Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Transverse Mode Switching and Locking in Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Lasers Subject to Orthogonal Optical Injection

In this paper, we report on theoretical and experimental investigation on polarization and transverse mode behavior of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) under orthogonal optical injection as a function of the injection strength and of the detuning between the injection frequency and the free-running frequency of the solitary laser. As the injection strength increases the VCSEL switches to the master laser polarization. We find that the injection power necessary to obtain such polarization switching is minimum at two different values of the frequency detuning: the first one corresponds to the frequency splitting between the two linearly polarized fundamental transverse modes, and the second one appears at a larger positive frequency detuning, close to the frequency difference between the first-order and the fundamental transverse modes of the solitary VCSEL. We show theoretically that both the depth and the frequency corresponding to the second minimum increase when the relative losses between the two transverse modes decrease. Bistability of the polarization switching is obtained for the whole frequency detuning range. Such a bistability is found for the fundamental mode only or for both transverse modes, depending on the value of the detuning. The theoretical and experimental optical spectra are in good agreement showing that the first-order transverse mode appears locked to the external injection
Comparison of operative procedure variables on pulpal viability in an ex vivo model.

AIM To measure and compare the responses of pulp tissue to cavity preparation and restoration variables using a novel tooth slice culture model. METHODOLOGY Experimental cavities (265) were continuously cut, under carefully controlled conditions, into the dentine of the labial aspect of 28-day-old Wistar rat incisors, and slices of these teeth maintained in organ culture for up to 2 weeks. The experimental variables examined were: the preparation method, remaining dentine thickness, coolant, drill speed, conditioning with EDTA and filling materials. The reactions of the dentine-pulp complex to the experimental variables were measured using pathohistometric analysis and the correlations between variables were determined using analysis of variance statistical tests. RESULTS In rank order of surgically induced restorative pulpal injury, from the most to the least injurious were: remaining dentine thickness, absence of coolant during cavity preparation, bur speed, cavity conditioning treatments and the filling material. CONCLUSIONS To reduce pulp injury and to promote pulpal repair activity, the correct use of appropriate materials are important. However, of relatively greater importance is the operative technique adopted, the need to avoid the excess removal of dentine and to minimize trauma during preparation.
Numerical study of polarization hysteresis in VCSELs subject to orthogonal injection

We study numerically the output polarization of a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL) subject to orthogonal optical injection. We focus on the width of the hysteresis cycle induced by the variation of the detuning of the injected light. For positive detuning and strong enough optical injection we find that the hysteresis width is proportional to the birefringence parameter; for negative detuning the hysteresis width is narrow and is unaffected by the injection strength. Our results are in good agreement with recent experimental observations.
A regenerative microchannel neural interface for recording from and stimulating peripheral axons in vivo

Neural interfaces are implanted devices that couple the nervous system to electronic circuitry. They are intended for long term use to control assistive technologies such as muscle stimulators or prosthetics that compensate for loss of function due to injury. Here we present a novel design of interface for peripheral nerves. Recording from axons is complicated by the small size of extracellular potentials and the concentration of current flow at nodes of Ranvier. Confining axons to microchannels of ∼100 µm diameter produces amplified potentials that are independent of node position. After implantation of microchannel arrays into rat sciatic nerve, axons regenerated through the channels forming ‘mini-fascicles’, each typically containing ∼100 myelinated fibres and one or more blood vessels. Regenerated motor axons reconnected to distal muscles, as demonstrated by the recovery of an electromyogram and partial prevention of muscle atrophy. Efferent motor potentials and afferent signals evoked by muscle stretch or cutaneous stimulation were easily recorded from the mini-fascicles and were in the range of 35–170 µV. Individual motor units in distal musculature were activated from channels using stimulus currents in the microampere range. Microchannel interfaces are a potential solution for applications such as prosthetic limb control or enhancing recovery after nerve injury.
Fine‐needle aspiration cytology of basal cell adenoma of the parotid gland: Characteristic cytological features and diagnostic pitfalls

We retrospectively studied the cytological features of aspiration cytology in 12 cases of basal cell adenoma (BCA) and 5 cases mistakenly diagnosed as BCA. On macroscopic findings, the 12 cases of BCA included 7 cases of solid type and 5 cases of cystic type. The characteristic cytological features of solid type BCA were three‐dimensional clusters in 71%, sharp‐angle small clusters in 86%, basement membrane‐ like material in 71%, and cell crush in 86%. In contrast, 3 of the 5 cystic type BCA cases showed inadequate cellular components or no basaloid tumor cells, and the cytological diagnosis of BCA could not be determined. In the 5 cases misdiagnosed as BCA, there were 2 cases of pleomorphic adenoma, 2 cases of benign lymphoepithelial cyst, and 1 case of basal cell adenocarcinoma. Accurate differential cytological diagnosis of BCA is relatively easy to determine the solid type BCA, but is more difficult for cystic type BCA. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2007;35:85–90. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Multimodel uncertainty changes in simulated river flows induced by human impact parameterizations

