Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Expression of gp20, a human sperm antigen of epididymal origin, is reduced in spermatozoa from subfertile men

gp20, a sialylglycoprotein of human sperm homologous to CD52, is present everywhere on the surface of the freshly ejaculated sperm but is prevalently localized in the equatorial region of the head of capacitated sperm. In the present study, we confirmed this feature on large scale and correlated equatorial exposure of the antigen to the presence of serum albumin (SA) in the capacitation medium. Furthermore, we analyzed the relationship between the presence of the antigen and its equatorial exposure after capacitation and fertility, by comparing immunostaining for gp20 in the motile fraction of spermatozoa from fertile and subfertile men. A significantly higher percentage of nonimmunostained spermatozoa before capacitation (38.5% ± 23 vs. 12% ± 7, P < 0.0001) and a lower increase in the percentage of sperm with equatorial localization after capacitation (19.3% ± 25 vs. 34.6% ± 22, P = 0.039) were observed in subfertile men (n = 60) compared to fertile men (n = 15). In the whole study group, a positive correlation was also found between the percentage of spermatozoa exhibiting equatorial localization in capacitated samples and normal head forms (R = 0.50; P < 0.0001). Mol. Reprod. Dev. 69: 235–240, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Normal Ultrasonic Myocardial Reflectivity in Athletes with Increased Left Ventricular Mass: A Tissue Characterization Study

BackgroundUltrasonic integrated backscatter of myocardial walls is directly related to the morphometrically evaluated collagen content. The integrated backscatter is also increased in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, probably because of fiber disarray. The purpose of this study was to investigate myocardial tissue reflectivity in subjects with physiological hypertrophy caused by intense physical training and to assess the relation between the acoustic properties of myocardial tissue and left ventricular wall thickness assessed by conventional two-dimensional echocardiography. Methods and ResultsTwenty-four young male athletes (14 professional cyclists and 10 weight lifters, all in full agonistic activity) were studied together with 10 normal age-matched controls with sedentary life. By means of a commercially available two-dimensional echocardiograph, standard measurements were obtained according to the recommendations of the American Society of Echocardiography. With a prototype implemented in our Institute, an on-line radiofrequency analysis of ultrasound signals was also performed to obtain quantitative operator-independent measurements of the integrated backscatter of the myocardial walls. The integrated values of the radiofrequency signal were normalized for the pericardial interface and expressed in percent integrated backscatter (%IB). Compared with control subjects, athletes showed greater thickness values of septum (controls, 9±1; cyclists, 14±2; weight lifters, 15±1 mm, mean± SD; p < 0.01) and posterior wall (9±1, 12±2, and 12+1 mm, respectively; p < 0.01) but similar values of %IB for both septum (23±4%, 21±7%, and 23±8%, p = NS) and posterior wall (10±2%, 9±2%, and 11±2%, p = NS). In athletes, no correlation was found between septal and posterior wall thickness and the corresponding regional myocardial reflectivity (r = 0.23, p = NS and r = 0.01, p = NS, respectively). Furthermore, we compared the quantitative ultrasonic data between two subsets of 10 athletes and 10 patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and similar degrees of septal thickness (16±1 versus 17±1 mm, respectively, p = NS). Septal and posterior wall %IB results were significantly higher in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (53±13% and 36±9%o, respectively) than in athletes (21±7% and 10±3%, respectively; p < 0.01 for both). ConclusionsWe conclude that 1) endurance athletes show a normal pattern of quantitatively assessed ultrasonic backscatter despite of a marked left ventricular hypertrophy and 2) athletes and patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and similar degrees of myocardial wall thickness can be differentiated on the basis of quantitative analysis of backscattered signal.
A randomized trial of nicotine-replacement therapy patches in pregnancy.

