Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Whiplash-Associated Disorders: Occupant Kinematics and Neck Morphology.

Synopsis Despite considerable research effort, the incidence of whiplash injury during automotive collisions has continued to rise. This is due, at least in part, to a limited recognition of biomechanical injury mechanisms and factors influencing injury risk. While automotive safety modifications reduced injury risk in some cases, impact on the overall whiplash incidence was limited. This is likely attributable to significant occupant-related differences that have a profound impact on injury risk. Many of those differences were outlined in research studies, and examples include female sex and the associated sex-based anthropometrical variation that can affect seating orientation; cervical spinal posture; and anatomical attributes, including cervical column slenderness and neck muscle morphometry. This review highlights these anatomical attributes and explains, based on biomechanical concepts, the method by which these attributes may alter cervical spine response during automotive rear impacts to affect injury risk. The biomechanical explanations are based on existing studies that have incorporated postmortem human subjects, computational models, and anthropomorphic test devices (ie, crash test dummies), as well as medical imaging in human volunteers. These biomechanical explanations may provide improved understanding of injury risk. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 2016;46(10):834-844. doi:10.2519/jospt.2016. 6846.
The Usefulness of an Earphone-Type Infrared Tympanic Thermometer for Intraoperative Core Temperature Monitoring

BACKGROUND:In this study we sought to determine the usefulness of a novel earphone-type infrared tympanic thermometer (IRT) for core temperature monitoring during surgery. METHODS:Two groups of patients were studied under different surgical conditions. The first group consisted of 18 adult patients (ASA I or II) who had been scheduled for elective surgery under general anesthesia. Before induction of general anesthesia, an earphone-type IRT was inserted into either the left or right ear canal. Tympanic temperature was monitored and recorded along with both rectal and esophageal temperatures during anesthesia. The second group consisted of eight adult patients (ASA II or III) who had been scheduled for cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass. Similar to the first group, tympanic temperature was measured by the earphone-type IRT and recorded along with the rectal and esophageal temperatures during cooling and rewarming phases of cardiopulmonary bypass. RESULTS:Study 1—The average temperature (±2 sd) measured with the IRT was +0.08°C (±0.34°C) above the esophageal temperature, and that with the rectal temperature was +0.11°C (±0.55°C) above the esophageal temperature. Study 2—The average temperature (±2 sd) measured with the IRT was +0.72°C (±2.2°C) above the esophageal temperature during cooling and warming phases during cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass. CONCLUSIONS:The earphone-type IRT might be used in a clinical setting for reliable and continuous core temperature monitoring during an operation.
ASIFT: A New Framework for Fully Affine Invariant Image Comparison

If a physical object has a smooth or piecewise smooth boundary, its images obtained by cameras in varying positions undergo smooth apparent deformations. These deformations are locally well approximated by affine transforms of the image plane. In consequence the solid object recognition problem has often been led back to the computation of affine invariant image local features. Such invariant features could be obtained by normalization methods, but no fully affine normalization method exists for the time being. Even scale invariance is dealt with rigorously only by the scale-invariant feature transform (SIFT) method. By simulating zooms out and normalizing translation and rotation, SIFT is invariant to four out of the six parameters of an affine transform. The method proposed in this paper, affine-SIFT (ASIFT), simulates all image views obtainable by varying the two camera axis orientation parameters, namely, the latitude and the longitude angles, left over by the SIFT method. Then it covers the other four parameters by using the SIFT method itself. The resulting method will be mathematically proved to be fully affine invariant. Against any prognosis, simulating all views depending on the two camera orientation parameters is feasible with no dramatic computational load. A two-resolution scheme further reduces the ASIFT complexity to about twice that of SIFT. A new notion, the transition tilt, measuring the amount of distortion from one view to another, is introduced. While an absolute tilt from a frontal to a slanted view exceeding 6 is rare, much higher transition tilts are common when two slanted views of an object are compared (see Figure hightransitiontiltsillustration). The attainable transition tilt is measured for each affine image comparison method. The new method permits one to reliably identify features that have undergone transition tilts of large magnitude, up to 36 and higher. This fact is substantiated by many experiments which show that ASIFT significantly outperforms the state-of-the-art methods SIFT, maximally stable extremal region (MSER), Harris-affine, and Hessian-affine.
Ensemble: cooperative proximity-based authentication

