Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mast cells and histamine are triggering the NF-κB-mediated reactions of adult and aged perilymphatic mesenteric tissues to acute inflammation

This study aimed to establish mechanistic links between the aging-associated changes in the functional status of mast cells and the altered responses of mesenteric tissue and mesenteric lymphatic vessels (MLVs) to acute inflammation. We used an in vivo model of acute peritoneal inflammation induced by lipopolysaccharide treatment of adult (9-month) and aged (24-month) F-344 rats. We analyzed contractility of isolated MLVs, mast cell activation, activation of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) without and with stabilization of mast cells by cromolyn or blockade of all types of histamine receptors and production of 27 major pro-inflammatory cytokines in adult and aged perilymphatic mesenteric tissues and blood. We found that the reactivity of aged contracting lymphatic vessels to LPS-induced acute inflammation was abolished and that activated mast cells trigger NF-κB signaling in the mesentery through release of histamine. The aging-associated basal activation of mesenteric mast cells limits acute inflammatory NF-κB activation in aged mesentery. We conclude that proper functioning of the mast cell/histamine/NF-κB axis is necessary for reactions of the lymphatic vessels to acute inflammatory stimuli as well as for interaction and trafficking of immune cells near and within the collecting lymphatics.
Geometry of Quantum States: Index

a ) p. 131 The discussion between eqs. (5.14) and (5.15) is incorrect (dA should be made as large as possible! ). b ) p. 256 In the figure, the numbers 6) and 7) occur twice. c ) p. 292 At the end of section 12.5, it should be the space of isospectral 0Hermitian matrices. d ) p. 306 A ”Tr” is missing in eq. (13.43). e ) p. 327, Eq. (14.64b) is 〈Trρ〉B = N(14N+10) (5N+1)(N+3) should be 〈Trρ〉B = 8N+7 (N+2)(N+4)
New Evidence on the Effect of Human Capital on Economic Growth of Pakistan

The importance of human capital in the wealth of developed countries has increased significantly as it has transitioned from being a mere cost component to becoming the primary factor contributing to economic growth and societal development. This study attempts to assess Pakistan's human capital-led growth between 1973 and 2021. This has been accomplished by using a human capital index based on years of education, returns to education, and economic growth to ascertain the link in the long run and short run, the Auto Regressive Distributive Lagged (ARDL) co-integration methodology and error correction methods are utilized in this context. The model's stability is examined using CUSUMSQ and CUSUM. The results demonstrated that the human capital index has a significant and positive effect on economic growth over the long term, but it has a detrimental impact in the short term. Capital accumulation, population growth, and foreign direct investment have positive, long-term effects on GDP per capita. As human capital is an important factor in economic development. Therefore government should invest more in promoting more human capital.
Bioactive components, antibacterial and antiradical properties of home-made apple and grape vinegar

: The present study aimed to investigate major volatile compounds, organic acid, phenolic and mineral contents, and antiradical and antimicrobial properties of home-made apple/grape vinegar. Grape vinegar showed higher total acidity, organic acid content, total phenolic content (TPC), antiradical activity and lower minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values compared to apple vinegar. While acetic and tartaric acids were the most abundant organic acids in grape vinegar, acetic and succinic acids were the most abundant organic acids in apple vinegar. The most abundant phenolic compound was gallic acid in both grape and apple vinegar. A total of 18 and 9 volatile compounds were determined in grape vinegar samples and apple vinegar samples, respectively. The most abundant volatile compounds were acetic acid and acetoin in grape vinegar, acetic acid, ethyl acetate and 2,4,5-trimethyl-1,3-dioxolane in apple vinegar. K, Ca and Na were common minerals in both vinegar and more in the grape vinegar compared to apple vinegar. Although MIC value for grape vinegar was at 6.25% with minimum bactericidal concentration (MBC) values ranged from 6.25% to 12.50%, MIC value for apple vinegar was at 12.50% with MBC values ranged from 12.50% to 25.00% for all test bacteria. The antiradical and antibacterial activities of the vinegar samples were correlated with their TPC and organic acid contents.
Transcript assembly and abundance estimation with high-throughput RNA sequencing

