gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Attentive Conditional Channel-Recurrent Autoencoding for Attribute-Conditioned Face Synthesis (2019)

Attribute-conditioned face synthesis has many potential use cases, such as to aid the identification of a suspect or a missing person. Building on top of a conditional version of VAE-GAN, we augment the pathways connecting the latent space with channel-recurrent architecture, in order to provide not only improved generation qualities but also interpretable high-level features. In particular, to better achieve the latter, we further propose an attention mechanism over each attribute to indicate the specific latent subset responsible for its modulation. Thanks to the latent semantics formed via the channel-recurreny, we envision a tool that takes the desired attributes as inputs and then performs a 2-stage general-to-specific generation of diverse and realistic faces. Lastly, we incorporate the progressive-growth training scheme to the inference, generation and discriminator networks of our models to facilitate higher resolution outputs. Evaluations are performed through both qualitative visual examination and quantitative metrics, namely inception scores, human preferences, and attribute classification accuracy.
Oligonucleotide-Based Therapeutic Options against Hepatitis C Virus Infection (2006)

The hepatitis C virus (HCV) is the cause of a silent pandemic that, due to the chronic nature of the disease and the absence of curative therapy, continues to claim an ever-increasing number of lives. Current antiviral regimens have proven largely unsatisfactory for patients with HCV drug-resistant genotypes. It is therefore important to explore alternative therapeutic stratagems whose mode of action allows them to bypass viral resistance. Antisense oligonucleotides, ribozymes, small interfering RNAs, aptamers and deoxyribozymes constitute classes of oligonucleotide-based compounds designed to target highly conserved or functionally crucial regions contained within the HCV genome. The therapeutic expectation for such compounds is the elimination of HCV from infected individuals. Progress in oligonucleotide-based HCV antivirals towards clinical application depends on development of nucleotide designs that bolster efficacy while minimizing toxicity, improvement in liver-targeting delivery systems, and refinement of small-animal models for preclinical testing.
Pulmonary embolism, part I: Epidemiology, risk factors and risk stratification, pathophysiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis and nonthrombotic pulmonary embolism. (2013)

Pulmonary embolism is an important clinical entity with considerable mortality despite advances in diagnosis and treatment. In the present article, the authors offer a comprehensive review focused mainly on epidemiology, risk factors, risk stratification, pathophysiological considerations and clinical presentation. Diagnosis based on assessment of clinical likelihood, electrocardiography, chest x-ray, D-dimer levels, markers of myocardial injury and overload, and blood gases is discussed in detail. Special attention is devoted to the clinical use of computed tomography, pulmonary angiography and echocardiography in the setting of pulmonary embolism.
Resilience of clinical text de-identified with “hiding in plain sight” to hostile reidentification attacks by human readers (2020)

Approximately 70% of leaked PII "hiding" in a corpus de-identified with HIPS resynthesis is resilient to detection by human readers in a realistic, aggressive reidentification attack scenario-more than double the rate reported in previous studies but less than the rate reported for an attack assisted by machine learning methods.
Suppression of type 1 pilus assembly in uropathogenic Escherichia coli by chemical inhibition of subunit polymerization (2013)

We have identified and characterized a small molecule that interferes with the assembly of type 1 pili. The molecule targets the polymerization step during the subunit incorporation cycle of the chaperone-usher pathway. Our discovery provides new insight into the design and development of novel anti-virulence therapies targeting key virulence factors of bacterial pathogens.
Model of a hybrid distributed generation system for a DC nano-grid (2016)

