Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Analysis of Binding Relationships between Cys-loop Receptors and Acetylcholine Binding Protein Mutants using Selective Tropane Triazole Compounds

[alpha]7 nAChRs and 5-HT3A receptors are important targets for potential theraupeutic treatments in pharmacological drug design. [alpha]7 nAChRs are implicated in CNS disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and schizophrenia, while 5-HT3A receptors are targets for anti-emetic drug design. The objective of this thesis is to identify and understand determinants that are important to [alpha]7 nAChR and 5-HT3A receptor selectivity, and use these principles to develop potentially selective leads. To accomplish this, I first looked at several potent tropane triazole compounds generated through in situ click- chemistry on acetylcholine binding protein templates. Close examination of the data recognized a distinct relationship between quaternary tropane amines and high potency as [alpha]7 nAChR agonists. The 5-HT3A receptor was found to prefer tertiary tropane antagonists. Crystal studies using AChBP elucidated the differences in the orientation of the tropane ring in the binding pocket, leading us to understand the general selectivity the aromatic nest provides for [alpha]7 nAChR and 5-HT3A receptor. To further understand ligand selectivty at [alpha]7 nAChR and 5-HT3A receptor, I mutated Aplysia californica AChBP to one [alpha]7-similar mutant and two 5 -HT3A-similar mutants. [alpha]7-similar mutant, Ac [alpha]7 (1), showed greater selectivity for quaternary tropanes due to its substantial loss of binding affinity for tertiary tropanes compared to wild-type Ac. From the 5 -HT3A-similar mutants, Arg 57 was found to enhance affinity of tertiary tropanes through strong cation-pi; interaction with the hydrophobic aromatic rings. These findings help further elucidate the critical residues in the complementary subunit that determine ligand selecitivity at [alpha]7 nAChR and 5-HT3A receptors
Advantages, Limitations, and Future Trends for Biofabrication Techniques in Tissue Engineering

Biofabrication techniques facilitate tissue engineering by supplyingtools to construct advanced scaffolds for cell population applied to the assemblingof artificial tissues and organs. Tissue engineering involves the in vitro reconstruction of tissue architectures from nano-scale to macro-scale. In the current review, scaffold fabrication techniques will be classified into nano-scale, micro-scale and macro-scale. Methods for and future trendsof biofabrication techniques will be discussed.
Age-Related Deficits in the Frequency of Gaze Responses to the Mirrors and Blind-Spot During Lane Change Maneuvers of Various Complexity

Lane changing is a complex driving maneuver that could challenge elderly drivers. The aim of this study was to evaluate eye glances of young and elderly active drivers when engaging lane change maneuvers. Twelve young (aged 21-31 years) and eleven older (aged 65-75 years) active drivers drove through a continuous simulated environment (STISIM, v2.0). The scenario included 16 events where the driver needed to glance at three important regions of interest (ROI): 1) the rear-view mirror, 2) the left-side mirror, and 3) the left blind spot to ensure secure lane change. The lane change maneuvers were necessary 1) to avoid a static object that was partially or completely blocking the lane or 2) for overtaking a slower moving vehicle. Compared with younger drivers, older drivers showed a reduced frequency of glances towards the left-side mirror and the blind spot. Also, while the older drivers showed a constant frequency of glances across the two types of driving maneuvers (i.e., avoiding a static object and overtaking a slower vehicle), the younger drivers generally showed a higher frequency of glances and this frequency increased when overtaking a slower vehicle. A better knowledge of the elderly drivers’ behavior could enable researchers to identify at-risk behaviors and to retrain older drivers to adopt safer behaviors.
Cartilage Metabolism, Mitochondria, and Osteoarthritis.

