AUDIT: Audio Editing by Following Instructions with Latent Diffusion Models

Audio editing is applicable for various purposes, such as adding background sound effects, replacing a musical instrument, and repairing damaged audio. Recently, some diffusion-based methods achieved zero-shot audio editing by using a diffusion and denoising process conditioned on the text description of the output audio. However, these methods still have some problems: 1) they have not been trained on editing tasks and cannot ensure good editing effects; 2) they can erroneously modify audio segments that do not require editing; 3) they need a complete description of the output audio, which is not always available or necessary in practical scenarios. In this work, we propose AUDIT, an instruction-guided audio editing model based on latent diffusion models. Specifically, AUDIT has three main design features: 1) we construct triplet training data (instruction, input audio, output audio) for different audio editing tasks and train a diffusion model using instruction and input (to be edited) audio as conditions and generating output (edited) audio; 2) it can automatically learn to only modify segments that need to be edited by comparing the difference between the input and output audio; 3) it only needs edit instructions instead of full target audio descriptions as text input. AUDIT achieves state-of-the-art results in both objective and subjective metrics for several audio editing tasks (e.g., adding, dropping, replacement, inpainting, super-resolution). Demo samples are available at https://audit-demo.github.io/

A Hierarchical Approach for Fast Calculating Minimal Cut Sets of a Microgrid

Minimal cut sets are the basis of reliability analysis using analytical techniques. At the present stage, minimal cut sets are mainly obtained by dealing with minimal path sets, which involves cumbersome steps and slower operational speed. The speed of reliability analysis is limited by that of calculating minimal cut sets. In consideration of the characteristics of microgrid, a hierarchical approach for fast calculating minimal cut sets is proposed in this paper. Firstly, an equivalent principle is proposed to convert topology structure into network node diagram; then grades of nodes are designated based on their original connection and the breadth-first search approach; afterwards, root-leaf matrices and selected matrix are created to specify the direction and order of the search. Next, all possible combinations of minimal cut sets are vertically traversed out by replacing root nodes with leaf nodes to achieve a more rapid access to minimal cut sets. Finally, taking the electrical structure of type A380 more electric aircraft as an example, mainstream methods are compared to show the correctness and advantage of our proposed method

Periostin: a promising target of therapeutical intervention for prostate cancer

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In our recent study, Periostin was up-regulated in prostate cancer(PCa) compared with benign prostate hyperplasia (BPH) by proteomics analysis of prostate biopsies. We investigated the effect of sliencing Periostin by RNA interference (RNAi) on the proliferation and migration of PCa LNCap cell line.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>All the prostate biopsies from PCa, BPH and BPH with local prostatic intraepithelial neoplasm(PIN) were analyzed by iTRAQ(Isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification) technology. Western blotting and immunohistochemical staining were used to verify Periostin expression in the tissues of PCa. Periostin expression in different PCa cell lines was determined by immunofluorescence staining, western blotting and reverse transcription PCR(RT-PCR). The LNCap cells with Periostin expression were used for transfecting shRNA-Periostin lentiviral particles. The efficancy of transfecting shRNA lentiviral particles was evaluated by immunofluorescence, western blotting and Real-time PCR. The effect of silencing Periostin expression by RNAi on proliferation of LNCap cells was determined by MTT assay and tumor xenografts. The tissue slices from theses xenografts were analyzed by hematoxylin and eosin(HE) staining. The expression of Periostin in the xenografts was deteminned by Immunohistochemical staining and western blotting. The migration of LNCap cells after silencing Periostin gene expression were analyzed in vitro.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Periostin as the protein of interest was shown 9.12 fold up-regulation in PCa compared with BPH. The overexpression of Periostin in the stroma of PCa was confirmed by western blotting and immunohistochemical staining. Periostin was only expressed in PCa LNCap cell line. Our results indicated that the transfection ratio was more than 90%. As was expected, both the protein level and mRNA level of Periostin in the stably expressing shRNA-Periostin LNCap cells were significantly reduced. The stably expressing shRNA-Periostin LNCap cells growed slowly in vitro and in vivo. The tissues of xenografts as PCa were verificated by HE staining. Additionally, the weak positive Periostin expressed tumor cells could be seen in the tissues of 6 xenografts from the group of down-regulated Periostin LNCap cells which had a significant decrease of the amount of Periostin compared to the other two group. Furthermore, our results demonstrated that sliencing Periostin could inhibit migration of LNCap cells in vitro.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Our data indicates that Periostin as an up-regulated protein in PCa may be a promising target of therapeutical intervention for PCa in future.</p

