Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Potential new clinical therapies for Chagas disease

Chagas disease is the highest impact parasitic disease in the Americas but often goes untreated due to the shortcomings of currently available therapeutics. Thus there is an urgent need for new treatment options and growing interest in drug development for the infection. This review summarizes some of the recent advances and failures in this realm, with particular emphasis on recently published studies and unpublished results presented at a recent Chagas Drug Discovery Consortium meeting.
Active learning to recognize multiple types of plankton

Active learning has been applied with support vector machines to reduce the data labeling effort in pattern recognition domains. However, most of those applications only deal with two class problems. In this paper, we extend the active learning approach to multiple class support vector machines. The experimental results from a plankton recognition system indicate that our approach often requires significantly less labeled images to maintain the same accuracy level as random sampling.
Antimicrobial Capacity of Casein Phosphopeptide/Amorphous Calcium Phosphate and Enzymes in Glass Ionomer Cement in Dentin Carious Lesions.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the ability of casein phosphopeptide/amorphous calcium phosphate (CPP/ACP) and lysozyme, lactoferrin, and lactoperoxidase (LLL) added to glass ionomer cement (GIC) to inhibit the growth of S. mutans in a caries model. MATERIAL AND METHODS Eighty permanent third molars were selected. The dentin of these teeth was exposed and flattened. Except for the coronal dentin, the specimens were waterproofed, autoclaved, and submitted to cariogenic challenge with standard strain of S. mutans. The carious lesions were sealed as follows: group 1 (n=20): GIC without additives; group 2 (n=20): GIC + CPP/ACP; group 3 (n=20): GIC + LLL; group 4 (n=20): GIC + CPP/ACP + LLL. S. mutans counts were performed before the caries were sealed (n=5), after 24 hours (n=5), at 1 month (n=5), and at 6 months (n=5). The results were analyzed using descriptive statistical analysis and the Kruskal-Wallis test (Student-Newman-Keuls test). RESULTS GIC + LLL caused a significant reduction of S. mutans 1 month after sealing (p<0.01); however, there was a significant growth of S. mutans 6 months after sealing. GIC, GIC + CPP/ACP, and GIC + CPP/ACP + LLL showed similar behavior with significant reduction of S. mutans after 24 hours (p<0.05) and increase after 1 and 6 months. CONCLUSION The addition of LLL to GIC increases the antimicrobial action of GIC on S. mutans. This leads to control of bacterial biofilm for 1 month, thus stopping the progression of carious lesions.
Optimization of Small-Cell Lung Cancer Chemotherapy with Heparin: A Comprehensive Retrospective Study of 239 Patients Treated in a Single Specialized Center

Purpose: In first-line management for small-cell lung cancer (SCLC), the combination of a platinum salt and etoposide is recommended, with thoracic radiotherapy and prophylactic cranial irradiation in selected patients. Anticoagulants, including heparin, are rarely used. We analyzed the results of these different treatments in a comprehensive population of patients with SCLC. Patients and Methods: We retrospectively analyzed clinical and therapeutic characteristics of SCLC patients managed in our center during the period 1990–2002. Results: First-, second- and third-line chemotherapy was received by 98.3, 47.3 and 11.7%, respectively; 55% received curative heparin. The 2-year survival rates were 31 and 7% among patients with localized and metastatic disease, 33 and 15% among patients treated with the PCDE (cisplatin-cyclophosphamide-doxorubicin-etoposide) regimen with and without heparin, and 27 and 12% among patients treated with the PE (cisplatin or carboplatin-etoposide) regimen with and without heparin, respectively. The 2-year survival rate among the 27 patients who received an optimal combination of PCDE, heparin, thoracic radiotherapy and prophylactic cranial irradiation was 44.2%. In multivariate analysis, localized disease, younger age, use of heparin and inclusion in a clinical trial were independently associated with a better outcome. Conclusion: Despite the bias inherent in a retrospective, single-center study, these results support chemotherapy optimization for SCLC patients and confirm the value of heparin in this setting.
Influence of Yttrium Addition on Texture and Deformation Behavior in an Extruded ZM31 Alloy

