pinecone/core-2020-05-10-deduplication huggingface dataset:
Population-based resistance of Mycobacterium tuberculosis isolates to pyrazinamide and fluoroquinolones : results from a multicountry surveillance project

BACKGROUND : Pyrazinamide and fluoroquinolones are essential antituberculosis drugs in new rifampicin-sparing regimens. However, little information about the extent of resistance to these drugs at the population level is available.
METHODS : In a molecular epidemiology analysis, we used population-based surveys from Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, Belarus, Pakistan, and South Africa to investigate resistance to pyrazinamide and fluoroquinolones among patients with tuberculosis. Resistance to pyrazinamide was assessed by gene sequencing with the detection of resistance-conferring mutations in the pncA gene, and susceptibility testing to fluoroquinolones was conducted using the MGIT system.
FINDINGS : Pyrazinamide resistance was assessed in 4972 patients. Levels of resistance varied substantially in the surveyed settings (3·0-42·1%). In all settings, pyrazinamide resistance was significantly associated with rifampicin resistance. Among 5015 patients who underwent susceptibility testing to fluoroquinolones, proportions of resistance ranged from 1·0-16·6% for ofloxacin, to 0·5-12·4% for levofloxacin, and 0·9-14·6% for moxifloxacin when tested at 0·5 μg/mL. High levels of ofloxacin resistance were detected in Pakistan. Resistance to moxifloxacin and gatifloxacin when tested at 2 μg/mL was low in all countries.
INTERPRETATION : Although pyrazinamide resistance was significantly associated with rifampicin resistance, this drug may still be effective in 19-63% of patients with rifampicin-resistant tuberculosis. Even though the high level of resistance to ofloxacin found in Pakistan is worrisome because it might be the expression of extensive and unregulated use of fluoroquinolones in some parts of Asia, the negligible levels of resistance to fourth-generation fluoroquinolones documented in all survey sites is an encouraging finding. Rational use of this class of antibiotics should therefore be ensured to preserve its effectiveness.
FUNDING : Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, United States Agency for International Development, Global Alliance for Tuberculosis Drug Development.Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, United States Agency for International Development, Global Alliance for Tuberculosis Drug Development.http://www.thelancet.com/infectionhb2017Medical Microbiolog
The indeterminate moment problem for the q-Meixner polynomials

AbstractFor a class of orthogonal polynomials related to the q-Meixner polynomials corresponding to an indeterminate moment problem we give a one-parameter family of orthogonality measures. For these measures we complement the orthogonal polynomials to an orthogonal basis for the corresponding weighted L2-space explicitly. The result is proved in two ways; by a spectral decomposition of a suitable operator and by direct series manipulation. We discuss extensions to explicit non-positive measures and the relation to other indeterminate moment problems for the continuous dual q−1-Hahn and q-Laguerre polynomials
Efficient frequent connected subgraph mining in graphs of bounded tree-width

AbstractThe frequent connected subgraph mining problem, i.e., the problem of listing all connected graphs that are subgraph isomorphic to at least a certain number of transaction graphs of a database, cannot be solved in output polynomial time in the general case. If, however, the transaction graphs are restricted to forests then the problem becomes tractable. In this paper we generalize the positive result on forests to graphs of bounded tree-width. In particular, we show that for this class of transaction graphs, frequent connected subgraphs can be listed in incremental polynomial time. Since subgraph isomorphism remains NP-complete for bounded tree-width graphs, the positive complexity result of this paper shows that efficient frequent pattern mining is possible even for computationally hard pattern matching operators
A ‘panoptical’ or ‘synoptical’ approach to monitoring performance? Local public services in England and the widening accountability gap

