Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A robust trajectory tracking controller for four-wheel skid-steering mobile robots

A novel dynamic model-based trajectory tracking control law is proposed for a four-wheel differentially driven mobile robot using a backstepping technique that guarantees the Lyapunov stability. The present work improves the work of Caracciolo et al. (ICRA 1999), a dynamic feedback linearization approach, by reducing the number of required assumptions and the number of state terms. We also thoroughly investigate on a gain tuning procedure which is often overlooked for nonlinear controllers. Finally, the performance of the proposed controller is compared with the dynamic feedback linearization approach via simulation results which indicate that our controller is robust even in the presence of measurement noise and control time delay.
nanos -Driven expression of piggyBac transposase induces mobilization of a synthetic autonomous transposon in the malaria vector mosquito, Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Transposons are a class of sel ﬁ sh DNA elements that can mobilize within a genome. If mobilization is accompanied by an increase in copy number (replicative transposition), the transposon may sweep through a population until it is ﬁ xed in all of its interbreeding members. This introgression has been proposed as the basis for drive systems to move genes with desirable phenotypes into target species. One such application would be to use them to move a gene conferring resistance to malaria parasites throughout a population of vector mosquitos. We assessed the feasibility of using the piggyBac transposon as a gene-drive mechanism to distribute anti-malarial transgenes in populations of the malaria vector, Anopheles stephensi . We designed synthetic gene constructs that express the piggyBac transposase in the female germline using the control DNA of the An. stephensi nanos orthologous gene linked to marker genes to monitor inheritance. Two remobilization events were observed with a frequency of one every 23 generations, a rate far below what would be useful to drive anti-pathogen transgenes into wild mosquito populations. We discuss the possibility of optimizing this system and the impetus to do so.
Inﬂuence of Nonlocality on Transmittance and Reﬂectance of Hyperbolic Metamaterials

: In this paper we investigate transmittance and reﬂectance spectra of multilayer hyperbolic metamaterials in the presence of strong spatial dispersion. Our analysis revealed a number of intriguing optical phenomena, which cannot be predicted with the local response approximation, such as total reﬂectance for small angles of incidence or multiple transmittance peaks of resonant character (instead of the respective local counterparts, where almost complete transparency is predicted for small angles of incidence and the broad-angle transparency can be observed within a range of larger angles of incidence). We believe that the observed e ﬀ ects may serve as a working principle in a number of new potential applications, such as spatial ﬁltering, biosensing, or beam steering.
Development of a Twisted String Based Haptic Interface: Design, Preliminary Implementation and Testing

—In this paper a new cable-driven haptic interface able to move in the six-dimensional space is presented. Both the design and the preliminary implementation of the interface are presented in this work. In particular, a 2-D setup is considered, with the aim of performing preliminary tests on the behaviour of this novel haptic system. Results regarding the capability of the system in rendering a virtual environment and in a robot teleoperation scenario with haptic force feedback are reported
Stability of Polyatomic Molecules in Degenerate Electronic States I I —Spin Degeneracy

In a previous paper (Jahn and Teller 1937) the following theorem was established: A configuration of a polyatomic molecule for an electronic state having orbital degeneracy cannot be stable with respect to all displacements of the nuclei unless in the original configuration the nuclei all lie on a straight line. The proof given of this theorem took no account of the electronic spin, and in the present paper the justification of this is investigated. An extension of the theorem to cover additional degeneracy arising from the spin is established, which shows tha t if the total electronic state of orbital and spin motion is degenerate, then a non-linear configuration of the molecule will be unstable unless the degeneracy is the special twofold one (discussed by Kramers 1930) which can occur only when the molecule contains an odd number of electrons. The additional instability caused by the spin degeneracy alone, however, is shown to be very small and its effect for all practical purposes negligible. The possibility of spin forces stabilizing a non-linear configura­ tion which is unstable owing to orbital degeneracy is also investigated, and it is shown that this is not possible except perhaps for molecules containing heavy atoms for which the spin forces are large. Thus whilst a symmetrical nuclear configuration in a degenerate orbital state might under exceptional circumstances be rendered stable by spin forces, it is not possible for the spin-orbit interaction to cause instability of an orbitally stable state.
Two-step Facial Images Deblurring With Kernel Refinement Via Smooth Priors

