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Athletes usually arrange their training plans and determine their training intensity according to the coach’s experience and simple physical indicators such as heart rate during exercise. However, the accuracy of this method is poor, and the training plan and exercise intensity arranged according to this method can easily cause physical damage, or the training cannot meet the actual needs. Therefore, in order to realize the reasonable arrangement and monitoring of athletes’ training, a method of human exercise intensity recognition based on ECG (electrocardiogram) and PCG (Phonocardiogram) is proposed. First, the ECG and PCG signals are fused into a two-dimensional image, and the dataset is marked and divided according to the different motion intensities. Then, the training set is trained with a CNN (convolutional neural network) to obtain the prediction model of the neural network. Finally, the neural network model is used to identify the ECG and PCG signals to judge the exercise intensity of the athlete, so as to adjust the training plan according to the exercise intensity. The recognition accuracy of the model on the dataset can reach 95.68%. Compared with the use of heart rate to detect the physical state during exercise, ECG records the total potential changes in the process of depolarization and repolarization of the heart, and PCG records the waveform of the beating sound of the heart, which contains richer feature information. Combined with the CNN method, the athlete’s exercise intensity prediction model constructed by extracting the features of the athlete’s ECG and PCG signals realizes the real-time monitoring of the athlete’s exercise intensity and has high accuracy and generalization ability.

With the development of information technology, it has become increasingly important to use intelligent algorithms to diagnose mechanical equipment faults based on vibration signals of rolling bearings. However, with the application of high-performance sensors in the Internet of Things, the complexity of real-time classification of multichannel, multidimensional sensor signals is increasing. In view of the need for intelligent methods for fault diagnosis methods of mechanical equipment, the generalization ability of fault diagnosis models also needs to be further strengthened. In this context, in order to make fault diagnosis intelligent and efficient, a bearing fault diagnosis method based on spectrum map information fusion and convolutional neural network (CNN) is proposed. First, short-time Fourier transform (STFT) is used to analyze the multichannel vibration signal of the rolling bearing and obtain the frequency domain information of the signal over a period of time. Second, the information fusion is converted into two-dimensional (2D) images, which are input into CNN for training, and the bearing fault identification model is obtained. Next, the frequency domain information of each signal is converted into a 2D spectrum map, which is used as a CNN training dataset to train a bearing fault identification model. Finally, the diagnostic model is validated using the existing datasets. The results show that the accuracy of fault diagnosis using the proposed bearing is greater than 99.4% and can even reach 100%. The proposed method considerably reduces the workload of the diagnosis process, with strong robustness and generalization ability.

Depression is a mental illness and can even lead to suicide if not be diagnosed and treated. Electroencephalograph (EEG) is used to diagnose depression and it is more complexity to extract the features from all the multimodal channel information . In order to simplify the diagnose process and detect clinical depression, the EEG channels with strong depression information should be identified firstly. Therefore, a depression signal correlation identification method based on convolutional neural network (CNN) is proposed. In the method, the labeled multi-channel EEG is used as data. The EEG signals of each channel are divided into neural network training data set and these data is trained by AlexNet network. Then the correlation classification of each channel for depression is identified based on the trained sample. Accuracy and loss functions are used to evaluate classification index.Conversely, the correlation is lower. An experiments is conducted and the results show that the correlation is not consistent. A few of channels are strongly correlated with depression, such as 13, 17, 28, 40, 46, 66 and 69. These EEG channels are selected to diagnose depression.

Generative adversarial nets (GANs) have been successfully applied to the artificial generation of image data. In terms of text data, much has been done on the artificial generation of natural language from a single corpus. We consider multiple text corpora as the input data, for which there can be two applications of GANs: (1) the creation of consistent cross-corpus word embeddings given different word embeddings per corpus; (2) the generation of robust bag-of-words document embeddings for each corpora. We demonstrate our GAN models on real-world text data sets from different corpora, and show that embeddings from both models (weGAN and deGAN) lead to improvements in supervised learning problems.

Skin disease is a common diseases. Although it is very common, the manifestations of skin diseases are various, and the diagnosis process is relatively difficult, and the requirements for dermatologists are also very high. And the recognition efficiency of detection also needs to be improved. To this end, this paper mainly investigates the potential of classifying skin diseases in deep learning convolutional neural networks to enhance the recognition accuracy. The VGG16 neural network was trained using the training data of the ISIC 2019 challenge, and the training data was augmented to increase the accuracy of the model, and accurately classify 3 skin diseases with 97% accuracy. This method can help doctors to make auxiliary diagnosis and provide technical support for skin disease diagnosis.

