Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
ACTH Stimulation Tests for the Diagnosis of Adrenal Insufficiency: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

CONTEXT The diagnosis of adrenal insufficiency is clinically challenging and often requires ACTH stimulation tests. OBJECTIVE To determine the diagnostic accuracy of the high- (250 mcg) and low- (1 mcg) dose ACTH stimulation tests in the diagnosis of adrenal insufficiency. METHODS We searched six databases through February 2014. Pairs of independent reviewers selected studies and appraised the risk of bias. Diagnostic association measures were pooled across studies using a bivariate model. DATA SYNTHESIS For secondary adrenal insufficiency, we included 30 studies enrolling 1209 adults and 228 children. High- and low-dose ACTH stimulation tests had similar diagnostic accuracy in adults and children using different peak serum cortisol cutoffs. In general, both tests had low sensitivity and high specificity resulting in reasonable likelihood ratios for a positive test (adults: high dose, 9.1; low dose, 5.9; children: high dose, 43.5; low dose, 7.7), but a fairly suboptimal likelihood ratio for a negative test (adults: high dose, 0.39; low dose, 0.19; children: high dose, 0.65; low dose, 0.34). For primary adrenal insufficiency, we included five studies enrolling 100 patients. Data were only available to estimate the sensitivity of high dose ACTH stimulation test (92%; 95% confidence interval, 81-97%). CONCLUSION Both high- and low-dose ACTH stimulation tests had similar diagnostic accuracy. Both tests are adequate to rule in, but not rule out, secondary adrenal insufficiency. Our confidence in these estimates is low to moderate because of the likely risk of bias, heterogeneity, and imprecision.
Self-Powered Wireless Sensor Network for Environmental Monitoring

Environmental monitoring serves a vital scientific role by revealing long-term trends that can lead to new knowledge and better understanding of the environment. Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) are ideal systems for environmental monitoring. Inch scale sensors, with low cost can be deployed over large areas to collect data. However, the energy efficiency of these sensor nodes is limited. Energy harvesting techniques can extend the network lifetime. In this paper, we introduce a self-powered prototype for real-time temperature, humidity and soil moisture monitoring. The prototype uses solar panels to harvest energy from the environment.
Treatment of the Infertile Patient With Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome

Polycystic ovarian syndrome is associated with infertility due to anovulation caused by this disorder. Many treatments can increase both ovulation and fertility rates in these women. This is a comprehensive review of the literature, with an emphasis on randomized controlled trials of the medical and surgical treatment options for women with polycystic ovarian syndrome and infertility. Both standard and novel treatments are addressed. In the past, clomiphene citrate was the first-line medical treatment for subfertility in these women, followed by gonadotropins with or without gonadotropin releasing-hormone agonists for those women with clomiphene-resistance. Surgical treatments such as ovarian drilling were occasionally added to these regimens. The introduction of the insulin-sensitizing agents as adjuvants to clomiphene citrate and gonadotropins has changed the treatment strategy. The evidence in support of this change will be discussed. Data on the use of glucocorticoids, opioid receptor antagonists, and antiandrogens as adjuvants to standard therapies, as well as surgical treatments such as wedge resection and ovarian drilling will also be discussed. Based upon the evidence, medical treatment remains the primary therapy for women with this syndrome, especially in light of the recent introduction of insulin-sensitizing agents to the treatment armamentarium. These drugs have allowed us to develop less aggressive therapies that are safer and easier for women to utilize, and may in the future become the primary treatment for women with this syndrome. Target Audience: Obstetricians & Gynecologists, Family Physicians Learning Objectives: After completion of this article, the reader will be able to explain the pathophysiology of PCOS, to list the factors that predispose women to develop PCOS, and to outline the treatment regiments for PCOS-associated infertility.
Contribution of AmyA, an extracellular α‐glucan degrading enzyme, to group A streptococcal host–pathogen interaction

