Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of a specific home exercise program for low back pain.

BACKGROUND The prescription of exercise as a conservative treatment for lumbar pain is frequent and seems effective for the chronic cases of nonspecific low back pain. However, there is no evidence favoring one type of exercise over another. Often, exercise programs are prescribed without adequate evaluation of the individual characteristics like posture, muscular force, and extensibility. Patients with totally different causes of low back pain will often be given the same type of exercises. OBJECTIVE Our objective was to compare the effectiveness of 2 home exercise programs in decreasing disability and pain related to subacute and chronic nonspecific low back pain. To do so we compared a specific (individualized) exercise program with a program of commonly prescribed exercises for low back pain. METHOD In a control group study, 20 patients with chronic or subacute nonspecific low back pain participated after giving their informed consent. All subjects were evaluated (physical evaluation of lumbar and pelvic muscles [1] force and [2] extensibility, [3] trunk range of motion) and then divided in 2 groups: 10 patients received specific exercises (experimental group) based on their evaluation, and 10 patients received a commonly prescribed exercise program for low back pain (control group). Six weeks later a second physical evaluation was conducted. Pain (visual analog pain scale) and disability (modified Oswestry) questionnaires were also completed by each subject at both evaluations. DESIGN This was a randomized experimental study. RESULTS Both groups had similar age, weight, and sex characteristics. The experimental group showed significant improvements for some components targeted by the program. The control group significantly had improvement of some physical characteristics not related to their initial deficits. Even if both groups showed some improvements in muscular force and extensibility, only the members of the group who received specific exercises significantly reduced their level of pain and disability. Both groups showed a similar rate of participation in the program. CONCLUSION The results of this study suggest that applying a specific physical evaluation and exercise prescription is an appropriate treatment for people having subacute or chronic nonspecific pain. Thus clinicians should prescribe exercise programs based on individual muscular deficits rather than most commonly prescribed exercise programs.
Space-time evolution of electron cascades in diamond

The impact of a primary electron initiates a cascade of secondary electrons in solids, and these cascades play a significant role in the dynamics of ionization. Here we describe model calculations to follow the spatiotemporal evolution of secondary electron cascades in diamond. The band structure of the insulator has been explicitly incorporated into the calculations as it affects ionizations from the valence band. A Monte Carlo model was constructed to describe the path of electrons following the impact of a single electron of energy E;250 eV. This energy is similar to the energy of an Auger electron from carbon. Two limiting cases were considered: the case in which electrons transmit energy to the lattice, and the case where no such energy transfer is permitted. The results show the evolution of the secondary electron cascades in terms of the number of electrons liberated, the spatial distribution of these electrons, and the energy distribution among the electrons as a function of time. The predicted ionization rates ( ;5 ‐13 electrons in 100 fs! lie within the limits given by experiments and phenomenological models. Calculation of the local electron density and the corresponding Debye length shows that the latter is systematically larger than the radius of the electron cloud, and it increases exponentially with the radial size of the cascade. This means that the long-range Coulomb field is not shielded within this cloud, and the electron gas generated does not represent a plasma in a single impact cascade triggered by an electron of E;250 eV energy. This is important as it justifies the independent-electron approximation used in the model. At 1 fs, the ~average! spatial distribution of secondary electrons is anisotropic with the electron cloud elongated in the direction of the primary impact. The maximal radius of the cascade is about 50 A at this time. At 10 fs the cascade has a maximal radius of ;70 A, and is already dominated by low-energy electrons (.50%, E,10 eV). These electrons do not contribute to ionization but exchange energies with the lattice. As the system cools, energy is distributed more equally, and the spatial distribution of the electron cloud becomes isotropic. At 90 fs, the maximal radius is about 150 A. An analysis of the ionization fraction shows that the ionization level needed to create an Auger electron plasma in diamond will be reached with a dose of ;2310 5 impact x-ray photons per A 2 if these photons arrive before the cascade electrons recombine. The Monte Carlo model described here could be adopted for the investigation of radiation damage in other insulators and has implications for planned experiments with intense femtosecond x-ray sources.
ross neutralization of Hypnale hypnale ( hump-nosed pit viper ) venom by olyvalent and monovalent Malayan pit viper antivenoms in vitro nd in a rodent model