Ensemble is a system that uses a collection of trusted personal devices to provide proximity-based authentication in pervasive environments. Users are able to securely pair their personal devices with previously unknown devices by simply placing them close to each other (e.g., users can pair their phones by just bringing them into proximity). Ensemble leverages a user's growing collection of trusted devices, such as phones, music players, computers and personal sensors to observe transmissions made by pairing devices. These devices analyze variations in received signal strength (RSS) in order to determine whether the pairing devices are in physical proximity to each other. We show that, while individual trusted devices can not properly distinguish proximity in all cases, a collection of trusted devices can do so reliably. Our Ensemble prototype extends Diffie-Hellman key exchange with proximity-based authentication. Our experiments show that an Ensemble-enabled collection of Nokia N800 Internet Tablets can detect devices in close proximity and can reliably detect attackers as close as two meters away.
Association between GSTM1, GSTT1, and GSTP1 variants and the risk of end stage renal disease

Abstract Introduction: There are some evidences indicating DNA damage by oxidant and mutant agents has an essential role in the chronic renal failure and end stage renal disease (ESRD). To investigate the possible association of GSTs variants with ESRD, we investigated the frequency of GST- T1, M1, and P1 genotypes, and the level of malondialdehyde (MDA) in patients with ESRD. Materials and methods: The present case-control study consisted of 136 ESRD patients treated with maintenance hemodialysis and 137 gender- and age-matched, unrelated healthy controls from the population of west of Iran. The GST- T1, M1, and P1 genotypes were determined in all individuals using multiplex-PCR and PCR-RFLP. The level of MDA was measured by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Results: We found that GSTM1 and GSTT1 null genotypes (GSTT1−/GSTM1−) increased the risk of ESRD by 1.8 times (p < 0.001) and the increased risk of ESRD for GSTM-null (T1+-M1−) genotype was 3.04 times (p = 0.002). ESRD patients carriers the GST (GSTM1-null + GSTT1-null + GST-null) genotypes compared to GST normal genotype increased the risk of ESRD by 3.3 (p < 0.001) times. ESRD patients carriers of GST-null, GSTM1-null, and GSTT1-null genotypes had greater MDA concentration compared with the same genotypes of control subjects. Our results indicated that the GST-null allele (GSTT1-null/GSTM1-null) is a risk factor for ESRD and carriers of this allele have high levels of MDA. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that oxidative stress, impairment of the antioxidant system and abnormal lipid metabolism may play a role in the pathogenesis and progression of ESRD and its related complications. These data suggest that patients with ESRD are more susceptible to vascular diseases.
Risk factors for falls in hospitalized older medical patients.

BACKGROUND The incidence of falls among older hospitalized patients is higher than that of community-dwelling older persons. Prevention is important, but factors associated with these falls are less well studied than falls occurring in the community or nursing homes. METHODS This study was conducted in an acute-care general hospital in Hong Kong. During November 1995 to March 1997, all older inpatients who fell during hospitalization were assessed by a geriatrician, a physiotherapist, and an occupational therapist. A standardized protocol to study the clinical and performance-oriented functional factors was employed. A sex- and age-matched hospital control was recruited for each case. In total, 51 cases and controls (mean ages 77.8 +/- 7.3 years and 77.5 +/- 7.0 years, respectively) were studied. RESULTS Among the multiple clinical and functional risk factors for falls identified, lower limb weakness (i.e., power less than MRC grade 4 in one or both lower limbs) and poor tandem walk ability emerged as two significant predictive factors for falls in the hospital. The overall classification accuracy of fallers and nonfallers was 79%. The sensitivity was 84% and specificity was 75%. Clinical factors were the underlying causes for the lower limb weakness and poor tandem walk performance. CONCLUSIONS Among clinical and functional risk factors for falls in the older medical patient, lower limb weakness and poor tandem walk ability were most predictive. Falls prevention programs in hospitals should employ these two tests as screening instruments.
Mosquitoes and other aquatic insects in fallow field biotopes and rice paddy fields

Fallow field biotopes that develop from abandoned rice fields are man‐made wetlands that provide new habitats for various aquatic animals. Although consideration of such biotopes generally focuses on their positive aspects, this study evaluated the negative aspects of establishing fallow field biotopes with regard to mosquito breeding sites. To determine whether fallow field biotopes become breeding habitats for vector mosquitoes, we evaluated mosquito fauna in fallow field biotopes and adjacent rice fields. We found larvae of Anopheles lesteri, Anopheles sinensis and Culex tritaeniorhynchus (all: Diptera: Culicidae) in the biotopes. Although abundances of mosquito larvae in the biotopes and rice fields were statistically similar, mosquito abundances in rice fields increased dramatically in August when the water level reduced after the rainy season. The abundance and variety of the mosquitoes' natural predators were greater in biotopes than in rice fields because the former are a permanent and stable aquatic environment. A generalized linear mixed model showed a negative effect of predator diversity on mosquito larvae abundance in both habitats. Although fallow field biotopes become breeding habitats for vector mosquitoes, establishing biotopes from fallow fields in order to protect various aquatic animals, including mosquito insect predators, may help to control mosquito breeding.
Micro‐electrode studies on the effects of exogenous cyclic adenosine monophosphate on active sodium transport in frog skin.

