Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Blood Donations and Risk of Coronary Heart Disease in Men

Background—In experimental animals, iron overload appears to promote atherosclerosis and ischemic myocardial damage, but the results of epidemiological studies that relate iron stores to risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) have been inconsistent. Methods and Results—We prospectively studied blood donations, which effectively reduce body iron stores, in relation to the risk of CHD among participants in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study. The lifetime history of blood donation was assessed with a questionnaire in 1992. The 38 244 men who were free of diagnosed cardiovascular disease at that time were included in the analyses. During 4 years of follow-up, we documented 328 nonfatal myocardial infarctions and 131 coronary deaths. Although the number of lifetime blood donations was strongly associated with lower plasma ferritin levels in a subsample, the blood donation was not associated with risk of myocardial infarction or fatal CHD. The age-adjusted relative risk (RR) of myocardial infarction for men in the highest category of blood donations (≥30) compared with never donors was 1.2 (95% CI 0.8 to 1.8), and this RR was not materially changed after adjustment for several coronary risk factors. No significant associations were found between blood donation and the risk of myocardial infarction in analyses restricted to men with hypercholesterolemia or those who never used antioxidant supplements or aspirin. Conclusions—The study results do not support the hypothesis that reduced body iron stores lower CHD risk.
A New Efficient Transformer With Blueprint Pixel Network for Image Super-Resolution

In recent years, Transformer-based methods have achieved remarkable results in various vision tasks, including super-resolution (SR). However, the difficulty of stabilizing the training process and reducing the model complexity without compromising performance has limited their applications in lightweight SR tasks. To address these challenges, we propose a new efficient Transformer with blueprint pixel network (TBPN). Specifically, we first apply pixel normalization instead of batch normalization in the self-attention module, which makes the training process more efficient and stable. Then, we adopt a blueprint separation convolution to assemble depth features after the attention calculation to reduce the model parameters effectively. To exploit the long-range image dependency, our TBPN uses multiple blueprint pixel in Transformer modules (BPTMs), which aggregate the blueprint convolution and the embedded pixel normalization. Extensive experiments demonstrate that TBPN achieves a better performance with less complexity than existing Transformer-based and convolution-based SR methods.
The phenotype of TNF receptor-associated autoinflammatory syndrome (TRAPS) at presentation: a series of 158 cases from the Eurofever/EUROTRAPS international registry

Objective To evaluate the genetic findings, demographic features and clinical presentation of tumour necrosis factor receptor-associated autoinflammatory syndrome (TRAPS) in patients from the Eurofever/EUROTRAPS international registry. Methods A web-based registry collected retrospective data on patients with TNFRSF1A sequence variants and inflammatory symptoms. Participating hospitals included paediatric rheumatology centres and adult centres with a specific interest in autoinflammatory diseases. Cases were independently validated by experts in the disease. Results Complete information on 158 validated patients was available. The most common TNFRSF1A variant was R92Q (34% of cases), followed by T50M (10%). Cysteine residues were disrupted in 27% of cases, accounting for 39% of sequence variants. A family history was present in 19% of patients with R92Q and 64% of those with other variants. The median age at which symptoms began was 4.3 years but 9.1% of patients presented after 30 years of age. Attacks were recurrent in 88% and the commonest features associated with the pathogenic variants were fever (88%), limb pain (85%), abdominal pain (74%), rash (63%) and eye manifestations (45%). Disease associated with R92Q presented slightly later at a median of 5.7 years with significantly less rash or eye signs and more headaches. Children were more likely than adults to present with lymphadenopathy, periorbital oedema and abdominal pains. AA amyloidosis has developed in 16 (10%) patients at a median age of 43 years. Conclusions In this, the largest reported case series to date, the genetic heterogeneity of TRAPS is accompanied by a variable phenotype at presentation. Patients had a median 70 symptomatic days a year, with fever, limb and abdominal pain and rash the commonest symptoms. Overall, there is little evidence of a significant effect of age or genotype on disease features at presentation.
Exploring the effects of mechanical feedback on epithelial topology

