Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Serum Iron Levels Decreased in Patients with HBV-Related Hepatocellular Carcinoma, as a Risk Factor for the Prognosis of HBV-Related HCC

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is common and the second leading causes of cancer-related deaths. HCC usually occurs on the basis of chronic liver diseases. At present, the study of iron metabolism in chronic liver diseases was limited to chronic HCV infection, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, and alcoholic liver disease. This study aimed to investigate the effect of serum iron levels on the progression of chronic HBV infection and the relationship with the prognosis of HBV-related HCC. Methods: A respective study involving 277 healthy individuals as controls (HC), 295 patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB), 224 patients with HBV-related liver cirrhosis (HBV-related LC), and 586 patients with HBV- related HCC were enrolled in this study. Hematological parameters, HBVDNA and liver biochemistry were analyzed. Child-Pugh grade and BCLC stage of the HBV-related HCC patients were calculated. Results: The serum iron levels were lowest in the HBV- related HCC group as compared with HC, CHB, and HBV-related LC groups (35.07 ± 6.97, 27.37 ± 10.26, 24.53 ± 10.36 vs. 17.90 ± 0.14, P < 0.001). Strikingly, serum iron levels were lowest in HBV- related HCC patients with tumor size more than 10 cm as compared with HBV- related HCC patients with tumor size smaller than 3, 3–5, and 5–10 cm by subgroup analysis (22.12 ± 0.94, 21.44 ± 1.41, 15.65 ± 0.98 vs. 13.36 ± 1.15, P < 0.001). Serum iron levels significantly decreased with worsening Child-Pugh grades and BCLC stages in HBV-related HCC group. In addition, serum iron levels was positively correlated with Retinol-Binding Protein, total bile acid, hemoglobin, and lymphocyte and negatively correlated with white blood cell (WBC) and platelet in HBV- related HCC group. ROC curve analysis showed serum iron levels at 15.1 μmol/L as the optimal cut-off point for determining the survival of HBV-related HCC. By the Cox regression model analysis, serum iron levels <15.1 μmol/l together with higher AFP levels, worse BCLC stages, and larger tumor size showed higher mortality of HBV-related HCC patients (hazard ratio = 2.280, 95% confidence interval, 1.815–2.865; P < 0.001). Conclusions: Serum iron levels affected the progression of chronic HBV infection. The prognosis of HBV- related HCC patients with serum iron levels <15.1 μmol/l together with higher AFP levels, worse BCLC stages, and larger tumor lesion were poor.
Performance Quantification of Conducting Polymer Actuators for Real Applications: A Microgripping System

In this paper, we report on modeling, characterization, and performance quantification of a conducting polymer actuator, driving a rigid link to form each finger of a two-finger gripping system, which is what we call a microgripping system. The actuator, which consists of five layers of three different materials, operates in a nonaquatic medium, i.e., air, as opposed to its predecessors. After the bending displacement and force outputs of a single finger are modeled and characterized including the effect of the magnitude and frequency of input voltages, the nonlinear behavior of the finger including hysteresis and creep effects is experimentally quantified, and then a viscoelastic model is employed to predict the creep behavior. The experimental and theoretical results presented demonstrate that while the hysteresis is negligibly small, the creep is significant enough so as not to be ignored. The response of the actuator and the finger under step input voltages is evaluated, and found that the actuator does not have any time delay, but only a large time constant. Two of the fingers are assembled to form a microgripping system, whose payload handling and positioning ability has been experimentally evaluated. It can lift up to 50 times its weight under 1.5 V. The payload handled was a spherical object covered with industrial type tissue paper. The friction coefficient between the object and the carbon fiber rigid link has been determined experimentally and used to estimate the contact force. All the theoretical and experimental performance quantification results presented demonstrate that conducting polymer actuators can be employed to make functional microsized robotic devices
Tubular Diskectomy vs Conventional Microdiskectomy for the Treatment of Lumbar Disk Herniation: 2-Year Results of a Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Trial

