Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Selection and analysis of a mutant cell line defective in the hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha-subunit (HIF-1alpha). Characterization of hif-1alpha-dependent and -independent hypoxia-inducible gene expression.

Hypoxia-inducible expression has been demonstrated for many groups of mammalian genes, and studies of transcriptional control have revealed the existence of hypoxia-responsive elements (HREs) in the cis-acting sequences of several of these genes. These sequences generally contain one or more binding sites for a heterodimeric DNA binding complex termed hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1). To analyze this response further, Chinese hamster ovary cells were stably transfected with plasmids bearing HREs linked to genes encoding immunoselectable cell surface markers, and clones that showed reduced or absent hypoxia-inducible marker expression were selected from a mutagenized culture of cells. Analysis of these cells revealed several clones with transacting defects in HRE activation, and in one the defect was identified as a failure to express the alpha-subunit of HIF-1. Comparison of hypoxia-inducible gene expression in wild type, HIF-1alpha-defective, and HIF-1alpha-complemented cells revealed two types of response. For some genes (e.g. glucose transporter-1), hypoxia-inducible expression was critically dependent on HIF-1alpha, whereas for other genes (e.g. heme oxygenase-1) hypoxia-inducible expression appeared largely independent of the expression of HIF-1alpha. These experiments show the utility of mutagenesis and selection of mutant cells in the analysis of mammalian transcriptional responses to hypoxia and demonstrate the operation of HIF-1alpha-dependent and HIF-1alpha-independent pathways of hypoxia-inducible gene expression in Chinese hamster ovary cells.
Storing and querying AIS data in HBase

With the wide application of Automatic Identification System (AIS) on ships, a large amount of data is generated, namely AIS data. It is of great significance for the development of water transportation to process the data effectively. Traditional relational database management systems (RDBMS) have low performance when processing massive data. In this paper, HBase which is a representative of the cloud storage systems is used to store data. A structure over HBase is proposed in which data is stored into two parts, one is mainly for the trajectory data query and another is for the range query. To increase the query performance, Geohash, a space indexing technique, is used to linearize the data. On the basis of the structure, a trajectory query algorithm and a range query algorithm are developed. Empirical studies on the large AIS data set collected from the Yangtze River Channel show that the designed storage structure is suitable for storing and querying AIS data.
Treatment of colitis with a commensal gut bacterium engineered to secrete human tgf‐&bgr;1 under the control of dietary xylan

Background: While cytokine therapy and the use of immunosuppressive cytokines such as transforming growth factor‐&bgr; (TGF‐&bgr;) offer great potential for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), issues concerning formulation, stability in vivo, delivery to target tissues, and potential toxicity need to be addressed. In consideration of these problems we engineered the human commensal bacterium Bacteroides ovatus for the controlled in situ delivery of TGF‐&bgr;1 and treatment of colitis. Methods: Sequence encoding the human tgf‐&bgr;1 gene was cloned downstream of the xylanase promoter in the xylan operon of B. ovatus by homologous recombination. Resulting recombinants (BO‐TGF) were tested for TGF‐&bgr; production in the presence and absence of polysaccharide xylan in vitro and in vivo, and used to treat experimental murine colitis. Clinical and pathological scores were used to assess the effectiveness of therapy. Colonic inflammatory markers including inflammatory cytokine expression were assessed by colorimetric assay and real‐time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Results: BO‐TGF secreted high levels of biologically active dimeric TGF‐&bgr; in vitro and in vivo in a xylan‐controlled manner. Administration of xylan in drinking water to BO‐TGF‐treated mice resulted in a significant clinical improvement of colitis, accelerating healing of damaged colonic epithelium, reducing inflammatory cell infiltration, reducing expression of proinflammatory cytokines, and promoting production of mucin‐rich goblet cells in colonic crypts. These beneficial effects are comparable and in most cases superior to that achieved by conventional steroid therapy. Conclusions: This novel drug delivery system has potential for the targeted and controlled delivery of TGF‐&bgr;1 and other immunotherapeutic agents for the long‐term management of various bowel disorders. (Inflamm Bowel Dis 2010;)
Understanding and using PMBus/spl trade/ data formats

The Power Management Bus (PMBus/spl trade/) in an open standard protocol for power system management that was introduced in 2005. The reception has been enthusiastic with adoption by both power supply and semiconductor manufacturers. A key part of the specification, which took more than 250 person-hours to define, is the formats for sending and receiving data to and from a PMBus device. One format, called the literal format, exchanges data in user friendly units like volts and amperes. This format uses a floating-point like format with an eleven bit signed mantissa and a five bit signed exponent. The literal format minimizes the burden on the host or master device at the expense of greater complexity in the PMBus device. The direct format provides an alternative that minimizes or eliminates the computation in the PMBus device at the expense of more bus communication and being more computation intensive for the host or master device. This paper explores both formats, showing examples of how data is exchanged with PMBus devices. Particular attention is paid to the direct format, including a rigorous derivation of the equations needed to define the coefficients of the equation used by the host to encode and decode information exchanged with PMBus devices.
Coût de l'endettement et performance financière des entreprises marocaines

