Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Association between allelic variation of serotonin transporter function and neuroticism in anxious cluster C personality disorders.

OBJECTIVE Association between the low-activity variant of a polymorphism in the transcriptional control region of the serotonin transporter (5-HTTLPR) and neuroticism or harm avoidance was found in several but not all studies. The authors analyzed the influence of 5-HTTLPR variants on personality disorders. METHOD Patients with personality disorders (N=320) and healthy volunteers (N=281) were studied with the Revised NEO Personality Inventory and the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire. All were genotyped for 5-HTTLPR variants. RESULTS No differences in 5-HTTLPR genotype distribution were detected between patients with cluster B and C personality disorders and comparison subjects. In contrast, among patients with a cluster C diagnosis, carriers of the low-activity short allele of the 5-HTTLPR exhibited higher neuroticism scores than noncarriers. CONCLUSIONS These findings support the notion that there is no general association between the 5-HTTLPR and anxiety-related traits and that differential gene effects and/or gene-by-environment interactions are likely operative in distinct clinical subpopulations.
Pyruvic acid metabolism and ethanol formation in Erwinia amylovora.

Summary: Erwinia amylovora is the first member of the Enterobacteriaceae found to possess a thiamine pyrophosphate-dependent pyruvate decarboxylase yielding acetaldehyde and CO2. In conjunction with an NAD-dependent ethanol dehydrogenase this represents the route of ethanol formation and explains the high ethanol yields previously reported. The organism also possesses an α-acetolactate decarboxylase and is thus able to produce acetoin by both the recognized microbial pathways. Fermentation balances for pyruvate with bacterial suspensions and extracts at pH 6.0 are recorded. NADH oxidase and lactate dehydrogenase are present but NADH-NADP transhydrogenase, coenzyme A-dependent acetaldehyde dehydrogenase, formate dehydrogenase or formate hydrogenlyase could not be detected. The findings are discussed in relation to the classification of Erwinia and the comparative biochemistry of the Enterobacteriaceae.
Survivin expression in oral lichen planus: Role in malignant transformation

Context: Oral lichen planus (OLP) is a potentially malignant disease with a prevalence rate of 0.5–2.2%. It is a T-cell-mediated autoimmune disease, in which cytotoxic CD8+ T-cells trigger apoptosis of the basal cells of oral epithelium. The reported progression of OLP to oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) ranges from 0.4% to 6.5%. Apoptosis plays a major role in the maintenance of tissue homeostasis. The evasion of apoptosis in the form of dysregulation of inhibitors of apoptosis proteins (IAPs) may lead to malignant transformation. Survivin belongs to the second gene family of IAPs, which is overexpressed in many tumors such as OSCC and gastric carcinomas, and its expression is widely involved in apoptosis as well as in tumor metastasis. Materials and Methods: Sections were obtained from the paraffin-embedded archival blocks of patients diagnosed histologically as OLP, and cases with normal epithelium were used for comparison whereas cases with OSCC were used as positive control. Results: We analyzed the expression of survivin in OLP and normal epithelium. Survivin expression with moderate intensity was seen in the cells of basal layer with nuclear positivity in cases of OLP, whereas mild to nil expression was seen in normal epithelium with nuclear and cytoplasmic positivity in different layers. Conclusions: Survivin positivity was seen predominantly in the basal cells of OLP suggesting increased longevity of these cells which in turn might acquire dysplastic changes leading to increased risk of malignant transformation of this premalignant condition. Although the conversion rate may be low, the potential exists in the indolent course of the disease.
Functional abilities at age 4 years of children born before 29 weeks of gestation.