BACKGROUND:Transmuscular tubular diskectomy has been introduced to increase the rate of recovery, although evidence is lacking. OBJECTIVE:To evaluate the 2-year results of tubular diskectomy compared with conventional microdiskectomy. METHODS:Three hundred twenty-eight patients with persistent leg pain caused by lumbar disk herniation were randomly assigned to undergo tubular diskectomy (167 patients) or conventional microdiskectomy (161 patients). Main outcome measures were scores from Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire for Sciatica, Visual Analog Scale for leg pain and low-back pain, and Likert self-rating scale of global perceived recovery. RESULTS:On the basis of intention-to-treat analysis, there was no significant difference between tubular diskectomy and conventional microdiskectomy in Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire for Sciatica scores during 2 years after surgery (between-group mean difference [Δ] = 0.6; 95% confidence interval [CI], −0.3-1.6). Patients treated with tubular diskectomy reported more leg pain (Δ = 3.3 mm; 95% CI, 0.2-6.2) and more low-back pain (Δ = 3.0 mm; 95% CI, −0.2-6.3) than those patients treated with conventional microdiskectomy. At 2 years, 71% of patients assigned to tubular diskectomy documented a good recovery vs 77% of patients assigned to conventional microdiskectomy (odds ratio, 0.76; 95% CI, 0.45-1.28; P = .35). Repeated surgery rates within 2 years after tubular diskectomy and conventional microdiskectomy were 15% and 10%, respectively (P = .22). CONCLUSION:Tubular diskectomy and conventional microdiskectomy resulted in similar functional and clinical outcomes. Patients treated with tubular diskectomy reported more leg pain and low-back pain, although the differences were small and not clinically relevant.
Comparison of hemodynamic effects of sevoflurane and ketamine as basal anesthesia by a new and direct monitoring during induction in children with ventricular septal defect

Background: Sevoflurane and ketamine are commonly used to obtain sedation and facilitate intravenous anesthetic induction in children undergoing cardiac surgery who are uncooperative. We used a new and direct systemic hemodynamic monitoring technique pressure recording analytical method and compared the hemodynamic effects of sevoflurane and ketamine to facilitate intravenous anesthetic induction. Methods: Forty-four children with ventricular septal defect (2.2 ± 1.2 years) were enrolled and randomized to receive sevoflurane (Group S) or intramuscular ketamine (Group K) for sedation, followed by intravenous midazolam-sufentanil induction and tracheal intubation. Recorded parameters included heart rate (HR), arterial pressures, stroke volume index (SVI), cardiac index (CI), systemic vascular resistance index (SVRI), the maximal slope of systolic upstroke (dp/dtmax) after sedation obtained with sevoflurane or ketamine, 1, 2, 5 minutes after midazolam-sufentanil, 1, 2, 5, and 10 minutes after tracheal intubation. Rate-pressure product (RPP) and cardiac power output (CPO) were calculated. Results: As compared with Group S, Group K had faster decreases during intravenous anesthetic induction in arterial pressures (P < .01 for all), higher HR, arterial pressures, SVRI, dp/dtmax, RPP, lower SVI, CI, CPO (P < .05 for all) during the study period. Conclusion: As compared with sevoflurane, ketamine facilitated intravenous anesthetic induction exerts unfavorable effects on systemic hemodynamic and myocardial energetic in children with ventricular septal defect.
Effects of repetition on age differences in associative recognition