— Image deblurring is a challenging task in image processing. It is an ill-posed problem to estimate the unknown blur kernel and recover the original image from a blurred image. There are many methods for blurred natural images; however, few of them are able to perform well on blurred face images. Based on 𝐋 𝟎 norm prior, we propose a two-step method for the images deblurring. The proposed method does not require any facial dataset to initialize the gradient of contours or any complex filtering strategies. In the first step, we combine 𝐋 𝟎 norm prior with our local smooth prior to predict the blur kernel. With simple Gaussian filtering, we could maintain the smooth region in the latent image. In the second step, we refine the previous estimated kernel. In order to discard low intensity pixels that seemed to be noises on the kernel, we impose the sparsity on the kernel. Experimental results demonstrate that our proposed algorithm performs well on the facial images.
Cytotoxic T Cell Responses In Vivo + Strong Primary and Secondary CD8 Stimulation by Soluble CD70 Promotes

Identiﬁcation of the signals required for optimal differentiation of naive CD8 (cid:1) T cells into effector and memory cells is critical for the design of effective vaccines. In this study we demonstrate that CD27 stimulation by soluble CD70 considerably enhances the magnitude and quality of the CD8 (cid:1) T cell response. Stimulation with soluble CD70 in the presence of Ag signiﬁcantly enhanced the proliferation of CD8 (cid:1) T cells and their ability to produce IL-2 and IFN- (cid:2) in vitro. Administration of Ag and soluble CD70 resulted in a massive ( > 300-fold) expansion of Ag-speciﬁc CD8 (cid:1) T cells in vivo, which was due to the enhanced proliferation and survival of activated T cells. In mice that received Ag and soluble CD70, CD8 (cid:1) T cells developed into effectors with direct ex vivo cytotoxicity. Furthermore, unlike peptide immunization, which resulted in a diminished response after rechallenge, CD27 stimulation during the primary challenge evoked a strong secondary response upon rechallenge with the antigenic peptide. Thus, in addition to increasing the frequency of primed Ag-speciﬁc T cells, CD27 signaling during the primary response instills a program of differentiation that allows CD8 (cid:1) T cells to overcome a state of unresponsiveness. Taken together these results demonstrate that soluble CD70 has potent in vivo adjuvant effects for CD8 (cid:1) T cell responses. The Journal of Immunology, 2004, 172: 6039–6046.
OAJSM_A_337251 147..157

UT Health San Antonio, Department of Orthopaedics, San Antonio, TX, 78249, USA Background: The rate of medial meniscus tear (MMT) in professional soccer players is high. There are no studies on objective performance metrics following medial meniscus repair in these athletes. Purpose: Examine the impact of MMT treated with surgical repair on performance metrics and career longevity in Major League Soccer (MLS) players. Methods: MLS players who sustained an MMT between 1993 and 2019 were identified via publicly available databases. These players were each matched to 2 uninjured controls by debut date, experience, position, race, ethnicity, height, weight, and body mass index (BMI). Demographic data and performance metrics were then collected for both groups. Matches, minutes, goals, assists, shots, shots on target, duels, and duel percentage won are collectively referred to as performance metrics. Statistical analysis compared demographic distributions and performance metrics between the MMT and control groups. Results: Thirty-three MLS players who had undergone medial meniscus repair were identified and matched to 66 controls. All performance metrics decreased in the MMT group when compared to their controls in the first year after injury. This difference remained significant even when the performance metrics were normalized with respect to time, indicating that the injured players both played less and were not as productive. At 2 years after injury, performance metrics returned to pre-injury levels and were equivalent to those of the healthy controls. Career length was found to be significantly different between the two groups at 8.81 ± 3.9 years for the MMT group and 12.63 ± 3.51 years for the control group (P < 0.001). Conclusion: MLS players undergoing medial meniscus repair had decreased performance metrics in the first year after injury but returned to baseline levels of play at the second year after injury. Their careers were also shorter than those of their uninjured controls.
SAR_A_326020 89..103

