gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Safe end-to-end imitation learning for model predictive control (2018)

We propose the use of Bayesian networks, which provide both a mean value and an uncertainty estimate as output, to enhance the safety of learned control policies under circumstances in which a test-time input differs significantly from the training set. Our algorithm combines reinforcement learning and end-to-end imitation learning to simultaneously learn a control policy as well as a threshold over the predictive uncertainty of the learned model, with no hand-tuning required. Corrective action, such as a return of control to the model predictive controller or human expert, is taken when the uncertainty threshold is exceeded. We validate our method on fully-observable and vision-based partially-observable systems using cart-pole and autonomous driving simulations using deep convolutional Bayesian neural networks. We demonstrate that our method is robust to uncertainty resulting from varying system dynamics as well as from partial state observability.
Landing spot selection for UAV emergency landing (2013)

We present a robust method for landing zone selection using obstacle detection to be used for UAV emergency landings. The method is simple enough to allow real-time implementation on a UAV system. The method is able to detect objects in the presence of camera movement and motion parallax. Using the detected obstacles we select a safe landing zone for the UAV. The motion and structure detection uses background estimation of stabilized video. The background variation is measured and used to enhance the moving objects if necessary. In the motion and structure map a distance transform is calculated to find a suitable location for landing. © 2013 SPIE.
Preterm birth is associated with increased risk of maternal and neonatal infection. (1992)

Much information suggests that maternal reproductive tract infections, both recognized and unrecognized, account for an important and possibly preventable portion of preterm births. If such infections do mediate instances of preterm labor and premature rupture of the membranes (PROM), then associated risks of subsequent maternal and neonatal infections would be increased, even after controlling for confounding variables. To evaluate possible associations between preterm birth and maternal and neonatal infections, we conducted a retrospective study of 9642 births at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center between July 1980 and June 1985. Clinical chorioamnionitis occurred more frequently among women delivering before term with intact membranes at the onset of labor (5.8% preterm versus 1.7% term) and among women with PROM (26.5% preterm versus 6.7% term). Among the women delivered by cesarean, the incidence of postpartum endometritis was higher in those with preterm PROM than in those with term rupture of membranes. The incidence of neonatal infection increased significantly as the gestational age of the neonates decreased (P less than .01). The rate of culture-proven neonatal infection was significantly higher following PROM (P less than .01) than after birth without PROM. Both neonatal infection and perinatal mortality were increased in association with chorioamnionitis in both preterm and term pregnancies. These consistent observations complement and support suggestions that reproductive tract infection plays a possibly preventable role in the pathogenesis of preterm birth.
Application of Water-Based and Oil-Based Aphrons in Drilling Fluids (2003)

Abstract Aphrons are specially stabilized micro-bubbles created in situ to aid in suppressing the loss of drilling fluid into high-permeability formations. Water-based aphrons are designed for aqueous drilling fluids, while oil-based aphrons are designed for non-aqueous fluids. In both cases, the micro-bubbles are composed of a core of gas or liquid stabilized by proprietary polymers and surfactants, which can aggregate to form a tough, elastic barrier to loss of drilling fluid in permeable zones. Some of these zones are typified by water-wet sands that are susceptible to fluid seepage and differential sticking. Others are characterized by laminated sand and shale sequences, which are expensive to drill with conventional drilling fluids or underbalanced drilling rig equipment. The authors describe how use of water-based and oil-based aphrons in drilling fluids can mitigate losses of drilling fluids downhole.
Tributyrin plusall-trans-retinoic acid efficiently induces fetal hemoglobin expression in human erythroleukemia cells (2000)

Fourteen butyrate derivatives and retinoic acid were tested with respect to the hemoglobin F-inducing activity using the K562 erythroleukemia cell line as a model system. Four novel butyrate derivatives with hemoglobin F-inducing activity have been identified. Combined treatment with the butyrate derivative tributyrin and retinoic acid in vitro led to a 7-fold increase of hemoglobin synthesis. Tributyrin and retinoic acid might be promising drugs for clinical trials to treat patients with beta-hemoglobinopathies.
Deletion of autospecific T cells in T cell receptor (TCR) transgenic mice spares cells with normal TCR levels and low levels of CD8 molecules. (1989)

