Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Neuropeptide Y Y1 Receptor Effects on Pulpal Nociceptors

Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is an important modulatory neuropeptide that regulates several physiological systems, including the activity of sensory neurons. We evaluated whether activation of the NPY Y1 receptor could modulate the activity of capsaicin-sensitive nociceptors in trigeminal ganglia and dental pulp. We tested this hypothesis by measuring capsaicin-stimulated calcitonin gene-related peptide release (CGRP) as a measure of nociceptor activity. Capsaicin-evoked CGRP release was inhibited by 50% (p < 0.05) in trigeminal ganglia and by 26% (p < 0.05) in dental pulp when tissues were pre-treated with [Leu31,Pro34]NPY. The Y1 receptor was found to co-localize with the capsaicin receptor TRPV1 in trigeminal ganglia. These results demonstrate that activation of the Y1 receptor results in the inhibition of the activity of capsaicin-sensitive nociceptors in the trigeminal ganglia and dental pulp. These findings are relevant to the physiological modulation of dental nociceptors by endogenous NPY and demonstrate an important novel analgesic target for the treatment of dental pain.
Hemisphere‐dependent Cognitive Performances in Epileptic Patients

Summary: Short‐term memory (STM), long‐term memory (LTM), and recency judgment were investigated in 75 right‐handed nonaphasic patients without visual deficits who had epileptic foci localized in one of four different regions of the brain: right temporal lobe, left temporal lobe, right frontal lobe, and left frontal lobe. The results led to the following conclusions: (1) left temporal lesions yielded comparatively greater impairment for the verbal LTM task, whereas right temporal lesions were more disruptive for the spatial LTM task; (2) no significant differences between left‐ and right‐brain‐damaged patients in STM tasks were obtained; (3) left frontal lesions yielded deficits in a recency task in accordance with hemispheric specialization; (4) only prolonged epileptic syndroipes impaired neuropsychological performance in those tests; (5) comparisons between male and female patients and between those with and without clear evidence of a structural lesion did not reach statistical significance.
Comparison and evaluation of the user interfaces of e-journals

Purpose – Aims to present a comparison and evaluation of four user interfaces of web‐based e‐journals (Science Direct, ProQuest Direct, EBSCO Host and Emerald). Design/methodology/approach – The systems were assessed in an expert study according to accepted guidelines regarding user friendliness and functionality. User friendliness features studied were: language(s) and type(s) of interface; navigation options; personalization; and screen features. Functions inspected were: database selection; query formulation and reformulation; results manipulation; and help.Findings – Many similarities were found, but some differences among the systems were also discovered and analysed in detail. The greatest differences were found in the area of query formulation, and between the interface languages and types.Research limitations/implications – The user interfaces of four full‐text IR systems offering e‐journals which are accessible at the University of Ljubljana are surveyed.Practical implications – The interfaces are.
The Emerging Role of Centromere/Kinetochore Proteins in Cellular Senescence

Cellular senescence is an irreversible growth arrest triggered by several types of stress, including DNA damage, oxidative stress, telomere shortening, and oncogene activation (Ben-Porath & Weinberg, 2005; Collado et al., 2007; Deng et al., 2008; Hayflick & Moorhead, 1961; Serrano et al., 1997). Although how senescence is initiated remains to be determined, it has been shown to be triggered by certain defects in chromosome integrity, such as telomere shortening (Ben-Porath & Weinberg, 2005; Deng et al., 2008). In contrast to telomere shortening, the roles of which in senescence have been studied extensively, alterations in the centromere/kinetochore structure involved in senescence program remain to be elucidated. This chapter presents a discussion of the emerging roles of centromere/kinetochore proteins, particularly Centromere protein A (CENP-A, the centromere-specific variant of histone H3), in senescence.
A Review on Detection of Outliers Over High Dimensional Streaming Data Using Cluster Based Hybrid Approach