The current “storm” of lightweighting, a revolution in materials, processes, and business models, which is brewing on the horizon of the auto industry, inspires researchers and engineers to develop and apply new wrought magnesium alloys with improved properties. For wider applications in the automotive and aerospace industries, the enhancement of strength, thermal stability and formability of magnesium alloys is required. In recent years, Mg-Zn-Y series alloys have received a considerable attention from the research community due to their improved mechanical properties. The present study was aimed at evaluating the influence of Y addition to Mg-Zn-Mn system based on phase formation, mechanical response and texture development with special attention paid to recrystallization, hot characterization and relative activity. The dissertation evaluated the strain hardening and deformation behavior of as-extruded Mg-ZnMn (ZM31) magnesium alloy with varying Y contents via compression testing at room temperature, 200°C and 300°C. Alloy ZM31+0.3Y consisted I-phase (Mg3YZn6); alloy ZM31+3.2Y contained I-phase and W-phase (Mg3Y2Zn3); alloy ZM31+6Y had long-period stacking-ordered (LPSO) X-phase (Mg12YZn) and Mg24Y5 particles. With increasing Y content the basal texture became weakened significantly. While alloys ZM31+0.3Y and ZM31+3.2Y exhibited a skewed true stress-true stain curve with a three-stage strain hardening feature caused by the occurrence of {10 Ī 2} extension twinning, the true stress-true strain curve of alloy ZM31+6Y was normal due to the dislocation slip during compression. The evolution of flow stress, texture and microstructure during the compression tests has been studied under various conditions of temperature and strain rates. Optical metallography, EBSD techniques and X-ray diffraction were employed to study the microstructural development and texture evolution. The deformation activation energy was calculated and the processing maps were generated to determine the optimum hot working parameters. In addition, viscoplastic selfconsistent model was successfully used to predict the experimental textures. Lastly, the strengthening mechanisms in each Mg-Zn-Mn-Y material are established quantitatively for the first time to account for grain refinement, thermal mismatch, dislocation density, load bearing, and particle strengthening contributions. The present work laid the foundations for a better understanding the role of Y elements on deformation behavior in magnesium alloys.
Consumption of a cranberry juice beverage lowered the number of clinical urinary tract infection episodes in women with a recent history of urinary tract infection.

BACKGROUND Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are among the most common bacterial infections and are often treated with antibiotics. Concerns about multidrug-resistant uropathogens have pointed to the need for safe and effective UTI-prevention strategies such as cranberry consumption. OBJECTIVE We assessed the effects of the consumption of a cranberry beverage on episodes of clinical UTIs. DESIGN In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter clinical trial, women with a history of a recent UTI were assigned to consume one 240-mL serving of cranberry beverage/d (n = 185) or a placebo (n = 188) beverage for 24 wk. The primary outcome was the clinical UTI incidence density, which was defined as the total number of clinical UTI events (including multiple events per subject when applicable) per unit of observation time. RESULTS The dates of the random assignment of the first subject and the last subject's final visit were February 2013 and March 2015, respectively. The mean age was 40.9 y, and characteristics were similar in both groups. Compliance with study product consumption was 98%, and 86% of subjects completed the treatment period in both groups. There were 39 investigator-diagnosed episodes of clinical UTI in the cranberry group compared with 67 episodes in the placebo group (antibiotic use-adjusted incidence rate ratio: 0.61; 95% CI: 0.41, 0.91; P = 0.016). Clinical UTI with pyuria was also significantly reduced (incidence rate ratio: 0.63; 95% CI: 0.40, 0.97; P = 0.037). One clinical UTI event was prevented for every 3.2 woman-years (95% CI: 2.0, 13.1 woman-years) of the cranberry intervention. The time to UTI with culture positivity did not differ significantly between groups (HR: 0.97; 95% CI: 0.56, 1.67; P = 0.914). CONCLUSION The consumption of a cranberry juice beverage lowered the number of clinical UTI episodes in women with a recent history of UTI. This study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT01776021.
Optimum reference node deployment for TOA-based localization