Demand response from the control of aggregated inverter air conditioners

Inverter air conditioners (ACs) account for a large proportion of air conditioning loads in many countries and, thus, contribute significantly to the peak loads in these areas, especially in summer. On the other hand, as an important category of thermostatically controlled load with thermal energy storage capability, inverter ACs also have the potential to provide considerable flexibility for electric power systems that are faced with increasing challenges posed by high penetration of renewable power generation. This paper focuses on the demand response from the control of the aggregated inverter ACs for load reduction. A virtual energy storage system (VESS) model that encapsulates the room with an inverter AC was established based on the electric model of an inverter AC and the thermodynamic model of a room. Based on the VESS model, a virtual state of charge (VSOC) priority-based load reduction control method with temperature holding and linear recovery strategies was proposed. The VSOC priority based control was designed to decrease the negative impact of load reduction on customers’ thermal comfort from the perspective of the whole AC population. The temperature holding strategy was designed to reduce the electric power of an AC while ensuring that the indoor temperature is always below the allowable limit. The linear recover strategy was proposed to reduce the load rebound after load reduction. Four cases were studied regarding the operation and load reduction of the 100 inverter ACs, and the simulation results verified the models established and the effectiveness and advantages of the proposed load reduction control method

Minimal Cut Sets-Based Reliability Evaluation of the More Electric Aircraft Power System

The More Electric Aircraft (MEA) stands for the direction of aviation development in the new era, and the reliability of power systems on the MEA has attracted widespread attention. Based on the characteristics of MEA power systems, an equivalent method of electrical topology structure is presented in this article, and evaluation method is proposed which shows the reliability of the overall system with the reliability of specific nodes. Firstly, electrical topology structure of a MEA power system is converted into a network node diagram according to the proposed equivalent method. Then, the minimal path sets of specific nodes are obtained by the adjacent matrix algorithm, and the low-order minimal cut sets of disjointed are obtained. After that, the actual failure rate of components is converted to node failure rate, and the reliability of the overall system is evaluated by operational reliability indexes of specific nodes. Finally, taking the MEA A380 as an example, this paper compares and analyzes the reliability of AC loads, DC loads, and key loads to verify the validity and feasibility of the proposed evaluation method. This evaluation system can predict the weak points existing in the MEA power system, as well as providing theoretical support for maintenance schedule

High drug-loaded microspheres enabled by controlled in-droplet precipitation promote functional recovery after spinal cord injury

High drug loading improves therapeutic efficacy and reduces side effects in drug delivery. Here, the authors use controlled diffusion of solvents to precipitate drug nanoparticles in polymer particles while the polymer is solidifying and demonstrate the particles for drug delivery in a spinal cord injury model. Drug delivery systems with high content of drug can minimize excipients administration, reduce side effects, improve therapeutic efficacy and/or promote patient compliance. However, engineering such systems is extremely challenging, as their loading capacity is inherently limited by the compatibility between drug molecules and carrier materials. To mitigate the drug-carrier compatibility limitation towards therapeutics encapsulation, we developed a sequential solidification strategy. In this strategy, the precisely controlled diffusion of solvents from droplets ensures the fast in-droplet precipitation of drug molecules prior to the solidification of polymer materials. After polymer solidification, a mass of drug nanoparticles is embedded in the polymer matrix, forming a nano-in-micro structured microsphere. All the obtained microspheres exhibit long-term storage stability, controlled release of drug molecules, and most importantly, high mass fraction of therapeutics (21.8-63.1 wt%). Benefiting from their high drug loading degree, the nano-in-micro structured acetalated dextran microspheres deliver a high dose of methylprednisolone (400 mu g) within the limited administration volume (10 mu L) by one single intrathecal injection. The amount of acetalated dextran used was 1/433 of that of low drug-loaded microspheres. Moreover, the controlled release of methylprednisolone from high drug-loaded microspheres contributes to improved therapeutic efficacy and reduced side effects than low drug-loaded microspheres and free drug in spinal cord injury therapy.Peer reviewe