Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Treatment of Stress Urinary Incontinence in Neurological Patients With an Injectable Elastomer Prosthesis: Preliminary Results

Many treatment options for stress urinary incontinence are difficult to apply to neurological patients. Urolastic is a new agent that is primarily indicated for women with mild stress urinary incontinence or men after prostate surgery. In this report, we present a series of 5 cases describing the first use of Urolastic to treat neurological patients. All patients were evaluated with a voiding diary and the use of auxiliary devices as the main indicators of continence. The median operative time was 30.8 minutes, and no complications were observed. Of the 5 patients, 4 reported improved incontinence: 2 switched from diapers to small pads, while the other 2 patients were able to discontinue urinary condom use. The only instance of treatment failure occurred in a patient with a low-compliance bladder. The advantages of this procedure appear to include a soft-cuff effect, reversibility, and minimal invasiveness. However, a future randomized study would be necessary to validate this treatment option.
Search for tidal dwarf galaxy candidates in a sample of ultraluminous infrared galaxies

Context. Small star-forming galaxies made out of collisional debris have been found in a variety of merging systems. So far only a few of them are known in Ultraluminous Infrared Galaxies (ULIRGs) although they show clear signs of interactions. Whether external star formation may take place in such objects in an open question. Aims. The aim of this paper is to identify and characterise the physical and kinematic properties of the external star-forming regions in a sample of ULIRGs, including Tidal Dwarf Galaxies (TDG) candidates. The likelihood of survival of these regions as TDGs is also evaluated. Methods. The analysis is based on optical Integral Field Spectroscopy (IFS) and high angular resolution Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging. Results. We found that the presence of external star-forming regions is common, with 12 objects being identified in 5 ULIRGs. These regions show a large range of dynamical mass up to 1 × 10 10 M� , with average sizes of ∼750 pc. In addition, the line ratios (H ii region-like), metallicities (12 + log (O/H) ∼ 8.6) and Hα equivalent widths (34–257 A) are typical of young bursts of star formation (age ∼ 5–8 Myr), and similar to those of the TDG candidates found in less luminous mergers and compact groups of galaxies. The extinction corrected Hα luminosity of these young bursts leads to masses for the young stellar component of ∼2 × 10 6 –7 × 10 8 M� . The likelihood of survival of these regions as TDGs is discussed based on their structural and kinematic properties. Particularly interesting is our finding that most of these systems follow the relation between effective radius and velocity dispersion found at lower (globular clusters) and higher (Elliptical) mass systems, which suggests they are stable against internal motions. The stability against forces from the parent galaxy is studied on the basis of several criteria and a comparison of the data with the predictions of dynamical evolutionary models is also performed. Five regions out of twelve show High-Medium or High likelihood of survival based on all the utilised tracers. Our best candidate, which satisfies all criteria, is located in the advanced merger IRAS 15250+3609 and presents a velocity field decoupled from the relatively distant parent galaxy.
Strong, weak, and missing links in a microbial community of the N.W. Mediterranean Sea.

Planktonic microbial communities often appear stable over periods of days and thus tight links are assumed to exist between different functional groups (i.e. producers and consumers). We examined these links by characterizing short-term temporal correspondences in the concentrations and activities of microbial groups sampled from 1 m depth, at a coastal site of the N.W. Mediterranean Sea, in September 2001 every 3 h for 3 days. We estimated the abundance and activity rates of the autotrophic prokaryote Synechococcus, heterotrophic bacteria, viruses, heterotrophic nanoflagellates, as well as dissolved organic carbon concentrations. We found that Synechococcus, heterotrophic bacteria, and viruses displayed distinct patterns. Synechococcus abundance was greatest at midnight and lowest at 21:00 and showed the common pattern of an early evening maximum in dividing cells. In contrast, viral concentrations were minimal at midnight and maximal at 18:00. Viral infection of heterotrophic bacteria was rare (0.5-2.5%) and appeared to peak at 03:00. Heterotrophic bacteria, as % eubacteria-positive cells, peaked at midday, appearing loosely related to relative changes in dissolved organic carbon concentration. Bacterial production as assessed by leucine incorporation showed no consistent temporal pattern but could be related to shifts in the grazing rates of heterotrophic nanoflagellates and viral infection rates. Estimates of virus-induced mortality of heterotrophic bacteria, based on infection frequencies, were only about 10% of cell production. Overall, the dynamics of viruses appeared more closely related to Synechococcus than to heterotrophic bacteria. Thus, we found weak links between dissolved organic carbon concentration, or grazing, and bacterial activity, a possibly strong link between Synechococcus and viruses, and a missing link between light and viruses.
Gear Fault Detection Effectiveness as Applied to Tooth Surface Pitting Fatigue Damage

