Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Inhibition of interleukin‐6 synthesis in an animal model of septic shock by anti‐C5a monoclonal antibodies

The complement activation fragment C5a was recently shown to induce interleukin (IL)‐6 synthesis by peripheral blood mononuclear cells. To understand better the role of C5a in cytokine regulation in vivo, we investigated the effects of complement depletion by cobra venom factor (CVF) or of anti‐C5a monoclonal antibodies (mAb) on IL‐6 generation in an animal model of septic shock. Complement‐depleted pigs which were subsequently challenged with Escherichia coli generated significantly (p < 0.05) less IL‐6 during the 6‐h observation period than complement‐sufficient controls. To address specifically the role of C5a in IL‐6 regulation, we produced a C5a(57–74) peptide‐specific mAb (T13/9) which neutralizes the bioactivity of porcine C5a. The mAb T13/9 does not crossreact with the precursor protein C5. The pretreatment of pigs with anti‐C5a mAb T13/9 prior to the induction of sepsis resulted in a decrease of over 75 % in serum IL‐6 bioactivity compared to control animals (p < 0.0001). These results indicate a role for C5a in the modulation of IL‐6 synthesis in Gram‐negative bacteremia.
Ab Initio Study of Iron and Cr/Fe(001)

In the present paper interfacial mixing of a thin chromium overlayer on bcc iron is studied. The calculations are performed in the framework of a pseudo-potential technique using the generalized gradient approximation for the exchange-correlation functional. Although Fe and Cr do not alloy in the bulk system at low temperatures, strong intermixing effects have been observed with Auger spectroscopy, if Cr is epitaxially grown on bcc Fe(001). Besides these structural effects we discuss the magnetic structure of the interface. It can be shown that the results are in good agreement with the experimental findings of Pfandzelter et al. ( Phys. Rev. B , 54 , 4496, 1996), provided we allow for lattice relaxation. Additionally, the structural and magnetic properties of iron investigated by the pseudo-potential method are compared to our former full potential results.
Design and Evaluation of a Breast-Specific Collimator Using Response Surface Methodology and Monte Carlo Simulations

Design optimization of collimators for various cameras and scanning procedures has been a challenge for many years. The purpose of this study is to propose a new approach to optimize the collimator for a planar small field-of-view continuous crystal breast-specific camera by making use of validated Monte Carlo simulations and the response surface methodology, such that the lesion contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) is maximized. CNR was described as a function of collimator parameters (hole diameter, septal thickness and hole length) by fitting a quadratic model and then optimized by using a numerical direct search method. The proposed method can allow the modeling of complex patient and camera configurations and perform a search in the design space for the optimum collimation by considering all the interactions between the parameters. The optimization was performed for lesions of 5 mm diameter lying at 3 cm and 5 cm depths in a 6 cm thick breast phantom in order to be acquainted with the behavior of the optimizer as the source-to-collimator distance changes. The results show that, for a worst-case lesion at equal distance from both sides of the breast, the combination of hole length of 1.137 cm, septal thickness of 0.029 cm and hole diameter of 0.125 cm is the optimal solution that provides the highest CNR of 3.34. As a result, a considerable improvement in CNR up to 73% was obtained with respect to the reference collimators. It was also shown that the critical region for detectability in the contrast detail curves shifted towards the direction of smaller lesion diameter and lower tumor-to-background ratio. This study demonstrated that the pairwise interaction effects of the collimator parameters play a key role in determining the set of design parameter combinations that yield the highest CNR. Another conclusion of the study is that the optimizer adapts itself to the spatial resolution/sensitivity trade-off as the lesion depth changes. We therefore conclude that the advantages obtained with this method may lead to an advancement in the state of the art in collimator design.
Pharmacological management of type 2 diabetes: the potential of incretin‐based therapies