OBJECTIVES--To assess the rate of impairment and disability among babies born very preterm and to investigate the association between such impairment and gestational age at birth. DESIGN--Cohort study of a geographically defined population of babies. SETTING--Oxford Regional Health Authority. SUBJECTS--All babies born alive before 29 weeks of gestation to mothers resident in the region during 1984-6. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Survival rates and rates of impairment and disability among survivors at the age of 4 years. RESULTS--Of the 342 babies, half (170) survived to be discharged home. Of the 164 survivors to age 4 years, 153 (93%) were assessed. A total of 35 (23%; 95% confidence interval 16% to 30%) were severely disabled and only 54 (35%; 28% to 43%) were unimpaired. The risk of impairment and disability increased with decreasing gestational age at birth (p < 0.003). CONCLUSIONS--With the increasing survival rate among babies born before 29 weeks of gestation, we need urgently to establish reliable ways of monitoring the proportion of survivors who have a disability.
Protection of superoxide-induced cholesterol oxidation by antioxidants in protic conditions

It was found in previous experiments that superoxide in the presence of added hydrogen peroxide in protic conditions produces oxysterols. The oxysterols formed under these conditions were 7β-ketocholesterol, 7α-hydroxycholesterol and 7β-hydroxycholesterol. In the present experiments, the inhibitory effects of three antioxidants, α-tocopherol (α-T), butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT), on the oxidation of cholesterol in the presence of superoxide anion, water and hydrogen peroxide were investigated. It was found that BHA had the highest antioxidant activity on cholesterol oxidation, followed by α-T and BHT. The presence of antioxidants markedly retarded the formation of 7-ketocholesterol. The formation of 7β-hydroxycholesterol or 7α-hydroxycholesterol was also reduced, but to a lesser degree.
Effects of context of natural and artifactual objects on categorization

Categorization of animals and vehicles in different contexts was investigated in three experiments using event related potentials (ERPs). The presence of a background and congruency of the background in relation to the object were both manipulated in order to determine the effects of context on visual processing. In Experiment 1, adults were presented with images of animals and vehicles in two conditions: situated in a congruent context (e.g. an animal in a field) and in the absence of a context (an animal in a white homogeneous background). In experiment 2, adults were presented with images of animals and vehicles in two conditions: situated a congruent context, and situated in an incongruent context (e.g. an animal in a parking lot). Experiment 3 served as a control, in order to test for effects of the images in the incongruent condition having been computer-graphically manipulated and therefore looking less natural than the images in the congruent condition. Latencies of N170, N250 and P300 components were analyzed in different brain regions. The findings show that processing of animals and vehicles is facilitated by the presence of a context and the congruency of the context. The Effects of Context 3
Comparisons Between SAR Backscattering Coefficient and Results of a Thermodynamic Snow/Ice Model for the Baltic Sea Land-Fast Sea Ice

We have compared the time series of C-band HH-polarization backscattering coefficients (sigmadeg) of the Baltic Sea land-fast level ice with results from a 1-D high-resolution thermodynamic snow/ice model (HIGHTSI). The sigmadeg time series were obtained from ENVISAT synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images. The study period was from the middle of the winter to the early melt season, February 3-April 7, 2004. Due to the large incidence angle range of the SAR images, the sigmadeg values were divided into three subseries. In general, the HIGHTSI results greatly helped to interpret the sigmadeg behavior with changing ice and weather conditions. The modeled snow-surface temperature, cases of snow melting, and evolution of snow and ice thickness were related to the changes in sigmadeg. Equally useful information could not be obtained solely on the basis of large-scale atmospheric models. Realistic forcing data for HIGHTSI were available in the form of coastal-weather observations and model results of the European Centre of Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). The latter make it possible to apply HIGHTSI in the interpretation of SAR data from all ice-covered seas. There were some cases where detailed ground truth, combined with theoretical sigmadeg modeling, would have been needed for interpretation of the sigmadeg trends. A very interesting observation was the large variation of level ice sigmadeg with changing weather conditions, which complicates automatic classification of the SAR images, and thus, the algorithms must be tuned for different ice conditions. The HIGHTSI model could act as an indicator of various ice conditions for algorithm development
Long‐Distance Movement of Aspergillus nidulans Early Endosomes on Microtubule Tracks