A study was performed to evaluate fault detection effectiveness as applied to gear tooth pitting fatigue damage. Vibration and oil-debris monitoring (ODM) data were gathered from 24 sets of spur pinion and face gears run during a previous endurance evaluation study. Three common condition indicators (RMS, FM4, and NA4) were deduced from the time-averaged vibration data and used with the ODM to evaluate their performance for gear fault detection. The NA4 parameter showed to be a very good condition indicator for the detection of gear tooth surface pitting failures. The FM4 and RMS parameters performed average to below average in detection of gear tooth surface pitting failures. The ODM sensor was successful in detecting a significant amount of debris from all the gear tooth pitting fatigue failures. Excluding outliers, the average cumulative mass at the end of a test was 40 mg.
Rateless Coded Cooperation for Multiple-Access Channels in the Low Power Regime

Current research on cooperation in wireless communications has mainly focused on ergodic capacity in high SNR (or at least finite SNR) case. We show that cooperation is more efficient in the low power regime when considering outage capacity. We develop cooperation methods that are particularly efficient in the low power regime. They can be easily scaled to large networks when combined with rateless codes. The results show that there is a large gain in Eb/N0|min from cooperation when considering outage capacity in the low power regime. This is in contrast to the fact that in a Gaussian channel, we can at most change the slope of Eb/N0
What digital skills are required by future public relations practitioners and can the academy deliver them

A recent study tour of Sydney public relations agencies and a major corporate for final year public relations students highlighted the significant trend toward digital as a core element of contemporary communication strategies. Compared with a similar tour in 2015, nearly all the case studies presented were based around digital communication, with only a very small number using traditional media. This study tour demonstrated that today’s graduates require a high level of knowledge of all the basics of digital communication to be employable in the future. Recent research in the United Kingdom and Australia has demonstrated that employers are expecting future public relations graduates to understand what digital concepts will improve productivity, increase innovation, deliver cost efficiencies and improve relationships with key stakeholders, customers, suppliers, employees, governments and communities. This paper outlines the digital technologies that the academy needs to introduce if public relations is to continue offering creative, innovative and effective relationship-building solutions to its many stakeholders.
Data retrieval from online social network profiles for social engineering applications

With the increased use of online social networking sites, data retrieval from social networking profiles is becoming a major tool for business. What makes social networking profile data different is its semi-structured format. The structure and the presentation of profile data change all the time. In social networking there is a lack of research into automated data retrieval from semi-structured web pages. Our approach is based on automated retrieval of the profile's attributes and list of top friends from MySpace by examining and extracting the relevant tokens in the parsed HTML code. The tokens were placed into a repository and Breadth First Search algorithm was used. The approach was implemented and tested with a profile which resulted in over 800 top friend profiles and attributes being extracted. This implementation process highlighted that MySpace profile structures vary depending on profile type and the way in which the user has customised the profile.
HUBUNGAN STATUS GIZI DENGAN PRESTASI BELAJAR SISWA