Apical cell surfaces in metazoan epithelia, such as the wing disc of Drosophila, resemble polygons with different numbers of neighboring cells. The distribution of these polygon numbers has been shown to be conserved. Revealing the mechanisms that lead to this topology might yield insights into how the structural integrity of epithelial tissues is maintained. It has previously been proposed that cell division alone, or cell division in combination with cell rearrangements, is sufficient to explain the observed epithelial topology. Here, we extend this work by including an analysis of the clustering and the polygon distribution of mitotic cells. In addition, we study possible effects of cellular growth regulation by mechanical forces, as such regulation has been proposed to be involved in wing disc size regulation. We formulated several theoretical scenarios that differ with respect to whether cell rearrangements are allowed and whether cellular growth rates are dependent on mechanical stress. We then compared these scenarios with experimental data on the polygon distribution of the entire cell population, that of mitotic cells, as well as with data on mitotic clustering. Surprisingly, we observed considerably less clustering in our experiments than has been reported previously. Only scenarios that include mechanical-stress-dependent growth rates are in agreement with the experimental data. Interestingly, simulations of these scenarios showed a large decrease in rearrangements and elimination of cells. Thus, a possible growth regulation by mechanical force could have a function in releasing the mechanical stress that evolves when all cells have similar growth rates.
Current Trends in the Epidemiological and Pathological Characteristics of Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors in Korea, 2003-2004

Despite remarkable progress in understanding and treating gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) during the past two decades, the pathological characteristics of GISTs have not been made clear yet. Furthermore, concrete diagnostic criteria of malignant GISTs are still uncertain. We collected pathology reports of 1,227 GISTs from 38 hospitals in Korea between 2003 and 2004 and evaluated the efficacy of the NIH and AFIP classification schemes as well as the prognostic factors among pathologic findings. The incidence of GISTs in Korea is about 1.6 to 2.2 patients per 100,000. Extra-gastrointestinal GISTs (10.1%) are more common in Korea than in Western countries. In univariate analysis, gender, age, tumor location, size, mitosis, tumor necrosis, vascular and mucosal invasions, histologic type, CD34 and s-100 protein expression, and classifications by the NIH and AFIP criteria were found to be significantly correlated with patient's survival. However, the primary tumor location, stage and classification of the AFIP criteria were prognostically significant in predicting patient's survival in multivariate analysis. The GIST classification based on original tumor location, size, and mitosis is more efficient than the NIH criteria in predicting patient's survival, but the mechanism still needs to be clarified through future studies.
Can We Measure Corneal Biomechanical Changes After Collagen Cross-Linking in Eyes With Keratoconus?-A Pilot Study

Purpose: To assess changes in biomechanical properties of human cornea after treatment of keratoconus with UV-A-riboflavin corneal collagen cross-linking (CXL). Design: Single-center, prospective, interventional study. Methods: Ten eyes of 10 patients aged 26.5 ± 5.7 (mean ± SD) years with progressive keratoconus were treated with UV-A-riboflavin CXL and assessed with the Ocular Response Analyzer (ORA) that measured corneal hysteresis (CH), corneal resistance factor (CRF), Goldmann-correlated intraocular pressure (IOPg), and corneal compensated intraocular pressure (IOPcc). Intraocular pressure was also measured by Goldmann applanation tonometry (GAT-IOP). Patients were assessed with ORA preoperatively, at week 1, months 1, 3, and 6 after treatment. Postoperative measurements at each visit were compared with preoperative values. Results: CH and CRF were transiently elevated after cross-linking treatment, with the difference not statistically significant (P > 0.3). IOPcc and IOPg were statistically significantly higher at 1 week and 1 month but not subsequently (P < 0.04). GAT-IOP was statistically significantly higher at 1 week and at 1 and 3 months (P < 0.01). Conclusions: There were no significant differences in corneal biomechanical properties, as measured with the ORA parameters CH and CRF, after CXL in keratoconus. IOPcc, IOPg, and GAT-IOP values were transiently elevated after CXL treatment in our study. Whether this reflects a measurement artifact resulting from corneal changes or true elevation of intraocular pressure is unclear.
Memory for friends or foes: The social context of past encounters with faces modulates their subsequent neural traces in the brain

