LLukas22/scidocs huggingface dataset:
Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate rescue therapy following failure of both lamivudine and adefovir dipivoxil in chronic hepatitis B.

OBJECTIVE
To determine the efficacy of tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) in adults with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection who had previously failed lamivudine (LAM) and had significant viral replication (HBV DNA >10⁵ copies/ml if HBeAg positive, > 10⁴ copies/ml if HBeAg negative) despite at least 24 weeks of treatment with adefovir dipivoxil (ADV).


DESIGN
A prospective open-label study of TDF 300 mg daily. Patients receiving combination ADV/LAM prior to baseline were switched to TDF/LAM.


SETTING
Multiple tertiary referral centres.


METHODS
Sixty patients were enrolled. The median age was 48.5 years (range 21e80), 46 (77%) were male and 40 (67%) were HBeAg positive. Thirty-eight patients (63%) were switched from ADV to TDF, the remainder from ADV/LAM to TDF/LAM. At baseline, substitutions conferring resistance to LAM or ADV were present in 20 patients (33%) and 17 patients (28%), respectively. The median baseline viral load was 5.33 log₁₀ IU/ml (range 2.81-8.04). Patients initially treated with TDF monotherapy with persistent viral replication at or after 24 weeks were switched to TDF/LAM. The main outcome measures were change in HBV viral load from baseline and percentage of patients achieving an undetectable viral load (<15 IU/ml).


RESULTS
Results are reported at 96 weeks of treatment. One patient discontinued TDF at 10 days due to rash. The time-weighted change in viral load from baseline to week 12 was -2.19 log10 IU/ml overall. The median change in HBV DNA from baseline to weeks 12, 24, 48 and 96 was -2.86, -3.23, -3.75 and -4.03 log₁₀ IU/ml, respectively. At 48 and 96 weeks, 27/59 (46%) and 38/59 (64%) patients achieved a HBV DNA <15 IU/ml. The response was independent of baseline LAM therapy or mutations conferring ADV resistance.


CONCLUSIONS
In heavily pretreated patients with a high rate of genotypic resistance, TDF retains significant activity against HBV although this appears diminished in comparison with studies of naïve patients.
Service, services and products: rethinking operations strategy

Purpose – This paper proposes a new approach to operations and supply strategy in the light of recent developments in the analysis of the respective roles of products and services in delivering benefits to customers. Design/methodology/approach – Reviews and synthesises concepts from operations management (OM), marketing, economics and related areas. Examples of product and service combinations are considered, drawing attention to the ways in which services may be distinguished from products. An institutional basis for defining services is favoured over IHIP. A corollary of this is how services are made tradable: the modularity theory of the firm is used to do this. The paper then outlines, considers and compares various approaches to the combination of products and services: “service-dominant logic”, support services, product-service systems, systems integration, performance-based logistics, bundling and, finally, the notion of “the offering”. Findings – It is found that the notion of the business model is useful as an integrating concept. This focuses on four areas: network structure, how transactions are made, how revenue models and incentives interact and how capabilities are accessed. Implications for future research in OM are considered. Research limitations/implications – Hitherto, operations strategy (OS) has concentrated on intra-firm capabilities, which is only part of one of the four areas identified. Therefore, an extensive agenda for research into inter-firm capabilities and the other three areas identified is presented. Originality/value – This is among the first papers in OM to break completely with IHIP as a basis for service definition and to work through the implications for OS. It is also the first to develop systematically an understanding of how the emerging concept of the business model can inform OM.
Digital Smile Design: A Tool for Treatment Planning and Communication in Esthetic Dentistry

