Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The contribution of transcranial sonographic examination to the diagnosis of Parkinson's disease.

can be useful in the differential diagnosis with other entities that evolve with Parkinsonism at the onset (Berg 2006, Walter et al 2007, Tohanean et al 2009, Pilotto et al 2015) . The importance of examination lies in the fact that sonographic changes occur before the onset of motor symptoms and it can be used as a screening tool in subjects at high risk of developing PD (Berg 2011, Walter et al 2007, Walter 2011). Ultrasound modifications do not change during disease progression both in duration and clinical severity (do not change in duration and clinical severity during disease progression). The method can provide complementary data to evaluate the pathophysiological processes and to identify different subgroups of PD (Walter et al 2007). The limits of this examination are the same as those of an usual echography, mainly dependence on the examiner’s skills, device performance and temporal acoustic bone window that in 1020% of patients is not penetrable or partially accessible (Berg 2011, Walter et al 2007). Advantages of the method are telling us that it is noninvasive, repeatable, requiring a short time for investigation, it comes available at the patient’s bedside and less dependent on patient compliance (Walter et al 2007, Berg & Riederer 2006). Also, the low cost and the fact that it offers new and complementary diagnostic information to other imaging methods (Berg 2011, Walter et al 2007, Berg & Riederer 2006) creates the premises for the development of this method in the near future as an extremely useful tool in the diagnosis of patients with PD or Parkinsonian syndromes. We set the following objectives for this study: Abstract. The data from multiple recent studies support the utility of transcranial ultrasound in positive and differential diagnosis of PD. The hyperechogenicity of substantia nigra (SN) is used as an accurate indicator of idiopathic PD. The aim of this study was to evaluate by transcranial ultrasound a group of patients with mild or moderate PD and a group of control subjects. Material and method: We conducted a study on patients with diagnosis of early PD, in whom we performed transcranial ultrasound examination of the brainstem through the temporal window. In this study the anatomical structures have been evaluated by bilateral measuring of the ultrasound parameters: diameter of the lateral ventricles (VL), the degree of echogenicity and size of SN, raphe appearance, the diameter of third ventricle. These data sets were compared with those of a control group who have not had a diagnosis of PD. Results: The prevalence of changes in the dopaminergic structures in PD was high: bilateral hyperechogenicity of SN over limit values of 0.20 cm2 was detected in 100% of patients with PD and in no subject from the control group. The degree of SN hyperechogenicity was important, quantified as moderate in 60% of patients and severe in the remaining 40%. Conclusions: From early PD stages, important sonographic changes can be identified, being a marker for premotor PD.
Involving patients in quality indicator development – a systematic review

Background Quality indicators (QI) are used in many health care areas to measure, compare, and improve the quality of care. Ideas of quality differ between health care providers and patients, yet patients are not regularly involved in QI development nor does a methodological standard for patient involvement in QI development exist. In this study we systematically reviewed the medical journal articles and gray literature for published approaches for involving patients in QI development. Methods We searched medical literature databases (Medline, Excerpta Medica database, and Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature), screened websites, and contacted experts in the field of QI development for publications on approaches to patient involvement in QI development. Results Eleven relevant journal articles and four web-published documents were included. Four major approaches to patient involvement were extracted from the literature: (1) focus group interviews, (2) self-administered questionnaires, (3) individual interviews, and (4) participation in panels during systematic consensus processes. Patients’ views were collected by involving patients, patient representatives, or family members. Conclusion Although there is a large body of literature on QI, publications that describe approaches to patient involvement in QI development are scarce. In principle, indirect and direct methods of patient involvement can be distinguished, and it seems most promising to combine different approaches. However, the limited number of publications identified clearly shows that further research in this field is overdue and that the quality of reporting found in studies within this field needs to be improved.
Endomicroscopic and Transcriptomic Analysis of Impaired Barrier Function and Malabsorption in Environmental Enteropathy

