Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Plasmonic Nanobubbles Rapidly Detect and Destroy Drug-Resistant Tumors

The resistance of residual cancer cells after oncological resection to adjuvant chemoradiotherapies results in both high recurrence rates and high non-specific tissue toxicity, thus preventing the successful treatment of such cancers as head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). The patients' survival rate and quality of life therefore depend upon the efficacy, selectivity and low non-specific toxicity of the adjuvant treatment. We report a novel, theranostic in vivo technology that unites both the acoustic diagnostics and guided intracellular delivery of anti-tumor drug (liposome-encapsulated doxorubicin, Doxil) in one rapid process, namely a pulsed laser-activated plasmonic nanobubble (PNB). HNSCC-bearing mice were treated with gold nanoparticle conjugates, Doxil, and single near-infrared laser pulses of low energy. Tumor-specific clusters of gold nanoparticles (solid gold spheres) converted the optical pulses into localized PNBs. The acoustic signals of the PNB detected the tumor with high specificity and sensitivity. The mechanical impact of the PNB, co-localized with Doxil liposomes, selectively ejected the drug into the cytoplasm of cancer cells. Cancer cell-specific generation of PNBs and their intracellular co-localization with Doxil improved the in vivo therapeutic efficacy from 5-7% for administration of only Doxil or PNBs alone to 90% thus demonstrating the synergistic therapeutic effect of the PNB-based intracellular drug release. This mechanism also reduced the non-specific toxicity of Doxil below a detectable level and the treatment time to less than one minute. Thus PNBs combine highly sensitive diagnosis, overcome drug resistance and minimize non-specific toxicity in a single rapid theranostic procedure for intra-operative treatment.
A Complete Model for the Evaluation of the Magnetic Stimulation of Peripheral Nerves

In this paper, a numerical procedure for the analysis of peripheral nerve excitation through magnetic stimulation is presented and used to investigate the physical parameters influencing stimulation. The finite difference technique is used to evaluate the electric field distribution induced inside an arm by the current flowing through a coil, and a nonlinear cable model is used to describe the response of the nerve fiber to the induced electric field. The comparison among several forearm structures has evidenced that the heterogeneous non dispersive forearm model is a good reference condition. With this model, the lowest charging voltage on the stimulator capacitance, able to produce the nerve stimulation, is achieved when the coil is shifted, with respect to the nerve, of a quantity slightly lower than the coil radius but it is also possible to excite the nerve fiber by applying a shift equal to zero. The charging voltage increases when the coil radius is increased and when a three-dimensional coil geometry is considered. Moreover, this voltage is strongly dependent on the nerve position inside the forearm and on the kind of tissue surrounding the nerve.
The Impact of Sarbanes-Oxley on Cross-listed Companies*

We use the unexpected application of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) of 2002 to cross-listed companies to examine how an exogenous improvement in investor protection affects shareholder wealth and the monitoring and disclosure environment. We find that the stock market reaction to SOX is more positive for firms from countries with weak private enforcement of investor rights. This finding is consistent with SOX improving investor protection and with such improvements enhancing firm value. We also document changes in the behavior of institutional blockholders and sell-side analysts after SOX that are consistent with SOX enhancing investor protection for foreign private issuers and, as a result, altering the incentives of monitoring and disclosure intermediaries. We find decreases in analyst following and in percentage ownership by outside blockholders after passage of SOX. The cross-sectional variation in the change in analyst following is weakly positively associated with several measures of investor protection. These results provide modest evidence of SOX substituting for the monitoring role of analysts. The cross-sectional variation in the change in percentage ownership by outside blockholders is strongly positively associated with several measures of investor protection. These findings support the hypothesis that SOX’s direct regulation of corporate governance at cross-listed firms substitutes for the monitoring role of outside institutional blockholders.
Recurrent inference machines for accelerated MRI reconstruction.

Accelerated MRI reconstruction is important for making MRI faster and thus applicable in a broader range of problem domains. Computational tools allow for high-resolution imaging without the need to perform time-consuming measurements. Most recently, deep learning approaches have been applied to this problem. However, none of these methods have been shown to transfer well across different measurement settings. We propose to use Recurrent Inference Machines as a framework for accelerated MRI, which allows us to leverage the power of deep learning without explicit domain knowledge. We show in experiments that the model can generalize well across different setups, while at the same time it outperforms another deep learning method and a compressed sensing approach.
Pharmacological influence on processes of adjuvant arthritis: Effect of the combination of an antioxidant active substance with methotrexate

