gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Melatonin at pharmacological doses enhances human osteoblastic differentiation in vitro and promotes mouse cortical bone formation in vivo (2006)

Melatonin is known to regulate a variety of physiological processes including control of circadian rhythms, regulation of seasonal reproductive function, regulation of body temperature, and so forth. Accumulating evidence from in vitro and in vivo experiments using rodent and chicken has also suggested that melatonin may have an influence on skeletal growth and bone formation. However, little is known about the effects of melatonin on human osteoblasts, which thus remains to be elucidated. This study was performed to determine whether melatonin could affect the proliferation and differentiation of human osteoblasts in vitro and to demonstrate the possibility that melatonin could be applied as a pharmaceutical agent to shorten the treatment period of bone fracture, various osteotomies, and bone distraction. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction and Western blot analysis showed that human osteoblasts expressed melatonin 1a receptor and that its expression levels decreased gradually with the age of the hosts. Melatonin stimulated the proliferation and alkaline phosphatase activity of human osteoblasts in a dose-dependent manner at the pharmacological concentrations. Melatonin also promotes gene expression of type I collagen, osteopontin, bone sialoprotein, and osteocalcin in a dose-dependent manner, and stimulated the mineralized matrix formation in vitro. Moreover, intraperitoneal administration of melatonin to mice increased the volume of newly formed cortical bone of femora. These results demonstrated that melatonin directly accelerated the differentiation of osteoblasts of human as well as rodent and chicken and also suggested that melatonin could be applied as a pharmaceutical agent to promote bone regeneration.
Paricalcitol versus cinacalcet plus low-dose vitamin D therapy for the treatment of secondary hyperparathyroidism in patients receiving haemodialysis: results of the IMPACT SHPT study (2012)

Paricalcitol versus cinacalcet plus low-dose vitamin D provided superior control of iPTH, with low incidence of hypercalcaemia.
Brother of the regulator of the imprinted site (BORIS) variant subfamily 6 is involved in cervical cancer stemness and can be a target of immunotherapy (2016)

Cervical cancer is a major cause of cancer death in females worldwide. Cervical cancer stem-like cells (CSCs)/cancer-initiating cells (CICs) are resistant to conventional radiotherapy and chemotherapy, and CSCs/CICs are thought to be responsible for recurrence. Eradication of CSCs/CICs is thus essential to cure cervical cancer. In this study, we isolated cervical CSCs/CICs by sphere culture, and we identified a cancer testis (CT) antigen, CTCFL/BORIS, that is expressed in cervical CSCs/CICs. BORIS has 23 mRNA isoform variants classified by 6 subfamilies (sfs), and they encode 17 different BORIS peptides. BORIS sf1 and sf4 are expressed in both CSCs/CICs and non-CSCs/CICs, whereas BORIS sf6 is expressed only in CSCs/CICs. Overexpression of BORIS sf6 in cervical cancer cells increased sphere formation and tumor-initiating ability compared with those in control cells, whereas overexpression of BORIS sf1 and BORIS sf4 resulted in only slight increases. Thus, BORIS sf6 is a cervical CSC/CIC-specific subfamily and has a role in the maintenance of cervical CSCs/CICs. BORIS sf6 contains a specific c-terminal domain (C34), and we identified a human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A2-restricted antigenic peptide, BORIS C34_24(9) encoded by BORIS sf6. A BORIS C34_24(9)-specific cytotoxic T cell (CTL) clone showed cytotoxicity for BORIS sf6-overexpressing cervical cancer cells. Furthermore, the CTL clone significantly suppressed sphere formation of CaSki cells. Taken together, the results indicate that the CT antigen BORIS sf6 is specifically expressed in cervical CSCs/CICs, that BORIS sf6 has a role in the maintenance of CSCs/CICs, and that BORIS C34_24(9) peptide is a promising candidate for cervical CSC/CIC-targeting immunotherapy.
High-Performance Thermally Self-Cross-Linked Polymer of Intrinsic Microporosity (PIM-1) Membranes for Energy Development (2012)

