gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
A Convolutional Neural Network Approach for Objective Video Quality Assessment (2006)

This paper describes an application of neural networks in the field of objective measurement method designed to automatically assess the perceived quality of digital videos. This challenging issue aims to emulate human judgment and to replace very complex and time consuming subjective quality assessment. Several metrics have been proposed in literature to tackle this issue. They are based on a general framework that combines different stages, each of them addressing complex problems. The ambition of this paper is not to present a global perfect quality metric but rather to focus on an original way to use neural networks in such a framework in the context of reduced reference (RR) quality metric. Especially, we point out the interest of such a tool for combining features and pooling them in order to compute quality scores. The proposed approach solves some problems inherent to objective metrics that should predict subjective quality score obtained using the single stimulus continuous quality evaluation (SSCQE) method. This latter has been adopted by video quality expert group (VQEG) in its recently finalized reduced referenced and no reference (RRNR-TV) test plan. The originality of such approach compared to previous attempts to use neural networks for quality assessment, relies on the use of a convolutional neural network (CNN) that allows a continuous time scoring of the video. Objective features are extracted on a frame-by-frame basis on both the reference and the distorted sequences; they are derived from a perceptual-based representation and integrated along the temporal axis using a time-delay neural network (TDNN). Experiments conducted on different MPEG-2 videos, with bit rates ranging 2-6 Mb/s, show the effectiveness of the proposed approach to get a plausible model of temporal pooling from the human vision system (HVS) point of view. More specifically, a linear correlation criteria, between objective and subjective scoring, up to 0.92 has been obtained on a set of typical TV videos.
Keyframe-based real-time camera tracking (2009)

We present a novel keyframe selection and recognition method for robust markerless real-time camera tracking. Our system contains an offline module to select features from a group of reference images and an online module to match them to the input live video in order to quickly estimate the camera pose. The main contribution lies in constructing an optimal set of keyframes from the input reference images, which are required to approximately cover the entire space and at the same time minimize the content redundancy amongst the selected frames. This strategy not only greatly saves the computation, but also helps significantly reduce the number of repeated features so as to improve the camera tracking quality. Our system also employs a parallel-computing scheme with multi-CPU hardware architecture. Experimental results show that our method dramatically enhances the computation efficiency and eliminates the jittering artifacts.
Specific Neutrophil Hyporesponsiveness in Chronic Helicobacter pylori Infection (1996)

The release from mucosal neutrophils of reactive oxygen species (ROS) is believed to be an important part of the pathogenesis of Helicobacter pylori-associated gastritis and duodenal ulcer. In this study, bacterial sonicates prepared from 1 reference and 29 patient strains were used to stimulate ROS release from peripheral blood neutrophils. In 29 H. pylori-positive patients, the neutrophil response toward the homologous strain was absent. In contrast, a significant response was observed toward the reference strain. In addition, on stimulation of neutrophils from 29 patients without H. pylori infection, ROS release was significant. The stimulatory effect on neutrophils by FMLP was comparable in the 2 groups. It is concluded that a specific neutrophil hyporesponsiveness in ROS release toward the homologous R. pylori strain exists. This feature has, to our knowledge, not been described previously for neutrophil responses to any human pathogen.
BindingDB Entry 5133: Characterization of human recombinant neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunit combinations alpha2beta4, alpha3beta4 and alpha4beta4 stably expressed in HEK293 cells. (2012)