While achieving localization using wireless networks, the positioning accuracy of a target device is highly sensitive to the placement of reference nodes. As a result, an in-depth analysis on the optimal placement of reference nodes is extremely useful in order to improve deployment outcome. In this paper, we propose an optimum reference node deployment scheme for Time of Arrival (TOA)-based localization by minimizing the Cramer-Rao Bound (CRB) of localization error. In order to find the global minima of the CRB which is highly nonlinear, a novel method is developed to solve the corresponding optimization problem. The essence of our method is to express the CRB in complex coordinates, and then to minimize the CRB with respect to the angles of reference nodes. The mathematical solution provides an interesting result indicating that the highest localization accuracy is achieved when the reference nodes have uniform angular distribution around the service area where the target is expected. We compare several different reference node deployment schemes through simulations, and the results show our derived optimum deployment provides the best performance.
Why don't most runners get knee osteoarthritis? A case for per-unit-distance loads.

UNLABELLED Peak knee joint contact forces ("loads") in running are much higher than they are in walking, where the peak load has been associated with the initiation and progression of knee osteoarthritis. However, runners do not have an especially high risk of osteoarthritis compared with nonrunners. This paradox suggests that running somehow blunts the effect of very high peak joint contact forces, perhaps to provide a load per unit distance (PUD) traveled that is relatively low. PURPOSE This study aimed to compare peak and PUD knee joint loads between human walking and running. METHODS Fourteen healthy adults walked and ran at self-selected speeds. Ground reaction force and motion capture data were measured and combined with inverse dynamics and musculoskeletal modeling to estimate the peak knee joint loads, PUD knee joint loads, and the impulse of the knee joint contact force for each gait with a matched-pair (within-subject) design. RESULTS The peak load was three times higher in running (8.02 vs 2.72 body weight, P < 0.001), but the PUD load did not differ between running and walking (0.80 vs 0.75 body weight per meter, P = 0.098). The impulse of the joint contact force was greater for running than for walking (1.30 vs 1.04 body weight per second, P < 0.001). The peak load increased with increasing running speed, whereas the PUD load decreased with increasing speed. CONCLUSIONS Compared with walking, the relatively short duration of ground contact and relatively long length of strides in running seem to blunt the effect of high peak joint loads, such that the PUD loads are no higher than that in walking. Waveform features other than or in addition to the peak value should be considered when studying joint loading and injuries.
Critical Role for Tetrahydrobiopterin Recycling by Dihydrofolate Reductase in Regulation of Endothelial Nitric-oxide Synthase Coupling

Tetrahyrobiopterin (BH4) is a required cofactor for the synthesis of nitric oxide by endothelial nitric-oxide synthase (eNOS), and BH4 bioavailability within the endothelium is a critical factor in regulating the balance between NO and superoxide production by eNOS (eNOS coupling). BH4 levels are determined by the activity of GTP cyclohydrolase I (GTPCH), the rate-limiting enzyme in de novo BH4 biosynthesis. However, BH4 levels may also be influenced by oxidation, forming 7,8-dihydrobiopterin (BH2), which promotes eNOS uncoupling. Conversely, dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) can regenerate BH4 from BH2, but the functional importance of DHFR in maintaining eNOS coupling remains unclear. We investigated the role of DHFR in regulating BH4 versus BH2 levels in endothelial cells and in cell lines expressing eNOS combined with tet-regulated GTPCH expression in order to compare the effects of low or high levels of de novo BH4 biosynthesis. Pharmacological inhibition of DHFR activity by methotrexate or genetic knockdown of DHFR protein by RNA interference reduced intracellular BH4 and increased BH2 levels resulting in enzymatic uncoupling of eNOS, as indicated by increased eNOS-dependent superoxide but reduced NO production. In contrast to the decreased BH4:BH2 ratio induced by DHFR knockdown, GTPCH knockdown greatly reduced total biopterin levels but with no change in BH4:BH2 ratio. In cells expressing eNOS with low biopterin levels, DHFR inhibition or knockdown further diminished the BH4:BH2 ratio and exacerbated eNOS uncoupling. Taken together, these data reveal a key role for DHFR in eNOS coupling by maintaining the BH4:BH2 ratio, particularly in conditions of low total biopterin availability.
The pulmonary lymphatics in neonatal hyaline membrane disease.