Osteoarthritis continues to be a debilitating joint disease ultimately requiring joint replacement in most patients. OA (osteoarthritis) involves deterioration of the load-bearing cartilage, inflammation of the synovium, and structural changes in the underlying bone. The chondrocytes of articular cartilage are responsible for maintaining and repairing the tissue, and in OA these cells commonly fail in these important tasks.
THE IMPACT OF MASS CUSTOMISATION ON THE QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IN A SALES AND MARKETING ENVIRONMENT - A CASE STUDY

The introduction of a vehicle platform destined for world-wide export brought mass customi-sation to the South African subsidiary of a German luxury car manufacturer. This, together with a 29% head count reduction, a model range increase, stringent profitability targets and increased customer satisfaction demands, made the previous, unintegrated quality systems used in the Sales and Marketing Division obsolete. A quality management system (QMS) based on ISO 9002 was implemented. To solve some of the problems in the mass customisa-tion process, the principles of customer satisfaction and the measurement of internal processes were used to make recommendations for operational improvements. Die produksie van voertuie wat in groot volumes wereldwyd uitgevoer word, het bou-volgens-bestelling na die Suid-Afrikaanse filiaal van 'n Duitse luukse voertuigvervaardiger gebring. Tesame met 'n 29% personeelvermindering, 'n verhoging in die getal beskikbare modelle, streng winsgewendheidsdoelwitte en verhoogde klientetevredenheidvereistes, het dit die vorige, ongeintegreerde kwaliteitstelsels in die Verkope-en-Bemarkingsafdeling in on-bruik laat verval. 'n Kwaliteitsbestuurstelsel gebaseer op ISO 9002 is geimplementeer. Die beginsels van klientetevredenheid en die meting van falings in interne prosesse word gebruik om verbeteringsvoorstelle te doen om sodoende bedryfsbestuur te verbeter.
On the Use of MOFs and ALD Layers as Nanomembranes for the Enhancement of Gas Sensors Selectivity

Improving the selectivity of gas sensors is crucial for their further development. One effective route to enhance this key property of sensors is the use of selective nanomembrane materials. This work aims to present how metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and thin films prepared by atomic layer deposition (ALD) can be applied as nanomembranes to separate different gases, and hence improve the selectivity of gas sensing devices. First, the fundamentals of the mechanisms and configuration of gas sensors will be given. A selected list of studies will then be presented to illustrate how MOFs and ALD materials can be implemented as nanomembranes and how they can be implemented to improve the operational performance of gas sensing devices. This review comprehensively shows the benefits of these novel selective nanomaterials and opens prospects for the sensing community.
Haematological studies of fresh water fish, Clarias batrachus (L.) exposed to mercuric chloride

metals are serious pollutants of the aquatic environment because of their environmental persistence and ability to be accumulated by aquatic organisms. Clarias batrachus was exposed to 0.02, 0.04, 0.06, 0.08 and 0.10ppm of HgCl2 for 35days. After 35days of exposure red blood cell (RBC) count (1.66, 1.59, 1.54, 1.42 and 1.23,10 6 mm -3 ) and Hb content (67.2, 50.8, 42.6, 31.6 and 29.2, g/dL) decreased when compared to the control (RBC - 1.77, 10 6 mm -3 and Hb - 75.0 g/dL). The number of white blood cells (WBC) increased (10.4, 11.9, 12.7, 13.3 and 14.8, mm 3 x10 3 ) in mercuric chloride treated fish. The results are statistically significant at P< 0.05
Conducting pro-social research: cognitive diversity, research excellence and awareness about the social impact of research

We propose the concept of pro-social research as reflecting the adoption of conducts that place social relevance as a critical goal of research. We argue that pro-social conducts represent a behavioural antecedent of the actual engagement of scientists in knowledge transfer activities. Our study investigates the impact that different cognitive aspects have on the development of pro-social research behaviour. In particular, we examine if certain types of research skills (i.e. cognitive diversity and research excellence) have a positive impact in shaping a pro-social research behaviour and, more critically, if they act as substitutes for prior experience in knowledge transfer activities. The main source of data comes from a large scale survey conducted on all scientists at the Spanish Council for Scientific Research (CSIC).
Fractal Dynamics of Circle Drawing in Children with ASD

