Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Receptive-field plasticity in the adult auditory cortex induced by Hebbian covariance

The goal of this experiment was to evaluate the role of cellular interactions postulated by the Hebbian, or covariance, hypothesis in the induction of receptive-field (RF) plasticity in the adult auditory cortex (ACx). This was accomplished by determining whether a "covariance treatment" (see below) was sufficient to induce RF plasticity without behavioral experiences that normally induce such plasticity. During the covariance treatment (conducted in urethane-anesthetized adult guinea pigs), one tone was paired with excitatory juxtacellular current, applied to a single postsynaptic cell in the primary ACx. Excitatory current increased postsynaptic discharge, thereby increasing covariance between activity of the postsynaptic cell and its afferents that were activated by the tone. In alternation, within the same cell a second, different tone was paired with inhibitory juxtacellular current, decreasing covariance between the postsynaptic cell and afferents activated by the second tone. After treatment, responses to tones associated with increased covariance strengthened significantly relative to tones associated with decreased covariance, as predicted by the Hebbian hypothesis. This occurred in 7 of 22 (32%) cells undergoing 120 pairing trials, but in only 4 of 38 (11%) cells undergoing 60 trials. Fewer than 5% of cells showed significant effects opposite those predicted by the hypothesis. Significant plasticity lasted > or = 15 min. Probability of plasticity was significantly higher when the cortical electroencephalogram was nonsynchronized during treatment (5/9 cells) than when synchronized (2/13 cells). These findings support the role of presynaptic-postsynaptic covariance processes in the induction of adult neocortical RF plasticity and suggest that factors associated with cortical state "gate" such plasticity.
The impact on option pricing of specification error in the underlying stock price returns

I. INTRODUCTION IN AN EARLIER PAPER,1 I briefly discussed the problem of errors in option pricing due to a misspecification of the stochastic process generating the underlying stock's returns. While there are many ways in which a specification error can be introduced, the particular form chosen in that paper was to compare the option prices arrived at by an investor who believes that the distribution of the unanticipated returns of the underlying stock is lognormal, and hence that he can use the classic Black-Scholes pricing formula2, with the "correct" option prices if the true process for the underlying stock is a mixture of a lognormal process and a jump process. This is a particularly important case because the nature of the error is not just one of magnitude, but indeed the qualitiative characteristics of the two processes are fundamentally different. In this paper, I examine the nature and magnitude of the error in a quantitative fashion using simulations. Before discussing the simulations, it is necessary to briefly summarize the option pricing results deduced in the earlier paper. At the heart of the derivation of the Black-Scholes option pricing formula is the arbitrage technique by which investors can follow a dynamic portfolio strategy using the stock and riskless borrowing to exactly reproduce the return structure of an option. By following this strategy in combination with a short position in an option, the investor can eliminate all risk from the total position, and hence to avoid arbitrage opportunities, the option must be priced such that the return to the total position must equal the rate of interest. However, for this arbitrage technique to be carried out, investors must be able to revise their portfolios frequently and the underlying stock price returns must follow a stochastic process that generates a continuous sample path. In effect, this requirement implies that over a short interval of time, the stock price cannot change by much. In my earlier paper I derived an option pricing formula when the sample path of the underlying stock returns does not satisfy the continuity property. In particular, it was assumed that the stock price dynamics can be written as a combination of two types of changes: (1) the "normal" vibrations in price, for examples, due to a temporary imbalance between supply and demand, changes in capitalization rates, changes in the economic outlook, or other new information that causes marginal * Professor of Finance, Massachusetts Institute of Technology. I thank J. Ingersoll for programming the simulations and general scientific assistance, and F. Black and M. Scholes for helpful discussions. Aid from the National Science Foundation is gratefully acknowledged.
Comparison of Dalbavancin MIC Values Determined by Etest (AB BIODISK) and Reference Dilution Methods Using Gram-Positive Organisms