Histometrical measurements have revealed that the mean diameter of the pulmonary lymphatics is consistently greater in the idiopathic respiratory distress syndrome, when compared to a control group of other newborns. This lymphangiectasis and congestion is most marked in the perivenous lymphatics, less in the peribronchial and periarterial, and least in the pleural lymphatics. This hitherto unreported morphologic feature of hyaline membrane disease seems to be most closely related to the known disturbance of alveolocapillary barrier permeability; it remains, however, a challenge to the investigator as some anatomical and histophysiological characteristics of the lymphatics of the lung, together with other aspects of the disease (i.e., surfactant deficiency, even neonatal pulmonary arterial hypoperfusion and venous congestion) could play important roles as well.
Free convection boundary layer flow of viscoelastic micropolar fluid past a horizontal circular cylinder

This study intends to observe the behaviour of the flow of viscoelastic micropolar fluid under boundary layer approximation moving over a horizontal circular cylinder at constant wall temperature. First, a set of governing equations is formulated before they are transformed into dimensionless form. Stream function is then applied to the obtained equations, producing sets of partial differential equations which are then solved numerically using a finite difference scheme, namely the Keller-box method. The skin friction and heat transfer characteristics of the flow are observed at multiple values of viscoelastic parameter, K, material parameter, K1, and the magnetic parameter, M.
A distributed gradient-assisted anycast-based backpressure framework for wireless sensor networks

Recently, much effort has been made for implementation of back-pressure scheduling in wireless networks. In this paper, we explore the implementation of back-pressure-based forwarding in wireless sensor networks. For this purpose, we propose Gradient-pressure, a practical Gradient-assisted anycast-based back-pressure framework for wireless sensor networks. Gradient-pressure introduces gradient information to assist transmission scheduling and realizes distributed anycast-based back-pressure scheduling on top of IEEE 802.11. Simulation results demonstrate that Gradient-pressure has high performance in terms of energy-use efficiency and goodput.
PROTECTIVE ROLE OF CORIANDRUM SATIVUM (CORIANDER) EXTRACTS AGAINST LEAD NITRATE INDUCED OXIDATIVE STRESS AND TISSUE DAMAGE IN THE LIVER AND KIDNEY IN MALE MICE.

The present study describes antioxidant effect of Coriandrum sativum against lead nitrate induced toxicity in mice. Oxidative stress was induced in mice by a daily dose of lead nitrate (40 mg/kg body weight by oral gavage) for seven days. From day eight, after lead nitrate treatment, experimental animals received an oral dose of coriander extracts (aqueous extract - 300 mg/kg body weight and 600 mg/kg body weight; ethanolic extract - 250 mg/kg body weight and 500 mg/kg body weight) daily. The effect of these treatments in influencing the lead induced changes on hepatic and renal oxidative stress and biochemical changes along with histopathological alterations in soft tissues was studied. The data showed significant increase in liver and kidney LPO levels in animals treated with lead nitrate while the effect was attenuated by the plant extracts. Also, lead caused a significant decrease in antioxidant enzyme activity and this effect was reversed in groups treated with plant extract. Treatment with coriander significantly reduced the adverse effects related to most of biochemical parameters altered in animals treated with lead, related to hepatic and renal oxidative stress. Oral administration of Coriander to lead treated mice attenuated the deranged histopathological changes to some extent. It can be concluded from these results that Coriandrum sativum protects against lead toxicity and warrants the identification and isolation of active compounds responsible for
Great migration: epigenetic reprogramming and germ cell-oocyte metamorphosis determine individual ovarian reserve

Abstract Emigration is defined as a synchronized movement of germ cells between the yolk sack and genital ridges. The miraculous migration of germ cells resembles the remigration of salmon traveling from one habitat to other. This migration of germ cells is indispensible for the development of new generations. It is not, however, clear why germ cells differentiate during migration but not at the place of origin. In order to escape harmful somatic signals which might disturb the proper establishment of germ cells forced germ cell migration may be necessary. Another reason may be to benefit from the opportunities of new habitats. Therefore, emigration may have powerful effects on the population dynamics of the immigrant germ cells. While some of these cells do reach their target, some others die or reach to wrong targets. Only germ cell precursors with genetically, and structurally powerful can reach their target. Likewise, epigenetic reprogramming in both migratory and post-migratory germ cells is essential for the establishment of totipotency. During this journey some germ cells may sacrifice themselves for the goodness of the others. The number and quality of germ cells reaching the genital ridge may vary depending on the problems encountered during migration. If the aim in germ cell specification is to provide an optimal ovarian reserve for the continuity of the generation, then this cascade of events cannot be only accomplished at the same level for every one but also are manifested by several outcomes. This is significant evidence supporting the possibility of unique individual ovarian reserve.
Dengue diversity across spatial and temporal scales: Local structure and the effect of host population size