1Department of Legal Medicine, Osaka City University Medical School, Osaka, 545-8585, Japan; 2Forensic Autopsy Section, Medico-Legal Consultation and Postmortem Investigation Support Center, C/O Department of Legal Medicine, Osaka City University Medical School, Osaka, 545-8585, Japan Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine the social and medical background of alcohol dependence and to prevent the abuse of alcohol. Methods: Alcohol and deaths were retrospectively investigated based on the forensic postmortem data of 1694 decedents ≥20 years of age in 2008–2017. Of these, the 999 cases that could be tested for alcohol within 48 h of death were examined. Results: The alcohol-positive and alcohol-negative groups included 179 (17.9%) and 820 (82.1%) cases, respectively. In terms of medical issues, compared with the alcohol-negative group, men in the positive group were mostly in their 40s to 60s, whereas women’s age peaked in the 70s. The causes of death included many blunt injuries in men, though there was no difference in women. Underlying diseases were more frequent in men than women, with many of them having heart or liver disease, and the percentage of cases with mental disorders was 16.8% in the alcohol-positive group. In 15 cases of the alcohol-positive group, phenothiazine and barbituric acids were detected in 53.3% and 46.7% of cases, respectively. The incidence of traffic accidents and homicides was higher in the alcohol-positive group than in the alcohol-negative group. Conclusion: Measures to address social issues based on risk factors for alcohol and deaths are required.
Carcinogenesis as a Process of the Reverse E volution ( Hypothesis )

The hypothesis about carcinogenesis process as a cell reverse evolution process is proposed. The process of transition of the cells functioning programs from its daughter forms to the plesiomorphic ones (those that cell used evolutionarily earlier) occurs under the conditions of genomic instability as a result of mutations. We suppose this transition to occur in the process of a cell malignant transformation as a result of the repair genes damage in the cell genome. The process consists in the mutational destruction of the existing cell functioning and management programs resulting in the unlocking and the bringing into action ancestral forms of the cell functioning programs. As a result, in each replication cycle the cell takes a step back in evolutionary terms. This leads at first to the formation of colonies of such cells (malignant tumor), and later to the cells which are metastases.
Comparative genomics and phylogenetic study of Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax

Malaria is a lethal human disease in terms of morbidity and mortality and is caused by Plasmodium species. Main obstacle in conquering this disease is their rapidly evolving genetic structure. Recently published whole genome of Plasmodium vivax provides an opportunity to compare it in depth with the previously published genome of Plasmodium falciparum . Here we have compared each and every chromosome of both the species and found the surprising presence of an unknown bases N. By analyzing tandem repeats it was clear that its copy number is always high in case of P.falciparum and it has strong correlation with their chromosome length. All the vir and var genes are also analyzed and very little sequence homology found between them. In order to find the functional role of vir and var gene protein products, amino acid composition is analyzed. The frequency of hydrophilic amino acids is found more in comparison with the hydrophobic one. Phylogenetic analysis of mitochondrial cytochrome b and nuclear encoded High mobility group binding (HMGB) proteins was done. On the basis of phylogeny result of HMGB it was found that this transcription factor can act as a reference point for the development of separate drugs for P.falciparum and P. vivax and this strategy is supposed to be more reliable in the eradication of malaria.
Increasing Awareness of Papillomaviruses and Their Association with Human Diseases

: The papillomavirus family is known to be responsible for a quarter of virus-related cancers worldwide. High-risk types are the causative agents of anogenital, cervical and various cancers of the mouth, throat, intestines, vagina, penis and anus. Cervical cancer and various other malignancies induced by papillomaviruses are a global health problem, and the growing prevalence of these diseases indicates the need to increase awareness of this viral family. In this review, published articles during 2001-2020 were searched using keywords such as Papillomavirus, Cervical Cancer and Papilloma Vaccine. Our review represents the results of the association of high-risk HPV serotypes with many malignancies in human. Furthermore, issues such as HPV vaccination, cervical cancer screening, and other preventive programs worldwide are discussed.
Enhancement and quenching of the fluorescence of labeled single proteins immobilized on gold nanoparticles