Management guidelines recommend metformin as the first‐line therapy for most patients with type 2 diabetes uncontrolled by diet and exercise. Efficacy with metformin therapy is usually of limited duration, which necessitates the early introduction of one or two additional oral agents or the initiation of injections, glucagon‐like peptide‐1 (GLP‐1) agonists or insulin. Although safe and effective, metformin monotherapy has been associated with gastrointestinal side effects (≈20% of treated patients in randomized studies) and is contraindicated in patients with renal insufficiency or severe liver disease. Patients treated with a sulphonylurea are at increased risk for hypoglycaemia and moderate weight gain, whereas those receiving a thiazolidinedione are subject to an increased risk of weight gain, oedema, heart failure or fracture. Weight gain and hypoglycaemia are associated with insulin use. Thus, there is an unmet need for a safe and efficacious add‐on agent after initial‐therapy failure. Evidence suggests that incretin‐based agents, such as GLP‐1 receptor agonists and dipeptidyl peptidase‐4 inhibitors, can successfully achieve glycaemic targets and potentially provide cardiovascular and β‐cell‐function benefits. This review will examine current approaches for treating type 2 diabetes and discuss the place of incretin therapies, mainly GLP‐1 agonists, in the type 2 diabetes treatment spectrum.
Transient ischemic attack and incidence of depression in old age: evidence from a population-based analysis in Taiwan.

OBJECTIVES The association between transient ischemic attack (TIA) and depression has not been investigated previously. This study was aimed to examine the relationship between TIA and depression in old age in Taiwan. METHOD This cross-sectional analysis was performed using data from the nationwide 2002 Health Promotion Knowledge, Attitude, Performance Survey in Taiwan. Depressive symptoms were categorized using the Taiwanese Depression Questionnaire with a cutoff point of 18 of 19, and TIA was defined as the sudden or rapid onset of focal neurologic deficit that had fully resolved within 24 hours. Cerebrovascular risk factors (CVRFs) including age, cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, antihypertensive drugs, and smoking were used as covariates. RESULTS Of the total 3,613 subjects aged 65 years and older, 8.2% had previously experienced a TIA. Subjects with depressive symptoms were significantly more likely to have a previous TIA than those without depressive symptoms (17.1%:7.4%, odds ratio [OR] = 2.6, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.8-3.8). After controlling of sex, education, functional disability, and CVRFs, TIA was still significantly associated with depression in old age (Adjusted OR = 2.1, 95% CI = 1.4-3.2). CONCLUSION Previous TIA was significantly increased risk of depression which cannot be explained by functional disability or CVRFs. This result supported the hypothesis of vascular depression.
Temporal decorrelation: a theory of lagged and nonlagged responses in the lateral geniculate nucleus

Natural time-varying images possess significant temporal correlations when sampled frame by frame by the photoreceptors. These correlations persist even after retinal processing and hence, under natural activation conditions, the signal sent to the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) is temporally redundant or inefficient. We explore the hypothesis that the LGN is concerned, among other things, with improving efficiency of visual representation through active temporal decorrelation of the retinal signal much in the same way that the retina improves efficiency by spatially decorrelating incoming images. Using some recently measured statistical properties of time-varying images, we predict the spatio-temporal receptive fields that achieve this decorrelation. It is shown that, because of neuronal nonlinearities, temporal decorrelation requires two response types, the lagged and nonlagged, just as spatial decorrelation requires on and off response types. The tuning and response properties of the predicted LGN ce.
Are Tertiary Care Paediatricians Prepared for Disaster Situations?