A large segment of the world's population lives in rural areas that are geographically isolated, remote and sparsely populated. Nano grids employing hybrid energy systems (HES) based on photovoltaics (PV) and wind farms are considered to be an effective option to electrify remote and isolated areas which are far from conventional grids. This is applicable to areas that receive high averages of solar radiation and sufficient average wind speed annually. In this research investigation, a DC nano-grid was modelled, simulated and optimized for a hybrid solar-PV and wind, with energy storage and a back-up diesel generator for Umzinyathi district in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. A site survey was conducted, wind resource and solar radiation data obtained for the purpose of load forecasting and system modelling. HOMER software was used for system modelling. Minimum cost optimization of the system was carried out taking into consideration the costs of system components, hourly solar radiation and rating parameters as inputs into the simulation program. Sensitivity variables were specified to examine the effect of their uncertainties on system performance. Based on simulation results, the optimal system comprises of a 100kW PV array, thirteen 7.5kW wind turbines, 20kW diesel generator, and 96 Trojan T-105 deep cycle batteries. The net present cost (NPC), cost of energy (CoE) and payback period of the optimal system were found to be $459 545, $0.248/kWh and 4 years respectively. The economic and environmental analysis indicated that it is more advisable to electrify remote settlements using a DC nano-grid based on hybrid systems with multiple renewable sources as they have lower operating costs and more environmental friendly due to the reduced dependence on diesel generating units.
Effect of Vesicular–Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi on Rooting of Sciadopitys verticillata Sieb & Zucc. Cuttings (1995)

A vesicular–arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus in a peat-based medium significantly increased survival, callus development, and rooting percentage of Sciadopitys verticillata cuttings over noninoculated cuttings. The presence of a nurse host plant for the mycorrhizal fungi to colonize in the absence of S. verticillata roots decreased survival and rooting percentage, but not callus development, relative to the fungus without the nurse host. Among plants that did produce roots, however, there were no significant differences among treatments for root number, weight, or length per cutting.
Nϵ-Carboxymethyl-Lysine Deteriorates Vascular Calcification in Diabetic Atherosclerosis Induced by Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell-Derived Foam Cells (2020)

Nϵ-carboxymethyl-lysine (CML), an advanced glycation end product, is involved in vascular calcification (VC) in diabetic atherosclerosis. This study aimed to investigate the effects of CML on VC in diabetic atherosclerosis induced by vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC)-derived foam cells. Human studies, animal studies and cell studies were performed. The human study results from 100 patients revealed a poor blood glucose and lipid status and more severe coronary lesions and stenosis in patients with coronary artery disease and diabetes mellitus. Intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin combined with a high-fat diet was used to build a diabetic atherosclerosis model in ApoE<sup>-/-</sup> mice. The animal study results indicated that CML accelerated VC progression in diabetic atherosclerosis by accelerating the accumulation of VSMC-derived foam cells in ApoE<sup>-/-</sup> mice. The cell study results illustrated that CML induced VSMC-derived foam cells apoptosis and aggravated foam cells calcification. Consistent with this finding, calcium content and the expression levels of alkaline phosphatase, bone morphogenetic protein 2 and runt-related transcription factor 2 were significantly elevated in A7r5 cells treated with oxidation-low-density lipoprotein and CML. Thus, we concluded that CML promoted VSMC-derived foam cells calcification to aggravate VC in diabetic atherosclerosis, providing evidence for the contribution of foam cells to diabetic VC.
Regeneration of the heart (2011)

The death of cardiac myocytes diminishes the heart's pump function and is a major cause of heart failure, one of the dominant causes of death worldwide. Other than transplantation, there are no therapies that directly address the loss of cardiac myocytes, which explains the current excitement in cardiac regeneration. The field is evolving in two important directions. First, although endogenous mammalian cardiac regeneration clearly seems to decline rapidly after birth, it may still persist in adulthood. The careful elucidation of the cellular and molecular mechanisms of endogenous heart regeneration may therefore provide an opportunity for developing therapeutic interventions that amplify this process. Second, recent breakthroughs have enabled reprogramming of cells that were apparently terminally differentiated, either by dedifferentiation into pluripotent stem cells or by transdifferentiation into cardiac myocytes. These achievements challenge our conceptions of what is possible in terms of heart regeneration. In this review, we discuss the current status of research on cardiac regeneration, with a focus on the challenges that hold back therapeutic development.
Observation and Active Control of a Collective Polariton Mode and Polaritonic Band Gap in Few-Layer WS2 Strongly Coupled with Plasmonic Lattices (2019)