1. The electrical parameters of the sodium‐transporting cells in frog skin of Rana angolensis were determined under control conditions by using the micro‐electrode technique. The data were analysed in terms of an electrical model (Helman, 1979). 2. The control intracellular voltages averaged ‐84.7 mV while the electromotive force of the inner barrier, E'1, averaged 103.9 mV. The major portion (82%) of the transcellular resistance was situated at the outer, apical, barrier. 3. Exogenous cyclic AMP stimulated active sodium transport and the short‐circuit current (Isc) increased by an average 88%. The change in Isc was mediated primarily by decreasing the resistance of the apical barrier (Ro) with little effect on the electromotive force or resistance (Ri) of the inner membranes. 4. Isoprenaline increased the Isc by an average of 165%. The major effect of isoprenaline was to decrease the apical resistance by an average 77%. 5. Forskolin (2.5 microM) stimulated the Isc by an average of 138%. Amiloride would not completely reduce the Isc, but with the low concentration of 0.2 microM‐forskolin, the Isc was typically inhibited to values close to zero. The major effect of forskolin was also to reduce the resistance of the apical barrier, although it concurrently also caused the E'1 to decrease by about 13%. 6. Theophylline increased the Isc by reducing the resistance of the apical barrier by an average 61%, with little or no effect on the other parameters. Theophylline augmented the effect of cyclic AMP. 8. Our results are consistent with the theory that cyclic AMP is a second messenger in hormonal control of active sodium transport in frog skin.
Secreted Glioblastoma Nanovesicles Contain Intracellular Signaling Proteins and Active Ras Incorporated in a Farnesylation-dependent Manner*

Glioblastomas (GBMs) are malignant brain tumors with a median survival of less than 18 months. Redundancy of signaling pathways represented within GBMs contributes to their therapeutic resistance. Exosomes are extracellular nanovesicles released from cells and present in human biofluids that represent a possible biomarker of tumor signaling state that could aid in personalized treatment. Herein, we demonstrate that mouse GBM cell-derived extracellular nanovesicles resembling exosomes from an H-RasV12 myr-Akt mouse model for GBM are enriched for intracellular signaling cascade proteins (GO: 0007242) and Ras protein signal transduction (GO: 0007265), and contain active Ras. Active Ras isolated from human and mouse GBM extracellular nanovesicles lysates using the Ras-binding domain of Raf also coprecipitates with ESCRT (endosomal sorting complex required for transport)-associated exosome proteins Vps4a and Alix. Although we initially hypothesized a role for active Ras protein signaling in exosome biogenesis, we found that GTP binding of K-Ras was dispensable for its packaging within extracellular nanovesicles and for the release of Alix. By contrast, farnesylation of K-Ras was required for its packaging within extracellular nanovesicles, yet expressing a K-Ras farnesylation mutant did not decrease the number of nanovesicles or the amount of Alix protein released per cell. Overall, these results emphasize the primary importance of membrane association in packaging of extracellular nanovesicle factors and indicate that screening nanovesicles within human fluids could provide insight into tissue origin and the wiring of signaling proteins at membranes to predict onset and behavior of cancer and other diseases linked to deregulated membrane signaling states.
Surveys of patients satisfaction: I--Important general considerations.

was 46%, then introducing the protocol saved the radiology department almost £500 a year. The protocol also resulted in an increase in the number of patients reviewed and hence the work of the accident and emergency department. In terms of the patients reviewed in the department, however, the total numbers (an extra 36 over the eight weeks) were small, amounting to an extra four or five patients a week in a department with an average new-patient attendance each week of about 800. Eleven of the patients reviewed in the department were referred to the soft tissue clinic, six of whom required physiotherapy. This suggests that, as had been suspected, before the protocol was introduced patients with ligamentous injuries had been undertreated; this seems to justify the small increase in the number of patients reviewed. After introducing the protocol the number of patients reattending of their own accord fell from five to one, supporting the view that the protocol improved the treatment of patients with ligamentous injuries. The protocol also resulted in a reduction of the work of the fracture clinics as inappropriate referrals were reduced by 53%. The two patients who were referred by their general practitioners for radiography show the importance of informing local general practitioners of changes in treatment policy. At the end of the study no changes were required in the protocol, and the algorithm is now included in the notes of any patient attending with an ankle injury. The algorithm proved an effective means of improving treatment of ankle injuries and algorithms may improve treatment of other conditions in accident and emergency departments.
The Effects of Membrane Potential, Extracellular Potassium, and Tetrodotoxin on the Intracellular Sodium Ion Activity of Sheep Cardiac Muscle