BACKGROUND Nicotine-replacement therapy is effective for smoking cessation outside pregnancy and its use is widely recommended during pregnancy. We investigated the efficacy and safety of nicotine patches during pregnancy. METHODS We recruited participants from seven hospitals in England who were 16 to 50 years of age with pregnancies of 12 to 24 weeks' gestation and who smoked five or more cigarettes per day. Participants received behavioral cessation support and were randomly assigned to 8 weeks of treatment with active nicotine patches (15 mg per 16 hours) or matched placebo patches. The primary outcome was abstinence from the date of smoking cessation until delivery, as validated by measurement of exhaled carbon monoxide or salivary cotinine. Safety was assessed by monitoring for adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes. RESULTS Of 1050 participants, 521 were randomly assigned to nicotine-replacement therapy and 529 to placebo. There was no significant difference in the rate of abstinence from the quit date until delivery between the nicotine-replacement and placebo groups (9.4% and 7.6%, respectively; unadjusted odds ratio with nicotine-replacement therapy, 1.26; 95% confidence interval, 0.82 to 1.96), although the rate was higher at 1 month in the nicotine-replacement group than in the placebo group (21.3% vs. 11.7%). Compliance was low; only 7.2% of women assigned to nicotine-replacement therapy and 2.8% assigned to placebo used patches for more than 1 month. Rates of adverse pregnancy and birth outcomes were similar in the two groups. CONCLUSIONS Adding a nicotine patch (15 mg per 16 hours) to behavioral cessation support for women who smoked during pregnancy did not significantly increase the rate of abstinence from smoking until delivery or the risk of adverse pregnancy or birth outcomes. However, low compliance rates substantially limited the assessment of safety. (Funded by the National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment Programme; Current Controlled Trials number, ISRCTN07249128.).
The 2dF Galaxy Redshift Survey: the dependence of galaxy clustering on luminosity and spectral type

We investigate the dependence of galaxy clustering on luminosity and spectral type using the 2dF Galaxy Redshift Survey (2dFGRS). Spectral types are assigned using the principal-component analysis of Madgwick et al. We divide the sample into two broad spectral classes: galaxies with strong emission lines ('late types') and more quiescent galaxies ('early types'). We measure the clustering in real space, free from any distortion of the clustering pattern owing to peculiar velocities, for a series of volume-limited samples. The projected correlation functions of both spectral types are well described by a power law for transverse separations in the range 2<(sigma /h (-1) Mpc)<15, with a marginally steeper slope for early types than late types. Both early and late types have approximately the same dependence of clustering strength on luminosity, with the clustering amplitude increasing by a factor of similar to2.5 between L * and 4L *. At all luminosities, however, the correlation function amplitude for the early types is similar to50 per cent higher than that of the late types. These results support the view that luminosity, and not type, is the dominant factor in determining how the clustering strength of the whole galaxy population varies with luminosity.
Curculigoside regulates proliferation, differentiation, and pro-inflammatory cytokines levels in dexamethasone-induced rat calvarial osteoblasts.

BACKGROUND Curculigoside (CCG), one of the main bioactive phenolic compounds isolated from the rhizome of Curculigo orchioides Gaertn. , is reported to prevent bone loss in ovariectomized rats. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms are largely unknown. Therefore, we investigated the effects of CCG on proliferation and differentiation of calvarial osteoblasts and discussed the related mechanisms. MATERIALS AND METHODS Osteoblasts were incubated with dexamethasone (DEX) in the absence or presence of CCG concentrations for 24-72 h. Cell proliferation was evaluated by Cell Counting Kit-8 assay. Mitochondria membrane potential (MMP) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) were assessed by flow cytometry. We assessed the anti-inflammatory responses of CCG on DEX-induced osteoblasts by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Relative protein expression of BMP-2, b-catenin, RANKL, OPG and RANK was measured using Western blotting. RESULTS It was found that osteoblasts proliferation decreased significantly after treated with 1 μM of dexamethasone (DEX), compared with untreated osteoblasts and the cytotoxic effect of DEX was reversed remarkably when pretreatment with 25-100 μg/ml of CCG. Pretreatment with 25-100 μg/ml of CCG increased MMP level and decreased ROS production in osteoblasts induced by DEX. In addition, DEX-induced inhibition of differentiation markers such as alkaline phosphatase (ALP), OPG, BMP-2, β-catenin, IGF-1 and M-CSF level, and promotion of differentiation markers such as RANKL and RANK was significantly reversed in the presence of CCG. CCG also reversed DEX-induced production of pro-inflammatory cytokines. CONCLUSIONS These results provide new insights into the osteoblast-protective mechanisms of CCG through inducing proliferation and differentiation and reducing the inflammatory responses, indicating that CCG may be developed as an agent for the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis.
Applying PSO to natural language processing tasks: Optimizing the identification of syntactic phrases

