gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Energy harvesting from the tail beating of a carangiform swimmer using ionic polymer–metal composites (2013)

In this paper, we study energy harvesting from the beating of a biomimetic fish tail using ionic polymer-metal composites. The design of the biomimetic tail is based on carangiform swimmers and is specifically inspired by the morphology of the heterocercal tail of thresher sharks. The tail is constituted of a soft silicone matrix molded in the form of the heterocercal tail and reinforced by a steel beam of rectangular cross section. We propose a modeling framework for the underwater vibration of the biomimetic tail, wherein the tail is assimilated to a cantilever beam with rectangular cross section and heterogeneous physical properties. We focus on base excitation in the form of a superimposed rotation about a fixed axis and we consider the regime of moderately large-amplitude vibrations. In this context, the effect of the encompassing fluid is described through a hydrodynamic function, which accounts for inertial, viscous and convective phenomena. The model is validated through experiments in which the base excitation is systematically varied and the motion of selected points on the biomimetic tail tracked in time. The feasibility of harvesting energy from an ionic polymer-metal composite attached to the vibrating structure is experimentally and theoretically assessed. The response of the transducer is described using a black-box model, where the voltage output is controlled by the rate of change of the mean curvature. Experiments are performed to elucidate the impact of the shunting resistance, the frequency of the base excitation and the placement of the ionic polymer-metal composite on energy harvesting from the considered biomimetic tail.
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of the Isoprenoid Biosynthetic Pathway in Plants (1995)

This review first summarizes the diverse nature of isoprenoids found in plants, emphasizing the wide range of physiological functions these compounds serve. The biosynthetic origins of isoprenoids have occupied chemists and biochemists for decades, and the second section of this review recaps some of the conceptual models used to rationalize key biosynthetic reactions in the isoprenoid pathway. The third section describes briefly some of the recently developed experimental systems that have helped researchers uncover much of the biochemistry and molecular biology of isoprenoids. The fourth section compares the deduced amino acid sequences of enzymes with similar catalytic functions and attempts to correlate these sequences with the known enzymology. The fifth and final section focuses on our limited understanding of how isoprenoid biosynthesis is regulated in plants.
T Cell Responses to the Paramyxovirus Simian Virus 5: Studies in Multiple Sclerosis and Normal Populations (1996)

A recent study suggested that a significant portion of the oligoclonal IgG found in multiple sclerosis (MS) cerebrospinal fluid may be removed by absorption with simian virus 5 (SV5). We have now evaluated the proliferative responses to SV5 generated by peripheral blood mononuclear cells from normal adult subjects and from patients with MS. Positive responses were detected in 16 of 16 subjects in each group. The magnitude of the response was not significantly different in the two groups. There was no correlation between the level of response and the presence or absence of HLA-DR2. No cross-reactivity with SV5 was demonstrated by panels of human T cell clones directed against myelin basic protein or measles virus. More than 60% of normal individuals between 10 and 16 years of age also generated positive T cell proliferative responses to SV5, while fewer than 25% of subjects below the age of 6 generated positive responses. Intermediate percentages of positive responders were detected in subjects 6-9 years of age. We conclude that the adult human population has been widely exposed to this organism and that initial exposure generally occurs in the early to middle school-age years.
Acamprosate supports abstinence, Naltrexone prevents excessive drinking: evidence from a meta-analysis with unreported outcomes (2007)