Abstract Every day we encounter new people, interact with them, and form person impressions based on quick and automatic inferences from minimal contextual information. Previous studies have identified an extensive network of brain areas involved in familiar face recognition, but there is little evidence to date concerning the neural bases of negative vs. positive person impressions. In the present study, participants were repeatedly exposed to 16 unfamiliar face identities within a pseudo-interactive game context to generate a perception of either “friends” or “foes”. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was then performed during an old/new memory task to assess any difference in brain responses to these now familiar face identities, relative to unfamiliar faces. Importantly, whereas facial expressions were always emotional (either smiling or angry) during the encoding phase, they were always neutral during the memory task. Our results reveal that several brain regions involved in familiar face recognition, including fusiform cortex, posterior cingulate gyrus, and amygdala, plus additional areas involved in motivational control such as caudate and anterior cingulate cortex, were differentially modulated as a function of a previous encounter, and generally more activated when faces were perceived as “foes” rather than “friends”. These findings underscore that a key dimension of social judgments, based on past impressions of who may be supportive or hostile, may lead to long-lasting effects on memory for faces and thus influence affective reactions to people during a subsequent encounter even in a different (neutral) context.
Effect of Cotton Seed Cake on Cattle Milk Yield and Composition at Livestock Research and Development Station Surezai, Peshawar, Pakistan

3 Abstract: The present study was conducted at Livestock Research and Development Station Surezai, Peshawar during June to August 2011. The objectives of this study were to determine the effect of Cotton Seed Cake (CSC) on milk yield, milk composition, feed intake, Body Condition Score (BCS) and live weight of Holstein Friesian (HF) crossbred cows. A total of nine mid-lactation crossbred cows were randomly distributed to three groups and allocated to diets containing zero (control), 20 and 35 percent CSC. All the three rations were Isocaloric and Isonitrogeniuos. Each cow was given a daily feed ration according to NRC standards. Mean daily milk yield differed (P 0.05) effect on protein content in milk as cows on 35% CSC diet produced the least 2.7±0.09 percent protein, while the control group produce the highest 3.00±0.09 percent. The concentration of Lactose and total milk solid not fat (SNF) content was higher (P>0.05) for control group than the cows fed on other diet. There was significant (P 0.05) effect on mean changes in BCS. The Live weight was not effected significantly (P>0.05) by rations, However highest mean change in weight gain of 7.66±4.95kg/45day was recorded for cows fed ration having 35% CSC while least 5.00 ±7.90 kg/45day was recorded for cows fed zero% CSC in the ration. Economically ration having 35% CSC had the lowest cost of milk production (Rs: 17.14/kg) as compared to ration having 20% (Rs.19.68/kg) and Zero% CSC (Rs.21.6/kg). These results concluded that milk yield; milk fat and feed intake was increased with supplementation of high level of cotton seed cake in the dairy cattle ration. Higher proportion of CSC (35%) has shown the best efficiency of production as compare to other rations.
Intracoronary transplantation of autologous bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells for ischemic cardiomyopathy due to isolated chronic occluded left anterior descending artery.

BACKGROUND Studies have revealed that stem cells improve clinical outcomes in patients with severe ischemic cardiomyopathy, but the role of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells is not well understood. METHODS Twenty-two patients received an implantation of autologous bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell therapy; another 23 patients were placed in a control group after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) of the chronically occluded left anterior descending artery. RESULTS Reversible defect in the cell therapy group decreased from 16 +/- 8% at baseline to 6 +/- 2% at 12 months (p < 0.05), and this improvement was maintained throughout the entire follow-up period. Compared to the control group (5 +/- 3 METS at baseline vs. 5 +/- 3 METS at 3 months; p = NS), the level of exercise tolerance improved significantly 3 months after cell therapy (5 +/- 2 METS at baseline vs. 7 +/- 3 METS at 3 months; p < 0.05). The NYHA function class also improved in the cell therapy group (2.7 +/- 0.8 at baseline vs. 1.6 +/- 0.1 at 3 months; p < 0.05). PCI alone did not increase left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), but following stem cell therapy, the LVEF increased significantly from 26 +/- 6% at baseline to 37 +/- 9% at 3 months (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION Intracoronary transplantation of autologous bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells improved clinical outcomes in patients with chronic ischemic cardiomyopathy.
Respiratory motion tracking using the kinect camera