α‐Glucans such as starch and glycogen are abundant in the human oropharynx, the main site of group A Streptococcus (GAS) infection. However, the role in pathogenesis of GAS extracellular α‐glucan binding and degrading enzymes is unknown. The serotype M1 GAS genome encodes two extracellular proteins putatively involved in α‐glucan binding and degradation; pulA encodes a cell wall anchored pullulanase and amyA encodes a freely secreted putative cyclomaltodextrin α‐glucanotransferase. Genetic inactivation of amyA, but not pulA, abolished GAS α‐glucan degradation. The ΔamyA strain had a slower rate of translocation across human pharyngeal epithelial cells. Consistent with this finding, the ΔamyA strain was less virulent following mouse mucosal challenge. Recombinant AmyA degraded α‐glucans into β‐cyclomaltodextrins that reduced pharyngeal cell transepithelial resistance, providing a physiologic explanation for the observed transepithelial migration phenotype. Higher amyA transcript levels were present in serotype M1 GAS strains causing invasive infection compared with strains causing pharyngitis. GAS proliferation in a defined α‐glucan‐containing medium was dependent on the presence of human salivary α‐amylase. These data delineate the molecular mechanisms by which α‐glucan degradation contributes to GAS host–pathogen interaction, including how GAS uses human salivary α‐amylase for its own metabolic benefit.
Routine Primary Prophylaxis for Febrile Neutropenia with Biosimilar Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor (Nivestim) or Pegfilgrastim Is Cost Effective in Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Patients undergoing Curative-Intent R-CHOP Chemotherapy

Objective This study aims to compare the cost-effectiveness of various strategies of myeloid growth factor prophylaxis for reducing the risk of febrile neutropenia (FN) in patients with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in Singapore who are undergoing R-CHOP chemotherapy with curative intent. Methods A Markov model was created to compare seven prophylaxis strategies: 1) primary prophylaxis (PP) with nivestim (biosimilar filgrastim) throughout all cycles of chemotherapy; 2) PP with nivestim during the first two cycles of chemotherapy; 3) secondary prophylaxis (SP) with nivestim; 4) PP with pegfilgrastim throughout all cycles of chemotherapy; 5) PP with pegfilgrastim during the first two cycles of chemotherapy; 6) SP with pegfilgrastim; and 7) no prophylaxis (NP). The perspective of a hospital was taken and cost-effectiveness was expressed as the cost per episode of FN avoided over six cycles of chemotherapy. A probabilistic sensitivity analysis was conducted. Results Strategies 3, 6, and 7 were dominated in the base case analysis by strategy 5. The costs associated with strategies 2, 5, 1, and 4 were US$3,813, US$4,056, US$4,545, and US$5,331, respectively. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratios for strategy 5 vs. strategy 2, strategy 1 vs. strategy 5, and strategy 4 vs. strategy 1 were US$13,532, US$22,565, and US$30,452, respectively, per episode of FN avoided. Strategy 2 has the highest probability to be cost-effective (ranged from 48% to 60%) when the willingness to pay (WTP) threshold is lower than US$10,000 per FN episode prevented. Conclusion In Singapore, routine PP with granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (nivestim or pegfilgrastim) is cost-effective for reducing the risk of FN in patients receiving R-CHOP.
Fpga implementation of elliptic curve crypto processor over gf(2 163 ) : A Review

In the fast growing internet technology information security is very important, we can use the encryption to secure the information. So many different kinds of techniques are used to protect the information from unauthorized person. In this paper, we survey on text encryption techniques based on eigamal algorithm in elliptic curve i.e. ecc. Elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) has been identified and employed as an efficient and suitable scheme for public key cryptographic systems. The principal operation in elliptic curve cryptographic systems is point multiplication. Several effort in the literature have focused on developing efficient techniques to compute point multiplication
SEASONAL SCREENING OF THE MYCOTIC INFECTIONS OF CULTURED FRESHWATER FISHES IN KAFR EL-SHEIKH GOVERNORATE