Human impacts increasingly affect the global hydrological cycle and indeed dominate hydrological changes in some regions. Hydrologists have sought to identify the human-impact-induced hydrological variations via parameterizing anthropogenic water uses in global hydrological models (GHMs). The consequently increased model complexity is likely to introduce additional uncertainty among GHMs. Here, using four GHMs, between-model uncertainties are quantified in terms of the ratio of signal to noise (SNR) for average river flow during 1971–2000 simulated in two experiments, with representation of human impacts (VARSOC) and without (NOSOC). It is the first quantitative investigation of between-model uncertainty resulted from the inclusion of human impact parameterizations. Results show that the between-model uncertainties in terms of SNRs in the VARSOC annual flow are larger (about 2% for global and varied magnitude for different basins) than those in the NOSOC, which are particularly significant in most areas of Asia and northern areas to the Mediterranean Sea. The SNR differences are mostly negative (−20% to 5%, indicating higher uncertainty) for basin-averaged annual flow. The VARSOC high flow shows slightly lower uncertainties than NOSOC simulations, with SNR differences mostly ranging from −20% to 20%. The uncertainty differences between the two experiments are significantly related to the fraction of irrigation areas of basins. The large additional uncertainties in VARSOC simulations introduced by the inclusion of parameterizations of human impacts raise the urgent need of GHMs development regarding a better understanding of human impacts. Differences in the parameterizations of irrigation, reservoir regulation and water withdrawals are discussed towards potential directions of improvements for future GHM development. We also discuss the advantages of statistical approaches to reduce the between-model uncertainties, and the importance of calibration of GHMs for not only better performances of historical simulations but also more robust and confidential future projections of hydrological changes under a changing environment.
Gβγ Binding to GIRK4 Subunit Is Critical for G Protein-gated K+ Channel Activation*

The cardiac G protein-gated K+channel, IKACh, is directly activated by G protein βγ subunits (Gβγ). IKAChis composed of two inward rectifier K+ channel subunits, GIRK1 and GIRK4. Gβγ binds to both GIRK1 and GIRK4 subunits of the heteromultimeric IKACh. Here we delineate the Gβγ binding regions of IKACh by studying direct Gβγ interaction with native purified IKACh, competition of this interaction with peptides derived from GIRK1 or GIRK4 amino acid sequences, mutational analysis of regions implicated in Gβγ binding, and functional expression of mutated subunits in mammalian cells. Only two GIRK4 peptides, containing amino acids 209–225 or 226–245, effectively competed for Gβγ binding. A single point mutation introduced into GIRK4 at position 216 (C216T) dramatically reduced the potency of the peptide in inhibiting Gβγ binding and Gβγ activation of expressed GIRK1/GIRK4(C216T) channels. Conversion of 5 amino acids in GIRK4 (226–245) to the corresponding amino acids found in the G protein-insensitive IRK1 channel, completely abolished peptide inhibition of Gβγbinding to IKACh and Gβγ activation of GIRK1/mutant GIRK4 channels. We conclude from this data that Gβγ binding to GIRK4 is critical for IKAChactivation.
Multiplicidade de Fatores de Risco Cardiovascular em Crianças e Adolescentes de Guabiruba-SC, Brasil

800x600 A prevencao das doencas cardiovasculares consiste na identificacao precoce dos fatores de risco envolvidos. Assim, o objetivo deste estudo foi verificar a prevalencia de fatores de risco para doencas cardiovasculares em criancas e adolescentes no municipio de Guabiruba-SC, Brasil. Participaram deste estudo transversal 1011 criancas e adolescentes (6-14 anos; 52,4% meninas), sem desordens diagnosticadas. Amostras de sangue (jejum de 12-14 h) foram coletadas para avaliacoes laboratoriais e foram aferidos os indices antropometricos e a pressao arterial. De acordo com os resultados, foi observada alta prevalencia de dislipidemias (26-77% dependendo do parâmetro lipidico), hiperglicemia (11,6%), resistencia a insulina (8,4%), pressao arterial elevada (4,5%), inflamacao subclinica (27,2%), sobrepeso (17,6%), obesidade (6,5%), obesidade abdominal (30,2%) e gordura corporal elevada (31,1%). Conclui-se que a populacao infanto-juvenil avaliada possui risco elevado para as doencas cardiovasculares e medidas de prevencao e tratamento deverao ser implantadas. Normal 0 21 false false false PT-BR X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Tabela normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:. 0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";} 800x600
Mental tasks classification and their EEG structures analysis by using the growing hierarchical self-organizing map