Gizi merupakan salah satu faktor penting yang menentukan tingkat kesehatan dan keserasian antara perkembangan fisik dan perkembangan mental. Tingkat keadaan gizi normal tercapai bila kebutuhan zat gizi optimal terpenuhi. Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui hubungan status gizi terhadap prestasi siswa di Sekolah Dasar Negeri Sumber Sekar 1 Dau, Kecamatan Dau, Kabupaten Malang. Pada penelitian ini menggunakan desain penelitian non ekperimen dengan jenis correlation dengan metode pendekatan cross sectional. Populasi dalam penelitian ini adalah siswa dan siswi di Sekolah Dasar (SD) Sumber Sekar Dau sebanyak 52 orang. Sampel dalam penelitian ini sebanyak 52 orang. Pengambilan sampel dengan total sampling. Data yang diperoleh dianalisis dengan menggunakan uji statistik spearmant rank dengan derajat kemaknaan (0,05). Hasil uji statistk penelitian hampir seluruh responden masuk kategori status gizi normal sebanyak 42 anak (80,8%), dan hampir seluruh responden berprestasi belajar baik sebanyak 42 orang (80,8%). Hasil analisis bivariat menunjukan p-value = 0,02 < 0,05. Artinya ada hubungan antara status gizi dengan prestasi belajar dengan kekuatan hubungan subtansial atau sedang. Kata Kunci: Prestasi Belajar, Status Gizi
Sensitivity of Aspergillus nidulans to the Cellulose Synthase Inhibitor Dichlobenil: Insights from Wall-Related Genes’ Expression and Ultrastructural Hyphal Morphologies

The fungal cell wall constitutes an important target for the development of antifungal drugs, because of its central role in morphogenesis, development and determination of fungal-specific molecular features. Fungal walls are characterized by a network of interconnected glycoproteins and polysaccharides, namely α-, β-glucans and chitin. Cell walls promptly and dynamically respond to environmental stimuli by a signaling mechanism, which triggers, among other responses, modulations in wall biosynthetic genes’ expression. Despite the absence of cellulose in the wall of the model filamentous fungus Aspergillus nidulans, we found in this study that fungal growth, spore germination and morphology are affected by the addition of the cellulose synthase inhibitor dichlobenil. Expression analysis of selected genes putatively involved in cell wall biosynthesis, carried out at different time points of drug exposure (i.e. 0, 1, 3, 6 and 24 h), revealed increased expression for the putative mixed linkage β-1,3;1,4 glucan synthase celA together with the β-1,3-glucan synthase fksA and the Rho-related GTPase rhoA. We also compared these data with the response to Congo Red, a known plant/fungal drug affecting both chitin and cellulose biosynthesis. The two drugs exerted different effects at the cell wall level, as shown by gene expression analysis and the ultrastructural features observed through atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Although the concentration of dichlobenil required to affect growth of A. nidulans is approximately 10-fold higher than that required to inhibit plant cellulose biosynthesis, our work for the first time demonstrates that a cellulose biosynthesis inhibitor affects fungal growth, changes fungal morphology and expression of genes connected to fungal cell wall biosynthesis.
Category-Specific Responses to Faces and Objects in Primate Auditory Cortex

Auditory and visual signals often occur together, and the two sensory channels are known to influence each other to facilitate perception. The neural basis of this integration is not well understood, although other forms of multisensory influences have been shown to occur at surprisingly early stages of processing in cortex. Primary visual cortex neurons can show frequency-tuning to auditory stimuli, and auditory cortex responds selectively to certain somatosensory stimuli, supporting the possibility that complex visual signals may modulate early stages of auditory processing. To elucidate which auditory regions, if any, are responsive to complex visual stimuli, we recorded from auditory cortex and the superior temporal sulcus while presenting visual stimuli consisting of various objects, neutral faces, and facial expressions generated during vocalization. Both objects and conspecific faces elicited robust field potential responses in auditory cortex sites, but the responses varied by category: both neutral and vocalizing faces had a highly consistent negative component (N100) followed by a broader positive component (P180) whereas object responses were more variable in time and shape, but could be discriminated consistently from the responses to faces. The face response did not vary within the face category, i.e., for expressive vs. neutral face stimuli. The presence of responses for both objects and neutral faces suggests that auditory cortex receives highly informative visual input that is not restricted to those stimuli associated with auditory components. These results reveal selectivity for complex visual stimuli in a brain region conventionally described as non-visual “unisensory” cortex.
Cerebral Activity and Source Profiles Accompanying the Process of Non-Locality

