Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Correlation of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor-D Expression and VEGFR-3-Positive Vessel Density with Lymph Node Metastasis in Gastric Carcinoma

Lymph node metastasis is an important prognostic factor in gastric cancer. Vascular endothelial growth factor-D (VEGF-D) is a lymphangiogenic growth factor that activates VEGF receptor (VEGFR)-3, a receptor expressed in the lymphatic endothelium. We investigated the clinical value of VEGF-D expression and VEGFR-3 positive vessel density in gastric carcinoma with regard to lymphangiogenesis. Immunohistochemical staining was used to determine the expression of VEGF-D and VEGFR-3 in specimens from 104 cases of resected gastric cancer. VEGF-D expression was observed in 62.5% of the gastric cancers and in 9.6% of the non-neoplastic gastric tissue. The VEGFR-3-positive vessel density was significantly greater in the VEGFD positive group than the negative group. VEGF-D expression was significantly associated with lymph node metastasis, increased serum CEA levels, and the non-signet ring cell type. The VEGFR-3-positive vessel density was correlated with tumor size, lymphatic invasion, and lymph node metastasis. The VEGF-D expression and high VEGFR-3-positive vessel density were significant poor prognostic factors for relapse-free survival. These results suggest that VEGF-D and VEGFR-3-positive vessel density are potential molecular markers that predict lymphatic involvement in gastric carcinoma.
Mitochondrial Adaptations in Elderly and Young Men Skeletal Muscle Following 2 Weeks of Bed Rest and Rehabilitation

The aim of the study was to evaluate the expression levels of proteins related to mitochondrial biogenesis regulation and bioenergetics in vastus lateralis muscle biopsies from 16 elderly and 7 young people subjected to 14 days of bed-rest, causing atrophy, and subsequent 14 days of exercise training. Based on quantitative immunoblot analyses, in both groups a reduction of two key regulators of mitochondrial biogenesis/remodeling and activity, namely PGC-1α and Sirt3, was revealed during bed-rest, with a subsequent up-regulation after rehabilitation, indicating an involvement of PGC-1α-Sirt3 axis in response to the treatments. A difference was observed comparing the young and elderly subjects as, for both proteins, the abundance in the elderly was more affected by immobility and less responsive to exercise. The expression levels of TOM20 and Citrate Synthase, assayed as markers of outer mitochondrial membrane and mitochondrial mass, showed a noticeable sensitivity in the elderly group, where they were affected by bed-rest and rehabilitation recalling the pattern of PGC-1α. TOM20 and CS remained unchanged in young subjects. Single OXPHOS complexes showed peculiar patterns, which were in some cases dissimilar from PGC-1α, and suggest different influences on protein biogenesis and degradation. Overall, exercise was capable to counteract the effect of immobility, when present, except for complex V, which was markedly downregulated by bed-rest, but remained unaffected after rehabilitation, maybe as result of greater extent of degradation processes over biogenesis. Phosphorylation extent of AMPK, and its upstream activator LKB1, did not change after bed-rest and rehabilitation in either young or elderly subjects, suggesting that the activation of energy-sensing LKB1-AMPK signaling pathway was “missed” due to its transient nature, or was not triggered under our conditions. Our study demonstrates that, as far as the expression of various proteins related to mitochondrial biogenesis/remodeling, adaptations to bed-rest and rehabilitation in the two populations were different. The impact of bed-rest was greater in the elderly subjects, where the pattern (decrease after bed rest and recovery following rehabilitation) was accompanied by changes of mitochondrial mass. Modifications of protein abundance were matched with data obtained from gene expression analyses of four public human datasets focusing on related genes.
Watching MOOCs together: investigating co-located MOOC study groups

Research suggests that massive open online course (MOOC) students prefer to study in groups, and that social facilitation within the study groups may render the learning of difficult concepts a pleasing experience. We report on a longitudinal study that investigates how co-located study groups watch and study MOOC videos together. The study was conducted with on-campus flipped classroom students. Our subjects reported an overall high satisfaction with the study group style. The research reveals that students like to stay synchronized in the group while watching MOOC videos. However, they have to find a balance between synchronization, video interaction, and the amount of conversation. Watching MOOCs on a shared display addresses the need of synchronicity, and the distribution of control can increase the video interactivities.
A double continuous approach to visualization and analysis of categorical maps

