cometadata/datacite-rtg-text-other-reclassification-records huggingface dataset:
Comprehensive analysis of LncRNAs expression profiles in an in vitro model of steatosis treated with Exendin-4
Creators: name: Errafii, Khaoula
name: Al-Akl, Neyla S.
name: Khalifa, Olfa
name: Arredouani, Abdelilah
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: Medical biochemistry and metabolomics
Biochemistry and cell biology

description: Background and aims The hallmark of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the excessive hepatic lipid accumulation. Currently, no pharmacotherapy exists for NAFLD. However, the glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists have recently emerged as potential therapeutics. Here, we sought to identify the long non-coding RNAs (LncRNAs) associated with the steatosis improvement induced by the GLP-1R agonist Exendin-4 (Ex-4) in vitro. Methods Steatosis was induced in HepG2 cells with oleic acid. The transcriptomic profiling was performed using total RNA extracted from untreated, steatotic, and Ex-4-treated steatotic cells. We validated a subset of differentially expressed LncRNAs with qRT-PCR and identified the most significantly enriched cellular functions associated with the relevant LncRNAs. Results We confirm that Ex-4 improves steatosis in HepG2 cells. We found 379 and 180 differentially expressed LncRNAs between untreated and steatotic cells and between steatotic and Ex-4-treated steatotic cells, respectively. Interestingly, 22 upregulated LncRNAs in steatotic cells became downregulated with Ex-4 exposure, while 50 downregulated LncRNAs in steatotic cells became upregulated in the presence of Ex-4. Although some LncRNAs, such as MALAT1, H19, and NEAT1, were previously associated with NAFLD, the association of others with steatosis and the positive effect of Ex-4 is being reported for the first time. Functional enrichment analysis identified many critical pathways, including fatty acid and pyruvate metabolism, and insulin, PPAR, Wnt, TGF-β, mTOR, VEGF, NOD-like, and Toll-like receptors signaling pathways. Conclusion Our results suggest that LncRNAs may play essential roles in the mechanisms underlying steatosis improvement in response to GLP-1R agonists and warrant further functional studies.Other Information Published in: Journal of Translational Medicine
 License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12967-021-02885-4
Unleashing the immune response to NY-ESO-1 cancer testis antigen as a potential target for cancer immunotherapy
Creators: name: Raza, Afsheen
name: Merhi, Maysaloun
name: Inchakalody, Varghese Philipose
name: Krishnankutty, Roopesh
name: Relecom, Allan
name: Uddin, Shahab
name: Dermime, Said
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: Medical biochemistry and metabolomics
Biochemistry and cell biology

description: Introduction Cancer Immunotherapy has recently emerged as a promising and effective modality to treat different malignancies. Antigenic profiling of cancer tissues and determination of any pre-existing immune responses to cancer antigens may help predict responses to immune intervention in cancer. NY-ESO-1, a cancer testis antigen is the most immunogenic antigen to date. The promise of NY-ESO-1 as a candidate for specific immune recognition of cancer comes from its restricted expression in normal adult tissue but frequent occurrence in multiple tumors including melanoma and carcinomas of lung, esophageal, liver, gastric, prostrate, ovarian, and bladder. Main body This review summarizes current knowledge of NY-ESO-1 as efficient biomarker and target of immunotherapy. It also addresses limitations and challenges preventing a robust immune response to NY-ESO-1 expressing cancers, and describes pre-clinical and clinical observations relevant to NY-ESO-1 immunity, holding potential therapeutic relevance for cancer treatment. Conclusion NY-ESO-1 induces strong immune responses in cancer patients but has limited objective clinical responses to NY-ESO-1 expressing tumors due to effect of competitive negative signaling from immune-checkpoints and immune-suppressive tumor microenvironment. We propose that combination therapy to increase the efficacy of NY-ESO-1 specific immunotherapeutic interventions should be explored to unleash the immune response against NY-ESO-1 expressing tumors.Other Information Published in: Journal of Translational Medicine
 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12967-020-02306-y
Blockade of TGF-β signaling to enhance the antitumor response is accompanied by dysregulation of the functional activity of CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ and CD4+CD25−Foxp3+ T cells
Creators: name: Polanczyk, Magdalena J.
name: Walker, Edwin
name: Haley, Daniel
name: Guerrouahen, Bella S.
name: Akporiaye, Emmanuel T.
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: Medical biochemistry and metabolomics
Biochemistry and cell biology

