐immune lose much of that immunity. They may present with placental malaria but with no parasites in their peripheral blood. A non‐immune pregnant women and her fetus are at serious risk from falciparum malaria. The diagnosis and management of malaria in pregnancy, including the safety of antimalarial drugs and interactions of malaria with HIV in pregnancy are reviewed.
Renminbi exchange rate pass-through onto prices of China's agricultural exports to U.S.A. and implications for exchange rate policy

This paper investigates the exchange rate pass-through onto prices of China agricultural exports to markets of U.S.A. by use of unit root, cointegration tests and models under the hypothesis of asymmetry. The sample used in the paper covers the period January 1993 to January 2012. Moreover, we analyze the price discriminating behavior and currency invoicing decisions of China's agricultural exporters in the presence of menu costs. Then, the paper also examines the significant reform of Renminbi exchange rate regime in July 2005 through dividing the whole sample period into two subsample periods. The results show that the degree of appreciation the exchange rate transmission to agricultural export prices of China is more incomplete than that of depreciation. As well the menu costs exist in the transmission process from changes of Renminbi to export prices. The outcomes show that the reform in 2005 deeply changed the transmission elasticity in addition.
A Review of Arterial Stiffness and HIV Infection in Adult Africans

Aim: To review the impact of the human immunodeficiency virus and antiretroviral therapy on the vasculature. Objectives: This review seeks to identify the burden which the human immunodeficiency virus and antiretroviral therapy have on the vasculature. Method: Medline/PubMed and Google scholar were searched. There were over 100 publications reviewed. Some people who worked in similar fields were also contacted. The present review summarized current understanding of Human immunodeficiency virus, antiretroviral therapy and effect on the vasculature such as arterial stiffness. Atherosclerosis, endothelial dysfunction, the strengths and weaknesses of current testing strategies, and their potential applications in clinical research and patient care. The association of inflammatory biomarkers, blood pressure and ageing with arterial stiffness were also reviewed. Conclusion: Available literature shows that HIV and antiretroviral agents have a great impact on the vasculature and its progression.
Impact of disseminated tumor cells in bone marrow at diagnosis in patients with nonmetastatic prostate cancer treated by definitive radiotherapy

The purpose of this study was to explore whether detection of disseminated tumor cells (DTCs) in bone marrow (BM) of nonmetastatic prostate cancer (PC) was associated with other clinical or histopathological factors at diagnoses or clinical outcome subsequent to definitive radiotherapy (RT). We evaluated BM aspirates from 272 cT1‐4pN0M0 PC patients by immunocytochemistry employing anticytokeratin antibodies (AE1/AE3). BM‐status was compared with clinical and histopathological parameters. Long‐term clinical outcome was assessed in 131 of the patients who all had completed definitive RT with or without androgen deprivation (AD), initiating treatment >5 years before cut‐off date June 1, 2005. They had at least 1 unfavorable prognostic feature defined as cT3‐4 or Gleason score (GS) ≥ 7B or PSA ≥ 10 μg/l. Overall death, cause‐specific death, distant metastases (DM) as first clinical relapse, local failure as first clinical relapse and biochemical failure were defined as end‐points. DTCs were detected in 18% of the patients and were associated with increasing GS (p = 0.04) and percentage of Gleason pattern 4/5 (p = 0.04). The 7‐year cumulative risk of DM was 21% for BM‐positive patients vs. 6% for BM‐negative patients (p = 0.07). In patients receiving RT without AD (n = 75), the 7‐year cumulative risk of DM for BM‐positive patients was 28% vs. 9% for BM‐negative patients (p = 0.03). BM‐status did not have impact on other end‐points. In conclusion our study shows that presence of DTCs in BM at diagnosis was associated with the histological differentiation of the primary tumor and an increased risk of developing distant metastases after RT. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Development Under Elevated pCO2 Conditions Does Not Affect Lipid Utilization and Protein Content in Early Life-History Stages of the Purple Sea Urchin, Strongylocentrotus purpuratus

Ocean acidification (OA) is expected to have a major impact on marine species, particularly during early life-history stages. These effects appear to be species-specific and may include reduced survival, altered morphology, and depressed metabolism. However, less information is available regarding the bioenergetics of development under elevated CO2 conditions. We examined the biochemical and morphological responses of Strongylocentrotus purpuratus during early development under ecologically relevant levels of pCO2 (365, 1030, and 1450 μatm) that may occur during intense upwelling events. The principal findings of this study were (1) lipid utilization rates and protein content in S. purpuratus did not vary with pCO2; (2) larval growth was reduced at elevated pCO2 despite similar rates of energy utilization; and (3) relationships between egg phospholipid content and larval length were found under control but not high pCO2 conditions. These results suggest that this species may either prioritize endogenous energy toward development and physiological function at the expense of growth, or that reduced larval length may be strictly due to higher costs of growth under OA conditions. This study highlights the need to further expand our knowledge of the physiological mechanisms involved in OA response in order to better understand how present populations may respond to global environmental change.
Treatment of autonomous and toxic thyroid adenomas by percutaneous ultrasound-guided ethanol injection.