A method to visualize multiple membership maps, called ‘Colour mixture’ (CM) is described and compared with alternative techniques: defuzzification and Pixel mixture. Six landform parameters were used to derive the landform classes using supervised fuzzy k-means classification. The continuous categorical map is derived by GIS calculations with colours, where colour values are considered to represent the taxonomic space spanned by the attribute variables. Coordinates of the nine class centres (landform facets) were first transformed from multivariate to two-dimensional attribute space using factor analysis, and then projected on the Hue Saturation Intensity (HSI) colourwheel. The taxonomic value was coded with the Hue and confusion with Saturation. To improve visual impression, saturation was replaced with whiteness. Classes that were closer in attribute space were merged into similar generic colours. The CM technique limits the derived mixed-colour map to seven generic hues independently of the total number of classes, which provides a basis for automated generalization. The confusion index derived from the mixed-colour map was used to derive primary boundaries and to locate areas of higher taxonomic confusion.
Math Shelf: A Randomized Trial of a Prekindergarten Tablet Number Sense Curriculum

ABSTRACT Research Findings: Effective preschool mathematics instruction is especially important for low-income children. Previous research demonstrates that low-income children enter kindergarten behind their middle-income peers. They receive less mathematics support at home and from public preschools. The aim of this study was to test Math Shelf, a tablet intervention designed to improve at-risk preschoolers’ mathematics performance. A total of 100 children participated in a randomized controlled trial in a large urban Head Start center. Intervention students played Math Shelf on tablet computers for 6 weeks, whereas comparison students played the most downloaded and best reviewed preschool math apps on tablets for an equal amount of time. During game play, graduate student researchers supervised intervention and comparison students in separate rooms. Intervention and comparison groups did not differ on pretest assessments. Math Shelf students performed statistically significantly better (Cohen’s d = 0.57) than comparison students at posttest. Practice or Policy: Math Shelf results suggest that teachers can enhance low-income preschoolers’ mathematics knowledge in a relatively short amount of time by incorporating developmentally appropriate tablet interventions.
Application of IHS Criteria to Headache Attributed to Spontaneous Intracranial Hypotension in a Large Population

We applied the recent International Headache Society (IHS) criteria for headache related to spontaneous intracranial hypotension (SIH) to 90 consecutive patients with a final diagnosis of SIH confirmed by cerebral magnetic resonance imaging with contrast. Orthostatic headache (developing within 2 h of standing or sitting up) was present in 67 patients (75%) but appeared within 15 min after standing or sitting—as required by point A of the criteria—in only 53 (59%). Forty-four (49%) patients did not satisfy point A, including 22 (24%) with non-orthostatic headache and 14 (16%) with headache developing ≥ 15 min after standing or sitting up; 80 (89%) did not satisfy point D. Only three (3%) patients had headache fully satisfying the IHS criteria. These findings indicate that the current IHS criteria do not capture most patients with SIH-associated headache. Excluding the requirement for response to epidural blood patch (criterion D) and considering headaches appearing within 2 h of sitting or standing up would capture more patients.
Basal muscle intracellular amino acid kinetics in women and men.