The unsupervised method of growing hierarchical self-organizing map (GHSOM) was used to perform mental tasks classification. The GHSOM is an adaptive artificial neural network model with hierarchical architecture that is able to detect the hierarchical structure of data. The results indicate that GHSOM provides more detailed clustering information than SOM, and gives visual information about the separability of mental tasks in an intuitive way. The average classification accuracy across 130 task pairs by using GHSOM was up to 96.7%.
Pharmacogenetics in the treatment of depression: pharmacodynamic studies

The pharmacological treatment of mood disorders has reduced their morbidity and improved mental health for millions of individuals worldwide, favouring a considerable reduction of the direct and indirect costs caused by these common pathologies. Unfortunately, not all individuals benefit, and 30–40% of patients do not show a complete response to treatment. Efficient clinical predictors are not available, although genetic factors are thought to play a substantial (but complex) role in the antidepressant response. Pharmacogenetics, which investigates the influence of genetic features on the pharmacological response, has gained increasing attention and holds great promise for clinical psychiatry. Here, a brief overview is provided on the various pharmacogenetic studies published to date that analyse the commonest treatments for depression: antidepressants, sleep deprivation and lithium salts.
Y-Chromosome Analysis in Egypt Suggests a Genetic Regional Continuity in Northeastern Africa

AbstractThe geographic location of Egypt, at the interface between North Africa, the Middle East, and southern Europe, prompted us to investigate the genetic diversity of this population and its relationship with neighboring populations. To assess the extent to which the modern Egyptian population reflects this intermediate geographic position, ten Unique Event Polymorphisms (UEPs), mapping to the nonrecombining portion of the Y chromosome, have been typed in 164 Y chromosomes from three North African populations. The analysis of these binary markers, which define 11 Y-chromosome lineages, were used to determine the haplogroup frequencies in Egyptians, Moroccan Arabs, and Moroccan Berbers and thereby define the Y-chromosome background in these regions. Pairwise comparisons with a set of 15 different populations from neighboring European, North African, and Middle Eastern populations and geographic analysis showed the absence of any significant genetic barrier in the eastern part of the Mediterranean area, suggesting that genetic variation and gene flow in this area follow the "isolation-by-distance" model. These results are in sharp contrast with the observation of a strong north-south genetic barrier in the western Mediterranean basin, defined by the Gibraltar Strait. Thus, the Y-chromosome gene pool in the modern Egyptian population reflects a mixture of European, Middle Eastern, and African characteristics, highlighting the importance of ancient and recent migration waves, followed by gene flow, in the region.
Atomistic simulation of electron and phonon transport in nano-devices

In this paper, the electrical, thermal, and coupled electro-thermal properties of silicon nanowire field-effect transistors (NWFETs) are investigated through advanced numerical simulations. An atomistic quantum transport solver based on the Non-equilibrium Green's Function (NEGF) formalism is utilized as modeling tool. The electron characteristics are treated within an empirical tight-binding basis, while a modified valence-force-field method is used to describe phonons. Device simulations going beyond the ballistic limit of transport are performed: electron-phonon interactions with an equilibrium and out-of-equilibrium phonon population are considered as well as an-harmonic phonon-phonon scattering. It is found that ultrascaled Si NWFETs with a gate length of 15 nm operate at about 50% of their ballistic limit. This poor performance can be explained by large self-heating effects that drastically increase the lattice temperature and thus reduce the drain current.
Assessing cancer hazards of bitumen emissions – a case study for complex petroleum substances