Novel thermally self-cross-linked polymers of intrinsic microporosity (PIM-1) membranes have been prepared by postmodification of PIM-1 at the elevated temperature for a period of 0.5–2 days. The occurrence of cross-linking reaction has been verified by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray photoelectron spectrometer (XPS) and gel content analyses. TGA analyses indicate an increase in thermal stability of membranes after the thermal cross-linking treatment. There is also an obvious drop in the maximum decomposition rate comparing to the original PIM-1when membranes are thermally treated for an extended period of time. Both FTIR and XPS results suggest that the nitrile-containing PIM-1 membranes undergo a latent cross-linking reaction, and form stable bulky triazine rings. The resultant cross-linked polymeric membranes exhibit exceptional gas separation performance that surpasses the most recent upper bound of state-of-the-art polymeric membranes for the important gas separations, such as hydrogen purification, CO2 capture and flue gas separation. In addition, both gas permeability (attributed to the contorted nature, rearrangement and pronounced inefficient packing of PIM polymer chains) and selectivity (attributed to the decrease of chain-to-chain spacing) increase diagonally with the upper bound line when thermal soaking time increases. PIM-1 thermally treated at 300 °C for 2 days has the CO2 permeability of 4000 barrer with CO2/CH4 and CO2/N2 ideal selectivity of 54.8 and 41.7, respectively. The thermally cross-linked PIM-1 membranes will probably provide a promising alternative in industrial energy development.
Human-swarm interaction using spatial gestures (2014)

This paper presents a machine vision based approach for human operators to select individual and groups of autonomous robots from a swarm of UAVs. The angular distance between the robots and the human is estimated using measures of the detected human face, which aids to determine human and multi-UAV localization and positioning. In turn, this is exploited to effectively and naturally make the human select the spatially situated robots. Spatial gestures for selecting robots are presented by the human operator using tangible input devices (i.e., colored gloves). To select individuals and groups of robot we formulate a vocabulary of two-handed spatial pointing gestures. With the use of a Support Vector Machine (SVM) trained in a cascaded multi-binary-class configuration, the spatial gestures are effectively learned and recognized by a swarm of UAVs.
Thin-film hydration preparation method and stability test of DOX-loaded disulfide-linked polyethylene glycol 5000-lysine-di-tocopherol succinate nanomicelles (2014)

A novel redox-responsive PEG-sheddable copolymer of disulfide-linked polyethylene glycol 5000-lysine-di-tocopherol succinate (P5kSSLV) was designed and synthesized. Thin-film hydration method was used to prepare DOX-loaded P5kSSLV nanomicelle. To optimize the preparation technology, we investigate the effects of dosage, type of organic solvent, hydration temperature and time, and cryoprotectant on drug-loading content, encapsulation efficiency, particle size, and zeta potential. The mean particle size and zeta potential were determined by Zetasizer. The morphology of the P5kSSLV-DOX nanomicelles was visualized by transmission electron microscopy. The drug-loading content and encapsulation efficiency of P5kSSLV-DOX nanomicelle were investigated by UV. The drug-loading content, encapsulation efficiency, particle size, and zeta potential of the final optimized nanomicelles were 4.58%, 97.20%, 30.21 nm and −0.84 mV, respectively. In addition, the stability of nanomicelles was investigated, which included dilution stability and storage stability. The results showed that P5kSSLV-DOX nanomicelle had good dilution stability and storage stability at 4 °C. The preparation method of P5kSSLV-DOX nanomicelle with thin-film hydration method was practical and simple, which was valuable to be further studied.
Isolation and analysis of a novel inducible pectate lyase gene from the phytopathogenic fungus Fusarium solani f. sp. pisi (Nectria haematococca, mating population VI) (1992)