QDT 2012 To obtain consistent esthetic outcomes, the design of dental restorations should be defined as soon as possible. The importance of gathering diagnostic data from questionnaires and checklists1–7 cannot be overlooked; however, much of this information may be lost if it is not transferred adequately to the design of the restorations. The diagnostic data must guide the subsequent treatment phases,8 integrating all of the patient’s needs, desires, and functional and biologic issues into an esthetic treatment design.9,10 The Digital Smile Design (DSD) is a multi-use conceptual tool that can strengthen diagnostic vision, improve communication, and enhance predictability throughout treatment. The DSD allows for careful analysis of the patient’s facial and dental characteristics along with any critical factors that may have been overlooked during clinical, photographic, or diagnostic cast–based evaluation procedures. The drawing of reference lines and shapes over extraand intraoral digital photographs in a predetermined sequence can widen diagnostic visualization and help the restorative team evaluate the limitations and risk factors of a given case, including asymmetries, disharmonies, and violations of esthetic principles.1 DSD sketches can be performed in presentation software such as Keynote (iWork, Apple, Cupertino, California, USA) or Microsoft PowerPoint (Microsoft Office, Microsoft, Redmond, Washington, USA). This improved visualization makes it easier to select the ideal restorative technique. The DSD protocol is characterized by effective communication between the interdisciplinary dental team, including the dental technician. Team members can identify and highlight discrepancies in soft or hard tissue morphology and discuss the best available solutions using the amplified images. Every team member can add information directly on the slides in writing or using voice-over, thus simplifying the process even more. All team members can access this information whenever necessary to review, alter, or add elements during the diagnostic and treatment phases. Digital Smile Design: A Tool for Treatment Planning and Communication in Esthetic Dentistry
Population prevalence of tilted and torted optic discs among an adult Chinese population in Singapore: the Tanjong Pagar Study.

OBJECTIVE
To determine the prevalence of tilted and torted optic discs and associated risk factors among Chinese adults in Singapore.


METHODS
As part of a population-based survey, optic disc stereophotographs of both eyes were obtained, and left eyes were analyzed using imaging software. A tilted optic disc was defined as an index of tilt (ratio of minimum to maximum optic disc diameter) less than 0.75. The angle of tilt was defined as the angle between the maximum and vertical optic disc diameter, and optic discs were graded as torted if the angle of tilt exceeded 15 degrees .


RESULTS
Twenty-six of 739 subjects (3.5%) had tilted optic discs, and 478 (64.7%) had torted optic discs. Myopia was present in 23 of 26 eyes (88.5% [95% confidence interval, 69.9%-97.6%]) with tilted optic discs and in 211 of 661 eyes (31.9% [28.4%-35.6%]) without tilted optic discs (P < .001). On multivariate analysis, myopia (spherical equivalent) was a significant risk factor for tilted optic discs (P < .001). Index of tilt was not associated with corneal astigmatism or with cylindrical refractive error. Seventeen eyes (65.4%) with tilted optic discs had an optic disc morphologic abnormality, but none were glaucomatous.


CONCLUSIONS
The prevalence of tilted optic discs among this Chinese population was 3.5%. Tilted optic discs were associated with myopia but not with glaucoma.
A 1.8mW Wideband 57dBΩ transimpedance amplifier in 0.13µm CMOS

In multi-hundred Gb/s parallel optical links for on-chip or chip-to-chip data transfer, system components should be very low power while occupying small chip areas. This paper presents a low power transimpedance amplifier (TIA) that is based on regulated cascode with vertically stacked inductors, and can operate up to 10Gb/s in presence of 370fF input capacitance. The 0.13µm CMOS TIA consumes 1.8mW to provide 57 dBΩ transimpedance gain, while occupying 150µm×100µm active area. The measured input referred current noise of the differential TIA is less than 30pA/√Hz across 8 GHz.
Predicting Links in Multi-relational and Heterogeneous Networks

Link prediction is an important task in network analysis, benefiting researchers and organizations in a variety of fields. Many networks in the real world, for example social networks, are heterogeneous, having multiple types of links and complex dependency structures. Link prediction in such networks must model the influence propagating between heterogeneous relationships to achieve better link prediction performance than in homogeneous networks. In this paper, we introduce Multi-Relational Influence Propagation (MRIP), a novel probabilistic method for heterogeneous networks. We demonstrate that MRIP is useful for predicting links in sparse networks, which present a significant challenge due to the severe disproportion of the number of potential links to the number of real formed links. We also explore some factors that can inform the task of classification yet remain unexplored, such as temporal information. In this paper we make use of the temporal-related features by carefully investigating the issues of feasibility and generality. In accordance with our work in unsupervised learning, we further design an appropriate supervised approach in heterogeneous networks. Our experiments on co-authorship prediction demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach.
of Various Steganalysis Techniques