Title of dissertation: TRANSCRIPT ASSEMBLY AND ABUNDANCE ESTIMATION WITH HIGH-THROUGHPUT RNA SEQUENCING Bruce C. Trapnell, Jr., Doctor of Philosophy, 2010 Dissertation directed by: Professor Steven Salzberg Department of Computer Science We present algorithms and statistical methods for the reconstruction and abundance estimation of transcript sequences from high throughput RNA sequencing (“RNA-Seq”). We evaluate these approaches through large-scale experiments of a well studied model of muscle development. We begin with an overview of sequencing assays and outline why the short read alignment problem is fundamental to the analysis of these assays. We then describe two approaches to the contiguous alignment problem, one of which uses massively parallel graphics hardware to accelerate alignment, and one of which exploits an indexing scheme based on the Burrows-Wheeler transform. We then turn to the spliced alignment problem, which is fundamental to RNA-Seq, and present an algorithm, TopHat. TopHat is the first algorithm that can align the reads from an entire RNA-Seq experiment to a large genome without the aid of reference gene models. In the second part of the thesis, we present the first comparative RNA-Seq assembly algorithm, Cufflinks, which is adapted from a constructive proof of Dilworth’s Theorem, a classic result in combinatorics. We evaluate Cufflinks by assembling the transcriptome from a time course RNA-Seq experiment of developing skeletal muscle cells. The assembly contains 13,689 known transcripts and 3,724 novel ones. Of the novel transcripts, 62% were strongly supported by earlier sequencing experiments or by homologous transcripts in other organisms. We further validated interesting genes with isoform-specific RT-PCR. We then present a statistical model for RNA-Seq included in Cufflinks and with which we estimate abundances of transcripts from RNA-seq data. Simulation studies demonstrate that the model is highly accurate. We apply this model to the muscle data, and track the abundances of individual isoforms over development. Finally, we present significance tests for changes in relative and absolute abundances between time points, which we employ to uncover differential expression and differential regulation. By testing for relative abundance changes within and between transcripts sharing a transcription start site, we find significant shifts in the rates of alternative splicing and promoter preference in hundreds of genes, including those believed to regulate muscle development. TRANSCRIPT ASSEMBLY AND ABUNDANCE ESTIMATION WITH HIGH-THROUGHPUT RNA SEQUENCING
Effect of Thin Overlapping Reconstruction on the Attenuation of Small (≤ 3 cm) Renal Cysts in the Nephrographic Phase of MDCT: a Phantom Study

Objective To evaluate the effect of thin overlapping reconstruction on the attenuation of small (≤ 3 cm) renal cysts in the nephrographic phase of multidetector CT (MDCT). Materials and Methods We scanned a phantom kidney containing spheres of various sizes (10, 20, and 30 mm) using both 4- and 16-channel MDCT scanners, and reconstructed images with various slice thickness (T, mm) and intervals (I, mm). The attenuation increase (AI) was measured for each sphere in 240-HU diluted solution of contrast material and compared with the attenuation in 35-HU solution. Results On the 4-channel MDCT, thin overlapping reconstruction (T/I = 3/1, compared with 5/5) lowered the AI as much as 17 HU in the 10 mm-sphere and 6 HU in the 20 mm-sphere (p < 0.05). Thin slicing alone was also effective; however overlapping alone was not. On the 16-channel MDCT, AI in the 10 mm-sphere was significantly lower than on the 4-channel MDCT with T/I = 5/5 (p < 0.05), however thinner slicing or overlapping did not affect the attenuation significantly in all of the spheres. Conclusion The effect of thin overlapping reconstruction on minimizing falsely elevated attenuation in the nephrographic phase was significant only in cysts ≤ 20 mm on the 4-channel MDCT.
Physiological and Transcriptional Responses of Saccharomyces cerevisiae to Zinc Limitation in Chemostat Cultures †

Published Ahead of Print 12 October 2007. 10.1128/AEM.01445-07. 2007, 73(23):7680. DOI: Appl. Environ. Microbiol. Daran and Pascale Daran-Lapujade T. Reinders, Graeme M. Walker, Jack T. Pronk, Jean-Marc Hulster, Michael C. Walsh, Theo A. Knijnenburg, Marcel J. Raffaele De Nicola, Lucie A. Hazelwood, Erik A. F. De to Zinc Limitation in Chemostat Cultures Saccharomyces cerevisiae Responses of Physiological and Transcriptional
Modeling of the multilevel conduction characteristics and fatigue profile of Ag/La1/3Ca2/3MnO3/Pt structures using a compact memristive approach