Finding Outlier detection in data streams has gained broad importance presently due to the increasing cases of fraud in various applications of data streams, data cleaning, network monitoring, invasive species monitoring, stock market analysis, detecting outlying cases inmedical data etc. Finding outliers in a collection of patterns is a very well-known problem in the data mining field. An outlier is a pattern which is dissimilar with respect to the rest of the patterns in the dataset. Proposed Method for outlier detection uses hybrid approach. Purpose of approach is first to apply clustering algorithm that is k-means which partition the dataset into number of clusters and then find outliers from the each resulting clusters using distance based method. The principle of outliers finding depend on the threshold. Threshold is set by user. The main objective of the second stage is a finding out the objects, which are far away from their cluster centroids. In proposed approach, two techniques are combining to efficiently find the outlier from the data set. The experimental results using real dataset demonstrate that proposed method takes less computational cost and performs better than the distance based method. Proposed algorithm efficiently prunes of the safe cells (inliers) and save huge number of extra calculations.
Initial experiments on a leg mechanism with a flexible geared joint and footpad

In the present work, a leg mechanism together with a flexible joint system is designed and constructed. The leg mechanism is expected to walk on uneven terrain and be subject to certain impact or contact forces. The effect of the designed flexible gear system and footpad on shock absorption is a main concern. The joint torque of the motor gear and the contact force of the foot are analyzed with different control schemes. The control performance of the leg movement by these methods is also presented. The proposed control methodology could next be applied to a newly designed two-link leg mechanism. It is hoped that the present study can be extended to an exoskeleton leg mechanism that is being developed.
Open-source software for modeling and analysis of power networks in the dq0 reference frame

This paper joins the developing trend of modeling distributed generators based on dq0 quantities, and proposes an open-source software for modeling and analysis of large-scale power networks based on dq0 signals. The dynamic models describing the network are provided as state-space objects that are sparse and of minimal order. The software supports integration of various models of synchronous machines, loads and renewable sources, and enables analysis of the complete system, including the feedback between the active units and the transmission network. In addition, functions are provided for computing time-domain transients, and for evaluating the system stability. The package contains several examples demonstrating modeling and stability analysis of small microgrids containing renewable sources, as well as of large networks with a variety of generators and loads.
Structural Determinants of the Anti-HIV Activity of a CCR5 Antagonist Derived from Toxoplasma gondii*

The protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii possesses a protein, cyclophilin-18 (C-18), which binds to the chemokine receptor CCR5, induces interleukin-12 production from murine dendritic cells, and inhibits fusion and infectivity of human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) R5 viruses by co-receptor antagonism. Site-directed mutagenesis was employed to identify the domains in C-18 responsible for its CCR5 binding and antiviral functions. To do so we focused on amino acid differences with Plasmodium falciparum cyclophilin, which, although 53% identical with C-18, has minimal binding activity for CCR5, and we generated 22 mutants with substitutions in the regions of non-homology located on the putative surface of the molecule. Two mutations situated on the face of C-18, predicted to be involved in its interaction with the ligand cyclosporin A, were shown to be critical for CCR5-binding and the inhibition of HIV-1 fusion and infectivity. In contrast, four mutations in C-18 specifically designed to abolish the peptidyl-prolyl cis-trans-isomerase activity of the protein failed to inactivate its CCR5 binding and HIV inhibitory activities. Interleukin-12 induction by C-18, on the other hand, was abrogated by mutations effecting either the CCR5 binding or enzymatic function of the molecule. These findings shed light on the structural basis of the molecular mimicry of the chemokine function by a pathogen-derived protein and provide a basis for further modification of C-18 into an antiviral agent.
Applied demography in the 21st century : selected papers from the Biennial Conference on Applied Demography, San Antonio, Texas, January 7-9, 2007