Steganography and steganalysis received a great deal of attention from media and law enforcement. Many powerful and robust methods of steganography and steganalysis have been developed. In this paper we are considering the methods of steganalysis that are to be used for this processes. Paper giving some idea about the steganalysis and its method. Keywords— Include at least 5 keywords or phrases
Myeloid Cells and Related Chronic Inflammatory Factors as Novel Predictive Markers in Melanoma Treatment with Ipilimumab.

PURPOSE
Immunotherapy with ipilimumab improves the survival of patients with metastatic melanoma. Because only around 20% of patients experience long-term benefit, reliable markers are needed to predict a clinical response. Therefore, we sought to determine if some myeloid cells and related inflammatory mediators could serve as predictive factors for the patients' response to ipilimumab.


EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN
We performed an analysis of myeloid cells in the peripheral blood of 59 stage IV melanoma patients before the treatment and at different time points upon the therapy using a clinical laboratory analysis and multicolor flow cytometry. In addition, the production of related inflammatory factors was evaluated by ELISA or Bio-Plex assays.


RESULTS
An early increase in eosinophil count during the treatment with ipilimumab was associated with an improved clinical response. In contrast, elevated amounts of monocytic myeloid-derived suppressor cells (moMDSC), neutrophils, and monocytes were found in nonresponders (n = 36) as compared with basal levels and with responding patients (n = 23). Moreover, in nonresponders, moMDSCs produced significantly more nitric oxide, and granulocytic MDSCs expressed higher levels of PD-L1 than these parameters at baseline and in responders, suggesting their enhanced immunosuppressive capacity. Upon the first ipilimumab infusion, nonresponders displayed elevated serum concentrations of S100A8/A9 and HMGB1 that attract and activate MDSCs.


CONCLUSIONS
These findings highlight additional mechanisms of ipilimumab effects and suggest levels of eosinophils, MDSCs, as well as related inflammatory factors S100A8/A9 and HMGB1 as novel complex predictive markers for patients who may benefit from the ipilimumab therapy. Clin Cancer Res; 21(24); 5453-9. ©2015 AACR.
Contrast enhancement by multi-scale adaptive histogram equalization

An approach for contrast enhancement utilizing multi-scale analysis is introduced. Sub-band coefficients were modified by the method of adaptive histogram equalization. To achieve optimal contrast enhancement, the sizes of sub-regions were chosen with consideration to the support of the analysis filters. The enhanced images provided subtle details of tissues that are only visible with tedious contrast/brightness windowing methods currently used in clinical reading. We present results on chest CT data, which shows significant improvement over existing state-of-the-art methods: unsharp masking, adaptive histogram equalization (AHE), and the contrast limited adaptive histogram equalization (CLAHE). A systematic study on 109 clinical chest CT images by three radiologists suggests the promise of this method in terms of both interpretation time and diagnostic performance on different pathological cases. In addition, radiologists observed no noticeable artifacts or amplification of noise that usually appears in traditional adaptive histogram equalization and its variations.
Complex phase separation of ternary Co–Cu–Pb alloy under containerless processing condition