Respiratory motion presents a challenge in developing techniques to increase the accuracy of image acquisition or guided interventions in abdominal and thoracic organs. The use of distance cameras, such as that from Vision RT Ltd has been considered as a surrogate for respiratory motion tracking in external beam radiotherapy that does not require the use of markers. However, it is very costly and thus this project suggests using the Microsoft Xbox Kinect™ for tracking respiratory motion. The aim of the project is to utilize the Kinect camera which for instance, can be put inside the CT scanner room in the hospital. This system records the 3D motion data and further analyses the consistency of the respiratory motion. A Graphical User Interface (GUI) was developed to display the breathing signal and statistics of the data. This respiratory motion tracking system will facilitate clinicians in choosing a suitable treatment option for lung cancer patients with less cost.
Will I Regret It? Anticipated Negative Emotions Modulate Choices in Moral Dilemmas

We tested if post-decisional emotions of regret, guilt, shame, anger, and disgust can account for individuals’ choices in moral dilemmas depicting the choice of letting some people die (non-utilitarian option) or sacrificing one person to save them (utilitarian option). We collected participants’ choices and post-decisional emotional ratings for each option using Footbridge-type dilemmas, in which the sacrifice of one person is the means to save more people, and Trolley-type dilemmas, in which the sacrifice is only a side effect. Moreover, we computed the EEG Readiness Potential to test if the neural activity related to the last phase of decision-making was related to the emotional conflict. Participants reported generally stronger emotions for the utilitarian as compared to the non-utilitarian options, with the exception of anger and regret, which in Trolley-type dilemmas were stronger for the non-utilitarian option. Moreover, participants tended to choose the option that minimized the intensity of negative emotions, irrespective of dilemma type. No significant relationship between emotions and the amplitude of the Readiness Potential emerged. It is possible that anticipated post-decisional emotions play a role in earlier stages of decision-making.
Hyperglycemia and Diabetes Downregulate the Functional Expression of TRPV4 Channels in Retinal Microvascular Endothelium

Retinal endothelial cell dysfunction is believed to play a key role in the etiology and pathogenesis of diabetic retinopathy. Numerous studies have shown that TRPV4 channels are critically involved in maintaining normal endothelial cell function. In the current paper, we demonstrate that TRPV4 is functionally expressed in the endothelium of the retinal microcirculation and that both channel expression and activity is downregulated by hyperglycaemia. Quantitative PCR and immunostaining demonstrated molecular expression of TRPV4 in cultured bovine retinal microvascular endothelial cells (RMECs). Functional TRPV4 activity was assessed in cultured RMECs from endothelial Ca2+-responses recorded using fura-2 microfluorimetry and electrophysiological recordings of membrane currents. The TRPV4 agonist 4α-phorbol 12,13-didecanoate (4-αPDD) increased [Ca2+]i in RMECs and this response was largely abolished using siRNA targeted against TRPV4. These Ca2+-signals were completely inhibited by removal of extracellular Ca2+, confirming their dependence on influx of extracellular Ca2+. The 4-αPDD Ca2+-response recorded in the presence of cyclopiazonic acid (CPA), which depletes the intracellular stores preventing any signal amplification through store release, was used as a measure of Ca2+-influx across the cell membrane. This response was blocked by HC067047, a TRPV4 antagonist. Under voltage clamp conditions, the TRPV4 agonist GSK1016790A stimulated a membrane current, which was again inhibited by HC067047. Following incubation with 25mM D-glucose TRPV4 expression was reduced in comparison with RMECs cultured under control conditions, as were 4αPDD-induced Ca2+-responses in the presence of CPA and ion currents evoked by GSK1016790A. Molecular expression of TRPV4 in the retinal vascular endothelium of 3 months’ streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats was also reduced in comparison with that in age-matched controls. We conclude that hyperglycaemia and diabetes reduce the molecular and functional expression of TRPV4 channels in retinal microvascular endothelial cells. These changes may contribute to diabetes induced endothelial dysfunction and retinopathy.
Mountain building and mantle dynamics

