Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Formation of urban fine particulate matter.

Urban air pollution represents one of the greatest environmental challenges facing mankind in the 21st century. Noticeably, many developing countries, such as China and India, have experienced severe air pollution because of their fast-developing economy and urbanization. Globally, the urbanization trend is projected to continue: 70% of the world population will reside in urban centers by 2050, and there will exist 41 megacities (with more than 10 million inhabitants) by 2030. Air pollutants consist of a complex combination of gases and particulate matter (PM). In particular, fine PM (particles with the aerodynamic diameter smaller than 2.5 μm or PM_(2.5)) profoundly impacts human health, visibility, the ecosystem, the weather, and the climate, and these PM effects are largely dependent on the aerosol properties, including the number concentration, size, and chemical composition. PM is emitted directly into the atmosphere (primary) or formed in the atmosphere through gas-to-particle conversion (secondary) (Figure 1). Also, primary and secondary PM undergoes chemical and physical transformations and is subjected to transport, cloud processing, and removal from the atmosphere.
Downregulation of cytochrome P450scc as an initial adverse effect of adult exposure to diethylstilbestrol on testicular steroidogenesis

Reproductive toxicities and endocrine disruptions caused by chemicals in adult males are still poorly understood. It is our objectives to understand further details of the initial adverse effects leading severe testicular toxicities of a pharmaceutical endocrine disruptor, diethylstilbestrol (DES). Downregulations of both testicular regulatory proteins, such as the steroidogenic acute regulatory protein (StAR) and the peripheral benzodiazepine receptor (PBR), which play important roles in the transport of cholesterol into the mitochondria, and cytochrome P450 mediating the cholesterol side chain cleavage reaction (P450scc), were observed in the rat orally administered DES (340 μg/kg/2 days) for 2 weeks. We found that after only 1 week treatment with DES, the blood and testicular testosterone (TS) levels were drastically decreased without abnormalities of the StAR and PBR; however, the protein and mRNA levels of P450scc were diminished. Decrease in the conversion rate of cholesterol to pregnenolone was delayed in the in vitro assay using the testicular mitochondrial fraction from the rat treated with DES for 1 week. When the precursors in TS biosynthesis containing the testis were identified and determined by liquid chromatography‐mass spectrometry analysis, decreased levels of all precursors except cholesterol were observed. In conclusion, suppressed cytochrome P450scc expression in adult male rat was identified as an initial target of DES in testicular steroidogenesis disorder leading reproductive toxicities. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol 29: 1452–1459, 2014.
School-Based Early Childhood Education and Age-28 Well-Being: Effects by Timing, Dosage, and Subgroups

A little bit of preschool goes a long way. Advances in understanding the effects of early education have benefited public policy and developmental science. Although preschool has demonstrated positive effects on life-course outcomes, limitations in knowledge on program scale, subgroup differences, and dosage levels have hindered understanding. We report the effects of the Child-Parent Center Education Program on indicators of well-being up to 25 years later for more than 1400 participants. This established, publicly funded intervention begins in preschool and provides up to 6 years of service in inner-city Chicago schools. Relative to the comparison group receiving the usual services, program participation was independently linked to higher educational attainment, income, socioeconomic status (SES), and health insurance coverage, as well as lower rates of justice-system involvement and substance abuse. Evidence of enduring effects was strongest for preschool, especially for males and children of high school dropouts. The positive influence of four or more years of service was limited primarily to education and SES. Dosage within program components was mostly unrelated to outcomes. Findings demonstrate support for the enduring effects of sustained school-based early education to the end of the third decade of life.
A Frontal Challenge for Climate Models