Human embryonic kidney (HEK293) cells were transfected with cDNA encoding the human beta4 neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine (ACh) receptor subunit in pairwise combination with human alpha2, alpha3 or alpha4 subunits. Cell lines A2B4, A3B4.2 and A4B4 were identified that stably express mRNA and protein corresponding to alpha2 and beta4, to alpha3 and beta4 and to alpha4 and beta4 subunits, respectively. Specific binding of [3H]epibatidine was detected in A2B4, A3B4.2 and A4B4 cells with Kd (mean +/- S.D. in pM) values of 42 +/- 10, 230 +/- 12 and 187 +/- 29 and with Bmax (fmol/mg protein) values of 1104 +/- 338, 2010 +/- 184 and 3683 +/- 1450, respectively. Whole-cell patch-clamp recordings in each cell line demonstrated that (-)nicotine (Nic), ACh, cytisine (Cyt) and 1, 1-dimethyl-4-phenylpiperazinium iodide (DMPP) elicit transient inward currents. The current-voltage (I-V) relation of these currents showed strong inward rectification. Pharmacological characterization of agonist-induced elevations of intracellular free Ca++ concentration revealed a distinct rank order of agonist potency for each subunit combination as follows: alpha2beta4, (+)epibatidine (Epi) > Cyt > suberyldicholine (Sub) = Nic = DMPP; alpha3beta4, Epi > DMPP = Cyt = Nic = Sub; alpha4beta4, Epi > Cyt = Sub > Nic > DMPP. The noncompetitive antagonists mecamylamine and d-tubocurarine did not display subtype selectivity. In contrast, the Kb value for the competitive antagonist dihydro-beta-erythroidine (DHbetaE) was highest at alpha3beta4 compared with alpha2beta4 or alpha4beta4 receptors. These data illustrate that the A2B4, A3B4.2 and A4B4 stable cell lines are powerful tools for examining the functional and pharmacological properties of human alpha2beta4, alpha3beta4 and alpha4beta4 neuronal nicotinic receptors.
Microdevice for plasma separation from whole human blood using bio-physical and geometrical effects (2016)

In this research work, we present a simple and efficient passive microfluidic device for plasma separation from pure blood. The microdevice has been fabricated using conventional photolithography technique on a single layer of polydimethylsiloxane, and has been extensively tested on whole blood and enhanced (upto 62%) hematocrit levels of human blood. The microdevice employs elevated dimensions of about 100 μm; such elevated dimensions ensure clog-free operation of the microdevice and is relatively easy to fabricate. We show that our microdevice achieves almost 100% separation efficiency on undiluted blood in the flow rate range of 0.3 to 0.5 ml/min. Detailed biological characterization of the plasma obtained from the microdevice is carried out by testing: proteins by ultra-violet spectrophotometric method, hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) hormone, and conducting random blood glucose test. Additionally, flow cytometry study has also been carried on the separated plasma. These tests attest to the high quality of plasma recovered. The microdevice developed in this work is an outcome of extensive experimental research on understanding the flow behavior and separation phenomenon of blood in microchannels. The microdevice is compact, economical and effective, and is particularly suited in continuous flow operations.
Platelet activity of high‐dose factor VIIa is independent of tissue factor (1997)

High-dose recombinant factor VIIa has been successfully used as therapy for haemophiliacs with inhibitors. The mechanism by which high-dose factor VIIa supports haemostasis is the subject of some controversy. Postulating a mechanism in which activity is dependent on tissue factor at the site of injury explains the localization of activity but not the requirement for high doses. Postulating a mechanism in which factor VIIa acts on available lipid independently of tissue factor explains the requirement for high doses but not the lack of systemic procoagulant activity. We report that factor VIIa bound weakly to activated platelets (Kd approximately 90 nM). This factor VIIa was functionally active and could initiate thrombin generation in the presence of plasma concentrations of prothrombin, factor X, factor V, antithrombin III and tissue factor pathway inhibitor. The activity was not dependent on tissue factor. The concentration of factor VIIa required for detectable thrombin generation agreed well with the lowest concentration of factor VIIa required for efficacy in patients. High-dose factor VIIa may function on the activated platelets that form the initial haemostatic plug in haemophilic patients. These observations are in agreement with clinical trials which have shown that high-dose factor VIIa was haemostatically effective without causing systemic activation of coagulation.
Bacteroides uniformis CECT 7771 Ameliorates Metabolic and Immunological Dysfunction in Mice with High-Fat-Diet Induced Obesity (2012)

Background: Associations have been made between obesity and reduced intestinal numbers of members of the phylum Bacteroidetes, but there is no direct evidence of the role these bacteria play in obesity. Herein, the effects of Bacteroides uniformis CECT 7771 on obesity-related metabolic and immune alterations have been evaluated.
Crystal Structure of Hemoprotein Domain of P450BM-3, a Prototype for Microsomal P450's (1993)