The present article discusses the use of Particle Swarm Optimisation (PSO) in a natural language processing task, namely the creation of a phrasing model which splits any sentence into linguistically-motivated phrases. This involves taking a limited-size training dataset, where sentences are split into syntactically motivated sentences, and learning how to best segment arbitrary sentences into their corresponding phrases. The extrapolation of phrases is needed in numerous applications involving the generation of texts in natural language. One such application is machine translation, namely the automatic translation of unconstrained text from a source language to a target language. The phrasing model to be learnt comprises a number of parameters which need to be optimized based on the training data. To that end, a machine learning approach has been developed, which is based on the concept of attractive and repulsive forces. Instead of previous efforts using manual tuning of the parameters, here PSO is used to achieve the optimization of the model parameters. Experimental results indicate that the proposed PSO approach is promising, giving the most accurate phrasing in this specific application, with statistically significant improvements over earlier results.
A Cross-Sectional Audit of Student Health Insurance Waiver Forms: An Assessment of Reliability and Compliance

Abstract To assess the reliability of using a waiver process to ensure compliance with health insurance requirements established by a university, the author conducted a cross-sectional verification and compliance audit of insurance waiver forms received for the 1999/2000 academic year. This study revealed that a waiver form process could not be relied upon to enforce compliance.
Ustekinumab in Treatment of Refractory Paediatric Crohn Disease.

T o the Editor: We read with interest the publication by Rinawi et al on their successful use of ustekinumab in a child with resistant Crohn disease (1). We wish to present our experience in a 16-year-old boy with panenteric Crohn disease. Our patient was diagnosed at 11 years. The patient had refractory disease, which failed to respond to thiopurines or methotrexate. Clinical and biochemical remission (including C-reactive protein normalisation) was obtained on infliximab; however, a subsequent secondary loss of response occurred. In an effort to regain response, dose escalation was given, resulting in an infusion reaction and subsequent infliximab treatment cessation. Adalimumab also showed no significant treatment effect. At this point, the patient was steroid dependent despite methotrexate 25 mg and weekly adalimumab 40 mg; Pediatric Crohn Disease Activity Index was 42.5, with endoscopic evidence of active ileocolonic disease and raised inflammatory markers. Given the patient’s initial response to infliximab and high C-reactive protein, it was felt that the patient may respond to ustekinumab (2,3). The patient received 1 subcutaneous induction dose of 180 mg (3 mg/kg) and then 90 mg (1.5 mg/kg) at week 2. Unfortunately, there was no significant improvement at 10 weeks, so a colectomy and an end ileostomy were performed, resulting in clinical remission. Unlike the previous case where ustekinumab resulted in a rapid improvement in symptoms, we did not observe a similar response despite similar dosing and schedule. The explanation for lack of response is unclear given the favourable indicators for response in our patient. Further use of ustekinumab in the paediatric population may provide further insight into who will benefit.
Effect of basalt powder addition on properties of mortar

