DAMM: Directionality-Aware Mixture Model Parallel Sampling for Efficient Dynamical System Learning

The Linear Parameter Varying Dynamical System (LPV-DS) is a promising framework for learning stable time-invariant motion policies in robot control. By employing statistical modeling and semi-definite optimization, LPV-DS encodes complex motions via non-linear DS, ensuring the robustness and stability of the system. However, the current LPV-DS scheme faces challenges in accurately interpreting trajectory data while maintaining model efficiency and computational efficiency. To address these limitations, we propose the Directionality-aware Mixture Model (DAMM), a new statistical model that leverages Riemannian metric on $d$-dimensional sphere $\mathbb{S}^d$, and efficiently incorporates non-Euclidean directional information with position. Additionally, we introduce a hybrid Markov chain Monte Carlo method that combines the Gibbs Sampling and the Split/Merge Proposal, facilitating parallel computation and enabling faster inference for near real-time learning performance. Through extensive empirical validation, we demonstrate that the improved LPV-DS framework with DAMM is capable of producing physically-meaningful representations of the trajectory data and improved performance of the generated DS while showcasing significantly enhanced learning speed compared to its previous iterations

Antimikrobna rezistencija i svojstva virulencije bakterije Enterococcus faecium izolirane u goveda s kliničkim mastitisom iz pokrajine Ningxia, Kina

This study was conducted to determine the antimicrobial resistance and virulence traits of 32 Enterococcus faecium isolates from clinical bovine mastitis cases in Ningxia Province, China. In total, 32 E. faecium isolates were taken from subclinical bovine mastitis on the basis of morphological characterization and biochemical testing, and screened for antimicrobial susceptibility. The virulence genes of the isolates were studied using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The disc diffusion assay revealed a high occurrence of resistance against tetracycline (78.1%) and erythromycin (68.8%) in the E. faecium isolates. However, all tested E. faecium were susceptible to linezolid and vancomycin. Moreover, all E. faecium isolates harbored the erythromycin-resistant genes ermA, ermB and ermC, as well as the tetracycline-resistant genes tetK, tetL and tetM. Furthermore, all E. faecium isolates carried more than 3 of the tested virulence genes. The presence of agg (100%), cpd (100%), efaA (100%), gelE (93.4%), and esp (75.0%) was found most frequently in all the tested isolates. These findings are useful for making appropriate antimicrobial choices and developing antivirulence therapies for subclinical bovine mastitis caused by E. faecium in Ningxia Province, China.Istraživanje je provedeno kako bi se odredila antimikrobina rezistencija i svojstva virulencije izolata bakterije Enterococcus faecium uzetih u goveda s kliničkim mastitisom. U ukupno 32 izolata goveda iz pokrajine Ningxia u Kini, procijenjena je antimikrobna osjetljivost na temelju morfološke karakterizacije i biokemijskih pretraga. Geni virulencije izolata istraženi su polimeraznom lančanom reakcijom (PCR). Disk-difuzijski test je u izolatu bakterije E. faecium pokazao visoku pojavnost rezistencije na tetraciklin (78,1 %) i eritromicin (68,8 %). Svi su pretraženi izolati bili osjetljivi na linezolid i vankomicin i imali gene rezisentne na eritromicin ermA, ermB i ermC, kao i na tetraciklin, tetK, tetL i tetM. Osim toga svi izolati E. faecium nosili su više od tri istraživana gena virulencije. Najčešći geni bili agg (100 %), cpd (100 %), efaA (100 %), gelE (93,4 %) i esp (75,0 %). Ovi rezultati mogu u pokrajini Ningxia u Kini pridonijeti pravilnom izboru antimikrobnog lijeka i razvoju uspješne terapije za supklinički goveđi mastitis uzrokovan bakterijom E. faecium

A possible role of crustacean cardioactive peptide in regulating immune response in hepatopancreas of mud crab