Unreasonable exercise will cause damage to the body. In physical education, coaches only use physiological indicators such as heart rate and breathing to judge the physiological state of athletes, which is highly subjective and is not conducive to accurately judging the physiological state of athletes. In order to effectively monitor athletes in exercises, a method for identifying athletes' exercise intensity based on ECG and convolutional neural network was proposed. In this method, the more informative ECG signal is used as the physiological indicator of the athlete's exercise intensity, combined with the convolutional neural network for feature extraction, and finally the training model is used to monitor and evaluate the athlete's exercise intensity. The method implements automatic feature extraction and recognition of athletes' ECG signals. The simulation results of the dataset show that the method can effectively judge the exercise intensity, and the accuracy can reach 98.6%. At the same time, the algorithm has a small amount of calculation and a fast convergence speed, in the daily training of athletes has a good auxiliary role.

In order to solve the problem of AGV fault detection system’s complexion and low accuracy, a convolutional neural network (CNN) based on the status monitoring and fault diagnosis method for automatic guided vehicle (AGV) is proposed. Firstly, the vibration signals of the core components of AGV are converted into two-dimensional (2D) images. Secondly, 2D images are input into convolution neural network for training. Finally, the trained model is used to monitor the running status of AGV and identify faults. The results show that the proposed method can effectively monitor the status of AGV in operation.

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text, Background: Although the efficacy of antihypertensive drugs has been well established for primary hypertension, their effectiveness is always limited by side effects and poor compliance. Heat-sensitive moxibustion is an innovative acupoint stimulation therapy that is promising as a community health care intervention for hypertension. Aims: This study aims to evaluate the pragmatic effectiveness and safety of heat-sensitive moxibustion self-administration by patients in the community with primary hypertension. Methods: This study will adopt a multi-center, pragmatic, nonrandomized design. Six hundred patients with primary hypertension will be recruited from 4 communities. Each patient will choose to either receive heat-sensitive moxibustion self-administration + original antihypertensive drugs or maintain their original antihypertensive drugs without heat-sensitive moxibustion for 1 year. Expected outcomes: The primary outcome will be changes in systolic and diastolic blood pressures and the percentage changes in the doses of antihypertensive drugs. The secondary outcomes will be changes in quality of life assessed by a validated patient-reported outcome scale and the levels of fasting blood glucose, glycated hemoglobin, total cholesterol, triglycerides, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, urinary albumin, and serum creatinine. The proportion of patients with poor compliance with the heat-sensitive moxibustion regimen will also be evaluated as a secondary outcome. The safety of heat-sensitive moxibustion will be considered by analyzing the incidence of all and serious adverse events and their correlation with heat-sensitive moxibustion. Discussion: The findings of this study will provide pragmatic evidence for heat-sensitive moxibustion self-administration in patients in the community with primary hypertension and may also establish an ethical basis for further randomized controlled trials. Trial registration: The protocol of this trial was registered in ClinicalTrials.gov at May 11, 2020 (No. NCT04381520).

Establishment of production platforms through prokaryotic engineering in microbial organisms would be one of the most efficient means for chemicals, protein, and biofuels production. Despite the fact that CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats)–based technologies have readily emerged as powerful and versatile tools for genetic manipulations, their applications are generally limited in prokaryotes, possibly owing to the large size and severe cytotoxicity of the heterogeneous Cas (CRISPR-associated) effector. Nevertheless, the rich natural occurrence of CRISPR-Cas systems in many bacteria and most archaea holds great potential for endogenous CRISPR-based prokaryotic engineering. The endogenous CRISPR-Cas systems, with type I systems that constitute the most abundant and diverse group, would be repurposed as genetic manipulation tools once they are identified and characterized as functional in their native hosts. This article reviews the major progress made in understanding the mechanisms of invading DNA immunity by type I CRISPR-Cas and summarizes the practical applications of endogenous type I CRISPR-based toolkits for prokaryotic engineering.