The intracellular sodium ion activity was measured using liquid ion-exchange microelectrodes with rapid response times in sheep Purkinje fibers and ventricular muscle under voltage control. The mean sodium ion activity in quiescent Purkinje fibers was 8.5 mM at a holding potential of —80 mV. With maintained hyperpolarizing (—110 mV) or depolarizing (—40 and 0 mV) voltage steps, sodium ion activity increased or decreased, respectively. At 0 mV, the mean steady state value for the sodium ion activity was 3.8 HIM. Following a voltage step to 0 mV, or back to —80 mV, the time course of the sodium ion activity change could be fitted by single exponentials, with similar half-times. Increasing the extracellular potassium ion concentration from 5.4 to 15 ITIM did not alter the steady state value of the sodium ion activity at clamped voltages of —80 or 0 mV, which suggests that the external potassium ion activating site of the Na-K pump was saturated. With the extracellular potassium concentration 0 mM (holding potential —80 mV), the sodium ion activity increased. When maintained depolarizing steps to 0 mV were applied, the sodium ion activity decreased by up to 20 ITIM. This large fall in sodium ion activity is assumed to represent partial reactivation of the Na-K pump due to potassium ion accumulation in clefts. We also studied the stimulation-dependent change in sodium ion activity. Trains of action potentials or short duration depolarizing voltage damp steps caused a frequency dependent rise in sodium ion activity. The magnitude of the rise of sodium ion activity was not altered by lengthening the duration of each voltage clamp step, but was inhibited by tetrodotoxin or by holding the membrane potential at —50 mV between depolarizing steps. These results show that sodium ion activity is a complex function of membrane voltage, depolarization frequency, and time. The rise in sodium ion activity with stimulation appears to depend on sodium ion entry regulated by the sodium channel, and may be important in the modulation of intracellular calcium and tension through the Na-Ca exchange mechanism.
Rapid efficient synthesis and characterization of silver, gold, and bimetallic nanoparticles from the medicinal plant Plumbago zeylanica and their application in biofilm control

Background Nanoparticles (NPs) have gained significance in medical fields due to their high surface-area-to-volume ratio. In this study, we synthesized NPs from a medicinally important plant – Plumbago zeylanica. Materials and methods Aqueous root extract of P. zeylanica (PZRE) was analyzed for the presence of flavonoids, sugars, and organic acids using high-performance thin-layer chromatography (HPTLC), gas chromatography-time of flight-mass spectrometry (GC-TOF-MS), and biochemical methods. The silver NPs (AgNPs), gold NPs (AuNPs), and bimetallic NPs (AgAuNPs) were synthesized from root extract and characterized using ultraviolet-visible spectra, X-ray diffraction (XRD), energy-dispersive spectrometry (EDS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The effects of these NPs on Acinetobacter baumannii, Staphylococcus aureus, and Escherichia coli biofilms were studied using quantitative biofilm inhibition and disruption assays, as well as using fluorescence, scanning electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy. Results PZRE showed the presence of phenolics, such as plumbagin, and flavonoids, in addition to citric acid, sucrose, glucose, fructose, and starch, using HPTLC, GC-TOF-MS, and quantitative analysis. Bioreduction of silver nitrate (AgNO3) and chloroauric acid (HAuCl4) were confirmed at absorbances of 440 nm (AgNPs), 570 nm (AuNPs), and 540 nm (AgAuNPs), respectively. The maximum rate of synthesis at 50°C was achieved with 5 mM AgNO3 within 4.5 hours for AgNPs; and with 0.7 mM HAuCl4 within 5 hours for AuNPs. The synthesis of AgAuNPs, which completed within 90 minutes with 0.7 mM AgNO3 and HAuCl4, was found to be the fastest. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy confirmed bioreduction, while EDS and XRD patterns confirmed purity and the crystalline nature of the NPs, respectively. TEM micrographs and DLS showed about 60 nm monodispersed Ag nanospheres, 20–30 nm Au nanospheres adhering to form Au nanotriangles, and about 90 nm hexagonal blunt-ended AgAuNPs. These NPs also showed antimicrobial and antibiofilm activity against E. coli, A. baumannii, S. aureus, and a mixed culture of A. baumannii and S. aureus. AgNPs inhibited biofilm in the range of 96%–99% and AgAuNPs from 93% to 98% in single-culture biofilms. AuNPs also showed biofilm inhibition, with the highest of 98% in S. aureus. AgNPs also showed good biofilm disruption, with the highest of 88% in A. baumannii. Conclusion This is the first report on rapid and efficient synthesis of AgNPs, AuNPs and AgAuNPs from P. zeylanica and their effect on quantitative inhibition and disruption of bacterial biofilms.