RNA silencing pathways play critical roles in maintaining quiescence of transposons in germ cells to promote genome integrity. However the precise mechanism by which different types of transposons ...are recognized by these pathways is not fully understood. Furthermore, the location in the germline where this transposition occurs after disruption of transposon silencing was previously unknown. Here we utilize the spatial and temporal organization of the
germline to demonstrate that transposition of DNA transposons in RNA silencing pathway mutants occur in all stages of adult germ cells. We further demonstrate that the double-strand breaks generated by transposons can restore homologous recombination in a mutant defective for the generation of meiosis-specific double-strand breaks. Finally, we detected clear differences in transposase expression and transposon excision between distinct branches of the RNA silencing pathway, emphasizing that there are multiple mechanisms by which transposons can be recognized and routed for small-RNA-mediated silencing.
During the operations, firefighters can be injured or killed because of the smoke and heat emission from the fire area, broken structure elements such as floors, walls, or boiling liquid ejection and ...gas explosion. Therefore, this paper aims to develop an efficient and portable system to monitor falls and high CO level through integrating a three degrees of freedom accelerometer and an MQ7 sensor to recorded acceleration and measured CO concentration with the embedded fall and high CO detection algorithms. The embedded fall detection algorithm can detect fall events with ultra-high accuracy without mistakenly identifying normal activities such as walking, standing, jogging, and jumping as fall events. The posture recognition and cascade posture recognition after three seconds are proposed in this paper to gain the accuracy of our proposed fall detection system. If a firefighter falls and is unable to stand up, the alert signal message will be sent to their commander outside through the GSM/GPRS module. The embedded high CO detection algorithm used to alert the dangerous CO level to recommend using self-contained breathing apparatuses (SCBA) and saving fresh air with acceptable CO level. We carefully investigated the proposed thresholds and window size before embedding them into the microcontroller. The sensitivity and accuracy achieved were around 96.5% and 93% respectively in our recorded data. Furthermore, the proposed fall detection algorithm also achieved higher geometric mean in comparison with Support Vector Machine classifier (SVM) and a nearest neighbor rule (NN) in the public datasets with the achieved around 99.44%, 98.41% and 95.76% respectively.
We propose a new wireless communication architecture for implanted systems that simultaneously stimulates neurons and record neural responses. This architecture can support large numbers of ...electrodes (>500), providing 100 Mb/s for the downlink of stimulation signals, and gigabits per second for the uplink of neural recordings. We propose a full-duplex transceiver architecture that shares one antenna for both the ultrawideband (UWB) and the 2.45-GHz industrial, scientific, and medical band. A new pulse shaper is used for the gigabits per second uplink to simplify the transceiver design, while supporting several modulation formats with high data rates. To validate our system-level design for brain-machine interfaces, we present an ex-vivo experimental demonstration of the architecture. While the system design is for an integrated solution, the proof-of-concept demonstration uses discrete components. Good bit error rate performance over a biological channel at 0.5-, 1-, and 2-Gb/s data rates for uplink telemetry (UWB) and 100 Mb/s for downlink telemetry (2.45-GHz band) are achieved.
This paper shows an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) algorithm-based approach for load shedding based on the coordination of the load importance factor (LIF), the reciprocal phase angle sensitivity ...(RPAS), and the voltage electrical distance (VED) to rank the load buses. This problem is important from a power system point of view, and the AHP method is able to support the decision-making process in a simple and intuitive way in a three-criterion environment. This satisfies the multicriteria decision-making to meet economic-technical aspects. The ranking and distributed shedding power at each demand load bus are based on this combined weight. The smaller overall weights of the load buses show the lesser importance of the load bus, the smaller reciprocal phase angle sensitivity, and the closer voltage electrical distance. Therefore, these load buses cut a larger amount of capacity, and vice versa. By considering the generator control, the load shedding consists of the primary and secondary control features of the generators to minimize the load shedding capacity and restore the system frequency value back to the allowable range. The efficiency of the suggested load-shedding scheme was verified via the comparison with the under-frequency load shedding (UFLS). The latter result is that the load shedding power of the suggested approach is 22.64% lower than the UFLS method. The case studies are experienced on the IEEE 9-generator; the 37-bus system has proven its effectiveness.