AbstractThis article highlights how recent reforms to the auditing and assessment of local public services in England suggest there will be a shift from panoptical to ‘synoptical’ monitoring approaches. This is because the UK Government has abolished its centralised monitoring regime and instead required local authorities to publish a range of financial and performance datasets online, ostensibly so that citizens can hold organisations to account directly. However, the complexity and raw nature of these data, along with the sidelining of professional auditors, will result in most citizens being either unable or unwilling to undertake this task. As such, the proposed ‘synoptical’ approach will not materialise. Indeed, other legislative changes will mean that outsourcing firms effectively become the new, unaccountable observers of local public sector bodies within an enduring panoptical system. In many cases these companies will then assume responsibility for delivering the same services that they have assessed
Sylvester’s double sums: An inductive proof of the general case

AbstractIn 1853, Sylvester introduced a family of double sum expressions for two finite sets of indeterminates and showed that some members of the family are essentially the polynomial subresultants of the monic polynomials associated with these sets. In 2009, in a joint work with C. D’Andrea and H. Hong we gave the complete description of all the members of the family as expressions in the coefficients of these polynomials. More recently, M.-F. Roy and A. Szpirglas presented a new and natural inductive proof for the cases considered by Sylvester. Here we show how induction also allows to obtain the full description of Sylvester’s double-sums
Reduced endothelial dependent vasodilation in vessels from TLR4−/− mice is associated with increased superoxide generation

AbstractToll like receptor (TLR)4 is a pattern recognition receptor expressed in endothelial and other cells, responsible for the sensing of endotoxin and host derived ligands. Our group has shown previously that the absence of TLR4 is associated with reduced endothelial dependent vasodilator responses and left heart hypertrophy in animal models. However, the mechanism behind reduced endothelial cell function in TLR4−/− mice is not known.We have used en face confocal imaging of mesenteric arteries from mice deficient in the TLR4 receptor stained with dihydroethidium (DHE) to measure superoxide production. Using the isometric wire myograph, mesenteric artery vasodilator responses to acetylcholine and MnCl2 (a superoxide dismutase mimetic) were measured. Mesenteric arteries from TLR4−/− mice had a reduced endothelial dependent relaxant response and increased superoxide levels when stimulated with acetylcholine. Increased levels of superoxide, as detected by DHE staining, were seen in vessels from TLR4−/− mice, which were reduced to control levels in the presence of MnCl2.Our observations suggest that loss of TLR4 increases superoxide generation which reduces the biological activity of endothelial derived nitric oxide and thereby explains the endothelial dysfunction and associated cardiovascular phenotype in TLR4−/− mice. These data implicate a novel cardio-protective role for TLR4 in vascular homeostasis
When Economics Meets Arts… in the Classroom

AbstractThe aim of this paper is to examine the opportunities for the use of art as an educational resource to stimulate creativity in the teaching of Economics. The need to promote skill development to encourage reflection, critical analysis, imagination, interpretation of reality, the anticipation of change, the seeking of alternatives, etc. is essential in this area of knowledge. The analysis of the use of art as an educational tool through a classroom experience shows the opportunities offered by this approach, although the extent of its use in university education in non-artistic materials is still very low
Microtubule-Associated Protein EB3 Regulates IP3 Receptor Clustering and Ca2+ Signaling in Endothelial Cells

SummaryThe mechanisms by which the microtubule cytoskeleton regulates the permeability of endothelial barrier are not well understood. Here, we demonstrate that microtubule-associated end-binding protein 3 (EB3), a core component of the microtubule plus-end protein complex, binds to inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptors (IP3Rs) through an S/TxIP EB-binding motif. In endothelial cells, α-thrombin, a pro-inflammatory mediator that stimulates phospholipase Cβ, increases the cytosolic Ca2+ concentration and elicits clustering of IP3R3s. These responses, and the resulting Ca2+-dependent phosphorylation of myosin light chain, are prevented by depletion of either EB3 or mutation of the TxIP motif of IP3R3 responsible for mediating its binding to EB3. We also show that selective EB3 gene deletion in endothelial cells of mice abrogates α-thrombin-induced increase in endothelial permeability. We conclude that the EB3-mediated interaction of IP3Rs with microtubules controls the assembly of IP3Rs into effective Ca2+ signaling clusters, which thereby regulate microtubule-dependent endothelial permeability
Decoupling and lepton flavor violation in extra dimensional theory