An unusually detailed portrait of an ocean front off Japan could help improve climate predictions. The ocean surface is filled with a convoluted web of “fronts” that separate waters of different temperatures and salinities (see the figure). Just as thin ducts in the lung called alveoli facilitate the rapid exchange of gases when breathing, fronts are the ducts through which heat, carbon, oxygen, and other climatically important gases enter into the deep ocean. A lack of observations, however, has hampered progress in understanding the dynamics of fronts, which can be as narrow as hundreds of meters and as wide as tens of kilometers. Global satellite measurements of ocean-surface velocities and air-sea fluxes, for instance, are only available at resolutions of a few hundred kilometers. Although shipboard researchers can sample vertical ocean profiles down to centimeter scales, only rarely do they collect profiles that are less than 100 km apart. On page 318 of this issue, D'Asaro et al. (1) present a breakthrough in observing ocean fronts, providing direct observations of the workings of the Kuroshio front off Japan on scales from kilometers to millimeters. This detailed and wide-ranging portrait was made possible by the development of towed instruments that continuously sample the waters behind a steaming ship, the deployment of freely drifting instruments that follow ocean currents, and the exercising of a great deal of ingenuity in keeping all these tools along the front for a few weeks in 2007.
Potential for Chemolithoautotrophy Among Ubiquitous Bacteria Lineages in the Dark Ocean

Bacteria isolated from a deep seawater mass seem to fix carbon using energy from the oxidation of inorganic sulfur. Recent studies suggest that unidentified prokaryotes fix inorganic carbon at globally significant rates in the immense dark ocean. Using single-cell sorting and whole-genome amplification of prokaryotes from two subtropical gyres, we obtained genomic DNA from 738 cells representing most cosmopolitan lineages. Multiple cells of Deltaproteobacteria cluster SAR324, Gammaproteobacteria clusters ARCTIC96BD-19 and Agg47, and some Oceanospirillales from the lower mesopelagic contained ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase-oxygenase and sulfur oxidation genes. These results corroborated community DNA and RNA profiling from diverse geographic regions. The SAR324 genomes also suggested C1 metabolism and a particle-associated life-style. Microautoradiography and fluorescence in situ hybridization confirmed bicarbonate uptake and particle association of SAR324 cells. Our study suggests potential chemolithoautotrophy in several uncultured Proteobacteria lineages that are ubiquitous in the dark oxygenated ocean and provides new perspective on carbon cycling in the ocean’s largest habitat.
Clonogenic Neoblasts Are Pluripotent Adult Stem Cells That Underlie Planarian Regeneration

A pluripotent adult stem cell underlies flatworms’ amazing regenerative ability. Pluripotent cells in the embryo can generate all cell types, but lineage-restricted cells are generally thought to replenish adult tissues. Planarians are flatworms and regenerate from tiny body fragments, a process requiring a population of proliferating cells (neoblasts). Whether regeneration is accomplished by pluripotent cells or by the collective activity of multiple lineage-restricted cell types is unknown. We used ionizing radiation and single-cell transplantation to identify neoblasts that can form large descendant-cell colonies in vivo. These clonogenic neoblasts (cNeoblasts) produce cells that differentiate into neuronal, intestinal, and other known postmitotic cell types and are distributed throughout the body. Single transplanted cNeoblasts restored regeneration in lethally irradiated hosts. We conclude that broadly distributed, adult pluripotent stem cells underlie the remarkable regenerative abilities of planarians.
Dynamic regrasping by coordinated control of sliding for a multifingered hand

The authors consider the problem of grasp choice for an object held within a multifingered hand from the viewpoint of avoiding collisions between the manipulator links and the object during trajectory execution. A grasp planner is provided in the form of an algorithm that checks the feasibility of a given object trajectory and provides an envelope of feasible contact positions. During execution of the trajectory, contact positions of the fingertips on the object can be changed by sliding the fingertip along the object surface in a controlled manner. A dynamic control law that achieves this is presented and integrated with the grasp planner to determine a dynamic regrasping algorithm, which is illustrated by simulation. <<ETX>>
Structural Basis of Type II Topoisomerase Inhibition by the Anticancer Drug Etoposide

