Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
PROTEIN-BOUND IODINE, TOTAL IODINE, AND BUTANOL-EXTRACTABLE IODINE BY PARTIAL AUTOMATION.

The determination of iodine compounds in serum is simplified by using an automatic system to record the decolorization of the ceric sulfate solution. A method for modifying existing technics for PBI and BEI determinations, prior to this step, is described. Good agreement between the automated and manual technics was achieved.
Secondary RNA structure and nucleotide specificity contribute to internal initiation mediated by the human tau 5′ leader

Mechanisms by which eukaryotic internal ribosomal entry sites (IRESs) initiate translation have not been well described. Viral IRESs utilize a combination of secondary/tertiary structure concomitant with sequence specific elements to initiate translation. Eukaryotic IRESs are proposed to utilize the same components, although it appears that short sequence specific elements are more common. In this report we perform an extensive analysis of the IRES in the human tau mRNA. We demonstrate that the tau IRES exhibits characteristics similar to viral IRESs. It contains two main structural domains that exhibit secondary interactions, which are essential for internal initiation. Moreover, the tau IRES is extremely sensitive to small nucleotide substitutions. Our data also indicates that the 40S ribosome is recruited to the middle of the IRES, but whether it scans to the initiation codon in a linear fashion is questioned. Overall, these results identify structural and sequence elements critical for tau IRES activity and consequently, provide a novel target to regulate tau protein expression in disease states including Alzheimer disease and other tauopathies.
Evaluation of the parameters of spectral subtraction techniques and its effects on speech signal quality

This article presents the results of tests conducted to evaluate various versions of the spectral subtraction technique. Brief descriptions of the versions of the techniques evaluated and the measures used to evaluate them are given. The tests were conducted using a set of signals, containing voices of male speakers, that were contaminated with white gaussian noise at different levels of contamination. A relation between the quality of the signals treated with some of the versions of the technique, and the value of the oversubtraction and spectral floor parameter, used on this versions, was observed in the results. The results show that an increase of the oversubtraction parameter, used to enhance the effect of the technique on the intelligibility of the speech signal, deteriorates the quality of the signals. Intellibility was evaluated using the Articulation Index while the quality was evaluated using the Itakura-Saito Distance and the Log-Likehood-Ratio.
Noise reduction using variance characteristics in noisy image sequence

A new noise reduction algorithm using variance characteristics of noise is presented. Estimated noise power and sum of absolute difference (SAD) employed in motion estimation are used to determine temporal filter coefficients. A noise measurement scheme using the correlation between the noisy input and the noise-free image is applied for accurate estimation of noise power. Experimental results support that the proposed noise reduction method efficiently removes noise.
A protein complex containing Tho2, Hpr1, Mft1 and a novel protein, Thp2, connects transcription elongation with mitotic recombination in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Transcription‐induced recombination has been reported in all organisms from bacteria to mammals. We have shown previously that the yeast genes HPR1 and THO2 may be keys to the understanding of transcription‐associated recombination, as they both affect transcription elongation and hyper‐recombination in a concerted manner. Using a yeast strain that has the wild‐type THO2 gene replaced by one encoding a His6‐HA‐tagged version, we have isolated an oligomeric complex containing four proteins: Tho2, Hpr1, Mft1 and a novel protein that we have named Thp2. We have reciprocally identified a complex containing Hpr1, Tho2 and Mft1 using anti‐Mft1 antibodies in immunoprecipitation experiments. The protein complex is mainly nuclear; therefore, Tho2 and Hpr1 are physically associated. Like hpr1Δ and tho2Δ cells, mft1Δ and thp2Δ cells show mitotic hyper‐ recombination and impaired transcription elongation, in particular, through the bacterial lacZ sequence. Hyper‐recombination conferred by mft1Δ and thp2Δ is only observed in DNA regions under transcription conditions. We propose that this protein complex acts as a functional unit connecting transcription elongation with the incidence of mitotic recombination.
A Low-Power and Low Silicon Area Testable CMOS LNA Dedicated to 802.15.4 Sensor Network Applications