Epilepsy, as a common nervous system disease in the world, urgently needs effective methods for diagnosis and treatment. Scalp electroencephalogram (EEG) contains a lot of physiological and pathological information, which plays a very important role in the diagnosis of brain diseases such as epilepsy. At present, the clinical analysis of EEG signal is mainly based on the clinician’s visual analysis, which makes the clinician’s task heavy, and there is no quantitative standard for the analysis results. Therefore, the automatic classification of epileptic EEG signals has great potential in current clinical application. Based on the deep learning VGG16 convolutional neural network model, a method for automatic detection of seizure signals is proposed in this paper. Firstly, the samples are preprocessed, then enter the VGG16 convolutional neural network model for training, and finally input the validation set for validation. The experimental results indicate that this model can distinguish the pre-ictal EEG, interictal EEG and ictal EEG.

Identifying stroke during a 9-1-1 call is critical to timely prehospital care. However, emergency medical dispatchers (EMDs) recognize stroke in less than half of 9-1-1 calls, potentially due to the words used by callers to communicate stroke signs and symptoms. We hypothesized that callers do not typically use words and phrases considered to be classical descriptors of stroke, such as focal neurologic deficits, but that a mixed-methods approach can identify words and phrases commonly used by 9-1-1 callers to describe acute stroke victims.We performed a mixed-method, retrospective study of 9-1-1 call audio recordings for adult patients with confirmed stroke who were transported by ambulance in a large urban city. Content analysis, a qualitative methodology, and computational linguistics, a quantitative methodology, were used to identify key words and phrases used by 9-1-1 callers to describe acute stroke victims. Because a caller's level of emotional distress contributes to the communication during a 9-1-1 call, the Emotional Content and Cooperation Score was scored by a multidisciplinary team.A total of 110 9-1-1 calls, received between June and September 2013, were analyzed. EMDs recognized stroke in 48% of calls, and the emotional state of most callers (95%) was calm. In 77% of calls in which EMDs recognized stroke, callers specifically used the word "stroke"; however, the word "stroke" was used in only 38% of calls. Vague, non-specific words and phrases were used to describe stroke victims' symptoms in 55% of calls, and 45% of callers used distractor words and phrases suggestive of non-stroke emergencies. Focal neurologic symptoms were described in 39% of calls. Computational linguistics identified 9 key words that were more commonly used in calls where the EMD identified stroke. These words were concordant with terms identified through qualitative content analysis.Most 9-1-1 callers used vague, non-specific, or distractor words and phrases and infrequently provide classic stroke descriptions during 9-1-1 calls for stroke. Both qualitative and quantitative methodologies identified similar key words and phrases associated with accurate EMD stroke recognition. This study suggests that tools incorporating commonly used words and phrases could potentially improve EMD stroke recognition.

Application of CRISPR-based technologies in non-model microorganisms is currently very limited. Here, we reported efficient genome engineering of an important industrial microorganism, Zymomonas mobilis, by repurposing the endogenous Type I-F CRISPR–Cas system upon its functional characterization. This toolkit included a series of genome engineering plasmids, each carrying an artificial self-targeting CRISPR and a donor DNA for the recovery of recombinants. Through this toolkit, various genome engineering purposes were efficiently achieved, including knockout of ZMO0038 (100% efficiency), cas2/3 (100%), and a genomic fragment of >10 kb (50%), replacement of cas2/3 with mCherry gene (100%), in situ nucleotide substitution (100%) and His-tagging of ZMO0038 (100%), and multiplex gene deletion (18.75%) upon optimal donor size determination. Additionally, the Type I-F system was further applied for CRISPRi upon Cas2/3 depletion, which has been demonstrated to successfully silence the chromosomally integrated mCherry gene with its fluorescence intensity reduced by up to 88%. Moreover, we demonstrated that genome engineering efficiency could be improved under a restriction–modification (R–M) deficient background, suggesting the perturbance of genome editing by other co-existing DNA targeting modules such as the R–M system. This study might shed light on exploiting and improving CRISPR–Cas systems in other microorganisms for genome editing and metabolic engineering practices.