ABSTRACT The study reported here examined the effect of repetition on age differences in associative recognition using a paradigm designed to encourage recollection at test. Young and older adults studied lists of unrelated word pairs presented one, two, four, or eight times. Test lists contained old (intact) pairs, pairs consisting of old words that had been studied with other partners (rearranged lures), and pairs consisting of two unstudied words (new lures). Participants gave old/new responses and then indicated whether their responses were based on details that they could recollect or on familiarity. Older adults exhibited an ironic effect of repetition—an increase in false alarms on rearranged lures with more study opportunities—whereas young adults did not. Older adults also claimed to recall details of the study episode for rearranged lures whose constituent words were presented more frequently, but this was not true for young adults. Although both young and older adults said that they based correct rejections of rearranged lures on memory for details of the study episode, this effect was stronger for young adults. The observed age differences are consistent with older adults having reduced use of recollection in associative recognition tasks.
An Improved Compressive Sensing and Received Signal Strength-Based Target Localization Algorithm with Unknown Target Population for Wireless Local Area Networks

In this paper a two-phase compressive sensing (CS) and received signal strength (RSS)-based target localization approach is proposed to improve position accuracy by dealing with the unknown target population and the effect of grid dimensions on position error. In the coarse localization phase, by formulating target localization as a sparse signal recovery problem, grids with recovery vector components greater than a threshold are chosen as the candidate target grids. In the fine localization phase, by partitioning each candidate grid, the target position in a grid is iteratively refined by using the minimum residual error rule and the least-squares technique. When all the candidate target grids are iteratively partitioned and the measurement matrix is updated, the recovery vector is re-estimated. Threshold-based detection is employed again to determine the target grids and hence the target population. As a consequence, both the target population and the position estimation accuracy can be significantly improved. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed approach achieves the best accuracy among all the algorithms compared.
PD-1 mediates functional exhaustion of activated NK cells in patients with Kaposi sarcoma

Programmed Death-1 (PD-1), an inhibitory receptor expressed by activated lymphocytes, is involved in regulating T- and B-cell responses. PD-1 and its ligands are exploited by a variety of cancers to facilitate tumor escape through PD-1-mediated functional exhaustion of effector T cells. Here, we report that PD-1 is upregulated on Natural Killer (NK) cells from patients with Kaposi sarcoma (KS). PD-1 was expressed in a sub-population of activated, mature CD56dimCD16pos NK cells with otherwise normal expression of NK surface receptors. PD-1pos NK cells from KS patients were hyporesponsive ex vivo following direct triggering of NKp30, NKp46 or CD16 activating receptors, or short stimulation with NK cell targets. PD-1pos NK cells failed to degranulate and release IFNγ, but exogenous IL-2 or IL-15 restored this defect. That PD-1 contributed to NK cell functional impairment and was not simply a marker of dysfunctional NK cells was confirmed in PD-1-transduced NKL cells. In vitro, PD-1 was induced at the surface of healthy control NK cells upon prolonged contact with cells expressing activating ligands, i.e. a condition mimicking persistent stimulation by tumor cells. Thus, PD-1 appears to plays a critical role in mediating NK cell exhaustion. The existence of this negative checkpoint fine-tuning NK activation highlights the possibility that manipulation of the PD-1 pathway may be a strategy for circumventing tumor escape not only from the T cell-, but also the NK-cell mediated immune surveillance.
Retrieval of snow albedo and grain size using reflectance measurements in Himalayan basin

Abstract. In the present paper, spectral reflectance measurements of Himalayan seasonal snow were carried out and analysed to retrieve the snow albedo and effective grain size. The asymptotic radiative transfer (ART) theory was applied to retrieve the plane and spherical albedo. The retrieved plane albedo was compared with the measured spectral albedo and a good agreement was observed with ±10% differences. Retrieved integrated albedo was found within ±6% difference with ground observed broadband albedo. The retrieved snow grain sizes using different models based on the ART theory were compared for various snow types and it was observed that the grain size model using two channel method (one in visible and another in NIR region) can work well for the Himalayan seasonal snow and it was found consistent with temporal changes in grain size. This method can work very well for clean, dry snow as in the upper Himalaya, but sometimes, due to the low reflectances (
Molecular biomarkers for lung adenocarcinoma