The independently rated congruence of subjects’ drawings and descriptions with the content of affective pictures hidden ~50 m away were correlated with cerebral quantitative electroencephalography (QEEG) and LORTEA (Low Resolution Electromagnetic Tomography) over three weekly trials. A shift over time from left prefrontal gamma activity to right caudal hemispheric delta activity was associated with increased accuracy. Increased accuracies for the details for the non-local stimuli during sessions were associated with greater congruence within the 25-30 Hz and theta (4-7 Hz) range between the parahippocampal regions. Increased theta power also occurred in the left anterior cingulate, fusiform gyrus and midtemporal regions. We suggest that experiences of non-locality involve confluence within the right parahippocampal region and are translated for their personal and linguistic equivalents within specific left hemispheric structures. NeuroQuantology | September 2013 | Volume 11 | Issue 3 | Page 378-390
Primary Treatment Response Rather than Front Line Stem Cell Transplantation Is Crucial for Long Term Outcome of Peripheral T-Cell Lymphomas

Outcome of systemic peripheral T-cell lymphomas (PTCL) is unsatisfactory and no controlled clinical study guides the therapy. Phase II studies suggest to consolidate response achieved after front-line treatment with stem cell transplant (SCT). We retrospectively evaluate the impact of front-line SCT consolidation in a single Center cohort of 209 patients treated during the last two decades. Median age was 49 years (range 15-85) with a prevalence of male sex (61%), advanced stage (68%) while IPI was >2 in 44%. Primary treatment was MACOP-B (39%) CHO(E)P (39%), intensive regimens (18%) or others (4%). Complete response to primary treatment (i.e. before SCT) was 60% (5% partial remission). Forty-four patients further proceeded to SCT while 92 did not receive consolidation. Outcome of primary responders was good, with a 3-year overall survival of 74% (82% in ALCL ALK+ and 69% for the other histologies). By multivariate analysis a better overall survival was significantly associated with IPI<2 (P=0.001), primary response (P=0.000), and ALCL ALK+ (P=0.012). The multivariate analysis performed on responders, showed that only IPI was predictive of a better survival while ALCL ALK+ and undergoing SCT were not. Response to primary treatment rather than post-remission programs is the crucial determinant of PTCL outcome.
Sleep and Pain in Older Adults: The Role of Negative and Positive Affect

SLEEP AND PAIN IN OLDER ADULTS: THE ROLE OF NEGATIVE AND POSITIVE AFFECT By: Scott Ravyts, M.S. A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science at Virginia Commonwealth University. Virginia Commonwealth University, 2017 Director: Joseph M. Dzierzewski, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Psychology Department of Psychology Poor sleep is known to contribute to increased levels of pain. Preliminary findings suggest that negative and positive affect may mediate this relationship. Given that older adults are prone to both sleep disturbance and pain, the main objectives of the present study were to: 1) examine the relationship between sleep and pain in a non-clinical pain sample of communitydwelling older adults and 2) to examine whether negative and positive affect mediate the relationship between sleep and pain. Baseline measures from 82 older adults participating in the Active Adult Mentoring Project (AAMP) were used for secondary data analysis. A daily sleep diary was used to assess sleep efficiency (SE), total wake time (TWT), total sleep time (TST), and sleep quality (SQ). Affect was measured using the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), while pain was assessed on an 11-point Likert-scale. Findings only partially corroborated past research; SE, SQ, and TWT each predicted pain, while TST did not. In addition, neither positive nor negative affect was found to mediate the relationship between sleep and pain. Methodological and theoretical explanation for the lack of significant mediation are
UvA-DARE ( Digital Academic Repository ) Resilience among Nigerian transnational parents in the Netherlands : a strength ‐ based approach to migration and transnational parenting