Two pharmacological agents have repeatedly been shown to be efficacious for relapse prevention in alcohol dependence: The putative glutamate-antagonist acamprosate and the opioid-antagonist naltrexone. Clinical evidence for both drugs is based on various outcome criteria. Whereas for acamprosate primarily abstinence maintenance has been demonstrated, studies with naltrexone have mostly emphasised the prevention of heavy drinking. The remaining effects of both drugs are not always reported; accordingly the corresponding database is fragmentary. Thus, the primary objective of the present meta-analysis was to complete the efficacy profiles for acamprosate and naltrexone and to compare them with each other. Unreported results, requested from the study investigators and the drug manufacturers, were integrated in the computation of effect sizes. For the meta-analysis, emphasis was placed on the conceptual distinction between having a first drink and returning to heavy drinking. Naltrexone was found to have a significant effect on the maintenance of abstinence as well as the prevention of heavy drinking. Acamprosate was shown only to support abstinence; it did not influence alcohol consumption after the first drink. When the efficacy profiles of the two drugs were compared, acamprosate was found to be more effective in preventing a lapse, whereas naltrexone was better in preventing a lapse from becoming a relapse. The superiority of either one drug or over the other one cannot be determined as a general rule, it rather depends on the therapeutic target. Benefits in the treatment of alcohol dependence might be optimized by matching the efficacy profiles of specific antidipsotropics with the motivational status of alcohol-dependent patients.
Periodic Holes with 10 nm Diameter Produced by Grazing Ar+ Milling of the Barrier Layer in Hexagonally Ordered Nanoporous Alumina (2001)

Long-term anodization of aluminum provides a hexagonally ordered array of nanopores with very uniform pore diameters (between 30 and 50 nm, depending on pH, acid, and potential) and pore spacings of 80 to 100 nm within a matrix of amorphous aluminum oxide. However, one often desires smaller diameters. Because the bottom of each pore is U-shaped, we can use this geometrical feature and gradually open the U-shaped bottom cap of the alumina nanochannel by controlled grazing angle Ar+ ion milling and thus form smaller pore apertures. In initial results, we prepared opened holes with a diameter as small as 10 nm. This opens the door to numerous applications that need small but hexagonally periodic features produced by inexpensive means.
Energy harvesting for the implantable biomedical devices: issues and challenges (2014)

The development of implanted devices is essential because of their direct effect on the lives and safety of humanity. This paper presents the current issues and challenges related to all methods used to harvest energy for implantable biomedical devices. The advantages, disadvantages, and future trends of each method are discussed. The concept of harvesting energy from environmental sources and human body motion for implantable devices has gained a new relevance. In this review, the harvesting kinetic, electromagnetic, thermal and infrared radiant energies are discussed. Current issues and challenges related to the typical applications of these methods for energy harvesting are illustrated. Suggestions and discussion of the progress of research on implantable devices are also provided. This review is expected to increase research efforts to develop the battery-less implantable devices with reduced over hole size, low power, high efficiency, high data rate, and improved reliability and feasibility. Based on current literature, we believe that the inductive coupling link is the suitable method to be used to power the battery-less devices. Therefore, in this study, the power efficiency of the inductive coupling method is validated by MATLAB based on suggested values. By further researching and improvements, in the future the implantable and portable medical devices are expected to be free of batteries.
Extensive cross-homology between the long and the short arm of chromosome 16 may explain leukemic inversions and translocations (1992)

Specific rearrangements of chromosome 16 are well known in acute nonlymphocytic leukemia with abnormal eosinophils. While mapping cosmids relative to breakpoints in chromosome 16 in leukemic cells with fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), we have identified three areas of extensive cross-homology between 16p and 16q. Three cosmids among 99 tested showed two large signals on the short arm and one signal on the long arm of chromosome 16. A fourth cosmid showed mainly two signals on the short arm. With the 16p-specific cosmid we can demonstrate that the breakpoints of a pericentric inversion and a reciprocal (16;16) translocation, both of which are characteristic for acute leukemia, map to the most distal of two blocks on the short arm. We suggest that there may be at least two distinct repetitive elements specific for chromosome 16 interdigitated on 16p. The presence of a similar repeat in the short, as well as the long arm of the chromosome, may play a role in the origin of chromosome 16 rearrangements in acute leukemia.
The biological properties of interleukin-1. (1995)