Chapter 1:Applied Demography at the Beginning of the 21st Century: Steve H. Murdock and David A. Swanson,- Section I: Data use and Measurement Issues: Chapter 2:Measuring Population Change Using the American Community Survey: Howard Hogan,- Chapter 3:Using the 2005 American Community Survey: Patricia C. Becker,- Chapter 4:Address Coverage Improvement and Evaluation Program-2005 National Estimate of Coverage of the Master Address File: Susan Perrone,- Section II: Population Estimates and Projections: Chapter 5: Using Assessor Parcel Data to Maintain Housing Unit Counts for Small Area Population Estimates: Beth Jarosz,- Chapter 6:Aging and Elder Abuse: Projections for Michigan, Lori Post et al ,- Chapter 7:Methods for Measuring the Population After a Disaster: Household Population Surveys in Post-Katrina New Orleans, October 2005-October 2006: Gregory Stone,- Chapter 8: An Evaluation of Population Estimates for Counties and Places in Texas for 2000: Nazrul Hoque,- Chapter 9: Using Demographic Estimates and Projections to Improve Statistical Forecasting: Don R. Warren,- Chapter 10: Measuring Uncertainty in Population Data Generated by the Cohort-Component Method: A Report on Research in Progress, David A. Swanson,- Section III: Applied Demography and Health: Chapter 11:Tuberculosis and Perception of Risk: A Comparison of Native Born and Foreign Born Persons in the United States: Mary Bollinger,- Chapter 12: Causes of Fire Deaths and Injuries in Anchorage, Alaska: Policy Implications, Donna Shai,- Chapter 13: Dispersion of Registered Death Causes as a Function of Age in the 1999 U.S. Population, Bo G. Eriksson,- Section IV: The Breadth of Applied Demography: Chapter 14:A Comparison of Potential Demographic Influences on Church Membership of Two United Methodist Congregations in San Antonio, Texas: Michael E. Cline,- Chapter 15:Linking Tax-Lot and Student Record Data: Applications in School Planning: D. Richard Lycan,- Chapter 16:Demography and Turnover, Giuseppe De Bartolo and Manuela Stranges,- Chapter 17: Household Consumption in China: An Examination of the Utility of Urban-Rural Segmentation, Farhat Yusuf et al ,- Chapter 18: How Chinese Children Spend Their Time, Hongwei Xu and Elisabeta Minca,- Section V: Educating the Applied Demographer,- Chapter 19: Introducing Survey Methods to Professional Students in Applied Demography, David W. Smith and Stephanie L. McFall,- Chapter 20: The Academic Training of Applied Demographers: History, Evolution, and a Description of the First Ph.D. Program in Applied Demography, Steve H. Murdock and Mary Zey,- ConclusionS: Chapter 21: Applied Demography in the 21st Century: Steve H. Murdock and David A. Swanson
Caspase cleavage of MST1 promotes nuclear translocation and chromatin condensation

MST1, mammalian STE20-like kinase 1, is a serine/threonine kinase that is cleaved and activated by caspases during apoptosis. MST1 is capable of inducing apoptotic morphological changes such as chromatin condensation upon overexpression. In this study, we show that MST1 contains two functional nuclear export signals (NESs) in the C-terminal domain, which is released from the N-terminal kinase domain upon caspase-mediated cleavage. Full-length MST1 is excluded from the nucleus and localized to the cytoplasm. However, either truncation of the C-terminal domain, point mutation of the two putative NESs, or treatment with leptomycin B, an inhibitor of the NES receptor, results in nuclear localization of MST1. Staurosporine treatment induces chromatin condensation, MST1 cleavage, and nuclear translocation. Staurosporine-induced chromatin condensation is partially inhibited by expressing a kinase-negative mutant of MST1, suggesting an important role of MST1 in this process. Significantly, MST1 is more efficient at inducing chromatin condensation when it is constitutively localized to the nucleus by mutation of its NESs. Moreover, inhibition of MST1 nuclear translocation by mutation of its cleavage sites reduces its ability to induce chromatin condensation. Taken together, these results suggest that truncation of the C-terminal domain of MST1 by caspases may result in translocation of MST1 into the nucleus, where it promotes chromatin condensation.
Screening of Urine Samples by Flow Cytometry Reduces the Need for Culture

