Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Radical pancreatoduodenectomy for misdiagnosed pancreatic mass

Occasionally pancreatoduodenectomy is performed for clinically suspected pancreatic malignancy only for the surgeon to find that a benign aetiology accounts for the pancreatic mass. The aim of this study was twofold: to determine the incidence of pancreatoduodenectomy performed for a misdiagnosis of pancreatoduodenal malignancy and to identify potentially avoidable errors in preoperative and intraoperative judgement. Between 1956 and 1990, radical pancreatoduodenectomy was performed in 603 patients at the Mayo Clinic; 29 (5 per cent) underwent pancreatoduodenectomy for a diagnosis made before and during surgery of primary pancreatic or periampullary malignancy that was later proven histopathologically to be either unsuspected subacute or chronic pancreatitis (22 patients), benign fibrous common bile duct stricture (two), and penetrating duodenal ulcer, metastatic melanoma, ampullary adenoma, intrahepatic drug‐induced cholestasis and pseudocyst (one each). No patient had a preoperative diagnosis of chronic pancreatitis. Weight loss, pain and/or jaundice were present in 27 of the 29 patients. Objective imaging tests, such as computed tomography, ultrasonography and/or endoscopic retrograde cholangio‐pancreatography, were performed in 25 patients. Potential errors in judgement may be avoided by a more aggressive attempt at biopsy in selected patients; in others, resection for presumed malignancy may be unavoidable.
Phenomenology, psychosocial correlates, and treatment seeking in major depression and dysthymia of adolescence.

OBJECTIVE To compare phenomenology, psychosocial correlates, and treatment seeking in DSM-Itt-R major depression and dysthymia among adolescents diagnosed as cases in a community-based study. METHOD A self-report questionnaire, including psychosocial data, life events, eating behaviors, depressive symptoms, substance use, pathological behaviors, and family and school functioning was administered to a nonselected sample (N = 3,287, 93.2% of targeted population) of adolescents aged 11 to 20 years from several Haute-Marne communities in France in 1988-1989. Subgroups of subjects (n = 205, 84.7% of eligible subjects) were interviewed with a structured diagnostic schedule, and adolescents with major depression (n = 49), dysthymia (n = 21) and controls (n = 135) were compared. RESULTS Nearly 30% of controls had at least one current symptom of depression. Patterns of affective symptoms were similar in major depression and dysthymia, but significant differences emerged in comorbid conditions (more anxiety disorders, suicidal behaviors, and alcohol intoxications associated with major depression) and stressor at onset (more severe in major depression). Experiences of loss during the prior 12 months were associated with both forms of affective disorder, while poor family relationships were specific correlates of dysthymia. In contrast, peer relationships and pathological behaviors did not differ between depressed subjects and controls. Although psychosocial functioning was significantly impaired in both groups of depressed adolescents, treatment seeking was limited to 34.7% for major depressive subjects and 23.8% for dysthymic subjects. CONCLUSION The results provide evidence that major depression and dysthymia in adolescence are equally severe but may have distinct patterns in associated factors. Despite free access to health care, the rate of treatment seeking for mood disorders in France is similar to that reported in U.S. studies.
Coastal fronts set recruitment and connectivity patterns across multiple taxa

We show that ocean fronts set recruitment patterns among both community‐building invertebrates and commercially important fishes in nearshore intertidal and rocky reef habitats. Chlorophyll concentration and recruitment of several species of intertidal invertebrates (Balanus spp., Chthamalus spp., Mytilus spp.) and rockfishes (Sebastes spp.) are positively correlated with front probability along the coast of the California Current Large Marine Ecosystem. Abundances of recent settlers and adults for nearshore rockfish species are also positively correlated with front probability. The interaction of coastal topography and bathymetry sets spatial scales of fronts and consequently recruitment at approximately 50 km during active upwelling, compared to 200 km or greater during non‐upwelling periods. Such relationships between fronts and recruitment are likely to be consistent across other marine ecosystems—from coastal waters to the open ocean—and provide a critical link between adults and widely dispersing young. Ocean fronts, already known as features with high biodiversity and resilience in pelagic habitats, also set recruitment and connectivity patterns across multiple taxa for intertidal and rocky reef communities, thus linking biodiversity and resilience in coastal and benthic habitats as well.
[Effects of short veno-venous hemofiltration on severe acute pancreatitis].