Inhibition of an enzyme that alters DNA topology with an anticancer agent should facilitate development of better cancer drugs. Type II topoisomerases (TOP2s) resolve the topological problems of DNA by transiently cleaving both strands of a DNA duplex to form a cleavage complex through which another DNA segment can be transported. Several widely prescribed anticancer drugs increase the population of TOP2 cleavage complex, which leads to TOP2-mediated chromosome DNA breakage and death of cancer cells. We present the crystal structure of a large fragment of human TOP2β complexed to DNA and to the anticancer drug etoposide to reveal structural details of drug-induced stabilization of a cleavage complex. The interplay between the protein, the DNA, and the drug explains the structure-activity relations of etoposide derivatives and the molecular basis of drug-resistant mutations. The analysis of protein-drug interactions provides information applicable for developing an isoform-specific TOP2-targeting strategy.
The 2010 Mw 8.8 Maule Megathrust Earthquake of Central Chile, Monitored by GPS

Rupture kinematics of this very large earthquake were obtained from high-resolution Global Positioning System data. Large earthquakes produce crustal deformation that can be quantified by geodetic measurements, allowing for the determination of the slip distribution on the fault. We used data from Global Positioning System (GPS) networks in Central Chile to infer the static deformation and the kinematics of the 2010 moment magnitude (Mw) 8.8 Maule megathrust earthquake. From elastic modeling, we found a total rupture length of ~500 kilometers where slip (up to 15 meters) concentrated on two main asperities situated on both sides of the epicenter. We found that rupture reached shallow depths, probably extending up to the trench. Resolvable afterslip occurred in regions of low coseismic slip. The low-frequency hypocenter is relocated 40 kilometers southwest of initial estimates. Rupture propagated bilaterally at about 3.1 kilometers per second, with possible but not fully resolved velocity variations.
Chemically Tuned Myosin Motors

A molecule that activates the contractile protein myosin points to a potential new means of treating heart failure. Heart failure affects 5 million people a year in the United States, results in 300,000 deaths annually, and constitutes the single largest health care cost in the United States. Although some progress has been made in treating heart failure, currently approved drugs have deleterious consequences in some patients, and are ineffective in others. Therefore, new therapeutic approaches are necessary. On page 1439 of this issue, Malik et al. (1) elucidate the mechanism by which a small molecule enhances the function of cardiac myosin, the major force-generating motor protein of cardiac muscle. The finding has implications for improving cardiac contraction and treating certain heart conditions.
Assessing the Status of Alaska's Glaciers

New methods are providing an increasingly complex picture of a key contributor to global sea level. The glaciers of Alaska and northwestern Canada have long been considered important contributors to global sea level, but their remoteness has complicated efforts to quantify how their mass is changing. Nearly 30 years ago, the first regional assessment—based on data from only three glaciers and a largely intuitive regional extrapolation scheme—suggested that Alaska's glaciers accounted for more than one-third of the total sea-level contribution from glaciers and ice caps (excluding ice sheets) (1). Recently, global maps of water-mass variations, developed using satellite measurements of Earth's gravitational field (gravimetry), confirm with remarkable clarity the large role Alaska glaciers play in the global sea-level budget (see the figure). Far from solving the puzzle, however, these and other new observation technologies are revealing unexpected complexities in the magnitude and rate at which Alaska glaciers respond to climate.
TFEB Links Autophagy to Lysosomal Biogenesis

Starvation activates a transcriptional program controlling autophagosome formation, lysosome fusion, and substrate degradation. Autophagy is a cellular catabolic process that relies on the cooperation of autophagosomes and lysosomes. During starvation, the cell expands both compartments to enhance degradation processes. We found that starvation activates a transcriptional program that controls major steps of the autophagic pathway, including autophagosome formation, autophagosome-lysosome fusion, and substrate degradation. The transcription factor EB (TFEB), a master gene for lysosomal biogenesis, coordinated this program by driving expression of autophagy and lysosomal genes. Nuclear localization and activity of TFEB were regulated by serine phosphorylation mediated by the extracellular signal–regulated kinase 2, whose activity was tuned by the levels of extracellular nutrients. Thus, a mitogen-activated protein kinase–dependent mechanism regulates autophagy by controlling the biogenesis and partnership of two distinct cellular organelles.
Observation of Transient Structural-Transformation Dynamics in a Cu2S Nanorod