Summary. We report on a new method to measure the redox activity of oxido-reductases as a function of time at the single molecule level under high amplicifation and with increased sensitivity. The enzymes are fluorescently labeled so that the fluorescence intensity of the label reflects the redox state of the enzyme’s active site. Amplification is realized by immobilization of enzyme molecules on gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). The method is illustrated by using a labeled 14 kDa large copper protein (i.e., azurin (Az) from Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and immobilizing it on gold AuNPs of varying size (1.4-80 nm). The Zn substituted variant is used as a control. Intensity and life time variations are analyzed quantitatively by taking into account the influence of the AuNP on the fluorophore excitation rate and quantum yield. Attachment of fluorescently labeled CuAz to a AuNP may lead to a tenfold enhancement of the sensitivity for detecting a redox change of the protein. These findings open new ways to study hitherto unexplored mechanistic details of oxido-reductases. They are also of relevance for the design of biosensors and devices for electronic data storage. non-luminescent. ) In the present study the redox state of azurin was monitored through fluorescence detection. Attachment of the protein to an 1.4 nm nanoparticle resulted in an enhanced S/N ratio. This shows that the application of nanoparticles can be used for single-molecule redox-state sensing and may offer a viable route to optically detected single-protein electrochemistry 39-47 .
Effect of macrophage depletion on asthmatic responses in a cockroach allergen induced murine model

Asthma is a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) which affects 1 in every 12 Americans. Symptoms common to asthmatics include dyspnea, increased mucous production and airway hyperresponsiveness. While research over the past few decades has mostly established the immunological basis behind asthma, there have not been radical changes in the treatment modalities. It is believed that in many COPDs, alveolar macrophages play a critical role in disease progression. While evolutionarily, alveolar macrophages played a significant part in protecting the individual from harmful allergens, in asthma there may be an inappropriate activation of the alveolar macrophages to proteases such as cockroach allergen (CRA). Studies show that children living in inner cities with cockroach infestation are more likely to develop asthma than those that reside in rural areas with less exposure to cockroach allergens. In exposed individuals, when the alveolar macrophages come in contact with CRA, an immune cascade is initiated which sensitizes the child. Subsequent exposure to such an antigen will induce asthma like symptoms. One possible way of reducing such a response is to reduce the number of
COMMON DETERMINANTS OF SINGLE CHANNEL CONDUCTANCE WITHIN THE LARGE CYTOPLASMIC LOOP OF 5-HT 3 AND α 4 β 2 NICOTINIC ACETYLCHOLINE RECEPTORS

Homomeric 5-hydroxytryptamine type-3A receptors (5-HT 3A Rs) have a single channel conductance ( γ ) below the resolution of single channel recording (966 ± 75 fS, estimated by variance analysis). Heteromeric 5-HT 3A/B and nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs), by contrast, have pS-range γ values. In the present study single channel recording reveals that replacement of cytoplasmic MA-helix arginine 432 (-4’), 436 (0’) and 440 (4’) residues by 5-HT 3B (-4’Q, 0’D and 4’A) residues increases γ to 36.5 ± 1.0 pS. The 0’ residue makes the most substantial contribution to γ of the 5-HT 3A R. Replacement of 0’R by aspartate, glutamate ( α 7 nAChR subunit MA 0’) or glutamine The γ values were determined from the amplitudes of single channels in recordings from outside-out patches activated by 5-HT (10 μ M), except for those marked † for which γ was estimated by variance analysis of 5-HT (10 μ M)-activated currents recorded from either whole-cells or outside-out patches. Variance analysis was used to determine γ when resolvable channels were not observed in outside-out patch recordings. # Includes values reported previously (7). Statistical significance was determined by ANOVA with post hoc Tukey’s test, * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001, comparisons were made between WT 5-HT 3 , 5-HT 3 (QDA), and WT α 4 β 2 constructs and others within the same group.
Spectral Theory of Operators on Manifolds

Differential operators that are defined on a differentiable manifold can be used to study various properties of manifolds. The spectrum and eigenfunctions play a very signifi-cant role in this process. The objective of this chapter is to develop the heat equation method and to describe how it can be used to prove the Hodge Theorem. The Minakshi-sundaram-Pleijel parametrix and asymptotic expansion are then derived. The heat equa- tion asymptotics can be used to give a development of the Gauss-Bonnet theorem for two-dimensional manifolds.
Chapter Ⅴ Antisense oligonucleotides that mimic a pseudoknot are highly efficient in stimulating –1 ribosomal frameshifting