In fungal hyphal cells, intracellular membrane trafficking is constrained by the relatively long intracellular distances and the mode of growth, exclusively by apical extension. Endocytosis plays a key role in hyphal tip growth, which involves the coupling of secretory membrane delivery to the apical region with subapical compensatory endocytosis. However, the identity, dynamics and function of filamentous fungal endosomal compartments remain largely unexplored. Aspergillus nidulans RabARab5 localizes to a population of endosomes that show long range bidirectional movement on microtubule (MT) tracks and are labelled with FM4‐64 shortly after dye internalization. RabARab5 membranes do not overlap with largely static mature endosomes/vacuoles. Impaired delivery of dynein to the MT plus ends or downregulation of cytoplasmic dynein using the dynein heavy chain nudA1tsmutation results in accumulation of RabARab5 endosomal membranes in an abnormal NudA1 compartment at the tip, strongly supporting the existence in A. nidulans hyphal tips of a dynein loading region. We show that the SynA synaptobrevin endocytic recycling cargo traffics through this region, which strongly supports the contention that polarized hyphal growth involves the association of endocytic recycling with the plus ends of MTs located at the tip, near the endocytic internalization collar.
EBV-associated cancers: Strategies for targeting the virus

R.T. Lima, M.S.J. Nascimento and M.H. Vasconcelos 3,* Cancer Drug Resistance Group, IPATIMUPInstitute of Molecular Pathology and Immunology of the University of Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias s/n, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal CEQUIMED-UPCenter of Medicinal Chemistry of the University of Porto, Rua de Jorge Viterbo Ferreira no 228, 4050313 Porto, Portugal Laboratory of Microbiology, Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Porto, Rua de Jorge Viterbo Ferreira no 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal *Corresponding authors: rlima@ipatimup.pt; hvasconcelos@ipatimup.pt
Reliability research on power MOSFET using coupled electrical-thermal-mechanical analysis

As an integral component of electronic equipments, power MOSFET with its degenerate performance affects the reliability of the whole system. The modeling of power device based on structural geometry, material properties, and boundary conditions can reduce the repetition test and shorten the failure analysis cycle. In this paper, coupled electrical-thermal-mechanical analysis based on finite element model of TO-247 package power MOSFET was performed. First, electrical-thermal simulation was accomplished to obtain the distribution of temperature under power cycling. Then, thermal-mechanical analysis was carried out to calculate the inelastic strain range generated by the thermal stress. Finally, on the basis of simulations above, the fatigue path can be achieved to predict the thermal fatigue life of MOSFET by Coffin-Manson's law.
Optimal transmission strategy for sensors to defend against eavesdropping and jamming attacks

This paper focuses on the security issue in Cyber-Physical Systems. The sensor transmits the state estimation information to the remote controller via wireless networks. Due to the broadcast characteristics of wireless communication, the systems are vulnerable to the eavesdropping attacks and jamming attacks. In this paper, we study how to maximize the secure transmission rate between sensors and controller with the presence of malicious eavesdropper and jammer. The malicious jammer is smart and can choose the optimal power strategy to maximize the side effect with the knowledge of sensor's transmission power. When the sensor adjusts its transmission power to achieve the maximum utility, the control feedback is used to adjust the optimal strategy in CPS. We formulate this proposed problem as a Stackelberg game such that the optimal power allocation strategy is achieved. We further prove the existence of Stackelberg equilibrium by obtaining the interaction between the sensor and the jammer. To tackle this optimization problem, we present a stochastic algorithm with feedback (SAF) algorithm. As a result, the optimal transmission strategy is obtained. Finally, extensive simulations are presented to verify our theoretical analysis.
Time Is of the Essence: The Impact of Delayed Antibiotic Therapy on Patient Outcomes in Hospital-Onset Enterococcal Bloodstream Infections.

