Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Depressive symptoms in Chinese family caregivers of patients with heart failure

Abstract Depressive symptoms are related to negative health outcomes in caregivers of patients with HF. Understanding the factors that are associated with depressive symptoms among caregivers is essential to providing appropriate interventions. Little is known about which status and factors are related to depressive symptoms among Chinese caregivers of patients with heart failure. This study aimed to investigate the status of depressive symptoms and to identify the factors that are associated with depressive symptoms in family caregivers of patients with heart failure in China. A cross-sectional design and a convenience sample were used. Participants (N = 134) from 1 hospital in Chengdu were recruited from June 2013 to June 2014. The following measurement tools were used in this study: Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, Coping Strategies Simplified Coping Style Questionnaire, and Zarit Burden Interview. A hierarchical multiple linear regression analysis was used to determine which factors were associated with depressive symptoms. The results showed that 31% of the caregivers experienced depressive symptoms. The type of payment for treatment (b = −0.312, P < 0.01), readmissions within the last 3 months (b = 0.397, P < 0.01), duration of caregiving (b = −0.213, P < 0.05), caregiver burden (b = 0.299, P < 0.05), active coping (b = −0.235, P < 0.01), and negative coping (b = 0.245, P < 0.05) were related to caregivers’ depressive symptoms. Fifty-four percent of the variance in caregivers’ depressive symptoms was explained by these factors. The caregiver depressive symptoms in China were higher than those reported in studies that were conducted in Western countries. Caregiver depressive symptoms can be improved by providing support for new caregivers (with a caregiving duration of less than 1 year), reducing readmissions, easing caregiver burden, and promoting their coping strategies.
Location and properties of metal-binding sites on the human prion protein

Although a functional role in copper binding has been suggested for the prion protein, evidence for binding at affinities characteristic of authentic metal-binding proteins has been lacking. By presentation of copper(II) ions in the presence of the weak chelator glycine, we have now characterized two high-affinity binding sites for divalent transition metals within the human prion protein. One is in the N-terminal octapeptide-repeat segment and has a Kd for copper(II) of 10−14 M, with other metals (Ni2+, Zn2+, and Mn2+) binding three or more orders of magnitude more weakly. However, NMR and fluorescence data reveal a previously unreported second site around histidines 96 and 111, a region of the molecule known to be crucial for prion propagation. The Kd for copper(II) at this site is 4 × 10−14 M, whereas nickel(II), zinc(II), and manganese(II) bind 6, 7, and 10 orders of magnitude more weakly, respectively, regardless of whether the protein is in its oxidized α-helical (α-PrP) or reduced β-sheet (β-PrP) conformation. A role for prion protein (PrP) in copper metabolism or transport seems likely and disturbance of this function may be involved in prion-related neurotoxicity.
Study on Capacitor Commutated Converter applied in HVDC projects

Some aspects on capacitor commutated converter (CCC) applied in HVDC projects are studied. Through the analysis of the simplified AC/DC interconnected system model, the steady-state performance of CCC system is achieved, which is compared with line commutated converter (LCC) system. The expression of the peak voltage across the valves is deduced, and a proper approach to select the commutated capacitor's size is given based on the expression. With single-phase short circuit simulated, the transient performances of CCC and LCC are compared and analyzed. The simulation tool is PSCAD/EMTDC, which is for electromagnetic transient simulation. The research object is Ge-Nan HVDC mono-polar transmission project.
Mutations in ras proto‐oncogenes are associated with lower mdr1 gene expression in adult acute myeloid leukaemia