description: The pleiotropic cytokine, transforming growth factor (TGF)-β, and CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) play a critical role in actively suppressing antitumor immune responses. Evidence shows that TGF-β produced by tumor cells promotes tolerance via expansion of Tregs. Our group previously demonstrated that blockade of TGF-β signaling with a small molecule TGF-β receptor I antagonist (SM16) inhibited primary and metastatic tumor growth in a T cell dependent fashion. In the current study, we evaluated the effect of SM16 on Treg generation and function. Using BALB/c, FoxP3eGFP and Rag−/− mice, we performed FACS analysis to determine if SM16 blocked de novo TGF-β-induced Treg generation in vitro and in vivo. CD4+ T cells from lymph node and spleen were isolated from control mice or mice maintained on SM16 diet, and flow cytometry analysis was used to detect the frequency of CD4+CD25−FoxP3+ and CD4+CD25+FoxP3+ T cells. In vitro suppression assays were used to determine the ability to suppress naive T cell proliferation in vitro of both CD4+CD25+FoxP3+ and CD4+CD25−FoxP3+ T cell sub-populations. We then examined whether SM16 diet exerted an inhibitory effect on primary tumor growth and correlated with changes in FoxP3+expression. ELISA analysis was used to measure IFN-γ levels after 72 h co-culture of CD4+CD25+ T cells from tumor-bearing mice on control or SM16 diet with CD4+CD25− T cells from naive donors. SM16 abrogates TGF-β-induced Treg generation in vitro but does not prevent global homeostatic expansion of CD4+ T cell sub-populations in vivo. Instead, SM16 treatment causes expansion of a population of CD4+CD25−Foxp3+ Treg-like cells without significantly altering the overall frequency of Treg in lymphoreplete naive and tumor-bearing mice. Importantly, both the CD4+CD25−Foxp3+ T cells and the CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ Tregs in mice receiving SM16 diet exhibited diminished ability to suppress naive T cell proliferation in vitro compared to Treg from mice on control diet. These findings suggest that blockade of TGF-β signaling is a potentially useful strategy for blunting Treg function to enhance the anti-tumor response. Our data further suggest that the overall dampening of Treg function may involve the expansion of a quiescent Treg precursor population, which is CD4+CD25−Foxp3+.Other Information Published in: Journal of Translational Medicine
 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12967-019-1967-3
Upconversion for Silicon Solar Cells: Material and System Characterization
Creators: name: Löper, P.
name: Goldschmidt, J.C.
name: Fischer, S.
name: Peters, M.
name: Meijerink, A.
name: Biner, D.
name: Krämer, K.
name: Schultz-Wittmann, O.
name: Glunz, S.W.
name: Luther, J.
Publisher: name: WIP-Munich
Year: 2008
Subjects: Advanced Photovoltaics
New Types of Cells and Modules

description: 23rd European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition, 1-5 September 2008, Valencia, Spain; 173-180
description: Frequency upconversion of sub-bandgap photons is one approach to push the efficiency limit of solar cells with one single bandgap. A highly efficient upconversion system is Erbium doped NaYF4. In this paper we investigate NaYF4 with 10%, 20% and 30% Erbium content. Time-resolved photoluminescence is applied to gain insight into the excited state dynamics of the upconverter. The dependence of upconversion luminescence on excitation intensity is analysed. We develop an analytical model to analyse the effect of loss mechanisms on the intensity dependence. An upconversion solar cell system is built and characterised. The system exhibits a quantum efficiency of 0.01% at 1523nm wavelength at an illumination with 104 Wm-2s-1. We model the enhancement of upconversion luminescence by resonant plasmon amplification and show that plasmons should be tuned to the absorption transitions.
PRAME promotes epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in triple negative breast cancer
Creators: name: Al-Khadairi, Ghaneya
name: Naik, Adviti
name: Thomas, Remy
name: Al-Sulaiti, Boshra
name: Rizly, Shaheen
name: Decock, Julie
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: Medical biochemistry and metabolomics
Biochemistry and cell biology

description: The triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) paradox marks a major challenge in the treatment-decision making process. TNBC patients generally respond better to neoadjuvant chemotherapy compared to other breast cancer patients; however, they have a substantial higher risk of disease recurrence. We evaluated the expression of the tumor-associated antigen PReferentially Antigen expressed in MElanoma (PRAME) as a prognostic biomarker in breast cancer and explored its role in cell migration and invasion, key hallmarks of progressive and metastatic disease. TCGA and GTeX datasets were interrogated to assess the expression of PRAME in relation to overall and disease-free survival. The role of PRAME in cell migration and invasion was investigated using gain- and loss-of-function TNBC cell line models. We show that PRAME promotes migration and invasion of TNBC cells through changes in expression of E-cadherin, N-cadherin, vimentin and ZEB1, core markers of an epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition. Mechanistic analysis of PRAME-overexpressing cells showed an upregulation of 11 genes (SNAI1, TCF4, TWIST1, FOXC2, IL1RN, MMP2, SOX10, WNT11, MMP3, PDGFRB, and JAG1) and downregulation of 2 genes (BMP7 and TSPAN13). Gene ontology analyses revealed enrichment of genes that are dysregulated in ovarian and esophageal cancer and are involved in transcription and apoptosis. In line with this, interrogation of TCGA and GTEx data demonstrated an increased PRAME expression in ovarian and esophageal tumor tissues in addition to breast tumors where it is associated with worse survival. Our findings indicate that PRAME plays a tumor-promoting role in triple negative breast cancer by increasing cancer cell motility through EMT-gene reprogramming. Therefore, PRAME could serve as a prognostic biomarker and/or therapeutic target in TNBC.Other Information Published in: Journal of Translational Medicine
 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12967-018-1757-3
High-temperature quantum Hall effect in finite gapped HgTe quantum wells
Creators: name: Khouri, T.
name: Bendias, M.
name: Leubner, P.
name: Brüne, C.
name: Buhmann, H.
name: Molenkamp, L. W.
name: Zeitler, U.
name: Hussey, N. E.
name: Wiedmann, S.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2016
Subjects: subject: Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We report on the observation of the quantum Hall effect at high temperatures in HgTe quantum wells with a finite band gap and a thickness below and above the critical thickness $d_\textnormal{c}$ that separates a conventional semiconductor from a two-dimensional topological insulator. At high carrier concentrations we observe a quantized Hall conductivity up to 60\,K with energy gaps between Landau Levels of the order of 25\,meV, in good agreement with the Landau Level spectrum obtained from $\mathbf{k\cdot p}$-calculations. Using the scaling approach for the plateau-plateau transition at $ν=2\rightarrow 1$, we find the scaling coefficient $κ=0.45 \pm 0.04$ to be consistent with the universality of scaling theory and we do not find signs of increased electron-phonon interaction to alter the scaling even at these elevated temperatures. Comparing the high temperature limit of the quantized Hall resistance in HgTe quantum wells with a finite band gap with room temperature experiment in graphene, we find the energy gaps at the break-down of the quantization to exceed the thermal energy by the same order of magnitude.
Kandler, Karl-Hermann (Hg.): Die Autorität der Heiligen Schrift für Lehre und Verkündigung der Kirche ...
Creators: name: Wenz, Armin
Publisher: name: Lutherische Beiträge
Year: 1970