Resume L’endettement est assurement une source fondamentale, voire inevitable de financement. Il est souvent considere comme une opportunite mais en meme temps, peut constituer un veritable fardeau pour les entites qui y recourent. En effet, l’endettement represente un element moteur de la croissance. Il a pour mission de soutenir le developpement et l’amelioration des performances. Il permet egalement d’accompagner les operations de l’entreprise en financant les besoins courants ou urgents nes de l’exploitation. Cependant le recours a l’endettement n’est pas gratuit. Il est generateur de cout et de difficultes en entrainant le paiement de charges financieres parfois lourdes. Il est soumis a un echeancier de remboursement inflexible. Les contraintes de l’endettement peuvent atteindre des niveaux tels que l’entreprise ne soit plus en mesured’honorer ses engagements a l’egard des creanciers et des bailleurs de fonds. Le present travail vise a apprehender la portee etl’enjeu de l’endettement. Ilcherche essentiellement, a partir d’une etude empirique aupres des entreprises marocaines, a verifier la relation qui lie le cout de l’endettement a la rentabilite financiere de la firme. Mots cles : Cout de la dette, cout du capital, cout de difficulte, risque, levier financier, levier fiscal, rentabilite economique, rentabilite financiere, ANOVA, ARCM.
HOX genes are expressed in bovine and mouse oocytes and early embryos

HOX proteins are transcription factors that play a major role in patterning the body axis of vertebrates from the gastrulation stage. While nothing has been reported so far about their roles at earlier stages, there is evidence that some HOX genes are expressed before gastrulation. The objective of this work was to study the pattern of expression of several HOX genes during oocyte maturation and early embryonic development up to the blastocyst stage. Using nested PCR, HOXD1, HOXA3, HOXD4, HOXB7, HOXB9, and HOXC9 transcripts were detected in bovine oocytes and early embryos at various frequencies depending on the stage of development. Quantitative PCR was performed on bovine oocytes and early embryos: relative expression of HOXD1, HOXA3, and HOXC9 decreased sharply after the 5–8 cell stage. HOXB9 relative expression increased between the oocyte and the morula stage. All transcripts seemed to be of maternal origin before the maternal to embryonic transition, as demonstrated by blocking transcription with α‐amanitin. Reverse transcription was performed with either hexamers or oligo‐dT, allowing for the determination that HOXC9 transcripts were slightly deadenylated during oocyte maturation; HOXD1, HOXA3, and HOXB9 transcripts were not, indicating that they could be translated. Hoxd1, Hoxa3, Hoxb9, and Hoxc9 expression was also detected in mouse oocytes and early embryos. A similar pattern of expression was found in the two species. In conclusion, mammalian HOX genes might be implicated in the control of oocyte maturation, the maternal‐to‐embryonic transition or the first steps of embryo differentiation. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 78:436–449, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Biphasic Drug Absorption from the Epidural Space of the Dog May Limit the Utility of a Slow Release Medium Molecular Weight Hyaluronic Acid-Lidocaine Ionic Complex Formulation

Previous epidural studies conducted in rabbits have described a viscous lidocaine-hyaluronate formulation (L-HA) that prolonged the duration of sensory blockade twofold and decreased the rate of drug absorption fourfold relative to a solution formulation. As further evaluation of the L-HA formulation required studies in a larger animal that more closely reflected the characteristic absorption kinetics observed in humans, a conscious dog model was used to functionally and kinetically evaluate the viscous formulation relative to lidocaine solution. In terms of the measured pharmacodynamic end point (loss of weight-bearing ability in hind legs), epidural administration of the L-HA formulation did not prolong the duration of action relative to lidocaine solution in spite of a markedly altered pharmacokinetic profile. For example, administration of L-HA reduced the mean plasma lidocaine Cmax value approximately 50% and increased the Tmax value approximately fivefold relative to lidocaine solution. However, the viscous L-HA formulation did cause a significant prolongation in the latency of onset (P < 0.001) relative to lidocaine solution. The dog exhibited "flip-flop" pharmacokinetics and absorption was biphasic after epidural administration of lidocaine solution (apparent t1/2 of the fast and slow absorption phases were 4 min and 131 min, respectively). The L-HA formulation markedly altered the absorption kinetics such that a single, slow absorption phase was evident (apparent t1/2 of 56 min), although this rate was more rapid than the slow phase observed after lidocaine solution. It is possible that the inability of the hyaluronate-based formulation to further reduce the magnitude of the slow absorption phase resulted in the failure to prolong the duration of action. These data highlight the need to carefully consider the absorption kinetics and pharmacokinetic characteristics of the animal models chosen to evaluate new formulations of epidurally administered local anesthetics. (Anesth Analg 1996;83:1244-50)
Hyperspectral Image Classification Based on Regularized Sparse Representation

