Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Altering the level and regulation of the major sigma subunit of RNA polymerase affects gene expression and development in Bacillus subtilis

In Bacillus subtilis, the major sigma factor, sigma‐A (rpoD), and the minor sigma factor, sigma‐H (spo0H), are present during growth and are required for the initiation of sporulation. Our experiments indicate that sigma‐A and sigma‐H compete for binding to core RNA polymerase. We used a fusion of rpoD to the Lacl‐repressible IPTG‐inducible promoter, Pspac, to vary the levels of sigma‐A in the cell. Increasing the amount of sigma‐A caused a decrease in expression of genes controlled by sigma‐H, and a delay in the production of heat‐resistant spores. Decreasing the amount of sigma‐A, in a strain deleted for the chromosomal rpoD, caused an increase in expression of genes controlled by sigma‐H. As rpoD itself is controlled by at least two promoters recognized by RNA polymerase that contains sigma‐H, the effect of sigma‐A levels on expression of sigma‐H‐controlled promoters represents a feedback mechanism that might contribute to maintaining appropriate levels of sigma‐A. While the level of sigma‐A was important for efficient sporulation, our results indicate that the normal transcriptional control of rpoD, in the context of the rpoD operon and the numerous promoters in that operon, is not required for efficient sporulation or germination, provided that the sigma‐A level from a heterologous promoter is comparable to that in wild‐type cells.
IL-9 in Allergic Inflammation

Th2 type cytokines such as interleukin (IL)-4, IL-5, IL-9, and IL-13 are important mediators in allergic inflammation. The present review will focus on the role of IL-9 in allergic inflammation. The structure and genomic architecture of IL-9 and its receptor, the source of IL-9 and its regulation as well as its effects on different cell types will be reviewed. Furthermore, the specific role of IL-9 in allergic diseases and the potential therapeutic approach of blocking IL-9 will be discussed.
Cardamonin protects septic mice from acute lung injury by preventing endothelial barrier dysfunction

Cardamonin, a flavone compound isolated from Alpinia katsumadai Heyata seeds, has been reported to possess anti‐inflammatory and anticoagulative activities, and it might be beneficial for management of sepsis. This study was conducted to examine the protective effects of cardamonin on experimental sepsis and resultant acute lung injury (ALI). Cardamonin (30 and 100 mg/kg) significantly elevated the survival rate of septic mice, alleviated ALI and lung microvascular leak, and lowered the serum levels of proinflammatory cytokines TNF‐α, IL‐1β, and IL‐6. In vitro, it (25 and 50 µM) concentration dependently inhibited endothelium permeability and downregulated phosphorylation of P38 in rat lung microvascular endothelial cells induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS). P38 inhibitor inhibited the endothelium permeability. In RAW 264.7 macrophage cells, cardamonin also showed selective inhibition of P38 phosphorylation induced by LPS. These results indicate that cardamonin can protect septic mice from ALI by preventing endothelium barrier dysfunction via selectively inhibiting P38 activation. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biochem Mol Toxicol 26:282–290, 2012; View this article online at wileyonlinelibrary.com. DOI 10.1002/jbt.21420
Control of PV inverter with energy storage capacity to improve microgrid dynamic response

Achieving a high-level of stability represents one major concern in autonomous microgrids (MGs) with high penetration levels of renewable energy sources. The aim of this paper is to study how photovoltaic (PV) power plants can provide dynamic frequency support in an MG, in order to obtain an improved stability for the entire power system. On the PV side an energy storage subsystem is added, which ensures a better controllability and a higher power reserve for the PV power plant. To improve the dynamic frequency stability of the MG, specific functions are implemented within the PV inverter control. The proposed system is validated by means of simulation results.
A multiperspective approach to the conceptualization of executive functions

The concept of executive function (EF) is deemed unclear and difficult to operationalize. We use a multiperspective approach to quantify and reduce the current proliferation of EFs. A literature review of 60 studies identified 68 subcomponents of EF: Through objective statistical techniques, these terms were reduced to 18 by removing semantic overlap (using latent semantic analysis) and psychometric overlap (using hierarchical cluster analysis). However, still such a large number of functions lacks parsimony. We therefore revisit the concept of EF and suggest that the many proposed subcomponents are not functions per se but rather a number of task-specific behaviors.
A Simulation Model for Wireless Sensor Networks Based on TOSSIM

Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are composed of a large number of very small devices used for biomedical or environmental monitoring applications. These devices measure various natural processes at different locations, and cooperate in order to aggregate the information. In this paper we propose an accurate model based on the TinyOS simulator (TOSSIM) for wireless sensor devices, which can be used to precisely estimate the network performance or the power consumption of real-life sensor nodes. This model helps us to evaluate the impact on network performance of making changes in the node architecture or in the communication layers. To show the efficiency and versatility of our model we have tested it with the Sensor Cube nodes, developed by IMEC, and measured and tuned the power consumption for different Medium Access Control (MAC) protocols.
Further Development of the Liverpool Infant Distress Scale

The Liverpool Infant Distress Scale (LIDS) was initially designed to assess behaviours reflecting pain in neonates following surgery. This paper reports a further development of the validity and reliability of LIDS and its use as a measure of neonatal behaviour. In the first stage of validity testing the LIDS scores of infants prior to administration of analgesia were compared to LIDS scores postanalgesia. Significantly lower scores were recorded following analgesia. The second stage of validity testing compared LIDS scores of a control group of neonates with those undergoing surgery, each over 43 hours. A significantly lower score on LIDS was found for the control group of infants compared to the surgical group, providing support for validity. Internal consistency was high, providing support for reliability. By providing detailed description of neonatal behaviours LIDS may assist nurses in the identification and objective quantification of neonatal behaviour, the context of which will govern intervention. The efficacy of such interventions may also be measured using LIDS.
Zileuton, a new efficient and safe systemic anti-acne drug

Tissue inflammation is a major component of the acne process. Leukotriene B4 (LTB4) is considered to be a major player in the development of tissue inflammation. Synthesis of LTB4 is controlled by the enzyme 5-lipoxygenase. Since Zileuton blocks the activity of 5-lipoxygenase, experimental and clinical studies have been conducted to test mode of function, as well as efficacy and safety of this compound in the treatment of acne vulgaris. Human SZ95 sebocytes and inflammatory cells in vitro express the enzymes of the leukotriene pathway at mRNA and protein levels and enzymes involved in the biosynthesis of LTB4 are activated in sebaceous glands of acne lesions. Pre-treatment of SZ95 sebocytes with Zileuton partially prevented short-term arachidonic acid-induced effects, such as induction of LTB4 release, increase of neutral lipid content and stimulation of interlekin-6 release. Long-term treatment with Zileuton directly reduced the content of neutral lipids and interleukin-6 release from SZ95 sebocytes. PPAR mRNA levels were not regulated by zileuton. In a first pilot clinical study with 10 patients with papulopustular acne Zileuton 4x600 mg/d p.o. for 3 months decreased the acne severity index in a time-dependent manner being 41% of the initial score at week 12 (p<0.05). This was mostly due to a decrease of the number of inflammatory lesions of 29% (p<0.01). In addition, total sebum lipids significantly decreased (35%, p<0.05) and the pro-inflammatory free fatty acids (22%) and lipoperoxides (26%) were markedly diminished in patients’ sebum under treatment. The magnitude of clinical improvement strongly correlated with the reduction of total sebum lipids (p=0.0009, r2=0.81) and free fatty acids (p=0.0003, r2=0.82). In a further study, a 40-year-old female with mild disseminated sebaceous gland hyperplasia and seborrhea, responded with normalization of the casual skin surface lipids and similar reduction of facial sebum synthesis under treatment with Zileuton over 2 weeks and - after a wash-out phase - low-dose isotretinoin (10 mg/2nd d) over 5 weeks. These data are in agreement with a phase II multicenter, clinical study in 101 patients with mild to moderate inflammatory facial acne conducted in the USA, which showed a significant efficacy of Zileuton in a subset of patients with moderate acne, whereas those patients treated with Zileuton showed a significant mean decrease in inflammatory lesions of compared to the placebo group. In all clinical studies, Zileuton was found to be safe and well tolerated.
A survey on Botnet: Classification, detection and defense