Interleukin-1 (IL-1) is primarily an inflammatory cytokine. Biologically, IL-1 is more closely related to tumor necrosis factor (TNF) than any other cytokine or interleukin, although the structure and receptors for IL-1 and TNF are clearly distinct. IL-1 is active in the low pM and fM range and IL-1 receptors (IL-1R) are expressed in most cells, although less than 100 receptors per cell is not an uncommon finding. Based on short-term blockade of IL-1 receptors in humans and animals and IL-1 beta knock-out mice, there is no evidence that IL-1 beta plays a role in development, or normal homeostasis such as metabolism, hematopoiesis, renal and hepatic function or regulation of blood pressure. On the other hand, IL-1 alpha is found constitutively produced by various epithelial cells, keratinocytes of the skin and in the brain. In these locations, IL-1 may contribute to cell growth and repair functions. During inflammation, injury, immunological challenge or infection, IL-1 is produced and because of its multiple biological properties, IL-1 must contribute to disease. Most studies on IL-1 are derived from experiments in which humans or animals are injected with IL-1 or IL-1 is added to cells in vitro. The biological properties of IL-1 suggest that its effects often mimic host responses to infection, inflammation, injury or immunologic challenge. Using specific IL-1 blockade, it is clear IL-1 is playing a critical role in some disease processes. This review will focus on IL-1 as a cytokine of primary and strategic importance to the initiation and progression of inflammatory and infectious diseases.
Fall Bulletin 1998 (1998)

TABLE OF CONTENTS From the Director (Thak Chaloemtiarana) - 1 • A Historian among the Anthropologists: Post-Fieldwork Rantings by Jeff Hadler - 2 • Fusing Horizons through Teaching Southeast Asian Art by Kaja McGowan - 6 • The Opium Project: Strengthening Library Collections through Cooperative Partnerships by Allen Riedy - 8 • Cornell, The Return by James Ockey - 10 • Association for Asian Studies Award for Distinguished Contributions to Asian Studies - 11 • Teresa Palmer Marks Twentieth Anniversary at SEAP by Stanley O'Connor - 12 Southeast Asia Program Publications - 13 • From South to Southeast: SEAP Outreach Collaborates with South Asia Program on Summer Teacher-Training Workshop by Penny Dietrich - 14 • SEAP FACULTY 1998-99 - 15 • Doctoral Dissertations on Southeast Asia - 16 • Highlights of New SEAP Courses for 1998-99 - 17 • SEAP Area Studies Course Listings - 18 • SEAP Language Course Listings 1998-99 - 20
A Second-order Gradient Method for Determining Optimal Trajectories of Non-linear Discrete-time Systems (1966)

ABSTRACT A second-order method of successively improving a control sequence for a non-linear discrete-time system is derived. One step convergence is obtained for linear systems with quadratic performance functions. Although the results are of interest in their own right, a second-order method for continuous-time systems is obtained by formally allowing the sampling interval to approach zero. The equations so obtained differ slightly, because of the method of derivation, from results already obtained using the calculus of variations approach. The difference, which is an advantage of the method described in this paper, is that one vector differential equation less has to be integrated. The approach used in the derivation is motivated by dynamic programming and facilitates the application of gradient methods to stochastic problems which will be the subject of a future paper.
MAPK signaling control of colon cancer metastasis (2014)

Mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathways convert extracellular signals into specific cellular responses through a cascade of phosphorylation events. Hence, tight regulation of these signaling pathways is essential for normal cell function and deregulation leads to various diseases including tumorigenesis. Three major MAPK families have been found deregulated in cancer: ERK1 and ERK2 (ERK1/2), p38 MAPK and the Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK). In non-transformed cells, ERK1/2 are involved mainly in the mitogenesis response whereas p38 MAPK and JNK mediate cellular stress and inflammatory responses.
Correlation between urinary cortisol and 6‐sulphatoxymelatonin rhythms in field studies of blind subjects (1999)

Urinary cortisol is recommended as a useful marker of circadian phase in field studies in addition to urinary 6-sulphatoxymelatonin measurements.
In vivo RNA Interference–Mediated Ablation of MDR1 P-Glycoprotein (2005)

