gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
Can we image premotor Parkinson disease? (2009)

Pathology and imaging studies have shown that patients with Parkinson disease (PD) have a prolonged period of uncertain duration when vulnerable neuronal populations are degenerating, but typical motor symptoms have not yet developed. This provides both an opportunity-it may be best to test new medications and, ultimately, treat PD patients during this early phase of disease--and a challenge--how to find these premotor PD subjects? Imaging biomarkers targeting the premotor period are critical to elucidate both the onset and progression of premotor PD. Widespread data have demonstrated that dopaminergic imaging can detect PD subjects at the motor symptom threshold. Novel strategies combining dopaminergic imaging with known genetic mutations for PD or early clinical signs and PD-associated symptoms, such as olfactory loss and sleep disturbances like REM behavior disorder, have begun to be used to identify individuals at risk for PD before motor symptoms become manifest. Early studies also have used imaging targeting norepinephrine, serotonin, cholinergic, or other neuronal systems to focus on early cardiac, cognitive, and behavioral symptoms. Imaging of nondopaminergic targets such as inflammation or alpha-synuclein deposition may provide further insight into the etiology of PD. Given the multiple genetic etiologies for PD already identified, the marked variability in the loss of dopaminergic markers measured by imaging at motor symptom onset, and the clear heterogeneity of clinical symptoms at PD onset, it is certain that many imaging biomarkers with a focus ranging from clinical symptoms to PD pathobiology to molecular genetic mechanisms, will be necessary to fully map PD risk.
Application of a genetic algorithm to wind turbine design (1995)

This paper presents an optimization procedure for stall-regulated horizontal-axis wind-turbines. A hybrid approach is used that combines the advantages of a genetic algorithm and an inverse design method. This method is used to determine the optimum blade pitch and blade chord and twist distributions that maximize the annual energy production. To illustrate the method, a family of 25 wind turbines was designed to examine the sensitivity of annual energy production to changes in the rotor blade length and peak rotor power. Trends are revealed that should aid in the design of new rotors for existing turbines. In the second application, a series of five wind turbines was designed to determine the benefits of specifically tailoring wind turbine blades for the average wind speed at a particular site. The results have important practical implications related to rotors designed for the Midwest versus those where the average wind speed may be greater.
APF hard mask distortion improvement for high aspect ratio patterning (2015)

The goal of this research is to improve bending issue and etch durability of amorphous carbon hard mask film (APF). The design of experiments (DoE) employed variable conditions of the spacing, RF power, precursors flow (C <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sub> H <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">6</sub> or C <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> H <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sub> ) and temperature. High Young's modulus and high sp <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">3</sup> /sp <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sup> bonding ratio can increase the etching resistance, and strengthen the high aspect ratio patterning structures.
Kinetics of ethylbenzene hydrogenolytic dealkylation on Ni-Al2O3 catalyst (1989)

Kinetic equation was found for dealkylation of ethylbenzene at the presence of hydrogen on a Ni-Al 2 O 3 catalyst at 330 °C which indicates a complicated course of this vapor phase catalytic reaction. Similar character of reaction course showed also the demethylation of toluene on the same kind of catalyst and at the same reaction conditions. These results differ from results obtained for this reaction previously.
Band-gap nonlinearity in perovskite structured solid solutions (2010)

Compositional effects on optical band-gap energy using end members of ABO3 perovskites have been investigated through an optical absorption with a UV-spectroscopy. Three examples are selected, namely, BaTiO3–CaTiO3, BaTiO3–BaZrO3, and SrTiO3–BaZrO3 solid solutions. To understand the role of high temperature phase equilibria on the band-gap compositional trends, structural and microscopy data were determined. In simple systems such as Si–Ge, the nonlinear variations in band gap with composition is usually associated with the effect of the local lattice relaxations and provides a parabolic dependence, often referred to as the “bowing” phenomena. In the case of perovskite solutions, the cases are more complex, and a modified Vegard’s law is introduced to account for the trends. This has to be considered in relation to high temperature phase formation where incomplete solid solutions and two-phase regions exist. In addition to high temperature phases, low temperature displacive phase transitions and complex nonstoichiometry also perturb the band-gap variation in perovskite oxide materials.
Effects of Total Lymphoid Irradiation on SIV-infected Macaques (1995)