Transgenic mice that carry on a large fraction of their T cells an alpha/beta T cell receptor that recognizes the male antigen in the context of H-2Db molecules were constructed. An mAb specific for the transgenic receptor was developed and used to analyze T cell subsets in male transgenic H-2b mice. The vast majority of immature CD4+8+ T cells that express the transgenic TCR were deleted in the male transgenic mouse. Nevertheless, the majority of T cells spared by this deletion process expressed a high level of the transgenic TCR. These T cells, however, had an abnormal CD4/CD8 phenotype in that they expressed either no CD8 molecules or only low levels.
The stability and sterility of epinephrine prefilled syringe. (2010)

The commercially available auto-injector epinephrine is considerable expensive. Epinephrine prefilled syringe is an alternative treatment for anaphylaxis patients. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the stability and sterility of epinephrine prefilled syringe. Epinephrine prefilled syringe was kept in the pencil box to prevent from light exposure. The active ingredients, integrity and level of potency were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). The sterility was accessed by aerobic bacteria and fungi culture. The epinephrine concentration at 1, 2 and 3 months after the preparation was 101.36, 99.31 and 101.09%, respectively (acceptable range 90 - 110%). The pH was 3.17 - 3.23 (acceptable range 2.8 - 3.6). Nor-epinephrine was undetected. The cultures for bacteria and fungus were both negative. Consequently, epinephrine prefilled syringe was stable and sterile at least three month after preparation. Epinephrine prefilled syrine is an alternative low cost treatment for anaphylaxis patient.
Selective etching of native oxide by dry processing using ultra clean anhydrous hydrogen fluoride (2003)

An ultraclean dry etching system using HF gas has been developed. It has been demonstrated experimentally that there exists a critical concentration of HF in N/sub 2/ gas for etching of various Si oxide films. The critical concentration for native oxide obtained in wet processing or UV O/sub 3/ organic contamination cleaning is lower than those for thermal oxide, CVD (chemical vapor deposition) oxide, and CVD BSG. The difference becomes large with decreasing moisture level. Based on the results obtained, dry processing using HF gas is proposed as a surface cleaning technique in the ULSI process.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">></ETX>
Synthetic Pulmonary Surfactant Preparations: New Developments and Future Trends (2008)

Pulmonary surfactant is a lipid-protein complex that coats the interior of the alveoli and enables the lungs to function properly. Upon its synthesis, lung surfactant adsorbs at the interface between the air and the hypophase, a capillary aqueous layer covering the alveoli. By lowering and modulating surface tension during breathing, lung surfactant reduces respiratory work of expansion, and stabilises alveoli against collapse during expiration. Pulmonary surfactant deficiency, or dysfunction, contributes to several respiratory pathologies, such as infant respiratory distress syndrome (IRDS) in premature neonates, and acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in children and adults. The main clinical exogenous surfactants currently in use to treat some of these pathologies are essentially organic extracts obtained from animal lungs. Although very efficient, natural surfactants bear serious defects: i) they could vary in composition from batch to batch; ii) their production involves relatively high costs, and sources are limited; and iii) they carry a potential risk of transmission of animal infectious agents and the possibility of immunological reaction. All these caveats justify the necessity for a highly controlled synthetic material. In the present review the efforts aimed at new surfactant development, including the modification of existing exogenous surfactants by adding molecules that can enhance their activity, and the progress achieved in the production of completely new preparations, are discussed.
Quiescent Subpopulations of Human CD34-Positive Hematopoietic Stem Cells Are Preferred Targets for Stable Recombinant Adeno-Associated Virus Type 2 Transduction (2007)