Mutations in ras genes have been found to be the most frequent genetic aberrations in adult myeloid leukaemia (AML). Some reports have shown an improved outcome of ras‐mutated AML. In order to understand the biology of ras mutation in AML, we studied a cohort of patients treated in a prospective multicentre trial for ras mutational status and resistance gene expression. Blast samples from 162 adult patients with de novo or secondary AML were examined for resistance gene expression (mdr1, mrp1 and lrp) and ras mutations using reverse transcription‐polymerase chain reaction and protein nucleic acid‐competitive polymerase chain reaction strategies respectively. Ras mutations were confirmed using DNA sequencing. Ras mutations leading to an exchange of amino acids were found in 40 (25%) patients. Thirty AML patients had N‐ras mutations and nine patients had K‐ras mutations. One patient showed both N‐ras and K‐ras mutations. Resistance gene expression was positive for mdr1 in 30%, for mrp1 in 43% and for lrp in 62% of patients. There was a strong inverse correlation between the presence of ras mutation and mdr1 expression (P = 0·005). However, no significant difference was seen between patients with or without ras mutations and mrp1 or lrp expression. Whereas mdr1 expression was associated with a lower complete remission rate (P < 0·04), ras mutations had no significant influence on remission status. Neither ras mutation nor mdr1 expression had a significant impact on overall or disease‐free survival to date. For the first time, there is evidence that activated ras genes are associated with lower mdr1 expression in AML.
Learning macromanagement in starcraft from replays using deep learning

The real-time strategy game StarCraft has proven to be a challenging environment for artificial intelligence techniques, and as a result, current state-of-the-art solutions consist of numerous hand-crafted modules. In this paper, we show how macromanagement decisions in StarCraft can be learned directly from game replays using deep learning. Neural networks are trained on 789,571 state-action pairs extracted from 2,005 replays of highly skilled players, achieving top-1 and top-3 error rates of 54.6% and 22.9% in predicting the next build action. By integrating the trained network into UAlbertaBot, an open source StarCraft bot, the system can significantly outperform the game's built-in Terran bot, and play competitively against UAlbertaBot with a fixed rush strategy. To our knowledge, this is the first time macromanagement tasks are learned directly from replays in StarCraft. While the best hand-crafted strategies are still the state-of-the-art, the deep network approach is able to express a wide range of different strategies and thus improving the network's performance further with deep reinforcement learning is an immediately promising avenue for future research. Ultimately this approach could lead to strong StarCraft bots that are less reliant on hard-coded strategies.
The GM2-1 Ganglioside Islet Autoantigen in Insulin-Dependent Diabetes Mellitus Is Expressed in Secretory Granules and Is Notβ -Cell Specific.

The pancreatic islet monosialo-ganglioside (GM2-1), an autoantigen in insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) recently shown to be the target of autoantibodies associated with diabetes development in relatives of IDDM patients, is islet specific within the pancreas, and its expression is metabolically regulatable. In the present study we sought to establish 1) whether GM2-1 is beta-cell specific, and 2) its intracellular localization. To this end, we analyzed the pattern of ganglioside expression in highly purified beta- and non-beta-cells isolated from rat islets. In addition, ganglioside levels were determined in subcellular fractions of a rat beta-cell line (INS). No qualitative or quantitative difference was found in the pattern of ganglioside expression between beta and non-beta rat islet cells, with GM3, GM2-1, and GD3 gangliosides expressed in both cell populations. Within INS cells, GM2-1 ganglioside was expressed in the fraction containing secretory granules and, to a lesser extent, in plasma membranes; GM3 was expressed in secretory granules, whereas GD3 was found only in plasma membranes. These data indicate that the GM2-1 autoantigen is not beta-cell specific within the islets, in accordance with the observation that this molecule is a target of islet cell autoantibodies that bind to the whole pancreatic islet. Interestingly, this autoantigen is present in secretory granules similarly to other autoantigens in IDDM (insulin, carboxypeptidase H, 38-kDa protein, etc.), suggesting that the autoimmunity to the components of this organelle may be central to the pathogenesis of the disease.
Effective similarity search on voxelized CAD objects

Similarity search in database systems is becoming an increasingly important task in modern application domains such as multimedia, molecular biology, medical imaging and many others. Especially for CAD applications, suitable similarity models and a clear representation of the results can help to reduce the cost of developing and producing new parts by maximizing the reuse of existing parts. In this paper, we adapt two known similarity models to voxelized 3-D CAD data and introduce a new model based on eigenvectors. The experimental evaluation of our three similarity models is based on two real-world test datasets. Furthermore, we introduce hierarchical clustering as a new and effective way to analyse and compare similarity models. We show that both our similarity model as well as our evaluation procedure are suitable for industrial use.
Preoperative Nutritional Assessment with the Prognostic Nutrition Index in Patients Undergoing Left Ventricular Assist Device Implantation