Two-dimensional semiconductors host excitons with very large oscillator strengths and binding energies due to significantly reduced carrier screening. Two-dimensional semiconductors integrated with optical cavities are emerging as a promising platform for studying strong light-matter interactions as a route to explore a variety of exotic many-body effects. Here, in few-layered WS<sub>2</sub> coupled with plasmonic nanoparticle lattices, we observe the formation of a collective polaritonic mode near the exciton energy and the formation of a complete polariton band gap with energy scale comparable to the exciton-plasmon coupling strength. A coupled oscillator model reveals that the collective mode arises from the cooperative coupling of the excitons to the plasmonic lattice diffraction orders via exciton-exciton interactions, leading to ultrastrong coupling. The emergence of the collective mode is accompanied by a superlinear increase of the polariton mode splitting as a function of the square root of the exciton oscillator strength. The presence of these many body effects, which are enhanced in systems which lack bulk polarization, not only allows the formation of a collective mode with periodically varying field profiles, but also further enhances the exciton-plasmon coupling. By integrating the hybrid WS<sub>2</sub>-plasmonic lattice device with a field-effect transistor, we demonstrate active tuning of the collective mode and the polariton band gap. We also report electrically tunable waveguiding in the polariton band gap region through a line defect, which can be turned off with gate bias that can extinguish the collective mode and the polariton band gap. These systems provide new opportunities for obtaining a deeper and systematic understanding of many body cooperative phenomena in two-dimensional materials coupled with periodic photonic systems and for designing more complex and actively controllable polaritonic devices including switchable polariton lasers, waveguides, and optical logical elements.
A Flexible UWB Antenna Attachable to Various Kinds of Materials (2007)

A flexible monopole antenna fabricated on PET film for UWB systems is proposed and the effects of the various kinds of the attached materials is analyzed. The proposed antenna has good performance over the entire UWB bandwidth, and it can be mounted on various kinds of conformal materials meeting the UWB bandwidth by using the stepped CPW feed line and the beveled ground plane. From the results, it is observed that the proposed antenna has the similar radiation patterns and the return loss in comparison with the planar type monopole antenna, when it is rolled.
Fabrication of an active nanostencil with integrated microshutters (2004)

An active nanostencil, consisting of a thin (200 nm) silicon nitride membrane with attached polysilicon microactuators that can be used to dynamically open and/or close holes in the silicon nitride membrane, is presented. This nanostencil can be used as a shadow mask in an evaporation setup. Main features of the nanostencil are the absence of sacrificial oxide in the final product, strengthening of the membrane by a polysilicon hexagonal structure that is attached directly to the membrane and the use of low-doped regions in the polysilicon to separate the stator and rotor electrically.
Toward a Theory of Multirate Nonlinear Systems (2006)

This paper presents certain basic features of multirate nonlinear systems. The use of transfer functions, a common tool in the analysis of multirate linear systems, is replaced by operator techniques. This approach reveals how to extend basic notions such as polyphase components and noble identities to the nonlinear case. Three applications, namely filter banks, fractionally spaced equalizers, and digital predistorters are discussed.
A ROLE OF LYSOSOMAL ENZYMES IN THE MECHANISM OF MUCOLYTIC ACTION OF BROMHEXINE (1983)

The effect of bromhexine on behaviors of lysosomal enzymes in the submucosal gland was investigated using canine tracheal slice preparations, with reference to the histochemical changes in acid glycoproteins (AGP) in the gland. Incubation of tracheal slices with 1% Triton X-100 or 0.0004-0.04% bromhexine for 30 min decreased the number of stained lysosomes in the glandular cells. The decrease in stained lysosomes after treatment with 1% Triton X-100 or 0.04% bromhexine was effectively prevented by addition of 5% lecithin. The number of glandular cells that were stained red (stain index R) in the combined alcian blue at pH 2.5 and periodic acid-Schiff procedure markedly increased by treatment with 1% Triton X-100 or 0.0004-0.04% bromhexine. In the bromhexine treated groups, there was a close correlation (r=0.932, P<0.01) between the increase in the number of glandular cells showing the stain index R and the decrease in the number of stained lysosomes in the cells. These findings suggest that the enzymes which are liberated from lysosomes into the cytoplasm by bromhexine may, at least in a part, be involved in the mucolytic action of the agent on AGP contained in mucus granules of the submucosal gland.
Figure S5 from Lymphotoxin-β Interacts with Methylated EGFR to Mediate Acquired Resistance to Cetuximab in Head and Neck Cancer (2023)