description: Lutherische Beiträge, Bd. 7 Nr. 4 (2002): Lutherische Beiträge, Band 7, Heft 4
Kinetics of Topological Stone-Wales Defect Formation in Single Walled Carbon
Creators: name: Kabir, Mukul
name: Van Vliet, Krystyn J.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2016
Subjects: subject: Mesoscale and Nanoscale Physics (cond-mat.mes-hall)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: Topological Stone-Wales defect in carbon nanotubes plays a central role in plastic deformation, chemical functionalization, and superstructure formation. Here, we systematically investigate the formation kinetics of such defects within density functional approach coupled with the transition state theory. We find that both the formation and activation energies depend critically on the nanotube chairality, diameter, and defect orientation. The microscopic origin of the observed dependence is explained with curvature induced rehybridization in nanotube. Surprisingly, the kinetic barrier follows an empirical Brønsted-Evans-Polanyi type correlation with the corresponding formation energy, and can be understood in terms of overlap between energy-coordinate parabolas representing the structures with and without the defect. Further, we propose a possible route to substantially decrease the kinetic activation barrier. Such accelerated rates of defect formation are desirable in many novel electronic, mechanical and chemical applications, and also facilitate the formation of three-dimensional nanotube superstructures.
description: 10 pages, Supporting information, The Journal of Physical Chemistry C (2015)
Optical Up-Conversion in Er3+ and Yb3+ Co-Doped Y2O3 Films Prepared by Pulsed Laser Deposition for Enhanced Solar Cell Efficiency
Creators: name: Ladam, C.
name: Mongstad, T.
name: Valset, K.
name: Mokkelbost, T.
name: Kaus, I.
name: Fossdal, A.
name: Fagerberg, R.
Publisher: name: WIP-Munich
Year: 2008
Subjects: Advanced Photovoltaics
New Types of Cells and Modules

description: 23rd European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition, 1-5 September 2008, Valencia, Spain; 181-185
description: Rare-earth ions are known to have excited electronic states that are appropriate for optical up-conversion of near-IR region into the visible region. The up-conversion takes place by double absorption processes and a subsequent relaxation into the ground state. (111) oriented thin films of Y2O3 were prepared on Si substrates by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). The films were made from stoichiometric targets doped with erbium (Er3+) and ytterbium (Yb3+) at levels up to 20%. Films were synthesized with a thickness up to 2.5m. Data from XRD, AFM, and photoluminescence recordings will be presented and discussed. Optical excitation at 980nm gave a visible response in the green part of the spectrum. Spectroscopic information revealed that the emission occurred at approximately 410nm, 550nm and 660nm, depending on doping levels and excitation power. Time resolved and integrating experiments provide further information on the optical relaxation rates and the efficiency of the up-conversion process. Our results indicate that the optimum Er concentration is around 10%. The prospects for utilization of up-conversion layers in solar cell devices will be discussed.
Screening and efficacy of endophytic bacteria for inhibition of Xanthomonas citri subsp. citri causing canker disease of Tup Tim Siam Pomelo
Creators: name: Chaisit Preecha, Napassawan Liamnimitr
Publisher: name: Faculty of Agriculture
Year: 2023
Subjects: endophytic bacteria
control
canker disease
Tup Tim Siam Pomelo

description: Khon Kaen Agriculture Journal, 51, 5, 940-951
Cisplatin based therapy: the role of the mitogen activated protein kinase signaling pathway
Creators: name: Achkar, Iman W.
name: Abdulrahman, Nabeel
name: Al-Sulaiti, Hend
name: Joseph, Jensa Mariam
name: Uddin, Shahab
name: Mraiche, Fatima
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: Medical biochemistry and metabolomics
Biochemistry and cell biology