The prognostic nutritional index (PNI) is a simple metric that uses serum albumin and total lymphocyte count to provide a basic indicator for nutritional status. It has recently garnered attention as a prognosticator of outcomes in many types of cancer. We investigated the utility of the PNI as a marker for poor outcomes following left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation. Two hundred eighty-eight consecutive patients implanted with continuous-flow LVADs were included. Prognostic nutritional index was calculated for all patients (PNI = [10 × serum albumin {g/dl}] + [0.005 × total lymphocytes {1,000/&mgr;l}]). The population was split into two groups based on median PNI; group 1 with PNI <30 and group 2 with PNI ≥30. Mean age was 60.3 years in group 1 and 59.8 years in group 2. There were no significant differences between groups in terms of age, gender, ethnicity, or comorbidities. The mean PNI for the group as a whole was 30.1 ± 4.6, indicating pervasive malnutrition in this group of advanced heart failure patients. Group 1 had significantly longer postoperative length of stay than did group 2 (27.42 ± 19.31 vs. 21.66 ± 15.0 days; p = 0.008). Patients in group 1 also had higher rates of right ventricular failure (37.8% vs. 25.5%; p = 0.025). A multivariate model indicated that PNI less than 30 was associated with a 12.2% reduction in postoperative survival (Hazard Ratio: 0.888; confidence interval [CI]: 0.795–0.993; p = 0.037). Our results suggest that the PNI may be an indicator for worsened outcomes in patients with advanced heart failure. These patients, who often suffer from chronic malnutrition, may experience worsened outcomes because of associated neurohormonal, muscular, and metabolic derangements.
Evaluation of Eye Metrics as a Detector of Fatigue

Objectives: This study evaluated oculometrics as a detector of fatigue in Air Force–relevant tasks after sleep deprivation. Using the metrics of total eye closure duration (PERCLOS) and approximate entropy (ApEn), the relation between these eye metrics and fatigue-induced performance decrements was investigated. Background: One damaging effect to the successful outcome of operational military missions is that attributed to sleep deprivation-induced fatigue. Consequently, there is interest in the development of reliable monitoring devices that can assess when an operator is overly fatigued. Method: Ten civilian participants volunteered to serve in this study. Each was trained on three performance tasks: target identification, unmanned aerial vehicle landing, and the psychomotor vigilance task (PVT). Experimental testing began after 14 hr awake and continued every 2 hr until 28 hr of sleep deprivation was reached. Results: Performance on the PVT and target identification tasks declined significantly as the level of sleep deprivation increased. These performance declines were paralleled more closely by changes in the ApEn compared to the PERCLOS measure. Conclusion: The results provide evidence that the ApEn eye metric can be used to detect fatigue in relevant military aviation tasks. Application: Military and commercial operators could benefit from an alertness monitoring device.
Dynamin recruitment and membrane scission at the neck of a clathrin-coated pit

Dynamin2 dimers are the preferred assembly units recruited to coated pits. About 26 dynamins (one helical turn of a dynamin collar) are enough for release of most coated vesicles. A circumferential twist–propagating model is proposed that requires that one complete turn of the helix reach a state in which one or more pairs of GTPase domains interact.
CAIM discretization algorithm

The task of extracting knowledge from databases is quite often performed by machine learning algorithms. The majority of these algorithms can be applied only to data described by discrete numerical or nominal attributes (features). In the case of continuous attributes, there is a need for a discretization algorithm that transforms continuous attributes into discrete ones. We describe such an algorithm, called CAIM (class-attribute interdependence maximization), which is designed to work with supervised data. The goal of the CAIM algorithm is to maximize the class-attribute interdependence and to generate a (possibly) minimal number of discrete intervals. The algorithm does not require the user to predefine the number of intervals, as opposed to some other discretization algorithms. The tests performed using CAIM and six other state-of-the-art discretization algorithms show that discrete attributes generated by the CAIM algorithm almost always have the lowest number of intervals and the highest class-attribute interdependency. Two machine learning algorithms, the CLIP4 rule algorithm and the decision tree algorithm, are used to generate classification rules from data discretized by CAIM. For both the CLIP4 and decision tree algorithms, the accuracy of the generated rules is higher and the number of the rules is lower for data discretized using the CAIM algorithm when compared to data discretized using six other discretization algorithms. The highest classification accuracy was achieved for data sets discretized with the CAIM algorithm, as compared with the other six algorithms.
PANDORA applies non-deterministic obfuscation randomly to Android