A low noise amplifier designed in a 0.13 mum CMOS VLSI technology is presented, which has self-test capabilities in order to monitor its behavior within a ZigBee sensor network during its life time. The silicon area required for both the built-in self test circuitry and the LNA has been optimized in order to reduce the overall cost of the function, using a shunt-feedback topology. The LNA provides a measured power gain of 10 dBm and a 2.4 dB noise figure, while consuming only 3.6 mW under a 1.2 V power supply. The test chip has been designed for robustness to fit a mass production requirements. The test chip demonstrates that the addition of the self-test circuitry has no impact on the LNA performances, while being efficient.
Miniaturization of Robust UHF RFID Antennas for Use on Perishable Goods and Human Bodies

Design guidelines for electrically small and robust UHF radio frequency identification (RFID) antennas are derived for operation in complex environments, such as perishable goods (e.g., meat and milk) or human bodies. A prototype UHF RFID antenna tag with an embedded integrated circuit (IC) is developed and tested in an RFID system. Water and meat tissue are used as environments. The obtained range of operation appears to be very robust. Measurements show a range of 3 m for the meat case and 2.5 m for a water environment at 868 MHz.
Identification of Brucella spp. by using the polymerase chain reaction

The application of two synthetic oligonucleotides as probes and as primers in the polymerase chain reaction is presented for a specific, sensitive, and quick identification of Brucella spp. The specific oligonucleotide sequences were chosen on the basis of a 16S rRNA sequence alignment between Brucella abortus and Agrobacterium tumefaciens.
Deficits in a lateralized associative learning task in dopamine‐depleted rats with functional recovery by dopamine‐rich transplants

Experimental therapies for Parkinson's disease (PD) are commonly validated in unilateral animal models using simple tests of motor asymmetry such as rotation, stepping and cylinder tests. However, the human disorder is considerably more complex than this, and alternative tests that permit a more complete evaluation of the efficacy and mechanism of action of novel treatments are needed. In this study, an operant task that assesses the selection, initiation and execution of lateralized movements was used to investigate the effects of embryonic dopamine cell transplants in the unilateral medial forebrain bundle (MFB) lesion model of PD. Lesioned Lister Hooded rats had a pronounced contralateral selection and initiation deficit, as well as an impairment in execution of movements bilaterally. They also attempted fewer trials and made more procedural errors than unlesioned rats. Transplantation of fetal dopaminergic neurons to the striatum led to a marked improvement in specific parameters and a more modest improvement in others. The graft improved the contralateral selection deficit and the execution of movements bilaterally, but had no effect on the initiation of contralateral movements. Transplanted rats also attempted more trials and made fewer errors. In contrast, the more commonly used stepping and cylinder tests revealed no functional effect of the graft. This data suggests that this operant task may be a powerful tool for validating and elucidating the mechanism of action of experimental brain repair therapies prior to entering the clinic.
Stress Responsiveness Affects Dominant–Subordinate Relationships in Rainbow Trout

The magnitude by which plasma cortisol levels increase following exposure to a stressor is a heritable trait in rainbow trout. The relative growth in coculture of F1 lines selected for high responsiveness (HR) and low responsiveness (LR) to a confinement stressor suggested that behavioral characteristics related to food acquisition, aggression, or competitive ability might differ between the two lines. This hypothesis was tested using the F2 generation of the selected lines. The F2 lines clearly exhibited the characteristics of the F1 parents, displaying significantly divergent plasma cortisol responses to a 1-h confinement stressor and a high heritability for the trait. Behavioral differences between the lines were assessed by observing the outcome of staged fights for dominance in size-matched pairs of HR and LR fish. The identification of dominant and subordinate fish within each pair on the basis of their behavior was supported by the levels of blood cortisol in the fish attributed to each group (dominant << subordinate). Fish from the LR line were identified as dominant in significantly more trials than were HR individuals. The results suggest that behavioral attributes that affect the outcome of rank-order fights are closely linked to the magnitude of the plasma cortisol response to stress in rainbow trout. Whether the link is causal or circumstantial is not yet evident.
Duplication of CaMV 35S Promoter Sequences Creates a Strong Enhancer for Plant Genes

