The SEMAINE Database: Annotated Multimodal Records of Emotionally Colored Conversations between a Person and a Limited Agent

SEMAINE has created a large audiovisual database as a part of an iterative approach to building Sensitive Artificial Listener (SAL) agents that can engage a person in a sustained, emotionally colored conversation. Data used to build the agents came from interactions between users and an operator simulating a SAL agent, in different configurations: Solid SAL (designed so that operators displayed an appropriate nonverbal behavior) and Semi-automatic SAL (designed so that users' experience approximated interacting with a machine). We then recorded user interactions with the developed system, Automatic SAL, comparing the most communicatively competent version to versions with reduced nonverbal skills. High quality recording was provided by five high-resolution, high-framerate cameras, and four microphones, recorded synchronously. Recordings total 150 participants, for a total of 959 conversations with individual SAL characters, lasting approximately 5 minutes each. Solid SAL recordings are transcribed and extensively annotated: 6-8 raters per clip traced five affective dimensions and 27 associated categories. Other scenarios are labeled on the same pattern, but less fully. Additional information includes FACS annotation on selected extracts, identification of laughs, nods, and shakes, and measures of user engagement with the automatic system. The material is available through a web-accessible database. © 2010-2012 IEEE.

Interlaboratory comparison of real-time polymerase chain reaction methods to detect Coxiella burnetii, the causative agent of Q fever

The bacterium Coxiella burnetii, which has a wide host range, causes Q fever. Infection with C burnetii can cause abortions, stillbirth, and the delivery of weak offspring in ruminants. Coxiella burnetii infection is zoonotic, and in human beings it can cause chronic, potentially fatal disease. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is increasingly being used to detect the organism and to aid in diagnosis both in human and animal cases. Many different real-time PCR methods, which target different genes, have been described. To assess the comparability of the C. burnetii real-time PCR assays in use in different European laboratories, a panel of nucleic acid extracts was dispatched to 7 separate testing centers. The testing centers included laboratories from both human and animal health agencies. Each laboratory tested the samples using their in-house real-time PCR methods. The results of this comparison show that the most common target gene for real-time PCR assays is the IS1111 repeat element that is present in multiple copies in the C. burnetii genome. Many laboratories also use additional real-time PCR tests that target single-copy genes. The results of the current study demonstrate that the assays in use in the different laboratories are comparable, with general agreement of results for the panel of samples.

Resistance of Staphylococcus aureus to the cationic antimicrobial agent poly(2-(dimethylamino ethyl)methacrylate) (pDMAEMA) is influenced by cell-surface charge and hydrophobicity

Cationic antimicrobial agents may prevent device-associated infections caused by Staphylococcus epidermidis and Staphylococcus aureus. This study reports that the cationic antimicrobial polymer poly(2-(dimethylamino ethyl)methacrylate) (pDMAEMA) was more effective at antagonizing growth of clinical isolates of S. epidermidis than of S. aureus. Importantly, mature S. epidermidis biofilms were significantly inactivated by pDMAEMA. The S. aureus isolates tested were generally more hydrophobic than the S. epidermidis isolates and had a less negative charge, although a number of individual S. aureus and S. epidermidis clinical isolates had similar surface hydrophobicity and charge values. Fluorescence spectroscopy and flow cytometry revealed that fluorescently labelled pDMAEMA interacted strongly with S. epidermidis compared with S. aureus. S. aureus Delta dltA and Delta mprF mutants were less hydrophobic and therefore more susceptible to pDMAEMA than wild-type S. aureus. Although the different susceptibility of S. epidermidis and S. aureus isolates to pDMAEMA is complex, influenced in part by surface hydrophobicity and charge, these findings nevertheless reveal the potential of pDMAEMA to treat S. epidermidis infections.