The generation of broadly neutralizing antibodies is a priority in the design of vaccines against HIV-1. Unfortunately, most antibodies to HIV-1 are narrow in their specificity, and a basic ...understanding of how to develop antibodies with broad neutralizing activity is needed. Designing methods to target antibodies to conserved HIV-1 epitopes may allow for the generation of broadly neutralizing antibodies and aid the global fight against AIDS by providing new approaches to block HIV-1 infection. Using a naturally occurring HIV-1 Envelope (Env) variant as a template, we sought to identify features of Env that would enhance exposure of conserved HIV-1 epitopes.
Within a cohort study of high-risk women in Mombasa, Kenya, we previously identified a subtype A HIV-1 Env variant in one participant that was unusually sensitive to neutralization. Using site-directed mutagenesis, the unusual neutralization sensitivity of this variant was mapped to two amino acid mutations within conserved sites in the transmembrane subunit (gp41) of the HIV-1 Env protein. These two mutations, when introduced into a neutralization-resistant variant from the same participant, resulted in 3- to >360-fold enhanced neutralization by monoclonal antibodies specific for conserved regions of both gp41 and the Env surface subunit, gp120, >780-fold enhanced neutralization by soluble CD4, and >35-fold enhanced neutralization by the antibodies found within a pool of plasmas from unrelated individuals. Enhanced neutralization sensitivity was not explained by differences in Env infectivity, Env concentration, Env shedding, or apparent differences in fusion kinetics. Furthermore, introduction of these mutations into unrelated viral Env sequences, including those from both another subtype A variant and a subtype B variant, resulted in enhanced neutralization susceptibility to gp41- and gp120-specific antibodies, and to plasma antibodies. This enhanced neutralization sensitivity exceeded 1,000-fold in several cases.
Two amino acid mutations within gp41 were identified that expose multiple discontinuous neutralization epitopes on diverse HIV-1 Env proteins. These exposed epitopes were shielded on the unmodified viral Env proteins, and several of the exposed epitopes encompass desired target regions for protective antibodies. Env proteins containing these modifications could act as a scaffold for presentation of such conserved domains, and may aid in developing methods to target antibodies to such regions.
We experimentally investigate postcompensation of nonlinear distortions induced by a wavelength converter (WC) based on four-wave mixing in a semiconductor optical amplifier. The technique exploits a ...low-complexity digital filter-based backpropagation (DFBP) method. We perform postcompensation of nonlinear distortions following single stage wavelength conversion of 5 Gbd 64-quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM). We examine the DFBP performance in the presence of a degraded optical signal-to-noise ratio at the WC input, and explore the WC optimal operating conditions. Also, we experimentally demonstrate for the first time in the literature the dual stage wavelength conversion of QAM signals, in particular, 5 Gbd 64-QAM, and show that bit error rate below hard-decision forward error correction threshold is only possible with postcompensation of nonlinear distortions. These results are of importance for the development of wavelength-routed networks requiring successive wavelength conversion stages to enhance routing capabilities.
This article is concerned with a forward problem for the following sub-diffusion equation driven by standard Brownian motion
\begin{align*}
\left( ^{\mathcal C} \partial^\gamma_t + A \right) u(t) = ...f(t) + B(t) \dot{W}(t), \quad t\in J:=(0,T),
\end{align*}
where $^{\mathcal C} \partial^\gamma_t$ is the conformable derivative, $\gamma \in (\frac{1}{2},1.$ Under some flexible assumptions on $f,B$ and the initial data, we investigate the existence, regularity, continuity of the solution on two spaces $L^r(J;L^2(\Omega,\dot{H}^\sigma))$ and $C^\alpha(\overline{J};L^2(\Omega,H))$ separately.