A variant of the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter with transcriptional activity approximately tenfold higher than that of the natural promoter was constructed by tandem duplication of 250 base pairs of upstream sequences. The duplicated region also acted as a strong enhancer of heterologous promoters, increasing the activity of an adjacent and divergently transcribed transferred DNA gene several hundredfold, and to a lesser extent, that of another transferred DNA gene from a remote downstream position. This optimized enhancer element should be very useful for obtaining high levels of expression of foreign genes in transgenic plants.
Risk Factors for Severe Hemorrhagic Transformation in Ischemic Stroke Patients Treated With Recombinant Tissue Plasminogen Activator

Background and Purpose—Intravenous thrombolysis with recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rtPA) improves the outcome for ischemic stroke patients who can be treated within 3 hours of symptom onset. The efficacy of thrombolysis has been demonstrated despite an increased risk of severe hemorrhagic transformation (HT) in patients treated with rtPA. We performed an analysis of risk factors for severe HT in the second European-Australasian Acute Stroke Study (ECASS II). Methods—HTs were classified by using clinical and radiological criteria as follows: hemorrhagic infarction (HI), parenchymal hemorrhage (PH), and symptomatic intracranial hemorrhage (SICH). Potential risk factors for HT were tested by stepwise logistic regression analysis, including rtPA-by-variable interactions. In addition, the distribution of bad outcome (modified Rankin score 5 to 6) at day 90 was stratified according to each category of HT. Results—PH and SICH but not HI were associated with rtPA. Also, PH and SICH but not HI were more severe in rtPA-treated patients than in those receiving placebo. Risk factors for PH were rtPA, extent of parenchymal hypoattenuation on baseline CT, congestive heart failure, increasing age, and baseline systolic blood pressure. The risk of PH on rtPA was increased in older patients and in those who were treated with aspirin before thrombolysis. Risk factors for SICH were rtPA, congestive heart failure, extent of parenchymal hypoattenuation, and increasing age. The risk of SICH on rtPA was increased in patients who were treated with aspirin before thrombolysis. Conclusions—This secondary analysis of ECASS II has confirmed the importance of the extent of hypoattenuation as a risk factor for severe HT. The findings also suggest that older patients and those who have used aspirin before stroke are at higher risk of a severe HT on rtPA. (Stroke. 2001;32:438-441.)
Optical nanotransmission lines: synthesis of planar left-handed metamaterials in the infrared and visible regimes

Following our recent theoretical development of the concepts of nanoinductors, nanocapacitors, and nanoresistors at optical frequencies and the possibility of synthesizing more complex nanoscale circuits, we theoretically investigate in detail the problem of optical nanotransmission lines (NTLs) that can be envisioned by properly joining together arrays of these basic nanoscale circuit elements. We show how, in the limit in which these basic circuit elements are closely packed together, NTLs can be regarded as stacks of plasmonic and nonplasmonic planar slabs, which may be designed to effectively exhibit the properties of planar metamaterials with forward (right-handed) or backward (left-handed) operation. With the proper design, negative refraction and left-handed propagation are shown to be possible in these planar plasmonic guided-wave structures, providing possibilities for subwavelength focusing and imaging in planar optics and laterally confined waveguiding at IR and visible frequencies. The effective material parameters for such NTLs are derived, and the connection and analogy between these optical NTLs and the double-negative and double-positive metamaterials are also explored. Physical insights and justification for the results are also presented.
Acquisition of prosody: The role of variability