AbstractWe discuss the fermion mass hierarchy and the flavor mixings in the fat brane scenario of five-dimensional SUSY theory. The decoupling solution of the sfermion mass spectrum can be realized by introducing the vector-like mirror fields in an extra dimension. In this scenario, both the left- and right-handed sleptons can have sizable flavor mixings. We point out that this sizable flavor mixings can induce the suitable magnitude of the muon anomalous magnetic moment (gμ−2) within the experimental bounds of lepton flavor violating processes
Color Constancy for an Unseen Surface

SummaryThe illumination of a scene strongly affects our perception of objects in that scene, e.g., the pages of a book illuminated by candlelight will appear quite yellow relative to other types of artificial illuminants. Yet at the same time, the reader still judges the pages as white, their surface color unaffected by the interplay of paper and illuminant. It has been shown empirically [1] that we can indeed report two quite different interpretations of “color”: one is dependent on the constant surface spectral reflectance of an object (surface color) and the other on the power of light of different wavelengths reflected from that object (reflected color). How then are these two representations related? The common view, dating from Aristotle, is that our experience of surface color is derived from reflected color or, in more familiar terms, that color perception follows from color sensation [2–4]. By definition, color constancy requires that vision “discounts the illuminant”; thus, it seems reasonable that vision begins with the color of objects as they naively appear and that we infer from their appearances their surface color. Here, we question this classic view. We use metacontrast-masked priming and, by presenting the unseen prime and the visible mask under different illuminants, dissociate two ways in which the prime matched the mask: in surface color or in reflected color. We find that priming of the mask occurs when it matches the prime in surface color, not reflected color. It follows that color perception can arise without prior color sensation
The ‘dark side’ of personal values: Relations to clinical constructs and their implications

AbstractPersonal values are considered as guiding principles in one's life. Much of previous research on values has consequently focused on its relations with variables that are considered positive, including subjective well-being, personality traits, or behavior (e.g. health-related). However, in this study (N=366) the negative ‘dark’ side of values is examined. Specifically, the study investigated the relations between Schwartz' (1992) ten value types and four different clinical variables — anxiety, depression, stress, and schizotypy with its subdimensions, unusual experience, cognitive disorganization, introverted anhedonia, and impulsive nonconformity. Positive relations between achievement and depression and stress, and negative relations between anxiety and hedonism and stimulation were predicted and found. Multiple regressions revealed that the ten value types explained the most variance in impulsive nonconformity and the least variance in unusual experience. Overall, values were better in predicting more cognitive clinical variables (e.g., cognitive disorganization) whereas clinical constructs were better in predicted more affective values (e.g., hedonism). Implications of the findings for value research are discussed
The 3′-untranslated region directs ribosomal protein-encoding mRNAs to specific cytoplasmic regions

AbstractmRNA localization is a conserved post-transcriptional process crucial for a variety of systems. We have analyzed the subcellular distribution of mRNAs encoding human cytosolic and mitochondrial ribosomal proteins. Biochemical fractionation experiments showed that the transcripts for cytosolic ribosomal proteins associate preferentially with the cytoskeleton via actin microfilaments. Transfection in HeLa cells of a GFP reporter construct containing the cytosolic ribosomal protein L4 3′-UTR showed that the 3′-UTR is necessary for the association of the transcript to the cytoskeleton. Using confocal analysis we demonstrate that the chimeric transcript is specifically associated with the perinuclear cytoskeleton. We also show that mRNA for mitochondrial ribosomal protein S12 is asymmetrically distributed in the cytoplasm. In fact, this transcript was localized mainly in the proximity of mitochondria, and the localization was 3′-UTR-dependent. In summary, ribosomal protein mRNAs constitute a new class of localized transcripts that share a common localization mechanism
Evidence for leptonic CP phase from NOνA, T2K and ICAL: A chronological progression