Abstract Introduction Children, with their specific vulnerabilities and needs, make up to more than 20% of society, so they are at risk of getting involved in disasters. Are the specialists treating them for medical problems in daily life also capable to deal with them in disaster situations? Hypothesis/Problem The goals of this study were to evaluate perceived knowledge and capability of tertiary pediatricians to deal with disasters, to identify promoting factors, and to evaluate education need and willingness to work. Methods A survey looking for demographics, hospital disaster planning, estimated risk and capability for disasters, training, and willingness to work, and a set of six content assessment questions to evaluate knowledge, were presented to emergency pediatricians and pediatric emergency physicians in specialized tertiary centers. Results The response rate was 51%. Thirty-five percent had disaster training and 53% felt that disaster education should be obligatory in their curriculum. Risk for disasters was estimated from 2.4/10 for nuclear incidents to 7.6/10 for major trauma. Self-estimated capability for these situations ranged from 1.8/10 in nuclear incidents to 7.6/10 in major trauma. Unconditional willingness to work ranged from 37% in nuclear situations to 68% in pandemics. Mean score on the questions was 2.06/6. Training, knowledge of antidote and personal protective equipment (PPE) use, self-estimated capability, and exposure were significant predictors for higher scores. Willingness to work correlated significantly with age, self-estimated capability, and risk estimation. In case of chemical and nuclear incidents, there was correlation with knowledge on the use of decontamination, PPE, and radio-detection devices. Conclusion Despite a clear perception of the risks and a high willingness to work, preparedness is limited. The major conclusion is that basics of disaster management should be included in pediatric training. MortelmansLJM, MaebeS, DieltiensG, AnseeuwK, SabbeMB, Van de VoordeP. Are tertiary care paediatricians prepared for disaster situations? Prehosp Disaster Med. 2016;31(2):126–131.
Fabrication of High- $J_{\rm c}$ ${\rm NdBa}_{2}{\rm Cu}_{3}{\rm O}_{7-\delta}$ and  ${\rm BaZrO}_{3}$-doped  ${\rm NdBa}_{2}{\rm Cu}_{3}{\rm O}_{7-\delta}$ Films on RABiTS

Critical current densities (J<sub>c</sub>) over 2 MA/cm<sup>2</sup> have been obtained for epitaxial NdBa<sub>2</sub>Cu<sub>3</sub>O<sub>7-delta</sub> (NdBCO) films deposited via pulsed laser deposition on RABiTS having the configuration of Ni - 3at. %W /Y<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>/YSZ/CeO<sub>2</sub>. Compared to YBa<sub>2</sub>Cu<sub>3</sub>O<sub>7-delta</sub> (YBCO) films on RABiTS, enhanced J<sub>c</sub> in applied magnetic fields is observed for the NdBCO films. Further improvement in in-field J<sub>c</sub> is achieved by incorporation of self-assembled BaZrO<sub>3</sub> (BZO) nanodots within the NdBCO film. At intermediate fields J<sub>c</sub> varies as J<sub>c</sub> ~ H<sup>-alpha</sup>, with alpha values for un-doped and BZO-doped films being ~0.43 and ~0.37 respectively, significantly lower than alpha ~ 0.52 for pure YBCO films. Combined effects of better pinning in NdBCO films over YBCO films as well as creation of columnar defects via incorporation of self-assembled BZO nanodots, result in significant improvement over pure YBCO films on RABiTS.
Calcipotriol and betamethasone dipropionate in the treatment of mild-to-moderate psoriasis: a cost-effectiveness analysis of the ointment versus gel formulation

Background Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease with a major impact on the quality of life of affected individuals. Topical therapy has an important role in the treatment of psoriasis. Poor treatment outcomes from topical therapy regimens likely result from poor adherence and ineffective use of medication. Methods A cost-minimization analysis was performed with the purpose of assessing the use of a gel containing calcipotriol and betamethasone dipropionate (Dovobet® gel) versus the ointment formulation (Dovobet ointment) in the treatment of psoriasis. The analysis was carried out using a Markov model with a one-year time horizon in a hypothetical cohort of patients with a Psoriasis Area and Severity Index score < 10. The model simulates different therapy adherence scenarios for the two different formulations. Results The Dovobet gel strategy allows a 5% reduction in the number of patients who could potentially be treated with more expensive therapies (biologics and conventional systemic drugs) in comparison with the Dovobet ointment strategy, with a consequent impact on costs for the National Healthcare Service. The total annual cost of Dovobet gel is about €407.00 per patient, ie, 19% less that the total cost of about €500.00 of the Dovobet ointment strategy. The base case results were then examined by sensitivity analysis and budget impact analysis to correlate the various scenarios of Dovobet gel use with cost savings to the National Healthcare Service. Conclusion The Dovobet gel strategy seems more acceptable to patients, shows better overall adherence, and appears to be favorable from the pharmacoeconomic point of view than the ointment formulation for treatment of patients with mild-to-moderate psoriasis.
Validity of the Wisconsin Card Sorting and Delis–Kaplan Executive Function System (DKEFS) Sorting Tests in multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease of the central nervous system that causes cognitive impairment with a frequency of roughly 50%. While processing speed and memory defects are most commonly observed, a substantial number of patients also have deficiency in higher executive ability. Two tests, the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) and the Sorting Test from the Delis–Kaplan Executive Function System (DKEFS), have been recommended for evaluation of neuropsychological impairment in MS. We investigated the validity of these tests in 111 MS patients and 46 age- and education-matched controls. MS patients performed more poorly on both measures, but only the DKEFS discriminated the groups after controlling for depression. Both tests were modestly or strongly correlated with MRI indices of brain atrophy or lesion burden and discriminated between employed and disabled patients. While both tests appear to have good validity in the MS population, the availability of alternative forms makes the DKEFS an attractive alternative to the WCST, as was suggested by a consensus panel.
Proximate Composition, Reproductive Development, and a Test for Trade-Offs in Captive Sockeye Salmon