ABSTRACT Urine samples constitute a large proportion of samples tested in clinical microbiology laboratories. Culturing of the samples is fairly time- and labor-consuming, and most of the samples will yield no growth or insignificant growth. We analyzed the feasibility of the flow cytometry-based UF-500i instrument (Sysmex, Japan) to screen out urine samples with no growth or insignificant growth and reduce the number of samples to be cultured. A total of 1,094 urine specimens sent to our laboratory for culture during 4 months in the spring of 2009 in Lahti, Finland, were included in the study. After culture, all samples were analyzed with the Sysmex UF-500i for bacterial and leukocyte (white blood cell [WBC]) counts. Youden index and closest (0,1) methods were used to determine the cutoff values for bacterial and WBC counts in culture-positive and -negative groups. By flow cytometry, samples considered positive for UTI in culture had bacterial and WBC values that were significantly higher than those for samples considered negative. The flow cytometric screening worked best when both bacterial counts and WBC counts were used with age- and gender-specific cutoff values for all patient groups, excluding patients with urological disease or anomaly. By use of these cutoff values, 5/167 (3.0%) of culture-positive samples were missed by UF-500i and the percentage of samples that did not need to be cultured was 64.5%. Use of the UF-500i instrument is a reliable method for screening out a major part of the UTI-negative samples, significantly diminishing the amount of work required in the microbiology laboratory.
The application of machine learning in multi sensor data fusion for activity recognition in mobile device space

The present generation of mobile handheld devices comes equipped with a large number of sensors. The key sensors include the Ambient Light Sensor, Proximity Sensor, Gyroscope, Compass and the Accelerometer. Many mobile applications are driven based on the readings obtained from either one or two of these sensors. However the presence of multiple-sensors will enable the determination of more detailed activities that are carried out by the user of a mobile device, thus enabling smarter mobile applications to be developed that responds more appropriately to user behavior and device usage. In the proposed research we use recent advances in machine learning to fuse together the data obtained from all key sensors of a mobile device. We investigate the possible use of single and ensemble classifier based approaches to identify a mobile device’s behavior in the space it is present. Feature selection algorithms are used to remove non-discriminant features that often lead to poor classifier performance. As the sensor readings are noisy and include a significant proportion of missing values and outliers, we use machine learning based approaches to clean the raw data obtained from the sensors, before use. Based on selected practical case studies, we demonstrate the ability to accurately recognize device behavior based on multi-sensor data fusion.
TITRATION OF THE ACCEPTOR CROSS‐LINKING SITES IN FIBRIN *

In terms of physiological function, the cross-linking sites of fibrin constitute the active sites of this large protein molecule. They provide the y-glutamyl-clysine peptide bridges between the fibrin units of a fully developed, elastic clot structure. ' According to the nucleophilic displacement model shown in FIGURE 1, they can be further divided into amine (electron donor or donor, for short) and carbonyl (or acceptor) subsites. Proper reactivity of these sites may literally mean the difference between life and death. We have recently completed studies on a patient in whose blood the clotting time as well as the activity of the fibrin stabilizing factor system was normal; yet, severe bleeding occurred because an antibody selectively directed against fibrin prevented enzymatic cross-linking. Evaluation of the reactivity, number and submolecular localization of crosslinking sites in fibrin is a topic of great interest. Enzymatic substitution in the amine-acceptor groups forms the subject of this paper.
Threshold-Based Substream Selection for Closed-Loop Spatial Multiplexing

We propose a low-complexity closed-loop spatial multiplexing method with limited feedback over multi-input-multi-output (MIMO) fading channels. The transmit adaptation is simply performed by selecting transmit antennas (or substreams) by comparing their signal-to-noise ratios to a given threshold with a fixed nonadaptive constellation and fixed transmit power per substream. We analyze the performance of the proposed system by deriving closed-form expressions for spectral efficiency, average transmit power, and bit error rate (BER). Depending on practical system design constraints, the threshold is chosen to maximize the spectral efficiency (or minimize the average BER) subject to average transmit power and average BER (or spectral efficiency) constraints, respectively. We present numerical and Monte Carlo simulation results that validate our analysis. Compared to open-loop spatial multiplexing and other approaches that select the best antenna subset in spatial multiplexing, the numerical results illustrate that the proposed technique obtains significant power gains for the same BER and spectral efficiency. We also provide numerical results that show improvement over rate-adaptive orthogonal space-time block coding, which requires highly complex constellation adaptation. We analyze the impact of feedback delay using analytical and Monte Carlo approaches. The proposed approach is arguably the simplest possible adaptive spatial multiplexing system from an implementation point of view. However, our approach and analysis can be extended to other systems using multiple constellations and power levels.
Differences in bone microarchitecture between postmenopausal Chinese‐American and white women