The study evaluates the use of waste basalt powder as a replacement of cement to enhance hydration of cement and mortar properties. The basalt powder is a waste resulting from preparation of aggregate used in asphalt mixture production. Previous studies have shown that analysed waste used as a fine aggregate replacement has a beneficial effect on some properties of mortar and concrete, i.e. compressive strength, flexural strength and freeze resistance. The present study shows the results of the research concerning the modification of cement paste and mortar with basalt powder. The modification consists in adding the powder waste as a partial replacement of cement. The percentages of basalt powder in this research are 0-40% and 0-20% by mass of cement in the pastes and mortars respectively. The experiments were carried out to determine the influence of basalt powder on cement hydration, as well as compressive and flexural strength. Results indicate that addition of basalt powder as a replacement of cement leads to deterioration of compressive strength. The flexural strength of mortar is improved in some cases. Waste basalt powder only slightly influences the cement hydration.
Adaptive iterative learning control for robot manipulators

In this paper, a new self adaptive iterative learning PD control(ILC-PD) scheme is proposed for trajectory tracking of robot manipulators with unknown parameters and performing repetitive tasks. This proposed control scheme is based upon a proportional-derivative(PD) feedback structure, for which an iterative term is added to cope with the unknown model parameters and disturbances. In contrast to classical iterative learning schemes, ILC-PD method is very simple in the sense that the only requirement on the PD and learning gains are just two iterative variables and the bounds of the robot parameters are not required, which is an interesting fact from a practical point of view. Furthermore, the ILC-PD method possesses both adaptive and learning capabilities with a simple control structure, and the asymptotical convergence is guaranteed based on the Lyapunov theorem. Finally simulations are presented for a planner manipulator with two revolute degrees of freedom. The results are provided to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed controllers.
Efficacy of Crisis Intervention Treatment with Topical Corticosteroid Prednicarbat with and without Partial Wet-Wrap Dressing in Atopic Dermatitis

Background: The wet-wrap treatment has been reported to be beneficial in acute episodes of atopic dermatitis (AD) skin lesions. Objective: The efficacy of topical corticosteroid prednicarbat with and without additional wet-wrap dressing was investigated in a prospective, randomized and controlled study. Methods: In the left-right comparison study, 24 adults and children with an acute episode of AD were included. One arm or leg was randomly treated with the topical corticosteroid prednicarbat plus wet-wrap dressing; only prednicarbat was applied on the leg or arm of the other side. Results: After 48–72 h of treatment, in both groups an improvement of the local SCORAD was observed. In comparison to the side of the body treated with corticosteroid alone, the decrease of the local SCORAD in the corticosteroid plus wet-wrap dressing group was significantly better. The severity of AD improved in the wet-wrap group at an average of 4.4 points, in the corticosteroid group 3.0 (p < 0.011). Conclusions: Wet-wrap therapy with a topical corticosteroid is an effective treatment option in patients with exacerbated AD. The treatment is helpful in improving skin conditions, shortening the time of corticosteroid application.
71454 Enhancing Visual Thinking in a Toy Design Course Using

Engineering graduates in advancing economies are not only expected to have engineering knowledge, but also use them in creative and innovative ways. The importance of visual thinking has been critical for creativity and innovation in design. However, today’s engineering students are proficient in detailed design tools but lacking in conceptual design and ideation, and engineering curricula needs to develop a more effective framework for teaching visual thinking. In this paper, we report our efforts to embed principles of design thinking and visual thinking practices, like McKim’s “seeing, imagining and drawing” cycle [1]. We use a toy design course in mechanical engineering for our pilot study as a scaffold for introducing these principles in an engaging, creative, and fun environment. We introduced freehand sketching as a tool for visual thinking during the design and communication of concepts. We also report the impact of these changes through information gleaned from student feedback surveys and analysis of design notebooks. We use our findings to propose ways to provide the students with a set of balanced techniques that help them in visual thinking, communication, and design. An improved implementation of this experience is discussed and future work is proposed to overcome barriers to thinking and
Re-conceptualizing free will for the 21st century: acting independently with a limited role for consciousness

