Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Ropivacaine versus Bupivacaine for 3-in-l Block during Total Knee Arthroplasty

Purpose. To compare the use of ropivacaine versus bupivacaine for 3-in-1 block during total knee arthroplasty (TKA) in terms of efficacy and safety (lack of toxicity). Methods. 14 men and 26 women aged 58 to 77 (median, 70) years who had the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) grades I to III physical status were randomised to receive ropivacaine (n=20) or bupivacaine (n=20) of a concentration of 0.5% for 3-in-1 block during TKA. The dosage was 0.5 ml/kg. In addition, a sciatic nerve block (20 ml of prilocaine 1%) was used. The onset of the block, duration of postoperative analgesia, level of motor block, and any side-effects were compared. Results. The median time to onset of block was significantly shorter in those receiving ropivacaine than bupivacaine (13 vs. 17.5 minutes, p<0.001), but the levels of motor blockade were not significantly different (p=0.355). Complete analgesia was achieved throughout the procedure. There was no significant difference between the ropivacaine and bupivacaine groups in terms of the mean duration of analgesia (398 vs. 367 minutes, p=0.62), the mean VAS scores at all time points, and the mean total morphine consumption. One patient in the ropivacaine group developed a joint haematoma and 2 patients in the bupivacaine group had excessive wound drainage. Both conditions resolved after antibiotic use. Conclusion. Ropivacaine and bupivacaine showed similar anesthetic and analgesic effects, but the former had a significantly faster onset time.
Evidence for shared genetic risk between ADHD symptoms and reduced mathematics ability: a twin study.

BACKGROUND Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms and mathematics ability are associated, but little is known about the genetic and environmental influences underlying this association. METHODS Data came from more than 6,000 twelve-year-old twin pairs from the UK population-representative Twins Early Development Study. Parents rated each twin's behaviour using a DSM-IV-based 18-item questionnaire of inattentive and hyperactive-impulsive ADHD symptoms. Mathematics tests based on the UK National Curriculum were completed by each twin. The twins also completed standardised tests of reading and general cognitive ability. Multivariate twin model fitting was applied. RESULTS Inattentive and hyperactive-impulsive ADHD symptoms were highly heritable (67% and 73% respectively). Mathematics ability was moderately heritable (46%). Mathematics ability and inattentiveness showed a significantly greater phenotypic correlation (r(p) = -. 26) and genetic correlation (r(A) = -. 41) than mathematics ability and hyperactivity-impulsivity (r(p) = -. 18; r(A) = -. 22). The genetic correlation between inattentiveness and mathematics ability was largely independent from hyperactivity-impulsivity, and was only partially accounted for by genetic influences related to reading and general cognitive ability. CONCLUSIONS Results revealed the novel finding that mathematics ability shows significantly stronger phenotypic and genetic associations with inattentiveness than with hyperactivity-impulsivity. Genetic associations between inattentiveness and mathematics ability could only partially be accounted for by hyperactivity-impulsivity, reading and general cognitive ability. Results suggest that mathematics ability is associated with ADHD symptoms largely because it shares genetic risk factors with inattentiveness, and provide further evidence for considering inattentiveness and hyperactivity-impulsivity separately. DNA markers for ADHD symptoms (especially inattentiveness) may also be candidate risk factors for mathematics ability and vice versa.
Contrasting Inter- and Intraspecies Recombination Patterns in the “Harveyi Clade” Vibrio Collected over Large Spatial and Temporal Scales

Recombination plays an important role in the divergence of bacteria, but the frequency of interspecies and intraspecies recombination events remains poorly understood. We investigated recombination events that occurred within core genomes of 35 Vibrio strains (family Vibrionaceae, Gammaproteobacteria), from six closely related species in the so-called “Harveyi clade. ” The strains were selected from a collection of strains isolated in the last 90 years, from various environments worldwide. We found a close relationship between the number of interspecies recombination events within core genomes of the 35 strains and the overall genomic identity, as inferred from calculations of the average nucleotide identity. The relationship between the overall nucleotide identity and the number of detected interspecies recombination events was comparable when analyzing strains isolated over 80 years apart, from different hemispheres, or from different ecologies, as well as in strains isolated from the same geographic location within a short time frame. We further applied the same method of detecting recombination events to analyze 11 strains of Vibrio campbellii, and identified disproportionally high number of intraspecies recombination events within the core genomes of some, but not all, strains. The high number of recombination events was detected between V. campbellii strains that have significant temporal (over 18 years) and geographical (over 10,000 km) differences in their origins of isolation. Results of this study reveal a remarkable stability of Harveyi clade species, and give clues about the origins and persistence of species in the clade.
Regulation of T cell mitogen activity of anti-lymphocyte serum by a B-helper cell.