Abstract Energy limitations during reproduction should lead to the evolution of adaptive patterns of energy use and should cause trade-offs in the expression of different traits. We addressed these issues by measuring secondary sexual development, gonad investment, and proximate composition for sockeye salmon Oncorhynchus nerka maturing in captivity. Each of the last 3 months before maturity was characterized by a different pattern of reproductive development and energy use. From June to July, gonad mass increased (1.1% to 5.2% of male body mass; from 1.3% to 2.7% of female body mass), muscle fat decreased (15.1% to 8.6% sex-specific values averaged), and viscera fat decreased (23.9% to 16.7%). From July to August, male gonad mass did not change appreciably, but female gonad mass nearly doubled (to 5.5% of body mass). Muscle fat and viscera fat continued to decrease (to 6.0% and 8.8%, respectively), but muscle protein remained relatively constant. From August to maturity (September–October), female gonad .
Narcissism and Childhood Recollections: A Quantitative Test of Psychoanalytic Predictions

Different psychotherapeutic theories provide contradictory accounts of adult narcissism as the product of either parental coldness or excessive parental admiration during childhood. Yet, none of these theories has been tested systematically in a nonclinical sample. The authors compared four structural equation models predicting overt and covert narcissism among 120 United Kingdom adults. Both forms of narcissism were predicted by both recollections of parental coldness and recollections of excessive parental admiration. Moreover, a suppression relationship was detected between these predictors: The effects of each were stronger when modeled together than separately. These effects were found after controlling for working models of attachment; covert narcissism was predicted also by attachment anxiety. This combination of childhood experiences may help to explain the paradoxical combination of grandiosity and fragility in adult narcissism.
Where Are They Now? A Description of 1992-93 Bachelor's Degree Recipients 10 Years Later. Statistical Analysis Report. NCES 2007-159.

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) is the primary federal entity for collecting, analyzing, and reporting data related to education in the United States and other nations. It fulfills a congressional mandate to collect, collate, analyze, and report full and complete statistics on the condition of education in the United States; conduct and publish reports and specialized analyses of the meaning and significance of such statistics; assist state and local education agencies in improving their statistical systems; and review and report on education activities in foreign countries. herein is in the public domain. We strive to make our products available in a variety of formats and in language that is appropriate to a variety of audiences. You, as our customer, are the best judge of our success in communicating information effectively. If you have any comments or suggestions about this or any other NCES product or report, we would like to hear from you. Please direct your comments to
Assembly of Designer TAL Effectors by Golden Gate Cloning

Generation of customized DNA binding domains targeting unique sequences in complex genomes is crucial for many biotechnological applications. The recently described DNA binding domain of the transcription activator-like effectors (TALEs) from Xanthomonas consists of a series of repeats arranged in tandem, each repeat binding a nucleotide of the target sequence. We present here a strategy for engineering of TALE proteins with novel DNA binding specificities based on the 17.5 repeat-containing AvrBs3 TALE as a scaffold. For each of the 17 full repeats, four module types were generated, each with a distinct base preference. Using this set of 68 repeat modules, recognition domains for any 17 nucleotide DNA target sequence of choice can be constructed by assembling selected modules in a defined linear order. Assembly is performed in two successive one-pot cloning steps using the Golden Gate cloning method that allows seamless fusion of multiple DNA fragments. Applying this strategy, we assembled designer TALEs with new target specificities and tested their function in vivo.
Differentially Private Histogram Publishing through Lossy Compression