Cytochrome P450BM-3, a bacterial fatty acid monoxygenase, resembles the eukaryotic microsomal P450's and their flavoprotein reductase in primary structure and function. The three-dimensional structure of the hemoprotein domain of P450BM-3 was determined by x-ray diffraction and refined to an R factor of 16.9 percent at 2.0 angstrom resolution. The structure consists of an alph and a beta domain. The active site heme is accessible through a long hydrophobic channel formed primarily by the beta domain and the B' and F helices of the alpha domain. The two molecules in the asymmetric unit differ in conformation around the substrate binding pocket. Substantial differences between P450BM-3 and P450cam, the only other P450 structure available, are observed around the substrate binding pocket and the regions important for redox partner binding. A general mechanism for proton transfer in P450's is also proposed.
Selective activation of the JNK/AP‐1 pathway in FAS‐mediated apoptosis of rheumatoid arthritis synoviocytes (1997)

Our results strongly suggest that the JNK/AP-1 signaling pathway is activated during the process of Fas-mediated apoptosis of RA synovial cells.
Redirecting Circulating Antibodies via Ligand-Hapten Conjugates Eliminates Target Cells In Vivo (1996)

The elimination of cell populations in vivo often relies on reagents that are self-limiting, are difficult to design and produce or contain highly toxic components. Here we describe a novel immunotherapy using molecules that combine a cell-specific ligand and a hapten binding to preexisting antibodies in serum. The F(ab')2 fragment of a polyclonal anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG) preparation was used as a T-cell-specific ligand, and fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC), as the hapten. Clearance of ligand-hapten conjugates from the circulation through formation of immune complexes was prevented through controlled synthesis of conjugates so that they contained one F(ab')2 fragment and one FITC molecule. Administration of a single dose of F(ab')2 or F(ab')2ATG-FITC into naive mice had no effect on the number of circulating T cells. In contrast, injection of F(ab')2ATG-FITC into mice with circulating anti-FITC antibodies resulted in the elimination of peripheral T cells. The reduction in cell numbers was equivalent to that obtained with a corresponding dose of intact ATG. Experiments in thymectomized mice demonstrated that the reduction of circulating T cells was due to target-cell elimination and not to immunomodulation or cellular sequestration. The adaptability of the model to other sources of effector antibodies and more useful ligands is discussed.
Urinary 5α-Androstanediol and 5β-Androstanediol Measurement by Gas Chromatography after Solid-Phase Extraction and High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (1999)

Urinary androstanediol measurement, often in association with other androgens, is commonly used to support the clinical diagnosis of idiopathic hirsutism. In addition, androgen excess has been shown to be the endocrine abnormality which characterizes patients with breast cancer. We recently developed a method for the measurement of urinary testosterone employing solid-phase extraction and HPLC purification before quantitative measurement by gas chromatography. In the present report we verify the feasibility of the method for the simultaneous measurement of 5 alpha-androstane-3 alpha,17 beta-diol and 5 beta-androstane-3 alpha,17 beta-diol in addition to testosterone in the same urine sample. The mean recovery for the whole procedure was 89.8% for 5 alpha-androstane-3 alpha,17 beta-diol and 87.8% for 5 beta-androstane-3 alpha, 17 beta-diol. The estimates of the coefficients of variation were 4.9% (95% confidence limits: 3.9-6.5%) and 3.9% (95% confidence limits: 3.1-5.2%), respectively. Accuracy was evaluated by standard addition and dilution assays and a linear relationship was found between expected and observed values (r2 = 0.997 for 5 alpha-androstane-3 alpha,17 beta-diol and r2 = 0.999 for 5 beta-androstane-3 alpha,17 beta-diol). The method is rapid, effective and suitable for the measurement of testosterone, 5 alpha-androstanediol and 5 beta-androstanediol in the same urine sample.
ANTERIOR FUSION OF THE SPINE FOR INFECTIVE LESIONS IN ADULTS (1973)