Abstract When assessing cancer hazard and risk associated with a complex petroleum substance, like bitumen emissions, there are often conflicting results related to human, animal and mechanistic studies. Validation of the complex composition to assure that it matches real-world exposures and control of confounders are pivotal factors in study design to allow the necessary read-across during assessments. Several key studies on bitumen emissions in two-year dermal cancer assays reported variable outcomes ranging from high cancer incidence to no cancer incidence. Here, we synthesize findings from published studies to explain the differences and discuss critical factors in cancer hazard evaluation for complex petroleum substances. Using these critical factors, we reviewed relevant human genetic toxicity, mammalian toxicity and mechanistic studies with bitumen to understand the divergence in results. We assess the most reliable and scientifically supported information on the potential carcinogenic hazards of bitumen emissions and comment on quality and completeness of data. Human hazard data are typically considered highest priority because they eliminate the need for interspecies extrapolation and reduce the range of high -to low-dose extrapolation during the risk assessment process. Finally, two well-conducted comprehensive animal studies are discussed that have well-defined test material, exposure concentration and composition representative of worker exposure, evidence of systemic uptake, no confounding exposures and provide consistency across all elements within both studies. Studies that allow effective read-across from human, animal and mechanistic components, control for confounders and are well-validated analytically against workplace exposures, provide the strongest evidence base for evaluating cancer hazard.
Targeting Syk as a treatment for allergic and autoimmune disorders

Recent advances in our understanding of allergic and autoimmune disorders have begun to translate into novel, effective and safe medicines for these common maladies. Examples include an anti-IgE monoclonal antibody recently approved for severe asthmatics and the TNF-α antagonists that have demonstrated their ability to suppress rheumatoid arthritis, Crohn’s disease and other chronic inflammatory processes. However, protein therapies are difficult and expensive to develop, manufacture and administer. Clearly, there is also a need for small-molecule inhibitors of novel targets that have safe and effective characteristics. Syk is an intracellular protein tyrosine kinase that was discovered 15 years ago as a key mediator of immunoreceptor signalling in a host of inflammatory cells including B cells, mast cells, macrophages and neutrophils. These immunoreceptors, including Fc receptors and the B-cell receptor, are important for both allergic diseases and antibody-mediated autoimmune diseases and thus pharmacologically interfering with Syk could conceivably treat these disorders. In addition, as Syk is positioned upstream in the cell signalling pathway, therapies targeting Syk may be more advantageous relative to drugs that inhibit a single downstream event. Syk inhibition during an allergic or asthmatic response will block three mast cell functions: the release of preformed mediators such as histamine, the production of lipid mediators such as leukotrienes and prostaglandins and the secretion of cytokines. In contrast, commonly used antihistamines or leukotriene receptor antagonists target only a single mediator of this complex cascade. Despite its expression in platelets and other non-haematopoietic cells, the role of Syk in regulating vascular homeostasis and other housekeeping functions is minimal or masked by redundant Syk-independent pathways. This suggests that targeting Syk would be an optimal approach to effectively treat a multitude of chronic inflammatory diseases without undue toxicity.
Effects of Ammonium and Lactate on Growth and Metabolism of a Recombinant Chinese Hamster Ovary Cell Culture

A Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cell line producing a recombinant glycoprotein was cultured in batch mode with different initial concentrations of ammonium chloride (0–10 mM), sodium lactate (0–60 mM), or sodium chloride (0–60 mM) . High ammonium concentrations did not inhibit cell growth and productivity or glucose and glutamine consumption. In contrast, specific ammonia and alanine production decreased by 55% and 40%, respectively. There were also significant increases in specific aspartate and glutamate consumption in high ammonium concentrations. These observations indicated a shift in glutamine catabolic pathways in response to the effects of ammonium. The influence of lactate on growth and metabolism were the combined effects of lactate concentration and osmolarity. After “correcting” for osmolarity effects, lactate was found to inhibit growth by 25% but to increase specific productivity slightly (10%) . Lactate had profound effects not only on glycolysis but also on glutaminolysis. While specific glucose and glutamine consumptions decreased by 15–20%, the effects of lactate on their metabolic products were far more significant. Lactate production was halted, and specific ammonia and alanine productions decreased by 64% and 70% at high lactate concentration. Theories on how ammonium and lactate affected the metabolic pathways of glucose and glutamine are presented.
De novo methylation and co‐suppression induced by a cytoplasmically replicating plant RNA virus

The relationship between co‐suppression and DNA methylation was explored in transgenic plants showing inducible co‐suppression following infection with a cytoplasmically replicating RNA virus. Induction resulted in a loss of transgene mRNA and resistance to further infection, factors typical of post‐transcriptional gene silencing. In infected plants, de novo methylation of the transgene appeared to precede the onset of resistance and only occurred in plants where the outcome was co‐suppression. The methylation was limited to sequences homologous to the viral RNA and occurred at both symmetric and non‐symmetric sites on the DNA. Although methylation is predicted to occur in mitotic cells, the virus was found not to access the meristem. A diffusible sequence‐specific signal may account for the epigenetic changes in those tissues.