FMRFamide-related peptides (FaRPs) in nematodes: Occurrence and neuromuscular physiology

The occurrence of classical neurotransmitter molecules and numerous peptidic messenger molecules in nematode nervous systems indicate that although structurally simple, nematode nervous systems are chemically complex. Thus far, studies on one nematode neuropeptide family, namely the FMRFamide-related peptides (FaRPs), have revealed an unexpected variety of neuropeptide structures in both free-living and parasitic species. To date 23 nematode FaRPs have been structurally characterized including 12 from Ascaris suum, 8 from Caenorhabditis elegans, 5 from Panagrellus redivivus and 1 from Haemonchus contortus. Ten FaRP-encoding genes have been identified in Caenorhabditis elegans. However, the full complement of nematode neuronal messengers has yet to be described and unidentified nematode FaRPs await detection. Preliminary characterization of the actions of nematode neuropeptides on the somatic musculature and neurones of A. suum has revealed that these peptidic messengers have potent and complex effects. Identified complexities include the biphasic effects of KNEFIRFamide/KHEYLRFamide (AF1/2; relaxation of tone followed by oscillatory contractile activity) and KPNFIRFamide (PF4; rapid relaxation of tone followed by an increase in tone), the diverse actions of KSAYMRFamide (AF8 or PF3; relaxes dorsal muscles and contracts ventral muscles) and the apparent coupling of the relaxatory effects of SDPNFLRFamide/SADPNFLRFamide (PF1/PF2) to nitric oxide release. Indeed, all of the nematode FaRPs which have been tested on somatic muscle strips of A. suum have actions which are clearly physiologically distinguishable. Although we are a very long way from understanding how the actions of these peptides are co-ordinated, not only with those of each other but also with those of the classical transmitter molecules, to control nematode behaviour, their abundance coupled with their diversity of structure and function indicates a hitherto unidentified sophistication to nematode neuromuscular intergration.

Nuclear factor-kappaB as a potential therapeutic target for the novel cytotoxic agent LC-1 in acute myeloid leukaemia

Nuclear factor-kappaB (NF-kappaB) has been implicated in a number of malignancies and has been suggested to be a potential molecular target in the treatment of leukaemia. This study demonstrated the constitutive activation of NF-kappaB in human myeloid blasts and a clear correlation between NF-kappaB expression and in vitro cytoprotection. High NF-kappaB expression was found in many of the poor prognostic acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) subtypes, such as French-American-British classification M0 and M7, and the poor cytogenetic risk group. The in vitro effects of LC-1, a novel dimethylamino-parthenolide analogue, were assessed in 62 primary untreated AML samples. LC-1 was found to be cytotoxic to AML cells in a dose-dependent manner, mediated through the induction of apoptosis. The median drug concentration necessary to kill 50% of the cells was 4.5 micromol/l for AML cells, compared with 12.8 micromol/l for normal marrow cells. LC-1 was shown to reduce the five individual human NF-kappaB Rel proteins in a dose-dependent manner. The subsequent inhibition of many NF-kappaB-regulated cytokines was also demonstrated. Importantly, sensitivity to LC-1 was correlated with the basal NF-kappaB activity. Consequently, LC-1 treatment provides a proof of principle for the use of NF-kappaB inhibitors in the treatment of AML.

Evaluation of Four Designed Virtual Agent Personalities

Convincing conversational agents require a coherent set of behavioral responses that can be interpreted by a human observer as indicative of a personality. This paper discusses the continued development and subsequent evaluation of virtual agents based on sound psychological principles. We use Eysenck's theoretical basis to explain aspects of the characterization of our agents, and we describe an architecture where personality affects the agent's global behavior quality as well as their back-channel productions. Drawing on psychological research, we evaluate perception of our agents' personalities and credibility by human viewers (N = 187). Our results suggest that we succeeded in validating theoretically grounded indicators of personality in our virtual agents, and that it is feasible to place our characters on Eysenck's scales. A key finding is that the presence of behavioral characteristics reinforces the prescribed personality profiles that are already emerging from the still images. Our long-term goal is to enhance agents' ability to sustain realistic interaction with human users, and we discuss how this preliminary work may be further developed to include more systematic variation of Eysenck's personality scales. © 2012 IEEE.