Background/purpose It is important to confirm product use effects on skin health for products intended for prolonged skin contact. This study compared experimental and marketed reference adult incontinence protective underwear. Methods Randomized, single-blind (examiner), parallel study evaluating skin health effects in predominantly obese incontinent women normally using protective underwear (approximately 20% Type II Diabetes). Subjects wore experimental or marketed reference protective underwear daily, 14 consecutive days. Visual skin grading, transepidermal water loss (TEWL) assessed before, after 1 and 2 weeks of product wear. Overall assessment of comfort assessed. Results Of the 122 subjects (60 experimental and 62 marketed reference), 22 were diabetic and 88 were postmenopausal. Under the conditions of this study, there were no statistically significant differences in overall change from baseline for visual grading and TEWL between the experimental product and the marketed reference product for all subjects. Changes from baseline for skin erythema and skin marking were generally small for both products for all subjects as well as for both diabetics and non-diabetics. There were no serious adverse events (AEs), and no withdrawals due to AEs. Overall comfort assessments of size and fit were 'just right,' and skin comfort in the leg, waist and crotch areas were 'comfortable' or 'very comfortable' for both products. Conclusions In-use 14-day testing demonstrated few statistical differences between experimental product with unique odor neutralizing technology and currently marketed product for skin assessments and comfort. Both products were comfortable and well-tolerated.

The chemical kinetics on gelatin–CdS direct conjugates has been systematically investigated as a function of different temperature and reactant concentration (i.e. Cd2+, S2− and gelatin) by UV–visible spectroscopy, for the first time. The nonlinear fitting and the differential method were used to calculate the initial rate based on the absorbance–time data. A double logarithmic linear equation for calculating the rate constant (k) and the reaction order (n) was introduced. The reaction kinetic parameters (n, k, Ea, and Z) and activation thermodynamic parameters (ΔG≠, ΔH≠, and ΔS≠) were obtained from variable temperature kinetic studies. The overall rate equation allowing evaluation of conditions that provide required reaction rate could be expressed as: r = 1.11 × 10 8 exp ( - 4971 / T ) [ Cd 2 + ] [ gelatin ] 0.6 [ S 2 - ] 0.6 ( M / s ) The calculated values of the reaction rate are well coincide with the experimental results. A suitable kinetic model is also proposed. This work will provide guidance for the rational design of gelatin-directed syntheses of metal sulfide materials, and help to understand the biological effects of nanoparticles at the molecular level.

Water-soluble gelatin-PbS bionanocomposites (BNCs) were synthesized via a facile one-pot chemical reaction method at pH 7.40. The samples were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-vis absorption spectra (UV-vis), Fourier transform infrared spectra (FT-IR) and circular dichroism (CD). FT-IR data were used to envisage the binding of PbS particles with oxygen atoms of carbonyl groups of gelatin molecule. The possible integration mechanism between gelatin and PbS was discussed in detail. The effect of Pb2+ and PbS on the conformations of gelatin has also been analyzed by means of UV-vis, CD and FT-IR spectra, resulting in less α-helix content and more open structures (β-sheet, β-turn, or expanded). A new formula to calculate the association constant was proposed according to the relationship between the absorbance of gelatin-PbS BNCs and the free concentration of PbS, and apparent association constants K (298/303/308 K: 3.11/2.00/1.60 × 106 mol/L) at three different temperatures were calculated based on this formula. Thermodynamic parameters such as ΔGθ, ΔHθ and ΔSθ were also determined. The results of the thermodynamic investigations indicated that the reaction was spontaneous (ΔGθ < 0), and enthalpy-driven (ΔHθ < 0).

Manufacturers of consumer products consistently seek to improve marketed products in terms of both safety and efficacy. The desire for continued improvement is seen even in well-established products such as catamenial products which have existed in some form for thousands of years. A recent innovation in the design of menstrual pads is the addition of a surface finish of emollient for the purpose of increasing comfort during wear. The present paper presents different evaluations of such an emollient-treated menstrual pad with a novel absorbent core. These investigations demonstrated product tolerability, defined the optimal formulation and concentration of the emollient-containing finish, and demonstrated successful transfer of the emollient to the relevant skin surface. In addition, enhancement of skin moisturization, associated with exposure to the emollient-treated pad, was demonstrated by several technologies: assessment of skin moisturization by Corneometer®, skin friction testing, and skin capacitance.