Regions of high human population density drive highly localized transmission chains of dengue virus, which then can disperse regionally. Estimating transmission chains for dengue Dengue virus (DENV) causes a large number of asymptomatic infections, so surveillance captures only a fraction of cases. Salje et al. developed a method for identifying the number of transmission chains of DENV from sequence data and serology. They found that sequential transmission of DENV typically occurs between households in the same neighborhood. Within high-density urban localities, such as Bangkok, there are surprisingly few transmission chains. This results in epidemic spikes within a regional background of endemicity. Large urban settings may thus act as a source of diverse viruses that can be transported elsewhere. Science, this issue p. 1302 A fundamental mystery for dengue and other infectious pathogens is how observed patterns of cases relate to actual chains of individual transmission events. These pathways are intimately tied to the mechanisms by which strains interact and compete across spatial scales. Phylogeographic methods have been used to characterize pathogen dispersal at global and regional scales but have yielded few insights into the local spatiotemporal structure of endemic transmission. Using geolocated genotype (800 cases) and serotype (17,291 cases) data, we show that in Bangkok, Thailand, 60% of dengue cases living <200 meters apart come from the same transmission chain, as opposed to 3% of cases separated by 1 to 5 kilometers. At distances <200 meters from a case (encompassing an average of 1300 people in Bangkok), the effective number of chains is 1.7. This number rises by a factor of 7 for each 10-fold increase in the population of the “enclosed” region. This trend is observed regardless of whether population density or area increases, though increases in density over 7000 people per square kilometer do not lead to additional chains. Within Thailand these chains quickly mix, and by the next dengue season viral lineages are no longer highly spatially structured within the country. In contrast, viral flow to neighboring countries is limited. These findings are consistent with local, density-dependent transmission and implicate densely populated communities as key sources of viral diversity, with home location the focal point of transmission. These findings have important implications for targeted vector control and active surveillance.
Human skeletal muscle carnitine palmitoyltransferase I activity determined in isolated intact mitochondria.

This study was designed to compare the activity of skeletal muscle carnitine palmitoyltransferase I (CPT I) in trained and inactive men (n = 14) and women (n = 12). CPT I activity was measured in intact mitochondria, isolated from needle biopsy vastus lateralis muscle samples ( approximately 60 mg). The variability of CPT I activity determined on two biopsy samples from the same leg on the same day was 4.4, whereas it was 7.0% on two biopsy samples from the same leg on different days. The method was sensitive to the CPT I inhibitor malonyl-CoA (88% inhibition) and therefore specific for CPT I activity. The mean CPT I activity for all 26 subjects was 141.1 +/- 10.6 micromol . min-1 . kg wet muscle (wm)-1 and was not different when all men vs. all women (140.5 +/- 15.7 and 142.2 +/- 14.5 micromol . min-1 . kg wm-1, respectively) were compared. However, CPT I activity was significantly higher in trained vs. inactive subjects for both men (176.2 +/- 21.1 vs. 104.1 +/- 13.6 micromol . min-1 . kg wm-1) and women (167.6 +/- 14.1 vs. 91.2 +/- 9.5 micromol . min-1 . kg wm-1). CPT I activity was also significantly correlated with citrate synthase activity (all subjects, r = 0.76) and maximal oxygen consumption expressed in milliliters per kilogram per minute (all subjects, r = 0.69). The results of this study suggest that CPT I activity can be accurately and reliably measured in intact mitochondria isolated from human muscle biopsy samples. CPT I activity was not affected by gender, and higher activities in aerobically trained subjects appeared to be the result of increased mitochondrial content in both men and women.