In this article, we adopt a strength-based approach to transnational parenting. Recent studies have shown that not all transnational parents have a negative sense of well-being. Here, we explore parental resilience over a lifespan to understand how mothers and fathers alleviate the strain of spatial separation from their children. Having established from a quantitative study on the same group that neither men nor women necessarily suffer emotionally from separation from their children, we report the findings of a qualitative study on 18 Nigerian men and women in the Netherlands. We look at the strategies and resources that parents employ to overcome the challenges of migration and transnational parenting, to forge a sense of identity and belonging in a migratory context, to ‘do family’ while spatially separated, to deal with the difficult life events associated with migration, and to maintain a sense of agency amid stringent migration regulations. By revealing the importance of cultural and individual resources in fostering resilience, the contribution of our study is to the literature on the influence of structural factors in the promotion of well-being.
Public perception of mental illness in Oman: a cross sectional study

ABSTRACT Studies worldwide have shown that people with mental illnesses (PWMI) tend to be stigmatized and thus suffer social exclusion. The authors investigated the attitudes of Omani people toward PWMI, and classified their responses on the basis of socio-demographic variables (age, gender, place of residence, place and type of employment, and previous exposure to PWMI) that were expected to correlate with their perceptions and attitudes towards PWMI. The data were collected by means of an online cross-sectional survey among the general Omani public, using the Attitude toward Mental Illness (AMI) Questionnaire. The online method via social media was selected in view of the high levels of literacy (93.97%), Internet usage (66.4%), and social media participation among Omanis. Of the 601 participants, 41.4% were men and 58.6% were women. The subjects were categorized in the age groups of 20–30 years (48%) and 31–45 years (46%). Nearly 90% of the participants were employed, while 10% were college students. The results indicated that Omanis share the worldwide tendency to harbor stigmatizing attitudes towards PWMI. The results further suggested that socio-demographic variables (such as urban–rural dichotomy and previous encounters with PWMI have significant correlation with Omanis’ attitudes towards the mentally ill.
Braid ordering and the geometry of closed braid

We study the relationships between the Dehornoy ordering of the braid groups and the topology and geometry of the closed braid complements. We show that the Dehornoy floor of braids, which is a nonnegative integer determined by the Dehornoy ordering, tells us the position of essential surfaces in the closed braid complements. Furthermore, we prove that if the Dehornoy floor of a braid is bigger than or equal to two, then the Nielsen‐Thurston classification of braids and the geometric structure of the closed braid complements are in one-to-one correspondence. 57M25; 57M50
Rhesus Macaque Theta Defensins Suppress Inflammatory Cytokines and Enhance Survival in Mouse Models of Bacteremic Sepsis

Theta-defensins (θ-defensins) are macrocyclic antimicrobial peptides expressed in leukocytes of Old World monkeys. The peptides are broad spectrum microbicides in vitro and numerous θ-defensin isoforms have been identified in granulocytes of rhesus macaques and Olive baboons. Several mammalian α- and β-defensins, genetically related to θ-defensins, have proinflammatory and immune-activating properties that bridge innate and acquired immunity. In the current study we analyzed the immunoregulatory properties of rhesus θ-defensins 1–5 (RTDs 1–5). RTD-1, the most abundant θ-defensin in macaques, reduced the levels of TNF, IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-6, and IL-8 secreted by blood leukocytes stimulated by several TLR agonists. RTDs 1–5 suppressed levels of soluble TNF released by bacteria- or LPS-stimulated blood leukocytes and THP-1 monocytes. Despite their highly conserved conformation and amino acid sequences, the anti-TNF activities of RTDs 1–5 varied by as much as 10-fold. Systemically administered RTD-1 was non-toxic for BALB/c mice, and escalating intravenous doses were well tolerated and non-immunogenic in adult chimpanzees. The peptide was highly stable in serum and plasma. Single dose administration of RTD-1 at 5 mg/kg significantly improved survival of BALB/c mice with E. coli peritonitis and cecal ligation-and-puncture induced polymicrobial sepsis. Peptide treatment reduced serum levels of several inflammatory cytokines/chemokines in bacteremic animals. Collectively, these results indicate that the anti-inflammatory properties of θ-defensins in vitro and in vivo are mediated by the suppression of numerous proinflammatory cytokines and blockade of TNF release may be a primary effect.