OBJECTIVE To estimate the effects of therapy of short veno-venous hemofiltration (SVVH, 4hr) on severe acute pancreatitis (SAP). METHODS Twenty patients were divided randomly into hemofiltration group (HF, 10 pts) and non-hemofiltration group (NHF, 10 pts). The local, systemic manifestations were compared between two groups; and the concentration of serum pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNFalpha, IL-1beta, IL-6, IL-8, sIL-2R) and anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-2, IL-10) were determined at different observation points. RESULTS In the HF and NHF group, the duration for disappearance of abdominal pain and tenderness, and amelioration for abdominal distension was (8.5 +/- 6.3) d vs. (90.0 +/- 49.0) d and (16.9 +/- 5.2) d vs. (63.4 +/- 36.0) d. CT scores at the 14th day and APACHE II scores at the 10th day was (5.6 +/- 1.3) vs. (7.7 +/- 0.8) and (4.5 +/- 1.5) vs. (7.4 +/- 2.1). The average hospital stay and cost of therapy were (33.0 +/- 20.7) d vs. (56.4 +/- 16.0) d and (53,200 +/- 16,000) vs. (89,100 +/- 25,000) RMB (P < 0.05). The concentration of 5 serum pro-inflammatory cytokines at each observation points after hemofiltration was decreased significantly (P < 0.05) in the HF group. But the concentration of the two serum anti-inflammatory cytokines was increased significantly (P < 0.05) as compared with that of the NHF group. CONCLUSIONS Through SVVH, the imbalance of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines has been corrected at early stage; thus, the severity of the disease is ameliorated significantly and the efficacy of therapy is increased.
On the Stability and Ultimate Boundedness of Solutions for Certain Third Order Differential Equations

Problem Statement: With respect to our observation in the relevant literature, work on stability and boundedness of solution for certain third order nonlinear differential equations where the nonlinear and the forcing terms depend on certain variables are scare. The objective of this study was to get criteria for stability and boundedness of solutions for these classes of differential equations. Approach: Using Lyapunov second or direct method, a complete Lyapunov function was constructed and used to obtain our results. Results: Conditions were obtained for: (i) Uniform asymptotic stability and, (ii) Uniform ultimate boundedness, of solutions for certain third order non-linear non-autonomous differential equations. Conclusion: Our results do not only bridge the gap but extend some well known results in the literature.
Role of tumor microenvironment in tumorigenesis

Tumorigenesis is a complex and dynamic process, consisting of three stages: initiation, progression, and metastasis. Tumors are encircled by extracellular matrix (ECM) and stromal cells, and the physiological state of the tumor microenvironment (TME) is closely connected to every step of tumorigenesis. Evidence suggests that the vital components of the TME are fibroblasts and myofibroblasts, neuroendocrine cells, adipose cells, immune and inflammatory cells, the blood and lymphatic vascular networks, and ECM. This manuscript, based on the current studies of the TME, offers a more comprehensive overview of the primary functions of each component of the TME in cancer initiation, progression, and invasion. The manuscript also includes primary therapeutic targeting markers for each player, which may be helpful in treating tumors.
Free-Running 1550 nm VCSEL for 10.7 Gb/s Transmission in 99.7 km PON

We present a cooler-less, free-running 1550 nm vertical cavity surface emitting laser (VCSEL) directly modulated at 10.7 Gb/s. We also report on error-free transmission through 40 km of standard single-mode optical fiber, achieved without the use of dispersion-mitigation or mid-span amplification. Inverse-dispersion fiber was utilized to realize a dispersion-matched 99.7 km optical access uplink supporting error-free transmission with 27 dB loss margin. These results indicate the feasibility of implementing cooler-less long-wavelength VCSEL devices in long-reach optical access networks.
The Tat Protein of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 (HIV-1) Can Promote Placement of tRNA Primer onto Viral RNA and Suppress Later DNA Polymerization in HIV-1 Reverse Transcription

ABSTRACT Human immunodeficiency virus type-1 Tat has been proposed to play a role in the regulation of reverse transcription. We previously demonstrated that wild-type Tat can augment viral infectivity by suppressing the reverse transcriptase (RT) reaction at late stages of the viral life cycle in order to prevent the premature synthesis of potentially deleterious viral DNA products. Here we have performed a detailed analysis of the cell-free reverse transcription reaction to elucidate the mechanism(s) whereby Tat can affect this process. Our results show that Tat can suppress nonspecific DNA elongation while moderately affecting the specific initiation stage of reverse transcription. In addition, Tat has an RNA-annealing activity and can promote the placement of tRNA onto viral RNA. This points to a functional homology between Tat and the viral nucleocapsid (NC) protein that is known to be directly involved in this process. Experiments using a series of mutant Tat proteins revealed that the cysteine-rich and core domains of Tat are responsible for suppression of DNA elongation, while each of the cysteine-rich, core, and basic domains, as well as a glutamine-rich region in the C-terminal domain, are important for the placement of tRNA onto the viral RNA genome. These results suggest that Tat can play at least two different roles in the RT reaction, i.e., suppression of DNA polymerization and placement of tRNA onto viral RNA. We believe that the first of these activities of Tat may contribute to the overall efficiency of reverse transcription of the viral genome during a new round of infection as well as to enhanced production of infectious viral particles. We hypothesize that the second activity, illustrating functional homology between Tat and NC, suggests a potential role for NC in the displacement of Tat during viral maturation.
2 D-Pattern Matching Image and Video