ABSTRACT While standardized microdilution testing methodologies and quality control ranges exist for the novel glycolipopeptide dalbavancin, no testing methods have been described that are immediately available for routine use in clinical laboratories. In this study, we found that the dalbavancin Etest (AB BIODISK, Solna, Sweden) procedure demonstrated a high degree of agreement (100% within ±2 log2 dilution steps) with the standardized broth microdilution method, validating the use of the Etest as an alternative test for investigational or clinical purposes following regulatory approval.
4 m/100 Gb/s Optical Wireless Communication Based on Far L–Band Injection Locked Quantum-Dash Laser

An indoor 100 Gb/s free space optical communication link using an injection locked ∼1621 nm quantum-dash laser has been experimentally demonstrated. The results are achieved using dual-polarization quadrature phase shift keying (DP-QPSK) and coherent detection over a 4 m indoor free space link. The system exhibited a receiver sensitivity of –17.5 dBm to achieve the bit error rate forward error correction (BER FEC) threshold of 3.8 × 10<sup>–3</sup>. This displays the potential of tunable injection locked far <italic>L </italic>-band quantum-dash lasers, with less scattering loss compared to <italic>C</italic>-band counterpart, as promising light sources in both indoor and outdoor future high speed free space optical information and communication technology.
The Impact of Restrictions in Trade in the Telecommunications: an Application to Middle East and North African Countries

Theoretically, welfare gains from liberalisation of trade in services arise from falling prices and technology transfers from foreign firms. Empirically, due to the role of the regulatory framework in barriers to trade in services ('behind-the-border' laws) substantial gains are only reached when entry of foreign firms is widened. We have a close look at the way impediments to trade in services affect cost-price margin in telecommunication in Middle East and North Africa (MENA) countries. First, we criticise the measurements of barriers in trade in services, which tend towards an overestimation. Second, we show that analyses bend to overvalue the impact of regulations on the cost-price margin in telecommunications for MENA countries, in line with inadequate econometric techniques or underestimation of the effect of technical progress. Therefore, the best way in terms of trade in services liberalisation is to opt for a flexible, qualitative interpretation of the quantitative results and rank ordering of countries.
An improved anodic bonding process using pulsed voltage technique

In this study, we report a pulsed-voltage technique that is commonly employed in the electroplating industry to achieve a more efficient Si-glass anodic bonding process than the conventional constant electric field process. This technique features a less stringent voltage requirement and a shortened bonding time without compromising the tensile strength of the bonded structure. A square waveform voltage profile is used to investigate the effects of pulsed-voltage profile on the bonding time. In particular, the effects of magnitude of the base voltage and duration of the peak and base voltages are investigated. With peak and base voltages set to 400 and 300 V, respectively, and the duration of each voltage pulse fixed at 10-30 s, the bonding time is reduced to 30% of that required by a constant field process (400 V). Tensile strength of all completely bonded Si-glass pairs prepared by this technique is greater than 15 MPa. A postulated bonding mechanism based on the experimental results is presented.
Enhanced survival in locoregionally confined anaplastic thyroid carcinoma: a single-institution experience using aggressive multimodal therapy.