Abstract The macrosegregation and solidification processes of ternary Co 43 Cu 40 Pb 17 alloy have been investigated under the containerless processing condition in drop tube. The addition of Pb element is found to be quite effective to promote the phase separation of Co–Cu alloy, resulting in a macroscopic segregation pattern in ternary Co 43 Cu 40 Pb 17 alloy. The rapidly solidified alloy droplets are characterized by core–shell structures due to the combined effects of reduced gravity and containerless state during free fall. When the droplet diameter is smaller than 450 μm, a kind of three-layer core/shell structure is formed, which consists of a Co-rich core, a Cu-rich intermediate layer and a Pb-rich surface shell. EDS analyses show that the Pb solute has a stronger affinity with Cu-rich liquid and a repulsive interaction with Co-rich liquid. The solidification process of Co 43 Cu 40 Pb 17 ternary alloy involves two successive phase separation events, a subsequent peritectic transformation and a final monotectic transformation.
Extracorporeal shockwave therapy for Peyronie's disease does not correct penile deformity

To evaluate whether extracorporeal shockwave therapy (ESWT) offers an effective treatment for the main complications of Peyronie's disease (PD), that is, penile deformity and angulation, painful erection and most importantly unsatisfied sexual intercourse. From September 1999 to January 2001, 52 patients with PD were treated with ESWT. Pain during erection was assessed with a visual analogue scale. Penile deviation was determined by photographs with a goniometer. Five treatment sessions were performed at weekly intervals. Each consisted of 3000 shockwaves with an emission frequency of 120 shockwaves/min and a mean intensity of 0.17 mJ/mm2. A Storz Minilith SL 1 with integrated inline ultrasound probe was used. In all, 52 patients were evaluated 6 weeks after ESWT for early follow-up. Before ESWT intercourse was difficult or impossible for 40 men; 29 patients suffered mainly from penile deformity, 14 from painful erection and eight mainly from loss of distal rigidity. A total of 30 patients mentioned painful erection before treatment. In 28 patients (93%) pain reduction was achieved. A total relief of pain was observed in 19 patients (63%). Mean pain score dropped from 4.2 to 1.3 in patients who suffered predominantly from painful erections. Intercourse satisfaction improved in 11 patients after therapy. Mean angulation before (40°) and after (37°) ESWT did not change significantly. Late follow-up after 11.1 months (4–17 months) could be completed in 36 patients. In total, 19 men reported that ESWT improved their PD. Of these, 16 noted no change. Only one of the patients noticed a worsening of his disease during or after treatment. Complication rate was low with only minor side effects such as minimal skin bruising; one urethral bleeding occurred. ESWT did reduce pain during erection in patients suffering mainly from painful erection due to PD. However, penile angulation did not improve significantly in our setup and thus intercourse difficulties did improve only in 28% of the patients. Therefore, we do not recommend ESWT as a primary treatment for PD.
Operating principle of Soft Open Points for electrical distribution network operation

Soft Open Points (SOPs) are power electronic devices installed in place of normally-open points in electrical power distribution networks. They are able to provide active power flow control, reactive power compensation and voltage regulation under normal network operating conditions, as well as fast fault isolation and supply restoration under abnormal conditions. Two control modes were developed for the operation of an SOP, using back-to-back voltage-source converters (VSCs). A power flow control mode with current control provides independent control of real and reactive power. A supply restoration mode with a voltage controller enables power supply to isolated loads due to network faults. The operating principle of the back-to-back VSCs based SOP was investigated under both normal and abnormal network operating conditions. Studies on a two-feeder medium-voltage distribution network showed the performance of the SOP under different network-operating conditions: normal, during a fault and post-fault supply restoration. During the change of network operating conditions, a mode switch method based on the phase locked loop controller was used to achieve the transitions between the two control modes. Hard transitions by a direct mode switching were noticed unfavourable, but seamless transitions were obtained by deploying a soft cold load pickup and voltage synchronization process. 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an openaccess article under the CCBY license (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
A Wide Dynamic Range CMOS Laser Radar Receiver With a Time-Domain Walk Error Compensation Scheme