Hypnale hypnale (hump-nosed pit viper) is a medically important venomous snake in Sri Lanka and Southwestern India. Bite of this snake may result in hemostatic dysfunction, acute kidney injury and death. Clinical studies indicated that the locally available polyvalent antivenoms produced in India are not effective against hump-nosed pit viper envenoming. Hence, there is an urgent need to search for effective antivenom. In this paper, we examined the ability of Calloselasma rhodostoma (Malayan pit viper) monovalent antivenom and the Hemato polyvalent antivenom (both produced by Thai Red Cross Society, TRCS) to neutralize the lethality and toxic effects of H. hypnale venom, as C. rhodostoma is considered a sister taxon of H. hypnale. In vitro neutralization studies showed that the Hemato polyvalent antivenom effectively neutralized the lethality of H. hypnale venom (1.52 mg venom/mL antivenom) as well as the hemorrhagic, procoagulant and necrotic activities of the venom. The monovalent C. rhodostoma antivenom could also neutralize the lethality and toxic activities of the venom, but the potency was lower. The Hemato polyvalent antivenom also effectively protected mice from the lethal and local effects of H. hypnale venom in an in vivo rodent model of envenoming. Furthermore, the polyvalent antivenom could also effectively neutralize the venom of Daboia russelii (2.50 mg venom/mL antivenom), another bites y be common cause of snake polyvalent antivenom ma
Development of a Human Gamma Interferon Enzyme Immunoassay and Comparison with Tuberculin Skin Testing for Detection ofMycobacterium tuberculosis Infection

ABSTRACT A sensitive two-step simultaneous enzyme immunoassay (EIA) for human gamma interferon (IFN-γ) has been developed and used as an in vitro test for human tuberculosis (TB) in comparison with tuberculin skin testing. The EIA was shown to be highly sensitive, detecting less than 0.5 IU of recombinant human IFN-γ per ml within a linear detection range of 0.5 to 150 IU/ml. The assay was highly reproducible and specific for native IFN-γ. In addition, the assay detected chimpanzee, orangutan, gibbon, and squirrel monkey IFN-γs. Cross-reactions with other human cytokines or with IFN-γs derived from mice, cattle, or Old World monkeys were not evident. The assay was used to detect TB infection by incubating whole blood overnight with human, avian, and bovine tuberculin purified protein derivatives (PPDs), as well as positive (mitogen)- and negative-control preparations. The levels of IFN-γ in plasma supernatants were then determined. Blood from 10 tuberculin skin test-positive individuals responded predominantly to the human tuberculin PPD antigen and to a lesser extent to bovine and avian PPD antigens. By contrast, blood from 10 skin test-negative individuals showed minimal responses or no response to any of the tuberculin PPDs. Detectable levels of IFN-γ were present in all blood samples stimulated with mitogen. In vivo tuberculin reactivity was correlated with IFN-γ responsiveness in vitro. These results support the further study of the blood culture–IFN-γ EIA system as an alternative to skin testing for the detection of human TB infection.
Circulation of the novel G9 and G8 rotavirus strains in Nigeria in 1998/1999

