Target detection in clutter is a fundamental problem in radar signal processing. When the received radar signal contains only few pulses, it is difficult to achieve a satisfactory performance using ...the traditional detection algorithm. In recent times, a generalized constant false alarm rate (CFAR) detector on the Riemannian manifold of Hermitian positive-definite (HPD) matrix was proposed. The employment of this detector, which compares the Riemannian distance between the covariance matrix of the cell under test (CUT) and an average matrix of reference cells with a given threshold, has significantly improved the detection performance. However, the application of this detector in real scenarios is still limited by two problems; it is computationally expensive and the detection performance is not very good since the Riemannian distance is utilized. In this paper, the symmetrized Kullback–Leibler (sKL) and the total Kullback–Leibler (tKL) divergences, instead of the Riemannian distance, are used as dissimilarity measures in the matrix CFAR detector. According to sKL and tKL divergences, three average matrices, the sKL mean, the sKL median, and the tKL t center, are derived. Furthermore, the relationship between the detection performance and the anisotropy of the distance measure used in the matrix CFAR detector is explored. Numerical experiments and real radar sea clutter data are given to confirm the superiority of the proposed algorithms in terms of the computational complexity and the detection performance.
Just-in-time learning (JITL) is one of the most widely used strategies for soft sensor modeling in nonlinear processes. However, traditional JITL methods have difficulty in dealing with data samples ...that contain missing values. Meanwhile, data noises and uncertainties have not been taken into consideration for relevant sample selection in existing JITL approaches. To overcome these problems, a new probabilistic JITL (P-JITL) framework is proposed in this brief. In P-JITL, variational Bayesian principal component analysis is first utilized to handle missing values and extract Gaussian posterior distributions of latent variables. Then, symmetric Kullback-Leibler divergence is creatively employed to measure the dissimilarity of two distributions for relevant sample selection in the JITL framework. Finally, a nonlinear regression model, Gaussian process regression, is carried out to model the nonlinear relationship between the output and the extracted latent variables. In this way, the proposed probabilistic JITL (P-JITL) is able to deal with missing data and select relevant samples more accurately. To evaluate the effectiveness and flexibility of P-JITL, comparative studies between P-JITL and traditional deterministic JITL (D-JITL) are carried out on a numerical example and an industrial application example, in which missing data are simulated with percentages from 0% to 50%. The results show that P-JITL can provide more accurate prediction accuracy than D-JITL in each scenario considered.
This article proposes a novel level set method (LSM) that improves river channel extraction accuracy in synthetic aperture radar (SAR) images by developing global median image fitting energies. ...First, we define a new global median fitting image (GMFI) to approximate the input image and use this GMFI to construct the fitting energy based on the symmetric Kullback-Leibler distance (SKL). Second, to exploit more image grayscale features, a squared global median fitting image (SGMFI) is derived and another fitting energy is similarly constructed using this SGMFI based on SKL. Third, we integrate the above two fitting energies and introduce additional regularized energies. The proposed LSM is verified and compared with several state-of-the-art methods on real SAR images. The river channel extraction results indicate that our proposed LSM has a clear advantage in accuracy and is robust to level set initialization.
Softwood kraft lignin is a renewable type of woody material that can be converted to value-added products, for example, as a paper strength additive in the paper industry. In this study, the monomers ...of methacryloxyethyltrimethyl ammonium chloride (DMC), acrylic acid (AA), and acrylamide (AM) were grafted on softwood kraft lignin (SKL) to prepare three different SKL copolymers. Fourier-transform infrared, proton nuclear magnetic resonance, charge density, elemental, and molecular weight analyses confirmed that the monomers were successfully grafted onto SKL. The grafting rates of SKL-DMC, SKL-AA, and SKL-AM copolymers were 80.35%, 82.70%, and 79.48%, respectively. The application of SKL copolymers as a paper additive for enhancing paper physical properties was studied. The results indicated that at a 2 wt % dosage of SKL copolymers, the increase in the physical properties of paper is maximum.
Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is one of the most escalating global metabolic diseases, which is highly associated with insulin resistance (IR) and risk of combination with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease ...(NAFLD). Previous studies suggest that soluble klotho (sKL) could serve as a circulating hormone to mediate energy metabolism, but the detailed mechanism is poorly understood. In this study, we generated T2D models of wild-type (WT), sKL heterozygous (KL+/−), and sKL transgenic (TgKL) mice continuously fed a high-fat diet (HFD) and constructed L02 cell lines that stably overexpress sKL to investigate the effect of sKL on hepatic glucose and lipid metabolism. Surprisingly, we discovered that sKL deficiency resulted in exacerbated diabetic phenotypes and hepatic glucolipid metabolism disorders in HFD-fed KL+/− diabetic mice (KL+/− DM), whereas TgKL diabetic mice (TgKL DM) exhibited ameliorated diabetic phenotypes and decreased IR. Mechanistic studies in vitro and in vivo demonstrated that sKL could inhibit the PI3K/AKT/mTORC1 signaling to upregulate peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα) expression by directly interacting with type 1 insulin-like growth factor receptor (IGF1R) in HFD-fed T2D mice. Thus, sKL could improve hepatic glucolipid homeostasis to ameliorate diabetic phenotypes and lipid accumulation and may function as a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of T2D and reduce the risk of NAFLD.
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Zheng and colleagues elucidated that soluble klotho (sKL) could improve hepatic glucose and lipid homeostasis by regulating the IGF1R/PI3K/AKT/mTORC1/PPARα signal axis in T2D, which indicated that sKL may function as a potential therapeutic target for the progression of T2D and NAFLD.
The purpose of this research is to evaluate SKL Alquran Program. This research used mixed method. The students of SKL Quran program are being subject of this study and the lecturers are being ...informants because they are also the examiner of SKL Quran. This study examines data collection derived from quitioners, intervies, observations, and documentations. It also examines data validity by using triangulation, which means analysis qualitatif using interactive analysis and quantitative using percentile formula. The results show that SKL Quran needs to be evaluated in the context as an important category. The inputs of charateristic form explain that most participants of SKL Quran come from public school education background. Evaluation process also shows that the things of SKL Quran are needed to be improved in the process such as subjectivity examiners that always have been affect to students graduation of SKL Quran. Last, evaluation of the product knowledge of this study is going to graduate 77.42%.
(PSLV),
(LRSV), and
(BSMV) are members of the genus
in the family
. However, the biological properties and molecular genetics of PSLV have not been compared with other hordeiviruses. Here, we have ...constructed an infectious cDNA clone of the PSLV Canadian strain and provided evidence that PSLV differs from BSMV and LRSV. First, unlike the other two hordeiviruses that replicate in chloroplasts, PSLV induces dramatic structural changes in peroxisome during its infection in barley. The αa replication protein also localizes to peroxisomes, suggesting that PSLV replication occurs in peroxisomes. Second, PSLV encodes a γb protein that shares 19 to 23% identity with those of other hordeiviruses, and its activity as a viral suppressor of RNA (VSR) silencing is distinct from those of BSMV and LRSV. Substitution of the BSMV γb protein with that of PSLV or LRSV revealed a negative correlation between VSR activity and symptom severity of the recombinant BSMV derivatives. Intriguingly, the Ser-Lys-Leu (SKL) peroxisome-targeting signals differ among γb proteins of various hordeiviruses, including some BSMV strains. The presence of the C-terminal SKL motif in the γb protein impairs its silencing suppressor activity and influences symptoms. Finally, we developed a PSLV-based virus-induced gene silencing vector that induced strong and effective silencing phenotypes of endogenous genes in barley, wheat, and millet. Our results shed new light on hordeivirus pathogenesis and evolution, and provide an alternative tool for genomics studies of model hosts and economically important monocots.
•Quantify global distribution of lateral load through the track superstructure.•Quantify lateral load path through a single Skl-style fastening system.•Novel instrumentation to measure rail lateral ...load transferred to rail fastening system.•Investigate the effect of vertical load upon lateral load distribution in railroad track.•Investigate and quantify the lateral stress of concrete crosstie equipped with Skl-style fastening system.