description: Cisplatin is a widely used chemotherapeutic agent for treatment of various cancers. However, treatment with cisplatin is associated with drug resistance and several adverse side effects such as nephrotoxicity, reduced immunity towards infections and hearing loss. A Combination of cisplatin with other drugs is an approach to overcome drug resistance and reduce toxicity. The combination therapy also results in increased sensitivity of cisplatin towards cancer cells. The mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway in the cell, consisting of extracellular signal regulated kinase, c-Jun N-terminal kinase, p38 kinases, and downstream mediator p90 ribosomal s6 kinase (RSK); is responsible for the regulation of various cellular events including cell survival, cell proliferation, cell cycle progression, cell migration and protein translation. This review article demonstrates the role of MAPK pathway in cisplatin based therapy, illustrates different combination therapy involving cisplatin and also shows the importance of targeting MAPK family, particularly RSK, to achieve increased anticancer effect and overcome drug resistance when combined with cisplatin.Other Information Published in: Journal of Translational Medicine
 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12967-018-1471-1
Phloretin attenuates STAT-3 activity and overcomes sorafenib resistance targeting SHP-1–mediated inhibition of STAT3 and Akt/VEGFR2 pathway in hepatocellular carcinoma
Creators: name: Saraswati, Sarita
name: Alhaider, Abdulqader
name: Abdelgadir, Abdelgalil Mohamed
name: Tanwer, Pooja
name: Korashy, Hesham M.
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: Biochemistry and cell biology
Medicinal and biomolecular chemistry

description: Background Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary liver malignancy. Phloretin (PH) possesses anticancer, antitumor, and hepatoprotective effects, however, the effects and potential mechanisms of phloretin remain elusive. Methods Five HCC cells were tested in vitro for sensitivity to PH, Sorafenib (Sor) or both and the apoptosis, signal transduction and phosphatase activity were analyzed. To validate the role of SHP-1, we used PTP inhibitor III and SHP-1 siRNA. Further, we used purified SHP-1 proteins or HCC cells expressing deletion N-SH2 domain or D61A point mutants to study the PH efficacy on SHP-1. The `in vivo studies were conducted using HepG2 and SK-Hep1 and Sor resistant HepG2SRand Huh7SRxenografts. Molecular docking was done with Swiss dock and Auto Dock Vina. Results PH inhibited cell growth and induced apoptosis in all HCC cells by upregulating SHP-1 expression and downregulating STAT3 expression and further inhibited pAKT/pERK signaling. PH activated SHP-1 by disruption of autoinhibition of SHP-1, leading to reduced p-STAT3Tyr705level. PH induced apoptosis in two Sor-resistant cell lines and overcome STAT3, AKT, MAPK and VEGFR2 dependent Sor resistance in HCCs. PH potently inhibited tumor growth in both Sor-sensitive and Sor-resistant xenografts in vivo by impairing angiogenesis, cell proliferation and inducing apoptosis via targeting the SHP-1/STAT3 signaling pathway. Conclusion Our data suggest that PH inhibits STAT3 activity in Sor-sensitive and -resistant HCCs via SHP-1–mediated inhibition of STAT3 and AKT/mTOR/JAK2/VEGFR2 pathway. Our results clearly indicate that PH may be a potent reagent for hepatocellular carcinoma and a noveltargeted therapy for further clinical investigations.Other Information Published in: Cell Communication and Signaling
 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12964-019-0430-7
CD146, a novel target of CD44-signaling, suppresses breast tumor cell invasion
Creators: name: Ouhtit, Allal
name: Abdraboh, Mohammed E.
name: Hollenbach, Andrew D.
name: Zayed, Hatem
name: Raj, Madhwa H. G.
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: Biochemistry and cell biology
Medicinal and biomolecular chemistry

description: We have previously validated three novel CD44-downstream positively regulated transcriptional targets, including Cortactin, Survivin and TGF-β2, and further characterized the players underlying their separate signaling pathways. In the present study, we identified CD146 as a potential novel target, negatively regulated by CD44. While the exact function of CD146 in breast cancer (BC) is not completely understood, substantial evidence from our work and others support the hypothesis that CD146 is a suppressor of breast tumor progression. Therefore, using molecular and pharmacological approaches both in vitro and in breast tissues of human samples, the present study validated CD146 as a novel target of CD44-signaling suppressed during BC progression. Our results revealed that CD44 activation could cause a substantial decrease of CD146 expression with an equally notable converse effect upon CD44-siRNA inhibition. More interestingly, activation of CD44 decreased cellular CD146 and increased soluble CD146 through CD44-dependent activation of MMP. Here, we provide a possible mechanism by which CD146 suppresses BC progression as a target of CD44-downstream signaling, regulating neovascularization and cancer cell motility.Other Information Published in: Cell Communication and Signaling
 License: In Copyright
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12964-017-0200-3
Regulation of circulating CTRP-2/CTRP-9 and GDF-8/GDF-15 by intralipids and insulin in healthy control and polycystic ovary syndrome women following chronic exercise training
Creators: name: Jerobin, Jayakumar
name: Ramanjaneya, Manjunath
name: Bettahi, Ilham
name: Parammal, Raihanath
name: Siveen, Kodappully Sivaraman
name: Alkasem, Meis
name: Aye, Myint
name: Sathyapalan, Thozhukat
name: Skarulis, Monica
name: Atkin, Stephen L.
name: Abou-Samra, Abdul Badi
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: Medical biochemistry and metabolomics