The hysteretic conduction characteristics and fatigue profile of La1/3Ca2/3MnO3 (LCMO)-based memristive devices were investigated. The oxide films were grown by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) and sandwiched between Ag and Pt electrodes. The devices exhibit bipolar resistive switching (RS) effect with well-defined intermediate conduction states that arise from partial SET and RESET events. The current-voltage curves are modeled and simulated using a compact memristive approach. Two equations are considered: one for the electron transport based on the double-diode equation and the other for the memory state of the device driven by the play operator with logistic ridge functions. An expression that accounts for the remnant resistance of the device is obtained after simplifying the model equations in the low-voltage limit. The role played by the power dissipation in the LCMO reset dynamics as well as the asymmetrical reduction of the resistance window caused by long trains of switching pulses are discussed.
Focusing ultrasound through bones: Past, current, and future transcostal and transskull strategies

Bones reflect, refract, distort, and absorb ultrasonic waves. Most medical application of ultrasound avoid bony structures. Nevertheless, for liver and brain therapy, the rib cage and the skull are in the ultrasonic path. We will present non-invasive methods to detect the presence of the ribs and shape the beam in order to sonicate in between the ribs. It is thus possible to non-invasively aim a target shadowed by the rib cage while avoiding sonication through the bones. Such approaches take advantage of the ultrasonic imaging capabilities of multi-element arrays. Nevertheless, non-invasive brain therapy requires to sonicate through the skull. CT and MR- based techniques have been developed to estimate the phase shifts induced by the skull. Dedicated multi-element arrays have been developed to generate the appropriate phase-corrected signals. The number of elements of the arrays has progressively increased in order to shape at best the corrected beam (64 elements in 2000, 300 in 2003, and 1024 in 2012): c.
Leitlinien: Infarktbedingter kardiogener Schock - Medikamentöse Therapie

Pharmacologic Management of Myocardial Infarction Complicated by Cardiogenic Shock. The primary therapeutic goal in the treatment of myocardial infarction complicated by cardiogenic shock is the revascularization of the infarct related artery as soon as possible, primarily with percutaneous coronary intervention and stent. The initial supportive therapy
Pelaburan Firma dan Dasar Monetari: Analisis Panel ke atas Firma Patuh Syariah di Malaysia (Firm's Investment and Monetary Policy: Panel Analysis of Shariah Compliant Firms in Malaysia)

This paper examines the effects of monetary policy on firm balance sheet channel by focusing on syariah compliant firm’s investment spending listed in Bursa Malaysia from year 2003 until 2011. The dynamic panel data method namely Generalized Method of Moments (GMM) is used in investigating two monetary policy channels namely interest rates and broad credit channel using a dynamic neoclassical investment model. The sample of the firms has been split into small and large firm to identify the heteregoneity of monetary policy effects on invetsment spending across firm size. The empirical results reveal that both monetary policy channels, namely interest rates and broad credit channel are relevant for the case of Malaysia. This findings indicate that investment spending of syariah compliant firms do respond to monetary policy changes. Moreover, the investments of small firms are more dependent on internal cash flow than that of large firms. Therefore, the policy maker should take into account the differences in firms characteristics in implementing monetary policy to ensure that their policy is effective.
1.4: Glycolipids

Glycolipids are components of cellular membranes comprised of a hydrophobic lipid tail and one or more hydrophilic sugar groups linked by a glycosidic bond. Generally, glycolipids are found on the outer leaflet of cellular membranes where it plays not only a structural role to maintain membrane stability but also facilitates cell-cell communication acting as receptors, anchors for proteins and regulators of signal transduction [1]. Glycolipids are found widely distributed throughout all cells and primarily localized, but not exclusively, to the plasma membrane.
H ∞ Suboptimal controller design for adaptive optic systems