Fractal dynamics of circle drawing in children with ASD Amanda Fleury Master of Applied Science Graduate Department of Biomaterials & Biomedical Engineering University of Toronto 2011 Sensory motor deficits, although not part of the diagnostic criteria, are frequently reported in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The objective of this project is to study the temporal and spatial dynamics of an approximately periodic motor activity (circle drawing) in children with ASD. The natural rhythm of periodic motor activities such as circle drawing are known to exhibit statistical persistence in typically developing individuals. A sample of 15 children aged 4 to 8 years, with a primary diagnosis of ASD were asked to draw circles using a computerized tablet and pen, which record spatio-temporal data. Results were compared with those of 19 typically developing children. While no differences were seen in statistical persistence, differences were observed in timing of discontinuous circle drawing and in kinetic process variable such as grip and axial forces. Understanding the specific nature of graphomotor deficits is the first step towards developing targeted treatment for these impairments.
Underlying Mechanisms Affecting Institutionalisation of Environmental Education Courses in Southern Africa

This paper discusses the underlying causal mechanisms that enabled or constrained institutionalisation of environmental education in 12 institutions in eight countries in southern Africa. The study was carried out in the context of the Southern Africa Development Community Regional Environmental Education Support Programme’s Course Development Network (CDN). This paper reports on part of the author's doctoral study and draws on critical realism as the ontological lens. Data analysis was done by means of a retroductive mode of inference, as articulated by Danermark, Ekstrom, Jakosben and Karlsson (2002). The paper demonstrates that there are a number of underlying causal mechanisms, which may enable or constrain institutionalisation of environmental education. They include factors at play at both national and institutional level; namely, responsiveness to national and institutional needs, recognition and ownership, accreditation and certification, institutional culture and politics, short course support structure and support from colleagues. As part of the discussions of the results of the study, I have advanced some retroductive theories that suggest causal mechanisms beyond the empirical data based on the participants’ experiences and events in the CDN.
Treatment of ankle joint instability

Talocrural joint distorsions are one of the most frequent injuries of the locomotoric system in general population. Most often they appear among sportsmen of various disciplines. Knowledge about functional anatomy, biomechanics and mechanisms of the injury is often incomplete. Various therapeutic methods are in use, not always with good results. Secondary chronic complaints and joint instability either mechanical or funcional may develop. Proper conservative treatment is effective in a number of cases. Physiotherapy aimed at regaining of muscular control and compactness of the affected ligaments, as well as restoration of proprioception, is of major importance. In some cases surgical treatment is neccessary in order to regain mechanical support. Contemporary opinions on epidemiology, pathomechanism, and therapeutic methods used in treatment of this injury are presented in the paper.
The dangers of marginal cost based electricity pricing

Abstract Led by energy and environmental policies the EU power sector is undergoing vast changes to achieve a market driven and sustainable future. Market based price discovery and different renewable support schemes are seen as key solutions in achieving the desired future production mix. Most liquid power markets use marginal cost based price discovery where the price is set by marginal costs of the last producer needed to cover all load, usually a fossil fuel power plant. At the same time the majority of new investments are made with significant help from government support schemes in renewable production capacities, which have very low marginal costs. The increasing share of renewable production will thus impact price levels in day-ahead markets. This paper analyses the potential impact of more renewable electricity production on price discovery in the NordPool Spot market, which already has a high share of renewable electricity traded. Results show that ceteris paribus NordPool Spot is likely to have very high price volatility in the future and alternative revenue sources are required for new investments.
Development of FPGA based Closed Loop Speed Control of the Motor

The prototype developed in this research work is useful to control the motor speed; immediately when there is desire of changing the speed. It also sustains the motor speed to the pre-set level even there is increase in the load coupled with the motor shaft. The fast processing for maintaining the motor- speed was possible to obtain due to the deployment of Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). The system developed here was tested on the Digital Storage Oscilloscope (DSO), by varying the pre-set value of motor speed input given to the Soft Intellectual Proprietary (IP) core implemented in the Xilinx FPGA Virtex-5 device. The FPGA produces 8 bit signal, which was further given to the Digital to Analogue Converter (DAC), whose output magnitude controls the speed of the motor. Such motor speed controlling prototype is applicable in Programmable Logic Control (PLC) based systems, which majorly uses the motors and requires fast motor speed control.
Observer design for a class of nonlinear descriptor systems: a takagi-sugeno approach with unmeasurable premise variables