AbstractWe study the synergy between the long-baseline (LBL) experiments NOνA and T2K and the atmospheric neutrino experiment ICAL@INO for obtaining the first hint of CP violation in the lepton sector. We also discuss how precisely the leptonic CP phase (δCP) can be measured by these experiments. The CP sensitivity is first described at the level of oscillation probabilities, discussing its dependence on the parameters – θ13, mass hierarchy and θ23. In particular, we discuss how the precise knowledge or lack thereof of these parameters can affect the CP sensitivity of LBL experiments. We follow a staged approach and analyze the δCP sensitivity that can be achieved at different points of time over the next 15 years from these LBL experiments alone and/or in conjunction with ICAL@INO. We find that the CP sensitivity of NOνA/T2K is enhanced due to the synergies between the different channels and between the two experiments. On the other hand the lack of knowledge of hierarchy and octant makes the CP sensitivity poorer for some parameter ranges. Addition of ICAL data to T2K and NOνA can exclude these spurious wrong-hierarchy and/or wrong-octant solutions and cause a significant increase in the range of δCP values for which a hint of CP violation can be achieved. In fact in parameter regions unfavourable for NOνA/T2K, we may get the first evidence of CP violation by adding the ICAL data to these. Similarly the precision with which δCP can be measured also improves with inclusion of ICAL data
Inclusive and differential measurements of the tt¯ charge asymmetry in proton–proton collisions at s=7 TeV

AbstractThe tt¯ charge asymmetry is measured in events containing a charged lepton (electron or muon) and at least four jets, one of which is identified as originating from b-quark hadronization. The analyzed dataset corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 5.0 fb−1 collected with the CMS detector at the LHC. An inclusive and three differential measurements of the tt¯ charge asymmetry as a function of rapidity, transverse momentum, and invariant mass of the tt¯ system are presented. The measured inclusive tt¯ charge asymmetry is AC=0.004±0.010(stat.)±0.011(syst.). This result and the three differential measurements are consistent with zero asymmetry as well as with the predictions of the standard model
Implicit action encoding influences personal-trait judgments

AbstractWhen an observed action (e.g., kicking) is compatible to a to be produced action (e.g., a foot-key response as compared to a finger-key response), then the self-produced action is more fluent, that is, it is more accurate and faster. A series of experiments explore the notion that vision–action compatibility effects can influence personal-trait judgments. It is demonstrated that when an observed individual carries out an action that is compatible with the participants’ response, (1) this individual is identified more fluently, and (2) the observed individual’s personality is attributed with the properties of the observed action. For example, if it is easier to identify one individual with a foot-response when he is seen kicking a ball, as compared to typing, he is perceived to be more ‘sporty’. In contrast, if it is easier to identify one individual with a finger response when he is seen typing as compared to kicking a ball, he is associated with the ‘academic’ trait. These personal-trait judgment effects can be observed with explicit measures, where participants are asked to rate the sporty/academic nature of the person on a scale. They are also obtained when implicit measures are taken in a priming task, where participants are never explicitly asked to rate the personalities of the individuals. A control experiment rules out that these personal-trait effects are merely due to an association of motor responses (foot, finger) to individuals while identifying them, but that these effects depend on a prior manipulation of vision–action fluency
Modelling Electronic Circuit Failures using a Xilinx FPGA System

AbstractFPGAs are a ubiquitous electronic component utilised in a wide range of electronic systems across many industries. Almost all modern FPGAs employ SRAM based configuration memory elements which are susceptible to radiation induced soft errors. In high altitude and space applications, as well as in the nuclear and defence industries, such circuits must operate reliably in radiation-rich environments. A range of soft error mitigation techniques have been proposed but testing and qualification of new fault tolerant circuits can be an expensive and time consuming process. A novel method for simulating radiation-induced soft errors is presented that operates entirely within a laboratory environment and requires no hazardous exposure to radiation or expensive airborne test rigs. A system utilising modular redundancy is then implemented and tested under the new method. The test system is further demonstrated in conjunction with a software flight simulator to test single electronic modules in the context of active service on board a passenger aircraft and the effects of failure under radiation induced soft errors are observed. Our research proposes a test regime in which design strategies for self-healing circuits can be compared and demonstrated to work
Measurement of the analysing power in proton–proton elastic scattering at small angles