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) and its relationship with corporate competitive advantage (CCA) have gained a tremendous interest among the researchers and practitioners over decades, as ...evident by the increasing surge of studies in this domain. This study examines how five types (legal, economic, philanthropic, ethical, and environmental) of CSR affect CCA in a developing country through the mediating roles of employee commitment and corporate reputation. Data was collected by survey questionnaires from a sample of 869 participants working at service, real estate, and manufacturing firms in Ho Chi Minh City and Binh Duong Province, Vietnam. SmartPLS 3.0 software and the partial least squares structural equation modeling method (PLS-SEM) were applied to evaluate the research model and test the hypotheses. The findings revealed that different dimensions of CSR have positive significant effects on employee commitment, corporate reputation and competitive advantage. Besides, employee commitment and corporate reputation were found to meditate the relationship between different types of CSR and CCA. These outcomes contributed to the extension of theory in the fields of CSR and offered some suggestions for managers in implementing CSR initiatives to gain and sustain CCA.
Plain Language Summary
This study examines how five types (legal, economic, philanthropic, ethical, and environmental) of CSR affect CCA in a developing country through the mediating roles of employee commitment and corporate reputation. Data was collected by survey questionnaires from a sample of 869 participants working at service, real estate, and manufacturing firms in Ho Chi Minh City and Binh Duong Province, Vietnam. The findings revealed that different dimensions of CSR have positive significant effects on employee commitment, corporate reputation and competitive advantage. Besides, employee commitment and corporate reputation were found to meditate the relationship between different types of CSR and CCA.
•Essential oil was extracted from Allium schoenoprasum L. (AS) bulbs from Quang Tri province, Vietnam.•The hydro-distillation process with suitable extracting conditions gave an essential oil yield ...of 0.290 %.•The AS bulb essential oil in xylene contained disulfide and trisulfide compounds as predominant components.•The obtained AS bulb essential oil exhibited high antioxidant and antibacterial activity.
This paper presents a comprehensive investigation on the extraction of essential oil from Allium schoenoprasum L. (AS) bulbs collected in Quang Tri province, Vietnam. Effects of extracting conditions on the quantity of extracted essential oil were investigated, followed by the evaluation of physicochemical characteristics, chemical composition and biological activities. The hydro-distillation process under suitable extracting conditions (extraction time of 3 h, NaCl concentration of 5 %, material-to-NaCl solution ratio of 1:2) allowed obtaining the highest essential oil yield of 0.290 ± 0.003 %. Chemical composition analysis (Quadrupole GC/MS) of the AS bulb essential oil in xylene indicated that disulfide and trisulfide compounds, as major components, accounted for 97.53 % of the identified compounds. The obtained AS bulb essential oil exhibited high antioxidant activity, which is significantly higher than that of ascorbic acid, in the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical test. Moreover, it provided strong antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli, methicillin−resistant Staphylococcus aureus, methicillin sensitive Staphylococcus aureus and moderate inhibition activity against carbapenem-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Streptococcus pneumoniae.
This study investigated the phenotypic spectrum of PHARC (polyneuropathy, hearing loss, ataxia, retinitis pigmentosa and early-onset cataract) syndrome caused by biallelic variants in the
gene. A ...total of 15 patients from 12 different families were included, with a mean age of 36.7 years (standard deviation SD ± 11.0; range from 17.5 to 53.9) at the most recent examination. The presence and onset of neurological, audiological and ophthalmic symptoms were variable, with no evident order of symptom appearance. The mean best-corrected visual acuity was 1.1 logMAR (SD ± 0.9; range from 0.1 to 2.8; equivalent to 20/250 Snellen) and showed a trend of progressive decline. Different types of cataract were observed in 13 out of 15 patients (87%), which also included congenital forms of cataract. Fundus examination revealed macular involvement in all patients, ranging from alterations of the retinal pigment epithelium to macular atrophy. Intraretinal spicular hyperpigmentation was observed in 7 out of 15 patients (47%). From an ophthalmic perspective, clinical manifestations in patients with PHARC demonstrate variability with regard to their onset and severity. Given the variable nature of PHARC, an early multidisciplinary assessment is recommended to assess disease severity.
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