Structural fluctuations between two equilibrium phases are observed in copper sulfide nanoparticles. The study of first-order structural transformations has been of great interest to scientists in many disciplines. Expectations from phase-transition theory are that the system fluctuates between two equilibrium structures near the transition point and that the region of transition broadens in small crystals. We report the direct observation of structural fluctuations within a single nanocrystal using transmission electron microscopy. We observed trajectories of structural transformations in individual nanocrystals with atomic resolution, which reveal details of the fluctuation dynamics, including nucleation, phase propagation, and pinning of structural domains by defects. Such observations provide crucial insight for the understanding of microscopic pathways of phase transitions.
The servo-control system for an omnidirectional mobile robot

The authors describe the design and implementation of a motor drive control system for an omnidirectional wheelbase, the Ilonator platform, developed at the Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon University. The experimental mobile platform is mounted on four omnidirectional wheels which permit a full three degrees of freedom (3 DOF) in the plane. The distributed servo-control system is coordinated by onboard computer which converts 3-DOF acceleration commands into individual velocity commands for the four wheels. Four HCTL-1000 motor control chips close the velocity-control feedback loops for the wheels. Details of the platform kinematics and motion command structure, servo hardware design and implementation, software for command and joystick control, and the experimental tuning of the controller parameters are presented. <<ETX>>
Increased Structure and Active Learning Reduce the Achievement Gap in Introductory Biology

A focus on problem-solving skills reduced achievement gaps in university classes. Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics instructors have been charged with improving the performance and retention of students from diverse backgrounds. To date, programs that close the achievement gap between students from disadvantaged versus nondisadvantaged educational backgrounds have required extensive extramural funding. We show that a highly structured course design, based on daily and weekly practice with problem-solving, data analysis, and other higher-order cognitive skills, improved the performance of all students in a college-level introductory biology class and reduced the achievement gap between disadvantaged and nondisadvantaged students—without increased expenditures. These results support the Carnegie Hall hypothesis: Intensive practice, via active-learning exercises, has a disproportionate benefit for capable but poorly prepared students.
The Structure of the Kinesin-1 Motor-Tail Complex Reveals the Mechanism of Autoinhibition

A tail domain autoinhibits a dimeric kinesin by preventing relative movement of the two motor domains. When not transporting cargo, kinesin-1 is autoinhibited by binding of a tail region to the motor domains, but the mechanism of inhibition is unclear. We report the crystal structure of a motor domain dimer in complex with its tail domain at 2.2 angstroms and compare it with a structure of the motor domain alone at 2.7 angstroms. These structures indicate that neither an induced conformational change nor steric blocking is the cause of inhibition. Instead, the tail cross-links the motor domains at a second position, in addition to the coiled coil. This “double lockdown,” by cross-linking at two positions, prevents the movement of the motor domains that is needed to undock the neck linker and release adenosine diphosphate. This autoinhibition mechanism could extend to some other kinesins.
Application of decentralized time-delay controller to robot manipulators

The authors first review the concept of time-delay control, then present a decentralized version. The application of such a decentralized controller to robot manipulators is then discussed. Successful experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the time-delay concept. The controller functions despite any system parameter uncertainty, and it is not necessary that the parameters be estimated. The practical use is verified. <<ETX>>
Effects of Working-Memory Training on Striatal Dopamine Release