The identification of antiretroviral drugs that prevent, or delay for extended periods, progression of HIV-related disease has been of limited success. Because the number of HIV-infected people continues to increase, other therapeutic approaches must be tested. Using simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV)-infected macaques in a feasibility study, total lymphoid irradiation (TLI) was administered in fractionated doses to the supradiaphragmatic and then the infradiaphragmatic lymph nodes until a cumulative dose of 34.2 Gy was achieved in each field. During treatment and for more than 1 year of follow-up, the effects of TLI on various virological, hematological, and immunological parameters were evaluated and compared to those of similarly treated, uninfected macaques. Despite sustained low numbers of CD4+ lymphocytes (< 100/microliters blood) during treatment, TLI was well tolerated, did not result in intercurrent infections, and more importantly, induced a transient decrease in viral burden and did not exacerbate disease. Remarkably, this lack of disease progression and apparent containment of SIV replication were maintained despite persistent failure of PBMCs to respond to mitogen stimulation. Because SIV (and HIV) requires activated lymphocytes to replicate, failure of PBMCs to respond fully to stimuli may have contributed to restricting virus replication. This idea was supported by in vitro experiments in which infection of PBMCs before TLI produced higher levels of cell-free SIV than those obtained during or after TLI. Last, repopulation of peripheral blood and lymph nodes with lymphocytes paralleled that observed in uninfected control animals. The results indicate that (1) immunosuppression alone is not sufficient to induce progression to AIDS, (2) SIV infection does not undermine the ability of the immune system to regenerate new cells during the clinically latent phase, and (3) further evaluation of TLI or other immunosuppressive regimens as potential therapies for HIV disease is warranted.
A new scatter compensation method for Ga-67 imaging using artificial neural networks (2001)

A new scatter correction method for Ga-67 based on artificial neural networks (ANN) with error back-propagation was designed and evaluated. The ANN consisted of a 37-node input layer (37 energy channels in the range 60-370 keV), an 18-node hidden layer, and a 3-node output layer to estimate the scatter-free distribution in the 93-, 185-, and 300-keV photopeaks. Two separate activity and attenuation distribution sets, based on a segmented realistic anthropomorphic torso phantom, were simulated. The first set was used for ANN learning and the second to evaluate the scatter correction. The authors' Monte Carlo simulation modeled all photon interactions in the patient, collimator, and detector. Interactions simulated in the collimator included Compton and coherent scatter and photoelectric absorption with forced production of lead K-shell X-rays. Ninety very high count projections were simulated and used as a basis for generating 15 Poisson noise realizations for each angle; noise levels were characteristic of 72-h post-injection Ga-67 studies. The energy window images (WIN) used clinically were also generated for comparison. Bias and variance were computed with respect to the primary distributions over reconstructed volumes of interest in the lungs, abdomen, liver, and tumors. ANN overall bias in all structures was less than 16% (8% in the abdomen) as compared to 85% with WIN. The variance of the activity estimates was systematically greater with WIN than ANN. ANN is a promising approach to scatter correction in Ga-67 studies.
Biochemical and Proteomic Analysis of the Magnetosome Membrane in <i>Magnetospirillum gryphiswaldense</i> (2004)

We analyzed the biochemical composition of the magnetosome membrane (MM) in Magnetospirillum gryphiswaldense. Isolated magnetosomes were associated with phospholipids and fatty acids which were similar to phospholipids and fatty acids from other subcellular compartments (i.e., outer and cytoplasmic membranes) but were present in different proportions. The binding characteristics of MM-associated proteins were studied by selective solubilization and limited proteolysis. The MM-associated proteins were further analyzed by various proteomic approaches, including one- and two-dimensional sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis followed by Edman and mass spectrometric (electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry-mass spectrometry) sequencing, as well as capillary liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry-mass spectrometry of total tryptic digests of the MM. At least 18 proteins were found to constitute the magnetosome subproteome, and most of these proteins are novel for M. gryphiswaldense. Except for MM22 and Mms16, all bona fide MM proteins (MMPs) were encoded by open reading frames in the mamAB, mamDC, and mms6 clusters in the previously identified putative magnetosome island. Eight of the MMPs display homology to known families, and some of them occur in the MM in multiple homologues. Ten of the MMPs have no known homologues in nonmagnetic organisms and thus represent novel, magnetotactic bacterium-specific protein families. Several MMPs display repetitive or highly acidic sequence patterns, which are known from other biomineralizing systems and thus may have relevance for magnetite formation.
Truth Is Beauty: Researching Embodied Conversational Agents (2000)

G. H. Hardy (1941) argues that the sole criterion for excellent research is that the researcher produces “beauty. ” While seemingly ineffable and frustratingly imprecise, Hardy instead suggests that creating beauty is straightforward. First, the work must be accurate: erroneous results are useless. Second, one’s peers must recognize the work to be interesting, exciting, elegant, and “cool. ” While this second criterion might seem arbitrary, there is generally good agreement between scholars in a given community about “interesting ” work (see Cole and Cole 1973 for a discussion), so one need not survey numerous researchers to ensure research is beautiful; asking a couple is equivalent to asking them all. With certain caveats, the work in embodied conversational agents (ECA) can make claims to beauty. ECAs are phenomenologically “accurate ” to the extent that the agent’s outward appearance objectively matches the appearance, language, attitudes and behavior of humans. Thus, questions that address manifestation accuracy include “Does the agent walk like a person walk? ” and “Does the agent use language and make grammatical errors the same way a person does?”
Predicting HBsAg clearance in genotype A chronic hepatitis B using HBsAg epitope profiling: A biomarker for functional cure (2019)

