Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evolution of weight and height of children with congenital heart disease undergoing surgical treatment

Objective To evaluate the height and weight development of children with congenital heart disease undergoing surgery with the goal of determining when they reach the threshold of normal development and whether there are differences between patients with developmental pattern below the level of normality preoperatively (z-score<-2 for the analyzed parameter) in comparison to the total group of cardiac patients. Methods We prospectively followed up 27 children undergoing operation into five time periods: preoperatively and at four subsequent outpatient appointments: 1st month, 3rd month, 6th month and 12th month after hospital discharge. The anthropometric parameters used were median z-score (MZ), weight (WAZ), height (HAZ), subscapular skinfold (SSFAZ), upper arm circumference (UAC) and triceps skinfold (TSFAZ). The evolution assessment of the parameters was performed by analysis of variance and comparison with the general normal population from unpaired t test, both in the total group of cardiac patients, and in subgroups with preoperative parameters below the normal level (Zm<-2). Results In the total group there was no significant evolution of MZ of all parameters. WAZ was statistically lower than the normal population until the 1st month of follow-up (P=0.028); HAZ only preoperatively (P=0.044), SSFAZ in the first month (P=0.015) and at 12th month (P=0.038), UAC and TSFAZ were always statistically equal to the general population. In patients whose development was below the level of normality, there were important variation of WAZ (P=0.002), HAZ (P=0.001) and UAC (P=0.031) after the operation, and the WAZ was lower than the normal population until the 3rd month (P=0.015); HAZ and UAC, until the first month (P=0.024 and P=0.039 respectively), SSFAZ, up to the 12th month (P=0.005), the TSFAZ only preoperatively (P=0.011). Conclusion The operation promoted the return to normalcy for those with heart disease in general within up to three months, but for the group of patients below normal developmental pattern of the return occurred within 12 months.
Comparison of short- and long-term complications and survival following jejunojejunostomy, jejunoileostomy and jejunocaecostomy in 112 horses: 2005-2010.

REASONS FOR PERFORMING THE STUDY There is disagreement among surgeons over whether jejunoileostomy (JI) or jejunocaecostomy (JC) is the better method of anastomosis following proximal ileal resection. OBJECTIVE To compare short- and long-term complications and outcome in horses undergoing jejunojejunostomy (JJ), JI and JC and to test the hypotheses that a higher proportion of horses undergoing JI would have short-term complications and mortality compared with horses undergoing JC or JJ and that JC would be associated with a higher long-term mortality and occurrence of colic. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective cross-sectional study. METHODS Medical records of horses undergoing celiotomy for a small intestinal obstruction and JJ, JI or JC from 2005 to 2010 were reviewed. Post operative complications were recorded. Short-term outcome was alive vs. dead at hospital discharge and was analysed using a Chi-squared test. Long-term follow-up was obtained and a Kaplan-Meier estimate of the survivor function was performed. RESULTS There were 112 horses included. A higher proportion of JI horses had a repeat celiotomy during hospitalisation compared with horses undergoing JC. The number of horses alive at hospital discharge was not different between groups: JJ 79% (95% confidence interval [CI] 68-90%), JI 78% (95% CI 61-96%), JC 83% (95% CI 71-96%). Among horses discharged with long-term follow-up, more horses had colic after JC compared with JJ or JI. Long-term post discharge survival based on the Kaplan-Meier survivor function was lower for horses undergoing JC than JJ or JI (P = 0.04). CONCLUSION While there was no difference in short-term outcome between groups, more horses with JI underwent a repeat celiotomy during hospitalisation. Horses with a JC were more likely to have long-term complications with colic. Horses that were subjected to euthanasia because of colic within 12 months of hospital discharge either had a JC or repeat celiotomy. The results suggest that, when possible, a JI may be the preferred method of anastomosis based on more favourable survival and lower occurrence of colic long term.
Stimulus-induced dissociation of neuronal firing rates and local field potential gamma power and its relationship to the blood oxygen level-dependent signal in macaque primary visual cortex

The functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) blood oxygenation level‐dependent (BOLD) signal is regularly used to assign neuronal activity to cognitive function. Recent analyses have shown that the local field potential (LFP) gamma power is a better predictor of the fMRI BOLD signal than spiking activity. However, LFP gamma power and spiking activity are usually correlated, clouding the analysis of the neural basis of the BOLD signal. We show that changes in LFP gamma power and spiking activity in the primary visual cortex (V1) of the awake primate can be dissociated by using grating and plaid pattern stimuli, which differentially engage surround suppression and cross‐orientation inhibition/facilitation within and between cortical columns. Grating presentation yielded substantial V1 LFP gamma frequency oscillations and significant multi‐unit activity. Plaid pattern presentation significantly reduced the LFP gamma power while increasing population multi‐unit activity. The fMRI BOLD activity followed the LFP gamma power changes, not the multi‐unit activity. Inference of neuronal activity from the fMRI BOLD signal thus requires detailed a priori knowledge of how different stimuli or tasks activate the cortical network.
A comparison of bubble evolution temperature in aramid and cellulose paper

The paper deals with the problem of the bubble effect in transformer winding insulation. The bubble effect should be understood as the release of water vapor from insulation. The main goal of the research was to compare the initiation temperature of bubble evolution in aramid and cellulose paper depending on the water content. Cellulose and aramid paper samples of different water content were prepared for the research study. The obtained results confirmed that aramid paper is less hygroscopic than cellulose paper. It was also proven that the initiation temperature of bubble evolution is lower for aramid paper than for cellulose paper with the same water content. However, the initiation temperature of bubble evolution is very similar for aramid and cellulose paper conditioned at the same relative humidity.
Engulfment and intracellular killing of F9 teratocarcinoma cells by non-activated murine macrophages.

Activated macrophages kill several types of tumor cells in vitro, whereas non-activated macrophages lack this capacity. We, however, observed that non-activated macrophages efficiently kill F9 teratocarcinoma as well as other teratocarcinoma cell lines. Dexamethasone, a glucocorticoid known to prevent macrophage activation, did not perturb the killing of F9 teratocarcinoma cells. Neither tumor necrosis factor alpha, nor the reactive oxygen intermediates, i.e. hydrogen peroxide, superoxide anion, and hydroxyl radical, nor serine proteases participated in this killing, shown by employing various agents which interfere with their production, secretion, or function. Using acridine orange/ethidium bromide vitality staining, the F9 teratocarcinoma cells were shown to be phagocytized alive by macrophages and subsequently killed intracellularly. Intact lysosomal function is required for the killing of F9 cells, as the lysosomotropic drugs chloroquine and ammonium chloride markedly inhibited this killing without perturbing their engulfment. The signal transduction pathway induced in the macrophages upon interaction with F9 teratocarcinoma cells seems to differ from that induced by macrophage activation. Neither the protein kinase C inhibitors polymyxin B and H-7 [1-(5-isoquinolinylsulfonyl)-2-methyl piperazine] nor the protein kinase C activator phorbol 12-myristate-13-acetate affected the killing of F9 cells. However, chlorpromazine (a powerful inhibitor of calmodulin), dibutyryl cAMP (a cAMP analog), and prostaglandin E2 inhibited the macrophage-mediated killing of F9 cells. In vivo studies indicate that an increased number of macrophages at the F9 tumor inoculation site (the peritoneal cavity) as a result of elicitation by thioglycollate prevents F9 tumor development. Our findings indicate that non-activated macrophages kill teratocarcinoma cells using a mechanism which differs from that employed by activated macrophages in the killing of other tumor cells.
Elastic Modulus of Ordered and Disordered Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes

Reference LNNME-ARTICLE-1999-005doi:10.1002/(SICI)1521-4095(199902)11:2 3.0. CO;2-JView record in Web of Science Record created on 2007-04-23, modified on 2016-08-08
Autism and ultraconserved non-coding sequence on chromosome 7q