The present study was carried out to screen the predominant mycotic infections among freshwater fishes ( Oreochromis niloticus and Clarias gariepinus ) in Kafrelsheikh fish farms; with special focus on the seasonal incidence; as well as, the histopathological changes induced by the detected fungi. 500 specimens of freshwater fishes (400 O. niloticus and 100 C. gariepinus ) were investigated for seasonal incidence of mycotic diseases. Mycological examination revealed the isolation of 2148 fungal isolates from 375 diseased and 125 apparently healthy fish samples (1828 mould and 320 yeast isolates), of which 1258 were isolated from O. niloticus and 890 isolates from C. gariepinus . Saprolegnia was the predominant among diseased fishes with highest prevalence in late autumn (10.68%, 6.96%) and winter (6.81%, 7.87%) in O. niloticus and C. gariepinus , respectively. However, Pencillium sp . and Aspergillus sp . were the most predominant fungi isolated from apparently healthy fishes. The highest prevalence of Pencillium sp. were recorded in winter, whileas Aspergillus showed variations between species ; Aspergillus flavus , Aspergillus niger were more prevalent in summer (25.44%, 23.22%) and (26.9%, 37.44%) and Aspergillus terrus , Aspergillus fumigatus were more prevalent in autumn (5.98%, 5.67%) and (7.69%, 8.23%) in O. niloticus and C. gariepinus, respectively . Moreover, the highest prevalence of Fusarium species was recorded in spring ( 11.8%, 5.91%) from O . niloticus, C. gariepinus , respectively. Mucor recorded the highest prevalence in autumn (20.09%) in O. niloticus and winter (29.21%) in C. gariepinus ; whileas Rhizopus was highest in summer (7.89%, 5.21%) in O . niloticus and C. gariepinus , respectively. Four genera from yeast were isolated; Candida sp. (28.44%, 36.27%), Rhodotorula sp. (36.24%, 24.51%), Cryptococcus sp. (16.97%, 20.59%) and Trichosporon Sp. (18.35%, 18.63%) in O. niloticus and C. gariepinus , respectively. The histopathological findings revealed severe degenerative changes in skin and gills with presence of fungal hyphae and spores. Key words : Clarias gariepinus; moulds; mycotic diseases; Oreochromis niloticus ; yeast
Attenuation of conducted vasodilatation in rat mesenteric arteries during hypertension: role of inwardly rectifying potassium channels

The present study was designed to elucidate whether the conduction of vasomotor responses mediated by endothelium‐derived hyperpolarizing factor (EDHF) in rat mesenteric arteries is altered during hypertension. Iontophoresed acetylcholine (ACh; 500 ms) caused EDHF‐mediated hyperpolarization and vasodilatation at the local site and these responses spread through the endothelium to remote sites in 12‐week‐old Wistar‐Kyoto rats (WKY). Conducted responses were significantly attenuated in age‐matched spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) although the rate of decay with distance did not change. Inhibition of inwardly rectifying potassium (Kir) channels (30 μm barium) eliminated the difference between WKY and SHR by attenuating conducted responses in WKY but not SHR. At the local site, barium (30 μm) significantly reduced the duration but not the amplitude of ACh‐induced hyperpolarization in WKY only. Barium had no effect when the iontophoretic stimulus was reduced to 350 ms. After blockade of EDHF in SHR, ACh elicited a depolarization which our indirect data suggest spreads along the vessel in the endothelium. Messenger RNA expression of Kir2.0 genes did not differ between the strains nor did the amplitude of K+‐induced hyperpolarization, which was abolished by disruption of the endothelium. Immunohistochemistry revealed a decrease in connexin (Cx)37 but not Cx40 or Cx43 protein in endothelial cells of SHR compared to WKY. Results suggest that conduction of EDHF‐mediated responses in WKY, but not in SHR, is facilitated by activation of Kir channels at the site of ACh application and not by differences in endothelial connexin expression. Lack of Kir channel involvement in hypertension may result from reduction in the duration of the hyperpolarization due to the development of ACh‐mediated depolarization, rather than to any difference in Kir subunit expression or function.
Review: Portopulmonary hypertension: challenges in diagnosis and management

Portopulmonary hypertension is defined as the combination of pulmonary arterial hypertension with portal hypertension and presents management complications in patients awaiting liver transplantation. The combination of these vascular disorders has a marked impact on mortality. At present the recommendations for management are limited because of the paucity of definitive clinical trials. We have reviewed the available data on prevalence, diagnosis and treatment. It is clearly time to more formally approach the study of this patient population.
Issues in Information Systems Exploring Underlying Factors Influencing Daily Usage of Facebook for Undergraduate College Students: a Research Model

This study presents a research model which examines the factors influencing the frequency of Facebook usage in undergraduate students in a north eastern university in United States of America. The survey explores factors such as religion/ethnicity, academic major, access device, and employment status and its impact of frequency of usage of social networking sites. One hundred and twenty six responses were obtained and ANOVA was performed on the data. The results are discussed and future research directions presented. Conclusions were statistically derived, resulting in the retention of three null hypotheses, and the rejection of the one null hypothesis.
Prolonged survival in the absence of disease-recurrence in advanced-stage follicular lymphoma following chemo-immunotherapy: 13-year update of the prospective, multicenter randomized GITMO-IIL trial