Crustacean cardioactive peptide (CCAP), a cyclic amidated non-apeptide, is widely found in arthropods. The functions of CCAP have been revealed to include regulation of heart rate, intestinal peristalsis, molting, and osmotic pressure. However, to date, there has not been any report on the possible involvement of CCAP in immunoregulation in crustaceans. In this study, a CCAP precursor (designated as Sp-CCAP) was identified in the commercially important mud crab Scylla paramamosain, which could be processed into four CCAP-associated peptides and one mature peptide (PFCNAFTGC-NH2). Bioinformatics analysis indicated that Sp-CCAP was highly conserved in crustaceans. RT-PCR results revealed that Sp-CCAP was expressed in nerve tissues and gonads, whereas the Sp-CCAP receptor gene (Sp-CCAPR) was expressed in 12 tissues of S. paramamosain, including hepatopancreas. In situ hybridization further showed that an Sp-CCAPR-positive signal is mainly localized in the F-cells of hepatopancreas. Moreover, the mRNA expression level of Sp-CCAPR in the hepatopancreas was significantly up-regulated after lipopolysaccharide (LPS) or polyriboinosinic polyribocytidylic acid [Poly (I:C)] challenge. Meanwhile, the mRNA expression level of Sp-CCAPR, nuclear transcription factor NF-kappa B homologs (Sp-Dorsal and Sp-Relish), member of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signaling pathway (Sp-P38), pro-inflammatory cytokines factor (Sp-TNFSF and Sp-IL16), and antimicrobial peptide (Sp-Lysozyme, Sp-ALF, Sp-ALF4, and Sp-ALF5) in the hepatopancreas were all up-regulated after the administration of synthetic Sp-CCAP mature peptide both in vivo and in vitro. The addition of synthetic Sp-CCAP mature peptide in vitro also led to an increase in nitric oxide (NO) concentration and an improved bacterial clearance ability in the hepatopancreas culture medium. The present study suggested that Sp-CCAP signaling system might be involved in the immune responses of S. paramamosain by activating immune molecules on the hepatopancreas. Collectively, our findings shed new light on neuroendocrine-immune regulatory system in arthropods and could potentially provide a new strategy for disease prevention and control for mud crab aquaculture

4-[(9-Ethyl-9H-carbazol-3-yl)imino­meth­yl]phenol

In the title compound, C21H18N2O, the dihedral angle between the phenol ring and the carbazole system is 39.34 (2)°. Inter­molecular O—H⋯N hydrogen bonds and C—H⋯π and π–π inter­actions [centroid–centroid distances = 3.426 (2) and 3.768 (2) Å] stabilize the crystal structure

Detection of the dominant pathogens in diarrheal calves of Ningxia, China in 2021–2022

IntroductionCalf diarrhea is a complex disease that has long been an unsolved problem in the cattle industry. Ningxia is at the forefront of China in the scale of cattle breeding, and calf diarrhea gravely restricts the development of Ningxia's cattle industry.MethodsFrom July 2021 to May 2022, we collected diarrhea stool samples from calves aged 1–103 days from 23 farms in five cities in Ningxia, and performed PCR using specific primers for 15 major reported pathogens of calf diarrhea, including bacteria, viruses, and parasites. The effect of different seasons on the occurrence of diarrhea in calves was explored, the respective epidemic pathogens in different seasons were screened, and more detailed epidemiological investigations were carried out in Yinchuan and Wuzhong. In addition, we analyzed the relationship between different ages, river distributions and pathogen prevalence.ResultsEventually, 10 pathogens were detected, of which 9 pathogens were pathogenic and 1 pathogen was non-pathogenic. The pathogens with the highest detection rate were Cryptosporidium (50.46%), Bovine rotavirus (BRV) (23.18%), Escherichia coli (E. coli) K99 (20.00%), and Bovine coronavirus (BCoV) (11.82%). The remaining pathogens such as Coccidia (6.90%), Bovine Astrovirus (BoAstV) (5.46%), Bovine Torovirus (BToV) (4.09%), and Bovine Kobuvirus (BKoV) (3.18%) primarily existed in the form of mixed infection.DiscussionThe analysis showed that different cities in Ningxia have different pathogens responsible for diarrhea, with Cryptosporidium and BRV being the most important pathogens responsible for diarrhea in calves in all cities. Control measures against those pathogens should be enforced to effectively prevent diarrhea in calves in China