In this paper, we present a lossy data compression scheme based on an approximate two dimensional pattern matching (2D-PMIC) extension of the Lempel-Ziv lossless scheme. We apply the scheme to image and video compression and report on our theoretical and experimental results. Theoretically, we show that the so called xed database model leads to suboptimal compression. Furthermore, the compression ratio of this model is as low as the generalized entropy that we deene in the paper. We use this model for our video compression scheme and present experimental results. For image compression we use a growing database model for which we provide an approximate analysis (which will be presented in the nal version of the paper). The implementation of 2D-PMIC is a challenging problem from the algorithmic point of view. We use a range of novel techniques and data structures such as k-d trees, generalized run length coding, adaptive arithmetic coding, and variable and adaptive maximum distortion level to achieve good compression ratios at high compression speeds. We demonstrate bit rates in the range of 0:25 ? 0:5 bpp for high quality images and data rates in the range of 0:15 ? 0:4 Mbps for video compression.
Blood and Brain Ammonia Concentrations After Portacaval Anastomosis. Effects of Acute Ammonia Loading

Ammonia is thought to be a major toxin contributing to the symptoms of hepatic encephalopathy (Schenker et al., 1974). Patients with either intrinsic or surgically induced portal-systemic shunting are known to be hypersensitive to small ammonia challenges which neither substantially raise the arterial blood ammonia concentration nor cause neurological changes in normals (Phillips et al., 1952; McDermott and Adams, 1954). An objection to the hypothesis of ammonia as the single, most important neurotoxin in portal-systemic encephalopathy is that about 1015% of patients with this condition have normal or only moderately increased levels of ammonia in blood and cerebrospinal fluid when single samples are drawn concurrent with neurological symptoms (Caesar, 1962; Davidson and Gabuzda, 1969). Moreover, an individual patient’s fluctuating neurological status does not always correlate well with immediately observed changes in his plasma ammonia concentration. The present experiments were designed to examine whether or not random arterial ammonia concentrations accurately reflect brain ammonia concentrations. Rats with a portacaval anastomosis were used as a model of portal-systemic shunting with associated chronic, moderate hyperammonemia. The data show that acute ammonia intoxication resulting in similar degrees of arterial hyperammonemia in normal and shunted rats leads to higher brain ammonia concentrations in shunted animals than in normals.
Leptin Promotes Vascular Remodeling and Neointimal Growth in Mice

Objectives—Human obesity is associated with elevated leptin levels and a high risk of death from cardiovascular disease. In the present study, we investigated the effects of leptin on vascular wound healing and arterial lesion growth in mice. Methods and Results—Wild-type mice placed on an atherogenic, high-fat diet had elevated (9-fold) leptin levels compared with their counterparts maintained on normal chow, and the former demonstrated significantly enhanced neointimal thickening after carotid artery injury with ferric chloride. The lesions forming in response to injury strongly expressed leptin receptor mRNA and protein. Unexpectedly, the atherogenic diet had no effect on injured vessels from leptin-deficient ob/ob mice despite aggravating obesity, diabetes, and hyperlipidemia in these animals. Daily administration of leptin to ob/ob mice during the 3-week period after injury reversed this phenotype, dramatically increasing neointimal thickness and the severity of luminal stenosis. Exogenous leptin also enhanced lesion growth and increased cellular proliferation in injured arteries from wild-type mice but had no effect on vessels from leptin receptor–deficient db/db mice. Conclusions—Our results raise the possibility that there might be a direct, leptin receptor-mediated link between the hyperleptinemia in human obesity and the increased risk for cardiovascular complications associated with this condition.
Women-Led Firms and the Gender Gap in Top Executive Jobs

Using data on Executive Compensation from Standard and Poor's ExecuComp, this paper explores the gender gap in top executive jobs and the effect of women CEOs, Chairs, and Directors on the pay of other women executives. The results show a narrowing of the uncorrected gender pay gap from the mid-1990s. Women top executives earn between 8% to 25% less than male executives after controlling for differences in company size, occupational title, and industry. The magnitude of the gender pay gap is statistically related to the gender of the Chief Executive and Corporate Board Chair. Women CEO and Board Chairs bring more top women and at higher pay than is found in non-women-led firms. Specifically, female executives in women-led firms earn between 10-20% more than comparable executive women in male-led firms and are between 3-18% more likely to be among the highest five paid executives in these firms as well. The paper thereby provides strong empirical evidence that women leaders are associated with positive outcomes for women executives in substantive and important ways.
Career Adaptability and Subjective Well-Being in Unemployed Emerging Adults