We have previously demonstrated recombinant adeno-associated viral (rAAV) transduction of human CD34(+) hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) capable of serial engraftment in vivo. Here we evaluated the capacity of rAAV2 to mediate gene transfer into nondividing, quiescent, primitive CD34(+) cells subdivided on the basis of metabolic, mitotic, and phenotypic properties. Results revealed that CD34(+)CD38() marrow cells are the most quiescent, exist primarily in G(0) at isolation and are the only population to remain nondividing during the entire exposure to free rAAV. Despite significant differences in the extended clonogenic capacities of CD34(+) subsets in stromal cultures, the frequency of rAAV marking of colonies derived from primitive progenitors was similar in all three populations, suggesting that both primitive and more differentiated progenitors were initially transduced at equal levels. After transduction, episomal and integrated rAAV genomes were detected in all CD34(+) subsets. However, the more quiescent cells displayed higher levels of integrated rAAV than did rapidly dividing cells. Importantly, stable long-term integration was observed only in the most primitive, quiescent CD34(+)CD38(-) subset, indicating that this HSC compartment comprises the preferred substrate for stable rAAV2 transduction. Previously described rate limitations to transgene expression were observed in transduced CD34(+) cells and could be overcome by tyrphostin pretreatment, which resulted in augmented second-strand synthesis. These results represent the first demonstration of rAAV-mediated gene transfer to primitive, quiescent human CD34(+)CD38(-) stem cells and reveal that nondividing CD34(+)CD38(-) HSCs are the optimal CD34(+) targets for rAAV transduction.
The JWST Fine Guidance Sensor (FGS) and Near-Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph (NIRISS) (2012)

The Fine Guidance Sensor (FGS) is one of the four science instruments on board the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). FGS features two modules: an infrared camera dedicated to fine guiding of the observatory and a science camera module, the Near-Infrared Imager and Slitless Spectrograph (NIRISS) covering the wavelength range between 0.7 and 5.0 μm with a field of view of 2.2' X 2.2'. NIRISS has four observing modes: 1) broadband imaging featuring seven of the eight NIRCam broadband filters, 2) wide-field slitless spectroscopy at a resolving power of rv150 between 1 and 2.5 μm, 3) single-object cross-dispersed slitless spectroscopy enabling simultaneous wavelength coverage between 0. 7 and 2.5 μm at Rrv660, a mode optimized for transit spectroscopy of relatively bright (J > 7) stars and, 4) sparse aperture interferometric imaging between 3.8 and 4.8 μm enabling high­ contrast ("' 10<sup>-4</sup>) imaging of M < 8 point sources at angular separations between 70 and 500 milliarcsec. This paper presents an overview of the FGS/NIRISS design with a focus on the scientific capabilities and performance offered by NIRISS.
Effects of Cyclosporin A on Hair (1994)

Cyclosporin A (CSA) is an immunosuppressive agent that has provided new approaches in transplantation medicine and in the treatment of autoimmune diseases. One of the most common dermatological side effects of oral CSA is dose-dependent hypertrichosis. This stimulating effect on hair growth encouraged a number of investigators to use CSA not only in the treatment of alopecia areata (AA), but also in male pattern alopecia (MPA). While oral application proved successful, the beneficial effect of topical application was very limited in both AA and MPA.
Identification of the retinol‐binding protein (RBP) interaction site and functional state of RBPs for the membrane receptor (2007)

This laboratory has advanced a model whereby retinol is transported around the body bound to retinol-binding protein (RBP), is transferred across the membrane of cells by a specific receptor/transporter, and is picked up from the membrane by an intracellular homolog, cellular retinol-binding protein (CRBP). This process involves a number of protein-protein interactions, and we hypothesized that conformational changes were an integral part of the retinol transfer mechanism. Previously we identified the potential interaction site on RBP for its membrane receptor. Here we confirm by the analysis of chimera containing a grafted CD loop from RBP that this is indeed the receptor interaction site and go on to demonstrate that the conformational changes that occur to this region on the apo to holo transition in RBP also take place in a chimera binding a quite different ligand, thus establishing the concept. We have also gone on to support the hypothesis that CRBP may also bind to a receptor in the membrane. Previous evidence has indicated that one such receptor might be lecithin:retinol acyltransferase, an enzyme that catalyzes retinol esterification. Here we provide the first evidence that the plasma membrane receptor for RBP could be the same as that for CRBP. This observation offers support for the intracellular phase of the uptake process for retinol, providing an efficient and highly unique mechanism in eukaryotic biology.
Penalized PET Reconstruction Using Deep Learning Prior and Local Linear Fitting (2018)