In recent years, Botnets have become an important security problem on the Internet. Botnets have been used for many attacks, such as banking information theft, spam, distributed denial-of-service, identity theft and phishing. Then, they have been proposed as a major research topic in the network security. Although there are several surveys on the Botnets, they usually do not include a complete review on Botnet phenomenon. This paper is a survey on Botnets and provides a brief of classifications, techniques and algorithms of Botnet detection and defense. In this survey, we provide a comparison on existing research. We present an overview of studies on Botnet and discuss in detail including topologies, architectures, communication protocols, infection mechanisms, attacks, purposes, prevention techniques, detection sources and data, detection techniques and algorithms, and response techniques.
BCL-2 Transduction, Using a Herpes Simplex Virus Amplicon, Protects Hippocampal Neurons from Transient Global Ischemia

Transient global ischemia results in selective neuronal damage of hippocampal CA1 neurons. Five minutes of bilateral common carotid artery occlusion, in the Mongolian gerbil, effectively restricts forebrain blood flow, resulting in a delayed neuronal death of CA1 pyramidal cells. While there is a delay of approximately 72 h in the appearance of cell death, markers related to the mechanism of ischemic death become apparent well before neurons die. Ischemia-induced increases in the cell-death-promoting protein, bax, may disrupt the bcl-2/bax ratio necessary for normal neuronal functioning and thus promote transient ischemic death. In order to locally maintain this critical bcl-2/bax ratio and thus protect CA1 neurons from delayed neuronal death, a herpes simplex viral (HSV) vector was used to selectively introduce human bcl-2, under the control of the herpes IE 4/5 promoter, into the CA1 region of the gerbil hippocampus. Twenty-four hours prior to ischemia surgery, 1 microl of HSVbcl-2 was infused unilaterally into the CA1 region at a rate of 2 nl/min. Seventy-two hours after ischemia the animals were sacrificed and processed using Nissl, silver degeneration, and immunohistochemical (anti-human bcl-2) staining. Immunohistochemistry demonstrated both glial and neuronal bcl-2 expression around the HSVbcl-2 infusion site. The evaluation following silver degeneration staining indicated a further degeneration of CA1 neurons in the immediate area of the viral vector infusion. This damage seems to be the result of cellular debris associated with the processing of the viral amplicons. Silver degeneration staining is not present in the areas that demonstrate bcl-2 staining. These neurons appear to have been rescued from ischemic damage. This result was confirmed using the Nissl staining. Therefore, by altering the local ratio of bcl-2/bax using the HSVbcl-2 vector one may protect CA1 pyramidal cell from the delayed neuronal death of transient global ischemia.
60-GHz Wideband Substrate-Integrated-Waveguide Slot Array Using Closely Spaced Elements for Planar Multisector Antenna

A new wideband waveguide slot array is proposed for covering a wide elevation-angle range with a planar sector antenna of a multigigabit wireless LAN in the 60-GHz band. The requirement of millimeter-wave sector antennas is to realize both wide bandwidth of 11.2% and wide elevation-angle coverage with a required gain of over 10 dBi. To satisfy both the required gain and bandwidth, the important structural features of the proposed antenna are that multiple slot elements are successively arranged at an interval of the length less than one quarter guide wavelengths and that the slot length increases from the shorted waveguide end to the feed end. The operational principle of the slot array is based on multisection quarter-wavelength reflection cancellation, so the slot array can achieve the required bandwidth. Furthermore, this antenna produces a unidirectional radiation pattern by using the radiators and the reflectors, resulting in the required gain over a wide elevation-angle range. In the design, the structural parameters of the slot array are selected to meet the requirements for 60-GHz-band sector antenna. The developed substrate-integrated-waveguide (SIW) slot array achieves both the 10 dB return-loss bandwidth of 15% and the specified gain in 88-96% of the one-sector coverage range of 59-66 GHz. The effectiveness of the proposed slot array for a sector antenna is verified by the good agreement between the simulated and measured results.
Long‐term evaluation of orbital rhabdomyosarcoma in children