Sparsity-based models have been widely applied to hyperspectral image (HSI) classification. The class label of the test sample is determined by the minimum residual error based on the sparse vector, which is viewed as a pattern of original sample in the sparsity-based model. From the aspect of pattern classification, similar samples in the same class should have similar patterns. However, due to the independent sparse reconstruction process, the similarity among the sparse vectors of these similar samples is lost. To enforce such similarity information, a regularized sparse representation (RSR) model is proposed. First, a centralized quadratic constraint as the regularization term is incorporated into the objective function of ℓ1-norm sparse representation model. Second, RSR can be effectively solved by the feature-sign search algorithm. Experimental results demonstrate that RSR can achieve excellent classification performance.
Pacemaking kisspeptin neurons

• What is the topic for this review? This review focuses on analysis of the electrophysiological properties of hypothalamic kisspeptin neurons. • What advances does it highlight? Molecular and cellular electrophysiological analysis of kisspeptin neurons reveals that they express the critical pacemaker channels for generating burst‐firing activity.
Music industry intermediation in the digital era and the resilience of the Majors’ oligopoly: the role of transactional capability

ABSTRACT The digital revolution has significantly impacted the music industry by lowering barriers to entry. This change is usually depicted as endangering the big incumbent firms, the so-called ‘Majors’ (Universal, Sony, and Warner). Yet, market indicators show that the majors’ leadership has not declined. In part thanks to the application of a 360° business model made possible by digitization, they have been able to sustain their position. However, there is still a lack of theoretical account as well as empirical evidence for understanding how this model has been implemented by the Majors. This paper uses the concept of transactional capabilities in order to explain this switch towards 360° business model : majors have relied on a new type of competences, more oriented towards the completion of multiple transactions in parallel with heterogeneous actors. We illustrate this point with the case study of the French arm of Sony Music Entertainment.
The effect of sandblasting and hydrofluoric acid etching on Ti CP 2 and Ti CP 4 surface topography

Titanium is widely used in biomedical applications from many years for its interesting properties, nevertheless there are a large number of researchers studying the way to improve the performances of biomedical devices. A large number of papers concern the study of “commercially pure titanium” (Ti CP) but, very often, no details are indicated regarding: 1) the type of Ti CP used; 2) the sandblasting process; and 3) the analytic evaluation of surface topography. In this paper, the effect of sand-blasting duration (1, 2, 4, 8 min) and hydrofluoric acid (HF) etching, as well as their combined or synergic effect, on the surface topography of CP grade 2 and grade 4, have been investigated. Results obtained show that sandblasting treatment duration should be different for Ti CP grade 2 and Ti CP grade 4 to achieve similar topography. The shape of the surface is highly modified after acid etching. The latter produces “peaks” when applied to not sandblasted coupons, whilst cuts the “top of the peaks” in the sandblasted samples. Further we confirm that, the roughness parameter Ra (or Sa), is not sufficient to describe “the surface status” and we propose to use additional parameters like: Sq, Sku and Ssk, to unequivocally describe surface topography of implants as well as well defined test procedures.
Borderline Personality Disorder and Narcissistic Personality Disorder Diagnoses From the Perspective of the DSM-5 Personality Traits: A Study on Italian Clinical Participants

Abstract To evaluate the associations between Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5) Alternative Model of Personality Disorder traits and domains and categorically diagnosed narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) and borderline personality disorder (BPD), respectively, 238 inpatient and outpatient participants who were consecutively admitted to the Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy Unit of San Raffaele Hospital in Milan, Italy, were administered the Personality Inventory for DSM-5 (PID-5) and the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis II Personality Disorders (SCID-II). Based on SCID-II, the participants were assigned to the following groups: a) NPD (n = 49), b) BPD (n = 32), c) any other PD (n = 91), and d) no PD (n = 63). Emotional lability, separation insecurity, depressivity, impulsivity, risk taking, and hostility were significantly associated with BPD diagnosis. Attention seeking significantly discriminated participants who received an SCID-II categorical NPD diagnosis. Separation insecurity, impulsivity, distractibility, and perceptual dysregulation were the DSM-5 traits that significantly discriminated BPD participants. Domain-level analyses confirmed and extended trait-level findings.
Cross‐reactions among Parabens, para‐Phenylenediamine, and Benzocaine: A Retrospective Analysis of Patch Testing