Android, a Linux-based operating system, is currently the most popular platform for mobile devices like smart-phones and tablets. Recently, two closely related security threats have become a major concern of the research community: software piracy and malware. This paper studies the capabilities of code obfuscation for the purposes of plagiarized software and malware diversification. Within the scope of this work, the PANDORA (PANDORA Applies Non-Deterministic Obfuscation Randomly to Android) transformation system for Android bytecode was designed and implemented, combining techniques for data and object-oriented design obfuscation. Our evaluation results indicate deficiencies of the malware detection engines currently used in 46 popular antivirus products, which in most cases were not able to detect samples obfuscated with PANDORA. Furthermore, this paper reveals shortcomings of the Androsim tool and potentially other static software similarity algorithms, recently proposed to address the piracy problem in Android.
Transcripts of Anthocyanidin Reductase and Leucoanthocyanidin Reductase and Measurement of Catechin and Epicatechin in Tartary Buckwheat

Anthocyanidin reductase (ANR) and leucoanthocyanidin reductase (LAR) play an important role in the monomeric units biosynthesis of proanthocyanidins (PAs) such as catechin and epicatechin in several plants. The aim of this study was to clone ANR and LAR genes involved in PAs biosynthesis and examine the expression of these two genes in different organs under different growth conditions in two tartary buckwheat cultivars, Hokkai T8 and T10. Gene expression was carried out by quantitative real-time RT-PCR, and catechin and epicatechin content was analyzed by high performance liquid chromatography. The expression pattern of ANR and LAR did not match the accumulation pattern of PAs in different organs of two cultivars. Epicatechin content was the highest in the flowers of both cultivars and it was affected by light in only Hokkai T8 sprouts. ANR and LAR levels in tartary buckwheat might be regulated by different mechanisms for catechin and epicatechin biosynthesis under light and dark conditions.
Comparative stabilities of quantitative human immunodeficiency virus RNA in plasma from samples collected in VACUTAINER CPT, VACUTAINER PPT, and standard VACUTAINER tubes

This study compared the levels of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) virion RNA in plasma from whole blood collected in VACUTAINER CPT (cell preparation tube), VACUTAINER PPT (plasma preparation tube), VACUTAINER SST (serum separation tube), and standard VACUTAINER tubes with sodium heparin, acid citrate dextrose, sodium citrate, and potassium EDTA used as anticoagulants. Quantitative plasma HIV RNA levels were measured by branched-DNA signal amplification. Blood from all tubes was either processed within 1 to 3 h after collection or stored at room temperature or at 4 degrees C for analysis at 6 to 8 and 30 h postdraw. Immediately separated plasma from sodium citrate CPT tubes held at 4 degrees C maintained better stability of HIV RNA equivalents than whole blood held at room temperature or 4 degrees C. The highest number of HIV RNA equivalents was seen with EDTA VACUTAINER tubes. HIV RNA equivalents in all types of plasma were significantly higher than in SST tubes. Although a decline in HIV RNA equivalents was seen in all collection devices after 30 h, a significantly greater decline in plasma HIV RNA equivalents occurred in acid citrate dextrose VACUTAINER tubes than in citrate CPT, PPT, and standard EDTA VACUTAINER tubes. In order to minimize the variability of quantitative HIV RNA test results, our data suggest that samples collected for a particular assay should be processed at the same time postdraw using a particular tube type throughout a given study.
The role of soluble common gamma chain in autoimmune disease