The Takagi-Sugeno (T-S) fuzzy observer for dynamical systems described by ordinary differential equations is widely discussed in the literature. The aim of this paper is to extend this observer design to a class of T-S descriptor systems with unmeasurable premise variables. In practice, the computation of solutions of differential-algebraic equations requires the combination of an ordinary differential equations (ODE) routine together with an optimization algorithm. Therefore, a natural way permitting to estimate the state of such a system is to design a procedure based on a similar numerical algorithm. Beside some numerical difficulties, the drawback of such a method lies in the fact that it is not easy to establish a rigorous proof of the convergence of the observer. The main result of this paper consists in showing that the state estimation problem for a class of T-S descriptor systems can be achieved by using a fuzzy observer having only an ODE structure. The convergence of the state estimation error is studied using the Lyapunov theory and the stability conditions are given in terms of linear matrix inequalities (LMIs). Finally, an application to a model of a heat exchanger pilot process is given to illustrate the performance of the proposed observer.
Assessment Of Labile Metals In Effluents From Lubricating Oil Company In Osogbo Osun State, Nigeria

Effluent and sediment samples were collected on seasonal basis, comprising of three months (August to October) in the wet season and three months (December to February) in the dry season from five points around a lubricating oil company in Osogbo - Nigeria. The sequential extraction method was used to respectively fractionate the sediment and effluent samples, then analyzed by Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometry (AAS) to determine concentrations of five heavy metals: Mn, Ni Co, Cd and Pb. Results showed that in wet season, higher concentration of Mn was found in exchangeable fraction, Ni and Pb were more pronounced in carbonate bound fraction, Cd in Fe-Mn oxide fraction, while Co was more in residual fraction. In dry season, Pb was more concentrated in exchangeable fraction, Coin residual fraction, Mn in Fe-Mn oxide fraction, Cd in organic matter bound, while Ni was more concentrated in the carbonate fraction. In both seasons for sediment samples, Cd concentrations were found above the set limit by WHO. The speciation study of the effluent showed that, Mn, Co and Ni concentration were found more in Organic substances fraction in both seasons, Pb was more concentrated in free metal ion fraction in wet season while it was high in organic fraction in the dry season. Concentrations of all metals in the effluent samples in both seasons were above the maximum permissible limit for effluent. The high mobility factors of heavy metals in the sediment indicated that the metals were labile and bioavailable thereby making the soil and the living organisms vulnerable to possibility of high heavy metal bioaccumulation. Key Words : Heavy Metals, Speciation, Effluents, Sediment
Role of gut microbiota in dog and cat’s health and diseases

Mammalian gastrointestinal tract is colonized by a large number of microorganisms, known as gut microbiota, that play a key role in the physiological and pathological states. In particular, the gastrointestinal tract of dogs and cats harbors a complex and highly biodiverse microbial ecosystem. Recent studies see it involved in a wide range of life processes, including energy needs, metabolism, immunological activity, and neuro-behavioral development. This review focuses on the role of the microbiota on the health of pets and will discuss changes that occur in the disease.
Long Warm-up and Self-Training: Training Strategies of NICT-2 NMT System at WAT-2019

This paper describes the NICT-2 neural machine translation system at the 6th Workshop on Asian Translation. This system employs the standard Transformer model but features the following two characteristics. One is the long warm-up strategy, which performs a longer warm-up of the learning rate at the start of the training than conventional approaches. Another is that the system introduces self-training approaches based on multiple back-translations generated by sampling. We participated in three tasks—ASPEC.en-ja, ASPEC.ja-en, and TDDC.ja-en—using this system.
Hardware Based Asymmetrical Cryptography Supported on Residue Number System

This paper presents the design and evaluation of an hardware based implementation of the RSA encryption algorithm supported on Residue Number Systems (RNS). The ability of RNS to represent large integer values as a set of smaller independent values allows for the parallelization of the modular multiplications needed in the RSA computation. This work shows that if properly designed, RNS based coprocessors can be used to achieve efficient RSA implementations. Experimental results suggest that the use of RNS allows to achieve performance improvements in the order of 1.8 times faster when compared with the equivalent binary implementations based on the Karatsuba approach.
Photosynthetic induction in C 4 leaves An investigation using infra-red gas analysis and chlorophyll a fluorescence