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A graded BDI agent model to represent and reason about preferences

In this research note, we introduce a graded BDI agent development framework, g-BDI for short, that allows to build agents as multi-context systems that reason about three fundamental and graded mental attitudes (i.e. beliefs, desires and intentions). We propose a sound and complete logical framework for them and some logical extensions to accommodate slightly different views on desires. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Influence of a pore-forming agent on swelling, network parameters, and permeability of poly(ethylene glycol)-crosslinked poly(methyl vinyl ether-co-maleic acid) hydrogels:Application in transdermal delivery systems

We characterized hydrogels, prepared from aqueous blends of poly(methyl vinyl ether-co-maleic acid) (PMVE/MA) and poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG 10,000 Daltons) containing a pore-forming agent (sodium bicarbonate, NaHCO ). Increase in NaHCO content increased the equilibrium water content (EWC) and average molecular weight between crosslinks (M ) of hydrogels. For example, the %EWC was 731, 860, 1109, and 7536% and the M was 8.26, 31.64, 30.04, and 3010.00 × 10 g/mol for hydrogels prepared from aqueous blends containing 0, 1, 2, and 5% w/w of NaHCO , respectively. Increase in NaHCO content also resulted in increased permeation of insulin. After 24 h, percentage permeation was 0.94, 3.68, and 25.71% across hydrogel membranes prepared from aqueous blends containing 0, 2, and 5% w/w of NaHCO , respectively. Hydrogels containing the pore-forming agent were fabricated into microneedles (MNs) for transdermal drug delivery applications by integrating the MNs with insulin-loaded patches. It was observed that the mean amount of insulin permeating across neonatal porcine skin in vitro was 20.62% and 52.48% from hydrogel MNs prepared from aqueous blends containing 0 and 5% w/w of NaHCO . We believe that these pore-forming hydrogels are likely to prove extremely useful for applications in transdermal drug delivery of biomolecules. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Balancing Inflammatory, Lipid, and Xenobiotic Signaling Pathways by VSL#3, a Biotherapeutic Agent, in the Treatment of Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Background: The interleukin 10 knockout mouse (IL10-KO) is a model of human inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) used to Study host microbial interactions and the action of potential therapeutics. Using Affymetrix data analysis, important signaling pathways and transcription factors relevant to gut inflammation and antiinflammatory probiotics were identified.

Methods: Affymetrix microarray analysis on both wildtype (WT) and IL10-KO mice orally administered with and without the probiotic VSL#3 was performed and the results validated by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR), immunocytochemistry, proteomics, and histopathology. Changes in metabolically active bacteria were assessed with denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE).

Results: Inflammation in IL10-KO mice was characterized by differential regulation of inflammatory, nuclear receptor, lipid, and xenobiotic signaling pathways. Probiotic intervention resulted in downregulation of CXCL9 (fold change [FC] = -3.98, false discovery rate [FDR] = 0.019), CXCL10 (FC = -4.83, FDR = 0.0008), CCL5 (FC -3.47 FDR = 0.017), T-cell activation (Itgal [FC = -4.72, FDR = 0.00009], Itgae [FC = -2.54 FDR = 0.0044]) and the autophagy gene IRGM (FC = -1.94, FDR = 0.01), a recently identified susceptibility gene in human IBD. Consistent with a marked reduction in integrins, probiotic treatment decreased the number of CCL5+ CD3+ double-positive T Cells and upregulated galectin2, which triggers apoptosis of activated T cells. Importantly, genes associated with lipid and PPAR signaling (PPAR alpha [FC = 2.36, FDR = 0.043], PPARGC1 alpha [FC 2.58, FDR = 0.016], Nrld2 [FC = 3.11, FDR = 0.0067]) were also upregulated. Altered microbial diversity was noted in probiotic-treated mice.

Conclusions: Bioinformatics analysis revealed important immune response. phagocytic and inflammatory pathways dominated by elevation of T-helper cell 1 type (TH1) transcription factors in IL10-KO mice. Probiotic intervention resulted in a site-specific reduction of these pathways but importantly upregulated PPAR, xenobiotic, and lipid signaling genes. potential antagonists of NF-kappa B inflammatory pathways.