A prospective trial conducted in the period 2000-2005 showed no survival advantage for high-dose chemotherapy with rituximab and autograft (R-HDS) versus conventional chemotherapy with rituximab (CHOP-R) as first-line therapy in 134 high-risk follicular lymphoma patients aged <60 years. The study has been updated at the 13-year median follow up. As of February 2017, 88 (66%) patients were alive, with overall survival of 66.4% at 13 years, without a significant difference between R-HDS (64.5%) and CHOP-R (68.5%). To date, 46 patients have died, mainly because of disease progression (47.8% of all deaths), secondary malignancies (3 solid tumor, 9 myelodysplasia/acute leukemia; 26.1% of all deaths), and other toxicities (21.7% of all deaths). Complete remission was documented in 98 (73.1%) patients and associated with overall survival, with 13-year estimates of 77.0% and 36.8% for complete remission versus no-complete remission, respectively. Molecular remission was documented in 39 (65%) out of 60 evaluable patients and associated with improved survival. In multivariate analysis, complete remission achievement had the strongest effect on survival (P<0.001), along with younger age (P=0.002) and female sex (P=0.013). Overall, 50 patients (37.3%) survived with no disease recurrence (18 CHOP-R, 32 R-HDS). This follow up is the longest reported on follicular lymphoma treated upfront with rituximab-chemotherapy and demonstrates an unprecedented improvement in survival compared to the pre-rituximab era, regardless of the use of intensified or conventional treatment. Complete remission was the most important factor for prolonged survival and a high proportion of patients had prolonged survival in their first remission, raising the issue of curability in follicular lymphoma. (Registered at clinicaltrials.gov identifier: 00435955)
Accuracy Evaluation of a Stereolithographic Surgical Template for Dental Implant Insertion Using 3D Superimposition Protocol

The aim of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of a stereolithographic template, with sleeve structure incorporated into the design, for computer-guided dental implant insertion in partially edentulous patients. Materials and Methods Sixty-five implants were placed in twenty-five consecutive patients with a stereolithographic surgical template. After surgery, digital impression was taken and 3D inaccuracy of implants position at entry point, apex, and angle deviation was measured using an inspection tool software. Mann–Whitney U test was used to compare accuracy between maxillary and mandibular surgical guides. A p value < . 05 was considered significant. Results Mean (and standard deviation) of 3D error at the entry point was 0.798 mm (±0.52), at the implant apex it was 1.17 mm (±0.63), and mean angular deviation was 2.34 (±0.85). A statistically significant reduced 3D error was observed at entry point p = . 037, at implant apex p = . 008, and also in angular deviation p = . 030 in mandible when comparing to maxilla. Conclusions The surgical template used has proved high accuracy for implant insertion. Within the limitations of the present study, the protocol for comparing a digital file (treatment plan) with postinsertion digital impression may be considered a useful procedure for assessing surgical template accuracy, avoiding radiation exposure, during postoperative CBCT scanning.
Hydrogen Sulfide Protects against Chemical Hypoxia-Induced Injury by Inhibiting ROS-Activated ERK1/2 and p38MAPK Signaling Pathways in PC12 Cells

Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) has been proposed as a novel neuromodulator and neuroprotective agent. Cobalt chloride (CoCl2) is a well-known hypoxia mimetic agent. We have demonstrated that H2S protects against CoCl2-induced injuries in PC12 cells. However, whether the members of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK), in particular, extracellular signal-regulated kinase1/2(ERK1/2) and p38MAPK are involved in the neuroprotection of H2S against chemical hypoxia-induced injuries of PC12 cells is not understood. We observed that CoCl2 induced expression of transcriptional factor hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha (HIF-1α), decreased cystathionine-β synthase (CBS, a synthase of H2S) expression, and increased generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), leading to injuries of the cells, evidenced by decrease in cell viability, dissipation of mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) , caspase-3 activation and apoptosis, which were attenuated by pretreatment with NaHS (a donor of H2S) or N-acetyl-L cystein (NAC), a ROS scavenger. CoCl2 rapidly activated ERK1/2, p38MAPK and C-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK). Inhibition of ERK1/2 or p38MAPK or JNK with kinase inhibitors (U0126 or SB203580 or SP600125, respectively) or genetic silencing of ERK1/2 or p38MAPK by RNAi (Si-ERK1/2 or Si-p38MAPK) significantly prevented CoCl2-induced injuries. Pretreatment with NaHS or NAC inhibited not only CoCl2-induced ROS production, but also phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and p38MAPK. Thus, we demonstrated that a concurrent activation of ERK1/2, p38MAPK and JNK participates in CoCl2-induced injuries and that H2S protects PC12 cells against chemical hypoxia-induced injuries by inhibition of ROS-activated ERK1/2 and p38MAPK pathways. Our results suggest that inhibitors of ERK1/2, p38MAPK and JNK or antioxidants may be useful for preventing and treating hypoxia-induced neuronal injury.
RoboTSP – A Fast Solution to the Robotic Task Sequencing Problem