Abstract Oxygen metabolism has an important role in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis. A certain correlation was observed between oxidative stress, arthritis and the immune system. Reactive oxygen species produced in the course of cellular oxidative phosphorylation and by activated phagocytic cells during oxidative burst, exceed the physiological buffering capacity and result in oxidative stress. The excessive production of ROS can damage protein, lipids, nucleic acids, and matrix components. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis have an altered antioxidant defense capacity barrier. In the present study the effect of substances with antioxidative properties, i.e. pinosylvin and carnosine, was determined in monotherapy for the treatment of adjuvant arthritis (AA). Moreover carnosine was evaluated in combination therapy with methotrexate. Rats with AA were administered first pinosylvin (30 mg/kg body mass daily per os), second carnosine (150 mg/kg body mass daily per os) in monotherapy for a period of 28 days. Further, rats with AA were administered methotrexate (0.3 mg/kg body mass 2-times weekly per os), and a combination of methotrexate+carnosine, with the carnosine dose being the same as in the previous experiment. Parameters, i.e. changes in hind paw volume and arthritic score were determined in rats as indicators of destructive arthritis-associated clinical changes. Plasmatic levels of TBARS and lag time of Fe2+- induced lipid peroxidation (tau-FeLP) in plasma and brain were specified as markers of oxidation. Plasmatic level of CRP and activity of γ-glutamyltransferase (GGT) in spleen and joint were used as inflammation markers. In comparison to pinosylvin, administration of carnosine monotherapy led to a significant decrease in the majority of the parameters studied. In the combination treatment with methotrexate+carnosine most parameters monitored were improved more remarkably than by methotrexate alone. Carnosine can increase the disease-modifying effect of methotrexate treatment in rat AA.
Clinical significance of and outcomes for Bacteroides fragilis bacteremia.

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Bacteroides fragilis is a virulent anaerobic pathogen, resulting in considerable mortality. This study was conducted to investigate the clinical characteristics, significance of polymicrobial bacteremia, and treatment outcomes of B. fragilis bacteremia. METHODS This retrospective analysis enrolled 199 adult patients with B. fragilis bacteremia, who were admitted to hospital between January 2004 and May 2007. Chi-squared and Fisher's exact tests were used for comparison. A p value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS 142 patients with B. fragilis bacteremia (71.4%) had at least 1 underlying disease. Malignancy was the commonest comorbidity (n = 62; 31.2%). Intra-abdominal infection accounted for 49.3% of the infection sources. Seventy seven patients (38.7%) had polymicrobial bacteremia and Escherichia coli was the most common concurrent isolate (n = 24). There was no significant difference in septic shock incidence and clinical outcome between the monomicrobial and polymicrobial groups. The overall 30-day crude mortality rate was 30.7%. Inappropriate early antimicrobial therapy did not affect outcome, but a higher mortality rate was noted for patients who never received appropriate antimicrobial therapy (55.2% vs 26.5%; p = 0.002). Independent risk factors for mortality were age 65 years and older (p = 0.010), malignancy (p = 0.001), shock (p < 0.001), thrombocytopenia (p = 0.026), and lack of surgical intervention (p = 0.035). CONCLUSIONS B. fragilis bacteremia causes a high mortality rate, especially for elderly people and patients with cancer. Clinicians should be alert to the infectious focus, and appropriate surgical intervention may be necessary to improve outcomes.
The Effects of Psychological Skills Training on Mental Toughness and Psychological Well-Being of Student-Athletes

This study examined the effects of a psychological skills intervention (PST) designed to enhance the mental toughness and psychological well-being of student-athlete rowers (N = 16). Within this context, PWB was conceptualized by an amalgamation of the following psychological constructs; self-esteem, perceived self-efficacy, positive affect and dispositional optimism. Progress was examined at three times evenly dispersed over the course of the six-month intervention, pre-, mid- and post-intervention. The intervention was solution-focused and informed by Dweck’s (2009) theory of a growth mindset and Goldberg’s (1998) psychological strategies to develop mental toughness. The study design was a 2 (group) × 3 (time) two-way MANOVA with repeated measures on one factor (time). Various measures of mental toughness and positive psychological constructs were utilised. Over the course of the intervention, MT significantly improved, in addition to perceived self-efficacy, self-esteem and positive affect. Positive significant relationships were observed between components of MT and each of the positive measures; which lends support to the conceptualization of MT as a positive psychological construct which fosters positive psychological states (Clough & Strycharczyk, 2012). Further research is warranted to examine the development of MT on negative psychological constructs.
Termination of breastfeeding after 12 months of age due to a new pregnancy and other causes is associated with increased mortality in Guinea-Bissau.