An epidemiological survey investigating the prevalence of rotavirus infection in infants and young children with acute diarrhoea was undertaken in Jos State, Nigeria, between January 1998 and April 1999. In total, 672 faecal specimens were collected from children aged between 1 and 60 months with acute infantile gastroenteritis. The 10–20% stool suspensions were examined by an ELISA for the presence of group A rotavirus antigen (Rotavirus IDEIA, Dako, UK). Only 116 specimens (17.3%) were positive for the group A rotavirus antigen detected by this ELISA. The rotavirus‐positive specimens were analysed with monoclonal antibodies specific for rotavirus VP6 subgroup I and II, and for VP7 serotypes G1–G4, G8, and G9. Of the rotavirus strains that could be subgrouped, VP6 subgroup I and II strains circulated at similar levels. Amongst the strains that could be serotyped, VP7 G9 strains predominated occurring in 17 cases, with G3 (n = 10) and G1 (n = 9) strains occurring in lower numbers. Four G8 strains were detected and only one G2 and no G4 strains were identified. This report extends the description of the global distribution of G9 rotavirus strains. J. Med. Virol. 67:608–612, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The Quebec User Evaluation of Satisfaction with Assistive Technology (QUEST 2.0): An overview and recent progress

The Quebec User Evaluation of Satisfaction with Assistive Technology (QUEST 2.0) is a 12-item outcome measure that assesses user satisfaction with two components, Device and Services. Psychometric properties have been tested with respect to test-retest stability, alternate-form equivalence, internal consistency, factorial composition and nomological validity. Examples of results obtained with the first version of the tool in outcome studies in Europe and North America support the importance and relevance of the satisfaction measure.
Diversification in wild populations of the model organism Anolis carolinensis: A genome‐wide phylogeographic investigation

Abstract The green anole (Anolis carolinensis) is a lizard widespread throughout the southeastern United States and is a model organism for the study of reproductive behavior, physiology, neural biology, and genomics. Previous phylogeographic studies of A. carolinensis using mitochondrial DNA and small numbers of nuclear loci identified conflicting and poorly supported relationships among geographically structured clades; these inconsistencies preclude confident use of A. carolinensis evolutionary history in association with morphological, physiological, or reproductive biology studies among sampling localities and necessitate increased effort to resolve evolutionary relationships among natural populations. Here, we used anchored hybrid enrichment of hundreds of genetic markers across the genome of A. carolinensis and identified five strongly supported phylogeographic groups. Using multiple analyses, we produced a fully resolved species tree, investigated relative support for each lineage across all gene trees, and identified mito‐nuclear discordance when comparing our results to previous studies. We found fixed differences in only one clade—southern Florida restricted to the Everglades region—while most polymorphisms were shared between lineages. The southern Florida group likely diverged from other populations during the Pliocene, with all other diversification during the Pleistocene. Multiple lines of support, including phylogenetic relationships, a latitudinal gradient in genetic diversity, and relatively more stable long‐term population sizes in southern phylogeographic groups, indicate that diversification in A. carolinensis occurred northward from southern Florida.
Dissociating retrieval success from incidental encoding activity during emotional memory retrieval, in the medial temporal lobe

The memory-enhancing effect of emotion has been linked to the engagement of emotion- and memory-related medial temporal lobe (MTL) regions (amygdala-AMY; hippocampus-HC; parahippocampus-PHC), during both encoding and retrieval. However, recognition tasks used to investigate the neural correlates of retrieval make it difficult to distinguish MTL engagement linked to retrieval success (RS) from that linked to incidental encoding success (ES) during retrieval. This issue has been investigated for retrieval of non-emotional memories, but not for emotional memory retrieval. To address this, we used event-related functional MRI in conjunction with an emotional distraction and two episodic memory tasks (one testing memory for distracter items and the other testing memory for new/lure items presented in the first memory task). This paradigm allowed for dissociation of MTL activity specifically linked to RS from that linked to both RS and incidental ES during retrieval. There were two novel findings regarding the neural correlates of emotional memory retrieval. First, greater emotional RS was identified bilaterally in AMY, HC, and PHC. However, AMY activity was most impacted when accounting for ES activity, as only RS activity in left AMY was dissociated from ES activity during retrieval, whereas portions of HC and PHC showing greater emotional RS were largely uninvolved in ES. Second, an earlier and more anteriorly spread response (left AMY and bilateral HC, PHC) was linked to greater emotional RS activity, whereas a later and more posteriorly localized response (right posterior PHC) was linked to greater neutral RS activity. These findings shed light on MTL mechanisms subserving the memory-enhancing effect of emotion at retrieval.
Physiological genetics of aluminum tolerance in the wheat cultivar Atlas 66