BACKGROUND Historical outcomes in anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) are poor, with a median survival of only 5 months and <20% of patients surviving 1 year from diagnosis. We hypothesized that survival in newly diagnosed patients with stages IVA and IVB locoregionally confined ATC might be improved by utilizing an aggressive therapeutic approach, prioritizing both the eradication of disease in the neck and preemptive treatment of occult metastatic disease. METHODS Between January 1, 2003, and December 31, 2007, 25 new ATC patients were evaluated at our institution. Of these 25 patients, 10 (40%) had metastatic disease at diagnosis and therefore underwent palliative treatment, whereas 5 (20%) had regionally confined disease and desired treatment at their local medical facilities. The remaining 10 consecutive patients (40%) had regionally confined ATC and elected aggressive therapy combining individualized surgery (where feasible), intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), and radiosensitizing + adjuvant chemotherapy intending four cycles of docetaxel + doxorubicin. Outcomes were assessed on an intention to treat basis. RESULTS There were no deaths from therapy, but hospitalization was required in two patients (20%) because of treatment-related adverse events. Five patients (50%) are alive and cancer-free, all having been followed >32 months (range: 32-89 months; median: 44 months) with a median overall Kaplan-Meier survival of 60 months. Overall survival at 1 and 2 years was 70% and 60%, respectively, compared to <20% historical survival at 1 year in analogous patients previously treated with surgery and conventional postoperative radiation at our and other institutions. CONCLUSIONS Although based upon a small series of consecutively treated patients, an aggressive approach combining IMRT and radiosensitizing plus adjuvant chemotherapy appears to improve outcomes, including survival in stages IVA and IVB regionally confined ATC, but remains of uncertain benefit in patients with stage IVC (metastatic) disease. Also uncertain is the optimal chemotherapy regimen to use in conjunction with IMRT. Further multicenter randomized trials are required to define optimal therapy in this rare but deadly cancer.
Harnessing Apoptotic Cell Clearance to Treat Autoimmune Arthritis

Early-stage apoptotic cells possess immunomodulatory properties. Proper apoptotic cell clearance during homeostasis has been shown to limit subsequent immune responses. Based on these observations, early-stage apoptotic cell infusion has been used to prevent unwanted inflammatory responses in different experimental models of autoimmune diseases or transplantation. Moreover, this approach has been shown to be feasible without any toxicity in patients undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation to prevent graft-versus-host disease. However, whether early-stage apoptotic cell infusion can be used to treat ongoing inflammatory disorders has not been reported extensively. Recently, we have provided evidence that early-stage apoptotic cell infusion is able to control, at least transiently, ongoing collagen-induced arthritis. This beneficial therapeutic effect is associated with the modulation of antigen-presenting cell functions mainly of macrophages and plasmacytoid dendritic cells, as well as the induction of collagen-specific regulatory CD4+ T cells (Treg). Furthermore, the efficacy of this approach is not altered by the association with two standard treatments of rheumatoid arthritis (RA), methotrexate and tumor necrosis factor (TNF) inhibition. Here, in the light of these observations and recent data of the literature, we discuss the mechanisms of early-stage apoptotic cell infusion and how this therapeutic approach can be transposed to patients with RA.
Impact of Mutations Outside the V3 Region on Coreceptor Tropism Phenotypically Assessed in Patients Infected with HIV-1 Subtype B

ABSTRACT HIV coreceptor tropism (CTR) testing is a prerequisite for prescribing a coreceptor antagonist. CTR is increasingly deduced by analyzing the V3 loop sequence of gp120. We investigated the impact of mutations outside V3 on CTR as determined by the enhanced-sensitivity Trofile assay (ESTA). Paired ESTA and gp120 sequencing (population sequencing; from codon 32 of the conserved C1 to the variable V5 domains) were obtained from 60 antiretroviral treatment (ART)-naïve patients (15 with AIDS) infected with subtype B HIV-1. For gp120 sequence analysis, nucleotide mixtures were considered when the second highest electropherogram peak was >25%; sequences were translated into all possible permutations and classified as X4, dual/mixed (DM), and R5 based on coincident ESTA results. ESTA identified R5 and DM viruses in 72 and 28% of patients, respectively; no pure X4 was labeled. Forty percent of AIDS patients had R5 strains. Thirty-two positions, mostly outside V3, were significantly (P < 0.05) different between R5 and DM sequences. According to multivariate analysis, amino acid changes at 9 and 7 positions within the C1 to C4 and V1 to V5 regions, respectively, maintained a statistical significance, as did the net charge of V3 and C4. When analyzing only R5 sequences, 6 positions in the variable regions were found which, along with the V4 net charge, were significantly different for sequences from early- and end-stage disease patients. This study identifies specific amino acid changes outside V3 which contribute to CTR. Extending the analysis to include pure X4 and increasing the sample size would be desirable to define gp120 variables/changes which should be included in predictive algorithms.
Nocturnal antihypertensive treatment in patients with type 1 diabetes with autonomic neuropathy and non-dipping: a randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind cross-over trial