Objective Autism has been linked to a broad region on chromosome 7q that contains a large number of genes involved in transcription and development. This region is also enriched for ultraconserved non-coding elements, defined as human–rodent sequences that are 100% aligned over ≥200 base pairs, which have a high likelihood of being functional. Therefore, as only a few rare coding variants have been detected in the autism candidate genes on 7q examined to date, we decided to screen these ultraconserved elements for possible autism susceptibility alleles. Methods We used denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography, and DNA sequencing, to perform variant detection in a total of 146 cases with autism, 96 from the Autism Genetic Resource Exchange and 50 from the Central Valley of Costa Rica, as well as 124 controls from the Polymorphism Discovery Resource Panel. We screened 10 consecutive ultraconserved elements in, or flanking, the genes DLX5/6, AUTS2 and FOXP2 on chromosome 7q. Results Although we did find several rare variants in autism cases that were not present in controls, we also observed rare variants present in controls and not cases. The most common variant occurred in controls at a frequency of 3.3%. Interestingly, two ultraconserved elements each harbored three independent variants and one ultraconserved element harbored two independent variants, suggesting that ultraconservation is maintained chiefly by a decreased tendency toward fixation, rather than a significantly lower mutation rate. Conclusions Our results show that these sequences are unlikely to harbor major autism susceptibility alleles.
Audiovisual correspondence between musical timbre and visual shapes

This article investigates the cross-modal correspondences between musical timbre and shapes. Previously, such features as pitch, loudness, light intensity, visual size, and color characteristics have mostly been used in studies of audio-visual correspondences. Moreover, in most studies, simple stimuli e.g., simple tones have been utilized. In this experiment, 23 musical sounds varying in fundamental frequency and timbre but fixed in loudness were used. Each sound was presented once against colored shapes and once against grayscale shapes. Subjects had to select the visual equivalent of a given sound i.e., its shape, color (or grayscale) and vertical position. This scenario permitted studying the associations between normalized timbre and visual shapes as well as some of the previous findings for more complex stimuli. One hundred and nineteen subjects (31 females and 88 males) participated in the online experiment. Subjects included 36 claimed professional musicians, 47 claimed amateur musicians, and 36 claimed non-musicians. Thirty-one subjects have also claimed to have synesthesia-like experiences. A strong association between timbre of envelope normalized sounds and visual shapes was observed. Subjects have strongly associated soft timbres with blue, green or light gray rounded shapes, harsh timbres with red, yellow or dark gray sharp angular shapes and timbres having elements of softness and harshness together with a mixture of the two previous shapes. Color or grayscale had no effect on timbre-shape associations. Fundamental frequency was not associated with height, grayscale or color. The significant correspondence between timbre and shape revealed by the present work allows designing substitution systems which might help the blind to perceive shapes through timbre.
The impact of causality on information-theoretic source and channel coding problems

Author(s): Palaiyanur, Harikrishna | Advisor(s): Sahai, Anant | Abstract: This thesis studies several problems in information theory where the notion of causality comes into play. Causality in information theory refers to the timing of when information is available to parties in a coding system.The first part of the thesis studies the error exponent (or reliability function) for several communication problems over discrete memoryless channels. In particular, it studies an upper bound to the error exponent, or equivalently, a lower bound to the error probability of general codes, called the Haroutunian exponent. The Haroutunian exponent is the best known upper bound to the error exponent for two channel coding problems: fixed blocklength coding with feedback and fixed-delay coding without feedback. For symmetric channels like the binary symmetric channel and the binary erasure channel, the Haroutunian exponent evaluates to the sphere-packing exponent, but for asymmetric channels like the Z-channel, the Haroutunian exponent is strictly larger than the sphere-packing exponent. The reason for the presumed looseness of the Haroutunian exponent is that it assumes, despite the inherent causality of feedback, a code might be able to predict future channel behavior based on past channel behavior and accordingly tune its input distribution. Intuitively, this kind of noncausal information should not be available to an encoder when the channel is memoryless. While we have not been able to tighten the Haroutunian exponent to the sphere-packing exponent for fixed blocklength codes with feedback, we describe some attempts made at bridging the gap. Additionally, we describe how to tighten the upper bound for two cases when the encoder is somehow limited: if the encoding strategy is constrained to use fixed type inputs regardless of output sequence and if there is a delay in the feedback path. The latter of these results leads to the insight that the Haroutunian exponent of a parallel channel constructed of independent uses of the original asymmetric channel approaches the sphere-packing exponent of the original channel after normalization. This fact can then be used to show that the error exponent for fixed-delay codes is upper bounded by the sphere-packing exponent.The second part of the thesis studies lossy compression of the arbitrarily varying sources introduced by Berger in his paper entitled `The Source Coding Game'. An arbitrarily varying source is a model for a source that samples other subsources under the control of an agent called a switcher. Motivated by compression of active vision sources, we seek upper and lower bounds for the rate-distortion function of an arbitrarily varying source when the switcher has noncausal knowledge about the realizations of the subsources it samples from. We find that when the subsources are memoryless, noncausal knowledge of subsource realizations is strictly better than information about past subsource realizations only.
A large lung gene expression study identifying fibulin-5 as a novel player in tissue repair in COPD