Multidrug resistance (MDR) remains a major obstacle to successful chemotherapeutic treatment of cancer and can be caused by overexpression of P-glycoprotein, the MDR1 gene product. To further validate a knockdown approach for circumventing MDR, we developed a P-glycoprotein inhibition strategy using short hairpin RNA interference (shRNAi) and now show efficacy and target specificity in vivo. Two of eight tested shRNAi constructs targeted against human MDR1 mRNA inhibited expression of P-glycoprotein by >90%, whereas control shRNAi had no effect. Ablation of P-glycoprotein in cells stably transduced with retroviral-mediated shRNAi was documented by Western blot and functionally confirmed by increased sensitivity of MDR1-transfected cells toward the cytotoxic drugs vincristine, paclitaxel, and doxorubicin as well as by transport of (99m)Tc-Sestamibi. shRNAi-mediated down-regulation of P-glycoprotein transport activity both in cultured cells and in tumor implants in living animals could be followed by direct noninvasive bioluminescence imaging using the Renilla luciferase fluorophore, coelenterazine, a known P-glycoprotein transport substrate. Furthermore, after somatic gene transfer by hydrodynamic infusion of a MDR1-Firefly luciferase (MDR1-FLuc) fusion construct into mouse liver, the effect of shRNAi delivered in vivo on P-glycoprotein-FLuc protein levels was documented with bioluminescence imaging using d-luciferin. ShRNAi against MDR1 reduced bioluminescence output of the P-glycoprotein-FLuc reporter 4-fold in vivo compared with mice treated with control or scrambled shRNAi. Targeted down-regulation of a somatically transferred P-glycoprotein-eGFP fusion reporter also was observed using fluorescence microscopy. Our results show that shRNAi effectively inhibited MDR1 expression and function in cultured cells, tumor implants and mammalian liver, documenting the feasibility of a knockdown approach to reversing MDR in vivo.
Acidic Extracellular pH Promotes Experimental Metastasis of Human Melanoma Cells in Athymic Nude Mice (2006)

Extracellular pH (pH(e)) is lower in many tumors than in the corresponding normal tissue. The significance of acidic pH(e) in the development of metastatic disease was investigated in the present work. Human melanoma cells (A-07, D-12, and T-22) were cultured in vitro at pH(e) 6.8 or 7.4 (control) before being inoculated into the tail vein of BALB/c nu/nu mice for formation of experimental pulmonary metastases. Cell invasiveness was studied in vitro by using Matrigel invasion chambers and angiogenesis was studied in vivo by using an intradermal assay. Protein secretion was measured by ELISA and immunocapture assays. Cells cultured at acidic pH(e) showed increased secretion of proteinases and proangiogenic factors, enhanced invasive and angiogenic potential, and enhanced potential to develop experimental metastases. Acidity-induced metastasis was inhibited by treatment with the general matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) inhibitor GM6001, the general cysteine proteinase inhibitor E-64, or blocking antibody against vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) or interleukin-8 (IL-8). Our study indicates that acidic pH(e) promotes experimental pulmonary metastasis in A-07, D-12, and T-22 human melanoma cells by a common mechanism involving acidity-induced up-regulation of the proteolytic enzymes MMP-2, MMP-9, cathepsin B, and cathepsin L and acidity-induced up-regulation of the proangiogenic factors VEGF-A and IL-8. One consequence of this observation is that treatment strategies involving deliberate tumor acidification to improve the efficacy of chemotherapy, photodynamic therapy, and hyperthermia should be avoided. Moreover, the possibility that the pH(e) of the primary tumor may be an important prognostic parameter for melanoma patients merits clinical investigation.
Spinal mineral loss in oophorectomized women. Determination by quantitative computed tomography (1980)