description: Background Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is associated with obesity, diabetes, and insulin resistance. The circulating C1Q/TNF-related proteins (CTRP-2, CTRP-9) and growth differentiation factors (GDF-8, GDF-15) contribute to glucose and lipid homeostasis. The effects of intralipids and insulin infusion on CTRP-2, CTRP-9, GDF-8 and GDF-15 in PCOS and control subjects before and after chronic exercise training were examined. Methods Ten PCOS and nine healthy subjects were studied at baseline status and after moderate-intensity chronic exercise training (1 h exercise, 3 times per week, 8 weeks). All participants were infused with 1.5 mL/min of saline or intralipids (20%) for 5 h, and during the last 2 h of saline or intralipids infusion hyperinsulinemic-euglycemic clamp (HIEC) was performed. CTRP-2, CTRP-9, GDF-8 and GDF-15 levels were measured at 0, 3 and 5 h. Results Intralipids dramatically increased CTRP-2 levels in PCOS (P = 0.02) and control (P = 0.004) subjects, which was not affected by insulin infusion or by exercise. Intralipids alone had no effects on CTRP-9, GDF-8, or GDF-15. Insulin increased the levels of GDF-15 in control subjects (P = 0.05) during the saline study and in PCOS subjects (P = 0.04) during the intralipid infusion. Insulin suppressed CTRP9 levels during the intralipid study in both PCOS (P = 0.04) and control (P = 0.01) subjects. Exercise significantly reduced fasting GDF-8 levels in PCOS (P = 0.03) and control (P = 0.04) subjects; however, intralipids infusion after chronic exercise training increased GDF-8 levels in both PCOS (P = 0.003) and control (P = 0.05) subjects and insulin infusion during intralipid infusion reduced the rise of GDF-8 levels. Conclusion This study showed that exogenous lipids modulate CTRP-2, which might have a physiological role in lipid metabolism. Since chronic exercise training reduced fasting GDF-8 levels; GDF-8 might have a role in humoral adaptation to exercise. GDF-15 and CTRP-9 levels are responsive to insulin, and thus they may play a role in insulin responses.Other Information Published in: Lipids in Health and Disease
 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12944-021-01463-3
Automatic Face Reenactment
Creators: name: Garrido, Pablo
name: Valgaerts, Levi
name: Rehmsen, Ole
name: Thormaehlen, Thorsten
name: Perez, Patrick
name: Theobalt, Christian
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2016
Subjects: subject: Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (cs.CV)
subject: Graphics (cs.GR)
subject: FOS: Computer and information sciences

description: We propose an image-based, facial reenactment system that replaces the face of an actor in an existing target video with the face of a user from a source video, while preserving the original target performance. Our system is fully automatic and does not require a database of source expressions. Instead, it is able to produce convincing reenactment results from a short source video captured with an off-the-shelf camera, such as a webcam, where the user performs arbitrary facial gestures. Our reenactment pipeline is conceived as part image retrieval and part face transfer: The image retrieval is based on temporal clustering of target frames and a novel image matching metric that combines appearance and motion to select candidate frames from the source video, while the face transfer uses a 2D warping strategy that preserves the user's identity. Our system excels in simplicity as it does not rely on a 3D face model, it is robust under head motion and does not require the source and target performance to be similar. We show convincing reenactment results for videos that we recorded ourselves and for low-quality footage taken from the Internet.
description: Proceedings of the 2014 IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (8 pages)
Efficiency Enhancement of Fluorescent Concentrators With Photonic Structures and Material Combinations
Creators: name: Goldschmidt, J.C.
name: Peters, M.
name: Dimroth, F.
name: Glunz, S.W.
name: Willeke, G.P.
Publisher: name: WIP-Munich
Year: 2008
Subjects: Advanced Photovoltaics
New Types of Cells and Modules

description: 23rd European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition, 1-5 September 2008, Valencia, Spain; 193-197
description: This study examines concepts to increase the efficiency of fluorescent concentrator systems. Different system sizes and configurations are investigated in detail by external quantum efficiency measurements, light beam induced current maps and by IV-measurements. A photonic structure which serves as a bandstop reflection filter for the light emitted from the dyes in the fluorescent concentrator increases the system efficiency by 20% relative. Such photonic structures are especially beneficial for larger systems. The combination of two fluorescent concentrators made with different dyes in one stack increases system efficiency from 5.1% with only one dye to 6.7% for the stack.
Role of non-coding RNA networks in leukemia progression, metastasis and drug resistance
Creators: name: Bhat, Ajaz A.
name: Younes, Salma N.
name: Raza, Syed Shadab
name: Zarif, Lubna
name: Nisar, Sabah
name: Ahmed, Ikhlak
name: Mir, Rashid
name: Kumar, Sachin
name: Sharawat, Surender K.
name: Hashem, Sheema
name: Elfaki, Imadeldin
name: Kulinski, Michal
name: Kuttikrishnan, Shilpa
name: Prabhu, Kirti S.
name: Khan, Abdul Q.
name: Yadav, Santosh K.
name: El-Rifai, Wael
name: Zargar, Mohammad A.
name: Zayed, Hatem
name: Haris, Mohammad
name: Uddin, Shahab
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: Oncology and carcinogenesis