Introduction Environmental enteropathy (EE) is associated with growth failure, micronutrient malabsorption and impaired responses to oral vaccines. We set out to define cellular mechanisms of impaired barrier function in EE and explore protective mechanisms. Methods We studied 49 adults with environmental enteropathy in Lusaka, Zambia using confocal laser endomicroscopy (CLE); histology, immunohistochemistry and mRNA sequencing of small intestinal biopsies; and correlated these with plasma lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and a zinc uptake test. Results CLE images (median 134 for each study) showed virtually ubiquitous small intestinal damage. Epithelial defects, imaged by histology and claudin 4 immunostaining, were predominantly seen at the tips of villi and corresponded with leakage imaged in vivo by CLE. In multivariate analysis, circulating log-transformed LPS was correlated with cell shedding events (β = 0.83; P = 0.035) and with serum glucagon-like peptide-2 (β = -0.13; P = 0.007). Zinc uptake from a test dose of 25mg was attenuated in 30/47 (64%) individuals and in multivariate analysis was reduced by HIV, but positively correlated with GLP-2 (β = 2.72; P = 0.03). There was a U-shaped relationship between circulating LPS and villus surface area. Transcriptomic analysis identified 23 differentially expressed genes in severe enteropathy, including protective peptides and proteins. Conclusions Confocal endomicroscopy, claudin 4 immunostaining and histology identify epithelial defects which are probably sites of bacterial translocation, in the presence of which increased epithelial surface area increases the burden of translocation. GLP 2 and other protective peptides may play an important role in mucosal protection in EE.
Fighting ageism through nostalgia

Two experiments tested whether nostalgia a resource for fighting ageism. In Experiment 1, younger adults who recalled a nostalgic (vs. ordinary) encounter with an older adult showed a more positive attitude toward older adults, mediated by greater inclusion of older adults in the self (IOGS). In Experiment 2, these findings were replicated and extended with a subtle nostalgia manipulation. Younger adults identified an older, familiar adult, before writing about an encounter with this person that was characterised by either central (e.g., “keepsakes,” “childhood”) or peripheral (e.g., “wishing,” “daydreaming”) features of the construct of nostalgia (i.e., prototype). Participants who recalled a central (vs. peripheral) nostalgic encounter reported greater social connectedness, which predicted increased IOGS. In turn, increased IOGS was associated with lower desire to avoid older adults. Several alternative explanations for the intergroup benefits of nostalgia were ruled out. The research established that nostalgia qualifies as a resource for combatting ageism.
Chronic inflammation and coronary microvascular dysfunction in patients without risk factors for coronary artery disease.

AIMS To demonstrate that exposure to chronic inflammation results in coronary microvascular dysfunction (CMD). METHODS AND RESULTS Using positron emission tomography, resting and hyperaemic (adenosine, 140 microg/kg/min) myocardial blood flow (MBF) was measured in 25 patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) or rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Coronary flow reserve (CFR) was calculated as adenosine/resting MBF. Patients had normal or minimally diseased (i.e. <or=20% luminal diameter) coronary arteries at angiography and no cardiovascular risk factors. Twenty five age- and gender-matched healthy volunteers served as controls. Resting MBF was similar in patients and controls (1.25 +/- 0.27 vs. 1.15 +/- 0.24 mL/min/g; P = 0.15) while patients had lower hyperaemic MBF (2.94 +/- 0.83 vs. 4.11 +/- 0.84 mL/min/g; P < 0.001) and CFR (2.44 +/- 0.78 vs. 3.81 +/- 1.07; P < 0.001). CFR was inversely related to disease duration (r = -0.65; P < 0.001) and SLE disease activity (r = -0.69; P = 0.01). Seven patients showed ischaemic electrocardiographic changes during adenosine. They had longer disease duration (21 +/- 7 vs. 14 +/- 5 years; P = 0.03) and lower CFR (1.76 +/- 0.81 vs. 2.49 +/- 0.54; P = 0.006) when compared with patients without changes. CONCLUSION A reduced CFR in the absence of significant coronary disease is suggestive of CMD. We speculate that this is the consequence of prolonged systemic inflammation, which may precede and contribute to premature coronary artery disease in these patients.
A new knowledge representation for managing organisational knowledge objects

Knowledge is currently considered as a strategic resource for organisations. Most organisational knowledge is stored in knowledge objects with natural language contents, which should be managed in their original representation to facilitate proper access without losing its semantics. This work presents a knowledge representation model that provides an innovative structure for representing domain knowledge and a set of semantic strategies that use this model to annotate and search explicit knowledge. This model makes a proper conceptual separation between ontological and linguistic spaces enabling an adequate representation of concepts of the world and its description in a particular language. By this model, semantics of knowledge objects can be captured taking into account compound terms and their semantic derivatives (synonyms and hyperonyms/hyponyms). These features extend the abilities of traditional keyword-based searches and help users to retrieve explicit knowledge.
A QUANTITATIVE STUDY OF THE DEPOSITION AND CLEARANCE OF BACTERIA IN THE MURINE LUNG.