In this paper, an alternative approach to conventional H ∞ control is proposed for adaptive optic (AO) systems. In order to account for the dynamics of the deformable mirror (DM), the Kirchhoff plate equation is considered. Phase wavefront aberrations, which are the effect of atmospheric turbulence, are modelled using the orthogonal set of Zernike polynomials. The first part of this study concerns the derivation of mathematical models for the DM and the atmospheric turbulence. The AO systems used for disturbance rejection concentrate on a specific frequency band, as the disturbance occurs in that region. However, the conventional weighted H ∞ controller is not applicable due to its order. The proposed controller handles this problem by using frequency weighted balanced model reduction. The efficiency of the proposed approach is examined on Zernike’s tip and tilt, focus, astigmatism, coma, trefoil, spherical, secondary astigmatism and quadrafoil modes.
Hodgkin Lymphoma in Children: A Review

Hodgkin Lymphoma (HL) with an incidence of 12.1 per million in individuals under 20 years of age, comprises 8.8% of all cancers in this age group. Since its clinical description in 1832, the disease has been stratified and classified into distinct subgroups. Various risk factors based on pathological and prognostic factors are known. While the etiology of the disease remains an enigma, various factors including Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), human herpes virus 6 (HHV6), cytomegalovirus (CMV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), and more recently, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) have been implicated in the genesis of this disorder. Of these, the possible role of EBV has been best explored. The expression and upregulation of CD30, its intra and extracellular effect, as well as those of CD25 and their association with symptoms typical of HD has been probed. While no universally curative therapy has been identified, starting with radiation, various agents and combinations to successfully treat this disease have been developed. More recently, treatment combinations, and duration of therapy, have been tailored to match those of risk stratification, extent of the disease and prognostic factors. Understanding the biology and pathophysiology of HL, promises better and more specific treatments in the future.
Testing the psychometric properties of a chinese version of Dementia Management strategies scale

: Caregiving stress and burden are universal phenomena among family caregivers of people with dementia. Family caregivers who adopted adaptive management strategies in dementia care could alleviate their own distress and the progression of neuropsychiatric symptoms in people with dementia. An understanding about the management strategies used by these caregivers in caring for their relatives with dementia would be crucial to family services in dementia care. This study aimed to validate a Chinese version of Dementia Management Strategies Scale (DMSS) in family caregivers of Hong Kong Chinese people with dementia. Face and content validity, semantic equivalence, and test–retest reliability of the translated Chinese version of 34-item DMSS were examined. A random sample of 211 family caregivers and their relatives with dementia were then recruited to identify the factor structure of the Chinese version by exploratory factor analysis followed by varimax rotation and assess its internal consistency. Reproductibility and responsiveness of the scale to changes in neuropsychiatric symptoms were also examined over a 6-month interval. Results indicated that the Chinese version of DMSS indicated very satisfactory content validity, semantic equivalence with the original English version, and test–retest reliability. Factor analysis showed that 32 items of the Chinese version had substantial loadings on one of the three identified factors (“Criticism toward older relative”, “Showing encouragement”, and “Active management strategies”), explaining 72.4% of the total variance. The three-factor Chinese version also indicated good internal consistency of its three subscales (Cronbach’s α= 0.86–0.90) and satisfactory reproducibility over 6 months (intraclass correlation coefficients = 0.85–0.89). Furthermore, the Chinese version demonstrated moderate effect sizes for detecting changes in symptom severity of dementia (Cohen’s d = 0.50–0.60). This study provides evidence on the sound psychometric properties of the Chinese version of DMSS to measure the levels of management strategies in family caregivers of people with dementia.
Model life tables for the larger old world monkeys

Mortality statistics for 25 populations of the larger Old World monkeys (members of the subfamily Cercopithecinae) were evaluated with a competing hazard model of mortality. The best eight of these life tables were combined to generate a standard model life table representative of the mortality patterns of these primates. Two applications of the standard model to smooth, graduate, and compare life tables based on limited and defective data are presented.
CFD studies on heat transfer analysis of straight and backward fin with cylindrical channel