Apertured polyethylene films (AF) have been used as a surface for sanitary pads for decades because they are compatible with the skin and keep the pad surface drier. A modified film (AF-plus) with improved fluid handling and a smoother, suppler texture has been developed. We hypothesized that these changes would improve both performance and skin compatibility. However, distinguishing the skin effects of materials that are inherently mild is a challenge.(i) To compare the skin irritation potential of pads with AF-plus modified film relative to the standard AF film and (ii) to assess the potential for the AF-plus film to induce delayed contact hypersensitivity.Pads bearing the AF-plus film were compared to pads with the standard AF film in a behind-the-knee (BTK) test, which assesses the combination of chemical irritation and frictional effects of materials applied to the popliteal fossa under a semi-occlusive bandage. Erythema on the skin surface was scored with the naked eye and subsurface tissue erythema was visualized and scored using cross-polarized illumination. Skin dryness was scored with the naked eye only. One-sided statistical evaluations were performed to test the hypothesis of AF-plus film superiority. The potential of the AF-plus film to induce delayed contact hypersensitivity was assessed by a human repeat insult patch test (HRIPT).Pads with the AF-plus surface were significantly milder to skin in the BTK test, producing lower levels of both surface and subsurface tissue erythema. Moreover, subjects with preexisting erythema on the skin surface at study start developed comparatively less erythema over the course of the study overall with the AF-plus pad compared to the AF pad. No significant difference in skin dryness was observed between product groups. The AF-plus pad showed no evidence of inducing delayed contact hypersensitivity.The AF-plus pad was superior to the AF pad in terms of skin mildness as discerned by objectively scored surface and subsurface tissue erythema. In subjects with preexisting erythema, the AF-plus pad appeared to contribute less to the further development of inflammation under the test conditions. Given the compositional similarities in the two films, the results could point to more limited contribution of the AF-plus film to skin friction, one of the factors simulated by the BTK test protocol.

We have developed a line of products designed to better meet the overall needs of women suffering from urinary incontinence. The products are more discrete and contain a unique odor neutralizing technology (ONT).This paper describes the overall skin compatibility program for this product line in which the new products were compared to negative controls and/or commercially marketed reference products with an established history of safe use.Test products consisted of several product forms (light pads/pantiliners, moderate pads, briefs and taped diapers) with ONT and having various degrees of protection. Studies were conducted using standard protocols for 4-day and 21-day cumulative irritation, the Human Repeat Insult Patch Test (HRIPT), and the Behind-the-Knee (BTK) test for mechanical and chemical irritation. In one 4-day irritation study and one HRIPT, test subjects consisted of individuals with self-assessed sensitive skin. In addition, one 4-day study was conducted using normal skin sites, and sites compromised by tape stripping. Nonirritant controls were physiologic saline and/or current, commercially marketed incontinence products. All responses were evaluated by visual scoring of erythema. In addition, in the BTK, transepidermal water loss (TEWL) and adverse sensory effects collected from panelists' daily diaries were also evaluated.Two 4-day cumulative irritation studies and one 21-day study demonstrated that a wide range of product forms (liners, light and moderate pads, briefs and adult diapers) produced skin reactions similar to the nonirritant controls. The 4-day study conducted using sensitive skin subjects showed good skin compatibility, and the test products were comparable to the nonirritant controls. In the 4-day study with both normal and compromised skin sites, test products produced mean erythema scores similar to the nonirritant controls. Three HRIPT separate studies confirm that the products do not induce contact sensitization, including one study conducted on individuals with self-assessed sensitive skin. In the BTK, test and control products produced similar irritation, as assessed by erythema, TEWL and sensory effects.The results from the patch tests and mechanical irritation test demonstrate good skin compatibility of the new line of products with the unique ONT. In addition, the forms of the product (i.e. liner, pad or brief), were equally compatible with skin.

Fibroblast growth factor receptor 4 (FGFR4) is a member of the FGFR family of receptor tyrosine kinases, and plays important roles in a variety of biological functions such as cell proliferation, differentiation, migration, angiogenesis, tissue repair, and tumorigenesis. The human FGFRs share a high degree of sequence homology between themselves, as well as with their murine homologs. Consequently, it has been suggested that it may be difficult to prepare monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) that are specific for the individual receptor types. In this communication, we report on the development and characterization of a panel of anti-human FGFR4 MAbs that were generated in mice using a rapid immunization protocol. Using a modified rapid immunization at multiple sites (RIMMS) protocol with the soluble extracellular domain of human FGFR4 (FGFR4-ECD), the immunized mice developed high levels of polyclonal IgG to the immunogen within 13 days of the first immunization. The lymph node cells isolated from the immunized animals were then fused with mouse myeloma cells for hybridoma generation. Use of an efficient hybridoma cloning protocol in combination with an ELISA screening procedure allowed for early identification of stable hybridomas secreting antihuman FGFR4 IgG. Several identified MAbs specifically reacted with the FGFR4 protein without binding to the other human isoforms (FGFR1, FGFR2, and FGFR3). As evaluated by BIAcore analysis, most anti-FGFR4 MAbs displayed high affinities (8.6 x 10(8) approximately 3.9 x 10(10) M) to FGFR4. Furthermore, these MAbs were able to bind to FGFR4 expressed on human breast tumor cell lines MDA-MB-361 and MDA-MB-453. Taken together, the results demonstrate that the RIMMS strategy is an effective approach for generating class-switched, high-affinity MAbs in mice to evolutionarily conserved proteins such as human FGFR4. These MAbs may be useful tools for further investigation of the biological functions and pathological roles of human FGFR4.