Motivated by the great potential of deep learning in medical imaging, we propose an iterative positron emission tomography reconstruction framework using a deep learning-based prior. We utilized the denoising convolutional neural network (DnCNN) method and trained the network using full-dose images as the ground truth and low dose images reconstructed from downsampled data by Poisson thinning as input. Since most published deep networks are trained at a predetermined noise level, the noise level disparity of training and testing data is a major problem for their applicability as a generalized prior. In particular, the noise level significantly changes in each iteration, which can potentially degrade the overall performance of iterative reconstruction. Due to insufficient existing studies, we conducted simulations and evaluated the degradation of performance at various noise conditions. Our findings indicated that DnCNN produces additional bias induced by the disparity of noise levels. To address this issue, we propose a local linear fitting function incorporated with the DnCNN prior to improve the image quality by preventing unwanted bias. We demonstrate that the resultant method is robust against noise level disparities despite the network being trained at a predetermined noise level. By means of bias and standard deviation studies via both simulations and clinical experiments, we show that the proposed method outperforms conventional methods based on total variation and non-local means penalties. We thereby confirm that the proposed method improves the reconstruction result both quantitatively and qualitatively.
Activation of the Nuclear Factor-κB Is a Key Event in Brain Tolerance (2001)

The transcription factor nuclear factor-kappaB (NFkappaB) is an ubiquitously expressed inducible regulator of a broad range of genes and plays a pivotal role in cell death and survival pathways. Three models of brain tolerance (ischemic, epileptic, and polyunsaturated fatty acid-induced preconditioning), known to confer resistance to neurons against ischemia or status epilepticus, were used to determine whether NFkappaB mediated the late preconditioning. A sublethal 3 min ischemia, a dose of 5 mg/kg kainic acid (KA5) or 500 nmol of linolenic acid (LIN500) led to a rapid increase of NFkappaB DNA-binding activity and nuclear translocation of p65 and p50 subunits of NFkappaB in neurons. Pretreatment with the NFkappaB inhibitor diethyldithiocarbamate or kappaB decoy DNA blocked the increased DNA-binding activity and the nuclear translocation of NFkappaB and abolished the neuroprotective effects of different delayed preconditionings against severe ischemia or epilepsy. The inhibition of NFkappaB observed in rats preconditioned with 3 min ischemia, KA5 or LIN500 treatments compared with ischemic or epileptic controls was correlated with the prevention of the inducible degradation of the inhibitory protein IkappaBalpha. Preconditioning probably inhibits the activation of NFkappaB by interfering with a pathway that leads to the direct transcriptional activation of IkappaBalpha by NFkappaB itself. The present work provides evidence that activation of NFkappaB is a crucial step in the signal transduction pathway that underlies the development of brain tolerance and may open new strategies in the prevention of cerebral diseases, such as ischemia or epilepsy.
Smart invasome synthesis, characterizations, pharmaceutical applications, and pharmacokinetic perspective: a review (2020)