Sexual dimorphism in skeletal muscle mass is apparent, with men having more muscle mass and larger individual muscle cells. However, no sex-based differences have been detected in blood forearm phenylalanine turnover, although whole body leucine oxidation has been reported to be greater in men than in women. We hypothesized that sex differences in intracellular amino acid turnover may account for these discrepancies, with men having a higher intracellular turnover than women. We studied young, healthy women (women, n = 8) and men (men, n = 10) following an overnight fast. Phenylalanine, leucine, and alanine muscle intracellular kinetics were assessed using stable isotope methodologies, femoral arteriovenous blood sampling, and muscle biopsies. Muscle intracellular amino acid kinetics were reported relative to both leg volume and lean leg mass because of sex differences in leg volume and in muscle and fat distribution. When expressed per leg volume (nmol.min(-1). 100 ml leg volume(-1)), phenylalanine net balance (women: -16 +/- 4, men: -31 +/- 5), release from proteolysis in the blood (women: 46 +/- 9, men: 75 +/- 10) and intracellular availability (women: 149 +/- 23, men: 241 +/- 35), and alanine production, utilization, and intracellular availability were higher in men (P < 0.05). However, when the kinetic parameters were normalized per unit of lean leg mass, all differences disappeared. Muscle fractional synthetic rate was also not different between women and men. We conclude that there are no sex-based differences in basal muscle intracellular amino acid turnover when the data are normalized by lean mass. It remains to be determined if there are sex differences in intracellular amino acid metabolism following anabolic or catabolic stimuli.
Purification of Fully Activated Clostridium botulinum Serotype B Toxin for Treatment of Patients with Dystonia

ABSTRACT Clostridium botulinum serotype B toxins 12S and 16S were separated by using a beta-lactose gel column at pH 6.0; toxin 12S passed through the column, whereas toxin 16S bound to the column and eluted with lactose. The fully activated neurotoxin was obtained by applying the trypsin-treated 16S toxin on the same column at pH 8.0; the neurotoxin passed through the column, whereas remaining nontoxic components bound to the column. The toxicity of this purified fully activated neurotoxin was retained for a long period by addition of albumin in the preparation.
Spatial and temporal distribution of solutes in the developing carrot taproot measured at single-cell resolution.

The time-course and spatial distribution of sugars and ions in carrot (Daucus carota L.) was studied at fine resolution using single cell (SiCSA) and tissue analysis. Four phases of osmolyte accumulation in the taproot were identified: an amino acid (germination) phase, when internal sources of amino acids provide seedlings with osmotica; an ion phase, when inorganic and organic ions were the main solutes; a hexose phase, when concentrations of glucose and fructose sharply increased and reached their maximum; and a sucrose phase, when sucrose became the major solute. Spatial distribution of sugar in taproot cells showed a general trend of highest concentration on both sides of the vascular cambium (some 200 mM sucrose, 150 mM glucose) and a minimum in the pith (some 100 mM sucrose, 60 mM glucose) and in periderm. Electrolytes (e.g. potassium) followed a distribution generally reciprocal to that of sugars; minimum in the tissue adjacent to the cambium (some 10 mM) and maximum in the pith and periderm (some 60-100 mM). The cambial cells contained unexpectedly low concentrations of sugars and potassium. These spatial and temporal patterns indicate that amino acids, other electrolytes and sugars are interchangeable in the tissue osmotic balance. The nature of the solute is developmentally determined both temporally and spatially. During the accumulation of electrolytes following the initial amino acid phase, osmotic pressure to 420 mosmol kg-1 rises and then remains constant despite large changes in the concentration of individual solutes. This indicates that osmotic pressure is regulated independently of the individual concentrations of solutes.
Sensing Matrix Optimization for Block-Sparse Decoding

Recent work has demonstrated that using a carefully designed sensing matrix rather than a random one, can improve the performance of compressed sensing. In particular, a well-designed sensing matrix can reduce the coherence between the atoms of the equivalent dictionary, and as a consequence, reduce the reconstruction error. In some applications, the signals of interest can be well approximated by a union of a small number of subspaces (e.g., face recognition and motion segmentation). This implies the existence of a dictionary which leads to block-sparse representations. In this work, we propose a framework for sensing matrix design that improves the ability of block-sparse approximation techniques to reconstruct and classify signals. This method is based on minimizing a weighted sum of the interblock coherence and the subblock coherence of the equivalent dictionary. Our experiments show that the proposed algorithm significantly improves signal recovery and classification ability of the Block-OMP algorithm compared to sensing matrix optimization methods that do not employ block structure.
Supraspinal fatigue after normoxic and hypoxic exercise in humans