description: Early-stage detection of leukemia is a critical determinant for successful treatment of the disease and can increase the survival rate of leukemia patients. The factors limiting the current screening approaches to leukemia include low sensitivity and specificity, high costs, and a low participation rate. An approach based on novel and innovative biomarkers with high accuracy from peripheral blood offers a comfortable and appealing alternative to patients, potentially leading to a higher participation rate. Recently, non-coding RNAs due to their involvement in vital oncogenic processes such as differentiation, proliferation, migration, angiogenesis and apoptosis have attracted much attention as potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers in leukemia. Emerging lines of evidence have shown that the mutational spectrum and dysregulated expression of non-coding RNA genes are closely associated with the development and progression of various cancers, including leukemia. In this review, we highlight the expression and functional roles of different types of non-coding RNAs in leukemia and discuss their potential clinical applications as diagnostic or prognostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets.Other Information Published in: Molecular Cancer
 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12943-020-01175-9
The influence of cage and source of light on mating and oviposition of the black soldier fly (Hermetia illucens L.)
Creators: name: Boworntuch Singdet And Yupa Hanboonsong
Publisher: name: Faculty of Agriculture
Year: 2023
Subjects: animal feed
organic waste
black soldier fly
Bio Economy
Circular Economy
Green Economy

description: Khon Kaen Agriculture Journal, 51, 5, 952-961
Iron-related dietary pattern increases the risk of poor cognition
Creators: name: Shi, Zumin
name: El-Obeid, Tahra
name: Li, Ming
name: Xu, Xiaoyue
name: Liu, Jianghong
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: Nutrition and dietetics

description: High iron intake has been shown to be associated with poor cognition. We aimed to examine the association between iron-related dietary pattern (IDP) and cognitive function in Chinese adults. Longitudinal study data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) during 1991–2006 were used (N = 4852, ≥55 years old). Dietary intake was obtained from a 3-day food record during home visits. Reduced rank regression was used to construct IDP with iron intake as a response variable. Cognitive function was assessed in 1997, 2000, 2004 and 2006. Multivariable mixed linear regression and logistic regression were used in the analyses. IDP was characterised by high intake of fresh vegetable, wheat, legume, beverage, offal, rice and whole grain. High IDP intake was associated with poor cognition. In fully adjusted models, across the quartiles of IDP, the odds ratio (95% CI) for poor cognitive function were: 1.00, 1.06 (0.86–1.30), 1.24 (0.99–1.54), and 1.50 (1.17–1.93), respectively. There was a borderline significant interaction between IDP and meat intake (p interaction 0.085). The association between high IDP and poor cognition was only observed among those with no or low intake of meat. With the adjustment of carbohydrate or iron intake, the IDP and cognition association became non-significant. IDP was positively associated with lead intake. The association between IDP and poor cognition was partly mediated by lead intake. Iron-related dietary pattern is associated with poor cognition in Chinese adults, partly due to high intake of carbohydrate, iron and lead.Other Information Published in: Nutrition Journal
 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12937-019-0476-9
Water-pipe smoking promotes epithelial–mesenchymal transition and invasion of human breast cancer cells via ERK1/ERK2 pathways
Creators: name: Sadek, Khaled W.
name: Haik, Mahmoud Y.
name: Ashour, Anas A.
name: Baloch, Tahira
name: Aboulkassim, Tahar
name: Yasmeen, Amber
name: Vranic, Semir
name: Zeidan, Asad
name: Al Moustafa, Ala-Eddin
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: subject: Genetics
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Oncology and carcinogenesis