A cognitive training program that improves working memory is associated with increased dopamine release during task performance. Updating of working memory has been associated with striato-frontal brain regions and phasic dopaminergic neurotransmission. We assessed raclopride binding to striatal dopamine (DA) D2 receptors during a letter-updating task and a control condition before and after 5 weeks of updating training. Results showed that updating affected DA activity before training and that training further increased striatal DA release during updating. These findings highlight the pivotal role of transient neural processes associated with D2 receptor activity in working memory.
Experiments in dual-arm manipulation planning

The problem of dual-arm manipulation planning is to plan the path of two cooperating robot arms to carry a moveable object from a given initial configuration to a given goal configuration amidst obstacles. The authors survey previous work in manipulation planning and relate it to this analysis. A formal configuration space presentation of the problem is given. Three implemented planners are described. These three planners operated in a two-dimensional workspace and addressed increasingly difficult versions of the dual-arm manipulation problem. They were implemented in the C language. Execution times given were obtained by running them on a DEC 5000 workstation. <<ETX>>
Phosphorylation of the Autophagy Receptor Optineurin Restricts Salmonella Growth

Phosphorylation of an autophagy receptor restricts pathogenic cytosolic bacterial growth. Selective autophagy can be mediated via receptor molecules that link specific cargoes to the autophagosomal membranes decorated by ubiquitin-like microtubule-associated protein light chain 3 (LC3) modifiers. Although several autophagy receptors have been identified, little is known about mechanisms controlling their functions in vivo. In this work, we found that phosphorylation of an autophagy receptor, optineurin, promoted selective autophagy of ubiquitin-coated cytosolic Salmonella enterica. The protein kinase TANK binding kinase 1 (TBK1) phosphorylated optineurin on serine-177, enhancing LC3 binding affinity and autophagic clearance of cytosolic Salmonella. Conversely, ubiquitin- or LC3-binding optineurin mutants and silencing of optineurin or TBK1 impaired Salmonella autophagy, resulting in increased intracellular bacterial proliferation. We propose that phosphorylation of autophagy receptors might be a general mechanism for regulation of cargo-selective autophagy.
Socioeconomic Status and Health Disparity in the United States

Abstract Low socioeconomic status (SES) has been associated with high rates of many chronic diseases. This study was a cluster analysis of data from 9,830 adults in the 1994-96 Continuing Survey of Food Intakes by the Individuals (1994-96 CSFII) in order to characterize more fully the biologic and social factors that might be associated with chronic diseases. The study employed cluster analysis to define three SES groups (low, middle, and high) based on income, education, age, gender, and race. A significant increase was found in self-reported diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, obesity, and stroke across these groups, being highest in the lowest SES group. Results revealed that health disparity in the U.S. may be substantial, with some population groups bearing a disproportionate burden of chronic diseases.
Transient Neonatal Hyperthyrotropinemia: A Factitious Syndrome due to the Presence of Heterophilic Antibodies in the Plasma of Infants and Their Mothers

The long term effects of hydrocortisone, estradiol, insulin, and T3 and T4 on GH and PRL secretion by cell cultures of human somatotropic and mixed somatotropic-lactotropic adenomas have been investigated. Twenty-four-hour secretion of GH was consistently stimulated by hydrocortisone in a dose-dependent manner over the range 2 × 10-8-10-5 M. Peak effects (4- to 16-fold) occurred around 9 days, declining slightly thereafter but persisted for 27 days at which time they represented 3- to 400-fold increases over controls, which had declined throughout. The degree of stimulation by hydrocortisone was less (3- to 4-fold) in those cultures where basal GH secretion remained stable. Transfer of cells from hydrocortisone-supplemented to basal medium led to a prompt decline in GH secretion that paralleled that in the controls. The addition of T3 (2 × 10-9 M) and T4 (1 × 10-7 M), insulin (20 µU⁄ml), or estradiol (3.7 × 10-10 M) did not change the GH response to hydrocortisone. Intravenous administration of hydrocorti.