A pectate lyase produced by Fusarium solani f. sp. pisi (Nectria haematococca, mating population VI) was previously shown to be essential for host infection (M. S. Crawford and P. E. Kolattukudy, Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 258:196-205, 1987). Pectate lyase genes have not been cloned from any phytopathogenic fungi. A gene, designated pelA, encoding an inducible pectate lyase was isolated from F. solani f. sp. pisi. A probe was synthesized by polymerase chain reaction with oligonucleotide primers based on the known amino acid sequences of two regions of the mature protein and first-strand cDNA as template. Both cDNA and the gene were isolated and sequenced. That the cloned cDNA represents the previously purified pectate lyase is shown by the complete match of the sequences of the N-terminal 38 amino acid residues and the 20 amino acid residues of an internal peptide with the sequence deduced from the cDNA sequence. This lyase sequence shows little homology to those of other pectolytic enzymes. The pelA gene shows standard characteristics with respect to promoter, intron, and polyadenylation sequences. As determined by primer extension and nuclease S1 analysis of the origin of the transcription, there are multiple initiation sites clustered in a region of 12 nucleotides located about 55 bp upstream of the start codon. Northern (RNA) blot analysis showed a single band of mRNA at about 1 kb. The pelA gene mRNA was detected only when F. solani f. sp. pisi was grown with pectin, and there was no detectable transcript accumulation when the fungus was grown with glucose as the sole carbon source. When both carbon sources were present, the pelA gene was transcribed only after glucose was completely depleted, indicating carbon catabolite repression. Moreover, the levels of transcription decreased rapidly prior to maximal enzyme accumulation, suggesting a mechanism of self catabolite repression.
Microphase Separation of Block Copolymer Thin Films (2010)

Today, high-ordered micro- and nano-patterned surfaces are widely used in many areas, such as in the preparation of super-thin dielectric films, photonic crystals, antireflective films, super-non-wetting surfaces, bio-compatible surfaces and microelectric devices. Considering the critical fabrication conditions and the irreducible high cost of the photolithography technique in patterning nano-scale structures (<100 nm), the development of other micro- and nano-patterning techniques that can be used to fabricate long-range ordered features - especially nanoscale arrays - is a promising subject in surface science. In contrast to the traditional photolithography patterning technique, block copolymers can spontaneously phase separate into arrays of periodic patterns with length-scales of 10-50 nm, which provides an efficient pathway to pattern nanoscale features. Today, preparing long-range ordered arrays by block copolymer microphase separation is one of the most promising techniques for the fabrication of nanoscale arrays, not only being a simple process but also having a lower cost than traditional methods. In this feature article, we first summarize the many techniques developed to induce ordering in the microphase separation of the block copolymer thin films. Then, evolution, order-order transitions and reversible switching microdomains are considered, since they are very important in the ordered engineering of microphase separation of the block copolymer thin films. Finally, the outlook of this research area will be given.
Absolute speed estimation from sequential frames of omni-directional image (2003)

For autonomous navigation, the omni-directional camera is a suitable sensor for capturing a 360 degree image without any dead angles. In this paper, we propose a new image-based absolute (translational and/or rotational) speed measurement method using sequential frames of an omni-directional image. The proposed method demonstrates the omni-directional camera's ability to function not only as a vision sensor but also as a speedometer. The validity of the proposed method was examined in real field images.
The Acinetobacter baumannii Oxymoron: Commensal Hospital Dweller Turned Pan-Drug-Resistant Menace (2012)

During the past few decades Acinetobacter baumannii has evolved from being a commensal dweller of health-care facilities to constitute one of the most annoying pathogens responsible for hospitalary outbreaks and it is currently considered one of the most important nosocomial pathogens. In a prevalence study of infections in intensive care units conducted among 75 countries of the five continents, this microorganism was found to be the fifth most common pathogen. Two main features contribute to the success of A. baumannii: (i) A. baumannii exhibits an outstanding ability to accumulate a great variety of resistance mechanisms acquired by different mechanisms, either mutations or acquisition of genetic elements such as plasmids, integrons, transposons, or resistant islands, making this microorganism multi- or pan-drug-resistant and (ii) The ability to survive in the environment during prolonged periods of time which, combined with its innate resistance to desiccation and disinfectants, makes A. baumannii almost impossible to eradicate from the clinical setting. In addition, its ability to produce biofilm greatly contributes to both persistence and resistance. In this review, the pathogenesis of the infections caused by this microorganism as well as the molecular bases of antibacterial resistance and clinical aspects such as treatment and potential future therapeutic strategies are discussed in depth.
Preparation of V-Doped LiFePO<sub>4</sub>/C as the Optimized Cathode Material for Lithium Ion Batteries (2014)