description: With the increasing popularity of water-pipe smoking (WPS), it is critical to comprehend how WPS may affect women’s health. The main goal of this study is to identify the potential outcome of WPS on human breast cancer progression. Two breast cancer cell lines, MCF7 and BT20, were used in this investigation. We explored the outcome of WPS on cell morphology and cell invasion using inverted microscope and Biocoat Matrigel invasion chambers. On the other hand, Western blot was employed to study the expression patterns of key control genes of cell adhesion and invasion. Our data reveal that WPS induces epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) of MCF7 and BT20 breast cancer cell lines; thus, WPS enhances cell invasion ability of both cell lines in comparison with their matched controls. More significantly, WPS provokes a down- and up-regulation of E-cadherin and focal adhesion kinase (FAK), respectively, which are important key regulators of cancer progression genes. Finally, our data point out that WPS incites the activation of Erk1/Erk2, which could be behind the stimulation of EMT and invasion as well as the deregulation of E-cadherin and FAK expression. Our data show, for the first time, that WPS initiates EMT and stimulates cell invasion of breast cancer cells, which could incite metastatic development in breast cancer patients. Thus, we believe that further studies, both in vitro and in vivo, are required to elucidate the pathogenic outcome of WPS on cancer progression of several human carcinomas including breast.Other Information Published in: Cancer Cell International
 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12935-018-0678-9
Quantum Cosmology in Four Dimensions
Creators: name: Bautista, Teresa
name: Benevides, André
name: Dabholkar, Atish
name: Goel, Akash
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2015
Subjects: subject: High Energy Physics - Theory (hep-th)
subject: Cosmology and Nongalactic Astrophysics (astro-ph.CO)
subject: General Relativity and Quantum Cosmology (gr-qc)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We analyze the cosmological solutions to the recently proposed nonlocal quantum effective action for gravity with a cosmological term. We show that the vacuum energy decays with a slow-roll parameter proportional to the anomalous gravitational dressings.
description: 19 pages
Effects of naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) on growth and yield of cassava cv. Rayong 9
Creators: name: Phakorn Phunthupan And Phanupong Phoncharoen
Publisher: name: Faculty of Agriculture
Year: 2023
Subjects: Manihot esculenta
storage root
growth rate
harvest index

description: Khon Kaen Agriculture Journal, 51, 5, 962-974
Relativistic Fe K alpha line study in Seyfert 1 galaxies observed with Suzaku
Creators: name: Mantovani, Giulia
name: Nandra, Kirpal
name: Ponti, Gabriele
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2016
Subjects: subject: High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena (astro-ph.HE)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We present an analysis of a sample of Seyfert 1 galaxies observed with Suzaku. The aim of this work is to examine critically the evidence for a relativistic Fe K alpha line in the X-ray spectra of these AGN. The sample was compiled from those sources in which a relativistic component was missing in at least one XMM-Newton observation. We analysed the Suzaku spectra of these objects in order to have more constraints on the high energy emission, including the Compton reflection hump. The results show that the relativistic Fe K alpha line is detected (at >95% confidence) in all sources observed with high signal-to-noise ratio (e.g. where the counts in the 5-7 keV energy band are > 4 x 10^4). This is in agreement with the idea that relativistic lines are a ubiquitous feature in the spectra of Seyfert galaxies, but are often difficult to detect without very high quality data. We also investigate the relation between the Fe K alpha line and the reflection continuum at high energies. For most of the sample, the strength of the reflection component is consistent with that of the line. There are exceptions in both senses, however i.e. where the reflection continuum is strong but with weak line emission, and vice versa. These observations present a challenge for standard reflection models.
description: 13 pages, 5 figures; Accepted for publication in MNRAS
The Universal Deformation of the Witt Ring Scheme
Creators: name: Deninger, Christopher
name: Oh, Young-Tak
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2016
Subjects: subject: Rings and Algebras (math.RA)
subject: FOS: Mathematics
subject: 13F35, 14L15

description: We determine the universal deformation over reduced base rings of the Witt ring scheme enhanced by a Frobenius lift and Verschiebung. It agrees with a q-deformation earlier introduced by the second author, for which we also give a simpler description. In the appendix we discuss a Witt vector theory for ind-rings which may be of independent interest.
Study on Quantum Size Effect in Silicon Quantum Dot Superlattices by Structural and Optical Properties
Creators: name: Hao, X.J.
name: Perez-Wurfl, I.
name: Cho, E.-C.
name: Gentle, A.
name: Shen, Y.
name: Park, S.
name: Conibeer, G.
name: Green, M.A.
Publisher: name: WIP-Munich
Year: 2008
Subjects: Advanced Photovoltaics
New Types of Cells and Modules

description: 23rd European Photovoltaic Solar Energy Conference and Exhibition, 1-5 September 2008, Valencia, Spain; 186-188
description: This study presents structural and optical measurements performed on Si quantum dots/SiO2 superlattices. The optical photoluminescence and absorption coefficient curves exhibit significant blue shift. These shifts, well correlated to the quantum dot size variations observed by transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction, evidenced quantum size effects in Si quantum dots. The optical band gap of Si QDs superlattices were estimated by using Tauc plot and W-Vase simulation.
Utilization of the evidence from studies with no events in meta-analyses of adverse events: an empirical investigation
Creators: name: Xu, Chang
name: Zhou, Xiaoqin
name: Zorzela, Liliane
name: Ju, Ke
name: Furuya-Kanamori, Luis
name: Lin, Lifeng
name: Lu, Cuncun
name: Musa, Omran A. H.
name: Vohra, Sunita
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: Clinical sciences