Abstract Background Scientists are constantly looking for the introduction of unique drug delivery systems for the existing drug molecule. Since the skin is one of the primary and essential organs of the human body, it needs successful research development for the delivery of the drug. While the skin is assumed a human body’s multifunctional organ, it has minimal permeability across the stratum corneum (SC). Since this is an influential barrier for the active agent, several carrier platforms to surmount this obstacle have been created. Invasomes are the liposomal vesicles, which incorporate small quantities of ethanol and terpenes or a mixture of terpenes, as potentials for improved penetration of the skin. The rate of penetration of invasomes through the skin is significantly greater than that of liposomes and ethosomes. Invasomes focus on providing a series of benefits namely enhanced drug effectiveness, increased conformity, and ease for patients. Main body The present article portrays insights of invasomes which include composition and preparation methods of invasomes. The article gives a brief review of the penetration mechanism, synthesis process, and characterizations of invasomes. The article gives a point by point audit about pharmaceutical applications, viz. anticancer, antihypertensive, anti-acne, vitamin analog, anticholinergic, antioxidant, etc. The pharmacokinetic properties of invasomes have also been described. Conclusion The key goal of an invasome-based delivery system is not only to strengthen the efficacy and safety of the drug but also to dramatically increase patient conformity and the therapeutic value to a significant extent. The delivery of drugs via the skin membrane in advanced drug delivery systems is a fascinating fact. Many pharmaceutical studies have shown that plentiful drug molecules are less soluble, have less bioavailability and stability, have less penetration, etc. Therefore, a new form of dosage with exceptional characteristics like invasomes can be created. Graphical abstract
Novel reagents for targeted cleavage of RNA sequences: towards a new family of inorganic pharmaceuticals (1999)

Copper kanamycin degrades cognate RNA targets at concentrations as low as picomolar levels at physiological pH and temperature, but shows no chemistry with random RNA or DNA molecules, thereby demonstrating potential for development as a novel antiviral agent.
Wrought TiAl Blades (2015)

Leistritz have developed an isothermal forging process for blades made of TiAl alloys during the past 18 years. The optimal process window was determined as 1100 °C to 1250 °C with extremely low strain rates. The high process temperature requires die material such as Molybdenum alloys under protective atmosphere. Leistritz have established the isothermal forging process on a special hydraulic press. First forged blades have been HPC blades of the Rolls-Royce BR715 engine made of Gamma-TAB. The following evolution step was the production of 900 blades for HPC 7-9 of the Rolls-Royce E3E experimental engine from TNB-V4. All machining of these blades was done in the Leistritz Nürnberg works. Up to now more than 10.000 LPT stage 3 blades for the PW 1100G for MTU have been forged of cast TNM. Currently Leistritz are the only approved supplier for these parts.
<title>Chronic response to direct myocardial revascularization: a preliminary study</title> (1993)

Anecdotal evidence suggests that laser revascularization has long-term benefits on tissue perfusion, perhaps by stimulating angiogenesis. To test this hypothesis, we made 6 transmural channels in rat hearts randomized to either; (1) laser: channels made using a 500 micrometers diameter optic fiber coupled to a holmium:YAG laser, (2) needle: channels made using a 500 micrometers diameter needle, or (3) control: no channels made. Two months later, the rats underwent 90 minutes of coronary artery occlusion followed by 41/2 hours of reperfusion. Prior to the end of the experiment, the artery was reoccluded and the heart perfused with blue dye to detect collateral perfusion within the risk region. Microscopic analysis revealed more dye-containing vessels in needle-treated hearts than in laser or control groups (12 +/- 6*, 3 +/- 1, 2 +/- 1 vessels per field of view, * p < 0.05). Needle channels also appeared to limit necrosis: infarct size was 41 +/- 6* (needle), 61 +/- 6 (laser), 70 +/- 5 (control) % of the risk region in the three groups (*p < 0.05 versus control). Thus, needle- treatment may be capable of reducing infarct size by supplying blood via a collateral circulation apparently stimulated by the channels making process.
Paragangliomas in Carney–Stratakis Syndrome (2019)

Carney-Stratakis Syndrome (CSS) comprises of paragangliomas (PGLs) and gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs). Several of its features overlap with Carney Triad (CT) - PGLs, GISTs, and pulmonary chondromas. CSS has autosomal dominant inheritance, incomplete penetrance, and greater relative frequency of PGL over GISTs. The PGLs in CSS are multicentric and GISTs are multifocal in all the patients, suggesting an inherited susceptibility and associating the two manifestations. In this review, we highlight the clinical, pathological, and molecular characteristics of CSS, along with its diagnostic and therapeutic implications.