Objectives Cardiovascular autonomic neuropathy (CAN) and abnormal circadian blood pressure (BP) rhythm are independent cardiovascular risk factors in patients with diabetes and associations between CAN, non-dipping of nocturnal BP and coronary artery disease have been demonstrated. We aimed to test if bedtime dosing (BD) versus morning dosing (MD) of the ACE inhibitor enalapril would affect the 24-hour BP profile in patients with type 1 diabetes (T1D), CAN and non-dipping. Setting Secondary healthcare unit in Copenhagen, Denmark. Participants 24 normoalbuminuric patients with T1D with CAN and non-dipping were included, consisting of mixed gender and Caucasian origin. Mean±SD age, glycosylated haemoglobin and diabetes duration were 60±7 years, 7.9±0.7% (62±7 mmol/mol) and 36±11 years. Interventions In this randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind cross-over study, the patients were treated for 12 weeks with either MD (20 mg enalapril in the morning and placebo at bedtime) or BD (placebo in the morning and 20 mg enalapril at bedtime), followed by 12 weeks of switched treatment regimen. Primary and secondary outcome measures Primary outcome was altered dipping of nocturnal BP. Secondary outcomes included a measurable effect on other cardiovascular risk factors than BP, including left ventricular function (LVF). Results Systolic BP dipping increased 2.4% (0.03–4.9%; p=0.048) with BD compared to MD of enalapril. There was no increase in mean arterial pressure dipping (2.2% (−0.1% to 4.5%; p=0.07)). No difference was found on measures of LVF (p≥0.15). No adverse events were registered during the study. Conclusions We demonstrated that patients with T1D with CAN and non-dipping can be treated with an ACE inhibitor at night as BD as opposed to MD increased BP dipping, thereby diminishing the abnormal BP profile. The potentially beneficial effect on long-term cardiovascular risk remains to be determined. Trial registration number EudraCT2012-002136-90; Post-results.
Treatment of Female Sexual Pain Disorders: A Systematic Review

Sexual pain disorders affect women's sexual and reproductive health and are poorly understood. Although many treatments have been evaluated, there is no one “gold standard” treatment. The aim of this systematic review was to investigate what treatments for female sexual pain have been evaluated in clinical studies and their effectiveness. The search strategy resulted in 65 papers included in this review. The articles were divided into the following categories: medical treatments; surgical treatments; physical therapies; psychological therapies; comparative treatment studies; and miscellaneous and combined treatments. Topical and systemic medical treatments have generally been found to lead to improvements in, but not complete relief of, pain, and side effects are quite common. Surgical procedures have demonstrated very high success rates, although there has been variability in complete relief of pain after surgery, which suggests less invasive treatments should be considered first. Physical therapies and psychological therapies have been shown to be promising treatments, supporting a biopsychosocial approach to sexual pain disorders. Although most of the interventions described have been reported as effective, many women still experience pain. A multidisciplinary team with active patient involvement may be needed to optimize treatment outcome.
Changes in jump performance and muscle activity following soccer-specific exercise

Abstract The jump performance of ten youth soccer players (mean age 15.8 years, s = 0.4) was assessed before and after 42 min of soccer-specific exercise performed on a non-motorized treadmill. A squat, countermovement, and drop jump were performed on a force platform and simultaneously surface EMG activity of four lower limb muscles was collected. Jump height deteriorated across all conditions with mean reductions of −1.4 cm (s = 1.6; P < 0.05), −3.0 cm (s = 2.9; P < 0.05), and −2.3 cm (s = 1.7; P < 0.01) in the squat, countermovement, and drop jump respectively. The impact force in the drop jump was the only force variable to show a significant change with fatigue (P < 0.05). Following the prolonged exercise, reductions in total muscle activity were non-significant for the squat jump, approached significance for the countermovement jump (P = 0.07), and achieved significance for the drop jump (P < 0.05). The results showed that completing soccer-specific exercise reduced performance in all jump tasks. Reductions in muscle activity were greatest for the drop jump, suggesting an influence of muscle stretch and loading on reduced muscle activity when fatigued.
Discrete laplace operator on meshed surfaces