The detection of HBsAg CPs by epitope mapping represents a novel viral biomarker, reflecting an emerging anti-HBs selection pressure prior to functional cure.
Origins and unconventional behavior of neutrophils in developing zebrafish (2007)

The first leukocytes that arise in the development of vertebrate embryos are the primitive macrophages, which differentiate in the yolk sac and then quickly invade embryonic tissues. These macrophages have been considered to constitute a separate lineage, giving rise to no other cell type. Using an in vivo photoactivatable cell tracer in the transparent zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryo, we demonstrated that this lineage also gave rise to an equal or higher number of neutrophilic granulocytes. We were surprised to find that the differentiation of these primitive neutrophils occurs only after primitive myeloid progenitors have dispersed in the tissues. By 2 days after fertilization, these neutrophils have become the major leukocyte type found wandering in the epidermis and mesenchyme. Like the primitive macrophages, all primitive and larval neutrophils express PU.1 and L-plastin and they are highly attracted to local infections, yet only a small fraction of them phagocytose microbes, and to a much lesser extent per cell than the macrophages. They are also attracted to variously stressed or malformed tissues, suggesting a wider role than antimicrobial defense.
Minilaparoscopic-assisted transvaginal approach in benign liver lesions (2010)

Using transvaginal approach assisted with minilaparoscopy was possible to carry out surgical treatment in benign and non complex liver lesions located in outlying subsegments. It is a safe method with better aesthetic result than laparoscopic surgery. Nevertheless, will be necessary future studies that demonstrate the advantages of this approach in the hepatic lesions.
Mica as a Reinforcement for Polyurethane RIM (1987)

Polyurethane RIM systems are reinforced with inorganic materials to improve stiffness and structural integrity at elevated temperatures and to reduce the coefficient of thermal expansion. This work describes the reinforcement obtained with an experimental grade of mica designed to achieve low viscosity in polyol mica suspensions. The effect of mica on properties is essentially identical to that of glass flake. Compared to hammer milled glass, mica and glass flakes yield more isotropic, albeit weaker, materials.
Mammalian Cell Cultures on Micropatterned Surfaces of Weak-Acid, Polyelectrolyte Hyperbranched Thin Films on Gold (2001)

A four-step soft lithographic process based on micro-contact printing of organic monolayers, hyperbranched polymer grafting, and subsequent polymer functionalization results in polymer/n-alkanethiol patterns that direct the growth and migration of mammalian cells. The functional units on these surfaces are three-dimensional cell "corrals" that have walls 52+/-2 nm in height and lateral dimensions on the order of 60 microm. The corrals have hydrophobic, methyl-terminated n-alkanethiol bottoms, which promote cell adhesion, and walls consisting of hydrophilic poly(acrylic acid)/poly(ethylene glycol) layered nanocomposites that inhibit cell growth. Cell viability studies indicate that cells remain viable on the patterned surfaces for up to 21 days, and fluorescence microscopy studies of stained cells demonstrate that cell growth and spreading does not occur outside of the corral boundaries. This simple, chemically flexible micropatterning method provides spatial control over growth of IC-21 murine peritoneal macrophages, human umbilical vein endothelial cells, and murine hepatocytes.
Cell-cell signaling in bacteria (1999)

Gene Transfer and Microbial Development Symbioses Production of Antimicrobial Compounds Molecular Basis of Cell-Cell Signaling Past and Future
Double Immunolabeling with Cytokeratin and Smooth-Muscle Actin in Confirming Early Invasive Carcinoma of Breast (1999)