Industrial Control System Fingerprinting and Anomaly Detection

Part 2: CONTROL SYSTEMS SECURITY International audience Industrial control systems are cyber-physical systems that supervise and control physical processes in critical infrastructures such as electric grids, water and wastewater treatment plants, oil and natural gas pipelines, transportation systems and chemical plants and refineries. Leveraging the stable and persistent control flow communications patterns in industrial control systems, this chapter proposes an innovative control system fingerprinting methodology that analyzes industrial control protocols to capture normal behavior characteristics. The methodology can be used to identify specific physical processes and control system components in industrial facilities and detect abnormal behavior. An experimental testbed that incorporates real systems for the cyber domain and simulated systems for the physical domain is used to validate the methodology. The experimental results demonstrate that the fingerprinting methodology holds promise for detecting anomalies in industrial control systems and cyber-physical systems used in the critical infrastructure. Document type: Part of book or chapter of boo

About One-point Statistics of the Ratio of Two Fourier-transformed Cosmic Fields and an Application

The Fourier transformation is an effective and efficient operation of Gaussianization at the one-point level. Using a set of N-body simulation data, we verified that the one-point distribution functions of the dark matter momentum divergence and density fields closely follow complex Gaussian distributions. The one-point distribution function of the quotient of two complex Gaussian variables is introduced and studied. Statistical theories are then applied to model one-point statistics about the growth of individual Fourier mode of the dark matter density field, which can be obtained by the ratio of two Fourier transformed cosmic fields. Our simulation results proved that the models based on the Gaussian approximation are impressively accurate, and our analysis revealed many interesting aspects about the growth of dark matter's density fluctuation in Fourier space.Comment: 15 pages, 13 figures. Accepted by Ap

Negative Elongation Factor Controls Energy Homeostasis in Cardiomyocytes

SummaryNegative elongation factor (NELF) is known to enforce promoter-proximal pausing of RNA polymerase II (Pol II), a pervasive phenomenon observed across multicellular genomes. However, the physiological impact of NELF on tissue homeostasis remains unclear. Here, we show that whole-body conditional deletion of the B subunit of NELF (NELF-B) in adult mice results in cardiomyopathy and impaired response to cardiac stress. Tissue-specific knockout of NELF-B confirms its cell-autonomous function in cardiomyocytes. NELF directly supports transcription of those genes encoding rate-limiting enzymes in fatty acid oxidation (FAO) and the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle. NELF also shares extensively transcriptional target genes with peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α (PPARα), a master regulator of energy metabolism in the myocardium. Mechanistically, NELF helps stabilize the transcription initiation complex at the metabolism-related genes. Our findings strongly indicate that NELF is part of the PPARα-mediated transcription regulatory network that maintains metabolic homeostasis in cardiomyocytes

Finishing the euchromatic sequence of the human genome

The sequence of the human genome encodes the genetic instructions for human physiology, as well as rich information about human evolution. In 2001, the International Human Genome Sequencing Consortium reported a draft sequence of the euchromatic portion of the human genome. Since then, the international collaboration has worked to convert this draft into a genome sequence with high accuracy and nearly complete coverage. Here, we report the result of this finishing process. The current genome sequence (Build 35) contains 2.85 billion nucleotides interrupted by only 341 gaps. It covers ∼99% of the euchromatic genome and is accurate to an error rate of ∼1 event per 100,000 bases. Many of the remaining euchromatic gaps are associated with segmental duplications and will require focused work with new methods. The near-complete sequence, the first for a vertebrate, greatly improves the precision of biological analyses of the human genome including studies of gene number, birth and death. Notably, the human enome seems to encode only 20,000-25,000 protein-coding genes. The genome sequence reported here should serve as a firm foundation for biomedical research in the decades ahead