Compositions and Methods for Inhibiting Gene Expressions

A combined packing and assembly method that efficiently packs ribonucleic acid (RNA) into virus like particles (VLPs) has been developed. The VLPs can spontaneously assemble and load RNA in vivo, efficiently packaging specifically designed RNAs at high densities and with high purity. In some embodiments the RNA is capable of interference activity, or is a precursor of a RNA capable of causing interference activity. Compositions and methods for the efficient expression, production and purification of VLP-RNAs are provided. VLP-RNAs can be used for the storage of RNA for long periods, and provide the ability to deliver RNA in stable form that is readily taken up by cells

Where Am I Now? Dynamically Finding Optimal Sensor States to Minimize Localization Uncertainty for a Perception-Denied Rover

We present DyFOS, an active perception method that dynamically finds optimal states to minimize localization uncertainty while avoiding obstacles and occlusions. We consider the scenario where a perception-denied rover relies on position and uncertainty measurements from a viewer robot to localize itself along an obstacle-filled path. The position uncertainty from the viewer's sensor is a function of the states of the sensor itself, the rover, and the surrounding environment. To find an optimal sensor state that minimizes the rover's localization uncertainty, DyFOS uses a localization uncertainty prediction pipeline in an optimization search. Given numerous samples of the states mentioned above, the pipeline predicts the rover's localization uncertainty with the help of a trained, complex state-dependent sensor measurement model (a probabilistic neural network). Our pipeline also predicts occlusion and obstacle collision to remove undesirable viewer states and reduce unnecessary computations. We evaluate the proposed method numerically and in simulation. Our results show that DyFOS is faster than brute force yet performs on par. DyFOS also yielded lower localization uncertainties than faster random and heuristic-based searches.Comment: 7 pages, 7 figures, Accepted to 2023 IEEE International Symposium on Multi-Robot & Multi-Agent Systems (MRS

Improving Utility of GPU in Accelerating Industrial Applications with User-centred Automatic Code Translation

SMEs (Small and medium-sized enterprises), particularly those whose business is focused on developing innovative produces, are limited by a major bottleneck on the speed of computation in many applications. The recent developments in GPUs have been the marked increase in their versatility in many computational areas. But due to the lack of specialist GPU (Graphics processing units) programming skills, the explosion of GPU power has not been fully utilized in general SME applications by inexperienced users. Also, existing automatic CPU-to-GPU code translators are mainly designed for research purposes with poor user interface design and hard-to-use. Little attentions have been paid to the applicability, usability and learnability of these tools for normal users. In this paper, we present an online automated CPU-to-GPU source translation system, (GPSME) for inexperienced users to utilize GPU capability in accelerating general SME applications. This system designs and implements a directive programming model with new kernel generation scheme and memory management hierarchy to optimize its performance. A web-service based interface is designed for inexperienced users to easily and flexibly invoke the automatic resource translator. Our experiments with non-expert GPU users in 4 SMEs reflect that GPSME system can efficiently accelerate real-world applications with at least 4x and have a better applicability, usability and learnability than existing automatic CPU-to-GPU source translators

The information sources and journals consulted or read by UK paediatricians to inform their clinical practice and those which they consider important: a questionnaire survey

Background: Implementation of health research findings is important for medicine to be evidence-based. Previous studies have found variation in the information sources thought to be of greatest importance to clinicians but publication in peer-reviewed journals is the traditional route for dissemination of research findings. There is debate about whether the impact made on clinicians should be considered as part of the evaluation of research outputs. We aimed to determine first which information sources are generally most consulted by paediatricians to inform their clinical practice, and which sources they considered most important, and second, how many and which peer-reviewed journals they read. Methods: We enquired, by questionnaire survey, about the information sources and academic journals that UK medical paediatric specialists generally consulted, attended or read and considered important to their clinical practice. Results: The same three information sources – professional meetings & conferences, peerreviewed journals and medical colleagues – were, overall, the most consulted or attended and ranked the most important. No one information source was found to be of greatest importance to all groups of paediatricians. Journals were widely read by all groups, but the proportion ranking them first in importance as an information source ranged from 10% to 46%. The number of journals read varied between the groups, but Archives of Disease in Childhood and BMJ were the most read journals in all groups. Six out of the seven journals previously identified as containing best paediatric evidence are the most widely read overall by UK paediatricians, however, only the two most prominent are widely read by those based in the community. Conclusion: No one information source is dominant, therefore a variety of approaches to Continuing Professional Development and the dissemination of research findings to paediatricians should be used. Journals are an important information source. A small number of key ones can be identified and such analysis could provide valuable additional input into the evaluation of clinical research outputs

Mechanisms of Esophago-Pharyngeal Acid Regurgitation in Human Subjects

Esophago-pharyngeal regurgitation is implicated in various otolaryngologic and respiratory disorders. The pathophysiological mechanisms causing regurgitation are still largely unknown

InternationaL cross-sectIonAl and longItudinal assessment on aSthma cONtrol in European adult patients : the LIAISON study protocol

The study is funded by Chiesi Farmaceutici S.p.A., Parma, ItalyPeer reviewedPublisher PD

Neural processing of criticism and positive comments from relatives in individuals with schizotypal personality traits

Objectives. High negative expressed emotion by family members towards schizophrenia patients increases the risk of subsequent relapse. The study aimed to determine whether individuals with high schizotypy (HS) and low schizotypy (LS) would differ in activation of brain areas involved in cognitive control when listening to relative criticism