PURPOSE To evaluate the feasibility and efficacy of US-guided percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI) in the treatment of autonomous and toxic thyroid adenomas. MATERIAL AND METHODS PEI was performed in 42 patients with solitary, scintigraphically "hot" nodules (n=37) or toxic nodular goiter (n=5). The nodular volume ranged from 2.5 to 38 cm3 (mean volume, 20.7+/-14.1 cm3). Ethanol was injected using a free-hand technique, usually in multiple sessions, using color and power Doppler US guidance. Treatment success was evaluated following 3-4 months after PEI by scintigraphy, hormonal status, and US findings. RESULTS The procedure was technically successful in 39 patients (93%). Three patients were lost to follow-up. Minor complications were pain (all patients), subcutaneous hematoma (n=6), and transitory dysphonia (n=1). A complete cure was achieved in 22 patients (52%), and a partial cure in 10 patients (24%). In 4 cases (9%), the result was unsatisfactory since only moderate hormonal remission was observed. A satisfactory results was thus achieved in 32/42 patients (76%). Significant nodular volume reduction was observed in all cases. Better results were observed in smaller nodules and in cases of autonomous adenomas. There were no cases of recurrent hyperthyreosis. CONCLUSION US-guided PEI is an efficient and safe method in the treatment of autonomous thyroid nodules and it enables inactivation of nodules with minimal or transitory complications.
The Nature of Arsenic-Phytochelatin Complexes in Holcus lanatus and Pteris cretica1

We have developed a method to extract and separate phytochelatins (PCs)—metal(loid) complexes using parallel metal(loid)-specific (inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry) and organic-specific (electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry) detection systems—and use it here to ascertain the nature of arsenic (As)-PC complexes in plant extracts. This study is the first unequivocal report, to our knowledge, of PC complex coordination chemistry in plant extracts for any metal or metalloid ion. The As-tolerant grass Holcus lanatus and the As hyperaccumulator Pteris cretica were used as model plants. In an in vitro experiment using a mixture of reduced glutathione (GS), PC2, and PC3, As preferred the formation of the arsenite [As(III)]-PC3 complex over GS-As(III)-PC2, As(III)-(GS)3, As(III)-PC2, or As(III)-(PC2)2 (GS: glutathione bound to arsenic via sulphur of cysteine). In H. lanatus, the As(III)-PC3 complex was the dominant complex, although reduced glutathione, PC2, and PC3 were found in the extract. P. cretica only synthesizes PC2 and forms dominantly the GS-As(III)-PC2 complex. This is the first evidence, to our knowledge, for the existence of mixed glutathione-PC-metal(loid) complexes in plant tissues or in vitro. In both plant species, As is dominantly in non-bound inorganic forms, with 13% being present in PC complexes for H. lanatus and 1% in P. cretica.
New Construction of Deterministic Compressed Sensing Matrices via Singular Linear Spaces over Finite Fields

As an emerging approach of signal processing, not only has compressed sensing (CS) successfully compressed and sampled signals with few measurements, but also has owned the capabilities of ensuring the exact recovery of signals. However, the above-mentioned properties are based on the (compressed) sensing matrices. Hence the construction of sensing matrices is the key problem. Compared with the intensive study of random sensing matrices, only a few deterministic constructions are known. In this paper, we provide a family of new construction of deterministic sensing matrices via singular linear spaces over finite fields, and show its better performance than Devore’s construction using polynomials over finite fields. Key–Words: Compressed sensing matrices, Singular linear spaces, Coherence, Restricted isometry property (RIP).
Indoor hovering flight of a micro helicopter by markerless visual servo control

This paper proposes a vision-based localization and control algorithm for a micro helicopter with a wireless camera in a room. The 3D position, the posture and noise information are derived by a parallel template matching technique with edge detections and Gaussian filtering. The proposed algorithm achieves long-time hovering in a room. The flight experiment does not require any specified markers, texture information given in advance, or any special settings.
Study of Endometrial Volume and Vascularity by 3D Power Doppler Ultrasound in Women with Perimenopausal Bleeding

Introduction: Three Dimensional Power Doppler is a useful tool in studying endometrial vascularity. Aim: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the role of 3D Power Doppler Angiography in the assessment of cases presented with abnormal uterine bleeding in the perimenopausal period and correlates it with histopathological examination of the performed endometrial biopsy to discriminate between benign and malignant endometrial lesions. Design: Prospective controlled trial. Methods: 100 patients presented with abnormal uterine bleeding were evaluated by 2 D ultrasound , 3 D power Doppler and had endometrial biopsy. Results: Based on histopathological examination of endometrial tissue, patients of this study were represented in two main groups (A) Nonmalignant group: (94) and Malignant group: it contained 6 patients with endometrial carcinoma. In the comparisons between non-malignant and malignant group, there was high statistical significant difference (P<0.001) regarding endometrial thickness, endometrial resistive index, endometrial pulsatility index, endometrial volume, endometrial vascularization index, endometrial flow index and endometrial vascularization flow index. In the malignant group, malignancy correlate positively with endometrial thickness (P<0.001), endometrial resistive index (P<0.001), endometrial pulsatility index (P<0.001), endometrial volume (P<0.001), endometrial vascularization index (P<0.001), endometrial flow index (P<0.05) and endometrial vascularization flow index (P<0.001). Conclusion: The detection of increased endometrial Doppler signals by 3D-PDA may be a possible new ultrasound marker in the diagnosis of endometrial malignancy.
A switched-current third-order oversampling modulator with coupled differential replica FMC