Simultaneous measurements of COg uptake, transpiration rate, and chlorophyll a fluorescence in leaf strips of C 4 plants during the induction phase of photosynthesis are described. The timecourse of CO 2 fixation is biphasic with the initial phase occurring within the first 1 to 5 min and the secondary phase consisting of a slow rise to the steady-state rate of photosynthesis. Transpiration rate follows the CO2-fixation timecourse closely but the intercellular CO 2 concentration never falls below saturation for C 4 plants. Chlorophyll a fluorescence quenching occurs exclusively during the initial fast phase of the CO2-fixation timecourse. The effect of duration of dark pretreatment of leaves on these parameters and the effects of light intensity and CO 2 concentration are examined. These results are discussed with respect to the C 4 cycle and photochemical and non-photochemical chlorophyll fluorescence quenching.
Impact of Employee Appraisal on the Performance of Garment Manufacturing Small & Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria

Performance appraisal (PA) is the pivotal mechanism for fostering entrepreneurship. Human Resource (HR) practices in this area, more than any other, communicate performance expectations and reinforce desired behaviors of Employees. Interestingly (but it's better to say unfortunate, due to SMEs significant role), virtually no work has been done concerning performance management in entrepreneurial organizations. A recent study on exploring HRM practices in SMEs in UK, suggests that, although some form of appraisal is used by half of the respondents, overall, formal systems are rare. This study is poised to assess the impact of Employee Appraisal on the Performance of Garment Manufacturing SMEs in Nigeria. The reliability test shows that the instrument is reliable with a value of 0.852. The regression model Y = 2.44 + 0.094x gives an insignificant model with a value of 0.0335. In the descriptive statistics table the average no. of respondents disagree with the items in the questionnaire, hence the minimum value of 1.00 and maximum value of 2.00 the mean responses support the model with an average Mean value of 2.006. The study revealed a significant gap between what should exist and what in fact is existing as stated in the literature review. That is, there were no formal and conscious employee appraisal systems being practiced among the sampled garment firms. Interviews also revealed that some enterprises were not serious about PA; others did not do PA as planned while others were ignorant of a formal performance appraisal system. It is recommended that Entrepreneurs in this sector embark on regular Employee Appraisal to ascertain their areas of strength and weaknesses in a view to strengthening their potentials.
Síntesis de Líneas de Transmisión Metamateriales con Mapeado Espacial Agresivo

A technique for the automated generation of the layout of microstrip lines loaded with complementary split ring resonators is proposed. This synthesis strategy presents a great practical interest, due to the reduction in terms of computational efforts, that is achieved without any significant lack of accuracy in the final solution. The application makes use of an aggressive space mapping (ASM) algorithm based on a constrained Broyden-based input approach. In this case, the parameter extraction (PE) does not require of any optimization, since the circuital parameters of the metamaterial transmission line can be determined following a straightforward method. Autor: Ana María Rodríguez Pérez, email: amrodri@dcom.upv. es Director: Vicente E. Boria Esbert, email: vboria@dcom.upv. es Fecha de entrega: 09-09-10 Síntesis de Líneas de Transmisión Metamateriales con Mapeado Espacial Agresivo 3 ÍNDICE I. Introducción . 4 I.1. Metamateriales. 4 I.2. Líneas de Transmisión Metamateriales . 6 I.2. 1. Líneas cargadas CL. 7 I.2. 2. Líneas de tipo resonante . 8 II. Mapeado Espacial . 10 II.1. Mapeado espacial agresivo. 11 III. Celda de Estudio . 13 III.1. Topología y Modelo Eléctrico Equivalente. 13 III.2. Extracción de Parámetros. 15 IV. Automatización . 16 IV.1. Planteamiento . 17 IV.2. Implementación del método. 18 IV.2. 1. Inicialización . 18 IV.2. 2. Diagrama de Flujo . 22 IV.2. 3. Estructura del Código . 23 V. Resultados . 24 IV.1. Ejemplo de validación. 24 IV.2. Ejemplo de aplicación . 25 VI. Conclusiones . 27 Agradecimientos . 27 Referencias . 28 Anexos . 31 4 Síntesis de Líneas de Transmisión Metamateriales con Mapeado Espacial Agresivo