Histopathological identification of invasive breast carcinoma in its earliest phases is fraught with pitfalls. Preinvasive malignant lesions complicated by radial scar, sclerosing adenosis, and lobular cancerization, among other lesions, may simulate invasive carcinoma. Fibrosis, inflammatory reaction, and other stromal changes around in situ carcinoma may mask microinvasive foci on routine stains. Conventional immunohistochemistry to demonstrate basement membrane or myoepithelial cell layer may not, by itself, be unequivocally diagnostic of invasion. We performed a novel double immunoenzyme labeling technique using an avidin-biotin complex peroxidase-diaminobenzidine system for smooth-muscle actin followed by an alkaline phosphatase anti-alkaline phosphatase-new fuchsin system for cytokeratin antigen on formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded histology sections to evaluate 32 such problematic cases. The initial histologic impression with hematoxylin and eosin staining alone was as follows-first group: microinvasive carcinoma-10; second group: carcinoma in situ--"stromal invasion cannot be ruled out"--15; third group: frankly infiltrating carcinoma of various grades and morphologic types-6. The last group served as positive control for invasion. One fibroadenoma with fine-needle-aspiration-induced artifact simulating stromal invasion was also included. The double immunoenzyme labeling technique imparted a dark brown color to the myoepithelial cells and a vivid red color to the epithelial cells, making individual or loosely cohesive groups of malignant epithelial cells infiltrating the stroma easily detectable, whereas their in situ counterparts were contained within dark brown myoepithelial boundaries. The TNM 1997 definition of pT1mic, i.e., extension of malignant cells in the stroma with no focus measuring >0.1 cm, was followed to classify microinvasion. In the first group, microinvasion was confirmed in six cases but was not demonstrable in four. In the second group, definite invasion was identified in five cases, ruled out in nine, and in one case the suspicion of early invasion could not be entirely ruled out even after double immunoenzyme labeling. Thus, it was possible to render a definite opinion regarding presence or absence of invasion in 24 of 25 (96%) cases diagnosed as or suspected to be microinvasive. The precise and simultaneous elucidation of topography between malignant cells and myoepithelial cells on a single permanent section makes this technique a useful diagnostic tool in the evaluation of those cases of breast carcinoma that exhibit equivocal invasion.
Pro SQL Server 2012 Administration (2012)

Pro SQL Server 2012 Administration is a one-stop source for all the knowledge you'll need to professionally manage a database under Microsoft SQL Server 2012. SQL Server administration is a complex fi
G-Quadruplexes as pathogenic drivers in neurodegenerative disorders (2021)

G-quadruplexes (G4s), higher-order DNA and RNA secondary structures featuring guanine-rich nucleic acid sequences with various conformations, are widely distributed in the human genome. These structural motifs are known to participate in basic cellular processes, including transcription, splicing, and translation, and their functions related to health and disease are becoming increasingly recognized. In this review, we summarize the landscape of G4s involved in major neurodegenerative disorders, describing the genes that contain G4-forming sequences and proteins that have high affinity for G4-containing elements. The functions of G4s are diverse, with potentially protective or deleterious effects in the pathogenic cascades of various neurological diseases. While the studies of the functions of G4s in vivo, including those involved in pathophysiology, are still in their early stages, we will nevertheless discuss the evidence pointing to their biological relevance. A better understanding of this unique structural element in the biological context is important for unveiling its potential roles in the pathogenesis of diseases such as neurodegeneration and for designing new diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.
Nonlinear Dynamic Modeling of Spike Train Transformations for Hippocampal-Cortical Prostheses (2007)

One of the fundamental principles of cortical brain regions, including the hippocampus, is that information is represented in the ensemble firing of populations of neurons, i.e., spatio-temporal patterns of electrophysiological activity. The hippocampus has long been known to be responsible for the formation of declarative, or fact-based, memories. Damage to the hippocampus disrupts the propagation of spatio-temporal patterns of activity through hippocampal internal circuitry, resulting in a severe anterograde amnesia. Developing a neural prosthesis for the damaged hippocampus requires restoring this multiple-input, multiple-output transformation of spatio-temporal patterns of activity. Because the mechanisms underlying synaptic transmission and generation of electrical activity in neurons are inherently nonlinear, any such prosthesis must be based on a nonlinear multiple-input, multiple-output model. In this paper, we have formulated the transformational process of multi-site propagation of spike activity between two subregions of the hippocampus (CA3 and CA1) as the identification of a multiple-input, multiple-output (MIMO) system, and proposed that it can be decomposed into a series of multiple-input, single-output (MISO) systems. Each MISO system is modeled as a physiologically plausible structure that consists of 1) linear/nonlinear feedforward Volterra kernels modeling synaptic transmission and dendritic integration, 2) a linear feedback Volterra kernel modeling spike-triggered after-potentials, 3) a threshold for spike generation, 4) a summation process for somatic integration, and 5) a noise term representing intrinsic neuronal noise and the contributions of unobserved inputs. Input and output spike trains were recorded from hippocampal CA3 and CA1 regions of rats performing a spatial delayed-nonmatch-to-sample memory task that requires normal hippocampal function. Kernels were expanded with Laguerre basis functions and estimated using a maximum-likelihood method. Complexity of the feedforward kernel was progressively increased to capture higher-order system nonlinear dynamics. Results showed higher prediction accuracies as kernel complexity increased. Self-kernels describe the nonlinearities within each input. Cross-kernels capture the nonlinear interaction between inputs. Second- and third-order nonlinear models were found to successfully predict the CA1 output spike distribution based on CA3 input spike trains. First-order, linear models were shown to be insufficient.