The identification of oncogenic driver alterations that underlie sensitivity to small inhibitors has led to growing interest in identifying additional targetable oncogenes in nonsmall cell lung cancer. Although the therapeutic impact of the discovery of these alterations has now been widely demonstrated, the epidemiological data associated with each of these biomarkers remain insufficiently studied. In this review, we discuss the techniques used to discover each of these candidate oncogenes, their prevalence in nonsmall cell lung cancer, and briefly outline the epidemiological features of the major oncogenes and ways in which their identification can determine therapeutic strategies. The epidemiology and impacts on prognosis and treatment responses of NSCLC strongly depend on molecular profile http://ow.ly/QCGP3094HLZ
Emblematic forest dwellers reintroduced into cities: resource selection by translocated juvenile kaka

Abstract Urbanization and exotic species are major threats to the conservation of forest-dependent wildlife species. Some emblematic species, indicators of habitat quality for the conservation of other species, might successfully be reintroduced within cities when habitat restoration and pest management programs are combined. We studied the landscape resource selection of juvenile kaka Nestor meridionalis tracked with Global Positioning System (GPS) units and released into the predator-free reserve of Zealandia in Wellington city, New Zealand. Kaka moved beyond the predator exclusion fence into urban suburbs. The home range size and areas of high use estimated using local convex hull (a-LoCoH) ranged from 20 to 240 ha and 2 to 21 ha, respectively. Using resource selection functions and model selection we found that native forest patches and urban areas close to the reserve were selected by kaka to establish their home ranges. At a lower scale of selection (i.e., selection of habitats within home ranges), kaka selected the same habitat, but not necessarily those close to the reserve. Native forest patches throughout the city can facilitate the dispersal of individuals, while the reserve provides protection and opportunities for supplementary feeding. Urban areas might have been selected due to the placement of feeders in private backyards. Survival of forest-dwelling species in cities requires careful urban planning and management to provide the necessary habitat patches, refugia, and food sources.
Physiological Structure and Single‐Cell Activity in Marine Bacterioplankton

Generations of microbiologists have pondered over the issue of bacterial activity and whether most bacteria in the environment are “active,” “inactive,” or “dormant” (Stevenson 1978). This is a question with clear practical implications, in terms of food, sanitary, and clinical microbiology, as well as profound ecological implications. The issue started to be debated in earnest within the aquatic microbial community roughly at the time researchers were developing new methods to estimate the total abundance of aquatic bacteria, since some of the first stains used were thought to respond differently depending on the RNA content of single bacterial cells (see, e.g., Francisco et al. 1973). It was not until bacteria were recognized as being not only very abundant, but also active, that the notion of microbes as important partners in the marine food web gained widespread recognition (Pomeroy 1974). The early studies using radiotracer incorporation showed surprisingly high rates of bacterial
Efficiency of Castor Oil as a Storage Medium for Avulsed Teeth in Maintaining the Viability of Periodontal Ligament Cells

Statement of the Problem: Researchers always seek a new storage medium for avulsed teeth. Castor oil is a vegetable oil with several advantages such as antimicrobial and antioxidant properties, low toxicity, and glutathione preservation capability, low cost, and high availability. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare the capacity of castor oil as a new storage medium in preserving the viability of periodontal ligament (PDL) cells compared to Hank’s balanced salt solution (HBSS) and milk. Materials and Method: Forty freshly extracted human teeth were divided into 3 experimental and 2 control groups. The experimental teeth were stored dry for 30 min and then immersed for 45 min in one of the following media; castor oil, HBSS, and milk. The positive and negative control groups were exposed to 0 min and 2 h of dry time respectively with no immersion in any storage medium. The teeth were then treated with dispase grade II and collagenase and the number of viable PDL cells were counted. Data were analyzed using Kruskal- Wallis test. Results: The percentage of viable cells treated with castor oil, HBSS and milk counted immediately after removal from these media were 46.93, 51.02 and 55.10 % respectively. The statistical analysis revealed that the value for castor oil was significantly lower than HBSS and milk (p> 0.05). Conclusion: Within the parameters of this study, it appears that castor oil cannot be served as an ideal medium for storage of avulsed tooth. More investigations under in vivo conditions are required to justify the results of this study.
Improving Freezing and Thawing Properties of Fly Ash Bricks