LiFe1-x,Vx,PO4/C composites were synthesized by solid state reaction. The effect of carbon coating and V doping on the performance of LiFePO4 has been systematically investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), transmission electron microscope (TEM), charge/discharge and cyclic voltammetry (CV) measurement. The results show that carbon coating and proper amount of V incorporation do not significantly change the host crystal structure of LiFePO4, while the electrochemical performance of LiFePO4 can be significantly improved. Particularly, the LiFe0.96V0.04PO4/C exhibits the best performance with a specific discharge capacity of 105.5 mA h/g at 5.0 C, 90.3 mA h/g at 10 C and 66.7 mA h/g at 30 C with stable cycle performance, which is significantly improved compared with the pure LiFePO4/C. The cyclic voltammograms result reveals that V doping could decrease the resistance of LiFePO4/C composite electrode drastically and improve its reversibility.
A decade of hardware/ software codesign (2003)

The term hardware/software codesign, coined about 10 years ago, describes a confluence of problems in integrated circuit design. By the 1990s, it became clear that microprocessor-based systems would be an important design discipline for IC designers as well. Large 16- and 32-bit microprocessors had already been used in board-level designs, and Moore's law ensured that chips would soon be large enough to include both a CPU and other subsystems. Multiple disciplines inform hardware/software codesign. Computer architecture tells us about the performance and energy consumption of single CPUs and multiprocessors. Real-time system theory helps analyze the deadline-driven performance of embedded systems. Computer-aided design assists hardware cost evaluation and design space exploration.
Single-cell transcriptional analysis of normal, aberrant, and malignant hematopoiesis in zebrafish (2016)

Hematopoiesis culminates in the production of functionally heterogeneous blood cell types. In zebrafish, the lack of cell surface antibodies has compelled researchers to use fluorescent transgenic reporter lines to label specific blood cell fractions. However, these approaches are limited by the availability of transgenic lines and fluorescent protein combinations that can be distinguished. Here, we have transcriptionally profiled single hematopoietic cells from zebrafish to define erythroid, myeloid, B, and T cell lineages. We also used our approach to identify hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells and a novel NK-lysin 4(+) cell type, representing a putative cytotoxic T/NK cell. Our platform also quantified hematopoietic defects in rag2(E450fs) mutant fish and showed that these fish have reduced T cells with a subsequent expansion of NK-lysin 4(+) cells and myeloid cells. These data suggest compensatory regulation of the innate immune system in rag2(E450fs) mutant zebrafish. Finally, analysis of Myc-induced T cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia showed that cells are arrested at the CD4(+)/CD8(+) cortical thymocyte stage and that a subset of leukemia cells inappropriately reexpress stem cell genes, including bmi1 and cmyb In total, our experiments provide new tools and biological insights into single-cell heterogeneity found in zebrafish blood and leukemia.
Augmented Reality Supported Learning for Cultural Heritage of Taiwan in On-Site and Off-Site Environments: The Case of a Daxi Old Street (2023)

This study aims to explore whether the integration of Augmented Reality (AR) technology used in community-based art education can improve the participants’ learning effectiveness and to compare its effects in two different learning environments (on-site and off-site). A quasi-experimental research design has been conducted to check the effectiveness of integrating AR activities in terms of learners’ effectiveness. The sample for this study includes 40 and 64 participants in on-site and off-site groups, respectively. The on-site group visited the real environment and viewed AR-integrated materials such as posters and rhymes; the off-site group visited the school exhibition and viewed the same materials as the on-site group. The data was obtained through motivation, learning satisfaction, technology acceptance, and learning effectiveness scales designed by the researchers. Descriptive statistics and an independent t -test were utilized for the data analysis. There was a significant difference in learning motivation, learning effectiveness, and learning satisfaction between on-site and off-site groups; however, there was no significant difference in the mean of technology acceptance. This study finds that the use of AR digital materials facilitated the visitors’ experience of cultural heritage and improved participants learning effectiveness, and particularly learning satisfaction and learning motivation, more so in the on-site experience than in the off-site experience. Results also revealed that there was a significant difference in gender and age toward learning motivation and learning effectiveness. With respect to participants with different artistic and educational backgrounds, the results showed no significant differences in learning motivation, learning effectiveness, learning satisfaction, and technology acceptance. Finally, recommendations for future practices and research are discussed.
Molecular Cloning and Characterization of Rat Genes Encoding Homologues of Human β-Defensins (1999)