description: Backgrounds Zero-events studies frequently occur in systematic reviews of adverse events, which consist of an important source of evidence. We aimed to examine how evidence of zero-events studies was utilized in the meta-analyses of systematic reviews of adverse events. Methods We conducted a survey of systematic reviews published in two periods: January 1, 2015, to January 1, 2020, and January 1, 2008, to April 25, 2011. Databases were searched for systematic reviews that conducted at least one meta-analysis of any healthcare intervention and used adverse events as the exclusive outcome. An adverse event was defined as any untoward medical occurrence in a patient or subject in healthcare practice. We summarized the frequency of occurrence of zero-events studies in eligible systematic reviews and how these studies were dealt with in the meta-analyses of these systematic reviews. Results We included 640 eligible systematic reviews. There were 406 (63.45%) systematic reviews involving zero-events studies in their meta-analyses, among which 389 (95.11%) involved single-arm-zero-events studies and 223 (54.93%) involved double-arm-zero-events studies. The majority (98.71%) of these systematic reviews incorporated single-arm-zero-events studies into the meta-analyses. On the other hand, the majority (76.23%) of them excluded double-arm-zero-events studies from the meta-analyses, of which the majority (87.06%) did not discuss the potential impact of excluding such studies. Systematic reviews published at present (2015-2020) tended to incorporate zero-events studies in meta-analyses than those published in the past (2008-2011), but the difference was not significant (proportion difference=−0.09, 95% CI −0.21 to 0.03, p = 0.12). Conclusion Systematic review authors routinely treated studies with zero-events in both arms as “non-informative” carriers and excluded them from their reviews. Whether studies with no events are “informative” or not largely depends on the methods and assumptions applied, thus sensitivity analyses using different methods should be considered in future meta-analyses.Other Information Published in: BMC Medicine
 License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12916-021-02008-2
Instabilities and Solitons in Minimal Strips
Creators: name: Machon, Thomas
name: Alexander, Gareth P.
name: Goldstein, Raymond E.
name: Pesci, Adriana I.
Publisher: name: arXiv
Year: 2016
Subjects: subject: Soft Condensed Matter (cond-mat.soft)
subject: FOS: Physical sciences

description: We show that highly twisted minimal strips can undergo a non-singular transition, unlike the singular transitions seen in the Möbius strip and the catenoid. If the strip is non-orientable this transition is topologically frustrated, and the resulting surface contains a helical defect. Through a controlled analytic approximation the system can be mapped onto a scalar $ϕ^4$ theory on a non-orientable line bundle over the circle, where the defect becomes a topologically protected kink soliton or domain wall, thus establishing their existence in minimal surfaces. Experimental studies of soap films confirm these results and demonstrate how the position of the defect can be controlled through boundary deformation.
description: 7 pages, 4 figures. Videos can be found at http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/sci/physics/staff/academic/galexander/research/soapfilm
HIV epidemiology among female sex workers and their clients in the Middle East and North Africa: systematic review, meta-analyses, and meta-regressions
Creators: name: Chemaitelly, Hiam
name: Weiss, Helen A.
name: Calvert, Clara
name: Harfouche, Manale
name: Abu-Raddad, Laith J.
Publisher: name: Manara - Qatar Research Repository
Year: 2022
Subjects: Clinical sciences

description: HIV epidemiology among female sex workers (FSWs) and their clients in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is poorly understood. We addressed this gap through a comprehensive epidemiological assessment. A systematic review of population size estimation and HIV prevalence studies was conducted and reported following PRISMA guidelines. Risk of bias (ROB) assessments were conducted for all included studies using various quality domains, as informed by Cochrane Collaboration guidelines. The pooled mean HIV prevalence was estimated using random-effects meta-analyses. Sources of heterogeneity and temporal trends were identified through meta-regressions. We identified 270 size estimation studies in FSWs and 42 in clients, and 485 HIV prevalence studies in 287,719 FSWs and 69 in 29,531 clients/proxy populations. Most studies had low ROB in multiple quality domains. The median proportion of reproductive-age women reporting current/recent sex work was 0.6% (range = 0.2–2.4%) and of men reporting currently/recently buying sex was 5.7% (range = 0.3–13.8%). HIV prevalence ranged from 0 to 70% in FSWs (median = 0.1%) and 0–34.6% in clients (median = 0.4%). The regional pooled mean HIV prevalence was 1.4% (95% CI = 1.1–1.8%) in FSWs and 0.4% (95% CI = 0.1–0.7%) in clients. Country-specific pooled prevalence was < 1% in most countries, 1–5% in North Africa and Somalia, 17.3% in South Sudan, and 17.9% in Djibouti. Meta-regressions identified strong subregional variations in prevalence. Compared to Eastern MENA, the adjusted odds ratios (AORs) ranged from 0.2 (95% CI = 0.1–0.4) in the Fertile Crescent to 45.4 (95% CI = 24.7–83.7) in the Horn of Africa. There was strong evidence for increasing prevalence post-2003; the odds increased by 15% per year (AOR = 1.15, 95% CI = 1.09–1.21). There was also a large variability in sexual and injecting risk behaviors among FSWs within and across countries. Levels of HIV testing among FSWs were generally low. The median fraction of FSWs that tested for HIV in the past 12 months was 12.1% (range = 0.9–38.0%). HIV epidemics among FSWs are emerging in MENA, and some have reached stable endemic levels, although still some countries have limited epidemic dynamics. The epidemic has been growing for over a decade, with strong regionalization and heterogeneity. HIV testing levels were far below the service coverage target of “UNAIDS 2016–2021 Strategy.”Other Information Published in: BMC Medicine
 License: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
See article on publisher's website: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12916-019-1349-y