In recent years a considerable amount of work in graphics and geometric optimization used tools based on the Laplace-Beltrami operator on a surface. The applications of the Laplacian include mesh editing, surface smoothing, and shape interpolations among others. However, it has been shown [13, 24, 26] that the popular cotangent approximation schemes do not provide convergent point-wise (or even L2) estimates, while many applications rely on point-wise estimation. Existence of such schemes has been an open question [13]. In this paper we propose the first algorithm for approximating the Laplace operator of a surface from a mesh with point-wise convergence guarantees applicable to arbitrary meshed surfaces. We show that for a sufficiently fine mesh over an arbitrary surface, our mesh Laplacian is close to the Laplace-Beltrami operator on the surface at every point of the surface. Moreover, the proposed algorithm is simple and easily implementable. Experimental evidence shows that our algorithm exhibits convergence empirically and compares favorably with cotangentbased methods in providing accurate approximation of the Laplace operator for various meshes.
Gender Differences in Aspects of Psychological Well-Being

The aim of this study was to determine whether men and women differ with regard to aspects of psychological well-being. For the purposes of this study, a meta-analysis was performed on data from a trans-university project, involving a multicultural availability sample of 378. The participants each completed 13 scales that measure psychological well-being in affective, physical, cognitive, spiritual, self and social aspects. Statistically significant gender differences with small to medium practical effects were found. Men scored higher on physical self-concept, automatic thoughts (positive), constructive thinking, cognitive flexibility, total self-concept, and fortitude. Women scored higher on the expression of affect, somatic symptoms, and religious well-being. No significant gender differences were found on sense of coherence, satisfaction with life, affect balance, emotional intelligence, self-efficacy, and the social components of self-concept and of fortitude. The results are in line with gender stereotypes and traditional socialisation practices and possibly reflect the impact of longstanding social inequity between men and women.
Assessment of intra-tumoral karyotypic heterogeneity by interphase cytogenetics in paraffin wax sections

Aim—To analyse the effect of sectioning on the assessment of karyotypic heterogeneity by interphase cytogenetics in paraffin wax embedded normal squamous epithelium and to apply the principles derived to invasive cervical carcinoma. Methods—Normal male (n = 5) and female (n = 5) squamous epithelia were hybridised with peri-centromeric repeat probes specific for chromosomes X (DXZ1) and 17 (D17Z1) individually and in combination to assess the effect of sectioning on mono-, di-, tri-, and tetrasomic populations. Section thickness, interobserver variation and variation between different areas of the epithelium were evaluated. Invasive squamous carcinomas of the cervix (n = 5) were then hybridised with the DXZ1 probe and intratumoral heterogeneity was assessed by comparison of signal distributions obtained from different areas. Results—The optimum section thickness for the assessment of normal epithelium was 6 μm. Variation in the expected signal number in the range 1-4 did not introduce artefactual heterogeneity at this section thickness. The sensitivity of this approach for the detection of minor subpopulations was calculated to be 13-16%, 17-18% and 10-11% for mono-, tri- and tetrasomic populations, respectively. Karyotypic heterogeneity was detected in two of the five tumours and, in one case where the populations where clustered morphologically, a minor population representing 18% was identified. Conclusions—Interphase cytogenetic analysis of sections from paraffin wax embedded material can be used for the detection of minor subpopulations in tumours. This approach will be of particular value in the assessment of the relation between human papillomavirus infection and tumour karyotype and in the analysis of intraepithelial neoplasia.