CFD Analysis are conducted to assess turbulent forced convection heat transfer and behaviors for air flow through a constant heat flux channel fitted with different shaped fins. The fin cross-sections used in the present study are straight and backward shapes. Two rib arrangements, namely, in-line and staggered arrays, are introduced. Measurements are carried out for a cylindrical with single fin height 6 mm and 8 mm, fin pitch is 40 mm. The analysis results show a significant effect of the presence of the fins on the heat transfer rate and friction loss over the smooth wall channel. The in-line fin arrangement provides higher heat transfer enhancement. Our analysis carried out with CFD fluent technique. Here analysis set-up carried out with the cylinder, straight and backward fin and heating coil. The use of rib turbulators completely results in the change of the flow field and hence the variation of the local convective heat transfers. The presence of a transverse fin assists to induce the main stream separation first, and to generate a recirculation zone ahead of it and then reattachment over the fin itself. If several fins exist and their pitch is sufficiently larger than the fin height, these flow patterns will reoccur along the channel wall. Index Terms – Finite Volume Method (FVM),CFD,ANSYS ________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Effect of Peroxisome Proliferator–Activated Receptor-&agr; and -&ggr; Activators on Vascular Remodeling in Endothelin-Dependent Hypertension

Objective—Peroxisome proliferator–activated receptors (PPARs) may modulate in vitro the vascular production of vasoactive peptides such as endothelin-1 (ET-1). Thus, we investigated in vivo the interaction between PPARs and ET-1 in deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA)–salt rats that overexpress vascular ET-1. Methods and Results—Unilaterally nephrectomized 16-week-old Sprague-Dawley rats (Uni-Nx) were divided into 4 groups (n=6 each): control group, DOCA-salt group, DOCA-salt+PPAR-&ggr; activator (rosiglitazone, 5 mg · kg−1 · d−1), or DOCA-salt+PPAR-&agr; activator (fenofibrate, 100 mg · kg−1 · d−1). Systolic blood pressure was significantly increased in the DOCA-salt group (240±11 vs 121±2 mm Hg in Uni-Nx, P <0.01). Progression of hypertension was partially prevented by coadministration of rosiglitazone (172±3 mm Hg vs DOCA-salt, P <0.05) but not by fenofibrate. Both PPAR activators abrogated the increase in prepro-ET-1 mRNA content in the mesenteric vasculature of DOCA-salt rats. The media-to-lumen ratio was increased in DOCA-salt rats (10.3±0.9% vs 4.9±0.5% in Uni-Nx rats, P <0.01). Rosiglitazone and fenofibrate prevented the hypertrophic remodeling observed in DOCA-salt rats without affecting vascular stiffness. Rosiglitazone but not fenofibrate prevented endothelial dysfunction in pressurized mesenteric arteries. Finally, both rosiglitazone and fenofibrate prevented the vascular increase in superoxide anion production induced in DOCA-salt animals. Conclusions—PPAR-&agr; and -&ggr; activators were able to modulate endogenous production of ET-1 and had beneficial vascular effects in endothelin-dependent hypertension.
Data Mining in Manufacturing: A Review

The paper reviews applications of data mining in manufacturing engineering, in particular production processes, operations, fault detection, maintenance, decision support, and product quality improvement. Customer relationship management, information integration aspects, and standardization are also briefly discussed. This review is focused on demonstrating the relevancy of data mining to manufacturing industry, rather than discussing the data mining domain in general. The volume of general data mining literature makes it difficult to gain a precise view of a target area such as manufacturing engineering, which has its own particular needs and requirements for mining applications. This review reveals progressive applications in addition to existing gaps and less considered areas such as manufacturing planning and shop floor control.
Asymptotic of Sparse Support Recovery for Positive Measures

We study sparse spikes deconvolution over the space of Radon measures when the input measure is a finite sum of positive Dirac masses using the BLASSO convex program. We focus on the recovery properties of the support and the amplitudes of the initial measure in the presence of noise when the minimum separation distance t of the input measure (the minimum distance between two spikes) tends to zero. We show that when ||ω||2/λ, ||ω||2/t2N-1 and λ/t2N-1 are small enough (where λ is the regularization parameter, ω the noise and N the number of spikes), which corresponds roughly to a sufficient signal-to-noise ratio and a noise level and a regularization parameter small enough with respect to the minimum separation distance, there exists a unique solution to the BLASSO program with exactly the same number of spikes as the original measure. We provide an upper bound on the error with respect to the initial measure. As a by-product, we show that the amplitudes and positions of the spikes of the solution both converge towards those of the input measure when λ and ω drop to zero faster than t2N-1.