In many industrial robotics applications, such as spot-welding, spray-painting or drilling, the robot is required to visit successively multiple targets. The robot travel time among the targets is a significant component of the overall execution time. This travel time is in turn greatly affected by the order of visit of the targets, and by the robot configurations used to reach each target. Therefore, it is crucial to optimize these two elements, a problem known in the literature as the Robotic Task Sequencing Problem (RTSP). Our contribution in this paper is two-fold. First, we propose a fast, near-optimal, algorithm to solve RTSP. The key to our approach is to exploit the classical distinction between task space and configuration space, which, surprisingly, has been so far overlooked in the RTSP literature. Second, we provide an open-source implementation of the above algorithm, which has been carefully benchmarked to yield an efficient, ready-to-use, software solution. We discuss the relationship between RTSP and other Traveling Salesman Problem (TSP) variants, such as the Generalized Traveling Salesman Problem (GTSP), and show experimentally that our method finds motion sequences of the same quality but using several orders of magnitude less computation time than existing approaches.
BIOTECHNOLOGICALLY RELEVANT ENZYMES AND PROTEINS Production and characterisation of AoSOX2 from Aspergillus oryzae, a novel flavin-dependent sulfhydryl oxidase with good pH and temperature stability

Sulfhydryl oxidases have found application in the improvement of both dairy and baking products due to their ability to oxidise thiol groups in small molecules and cysteine residues in proteins. A genome mining study of the available fungal genomes had previously been performed by our group in order to identify novel sulfhydryl oxidases suitable for industrial applications and a representative enzyme was produced, AoSOX1 from Aspergillus oryzae (Faccio et al. BMC Biochem 11:31, 2010). As a result of the study, a second gene coding for a potentially secreted sulfhydryl oxidase, AoSOX2, was identified in the genome of A. oryzae. The protein AoSOX2 was heterologously expressed in Trichoderma reesei and characterised with regard to both biochemical properties as well as preliminary structural analysis. AoSOX2 showed activity on dithiothreitol and glutathione, and to a lesser extent on D/Lcysteine and beta-mercaptoethanol. AoSOX2 was a homodimeric flavin-dependent protein of approximately 78 kDa (monomer 42412 Da) and its secondary structure presents alpha-helical elements. A. oryzae AoSOX2 showed a significant stability to pH and temperature.
Characterization of a Stem-like Subpopulation in Basal-like Ductal Carcinoma in Situ (DCIS) Lesions*

Background: Very little is known about cancer stem cells in ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). Results: Basal-like DCIS contain CD49f+/CD24− ALDH1+ stem-like subpopulations with enhanced migratory capacity, unique exosomal microRNA signature, and sulforaphane sensitivity. Conclusion: We characterized basal-like DCIS stem cells and demonstrate a potential chemopreventive strategy. Significance: DCIS stem cells are important therapeutic targets for preventing recurrence or progression to invasive disease. Previously, we found that basal-like ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) contains cancer stem-like cells. Here, we characterize stem-like subpopulations in a model of basal-like DCIS and identify subpopulations of CD49f+/CD24− stem-like cells that possess aldehyde dehydrogenase 1 activity. We found that these cells show enhanced migration potential compared with non-stem DCIS cells. We also found that the chemopreventive agent sulforaphane can target these DCIS stem-like cells, reduce aldehyde dehydrogenase 1 (ALDH1) expression, and decrease mammosphere and progenitor colony formation. Furthermore, we characterized exosomal trafficking of microRNAs in DCIS and found that several microRNAs (miRs) including miR-140, miR-29a, and miR-21 are differentially expressed in exosomes from DCIS stem-like cells. We found that SFN treatment could reprogram DCIS stem-like cells as evidenced by significant changes in exosomal secretion more closely resembling that of non-stem cancer cells. Finally, we demonstrated that exosomal secretion of miR-140 might impact signaling in nearby breast cancer cells.