Rabbit anti-mouse brain antiserum (RaMB) was found to be mitogenic for mouse lymphocytes by using a 3H-thymidine incorporation assay. The mitogenic activity was maximal at 48 hr incubation and was absorbable with brain and T lymphocytes. Specificity was directed toward a Thy-1 like molecule without Thy-1 allotypic restrictions. Mixed populations of lymphocytes from spleen and lymph node were highly responsive to low concentrations of RaMB at which purified subpopulations of T or B lymphocytes were unresponsive. T cell responses could be reconstituted by addition of B-enriched cell subpopulations. Macrophages had no helper effect; rather they inhibited the response even at very low numbers of cells. Proliferative responses in mixed populations involved both T and B cell subpopulations in which the T cell component accounted for 80 to 90%, and the B cell subpopulation about 10 to 20% of net thymidine incorporation. B cell proliferation was not required for the regulatory effect. No B cell helper activity was detectable if F(ab′)2 fragments prepared from RaMB-Ig were used as mitogen. The data suggest that T cell activation by anti-T cell serum first involved ligand-antibody interaction. This is a necessary but insufficient cell surface event to trigger proliferation. A second interaction appears to be required to initiate proliferation. The data suggest that the Fc region of the bound antibody molecule supplies this impetus by engaging the Fc receptor of the B-helper cell.
An Experimental Study on the Concentration and Shape of Dents Caused by Spherical Metallic Particles in EHL Contacts

An experimental study of metallic contaminant effects on surface indentation in EHL contacts is presented. Particles are initially spherical and are composed of M50 high-carbon steel powder. Their diameter ranges from 32 to 40 μm. An original lubrication system with a controlled level of contamination was built. The contaminant distribution and concentration are measured on-line by an automatic particle counter. Tests are conducted on a two-disk machine with different operating conditions. Particles may travel through the EHL contact only one time, the lubricant flow being used only once. The oil is a synthetic one qualified under the MIL-L-23699 specification. An optical profilometer is used to describe the indent topography and a CCD video camera to count the number of dents. The test bench is described and the experimental procedure is presented. Specific tests were performed to quality the contamination bench. The combined effects of particles concentration and test duration on dent distribution were .
Public health hazard due to mastitis in dairy cows

Milk from cows with sub-clinical mastitis accidentally mixed into bulk milk enters food chain and poses a threat to human health. Milk and other dairy products are reported to be frequently infected with Staphylococcus aureus. Also Streptococcus agalactiae has been described as one of the most common agents of invasive infections. The present study was aimed at discussing the economy and public health importance of mastitis in cattle as well as the health hazard of the causative organisms (S. aureus and Str. agalactiae). Seven-hundred-and-four composite milk samples were collected (two or three times per cow per lactation) from 275 cows kept in two herds. The samples were analysed for the presence of S. aureus, Str. agalactiae and other mastitis-causing organisms. For pooled data of latent and subclinical mastitis the frequency of samples containing S. aureus and Str. agalactiae was 16.6 and 1.4%, while of those containing Str. dysgalactiae, Escherichia coli and other mastitis-causing organisms − 4.7, 2.9, and 14.7%, respectively. Quality of milk was found ranging within the European standard. However, high mastitis prevalence in both herds suggests that hygienic control measures should be applied during milk production.
Laser Sintering of Metal Nanoparticle Film

Laser sintering of Au nanoparticles on a Cu substrate was studied toward an alternative to gold plating. The laser sintering by laser direct writing method required much higher laser power density in comparison with that on a glass substrate. The laser-induced heat accumulation method is proposed as a new laser sintering method which can be applied to a metal substrate with a high thermal diffusion coefficient such as a Cu substrate. In the sintering process, the dissipation through the Cu with a high thermal diffusion coefficient was reduced by using a thermally isolated Cu substrate, where the heat accumulation in the Cu micropattern was caused sintering of whole area by laser pulse irradiation at a small spot without laser beam scanning. The SIMS profile showed that the diffusion of the Cu atom through the gold layer was reduced remarkably by the laser sintering compared to the conventional heat treatment. The reduction of Cu diffusion into gold layer is due to the extremely short sintering time of the laser-induced heat accumulation method. Keyword: laser sintering, laser direct writing, gold plating, metal nanoparticle ink, copper substrate, copper diffusion, alternative to gold plating.
Nitric Oxide Manipulation: A Therapeutic Target for Peripheral Arterial Disease?

Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD) is a cause of significant morbidity and mortality in the Western world. Risk factor modification and endovascular and surgical revascularisation are the main treatment options at present. However, a significant number of patients still require major amputation. There is evidence that nitric oxide (NO) and its endogenous inhibitor asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA) play significant roles in the pathophysiology of PAD. This paper reviews experimental work implicating the ADMA-DDAH-NO pathway in PAD, focussing on both the vascular dysfunction and effects within the ischaemic muscle, and examines the potential of manipulating this pathway as a novel adjunct therapy in PAD.
Strengthening health systems by health sector reforms

Background The rising burden of disease and weak health systems are being compounded by the persistent economic downturn, re-emerging diseases, and violent conflicts. There is a growing recognition that the global health agenda needs to shift from an emphasis on disease-specific approaches to strengthening of health systems, including dealing with social, environmental, and economic determinants through multisectoral responses. Methods A review and analysis of data on strengthening health sector reform and health systems was conducted. Attention was paid to the goal of health and interactions between health sector reforms and the functions of health systems. Further, we explored how these interactions contribute toward delivery of health services, equity, financial protection, and improved health. Findings Health sector reforms cannot be developed from a single global or regional policy formula. Any reform will depend on the country's history, values and culture, and the population's expectations. Some of the emerging ingredients that need to be explored are infusion of a health systems agenda; development of a comprehensive policy package for health sector reforms; improving alignment of planning and coordination; use of reliable data; engaging ‘street level’ policy implementers; strengthening governance and leadership; and allowing a holistic and developmental approach to reforms. Conclusions The process of reform needs a fundamental rather than merely an incremental and evolutionary change. Without radical structural and systemic changes, existing governance structures and management systems will continue to fail to address the existing health problems.
Default spacing is the optimal spacing for word reading

Increased interletter spacing is thought to reduce crowding effects and to enhance fluent reading. Several studies have shown beneficial effects of increased interletter spacing on reading speed and accuracy, especially in poor readers. Therefore, increased interletter spacing appears to be a relatively easy way to enhance reading performance. However, in adult readers reading speed was shown to be impeded with increased interletter spacing. Thus, findings on interletter spacing are still inconclusive. In the current study we examined the effect of a range of interletter spacings (−0.5, default, 0.5, 1, 1.5, 2) on naming fluency of monosyllabic and bisyllabic words in beginning (Grade 2) and more advanced (Grade 4) readers. Additionally we tested the effects of spacing in a subsample of poor readers. In contrast to previous findings, neither beginning nor advanced readers benefited from an increase in interletter spacing. However, they did show reduced reading fluency when letter spacing was smaller than the default spacing, which may be indicative of a crowding effect. Poor readers showed a similar pattern. We conclude that an increase in interletter spacing has no effect on word naming fluency.
A Control Framework for Tactile Servoing

The advent of sensor arrays providing tactile feedback with high spatial and temporal resolution asks for new control strategies to exploit this important and valuable sensory channel for grasping and manipulation tasks. In this paper, we introduce a control framework to realize a whole set of tactile servoing tasks, i.e. control tasks that intend to realize a specific tactile interaction pattern. This includes such simple tasks like tracking a touched object, maintaining both contact location and contact force, as well as more elaborate tasks like tracking an object’s pose or tactile object exploration. Exploiting methods known from image processing, we introduce robust feature extraction methods to estimate the 2D contact position, the contact force, and the orientation of an object edge being in contact to the sensor. The flexible control framework allows us to adapt the PID-type controller to a large range of different tasks by specification of a projection matrix toggling certain control components on and off. We demonstrate and evaluate the capabilities of the proposed control framework in a series of experiments employing a 16×16 tactile sensor array attached to a Kuka LWR as a large fingertip.
Quantificational Logic of Context

In this paper we extend the Propositional Logic of Context, (Buvac & Mason 1993; Buvac, Buvac, & Mason 1995), to the quantificational (predicate calculus) case. This extension is important in the declarative representation of knowledge for two reasons. Firstly, since contexts are objects in the semantics which can be denoted by terms in the language and which can be quantified over, the extension enables us to express arbitrary first-order properties of contexts. Secondly, since the extended language is no longer only propositional, we can express that an arbitrary predicate calculus formula is true in a context. The paper describes the syntax and the semantics of a quantificational language of context, gives a Hilbert style formal system, and outlines a proof of the system's completeness.
DIFFERENCES IN MEMBRANE CONFIGURATION BETWEEN OSMIUM TETROXIDE-FIXED AND GLUTARALDEHYDE-FIXED CILIARY EPITHELIUM