The common gamma chain (γc) is the central signaling unit for a number of cytokine receptors collectively known as the γc cytokine receptor family. γc is critical for ligand binding and signaling by γc cytokines. γc cytokine signaling had been thought to be mainly regulated by cytokine-specific receptor α chain expression levels with little or no effect by γc surface levels because γc expression was presumed to remain unchanged during T-cell activation and development. The extent of γc cytokine responses is thought to be regulated by cytokine specific receptor subunits and not by the γc receptor. In contrast to this prevailing view, we have recently reported that γc itself actively regulates γc cytokine responses. Interestingly, γc exerted its regulatory effects not only as a conventional membrane receptor protein but also as a secreted protein whose expression was upregulated upon T-cell stimulation. Here we will review how a soluble form of γc, which is generated by alternative splicing, regulates γc cytokine signaling and plays a role in controlling immune activation related to autoimmune disease.
Pre‐operative fasting guidelines: an update

Liberal pre‐operative fasting routines have been implemented in most countries. In general, clear fluids are allowed up to 2 h before anaesthesia, and light meals up to 6 h. The same recommendations apply for children and pregnant women not in labour. In children <6 months, most recommendations now allow breast‐ or formula milk feeding up to 4 h before anaesthesia. Recently, the concept of pre‐operative oral nutrition using a special carbohydrate‐rich beverage has also gained support and been shown not to increase gastric fluid volume or acidity. Based on the available literature, our Task Force has produced new consensus‐based Scandinavian guidelines for pre‐operative fasting. What is still not clear is to what extent the new liberal fasting routines should apply to patients with functional dyspepsia or systematic diseases such as diabetes mellitus. Other still controversial areas include the need for and effect of fasting in emergency patients, women in labour and in association with procedures done under ‘deep sedation’. We think more research on the effect of various fasting regimes in subpopulations of patients is needed before we can move one step further towards completely evidence‐based pre‐operative fasting guidelines.
Preclinical report on allogeneic uterus transplantation in non-human primates.

STUDY QUESTION Is it possible to perform allogeneic uterus transplantation (UTx) with a donation from a live donor in a non-human primate species and what immunosuppression is needed to prevent rejection? SUMMARY ANSWER Allogeneic UTx in the baboon is a donor- and recipient-safe surgical procedure; immunosuppression with induction therapy and a triple protocol should be used. WHAT IS KNOWN ALREADY UTx may become a treatment for absolute uterine factor infertility. Autologous UTx models have been developed in non-human primates with reports on long-term survival of the uterine grafts. STUDY DESIGN, SIZEAND DURATION: This experimental study included 18 female baboons as uterus donors and 18 female baboons as uterus recipients. The follow-up time was 5-8 weeks. PARTICIPANTS/MATERIALS, SETTING AND METHODS Uterus retrieval was performed with extended hysterectomy including bilateral uterine and internal iliac arteries and ovarian veins. After UTx, with vascular anastomoses unilateral to the internal iliac artery and the external iliac vein, the uterus recipients received one of the following: no immunosuppression (n = 4); monotherapy (oral slow release tacrolimus) (n = 4) or induction therapy (antithymocyte globulin) followed by triple therapy (tacrolimus, mycophenolate, corticosteroids; n = 10). Surgical parameters, survival, immunosuppression and rejection patterns were evaluated. MAIN RESULTS AND THE ROLE OF CHANCE The durations of uterus retrieval and recipient surgery were around 3 and 3.5 h, respectively. The total ischemic time was around 3 h. All the recipients and the donors survived the surgery. All the recipients presented rejection to some extent within the first weeks following UTx. In one recipient, the uterus was of normal appearance at the end of the study period. In spite of occasional high (>60 ng/ml) blood levels of tacrolimus, there was no evidence of nephrotoxicity. LIMITATIONS AND REASONS FOR CAUTION This initial non-human primate allogeneic UTx study indicates that further research is needed to optimize immunosuppression protocols in order to avoid uterine rejection. WIDER IMPLICATIONS OF THE FINDINGS The findings suggest that allogeneic UTx in primate species is feasible but continued work on this issue is needed. STUDY FUNDING/COMPETING INTEREST(S) The study was funded by the Swedish Research Council, ALF University of Gothenburg, Hjalmar Svensson Foundation and by Jane and Dan Olsson Research Foundation. The authors do not have any competing interest.