Programmed –1 ribosomal frameshifting (–1 PRF) is stimulated by RNA structures like pseudoknots or hairpins. Previously, it was shown that antisense oligonucleotides (ONs) annealing downstream of the slippery sequence and mimicking the stem of a hairpin are capable of inducing efficient PRF. Pseudoknots generally induce higher levels of frameshifting as compared to hairpin structures partly due to the formation of triple interactions between bases in loop 2 (L2) and stem 1 (S1). Based on our knowledge of the Simian Retrovirus type 1 (SRV-1) gag-pro frameshifting pseudoknot, we here designed ONs that after binding to mRNA would mimic pseudoknots. Our data demonstrate that pseudoknot-forming ONs do induce more frameshifting than duplex-forming ONs. Depending on the length of S1, this enhancement was affected by the identity of bases in L2. This finding was corroborated by testing the corresponding in cis pseudoknots, i.e. the frameshift-inducing ability of pseudoknots with longer S1 are less affected by the identity of L2 in a length dependent manner. The greater flexibility of using small ONs to study –1 PRF allows the use of non-natural modifications. For instance it was found that 2’ACE protected ONs carrying a bulky bis(2-hydroxyethoxy) methyl orthoester group at their 2’ hydroxyls are fully capable of inducing frameshifting, implying functional extensions of this type of modification in gene regulation by ONs. Our findings are discussed in relation to natural frameshifter pseudoknots and other antisense induced frameshifting studies.
DDB1 and Cul4A Are Required for Human Immunodeﬁciency Virus Type 1 Vpr-Induced G 2 Arrest (cid:1)

Vpr-mediated induction of G 2 cell cycle arrest has been postulated to be important for human immunode- ﬁciency virus type 1 (HIV-1) replication, but the precise role of Vpr in this cell cycle arrest is unclear. In the present study, we have shown that HIV-1 Vpr interacts with damaged DNA binding protein 1 (DDB1) but not its partner DDB2. The interaction of Vpr with DDB1 was inhibited when DCAF1 (VprBP) expression was reduced by short interfering RNA (siRNA) treatment. The Vpr mutant (Q65R) that was defective for DCAF1 interaction also had a defect in DDB1 binding. However, Vpr binding to DDB1 was not sufﬁcient to induce G 2 arrest. A reduction in DDB1 or DDB2 expression in the absence of Vpr also did not induce G 2 arrest. On the other hand, Vpr-induced G 2 arrest was impaired when the intracellular level of DDB1 or Cullin 4A was reduced by siRNA treatment. Furthermore, Vpr-induced G 2 arrest was largely abolished by a proteasome inhibitor. These data suggest that Vpr assembles with DDB1 through interaction with DCAF1 to form an E3 ubiquitin ligase that targets cellular substrates for proteasome-mediated degradation and G 2 arrest. Vpr is a virion-associated
Arp2/3 complex is critical for lamellipodia and organization of cell-matrix adhesion but dispensable for fibroblast chemotaxis

Lamellipodia are sheet-like, leading edge protrusions in firmly adherent cells that contain Arp2/3-generated dendritic actin networks. Although lamellipodia are widely believed to be critical for directional cell motility, this notion has not been rigorously tested. Using fibroblasts derived from Ink4a/Arf-deficient mice, we generated a stable line depleted of Arp2/3 complex that lacks lamellipodia. This line shows defective random cell motility and relies on a filopodia-based protrusion system. Utilizing a microfluidic gradient generation system, we tested the role of Arp2/3 complex and lamellipodia in directional cell migration. Surprisingly, Arp2/3-depleted cells respond normally to shallow gradients of PDGF indicating that lamellipodia are not required for fibroblast chemotaxis. Conversely, these cells cannot respond to a surface-bound gradient of extracellular matrix (haptotaxis). Consistent with this finding, cells depleted of Arp2/3 fail to globally align focal adhesions suggesting that one principle function of lamellipodia is to organize cell-matrix adhesions in a spatially coherent manner.