Unemployment is associated with increased levels of anxiety, depression, and disconnection among emerging adults. Given the greater risk of unemployment for emerging adults (13.2% in the United States), career adaptability is relevant to understanding how emerging adults survive and thrive in today’s challenging work environment. This study examined the effect of career adaptability on subjective well-being in 184 unemployed diverse emerging adults of age 21–29. Results revealed that emerging adults with higher levels of control and confidence had higher life satisfaction. Control was positively related to positive affect while at the same time negatively related to negative affect. Control was the most consistent informant of subjective well-being (significant on all three subscale measures). The implications of the significant findings, and the caution warranted in relation to these findings, are discussed.
Comparative application of two erosion models to a basin

Abstract Two mathematical models were used to estimate the annual sediment yield resulting from rainfall and runoff at the outlet of the Nestos River basin (Toxotes, Thrace, Greece). The models were applied to that part of the Nestos River basin (838 km2) which lies downstream of three dams. Both models consist of three submodels: a simplified rainfall-runoff submodel, a physically-based surface erosion submodel and a sediment transport submodel for streams. The two models differ only in the surface erosion submodel: that of the first model is based on the relationships of Poesen (1985) for splash detachment and splash transport, while the corresponding submodel of the second model is based on the relationships of Schmidt (1992) for the momentum flux exerted by the droplets and the momentum flux exerted by the overland flow. The degree of conformity between the annual values of sediment yield at the basin outlet according to both models is satisfactory.
Prioritising progression over proficiency: limitations of teacher-based assessment within technician-level vocational education

Abstract This article examines the evolution of assessment policy and practice in technician-level vocational education. Using the example of an advanced-level BTEC National programme in Engineering in one college in the UK, the article highlights how the origins of current assessment practice lie in genuine concerns since the late 1950s about the appropriateness of examination-based assessment for assessing technician engineering skills, resulting in a shift to teacher-based, criterion-referenced assessment and an emphasis on formative feedback. Data are presented from a case study of assessment practice in an engineering department of one college of further and higher education in the UK during the academic years 2006–2008, which investigated salient influences and considerations underpinning lecturers’ constructs of assessment. The study found a departmental ethos of facilitating students to achieve a pass, and the use of assessment methods that would ensure that students got through. However, lecturers were dubious whether their assessment practices developed the proficiency required for students’ progression into HE or employment, and their practices did not appear to have a strong educational or occupational rationale for their approach. We argue that the limitations of teacher-based, criterion-referenced assessment and associated formative assessment practices, of which our study provides an example, contribute to a temptation to simply return to what is deemed more rigorous assessment through examination, which however may well bring back the problems identified in the past, of inappropriate approaches for assessing technician-level skills associated with low success rates.
A novel electrochemical synthesis route for copper nanowire formation

We present an alternative electrochemical synthesis process of copper nanowires from aqueous solution. The common widespread methods for the fabrication of copper nanowires suffer a number of drawbacks such as the complexity of procedures steps, the resulting nanowires usually are of short length and have a nonlinear morphology. We address these shortcomings with a one-step method that allows preparing copper nanowires fast and with a high surface-to-volume ratio. The grown nanowires are already connected to the electrodes without further processing. We found that the nanowires diameter can be controlled by the frequency of the applied alternating voltage. Furthermore, we analyze the influence of the electric field profile on the morphology of the nanowires. Using an optimized protocol we are able to grow copper nanowires with a diameter of 100 nm and a length of up to several micrometers that exhibited ohmic behavior. Future uses of the nanowires after their oxidation are sensor applications, particularly gas sensors.
Culture perfusion schedules influence the metabolic activity and granulocyte‐macrophage colony‐stimulating factor production rates of human bone marrow stromal cells

The metabolic function and GM‐CSF production rates of adherent human bone marrow stromal cells were investigated as functions of medium and serum feeding rates. A range of medium exchange schedules was studied, ranging from a typical Dexter culture protocol of one weekly medium exchange to a full media exchange daily, which more closely approximates what bone marrow cells experience in situ. Glucose consumption was found to be significantly higher at full daily exchange rate than at any other exchange schedule examined. However, the lactate yield on glucose was a constant, at 1.8 mol/mol, under all conditions considered. Differential serum vs. medium exchange experiment showed that both serum supply and medium nutrients were responsible for the altered behavior at high exchange rates. Glutamine consumption was found to be insignificant under all culture conditions examined. A change in exchange schedule from 50% daily medium exchange to full daily medium exchange after 14 days of culture was found to result in a transient production of GM‐CSF and a change in metabolic behavior to resemble that of cultures which had full daily exchange from day one. These results suggest that both stromal cell metabolism and GM‐CSF production are sensitive to medium exchange schedules. Taken together, the data presented indicate that attempts to model the function of human bone marrow in vitro may be well served by beginning with medium exchange schedules that more closely mimic the in vivo physiologic state of bone marrow.