This paper examines the concept of free will, or independent action, in light of recent research in psychology and neuroscience. Reviewing findings in memory, prospection, and mental simulation, as well as the neurological mechanisms underlying behavioral control, planning, and integration, it is suggested in accord with previous arguments (e.g., Wegner, 2003; Harris, 2012) that a folk conception of free will as entirely conscious control over behavior should be rejected. However, it is argued that, when taken together, these findings can also support an alternative conception of free will. The constructive nature of memory and an integrative “default network” provide the means for novel and creative combinations of information, such as the imagining of counterfactual scenarios and alternative courses of action. Considering recent findings of extensive functional connections between these systems and those that subsume motor control and goal maintenance, it is argued that individuals have the capability of producing novel ideas and translating them into actionable goals. Although most of these processes take place beneath conscious awareness, it is argued that they are unique to the individual and thus, can be considered a form of independent control over behavior, or free will.
Adoption of Aquaculture Technology by Fish Farmers in Imo State of Nigeria.

This paper evaluated the level of adoption of aquaculture technology extended to farmers in Imo State, Nigeria. To improve aquaculture practice in Nigeria, a technology package was developed and disseminated to farmers in the state. This package included 10 practices that the farmers were supposed to adopt. Eighty-two respondents were randomly selected from the three zones of the state. Data were collected through structured interview schedule[s]. The results showed that the level of adoption of the technology was low. Less than half of the respondents adopted the technology. After the construction of the ponds, which were usually not to specification, the farmers found it difficult to adopt the other recommendations, (e.g. pond maintenance, feeding, harvesting, and fish preservation). It was discovered that the farmers did not have adequate funds to maintain their small ponds and to purchase the necessary feed and other necessities for aquaculture. To increase the level of adoption of aquaculture technologies in Nigeria, it is necessary to change its perception from subsistence to commercial and sustainable farming practice; to assist the farmers with credit facilities and to provide closer monitoring of the process by extension agents.
One-Step PCR Detection of Salmonella Pullorum/Gallinarum Using a Novel Target: The Flagellar Biosynthesis Gene flhB

Salmonella enterica serovar Pullorum/Gallinarum is an important infectious pathogen that has caused widespread problems for chicken industry. Traditional Salmonella serotyping is an expensive and time-consuming process. In this study, we developed a rapid one-step polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method to identify S. Pullorum/Gallinarum. The PCR-based assay focuses on flhB, which shows a deficient region only in S. Pullorum/Gallinarum, compared with that of other serovars. The specificity and sensitivity of the PCR system were evaluated. The developed PCR method could identify S. Pullorum/Gallinarum from 27 different Salmonella serovars and eight non-Salmonella pathogens. The minimum limit of DNA and the lowest number of cells of S. Pullorum for the PCR detection were no less than 5.85 pg/μL and 10 CFU, respectively. The method was applied to the analysis of Salmonella strains isolated from the chicken farm. The PCR-based testing results of the farm isolates were in concordance with those obtained using traditional serotyping method. This newly developed PCR-based system could be used to accurately screen for the presence of S. Pullorum/Gallinarum, and support traditional serotyping methods, especially in high-throughput screening situations.
Breaking the memory wall in MonetDB

In the past decades, advances in speed of commodity CPUs have far outpaced advances in RAM latency. Main-memory access has therefore become a performance bottleneck for many computer applications; a phenomenon that is widely known as the "memory wall. " In this paper, we report how research around the MonetDB database system has led to a redesign of database architecture in order to take advantage of modern hardware, and in particular to avoid hitting the memory wall. This encompasses (i) a redesign of the query execution model to better exploit pipelined CPU architectures and CPU instruction caches; (ii) the use of columnar rather than row-wise data storage to better exploit CPU data caches; (iii) the design of new cache-conscious query processing algorithms; and (iv) the design and automatic calibration of memory cost models to choose and tune these cache-conscious algorithms in the query optimizer.