Several different vector designs are currently being used to display and express Fab molecules in Escherichia coli, but their relative efficiency in phage display and protein expression cannot be compared from the published data. We systematically investigated which vector design most effectively displays and expresses Fab molecules in E. coli using, as a model system, a human Fab against tetanus toxoid (tt). Three different vectors were used in this study: pFab1 where the VL-CL and VH-CH1 genes were driven by two promoters in two separate expression cassettes, and pFab2 and pFab3 that both contain one dicistronic expression cassette with two translation initiation sites and either VH-CH1 before VL-CL or VL-CL before VH-CH1, respectively. The display of tt-Fab on the surface of phage and the expression of tt-Fab protein in E. coli were compared for the aforementioned vectors. Our results showed that the pFab3 vector was most effective in Fab display. A 10-fold increase in the expression of secreted Fab was observed in pFab3 when compared with vectors pFab1 and pFab2. Further experiments were conducted using pFab3 to optimize expression levels using different strains of E. coli and various culture conditions. The highest expression of tt-Fab was obtained using the pFab3 vector in host strain JM105 with an induction temperature at 37 degrees C and IPTG concentration of 0.1 mM.

The effect of pressure on excited-state intramolecular proton transfer (ESIPT) is studied in three polyhydroxyflavones: 3,7-dihydroxyflavone, 3,5,7-trihydroxyflavone (galangin), and 3,3',4',7-tetrahydroxy-flavone (fisetin), dissolved in poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), poly(vinyl acetate) (PVAc), poly(acrylic acid) (PAA), and cellulose acetate (CAC). The unusual photophysical properties of polyhydroxyflavone in PAA are interpreted in terms of protonation of the carbonyl oxygen. We calculate the ratio of the equilibrium constant at elevated pressure to that at 1 atm, K (p)/K (0), and the difference of partial molar volume between the normal state and the phototautomer, ΔV. The results indicate that pressure effectively suppresses intramolecular proton transfer in polyhydroxyflavone. K (p)/K (0) and ΔV show a strong pressure dependence in the range of 10-30 kbar.

Infection of a human melanoma cell line by a retroviral vector resulted in transmission of a mouse VL30 (mVL30-1) retroelement RNA to some of the cells infected by the retrovirus, followed by synthesis, integration, and expression of the mVL30-1 cDNA. One vector carried a tissue factor (TF) transgene that generated high TF melanoma clones, and another vector was a control without the TF transgene that generated low TF clones. Some high TF melanoma clones contained the mVL30-1 retroelement and others did not, and some low TF melanoma clones contained the mVL30-1 retroelement and others did not. Each type of melanoma clone was tested for its metastatic potential in severe combined immunodeficient (SCID) mice, by i.v. injection of the cells to generate lung tumors. None of the low TF clones that either contained or lacked the mVL30-1 retroelement generated lung tumors, consistent with earlier results showing that high TF expression promoted metastasis. The high TF clones containing the mVL30-1 retroelement were strongly metastatic, in contrast to the high TF clones lacking the mVL30-1 retroelement, which were weakly metastatic. Southern hybridization analyses showed that the mVL30-1 cDNA integrated into different genomic sites in different melanoma clones, suggesting that the effect of the mVL30-1 retroelement on metastasis depends not on integration per se but instead on expression of the mVL30-1 RNA. A role for the mVL30-1 RNA in metastasis and possibly other cell functions is an unexpected finding, because the RNA appears to lack significant coding potential for a functional protein. The metastatic effect might be mediated directly by a noncoding mVL30-1 RNA or by a peptide or small protein encoded by one of the short ORFs in the mVL30-1 RNA.