This integrated receiver channel designed for a pulsed time-of-flight (TOF) laser rangefinder consists of a fully differential transimpedance amplifier channel and a timing discriminator. The amplitude-dependent timing walk error is compensated by measuring the width and rise time of the received pulse echo and using this information for calibration. The measured bandwidth, transimpedance and minimum detectable signal (SNR ~10) of the receiver channel are 230 MHz, <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$100~\text {k}\Omega $ </tex-math></inline-formula> and <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">${\sim } 1~\mu \text {A}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> respectively. The single-shot precision of the receiver is ~3 cm at an SNR of 13 and the measurement accuracy is ±4 mm with compensation within a dynamic range of ~1:100 000. The receiver circuit was realized in a <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$0.35~\mu \text {m}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> CMOS process and has a power consumption of 150 mW. The functionality of the receiver channel was verified over a temperature range of -20 °C to +50 °C.
Osteomyelitis and septic arthritis in children: current concepts.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW
The cause, epidemiology, diagnosis, and treatment of osteoarticular infections have changed considerably in recent years. The current review includes the most up to date literature on pediatric septic arthritis and osteomyelitis.


RECENT FINDINGS
There is controversy over whether osteoarticular infection rates are increasing or decreasing. Changes in epidemiology may be related to improved methods of diagnosis. The pathogens responsible for osteoarticular infections in children have changed with alterations in immunization practices, emergence of resistant bacteria, and changes in patterns of immune modulating diseases and medications in children. Special culture techniques and PCR may help to identify pathogens that are difficult to culture. Surgical debridement is typically required for joint infections and chronic osteomyelitis, whereas acute osteomyelitis can typically be treated with medication alone. Needle aspiration/irrigation alone has been described as an alternative to surgical incision/drainage for septic arthritis, but this practice has not been widely adopted. Intravenous antibiotic therapy for 2-4 days followed by 20 days of oral therapy is effective for treating uncomplicated cases of osteomyelitis, whereas 2-4 days of intravenous antibiotics followed by 10 days of oral therapy is sufficient for septic arthritis. Steroids have shown some improved short-term clinical outcomes in patients with septic arthritis.


SUMMARY
Up to date knowledge of emerging pathogens, utilization of modern diagnostic techniques and implementation of new shorter treatment regimens can optimize the treatment of pediatric septic arthritis and osteomyelitis.
Natural Language Processing in the FAQ Finder System: Results and Prospects

This paper describes some recent results regarding the employment of natural language processing techniques in the FAQ FINDER system. FAQ FINDER is a natural language question-answering system that uses files of frequently-asked questions as its knowledge base. Unlike AI questionanswering systems that focus on the generation of new answers, FAQ FINDER retrieves existing ones found in frequently-asked question files. FAQ FINDER uses a combination of statistical and natural language techniques to match user questions against known question/answer pairs from FAQ files. We strove in our experiments to identify the contribution of these techniques to the overall success of the system. One unexpected result was that our parsing technique was not contributing as much to the system’s performance as we expected. We discuss some of the reasons why this may have been the case, and describe further natural language processing research designed to address the system’s current needs.
Intelligent timeout master: Dynamic timeout for SDN-based data centers

Software Defined Networks (SDN) such as OpenFlow provides better network management for data center by decoupling control plane from data plane. Current OpenFlow controllers install flow rules with a fixed timeout after which the switch automatically removes the rules from its flow table. However, this fixed timeout has shown many disadvantages. For flows with short packet interval, the timeout may be too large so that flow rules stay in the flow table for too long time and result in unnecessary occupation of flow table; for flows with long packet interval or periodic flows, the timeout may be too short, hence producing too many packet-in events and causing overload on the controller. In this paper, we propose the Intelligent Timeout Master, which can assign suitable timeout to different flows according to their characteristics, as well as conduct a feedback control to adjust the max timeout value according to the current flow table occupation, in an effort to avoid flow table overflow. In our experiments, we use real traffic trace and the result confirms that our Intelligent Timeout Master performs quite well in reducing the number of packet-in events as well as flow table occupation.
Towards Optimal Double-Length Hash Functions

In this paper we design several double length hash functions and study their security properties in the random oracle model. We design a class of double length hash functions (and compression functions) which includes some recent constructions [4, 6, 10]. We also propose a secure double length hash function which is as efficient as the insecure concatenated classical hash functions [7].