Aluminum toxicity limits wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) production on acidic soils. The wheat cultivar Atlas 66 reportedly may have both more than one Al tolerance gene and more than one Al tolerance mechanism. The purpose of this study was to identify the Al tolerance mechanisms conferred by the individual Atlas 66 Al tolerance genes present in near-isogenic lines (NILs) of the cv. Century and Chisholm ('Century-T' and 'Chisholn-T). Seedling hydroponic culture analysis revealed that the NILs were not as Al tolerant, nor were they able to exclude Al from root apices as effectively as Atlas 66. Al-inducible malate release from root apices was significantly higher in the NILs compared with the recurrent parents, but less than that observed in Atlas 66. In contrast, root phosphate release was significantly lower than previously reported in Atlas 66, with no major differences observed among lines. These results indicate that the Atlas 66 Al tolerance gene present in each NIL acts by increasing Al-inducible malate release from root tips, but confers only a portion of the Al tolerance of Atlas 66 in both instances. Thus, differences in Al tolerance between the NILs and Atlas 66 can be attributed to malate release differences, and not differential phosphate release. Further, these results indicate that genetic variation at more than one locus underlies the malate-mediated Al tolerance differences in Atlas 66, when compared with Century and Chisholm. The Atlas 66 alleles for these loci have not been introgressed into the NILs.
Audio Equalization with Fixed-Pole Parallel Filters: An Efficient Alternative to Complex Smoothing

Recently, the fixed-pole design of parallel second-order filters has been proposed to accomplish arbitrary frequency resolution similarly to Kautz filters, at 2/3 of their computational cost. This paper relates the parallel filter to the complex smoothing of transfer functions. Complex smoothing is a well-established method for limiting the frequency resolution of audio transfer functions for analysis, modeling, and equalization purposes. It is shown that the parallel filter response is similar to the one obtained by complex smoothing the target response using a hanning window: a 1/β octave resolution is achieved by using β/2 pole pairs per octave in the parallel filter. Accordingly, the parallel filter can be either used as an efficient implementation of smoothed responses, or, it can be designed from the unsmoothed responses directly, eliminating the need of frequency-domain processing. In addition, the theoretical equivalence of parallel filters and Kautz filters is developed, and the formulas for converting between the parameters of the two structures are given. Examples of loudspeaker-room equalization are provided.
Molecular Epidemiology and Phylogenetic Distribution of the Escherichia coli pks Genomic Island

ABSTRACT Epidemiological and phylogenetic associations of the pks genomic island of extraintestinal pathogenic Escherichia coli (ExPEC), which encodes the genotoxin colibactin, are incompletely defined. clbB and clbN (as markers for the 5′ and 3′ regions of the pks island, respectively), clbA and clbQ (as supplemental pks island markers), and 12 other putative ExPEC virulence genes were newly sought by PCR among 131 published E. coli isolates from hospitalized veterans (62 blood isolates and 69 fecal isolates). Blood and fecal isolates and clbB-positive and -negative isolates were compared for 66 newly and previously assessed traits. Among the 14 newly sought traits, clbB and clbN (colibactin polyketide synthesis system), hra (heat-resistant agglutinin), and vat (vacuolating toxin) were significantly associated with bacteremia. clbB and clbN identified a subset within phylogenetic group B2 with extremely high virulence scores and a high proportion of blood isolates. However, by multivariable analysis, other traits were more predictive of blood source than clbB and clbN were; indeed, among the newly sought traits, only pic significantly predicted bacteremia (negative association). By correspondence analysis, clbB and clbN were closely associated with group B2 and multiple B2-associated traits; by principal coordinate analysis, clbB and clbN partitioned the data set better than did blood versus fecal source. Thus, the pks island was significantly associated with bacteremia, multiple ExPEC-associated virulence genes, and group B2, and within group B2, it identified an especially high-virulence subset. This extends previous work regarding the pks island and supports investigation of the colibactin system as a potential therapeutic target.
Combined analysis of specific KRAS mutation, BRAF and microsatellite instability identifies prognostic subgroups of sporadic and hereditary colorectal cancer