Computed tomography (CT) provides precise anatomic localization coupled with quantitative x-ray attenuation information that can be used to determine bone mineral content. A precise and sensitive method for vertebral mineral measurement by CT is described and illustrated with results from an ongoing study of mineral loss in oophorectomized women. Spinal mineral loss measured by quantitative CT is compared with peripheral loss determined by photon absorptiometry and radiogrammetry. Vertebral cancellous bone loss was significant for the group as a whole at 12 months, while mean peripheral measurements showed no change. In two subjects in whom mineral change was significant at both sites, spinal loss was approximately five times greater than peripheral loss. (<i>JAMA</i>244:2056-2059, 1980)
The Epothilones, Eleutherobins, and Related Types of Molecules (2001)

Taxol is currently one of the most effective anticancer agents available. However, limitations due to multidrug-resistance (MDR) susceptibility and lack of aqueous solubility render it less than an ideal drug. These limitations, coupled with taxol's unique mechanism of tumor inhibition, involving the stabilization of microtubule assembly, have spurred the search for more effective chemotherapeutic agents. This review will discuss the chemistry and biology of some of the most promising new molecules with "taxol-like" activity. The extended family of microtubule-stabilizing agents now includes the epothilones, eleutherobins, discodermolide, laulimalide and WS9885B. The epothilones have emerged as one of the most exciting new candidates for detailed structure-activity-related studies. A review of our efforts in the synthetic and biological aspects of this research is presented, as are the latest developments reported from other laboratories in academia and the pharmaceutical industry. The synthesis and structure-activity studies of eleutherobins, as well as recent progress with discodermolide, laulimalide and WS9885B are also reviewed. An abundance of exciting advances in chemistry and biology have emerged from these studies, and it is hoped that it will ultimately result in the development of new and more effective chemotherapeutic agents in the fight against cancer.
Masitinib treatment in patients with progressive multiple sclerosis: a randomized pilot study (2012)

These data suggest that masitinib is of therapeutic benefit to PPMS and rfSPMS patients and could therefore represent an innovative avenue of treatment for this disease. This exploratory trial provides evidence that may support a larger placebo-controlled investigation.
Monolithic pyroelectric infrared image sensor using PVDF thin film (2002)

A 16/spl times/16 monolithic pyroelectric infrared image sensor has been developed. The image sensor utilizes an electro-spray (ESP) deposited polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) thin film as a pyroelectric material, a buried channel MOSFET as a low noise detection device, and a micromachined four-beams supported membrane as a thermal isolation structure. A voltage sensitivity of 6600 V/W and a detectivity of 1.6/spl times/10/sup 7/ cm Hz/sup 1/2/ W/sup -1/ have been realized with a sensing area of 75/spl times/75 /spl mu/m/sup 2/.
Effect of nitrogen incorporation to oxidation process on the reliability of magnetic tunnel junctions (2005)

Magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) were fabricated using nitrogen-mixed oxygen plasma (O/sub 2/:N/sub 2/=10:1). From the measurements of time-dependent dielectric breakdown (TDDB) under a constant voltage stress, the reliability of MTJs with an oxy-nitride barrier was investigated and compared with that of MTJs fabricated using pure oxygen plasma. The reliability of MTJs with an oxy-nitride barrier is much improved with the incorporation of nitrogen to oxidation process. In addition, the reliability of the oxy-nitride barrier is gradually enhanced with increasing oxy-nitridation time even after the time exceeds the optimal value. It is believed that the enhancement is due to the bonding of nitrogen to electron traps both in the oxide barriers and at the bottom interface. The characteristics of the bonding were examined by XPS measurements, which reveal a nitrogen 1s peak in Al-N bond. The lifetime of the two barriers was also estimated for comparison.
Redefining the clinical remission period in children with type 1 diabetes (2004)

Older children have a longer remission period than younger children. The clinical definition of the remission period should be redefined to include both the insulin dose and the HbA1c level. Any attempt to extend the remission period in children is more apt to be successful in dealing with older children and with the introduction of the intervention as soon after diagnosis as is feasible.