Differential privacy has emerged as one of the most promising privacy models for private data release. It can be used to release different types of data, and, in particular, histograms, which provide useful summaries of a dataset. Several differentially private histogram releasing schemes have been proposed recently. However, most of them directly add noise to the histogram counts, resulting in undesirable accuracy. In this paper, we propose two sanitization techniques that exploit the inherent redundancy of real-life datasets in order to boost the accuracy of histograms. They lossily compress the data and sanitize the compressed data. Our first scheme is an optimization of the Fourier Perturbation Algorithm (FPA) presented in [13]. It improves the accuracy of the initial FPA by a factor of 10. The other scheme relies on clustering and exploits the redundancy between bins. Our extensive experimental evaluation over various real-life and synthetic datasets demonstrates that our techniques preserve very accurate distributions and considerably improve the accuracy of range queries over attributed histograms.
Individuals' IT-related Privacy Concerns: a Two-phase Cognitive Model

Privacy is a highly dynamic concept and individuals with distinct life experiences and knowledge can perceive it differently. Despite the advances made by past IS research, little is still known about the antecedents of Privacy Concerns Related to IT (PCIT), their formation, and the relationship between general PCIT and PCIT regarding specific technologies. In an effort to address these knowledge gaps, the present study adopts the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) as a theoretical lens to introduce three new constructs as key antecedents of general PCIT: privacy-related legal knowledge, privacy-related IT knowledge and general involvement with IT-related privacy. Based on ELM, the paper also proposes a two stage cognitive model that conceptualizes the relationship between general and technology-specific PCIT, and introduces a featurebased conceptualization of technology-specific PCIT.
Quantitative cell dispersion analysis: New test to measure tumor cell aggressiveness

Tumor progression requires the dispersion of epithelial cells from neoplastic clusters and cell invasion of adjacent stromal connective tissue. Aiming at demonstrating the precise relationships between cell dispersion and cell invasion, related respectively to expression of E‐cadherin/catenin complex and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), we developed an original in vitro model of cell dispersion analysis. Our study reports the validation of this model that allowed us to analyze and quantify the cell cohesion level by means of time‐lapse videomicroscopy and computer analysis based on the observation of spatial and temporal cell distribution. Our model was able to distinguish 2 groups among different human bronchial and mammary epithelial cells previously characterized for the expression of E‐cadherin/catenin complex and MMPs and their invasive capacity in the Boyden chamber assay. The first group (16HBE14o−, MCF‐7, T47D) that expressed membranous E‐cadherin and β‐catenin, and was negative for MMP‐2 expression and non‐invasive, displayed a highly cohesive pattern corresponding to a cluster spatial distribution. The second group (Beas2B, BZR, BZR‐T33, MDA‐MB‐231, MDA‐MB‐435, BT549 and HS578T) that was invasive and showed lack of expression of E‐cadherin and a cytoplasmic redistribution of β‐catenin, displayed a dispersed pattern corresponding to a random spatial distribution. Downregulation of E‐cadherin by a blocking antibody induced a more random distribution. Conversely, expression of E‐cadherin by cDNA transfection induced a cluster distribution. Moreover, tumor cell lines that co‐expressed MT1‐MMP and MMP‐2 (Beas2B, BZR, BZR‐T33, MDA‐MB‐435, BT549 and HS578T) showed a more dispersed pattern than tumor cell lines that did not express MMP‐2 (MDA‐MB‐231). In conclusion, we demonstrated that the spatial group behavior of cell lines, i.e., their cohesion/dispersion ability, reflects their invasive properties. Thus, this model of cell dispersion analysis may represent a new test to measure tumor cell aggressiveness. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.