AbstractThe proton analysing power in p→p elastic scattering has been measured at small angles at COSY-ANKE at 796 MeV and five other beam energies between 1.6 and 2.4 GeV using a polarised proton beam. The asymmetries obtained by detecting the fast proton in the ANKE forward detector or the slow recoil proton in a silicon tracking telescope are completely consistent. Although the analysing power results agree well with the many published data at 796 MeV, and also with the most recent partial wave solution at this energy, the ANKE data at the higher energies lie well above the predictions of this solution at small angles. An updated phase shift analysis that uses the ANKE results together with the World data leads to a much better description of these new measurements
Quantum theory of neutrino spin light in dense matter

AbstractWe develop the quantum theory of the spin light of neutrino (SLν) exactly accounting for the effect of background matter. Contrary to the already performed studies of the SLν, in this Letter we derive expressions for the SLν rate and power and for the emitted photon energy, which are valid for an arbitrary matter density (including very high values). The spatial distribution of the radiation power and the dependence of the emitted photon energy on the direction of radiation are also studied in detail for the first time. We analyze the SLν polarization properties and show that within a wide range of neutrino momenta and matter densities the SLν radiation is circularly polarized. Conditions for effective SLν photon propagation in the electron plasma are discussed. It is also shown that in dense matter the average energy of the emitted photon can reach values in the range from one third of the neutrino momentum up to one half of the neutrino energy in matter. The main features of the studied radiation are summarized, and possibilities for the SLν production during different astrophysical and cosmology processes are discussed
Measurement of spin correlations in tt‾ production using the matrix element method in the muon+jets final state in pp collisions at s=8 TeV

AbstractThe consistency of the spin correlation strength in top quark pair production with the standard model (SM) prediction is tested in the muon+jets final state. The events are selected from pp collisions, collected by the CMS detector, at a centre-of-mass energy of 8 TeV, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 19.7 fb−1. The data are compared with the expectation for the spin correlation predicted by the SM and with the expectation of no correlation. Using a template fit method, the fraction of events that show SM spin correlations is measured to be 0.72±0.08(stat)−0.13+0.15(syst), representing the most precise measurement of this quantity in the muon+jets final state to date
Multi-strange baryon production at mid-rapidity in Pb–Pb collisions at sNN=2.76 TeV

AbstractThe production of Ξ− and Ω− baryons and their anti-particles in Pb–Pb collisions at sNN=2.76 TeV has been measured using the ALICE detector. The transverse momentum spectra at mid-rapidity (|y|<0.5) for charged Ξ and Ω hyperons have been studied in the range 0.6<pT<8.0 GeV/c and 1.2<pT<7.0 GeV/c, respectively, and in several centrality intervals (from the most central 0–10% to the most peripheral 60–80% collisions). These spectra have been compared with the predictions of recent hydrodynamic models. In particular, the Kraków and EPOS models give a satisfactory description of the data, with the latter covering a wider pT range. Mid-rapidity yields, integrated over pT, have been determined. The hyperon-to-pion ratios are similar to those at RHIC: they rise smoothly with centrality up to 〈Npart〉∼150 and saturate thereafter. The enhancements (yields per participant nucleon relative to those in pp collisions) increase both with the strangeness content of the baryon and with centrality, but are less pronounced than at lower energies
Supergravity and the knitting of the Kalb–Ramond two-form in eight-dimensional topological gravity

AbstractTopological Euclidean gravity is built in eight dimensions for manifolds with Spin(7)⊂SO(8) holonomy. In a previous work, we considered the construction of an eight-dimensional topological theory describing the graviton and one graviphoton. Here we solve the question of determining a topological model for the combined system of a metric and a Kalb–Ramond two-form gauge field. We then recover the complete N=1, D=8 supergravity theory in a twisted form. We observe that the generalized self-duality conditions of our model correspond to the octonionic string equations