Recent bacteriologic studies have shown that the bronchial secretions of human beings are usually sterile in the absence of evident broncho-pulmonary disease (1-3). However, bacterial contamination of the bronchi by inspired air, and perhaps by upper respiratory tract secretions, can be considered to be a common occurrence. For example, when radiopaque media are instilled into the pharynges of sleeping individuals, radi-opacity can often be detected in the lungs after-ward (4). Thus, the absence of bacteria in the bronchi suggests that potent antibacterial mechanisms are continuously operative (3). The capacity of bronchopulmonary tissue to dispose of foreign materials, including bacteria, has been recognized for many years. Stillman (5) and Hamburger and Robertson (6) observed that pneumococci disappeared from the peripheral portions of the lungs of mice and dogs within a few hours after sprays of pneumococci had been instilled. On the other hand, oropharyngeal com-mensals and potential respiratory pathogens can be isolated from the bronchial secretions of patients with chronic bronchitis during relatively quiescent periods in their disease, i.e., in the absence of increased symptomatology and signs of infection (3). The bacteria that are found in such secretions are usually present in numbers exceeding 106 colonies per milliliter of secretions (3). Such a finding implies impairment of the antibacterial mechanisms of the respiratory tract in chronic bronchitis and indicates the need for further study of the mechanisms by which the * bronchopulmonary system retains its sterility. Presumably, insight into such mechanisms would provide a basis for understanding better the pathogenesis of chronic bronchopulmonary infection. The present study was designed to investigate the quantitative implantation and clearance of aerosolized bacteria in the lungs of small animals. Many early experiments with airborne contagion employed coarse sprays and systems that were difficult to quantitate. Precise aerosol-exposure systems were introduced by Wells, who demonstrated that droplet nuclei play a key role in the aerial transmission of disease (7, 8). Bacteria in minute-dried residues of evaporated droplets live suspended in air for hours, and in this state they are inhaled and deposited in pulmonary tissue . , Aerosol devices were further developed in large-scale cloud chamber studies (9). Lurie, Heppleston, Abramson, and Swartz (10) and Middlebrook (11) also adapted these techniques to the experimental production of pulmonary tuberculosis. Most of the experimental equipment for such studies is complex and costly. This report describes an inexpensive, compact aerosol exposure system that offers a relatively simple method for the …
Cellular Immune Activation in Cerebrospinal Fluid From Ugandans With Cryptococcal Meningitis and Immune Reconstitution Inflammatory Syndrome

Background. Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated cryptococcal meningitis (CM) is characterized by high fungal burden and limited leukocyte trafficking to cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The immunopathogenesis of CM immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) after initiation of antiretroviral therapy at the site of infection is poorly understood. Methods. We characterized the lineage and activation status of mononuclear cells in blood and CSF of HIV-infected patients with noncryptococcal meningitis (NCM) (n = 10), those with CM at day 0 (n = 40) or day 14 (n = 21) of antifungal therapy, and those with CM-IRIS (n = 10). Results. At diagnosis, highly activated CD8+ T cells predominated in CSF in both CM and NCM. CM-IRIS was associated with an increasing frequency of CSF CD4+ T cells (increased from 2.2% to 23%; P = .06), a shift in monocyte phenotype from classic to an intermediate/proinflammatory, and increased programmed death ligand 1 expression on natural killer cells (increased from 11.9% to 61.6%, P = .03). CSF cellular responses were distinct from responses in peripheral blood. Conclusions. After CM, T cells in CSF tend to evolve with the development of IRIS, with increasing proportions of activated CD4+ T cells, migration of intermediate monocytes to the CSF, and declining fungal burden. These changes provide insight into IRIS pathogenesis and could be exploited to more effectively treat CM and prevent CM-IRIS.
SIMULATION ANALYSIS OF SHUTTLE BASED STORAGE AND RETRIEVAL SYSTEMS

In this paper, a simulation-based performance evaluation of shuttle-based storage and retrieval system (SBS/RS) is presented. In comparison with well-known automated storage and retrieval systems, SBS/RSs can substantially increase the throughput capacity of the system. The objective of this study is to exploit the benefits of SBS/RS system design for reducing the mean cycle time of transactions and consequently increasing the throughput capacity of the system. Performance comparison of the studied SBS/RS is contrasted with alternative storage rack configurations, velocity profiles of the shuttle carriers and velocity profiles of the elevators’ lifting tables in the system. The results show that SBS/RSs are effective in reducing the mean cycle time and also show large improvement by increasing throughput capacity. (Received in January 2014, accepted in October 2014. This paper was with the authors 3 months for 2 revisions.)
Evolutionary Forces in Shaping the Codon and Amino Acid Usages in Blochmannia floridanus