Chinese‐American women have lower rates of hip and forearm fracture than white women despite lower areal bone density (aBMD) by dual X‐ray absorptiometry (DXA). We recently reported higher trabecular (Dtrab) and cortical (Dcomp) bone density as well as greater trabecular (Tb.Th) and cortical thickness (C.Th) but smaller bone area (CSA), as measured by high‐resolution peripheral quantitative computed tomography (HR‐pQCT), in premenopausal Chinese‐American compared with white women. These findings may help to account for the lower fracture rate among Chinese‐American women but were limited to measurements in premenopausal women. This study was designed to extend these investigations to postmenopausal Chinese‐American (n = 29) and white (n = 68) women. Radius CSA was 10% smaller in the Chinese‐American versus the white group (p = .008), whereas their C.Th and Dcomp values were 18% and 6% greater (p < .001 for both). Tibial HR‐pQCT results for cortical bone were similar to the radius, but Tb.Th was 11% greater in Chinese‐American versus white women (p = .007). Tibial trabecular number and spacing were 17% lower and 20% greater, respectively, in Chinese‐American women (p < .0001 for both). There were no differences in trabecular or whole‐bone stiffness estimated by microstructural finite‐element analysis, but Chinese‐American women had a greater percentage of load carried by the cortical bone compartment at the distal radius and tibia. There was no difference in load distribution at the proximal radius or tibia. Whole‐bone finite‐element analysis may indicate that the thicker, more dense cortical bone and thicker trabeculae in postmenopausal Chinese‐American women compensate for fewer trabeculae and smaller bone size. © 2011 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.
Physical activity and reduced occurrence of non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.

BACKGROUND Physical activity is recommended by physicians to patients with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), because it increases sensitivity to insulin. Whether physical activity is effective in preventing this disease is not known. METHODS We used questionnaires to examine patterns of physical activity and other personal characteristics in relation to the subsequent development of NIDDM in 5990 male alumni of the University of Pennsylvania. The disease developed in a total of 202 men during 98,524 man-years of follow-up from 1962 to 1976. RESULTS Leisure-time physical activity, expressed in kilocalories expended per week in walking, stair climbing, and sports, was inversely related to the development of NIDDM: The incidence rates declined as energy expenditure increased from less than 500 kcal to 3500 kcal. For each 500-kcal increment in energy expenditure, the age-adjusted risk of NIDDM was reduced by 6 percent (relative risk, 0.94; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.90 to 0.98). This association remained the same when the data were adjusted for obesity, hypertension, and a parental history of diabetes. The association was weaker when we considered weight gain between the time of college attendance and 1962 (relative risk, 0.95; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.90 to 1.00). The protective effect of physical activity was strongest in persons at highest risk for NIDDM, defined as those with a high body-mass index, a history of hypertension, or a parental history of diabetes. These factors, in addition to weight gain since college, were also independent predictors of the disease. CONCLUSIONS Increased physical activity is effective in preventing NIDDM, and the protective benefit is especially pronounced in persons at the highest risk for the disease.
Do patient perceptions of quality relate to hospital financial performance?

Analysis confirms that patient perceptions of quality are associated with hospital financial performance. Multivariate analysis involving more than 15,000 patients discharged from 51 medical/surgical hospitals shows that discrete dimensions of hospital quality (i.e., medical and billing systems and discharge processes) explain approximately 17%-27% of the variation in financial measures such as hospital earnings, net revenue, and return on assets. The findings suggest that measurable improvements in patients' judgments of hospital quality might translate into better financial performance. The implications of these results and the limitations of the study are discussed.
A time and memory efficient way to enumerate cycles in a graph

Enumerating the cycles in a graph finds numerous applications in communication systems. It is also possible to find given length cycles without enumerating all cycles in the graph. We enumerate the cycles in a directed and undirected graph, in a time and memory efficient manner and make the operations parallelizable, maintaining ease and simplicity to implement.