Throughout the international railway community, there are many different designs of elastic fastening systems that have been developed to meet a variety of design specifications and performance expectations. Historically, in North America, the most common types of fastening systems used for concrete crossties are the Safelok I or e-clip systems. In recent years railroads have begun implementing the Skl-style (W) fastening system with concrete crossties in existing and new heavy haul freight railroad mainlines. The magnitude of lateral force applied to the Skl-style fastening system is important information for both design and application purposes. Despite this importance, the lateral force applied to the Skl-style fastening system in a heavy haul freight railroad environment has never been quantified to date. To better understand how the Skl-style system performs under the magnitude of lateral loads observed on heavy haul freight railroads, research was conducted by the Rail Transportation and Engineering Center (RailTEC) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). The focus of this paper is on laboratory characterization of the lateral load path through the Skl-style fastening system using novel instrumentation techniques that are subjected to heavy haul freight railroad loading conditions. The investigation of fastening system performance included an evaluation of lateral load distribution through the track superstructure, and a single fastening system. Laboratory experimentation concluded that lateral wheel load is primarily distributed to three crossties, the relationship between lateral wheel load and lateral force resisted by field side angled guide plate is non-linear, and that the design of the Skl-style fastening system allows lateral force to be transferred into the crosstie below the worst case concrete compressive fatigue strength. The observations from this study will assist the rail industry in improving fastening system design and developing mechanistic track structure design method.
Klotho is an anti-aging transmembrane protein, which can be shed and can function as a hormone. Accumulating data indicate that klotho is a tumor suppressor in a wide array of malignancies, and ...designate the subdomain KL1 as the active region of the protein towards this activity. We aimed to study the role of klotho as a tumor suppressor in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). Bioinformatics analyses of The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) datasets revealed a correlation between the survival of PDAC patients, levels of klotho expression, and DNA methylation, and demonstrated a unique hypermethylation pattern of klotho in pancreatic tumors. The in vivo effects of klotho and KL1 were examined using three mouse models. Employing a novel genetic model, combining pancreatic klotho knockdown with a mutation in Kras, the lack of klotho contributed to PDAC generation and decreased mousece survival. In a xenograft model, administration of viral particles carrying sKL, a spliced klotho isoform containing the KL1 domain, inhibited pancreatic tumors. Lastly, treatment with soluble sKL prolonged survival of Pdx1-Cre; Kras
;Trp53
(KPC) mice, a model known to recapitulate human PDAC. In conclusion, this study provides evidence that klotho is a tumor suppressor in PDAC. Furthermore, these data suggest that the levels of klotho expression and DNA methylation could have prognostic value in PDAC patients, and that administration of exogenous sKL may serve as a novel therapeutic strategy to treat PDAC.
We present a systematic study of tilted spiral states obtained theoretically within the classical Dzyaloshinskii model for magnetic states in cubic non-centrosymmetric ferromagnets. Such tilted ...spirals are shown to stabilize under the competing effect of cubic and exchange anisotropies inherent to cubic helimagnets. By focusing on the internal structure of these spirals and their field-driven behaviour for different aspect ratios of the anisotropy coefficients, we are able to capture the main features of the experimental findings in a bulk cubic helimagnet Cu
2
OSeO
3
and to make a step further towards a complete quantitative model of this chiral magnet. In particular, we show that for strong anisotropy values (which experimentally correspond to low temperatures near zero) there exist an angular separation between the conical and tilted spirals, i.e., the conical spiral flips into a tilted state and immediately composes some finite angle with respect to the field direction. As the anisotropy ratio decreases, such a transition between two spiral states becomes almost continuous and corresponds to higher temperatures at the experiments. In addition, we investigate the field-driven reorientation of metastable skyrmion lattices induced by the competing anisotropies, which may be responsible for some peculiarities at the experimental phase diagrams of Cu
2
OSeO
3
.
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