Abstract Endosymbiotic relationship has great effect on ecological system. Codon and amino acid usages bias of endosymbiotic bacteria Blochmannia floridanus (whose host is an ant Camponotus floridanus) was investigated using experimentally known genes of this organism. Correspondence Analysis on RSCU values show that there exists only one single explanatory major axis that is linked to the strand specific mutational biases. Majority of the genes have a tendency to concentrate on the leading strand, which may be related to the adaptive property related to the replication mechanisms. Amino acid usages were markedly different between the highly and lowly expressed genes in this organism and in particular, GC rich amino acids were found to occur significantly higher in highly expressed genes than the lowly expressed genes. Comparative analyses of the orthologous genes of Escherichia coli and Blochmannia floridanus show that highly expressed genes are significantly more conserved than lowly expressed genes. Based on our results we concluded that strand specific mutational bias is strongly operational in selecting the codon usage in this organism. Replicational-transcriptional selection can be invoked from the presence of majority of highly expressed genes in the leading strand. Conservation of GC rich amino acids in the highly expressed genes to its ancestor is the major source of variation in amino acid usages in the organism. Hydrophobicity of the genes is the second major source in differentiating the genes according to their amino acid usages in this organism.
Recent Results from the ARM Continuous Speech Recognition Project

This paper describes some of the most recent work on continuous speech recognition using phoneme-level hidden Markov models (HMMs) which has been conducted at the UK Speech Research Unit as part of the ARM (Airborne Reconnaissance Mission) project [11]. The goal of the project is automatic recognition of spoken airborne reconnaissance reports. The project draws on many years of research undertaken in the UK by the Joint Speech Research Unit and the current RSRE Speech Research Unit, and also on the work on continuous speech recognition using sub-word HMMs which has been conducted under the current DARPA programme, particularly at MIT Lincoln Laboratory [5] and Carnegie Mellon University [3], and by the speech groups at IBM and BBN.
Prospects of functional magnetic resonance imaging as lie detector

Following the demise of the polygraph, supporters of assisted scientific lie detection tools have enthusiastically appropriated neuroimaging technologies “as the savior of scientifically verifiable lie detection in the courtroom” (Gerard, 2008: 5). These proponents believe the future impact of neuroscience “will be inevitable, dramatic, and will fundamentally alter the way the law does business” (Erickson, 2010: 29); however, such enthusiasm may prove premature. For in nearly every article published by independent researchers in peer reviewed journals, the respective authors acknowledge that fMRI research, processes, and technology are insufficiently developed and understood for gatekeepers to even consider introducing these neuroimaging measures into criminal courts as they stand today for the purpose of determining the veracity of statements made. Regardless of how favorable their analyses of fMRI or its future potential, they all acknowledge the presence of issues yet to be resolved. Even assuming a future where these issues are resolved and an appropriate fMRI lie-detection process is developed, its integration into criminal trials is not assured for the very success of such a future system may necessitate its exclusion from courtrooms on the basis of existing legal and ethical prohibitions. In this piece, aimed for a multidisciplinary readership, we seek to highlight and bring together the multitude of hurdles which would need to be successfully overcome before fMRI can (if ever) be a viable applied lie detection system. We argue that the current status of fMRI studies on lie detection meets neither basic legal nor scientific standards. We identify four general classes of hurdles (scientific, legal and ethical, operational, and social) and provide an overview on the stages and operations involved in fMRI studies, as well as the difficulties of translating these laboratory protocols into a practical criminal justice environment. It is our overall conclusion that fMRI is unlikely to constitute a viable lie detector for criminal courts.
Throughput-range tradeoff of wireless mesh backhaul networks

Wireless backhaul communication is expected to play a significant role in providing the necessary backhaul resources for future high-rate wireless networks. Mesh networking, in which information is routed from source to destination over multiple wireless links, has potential advantages over traditional single-hop networking, especially for backhaul communication. We develop a linear programming framework for determining optimum routing and scheduling of flows that maximizes throughput in a wireless mesh network and accounts for the effect of interference and variable-rate transmission. We then apply this framework to examine the throughput and range capabilities for providing wireless backhaul to a hexagonal grid of base stations, for both single-hop and multihop transmissions for various network scenarios. We then discuss the application of mesh networking for load balancing of wired backhaul traffic under unequal access traffic conditions. Numerical results show a significant benefit for mesh networking under unbalanced loading.