Mountain building at convergent margins requires tectonic forces that can overcome frictional resistance along large‐scale thrust faults and support the gravitational potential energy stored within the thickened crust of the orogen. A general, dynamic model for this process is still lacking. Here we propose that mountain belts can be classified between two end‐members. First, those of “slab pull” type, where subduction is mainly confined to the upper mantle, and rollback trench motion lead to moderately thick crustal stacks, such as in the Mediterranean. Second, those of “slab suction” type, where whole‐mantle convection cells (“conveyor belts”) lead to the more extreme expressions of orogeny, such as the largely thickened crust and high plateaus of present‐day Tibet and the Altiplano. For the slab suction type, deep mantle convection produces the unique conditions to drag plates toward each other, irrespective of their nature and other boundary conditions. We support this hypothesis by analyzing the orogenic, volcanic, and convective history associated with the Tertiary formation of the Andes after ~40 Ma and Himalayas after collision at ~55 Ma. Based on mantle circulation modeling and tectonic reconstructions, we surmise that the forces necessary to sustain slab‐suction mountain building in those orogens derive, after transient slab ponding, from the mantle drag induced upon slab penetration into the lower mantle, and from an associated surge of mantle upwelling beneath Africa. This process started at ~65–55 Ma for Tibet‐Himalaya, when the Tethyan slab penetrated into the lower mantle, and ~10 Myr later in the Andes, when the Nazca slab did. This surge of mantle convection drags plates against each other, generating the necessary compressional forces to create and sustain these two orogenic belts. If our model is correct, the available geological records of orogeny can be used to decipher time‐dependent mantle convection, with implications for the supercontinental cycle.
Multicenter international registry of unprotected left main coronary artery percutaneous coronary intervention with drug‐eluting stents in patients with myocardial infarction

Background: Patients who present with myocardial infarction (MI) and unprotected left main coronary artery (ULMCA) disease represent an extremely high‐risk subset of patients. ULMCA percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with drug‐eluting stents (DES) in MI patients has not been extensively studied. Methods: In this retrospective multicenter international registry, we evaluated the clinical outcomes of 62 consecutive patients with MI who underwent ULMCA PCI with DES (23 ST‐elevation MI [STEMI] and 39 non‐ST‐elevation MI [NSTEMI]) from 2002 to 2006. Results: The mean age was 70 ± 12 years. Cardiogenic shock was present in 24%. The mean EuroSCORE was 10 ± 8. Angiographic success was achieved in all patients. Overall in‐hospital major adverse cardiac event (MACE) rate was 10%, mortality was 8%, all due to cardiac deaths from cardiogenic shock, and one patient suffered a periprocedural MI. At 586 ± 431 days, 18 patients (29%) experienced MACE, 12 patients (19%) died (the mortality rate was 47% in patients with cardiogenic shock), and target vessel revascularization was performed in four patients, all of whom had distal bifurcation involvement (two patients underwent repeat PCI and two patients underwent bypass surgery). There was no additional MI. Two patients had probable stent thrombosis and one had possible stent thrombosis. Diabetes [hazard ratio (HR) 4.22, 95% confidence interval (CI) (1.07–17.36), P = 0.04), left ventricular ejection fraction [HR 0.94, 95% CI (0.90–0.98), P = 0.005), and intubation [HR 7.00, 95% CI (1.62–30.21), P = 0.009) were significantly associated with increased mortality. Conclusions: Patients with MI and ULMCA disease represent a very high‐risk subgroup of patients who are critically ill. PCI with DES appears to be technically feasible, associated with acceptable long‐term outcomes, and a reasonable alternative to surgical revascularization for MI patients with ULMCA disease. Randomized trials are needed to determine the ideal revascularization strategy for these patients. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.