Background: Parabens are alkyl ester derivatives of para‐hydroxybenzoic acid and are the most commonly used preservatives in the cosmetic industry. Cross‐reactions with para‐amino compounds, namely, benzocaine and para‐phenylenediamine (PPD), have been reported but are thought to be extremely rare. Objective: To evaluate the rate of cross‐reactivity between parabens, PPD, and benzocaine in a population of patients patchtested in a hospital‐based contact dermatitis clinic. Methods: A retrospective analysis of 4,368 patients consecutively patch‐tested between July 1989 and June 2005. Results: Our study demonstrated that the rate of cross‐reactions to parabens in PPD‐ and benzocaine‐positive patients combined is 2%. Conclusion: This cross‐reaction rate is significant in the tested population but still falls within the previously reported rates of sensitivity to parabens in the general population (0 to 3.5%).
Integrating Class and Laboratory with Hands-On Programming: Its Benefits and Challenges

The traditional approach of teaching programming courses is teachers centric where students are passive learners. Also for such courses, the laboratory and classes are conducted separately. This paper focuses on integrating classroom and laboratory with hands-on for programming course. This approach is student centric which brings in active learning. However it has been less researched area and adequate literature is not available on 'hands-on science' specifically for programming course. The work presented in this paper also extends from our previous work where debugging, code optimization and testing are emphasized. In the proposed approach each teaching session consisted of hands-on teaching and activities to support it. This requires strategic planning of the course and its delivery as discussed in the paper. Applying this approach, there is increase in the number of students scoring higher grades and overall improvement in the average. The paper also discusses the benefits and challenges of hands-on discovered in this case study that triggers further research.
The effects of conflict in driving forward innovation in shared leadership management consultant teams

It is argued in this study that current investigations of the role of conflict in shared leadership teams and, thus, teams in which all members have the opportunity to participate in its decision-making process are insufficient as they have focused on the downsides of these conflicts. This study demonstrates that task conflict is beneficial in that it can have positive effects on innovation in teams. It shows that particularly in shared leadership management consultant teams task conflict can stimulate innovation. Therefore, this research investigates the relationships among shared leadership, conflict and innovation. The research develops and empirically tests a conceptual model which demonstrates the relationships between these concepts and for which the inclusion of multiple research methods was essential. The sequential explanatory approach included a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods, the order of which can be adapted for other domains of application. The conceptual model was first tested with a sample of 329 management consultants. This was followed by 25, in-depth, face-to-face interviews conducted with individual survey respondents. In addition, weekly meetings of a management consultant team in action were video recorded over several months. This allowed for an in-depth explanation of the findings from the survey by providing an understanding of the underlying processes. The inclusion of observational methods provided a validating role and explained how and why conflicts contributed to the development of team innovation, through the analysis of subtleties and fleeting disagreements in a real-life management consultant team. The results deliver an assessment of the theoretical model and demonstrate that task conflict can allow for additional innovation in management consultant teams operating under a shared leadership structure. A practical model and guidelines for management consultant teams wanting to enhance their innovatory capacities are provided. In addition, a novel-user methodology which includes video observations is developed, with recommendations and steps aiding researchers aiming to employ a similar combination of methods. An original contribution to knowledge is made regarding the positive effects that task conflict can have towards innovation in shared leadership teams. Collaboration and trust are identified as important mediators between shared leadership and task conflict and significant regarding the development of innovation. The effectiveness of shared leadership in reducing negative relationship conflict and the benefits of both shared leadership and task conflict in enhancing innovation are demonstrated.
Enhanced detection of H2O2 in cells expressing Horseradish Peroxidase

A new procedure for fluorescent detection of intracellular H2O2 in cells transiently expressing the catalyst Horseradish Peroxidase (HRP) is setup and validated. More specific reaction with HRP largely amplifies oxidation of the redox probes used (2′,7′-dichlorodihydrofluorescein and dihydrorhodamine). Expression of HRP does not affect cell viability. The procedure reveals MAO activity, a primary intracellular H2O2 source, in monolayers of intact transfected cells. The probes oxidation rate responds specifically to the MAO activation/inhibition. Their oxidation by MAO-derived H2O2 is sensitive to intracellular H2O2 competitors: it decreases when H2O2 is removed by pyruvate and it increases when the GSH-dependent removal systems are impaired. Specific response was also measured after addition of extracellular H2O2. Oxidation of the fluorescent probes following reaction of H2O2 with endogenous HRP overcomes most criticisms in their use for intracellular H2O2 detection. The method can be applied for direct determination in plate reader and is proposed to detect H2O2 generation in physio-pathological cell models.