&lt;p&gt;Interaction between LTβ and methylated EGFR activates EGFR and induces cetuximab resistance&lt;/p&gt;
Poster 163: Evaluating the Role of Subacromial Impingement in Rotator Cuff Tendinopathy: Development and Analysis of a Novel Rat Model (2022)

Objectives: Subacromial impingement of the rotator cuff caused by variations in acromial anatomy is an extrinsic factor that leads to inflammation and degeneration of the rotator cuff, ultimately contributing to the development of tendinopathy. However, microscopic and molecular changes in the impinged tendon remain poorly understood, and a robust rat model for studying rotator cuff tendinopathy is still lacking. Methods: Our study was approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee. A total of 44 adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were included in the study. Animals were randomly allocated to one of four study groups: intact control group (Group 1, n=11); bilateral subacromial surgical clip placement to induce supraspinatus impingement for 2 weeks (Group 2, n=11), 4 weeks (Group 3, n=11) and 8 weeks (Group 4, n=11). At time of sacrifice, bilateral shoulder specimens were harvested for biomechanical testing, histological and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) analysis. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with the post-hoc Tukey test was used to analyze differences among groups. Results: Radiography confirmed that all microvascular clips remained in stable position in the subacromial space. Gross inspection of supraspinatus tendon specimens in the impingement groups revealed frayed and hazy tendon discoloration at the enthesis and mid-substance. Biomechanical evaluation demonstrated decreased supraspinatus tendon failure force and tissue stiffness at all time points compared to control group. Histologic specimens demonstrated significant, persistent tendinopathic changes over 8 weeks, with the mean modified Bonar scores significantly increased in the clip impingement groups compared to the control group (control: 1.56±0.86; 2 weeks group: 9.17±0.76; 4 weeks group: 9.11±0.65; and 8 weeks group: 6.56±0.50. P &lt;0.001 for all comparisons). qRT-PCR analysis of impinged tendon specimens demonstrated upregulation of gene expression for Col3 and MMP14 in the impingement groups compared with control groups (P =0.001 and 0.015 respectively). In muscle samples, significant upregulation was seen in the expression of genes that are commonly associated with muscle atrophy (MURF1: P &lt;0.001 and UBE2B: P &lt;0.001) and fatty infiltration (FABP4: P =0.002, PPARγ2: P =0.006, and KLF15: P =0.001). Conclusions: In conclusion, we developed a novel rat model of subacromial impingement and found consistent and sustained histologic, biomechanical, and gene expression changes that are consistent with findings in human tendinopathy. This model will allow future studies to further evaluate the underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms of tendinopathy, as well as evaluation of novel therapeutic approaches for treatment of this common problem. [Figure: see text][Figure: see text][Figure: see text]
Build-up Dynamics of Dissipative Solitons in a Nonlinear Polarization Evolution Mode-locked Fiber Laser (2021)

We report the build-up dynamics of dissipative solitons in a net-normal mode-locked fiber laser via time-stretch dispersive Fourier transform technique. In this report, five distinct transient stages are unveiled in the overall build-up process.
Comparison of monoamine oxidase inhibition by cigarettes and modified risk tobacco products (2019)