BACKGROUND With increasing prevalence of vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE), appropriate antibiotic therapy for enterococcal bloodstream infections (EBSI) can be delayed. Data regarding the impact of delayed therapy on EBSI outcomes are conflicting, and the time delay most strongly associated with poor outcomes has not been defined. METHODS This was a single-center, retrospective cohort study of adult, nonneutropenic patients with hospital-onset EBSI from 2010 to 2014. Classification and regression tree (CART) analysis was used to determine the delay in appropriate therapy most predictive of 30-day mortality. Appropriate therapy was defined as antibiotic therapy to which the enterococci and copathogen, where applicable, were susceptible. Outcomes and clinical characteristics were compared between patients receiving early or delayed therapy, defined by CART timepoint. Poisson regression was employed to determine the independent association of delayed therapy on 30-day mortality and predictors of delayed therapy. RESULTS Overall, 190 patients were included. A breakpoint in time to appropriate therapy was identified at 48.1 hours, where 30-day mortality was substantially increased (14.6% vs 45.3%; P < .001). Patients receiving appropriate therapy after 48.1 hours also experienced higher in-hospital mortality and longer EBSI duration. After adjustment for severity of illness and comorbidity, delayed therapy ≥48.1 hours was associated with a 3-fold increase in 30-day mortality (risk ratio, 3.16 [95% confidence interval, 1.96-5.09]). Vancomycin resistance was the only independent predictor of delayed therapy. CONCLUSIONS In patients with hospital-onset EBSI, receipt of appropriate therapy within the first 48 hours was associated with reduced mortality, underscoring the potential role of rapid diagnostic testing for early identification of VRE.
OOWS Suite: Un Entorno de Desarrollo para Aplicaciones Web basado en MDA

Resumen En este trabajo, se introduce un entorno de desarrollo MDD para aplicaciones Web: La OOWS Suite. Dicho entorno proporciona herramientas que dan soporte al proceso de desarrollo del método OOWS permitiendo la generación automática de aplicaciones Web totalmente funcionales. Estas herramientas son: (1) Un modelador basado en Eclipse que permite la edición visual de modelos OOWS. (2) Un conjunto de transformaciones modelo-a-texto que permiten generar de forma automática la interfaz Web de una aplicación a partir de estos modelos. Para implementar dicha interfaz se ha desarrollado un framework que, siguiendo la filosofía de las Factorías de Software, reduce el nivel de abstracción entre los modelos conceptuales y el código a generar facilitando la definición de las transformaciones. (3) Una estrategia para integrar dichas herramientas con OlivaNova, una herramienta comercial de generación de aplicaciones tradicionales (no-Web) en ambientes transaccionales. Esta integración nos permite delegar la generación de la lógica de negocio de una aplicación Web en una herramienta altamente contrastada a nivel industrial
Sailing Experience and Sex as Correlates of Spatial Ability

The relationship between sailing experience and men's and women's spatial ability was examined by assessing the sailing history and Mental Rotations Test scores of 230 participants. The 102 men and 128 women came from three groups: college sailors (n = 65), members of the general student body (n = 110), and college crew team members (n = 55). Participants completed the Vandenberg and Kuse Mental Rotations Test and Lawton's Way-finding Strategy Scale and Spatial Anxiety Scale. Demographic variables and sailing experience were also assessed. Men scored significantly higher on the Mental Rotations Test than did women, and sailing team members scored significantly higher on that test than did student body members and crew team members. Results are discussed in terms of current explanations for sex differences in spatial ability.
A calibrated generalized sidelobe canceller for wideband beamforming

We present a method of wideband array calibration which minimizes signal cancellation in the generalized sidelobe canceller. Array calibration is achieved by deriving the optimal eigenvector-based blocking matrix that minimizes leakage of the desired signal into the noise cancelling filter, and also the corresponding passing matrix which maximally enhances the desired signal. Simulations and experimental results using data collected from wideband arrays constructed at the University of Texas at Dallas demonstrate that our calibration technique performs wed with actual data as well as with simulated data. >
A Domain Decomposition Method for Solving Singularly Perturbed Two Point Boundary Value Problems via Exponential Splines