• Processes leading to fatigue occur within the exercising muscle (peripheral fatigue) and the nervous system (central fatigue). • We asked whether central processes of fatigue would be increased after strenuous exercise in environments where oxygen availability is reduced (hypoxia) compared to the same absolute exercise intensity at sea‐level. • Our main finding was that the contribution of central processes to fatigue was increased after exercise in hypoxia (equivalent to ∼3800 m above sea‐level). • The greater amount of central fatigue in hypoxia was due to suboptimal neural output from the brain and was associated with reductions in oxygen availability. • The findings provide a plausible mechanism for why exercise performance is impaired at high altitude, and might help our understanding of exercise limitation in patients with reduced oxygen delivery to the brain.
A Proton Pump Inhibitor’s Effect on Bone Metabolism Mediated by Osteoclast Action in Old Age: A Prospective Randomized Study

Background/Aims Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) act by irreversibly binding to the H+-K+-ATPase of the proton pump in parietal cells and may possibly affect the vacuolar H+-ATPase in osteoclasts. Methods We investigated the effect of 8 weeks of PPI treatment on the parameters of bone turnover and compared PPI with revaprazan, which acts by reversibly binding to H+-K+-ATPase in proton pumps. This study was a parallel randomized controlled trial. For 8 weeks, either a PPI or revaprazan was randomly assigned to patients with gastric ulcers. The parameters of bone turnover were measured at the beginning of and after the 8-week treatment period. Results Twenty-six patients (PPI, n=13; revaprazan, n=13) completed the intention-to-treat analysis. After the 8-week treatment period, serum calcium and urine deoxypyridinoline (DPD) were increased in the PPI group (serum calcium, p=0.046; urine DPD, p=0.046) but not in the revaprazan group. According to multivariate linear regression analysis, age ≥60 years was an independent predictor for the changes in serum calcium and urine DPD. Conclusions In elderly patients, administering a PPI for 8 weeks altered bone parameters. Our study suggested that PPIs might directly alter bone metabolism via the vacuolar H+-ATPase in osteoclasts.
Transmission Electron Microscopy of Synthetic 2- and 6-Line Ferrihydrite

High-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), selected-area electron diffraction (SAED), annular dark-field scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) images, and electron nano-diffraction were used to examine structures of synthetic 2- and 6-line ferrihydrite specimens. HRTEM images of 2-line ferrihydrite (2LFh) show scattered small (~1-3 nm) areas with lattice fringes surrounded by areas free of fringes. All SAED patterns show two bright rings corresponding to d-values of ~0.15 and 0.25 nm; each ring has a conspicuous shoulder on each side. Faint rings corresponding to d-values of 0.08, 0.095, 0.100, 0.106-0.114 (very broad ring), and 0.122 nm are visible in strongly exposed SAED patterns. Nanodiffraction patterns show conspicuous streaks and a lack of superlattice formation.HRTEM images of 6-line ferrihydrite (6LFh) display larger crystallites (typically ~5-6 nm) with lattice fringes visible in many thin areas. SAED patterns show rings corresponding to d-values of 0.148, 0.156, 0.176, 0.202, 0.227, and 0.25-0.26 nm and a shoulder extending between d-values of ~0.25 and 0.32 nm. Faint rings corresponding to d-values of 0.086, 0.093, 0.107, 0.112, 0.119, 0.125, and 0.135 nm are visible in strongly exposed SAED patterns. Small quantities of hematite, magnetite or maghemite, and an acicular material tentatively identified as goethite were observed in the 6-line ferrihydrite, but these quantities do not contribute significantly to the overall diffracted intensity from the sample.
Fully Endoscopic Resection of Intra-Axial Brain Lesions Using Neuronavigated Pediatric Anoscope.