The adverse effects of cigarette smoking are well documented, and the two main strategies for reducing smoking prevalence are prevention of smoking initiation and promotion of smoking cessation. More recently, a third and complementary avenue, tobacco harm reduction has emerged, which is aimed to reduce the burden of smoking-related diseases. This has been enabled by the development of novel products such as electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) and heated tobacco products, designed to deliver nicotine with significantly reduced levels of the toxicants that are emitted by cigarettes. Several potential modified risk tobacco products (pMRTP) have been reported to emit significantly less toxicants than cigarettes and significantly reduce toxicant exposure in smokers who switch completely to such products. These are two prerequisites for pMRTPs to reduce harm and the risk of smoking-related disease. However, concerns remain regarding the addictive nature of these products. Smoking addiction is a complex phenomenon involving multiple pharmacological and non-pharmacological factors. Although the main pharmacological substance associated with smoking addiction is nicotine, accumulating evidence suggests that nicotine mostly acts as a primary reinforcer and that other factors are involved in establishing smoking addiction. Inhibition of monoamine oxidases (MAO)-mammalian flavoenzymes with a central role in neurotransmitter metabolism-has also been suggested to be involved in this process. Therefore, we aimed to comparatively investigate the ability of several types of pMRTPs and cigarette smoke (3R4F) to inhibit MAO activity. The results showed that the heated tobacco product Tobacco Heating System (THS) 2.2 and the <i>MESH 1.1</i> e-cigarette possessed no MAO inhibitory activity while 3R4F significantly inhibits the levels of MAO activity (3R4F MAO-A and B; > 2 μM nicotine). Snus products have similar inhibition profiles as 3R4F but for larger nicotine concentrations (snus MAO-A; ∼68-fold, snus MAO-B; ∼23-fold higher compared to 3R4F). These observations were confirmed by analytical datasets of potential MAO inhibitors emitted by these products. In conclusion, we have demonstrated that specific pMRTPs, namely THS 2.2 and <i>MESH 1.1</i>, have a significantly lower MAO-inhibitory activity than 3R4F. These findings provide a basis for further investigation of the role of MAO inhibitors in cigarette addiction as well as the implications of the findings for abuse liability of pMRTPs in comparison with cigarettes.
VolSurf and Its Application in Structure‐Disposition Relationships (2001)

We present calculated molecular properties from 3D molecular fields of interaction energies as a novel approach to correlate 3D molecular structures with pharmacokinetic and physicochemical properties.
Meta‐modeling soil organic carbon sequestration potential and its application at regional scale (2012)

Upscaling the results from process-based soil-plant models to assess regional soil organic carbon (SOC) change and sequestration potential is a great challenge due to the lack of detailed spatial information, particularly soil properties. Meta-modeling can be used to simplify and summarize process-based models and significantly reduce the demand for input data and thus could be easily applied on regional scales. We used the pre-validated Agricultural Production Systems sIMulator (APSIM) to simulate the impact of climate, soil, and management on SOC at 613 reference sites across Australia's cereal-growing regions under a continuous wheat system. We then developed a simple meta-model to link the APSIM-modeled SOC change to primary drivers, i.e., the amount of recalcitrant SOC, plant available water capacity of soil, soil pH, and solar radiation, temperature, and rainfall in the growing season. Based on high-resolution soil texture data and 8165 climate data points across the study area, we used the meta-model to assess SOC sequestration potential and the uncertainty associated with the variability of soil characteristics. The meta-model explained 74% of the variation of final SOC content as simulated by APSIM. Applying the meta-model to Australia's cereal-growing regions reveals regional patterns in SOC, with higher SOC stock in cool, wet regions. Overall, the potential SOC stock ranged from 21.14 to 152.71 Mg/ha with a mean of 52.18 Mg/ha. Variation of soil properties induced uncertainty ranging from 12% to 117% with higher uncertainty in warm, wet regions. In general, soils in Australia's cereal-growing regions under continuous wheat production were simulated as a sink of atmospheric carbon dioxide with a mean sequestration potential of 8.17 Mg/ha.
AMSC-derived exosomes alleviate lipopolysaccharide/d-galactosamine-induced acute liver failure by miR-17-mediated reduction of TXNIP/NLRP3 inflammasome activation in macrophages (2018)

Exosome-shuttled miR-17 plays an essential role in AMSC-Exo therapy for ALF by targeting TXNIP and suppressing inflammasome activation in hepatic macrophages. AMSC-Exo-based therapy may present as a promising approach for TXNIP/NLRP3 inflammasome-related inflammatory liver diseases. FUND: Key R&D projects of Zhejiang province (2018C03019) and National Natural Science Fund (81470851 and 81500616).