Early electron microscope studies of the ciliary epithelium of the rabbit eye reported large numbers of vesicles at the free surface of the non-pigmented cell layer (4, 7). Characteristically, these vesicles were arranged in long rows, and it was suggested that they were engaged in pinocytosis. More recently, the present author reported a different interpretation of these rows of vesicles (12). This interpretation, like those of previous workers, was based on observations of OsOrf ixed material. I t is summarized in Fig. 1 A. The apparent rows of vesicles are seen to be actually sheets of tubules cut in cross-section. Because these tubules are extensively interconnected, they were identified as an unusual "sheeted" form of smoothsurfaced endoplasmic reticulum. The original paper (12) should be consulted for details of this interpretation. Another prominent feature of the free surface of the ciliary epithelium is extensive interdigitations or "infoldings" of the plasma membrane. The basic geometry of these structures is illustrated in Fig. 1 B, and, again, the original paper (12) should be consulted for details. A comparison of Figs. 1 A and B reveals that the over-all configurations of both the sheets of tubules and the interdigitations are essentially identical, i.e., both structures are in the form of two parallel sheets joined together into a U-loop. It is also noteworthy that the tubules, as seen in cross-section, have a variable length but a fairly constant width which is approximately the same as the width of the intercellular space separating the paired plasma membranes of the interdigitations. Also of significance is the fact that both types of structure are limited to the same part of the cell, and usually are closely associated with one another. This similarity between the two structures raises
Radiographic hip joint phenotype of the Pembroke Welsh Corgi.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the radiographic hip joint phenotype of the Pembroke Welsh Corgi. STUDY DESIGN Prospective and retrospective cross-sectional study. ANIMALS Pembroke Welsh Corgis (n = 399). METHODS Ventrodorsal, hip-extended radiographs were evaluated for subluxation, osteoarthritis (OA), caudolateral curvilinear osteophytes (CCO), and circumferential femoral head osteophytes (CFHO) of PennHIP evaluated Corgis. Joint laxity was measured by distraction index (DI). RESULTS All Corgis had DI > 0.30 (mean, 0.66), 6.8% had OA, 18% had subluxation, 22.3% had CCO, and 74.4% had CFHO. Higher DI increased the odds for subluxation and canine hip dysplasia (CHD) but not for OA, CCO, or CFHO. The presence of CCO increased the odds for OA by 4.6 times (P = .002) and 2.2 times (P = .01) for hip dysplasia. All dogs with OA had CFHO. The presence of CFHO increased the odds for subluxation by 8.7 times (p < .001) and 8.9 times (P < .001) for hip dysplasia. Subluxation increased the odds for OA by 15.4 times (P < .001). CONCLUSION Corgis had a low frequency of conventional OA despite having hip laxity that has been shown to correlate with hip OA and hip dysplasia in large-breed dogs. The relationship between CCO and OA was similar to published findings in nonchondrodystrophic large-breed dogs and the CFHO was significantly associated with subluxation. Both CCO and CFHO are associated with hip dysplasia in this small chondrodystrophic breed.
Using near-infrared hyperspectral images on subalpine fir board. Part 1: Moisture content estimation

Abstract In this study, moisture content (MC) images of subalpine fir (abies lasiocarpa Hook) boards were derived from near-infrared hyperspectral images in the 947–1637 nm range. One hundred and seven cubic samples with the size of 4 cm were prepared from 14 boards. All samples were dried to various MCs during several steps until being completely dried. Hyperspectral images and weight measurements were acquired over each sample at each drying step. The samples have MC ranging from 1% to 137% (dry basis). The images were first calibrated into reflectance. Then, bad pixels were found and replaced by a corrected value using a median filter. A modified version of the boxplot method was used to find abnormal spectra that were then removed. The remaining spectra were converted into absorbance spectra. They were then split into a calibration and a validation data-set according to the boards they were extracted from to build and validate a partial least squares (PLS) regression model between the near-infrared absorbance spectra and the measured MCs. The PLS model was applied first to the sample images, then to the whole board images in order to produce 2D images of MC.
Multiple complex families of endogenous retroviruses are highly conserved in the genus Gallus

We have analyzed the genome of the domestic chicken for the presence of genetic sequences related to the envelope protein-encoding genes of avian sarcoma/leukosis retroviruses to determine the organization, structure, potential functionality, and distribution of such sequences. We have previously identified in the genus Gallus an extensive group of endogenous avian retroviruses termed EAV-0. Southern blot and sequence analysis presented here of EAV-0 elements revealed that the majority of the EAV-0 elements in the domestic chicken genome have large deletions in their env genes. Screening of a line 0 chicken genomic DNA library for potential full-length env gene-containing endogenous elements yielded three provirus clones of a previously unrecognized group of endogenous retroviruses. These three clones, E13, E33, and E51, are more closely related to each other (80% or more sequence identity) than to other avian retroviruses (70% or less sequence identity). The E13 element has a large deletion in env, but the E51 element has full-length and highly divergent SU- and TM-coding domains. Complete sequence analysis of the E51 env gene region revealed a defective SU-coding domain and an intact TM-coding domain. Sequence analysis of the E51, E33, and E13 3' termini revealed highly distinctive long terminal repeats of approximately 360 bp which appear to be the products, in part, of long terminal repeat domain shuffling. Hybridization analysis with E51 and E33 env gene probes indicated that they are members of an extensive group of elements present in all Gallus species, and at least one element, E51, could be shown by polymerase chain reaction amplification and direct sequencing to have integrated prior to Gallus speciation.