BACKGROUND As part of an assessment of breastfeeding and child health in Guinea-Bissau, we investigated the impact of mother's reason for weaning on subsequent child mortality. METHODS Children were identified and followed by the demographic health surveillance system of the Bandim Health Project in Guinea-Bissau. Breastfeeding status and survival were ascertained by 3-monthly follow-up home visits. At termination of breastfeeding mothers were interviewed about her reasons for weaning. In all, 1423 children who terminated breastfeeding after 12 months of age were followed to 3 years of age. RESULTS Median length of breastfeeding was 22 months. Following termination of breastfeeding, 66 children died before 36 months of age. In all, 62% (879/1423) were weaned because they were 'healthy'. Compared with the 'healthy' children, all other causes of weaning were associated with a higher mortality (mortality ratio [MR] = 2.97, 95% CI: 1.54-5.73). For 237 children weaned due to a new pregnancy the MR was 3.25 (95% CI: 1.45-7.30). Seventy-five children weaned because of illness had a 2.98 (95% CI: 0.95-9.39) fold excess mortality compared with children considered healthy. Excess deaths in the 'non-healthy' group accounted for 44% (29/66) of post-weaning deaths. Median length of spacing between an index child and a new sibling was 28 months irrespective of whether the index child survived or died before 3 years of age. The majority of the deaths occurred before birth of the new sibling. CONCLUSION Popular rationalizations of abstinence during breastfeeding emphasizes, as we observed, that weaning due to new pregnancy of the mother is associated with higher mortality. This was not due to a shorter breastfeeding period of the child weaned due to a new pregnancy. Generally children weaned for other reasons than 'being healthy' had higher mortality. The mother's reason for weaning could potentially be used as screening criteria in child monitoring programmes in areas with high mortality.
Pulmonary hemodynamic profile in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Introduction Few data are available in regards to the prevalence of pulmonary hypertension (PH) in the broad spectrum of COPD. This study was aimed at assessing the prevalence of PH in a cohort of COPD patients across the severity of airflow limitation, and reporting the hemodynamic characteristics at rest and during exercise. Methods We performed a retrospective analysis on COPD patients who underwent right-heart catheterization in our center with measurements obtained at rest (n=139) and during exercise (n=85). PH was defined as mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) ≥25 mmHg and pulmonary capillary wedge pressure <15 mmHg. Exercise-induced PH (EIPH) was defined by a ratio of ΔmPAP/Δcardiac output >3. Results PH was present in 25 patients (18%). According to the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) classification, PH prevalence in GOLD 2 was 7% (3 patients); 25% (14 patients) in GOLD 3; and 22% (8 patients) in GOLD 4. Severe PH (mPAP ≥35 mmHg) was identified in four patients (2.8%). Arterial partial oxygen pressure was the outcome most strongly associated with PH (r=−0.29, P<0.001). EIPH was observed in 60 patients (71%) and had a similar prevalence in both GOLD 2 and 3, and was present in all GOLD 4 patients. Patients with PH had lower cardiac index during exercise than patients without PH (5.0±1.2 versus 6.7±1.4 L/min/m2, respectively; P=0.001). Conclusion PH has a similar prevalence in COPD patients with severe and very-severe airflow limitation, being associated with the presence of arterial hypoxemia. In contrast, EIPH is highly prevalent, even in moderate COPD, and might contribute to limiting exercise tolerance.
Comparison of Neurofeedback and Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation Efficacy on Treatment of Primary Headaches: A Randomized Controlled Clinical Trial

Background: Headache is one of the most prevalent investigated complaints in the neurology clinics and is the most common pain-related complaint worldwide. Stress is a significant factor that causes and triggers headaches. Since healthcare practitioners experience a lot of stress in their careers, they are more prone to headaches. Objectives: This study was designed to evaluate and compares the efficacy of neurofeedback behavioural therapy (NFB) and transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) in the treatment of primary headaches in healthcare providers. Patients and Methods: The current study was a clinical trial, performed in Teheran, IR Iran, with two experimental groups and a control group. Convenient sampling method was used to recruit patients. Independent variables were NFB and TENS and dependent variables were frequency, severity, and duration of headache. Blanchard headache diary was used for assessment. Hence, 45 healthcare providers with primary headache were selected and randomly allocated to one of the NFB, TENS, and control groups by block random assignment method. All three groups completed the headache diary during one week before and after the treatment period as pretest and posttests, respectively. The NFB group was treated in the period between pretest and posttest with fifteen 30-minute treatment sessions three times a week and the TENS group was treated with fifteen 20-minute daily sessions. The control group received none of these treatments. Results: The results from the analysis of covariance showed that treatment with NFB and TENS had caused significant decrease in the frequency, severity, and duration of headache in experimental groups. The results of the LSD post-hoc test indicated that there were significant differences in the frequency, severity, and duration of pain among experimental groups and the control group. Moreover, there were significant differences between pain frequencies in experimental groups. Conclusions: According to the results and given the significant reductions in the frequency, severity, and duration of headaches, it seems that NFB and TENS might have an effective role in reducing primary headaches of healthcare providers. In addition, comparing the two methods, treatment with NFB was more effective in reducing headache frequency and severity.
Detailed Structural Decomposition of Galaxy Images