AIM To present a new simple disposable tubular retractor which provides fully endoscopic resections of the intraaxial brain lesions. MATERIAL AND METHODS A total of 13 patients underwent surgical resection of an intraaxial brain lesion larger than 3 cm with a fully endoscopic approach using the navigation-guided pediatric anoscope. The anoscope was adapted to serve as a tubular retractor. All lesions were resected under endoscopic visualization and navigation guidance. There were 7 men and 6 women with a mean age of 49.6 years (range, 19-76 years). Lesion location was as follows: frontal (n=4), parietal (n=1), frontoparietal (n=2), temporal (n=2), and intraventricular (n=4). RESULTS With the use of this technique, preoperative goals of surgery were met in all patients. Gross total resection of the lesions was achieved in 7 of 13 patients (53.8%), near-total resection in 3 patients (23.1%) and subtotal resection in 3 (23.1%) patients. The histological diagnosis included 2 metastases, 5 (38.5%) glioblastomas, 3 meningiomas, 2 low grade gliomas and one oligodendroglioma. There were no complications related to the surgical procedure. Duration of surgery ranged from 60 to 110 minutes, with an average 90 minutes. The average postoperative hospital stay was 2.7 days. CONCLUSION Endoscopic resection of deep-seated brain lesions with the neuronavigated tubular retractor is a safe and an effective technique and may be a feasible alternative to conventional microsurgical or endoscope-assisted methods in selected patients. The modified transparent plastic pediatric anoscope can be used as a tubular retractor and it is easy to apply, simple, lightweight, inexpensive and effective.
Foreground segmentation of live videos using locally competing 1SVMs

The objective of foreground segmentation is to extract the desired foreground object from input videos. Over the years there have been significant amount of efforts on this topic, nevertheless there still lacks a simple yet effective algorithm that can process live videos of objects with fuzzy boundaries captured by freely moving cameras. This paper presents an algorithm toward this goal. The key idea is to train and maintain two competing one-class support vector machines (1SVMs) at each pixel location, which model local color distributions for foreground and background, respectively. We advocate the usage of two competing local classifiers, as it provides higher discriminative power and allows better handling of ambiguities. As a result, our algorithm can deal with a variety of videos with complex backgrounds and freely moving cameras with minimum user interactions. In addition, by introducing novel acceleration techniques and by exploiting the parallel structure of the algorithm, realtime processing speed is achieved for VGA-sized videos.
Geographical variation in rates of common mental disorders in Britain: prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND There is little geographical variation in the prevalence of the common mental disorders. However, there is little longitudinal research. AIMS To estimate variance in rates of common mental disorders at individual, household and electoral ward levels prospectively. METHOD A 12-month cohort study of 7659 adults aged 16-74 years in 4338 private households, in 626 electoral wards. Data were collected as part of the British Household Panel Survey. Common mental disorders were assessed using the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). Ward-level socio-economic deprivation was measured using the Carstairs index. RESULTS Less than 1% of total variance, in onset and maintenance of common mental disorders and change in GHQ score between waves, occurred at ward level. However, 12% of variance, which is a statistically significant difference, was found at household level (a much smaller geographical unit) and this difference remained after further analyses. CONCLUSIONS Ward level socio-economic deprivation does not influence the onset and maintenance of common mental disorders in Britain but local factors at the household level do. Reasons for this remain unclear.
Comparison of milk yield in dairy cows with different degrees of lameness.

OBJECTIVE To compare milk yield among cows classified as nonlame, moderately lame, and lame and to examine the relationship between severity of lameness and milk yield in cows classified as lame during the first 100 days after parturition. DESIGN Longitudinal study. ANIMALS 465 Holstein cows. PROCEDURE Cows were examined weekly during the first 100 days after parturition and assigned a lameness score by use of a 6-point locomotion scoring system (ie, 0 to 5). Milk yield was compared among cows classified as nonlame, moderately lame, and lame. Among cows classified as lame (locomotion score > or = 4), milk yield was compared for cows with low, medium, and high cumulative locomotion scores. Cows classified as lame were further examined on a tilt table for diagnosis and treatment of lameness. RESULTS 84 (18%), 212 (46%), and 169 (36%) cows were classified as nonlame, moderately lame, and lame, respectively. Among cows in their second or later lactations, milk yield in lame cows was significantly lower than that in moderately lame and nonlame cows. In addition, among cows classified as lame, milk yield was significantly lower in cows with high locomotion scores during the first 100 days after parturition, compared with cows with low scores. Most (58%) cows classified as lame had laminitis. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Results indicate a linear relationship between increasing degree of lameness and decreasing milk yield among cows in their second or later lactations. The locomotion scoring system used in this study may be a useful management tool that veterinarians and dairy farmers could adopt for early detection of lameness in dairy cows.