* Although some phonetic variability is inevitable in speech production, adult speech is fairly consistent. Thus, part of becoming a competent adult speaker is learning to appropriately limit the variability in one’s speech. It is generally believed that phonology is mastered relatively early; however, this does not take into account the refinement of articulation required to reign in the variability in production. In this paper, we investigate the development of the acoustic properties (i.e., F0, Duration, and Intensity) of two prosodic patterns of English, compound and phrasal prominence, as well as their patterns of variability, in the speech of 6-, 8-, and 11-year-olds. While the 11-year-olds show adult-like acoustic patterns in their compound prosody, no children are adult-like in phrasal prominence. Examination of the variability at the different ages shows, moreover, that even the 11-year-olds have not yet refined their speech to the same extent as adults. Thus, examination of these more subtle aspects of phonological acquisition demonstrates that the process continues for much longer than is typically assumed, and usually studied.
Optimal integrated production-inventory system for defective items

This article develops a single-manufacturer single-retailer production-inventory model in which the manufacturer's production process is imperfect and it produces a random proportion of defective items in the production period. The manufacturer deliveries ordered items to the retailer with equal-sized shipments policy. The retailer performs a 100% screening process to identify the defective items immediately after receiving the order from manufacturer and handles defective items in multiple batches at the end of each shipment period. The objective is to minimize the expected average total joint annual cost of the integrated production-inventory system with optimal shipment quantity, shipment number and handling number of defective items. Finally, numerical examples are presented to illustrate the application of the proposed model.
Relationship of Peace Attitudes With Personality Traits, Gender and Age Groups

Relationship of peace attitudes with personality traits, gender and age groups Objective: Aim of this study is to examine the associations between attitudes towards peace and personality traits, gender and different age groups. Method: A total of 236 individuals, of whom 118 were adolescents and 118 were elders (111 males and 125 females), completed the NEO Five Factor Inventory and the Peace Attitudes Scale. In this study, hierarchical regression analysis were used in order to determine which personality traits predicts peace attitudes. In order to investigate the associations of the attitudes towards peace with gender and different age groups, independent t-test methods were used. Results: According to results, female adolescents have higher positive attitudes towards peace than male adolescents. On the other hand, there is no gender difference according to attitudes towards peace among elders. Besides, elders have much positive attitudes towards peace than adolescents. In addition to this, agreeableness of five-factor personality model predicted attitudes towards peace among both adolescents and elders. Conclusion: Among personality traits agreeableness effects attitudes towards peace. While gender is an important factor for attitudes towards peace among adolescents, it is not important among elders. Reason for this may be the gender roles and development of these roles.
Research Note - Strategic Bid-Shading and Sequential Auctioning with Learning from Past Prices

This paper analyzes sequential auctioning of single units of an indivisible good to a fluctuating population composed of overlapping generations of unit-demand bidders. Two phenomena emergent in such a market are investigated: forward-looking bidding strategies, and closed-loop selling strategies that involve learning from past prices. The buyers shade their bids down, i.e., bid less than they would in a single isolated auction, whenever they expect the seller to sell another unit of the good in the near future. Unlike in exogenous sequences of auctions, the optimal bidding strategy thus depends on the seller's selling strategy. The converse dependence also occurs: the seller can learn about current demand from past realized prices, and sell only in periods with high-enough demand. Such learning depends on the extent of bid-shading because the seller needs to invert the bidding strategy to learn. In equilibrium, buyer bid-shading persists even when the seller does not sell in every period, but it is self-regulating in that it eventually vanishes when the existence of the market is threatened by low seller profits. In this sense, auction markets have a “self-preservation instinct. ” General properties of learning about current demand from past auction prices are also investigated and characterized.
Placement of posterior maxillary implants in partially edentulous patients with severe bone deficiency using CAD/CAM guidance to avoid sinus grafting: a clinical report of procedure.