1. The results of treatment of 117 tuberculous and fourteen other types of infection of the spine in adults by anterior fusion and chemotherapy have been reviewed. 2. It is suggested that anterior fusion is justified because: a) it permits isolation of the organism, and hence the determination of drug sensitivities and appropriate chemotherapy; b) removal of the diseased tissue and the stabilisation of the affected segment by iliac bone grafts can be effected, leading to rapid healing by bony fusion with little further collapse; c) rehabilitation of the patient is hastened; and d) the incidence of reactivation is probably diminished.
Induction of chondro-, osteo- and adipogenesis in embryonic stem cells by bone morphogenetic protein-2: Effect of cofactors on differentiating lineages (2005)

Ultimately, we have found that ES cells can be successfully triggered to differentiate into chondrocyte-like cells, which can further alter their fate to become hypertrophic, and adipocytes. Compared with previous reports using a brief BMP-2 supplementation early in differentiation, prolonged exposure increased chondrogenic output, while supplementation with insulin and ascorbic acid prevented dedifferentiation. These results provide a foundation for the use of ES cells as a potential therapy in joint injury and disease.
Expression of tetanus toxin fragment C in yeast: gene synthesis is required to eliminate fortuitous polyadenylation sites in AT-rich DNA (1991)

Fragment C is a non-toxic 50 kDa fragment of tetanus toxin which is a candidate subunit vaccine against tetanus. The AT-rich Clostridium tetani DNA encoding fragment C could not be expressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae due to the presence of several fortuitous polyadenylation sites which gave rise to truncated mRNAs. The polyadenylation sites were eliminated by chemically synthesising the DNA with increased GC-content (from 29% to 47%). Synthesis of the entire gene (1400 base pairs) was necessary to generate full-length transcripts and for protein production in yeast. Using a GAL1 promoter vector, fragment C was expressed to 2-3% of soluble cell protein. Fragment C could also be secreted using the alpha-factor leader peptide as a secretion signal. The protein was present at 5-10 mg/l in the culture medium in two forms: a high molecular mass hyper-glycosylated protein (75-200 kDa) and a core-glycosylated protein (65 kDa). Intracellular fragment C was as effective in vaccinating mice against tetanus authentic fragment C. The glycosylated material was inactive, though it was rendered fully active by de-glycosylation.
Evaluation and intermethod comparison of the Bio-Rad high-performance liquid chromatographic method for plasma total homocysteine. (1998)

Total homocysteine (tHcy) is a major risk factor for venous thromboembolism and atherosclerosis (1); hence, there has been an strong interest in developing the most robust methodology for its quantification (2). Reduction and derivatization followed by HPLC separation and fluorescent detection is the most widely applied technique (3). The most frequently used derivatizing agents are the halogen sulfonylbenzofurans [7-benzo-2-oxa-1,3-diazole-4-sulfonic acid (SBD-F) and 4-aminosulfonyl-7-fluoro-2,1,3-benzoxdiazole (ABD-F)] because of their good tHcy-adduct stability and high HPLC resolution. In this study, we evaluated a new HPLC fluorescence assay (Bio-Rad® Laboratories) that uses ABD-F as the derivatizing agent for quantification of tHcy. Less sample handling, faster reduction, and derivatization with optimized HPLC separation make this assay less laborious and thus improve specimen throughput. Using patient samples, we compared this ABD-F assay with an HPLC fluorescence assay that uses SBD-F as the derivatizing agent and with an enzyme immunoassay (EIA) method (Axis® Biochemicals) that requires reduction and conversion of tHcy to S-adenosyl-l-homocysteine (SAH) before solid-phase competitive immunoassay that uses a monoclonal anti-SAH antibody.