Orbital rhabdomyosarcoma (ORMS) is associated with an excellent survival rate greater than 85%, and is considered to be a favourable site for this tumour. Treatment is based on combination chemotherapy together with best local therapy, sometimes surgery but more often radiation therapy. Local therapy is associated with frequent and potentially severe late sequelae.
A Comprehensive Reasoning Framework for Information Survivability (User Intent Encapsulation and Reasoning About Intrusion: Implementation and Performance Assessment)

Abstract : This effort approaches the problem of user-level intrusion detection by investigating the design and implementation of a practical online user-level intrusion detection system. The outcome of this research is a Dynamic Reasoning based User Intent Driven (DRUID) intrusion detection system. It is important to pay attention to deployment-time issues such as usability and evasion, otherwise it may lead to a situation where the security system is deployed but is either unusable or is deliberately bypassed. A variation of sequential hypothesis testing is proposed to address these issues. Data plays a very important role in the validation of any new approaches or models that are proposed. Unfortunately, in the user-level intrusion detection domain, due to concerns of privacy, there are too few datasets available to the research community. This issue is addressed by devising a data generation algorithm called RACOON based on a model used to profile users.
Pattern Mining of Aero-Engine Performance Degradation Based on EMD and KNN-FSFDP

The efficiency of current aero-engine remaining life prediction methods has room for improvement. This paper focuses on analysis of aero-engine exhaust gas temperature margin (EGTM) time-series data and introduces a pattern mining method of aero-engine performance degradation based on Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD) and k-nearest neighbors optimized clustering by fast search and find of density peaks (KNN-FSFDP). First, we remove the gross error of EGTM time-series data by using box-plot. Then EGTM time-series data are divided into a finite number of Intrinsic Mode Function (IMF) by using EMD. IMF can be divided into noise signals and useful signals because its energy density multiplied by its average period is a constant. We filter the noise signals by Savitzky-Golay filter and recombined the useful signals and the filtered noise signals. After EGTM time-series data are clustered by KNN-FSFDP, we determine the pattern of aero-engine performance degradation. Then aero-engine remaining life can be predicted by the pattern. At the end, the method in this paper is validated by the actual data of aero-engine. The result shows that the method in this paper has better efficiency, so the method can provide support for aero-engine removal time prediction and maintenance plan optimization.
Effect of metabolic inhibition on K+ channels in pyramidal cells of the hippocampal CA1 region in rat brain slices.

1. The effect of metabolic inhibition on membrane potential and ionic conductances of K+ channels was studied with the patch‐clamp technique in pyramidal cells in the CA1 region of the hippocampus. Individual cells were visualized in brain slices from rats aged between 9 and 19 days using infrared video microscopy. Excitability was inhibited by tetrodotoxin. 2. Dinitrophenol (DNP), carbonyl cyanide p‐trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone (FCCP) and cyanide hyperpolarized the majority of the cells. The resting potential (V) was ‐55.3 +/‐ 0.23 mV (n = 147). In response to DNP the change in V was ‐3.9 +/‐ 0.76 mV (n = 59), with a normal distribution ranging between +9.0 and ‐16 mV. 3. Metabolic inhibition increased the resting conductance (grest) and the conductance related to the delayed outward current measured at V = ‐20 mV (g‐20), and decreased the conductance of the early outward A‐current (gA). The changes in grest and g‐20 were transient and differed from the time‐dependent changes seen in control cells. 4. Tolbutamide reversed the hyperpolarization and the increase in grest. Glibenclamide, apamin and charybdotoxin were ineffective. 5. The presence of ATP (2 mM) in the pipette solution did not influence the change in grest. ATP did, however, affect the time‐dependent decline in gA and g‐20, which demonstrated that cells had been perfused. 6. Cadmium (0.5 mM) reduced the increase in g‐20 and grest obtained with DNP, although it did not prevent the effect of DNP on grest. This indicates that the action of DNP involves an elevation of intracellular [Ca2+]. 7. It is concluded that metabolic inhibition causes changes in the function of several types of K+ channels in CA1 cells. A transient opening of a tolbutamide‐sensitive K+ channel could explain the increase in grest and the hyperpolarization observed in most cells.
Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Reveals an Impaired Brain Metabolic Profile in Mice Resistant to Cerebral Malaria Infected with Plasmodium berghei ANKA*