PURPOSE To provide a detailed presentation of computer-aided design/computer-assisted manufacture guidance in severely resorbed posterior maxillae to place implants in a very limited amount of bone, thus avoiding sinus grafting. MATERIALS AND METHODS Based on computerized tomography (CT) axial images, implant positions are planned using imaging software. A surgical template is fabricated and drilled with a numerically controlled machine to transfer the planned positions to bone with high accuracy. To avoid sinus grafting, implants can be planned in the anterior or posterior wall and in the septa of the sinus as well as in the palatal curvature. Recipient site preparation is done transgingivally with a drill or with a dedicated bone spreader to increase the amount of bone when necessary. RESULTS Fifteen resorbed posterior maxillae were treated with a fixed prosthesis supported by a combination of 42 upright and tilted implants. In all cases, implants were placed as planned. Seventeen implants were tilted at a 20- to 35-degree angle with the line perpendicular to the axial CT images. Seven implants were placed in the palatal curvature, 11 implants were close to the anterior wall, and two of them in combination with the palatal curvature. Only one implant was placed close to the posterior wall and two were placed in septa. All patients attended scheduled follow-up visits. During the 4-year observation period, no complications were recorded, no implants were lost, and there was no infection or inflammation. CONCLUSION This proof-of-concept study suggests that the use of an image-guided system associated with bone spreading for oral implant placement in the atrophic posterior maxilla can be an alternative to sinus grafting.
LiDAR-Camera Calibration using 3D-3D Point correspondences

With the advent of autonomous vehicles, LiDAR and cameras have become an indispensable combination of sensors. They both provide rich and complementary data which can be used by various algorithms and machine learning to sense and make vital inferences about the surroundings. We propose a novel pipeline and experimental setup to find accurate rigid-body transformation for extrinsically calibrating a LiDAR and a camera. The pipeling uses 3D-3D point correspondences in LiDAR and camera frame and gives a closed form solution. We further show the accuracy of the estimate by fusing point clouds from two stereo cameras which align perfectly with the rotation and translation estimated by our method, confirming the accuracy of our method's estimates both mathematically and visually. Taking our idea of extrinsic LiDAR-camera calibration forward, we demonstrate how two cameras with no overlapping field-of-view can also be calibrated extrinsically using 3D point correspondences. The code has been made available as open-source software in the form of a ROS package, more information about which can be sought here: this https URL .
Novel Imaging Techniques in Gastrointestinal Endoscopy in the Upper Gastrointestinal Tract

There are limited data directly comparing the efficacy of NBI versus HD-WLE in the diagnosis of dys‐ plasia/early cancer in patients with Barrett’s esophagus. A very recent randomized control trial from 2012 by Sharma et al [32] compared the use of HD WLE and NBI for detection of IM or dysplasia in patents with BE. Patients referred for BE screening or surveillance at three tertiary referral centers were prospectively enrolled and randomized to HD-WLE or NBI followed by other procedures in 3-8 weeks. During HD-WLE, four quadrant biopsies every 2 cm, together with targeted biopsies of visible lesions (Seattle protocol), were ob‐ tained. During NBI examination, mucosal and vascular patterns were noted and targeted bi‐ opsies were obtained. 123 patients with BE (mean age 61; 93% male; 97% Caucasian) with mean circumferential and maximal extents of 1.8 and 3.6 cm, respectively, were enrolled. Both HD-WLE and NBI detected 104/113 (92%) patients with IM, but NBI required fewer bi‐ opsies per patient (3.6 vs 7.6, P < 0.0001). NBI detected a higher proportion of areas with dysplasia (30% vs 21%, P = 0.01). During examination with NBI, all areas of HGD and cancer had an irregular mucosal or vascular pattern. This important study demonstrates that NBI targeted biopsies can have the same IM detection rate as an HD-WLE examination with the Seattle protocol while requiring fewer biopsies. In addition, NBI targeted biopsies can detect more areas with dysplasia. Regular appearing NBI surface patterns did not harbor high-grade dysplasia/cancer, suggesting that biopsies could be avoided in these areas.