All subjects underwent a >11-h overnight fast. Blood was collected in EDTA anticoagulant tubes cooled to <4 °C, and the plasma was removed from the cells within 1 h in a refrigerated centrifuge (<10 °C). Aliquots of plasma were prepared for each subsequent method and were kept at −20 °C until analysis. The Axis EIA assay method was used with no modifications to the recently published protocol (4). For the ABD-F assay, equivalent 50-μL volumes of plasma and internal standard were mixed with 50 μL and 100 μL of trialkylphosphine and ABD-F, the reducing and derivatizing agents, respectively. Samples were then incubated at 60 °C for 7 min and then at 4 °C for 7 min, followed by trichloroacetic acid precipitation of plasma proteins. The supernatant was removed for …
Biofilms <i>in vitro</i> and <i>in vivo</i>: do singular mechanisms imply cross-resistance? (2002)

Microbial biofilm has become inexorably linked with man's failure to control them by antibiotic and biocide regimes that are effective against suspended bacteria. This failure relates to a localized concentration of biofilm bacteria, and their extracellular products (exopolymers and extracellular enzymes), that moderates the access of the treatment agent and starves the more deeply placed cells. Biofilms, therefore, typically present gradients of physiology and concentration for the imposed treatment agent, which enables the less susceptible clones to survive. Such clones might include efflux mutants in addition to genotypes with modifications in single gene products. Clonal expansion following subeffective treatment would, in the case of many antibiotics, lead to the emergence of a resistant population. This tends not to occur for biocidal treatments where the active agent exhibits multiple pharmacological activity towards a number of specific cellular targets. Whilst resistance development towards biocidal agents is highly unlikely, subeffective exposure will lead to the selection of less susceptible clones, modified either in efflux or in their most susceptible target. The latter might also confer resistance to antibiotics where the target is shared. Thus, recent reports have demonstrated that sublethal concentrations of the antibacterial and antifungal agent triclosan can select for resistant mutants in Escherichia coli and that this agent specifically targets the enzyme enoyl reductase that is involved in lipid biosynthesis. Triclosan may, therefore, select for mutants in a target that is shared with the anti-E. coli diazaborine compounds and the antituberculosis drug isoniazid. Although triclosan may be a uniquely specific biocide, sublethal concentrations of less specific antimicrobial agents may also select for mutations within their most sensitive targets, some of which might be common to therapeutic agents. Sublethal treatment with chemical antimicrobial agents has also been demonstrated to induce the expression of multidrug efflux pumps and efflux mutants. Whilst efflux does not confer protection against use concentrations of biocidal products it is sufficient to confer protection against therapeutic doses of many antibiotics. It has, therefore, been widely speculated that biocide misuse may have an insidious effect, contributing to the evolution and persistence of drug resistance within microbial communities. Whilst such notions are supported by laboratory studies that utilize pure cultures, recent evidence has strongly refuted such linkage within the general environment where complex, multispecies biofilms predominate and where biocidal products are routinely deployed. In such situations the competition, for nutrients and space, between community members of disparate sensitivities far outweighs any potential benefits bestowed by the changes in an individual's antimicrobial susceptibility.
Underestimating Self-control: Kennett and Smith on Frog and Toad (1997)

Journal Article Underestimating Self-control: Kennett and Smith on Frog and Toad Get access Alfred R. Mele Alfred R. Mele Davidson CollegeDavidson, NC 28036, USA; almele@davidson.edu Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic Google Scholar Analysis, Volume 57, Issue 2, April 1997, Pages 119–123, https://doi.org/10.1093/analys/57.2.119 Published: 01 April 1997
Global and Local Consistent Age Generative Adversarial Networks (2018)

Age progression/regression is a challenging task due to the complicated and non-linear transformation in human aging process. Many researches have shown that both global and local facial features are essential for face representation, but previous GAN based methods mainly focused on the global feature in age synthesis. To utilize both global and local facial information, we propose a Global and Local Consistent Age Generative Adversarial Network (GLCA-GAN). In our generator, a global network learns the whole facial structure and simulates the aging trend of the whole face, while three crucial facial patches are progressed or regressed by three local networks aiming at imitating subtle changes of crucial facial subregions. To preserve most of the details in age-attribute-irrelevant areas, our generator learns the residual face. Moreover, we employ an identity preserving loss to better preserve the identity information, as well as age preserving loss to enhance the accuracy of age synthesis. A pixel loss is also adopted to preserve detailed facial information of the input face. Our proposed method is evaluated on three face aging datasets, i.e., CACD dataset, Morph dataset and FG-NET dataset. Experimental results show appealing performance of the proposed method by comparing with the state-of-the-art.