We present a two-dimensional fitting algorithm (GALFIT) designed to extract structural components from galaxy images, with emphasis on closely modeling light profiles of spatially well-resolved, nearby galaxies observed with the Hubble Space Telescope. Our algorithm improves on previous techniques in two areas: by being able to simultaneously fit a galaxy with an arbitrary number of components and with optimization in computation speed, suited for working on large galaxy images. We use two-dimensional models such as the "Nuker" law, the Sérsic (de Vaucouleurs) profile, an exponential disk, and Gaussian or Moffat functions. The azimuthal shapes are generalized ellipses that can fit disky and boxy components. Some potential applications of our program include: standard modeling of global galaxy profiles; extracting bars, stellar disks, double nuclei, and compact nuclear sources; and measuring absolute dust extinction or surface brightness fluctuations after removing the galaxy model. When examined in detail, we find that even simple looking galaxies generally require at least three components to be modeled accurately, rather than the one or two components more often employed. Many galaxies with complex isophotes, ellipticity changes, and position angle twists can be modeled accurately in two dimensions. We illustrate this by way of 11 case studies, which include regular and barred spiral galaxies, highly disky lenticular galaxies, and elliptical galaxies displaying various levels of complexities. A useful extension of this algorithm is to accurately extract nuclear point sources in galaxies. We compare two-dimensional and one-dimensional extraction techniques on simulated images of galaxies having nuclear slopes with different degrees of cuspiness, and we then illustrate the application of the program to several examples of nearby galaxies with weak nuclei.
Reliability and Validity of Selected PROMIS Measures in People with Rheumatoid Arthritis

Purpose To evaluate the reliability and validity of 11 PROMIS measures to assess symptoms and impacts identified as important by people with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods Consecutive patients (N = 177) in an observational study completed PROMIS computer adapted tests (CATs) and a short form (SF) assessing pain, fatigue, physical function, mood, sleep, and participation. We assessed test-test reliability and internal consistency using correlation and Cronbach’s alpha. We assessed convergent validity by examining Pearson correlations between PROMIS measures and existing measures of similar domains and known groups validity by comparing scores across disease activity levels using ANOVA. Results Participants were mostly female (82%) and white (83%) with mean (SD) age of 56 (13) years; 24% had ≤ high school, 29% had RA ≤ 5 years with 13% ≤ 2 years, and 22% were disabled. PROMIS Physical Function, Pain Interference and Fatigue instruments correlated moderately to strongly (rho’s ≥ 0.68) with corresponding PROs. Test-retest reliability ranged from . 725–. 883, and Cronbach’s alpha from . 906–. 991. A dose-response relationship with disease activity was evident in Physical Function with similar trends in other scales except Anger. Conclusions These data provide preliminary evidence of reliability and construct validity of PROMIS CATs to assess RA symptoms and impacts, and feasibility of use in clinical care. PROMIS instruments captured the experiences of RA patients across the broad continuum of RA symptoms and function, especially at low disease activity levels. Future research is needed to evaluate performance in relevant subgroups, assess responsiveness and identify clinically meaningful changes.
An autonomous demand response program in smart grid with foresighted users

In smart grid, demand response is a viable approach to motivate users towards shifting the demand during the peak load periods. Each user can also benefit by reducing its total cost. In most of the existing studies, the demand response program is modeled as a one-shot game among myopic users, who aim to minimize their cost in one period of time. In this paper, we show that the Nash equilibrium (NE) in the one-shot game can be inefficient in reducing the peak load demand and the users' cost. We address the inefficiency of the NE by modeling the demand response program as a repeated game. A grim-trigger strategy is proposed to determine the subgame perfect equilibrium. To address the issue of fairness, we partition the set of users into groups. In each time period, only one group of users are required to participate in the demand response program. Simulation results show that the proposed demand response repeated game can benefit both the users, by reducing their long-term cost, and the utility company, by reducing the peak-to-average ratio in the aggregate load demand.
On Metric Diophantine Approximation in the Field of Formal Laurent Series

B. deMathan (1970, Bull. Soc. Math. France Supl. Mem.21) proved that Khintchine? s Theorem has an analogue in the field of formal Laurent series. First, we show that in case of only one inequality this result can also be obtained by continued fraction theory. Then, we are interested in the number of solutions and show under special assumptions that one gets a central limit theorem, a law of iterated logarithm and an asymptotic formula. This is an analogue of a result due to W. J. LeVeque (1958, Trans. Amer. Math. Soc.87, 237? 260). The proof is based on probabilistic results for formal Laurent series due to H. Niederreiter (1988, in Lecture Notes in Computer Science, Vol. 330, pp. 191? 209, Springer-Verlag, New York/Berlin).