Confounding effects of specific KRAS gene alterations on colorectal cancer (CRC) prognosis stratified by microsatellite instability (MSI) and BRAFV600E have not yet been investigated. The aim of our study was to evaluate the combined effects of MSI, BRAFV600E and specific KRAS mutation (Gly → Asp; G12D, Gly → Asp, G13D; Gly → Val; G12V) on prognosis in 404 sporadic and 94 hereditary CRC patients. MSI status was determined according to the Bethesda guidelines. Mutational status of KRAS and BRAFV600E was assessed by direct DNA sequencing. In sporadic CRC, KRAS G12D mutations had a negative prognostic effect compared to G13D and wild‐type cancers (p = 0.038). With MSI, specific KRAS and BRAFV600E mutations, 3 distinct prognostic subgroups were observed in univariate (p = 0.006) and multivariable (p = 0.051) analysis: patients with (i) KRAS mutation G12D, G12V or BRAFV600E mutation, (ii) KRAS/BRAFV600E wild‐type or KRAS G13D mutations in MSS/MSI‐L and (iii) MSI‐H and KRAS G13D mutations. Moreover, none of the sporadic MSI‐H or hereditary patients with KRAS G13 mutations had a fatal outcome. Specific KRAS mutation is an informative prognostic factor in both sporadic and hereditary CRC and applied in an algorithm with BRAFV600E and MSI may identify sporadic CRC patients with poor clinical outcome.
Comprehensive Transcriptome Analysis Provides Evidence of Local Thermal Adaptation in Three Loaches (Genus: Misgurnus)

The geographic distribution of three Misgurnus species, M. anguillicaudatus, M. bipartitus, and M. mohoity, displays a specific pattern in China, coincident with temperature zones. In this study, we sequenced the transcriptomes of these three species and used the sequences to investigate the lineage-specific adaptations within the genus Misgurnus. In total, 51 orphan genes (19 in M. anguillicaudatus, 18 in M. bipartitus, and 14 in M. mohoity) that may contribute to the species-specific adaptations were identified. An analysis of 1392 one-to-one orthologous genes revealed significantly higher ratios of nonsynonymous-to-synonymous substitutions in the M. mohoity lineage than in M. anguillicaudatus. The genes displaying signatures of positive selection and rapid evolution in Misgurnus were involved in four function categories, (1) energy metabolism; (2) signal transduction; (3) membrane; and (4) cell proliferation or apoptosis, implying that these candidate genes play critical roles in the thermal adaptation of the fish to their living environments. We also detected more than five positively selected sites in cldn15lb and isca1, which function as important factors in paracellular Na+ transport and Fe/S cluster assembly, respectively. Overall, our study provides valuable insights into the adaptive evolution of loaches from different temperature zones in China and is a foundation for future studies to clarify the genetic basis of temperature adaptation in fishes.
Adaptive tangent distances in generalized learning vector quantization for transformation and distortion invariant classification learning

We propose a learning vector quantization algorithm variant for prototype-based classification learning with adaptive tangent distance learning. Tangent distances were developed to achieve dissimilarity measures invariant with respect to transformations and distortions like rotation, noise, etc. Usually, these tangent distances are predefined in applications or are estimated in preprocessing. We introduce in this paper a generalized learning vector quantizer (GLVQ) with an online adaptation scheme for tangent distances. The adaptation takes place as a stochastic gradient descent learning accompanying the usual online prototype learning. In this way, class discriminative tangents are learned contributing to a better classification performance. Further, the resulting update schemes can be seen as a special type of local matrix learning in GLVQ. In this paper, we provide the full mathematical theory behind the derived tangent distance adaptation rule and demonstrate the classification ability of the resulting GLVQ model in comparison to state-of-the-art tangent distance based classifiers in the field.