Malaria is a major cause of morbidity and mortality with an annual death toll exceeding one million. Severe malaria is a complex multisystem disorder, including one or more of the following complications: cerebral malaria, anemia, acidosis, jaundice, respiratory distress, renal insufficiency, coagulation anomalies, and hyperparasitemia. Using a combined in vivo/in vitro metabolic-based approach, we investigated the putative pathogenic effects of Plasmodium berghei ANKA on brain, in a mouse strain developing malaria but resistant to cerebral malaria. The purpose was to determine whether the infection could cause a brain dysfunction distinct from the classic cerebral syndrome. Mice resistant to cerebral malaria were infected with P. berghei ANKA and explored during both the symptomless and the severe stage of the disease by using in vivo brain magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy. The infected mice did not present the lesional and metabolic hallmarks of cerebral malaria. However, brain dysfunction caused by anemia, parasite burden, and hepatic damage was evidenced. We report an increase in cerebral blood flow, a process allowing temporary maintenance of oxygen supply to brain despite anemia. Besides, we document metabolic anomalies affecting choline-derived compounds, myo-inositol, glutamine, glycine, and alanine. The choline decrease appears related to parasite proliferation. Glutamine, myo-inositol, glycine, and alanine variations together indicate a hepatic encephalopathy, a finding in agreement with the liver damage detected in mice, which is also a feature of the human disease. These results reveal the vulnerability of brain to malaria infection at the severe stage of the disease even in the absence of cerebral malaria.
Early Genital Stimulation of Rats Lowers Limbic Seizure Latencies for Females but Increases Latencies for Males

The genitals of male and female rats were tactilely stimulated (glass rod) for 10 successive days beginning on postnatal Days 5, 15, or 35; handled but nonstimulated litter mates served as the reference groups. Limbic seizures were induced by a single systemic injection of lithium and pilocarpine when the rats were adults. The genitally stimulated female rats displayed a lower seizure threshold (as inferred from shorter seizure-onset times) relative to their cage mates. The single largest effect occurred for those females which had been stimulated after the vagina had opened (postnatal 35–45 days).
Detection of G-protein heterotrimers on large dense core and small synaptic vesicles of neuroendocrine and neuronal cells.

Heterotrimeric G proteins, initially believed to be exclusively present in the plasma membrane, have also been found to be associated with intracellular membrane compartments. There they are involved in various membrane trafficking processes including regulated secretion (reviewed in Bomsel, M., K. Mostov, Mol. Biol. Cell 3, 1317-1328 (1992)). Vesicles of two distinct types enter the regulated secretory pathway, i.e. large dense core vesicles and small synaptic vesicles, which differ in their membrane composition and content. Little is known about an association of heterotrimeric G proteins with regulated secretory vesicles, that would explain some aspects of the role heterotrimeric G proteins have during secretion. By immunofluorescence microscopy and immunoreplica analysis, we provide the first demonstration of the presence of complete sets of heterotrimeric G proteins, consisting of alpha-, beta-, and gamma-subunits, on large dense core vesicles from bovine adrenal medulla (chromaffin granules) and small synaptic vesicles from rodent and bovine brain. Each of the two types of secretory vesicles contains beta-subunits (at least beta 1 and beta 2), as well as gamma-subunits (at least gamma 2 or gamma 3). Interestingly, they differ in their composition of alpha-subunits. On small synaptic vesicles, we found two G(o) alpha-subunits (alpha o1 and alpha o2) and two Gi alpha-subunits (alpha i1 and alpha i2). In contrast, on chromaffin granules so far only one alpha o-subunit but no alpha i-subunits could be detected. Functional properties such as transmitter storage and/or exocytotic membrane fusion may be modulated by the various G-protein subunits associated with chromaffin granules and small synaptic vesicles.