beta-Defensins are cationic peptides with broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity that may play a role in mucosal defenses of several organs. They have been isolated in several species, and in humans, two beta-defensins have been identified. Here, we report the identification of two genes encoding beta-defensin homologues in the rat. Partial cDNAs were found by searching the expressed-sequence-tag database, and primers were designed to generate full-length mRNA coding sequences. One gene was highly similar to the human beta-defensin-1 (HBD-1) gene and mouse beta-defensin-1 gene at both the nucleic acid and amino acid levels and was termed rat beta-defensin-1 (RBD-1). The other gene, named RBD-2, was homologous to the HBD-2 and bovine tracheal antimicrobial peptide (TAP) genes. The predicted prepropeptides were strongly cationic, were 69 and 63 residues in length for RBD-1 and RBD-2, respectively, and contained the six-cysteine motif characteristic of beta-defensins. The beta-defensin genes mapped closely on rat chromosome 16 and were closely linked to the alpha-defensins genes, suggesting that they are part of a gene cluster, similar to the organization reported for humans. Northern blot analysis showed that both RBD-1 and RBD-2 mRNA transcripts were approximately 0.5 kb in length; RBD-1 mRNA was abundantly transcribed in the rat kidney, while RBD-2 was prevalent in the lung. Reverse transcription-PCR indicated that RBD-1 and RBD-2 mRNAs were distributed in a variety of other tissues. In the lung, RBD-1 mRNA expression localized to the tracheal epithelium while RBD-2 was expressed in alveolar type II cells. In conclusion, we characterized two novel beta-defensin homologues in the rat. The rat may be a useful model to investigate the function and contribution of beta-defensins to host defense in the lung, kidney, and other tissues.
Production of Cyclodextrin from Raw Starch in the Agitated Bead Reaction System and its Reaction Mechanism (1991)

Production of cyclodextrin (CD) directly from raw corn starch without liquefaction using cyclodextrin glucanotransferase (CGTase) was carried out in an agitated bead reaction system. Similar CD yield and production rate comparable with those of conventional method using liquefied starch were obtained. Especially high purity-CD in the reaction mixture without accumulation of malto-oligosaccharides was obtained. The maximum 54g/l of CD was obtained at raw starch concentration of 200g/l. CD yield was inversely proportional to raw starch concentration, and conversion yield was 0.48 at substrate concentration of 100g/l. The optimal amount of enzyme (CGTase unit/g raw starch) was found to be around 6.0. Granular structure of raw starch degraded by CGTase was observed by SEM in order to investigate the enhancing mechanism, along with those of acid or alkali pretreated raw starch, amylose, and amylopectin. Kinetic constants of CGTase on raw starch in an agitated bead reaction system were evaluated, and CGTase was competitively inhibited by CD.
Stimulatory effects of parathyroid hormone and 1,25‐dihydroxyvitamin D<sub>3</sub> on insulin‐like growth factor‐binding protein‐5 mRNA expression in osteoblastic UMR‐106 cells: the difference between transient and continuous treatments (1997)

The transient treatment with parathyroid hormone (PTH) for 12 h, followed by its removal for 36 h, stimulated insulin-like growth factor-binding protein (IGFBP)-5 mRNA expression more strongly than the continuous treatment for 48 h in osteoblastic UMR-106 cells. The transient but not continuous treatment with A23187 also stimulated it. In contrast, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 stimulated it, irrespective of the treatment design. IGFBP-5 stimulated type-1 procollagen mRNA expression. The present study first indicated that the transient treatment with PTH more effectively stimulated IGFBP-5 mRNA expression than its continuous treatment partly via an increase in intracellular calcium and suggested that IGFBP-5 might be involved in the anabolic action of PTH in bone.