This paper presents a switched-current (SI) third-order sigma-delta modulator (SDM) which consists of a current-mode sample-and-hold (S/H) and a feedback topology to reduce the input impedance at input terminal, and a common-mode feed-forward (CMFF) circuit to improve the common-mode offset at output terminal. Besides, a SI feedback memory cell (FMC) with low clock feedthrough (CFT) error is presented with a coupled differential replica (CDR) topology. The proposed third-order SDM is designed and implemented with standard 0.35-μm CMOS technology. The simulation results show that the peak value of signal to noise plus distortion ratio (SNDR) is roughly 104.9 dB at the sampling rate of 10.24 MHz and the signal bandwidth of 80 kHz. However, the power dissipation of 33 mW is too large at power supply voltage of 2.5 V.
A direct bitstream manipulation approach for Virtex4-based evolvable systems

This work proposes a new Evolvable Hardware (EHW) system able to exploit two-dimensional dynamic reconfigurability and direct bitstream manipulation. These features enhance performance by enabling the parallelism between the evaluation and the reconfiguration phase and by speeding-up the reconfiguration process. The system is hierarchically structured, and can thus be used to evolve circuits mixing the search capabilities offered by a fine grained evolution and the exploitation of functional building blocks typical of functional level evolution. Previous EHW systems were able to evolve simple analog and digital circuits like counters, multiplexers, etc. Our system can be used to quickly evolve circuits able to solve complex problems, like the inverse pendulum problem.
Cerebral cortical adaptations associated with visuomotor practice.

PURPOSE Electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings were examined at the temporal (T3, T4) regions of the cerebral cortex in novice pistol shooters (N = 11) over a training period of 12-14 wk to determine changes in activation. Mean alpha power and its rate of change were hypothesized to increase in the left temporal region during aiming from early to late season as participants improved their accuracy and reduced cognitive effort. METHODS Event-related alpha II power (ERAP; 11-13 Hz) was examined over a 5-s period preceding the trigger pull during shooting (SH) and two control conditions (resting baseline, BL; and postural simulation, PS) at early (time 1), middle (time 2), and late (time 3) practice. RESULTS Mean levels of ERAP increased at T3 from the beginning to the end of the training period during both SH and PS, but not BL, whereas no such change in mean level of ERAP was noted at T4 during any of the three conditions. The practice-related cortical adaptation during SH covaried with an increase in shooting percentage over the season. A higher rate of increase in ERAP during the 5-s aiming period of SH relative to that at PS and BL was also observed throughout training at both T3 and T4. Exploratory analysis of global power (sites F3, Fz, F4, C3, Cz, C4, P3, Pz, and P4) revealed that ERAP increased during SH from time 1 to time 3 at all sites except Fz and Pz, whereas only one site (C4) revealed an increase during BL. CONCLUSIONS The reduction in cortical activity is likely due to sensorimotor integration and less cognitive effort due to automaticity.
Quality Assessment of the Reuters Vol. 2 Multilingual Corpus

We introduce a framework for quality assurance of corpora, and apply it to the Reuters Multilingual Corpus (RCV2). The results of this quality assessment of this standard newsprint corpus reveal a significant duplication problem and, to a lesser extent, a problem with corrupted articles. From the raw collection of some 487,000 articles, almost one tenth are trivial duplicates. A smaller fraction of articles appear to be corrupted and should be excluded for that reason. The detailed results are being made available as on-line appendices to this article. This effort also demonstrates the beginnings of a constraint-based methodological framework for quality assessment and quality assurance for corpora. As a first implementation of this framework, we have investigated constraints to verify sample integrity, and to diagnose sample duplication, entropy aberrations, and tagging inconsistencies. To help identify near-duplicates in the corpus, we have employed both entropy measurements and a simple byte bigram incidence digest.
The multi-path routing problem in the Software Defined Network

In the architecture of the Software Defined Network (SDN), the control plane, always centralized, is separated from the forwarding plane. Based on this feature, we present a genetic algorithm for solving the bandwidth-constrained multi-path optimization problem in the SDN. After implementing the proposed algorithm via programming, we load it into a SDN controller and perform further simulations with Mininet and Floodlight for a typical network topology. The results not only validate the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed algorithm in the SDN, but also manifest the advantages of the SDN network architecture in terms of global optimization and flexibility in controlling.