In 2004, the National Science Foundation (NSF) funded a Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase 1 grant to Freight Pipeline Company. The purpose of the grant is to improve the freeze/thaw properties of compacted fly ash bricks, so that such bricks will not deteriorate prematurely in cold climate, and they can be used anywhere in the United States for various commercial purposes. It has been established through previous research that by mixing Class-C fly ash with approximately 10% water, strong fly ash brick can be produced at compaction pressure of 3,000 psi, approximately. The bricks produced, upon two weeks of curing, have compressive strength exceeding that required by ASTM for ordinary bricks. The fly ash bricks also have good water absorption property and low permeability. However, they can only survive about 8 cycles of freeze/thaw, which is far short of the ASTM-Standard requirement of 50 cycles. Once this freeze/thaw property of the flyash bricks is improved sufficiently to pass the 50-cycle ASTM Standard, the brick will have an excellent future for commercial acceptance. With the NFS funding, Freight Pipeline Company tested various methods designed to improve the freeze/thaw property of the compacted fly ash bricks, including: (1) using higher compaction pressure and optimum fly-ash-to-water ratio, (2) adding a small amount of fiber to the fly ash before compaction, (3) adding some cement or lime to the fly ash before compaction, (4) using certain liquid sealants to coat the bricks, (5) using a higher compaction pressure to make stronger bricks, (6) lengthening the curing time in order to make stronger bricks, (7) use of a split mold to make better bricks, and (8) use of an air-entrainment agent to improve the freeze/thaw property of the bricks. The tests showed that some of the methods that further improve the compressive strength of the brick do not necessarily result in an improvement in the freeze/thaw property. For instance, method 3 (adding 5% Portland cement or lime), method 1 (using higher compaction pressure), and method 6 (lengthening curing), all result in stronger compressive strength of the fly ash brick, but they have no beneficial effect on enhancing the freeze/thaw property of the fly ash brick. On the other hand, methods that do not enhance the compressive strength of the fly ash brick, such as using fiber (method 2) and air entrainment (method 8), did show significant improvement of the freeze/thaw property. With all practical matters taken into account, including freeze/thaw resistance and simplicity in processing, the air entrainment method appears to be the most effective and practical. It enables the bricks to pass the 50-cycle freeze/thaw without damage. More tests are currently underway to evaluate the effectiveness of air entrainment
Broadly heterogeneous network topology begets order-based representation by privileged neurons

How spiking activity reverberates through neuronal networks, how evoked and spontaneous activity interact and blend, and how the combined activities represent external stimulation are pivotal questions in neuroscience. We simulated minimal models of unstructured spiking networks in silico, asking whether and how gentle external stimulation might be subsequently reflected in spontaneous activity fluctuations. Consistent with earlier findings in silico and in vitro, we observe a privileged sub-population of 'pioneer neurons' that, by their firing order, reliably encode previous external stimulation. We show that the distinctive role of pioneer neurons is owed to a combination of exceptional sensitivity to, and pronounced influence on, network activity. We further show that broadly heterogeneous connection topology - a broad "middle class" in degree of connectedness - not only increases the number of 'pioneer neurons' in unstructured networks, but also renders the emergence of 'pioneer neurons' more robust to changes in the excitatory-inhibitory balance. In conclusion, we offer a minimal model for the emergence and representational role of 'pioneer neurons', as observed experimentally in vitro. In addition, we show how broadly heterogeneous connectivity can enhance the representational capacity of unstructured networks.