In this paper, we presented a domain decomposition method via exponential splines for solving singularly perturbed two-point boundary value problems with the boundary layer at one end (left or right) point. The method is distinguished by the following fact: The original singularly perturbed two-point boundary value problem is divided into two problems, namely inner and outer region problems. The terminal boundary condition is obtained from the solution of the reduced problem. Using stretching transformation, a modified inner region problem is constructed. Then, the inner region problem is solved as two-point boundary value problems by employing exponential splines. Several linear and nonlinear problems are solved to demonstrate the applicability of the method.
Towards a common modeling approach for Smart Grid automation

Currently, the electric energy system is experiencing major changes. Higher penetration of Distributed Generation (DG) create problems and challenges which have not been reported in the past. New and advanced Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) as well as innovative control concepts are often seen as key enablers to manage and optimize the future electric energy infrastructure. This applies also to the development of corresponding standards and information models. However, until now the focus was mostly towards the unification of communication and modeling standards, e.g., power utility automation addressed by IEC 61850 and Common Information Model (CIM). This paper focuses on the first steps towards a common modeling approach for automation concepts in Smart Grids. It proposes an automation model based on the IEC 61499 reference model for distributed automation highly integrated with the well accepted IEC 61850 interoperability approach.
Microgrids for Fun and Profit: The Economics of Installation Investments and Operations

A vision shared by many experts is that future communities (residential and commercial developments, university and industrial campuses, military installations, and so on) will be self-sufficient with respect to energy production and will adopt microgrids. With power generation capacities of 10-50 MW, microgrids are usually intended for the local production of power with islanding capabilities and have capacity available for sale back to macrogrids. A typical microgrid portfolio includes photovoltaic (PV) and wind resources, gas-fired generation, demand-response capabilities, electrical and thermal storage, combined heat and power (CHP), and connectivity to the grid. Advanced technologies such as fuel cells may also be included. This article describes the problems encountered in analyzing prospective microgrid economics and environmental and reliability performance and presents some results from the software tools developed for these tasks.
Web acceptance and usage model: A comparison between goal-directed and experiential web users

Purpose – To analyse the web acceptance and usage between goal‐directed users and experiential users, incorporating intrinsic motives to improve the particular and explanatory TAM (technology acceptance model) value – traditionally related to extrinsic motives.Design/methodology/approach – A survey instrument was used to gather data to test the relationships shown in the research model. Data were collected from a sample of online questionnaires filled out by subscribers located in three discussion‐mailing lists – administered by RedIris – about different topics (e.g. experimental sciences, social sciences and humanities). A structural equation modeling (SEM), specifically partial least squares (PLS), is proposed to assess the relationships between the constructs together with the predictive power of the research model.Findings – The empirical development suggests that there is scope for further extension of TAM to adapt to the web‐based usage and its profitable consequences. The article may help to furthe.
MULTICORE PROCESSOR TECHNOLOGY- ADVANTAGES AND CHALLENGES

Until recent times, we have worked with processors having a single computing/processing unit (CPU), also called a core. The clock frequency of the processor, which determines the speed of it, cannot be exceeded beyond a certain limit as with the increasing frequency, the power dissipation increases and therefore the amount of heating. So manufacturers came up with a new design of processors, called Multicore processors. A multicore processor has two or more independent computing/processing units (cores) on the same chip. Multiple cores have advantage that they run on lower frequency as compared to the single processing unit, which reduces the power dissipation or temperature. These multiple cores work together to increase the multitasking capability or performance of the system by operating on multiple instructions simultaneously in an efficient manner. This also means that with multithreaded applications, the amount of parallel computing or parallelism is increased. The applications or algorithms must be designed in such a way that their subroutines take full advantage of the multicore technology. Each core or computing unit has its own independent interface with the system bus. But along with all these advantages, there are certain issues or challenges that must be addressed carefully when we add more cores. In this paper, we discuss about multicore processor technology. In addition to this, we also discuss various challenges faced such as power and temperature (thermal issue), interconnect issue etc. when more cores are added.