Background Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive, incurable lung disease characterised by abnormal tissue repair causing emphysema and small airways fibrosis. Since current therapy cannot modify this abnormal repair, it is crucial to unravel its underlying molecular mechanisms. Unbiased analysis of genome-wide gene expression profiles in lung tissue provides a powerful tool to investigate this. Methods We performed genome-wide gene expression profiling in 581 lung tissue samples from current and ex-smokers with (n=311) and without COPD (n=270). Subsequently, quantitative PCR, western blot and immunohistochemical analyses were performed to validate our main findings. Results 112 genes were found to be upregulated in patients with COPD compared with controls, whereas 61 genes were downregulated. Among the most upregulated genes were fibulin-5 (FBLN5), elastin (ELN), latent transforming growth factor β binding protein 2 (LTBP2) and microfibrillar associated protein 4 (MFAP4), all implicated in elastogenesis. Our gene expression findings were validated at mRNA and protein level. We demonstrated higher ELN gene expression in COPD lung tissue and similar trends for FBLN5 and MFAP4, and negative correlations with lung function. FBLN5 protein levels were increased in COPD lung tissue and cleaved, possibly non-functional FBLN5 protein was present. Strong coexpression of FBLN5, ELN, LTBP2 and MFAP4 in lung tissue and in silico analysis indicated cofunctionality of these genes. Finally, colocalisation of FBLN5, MFAP4 and LTBP2 with elastic fibres was demonstrated in lung tissue. Conclusions We identified a clear gene signature for elastogenesis in COPD and propose FBLN5 as a novel player in tissue repair in COPD.
Association of Dietary Nitrate Intake With Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma: A Prospective Analysis From the Nurses' Health Study and Health Professionals Follow-up Study.

IMPORTANCE Nitric oxide signaling alterations in outflow facility and retinal blood flow autoregulation are implicated in primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG). Nitric oxide donation has emerged as a POAG therapeutic target. An exogenous source of nitric oxide is dietary nitrates. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the association between dietary nitrate intake, derived mainly from green leafy vegetables, and POAG. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS We followed up participants biennially in the prospective cohorts of the Nurses' Health Study (63 893 women; 1984-2012) and the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (41 094 men; 1986-2012) at each 2-year risk period. Eligible participants were 40 years or older, were free of POAG, and reported eye examinations. EXPOSURES The primary exposure was dietary nitrate intake. Information on diet and potential confounders was updated with validated questionnaires. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES The main outcome was the incidence of POAG and POAG subtypes; 1483 cases were confirmed with medical records and classified into subtypes defined by intraocular pressure (IOP) (≥22 or <22 mm Hg) or by visual field (VF) loss pattern at diagnosis (peripheral loss only or early paracentral loss). Cohort-specific and pooled multivariable rate ratios (MVRRs) and 95% CIs were estimated. RESULTS During 1 678 713 person-years of follow-up, 1483 incident cases of POAG were identified. The mean (SD) age for the 1483 cases was 66.8 (8.3). Compared with the lowest quintile of dietary nitrate intake (quintile 1: approximately 80 mg/d), the pooled MVRR for the highest quintile (quintile 5: approximately 240 mg/d) was 0.79 (95% CI, 0.66-0.93; P for trend = .02). The dose response was stronger (P for heterogeneity = .01) for POAG with early paracentral VF loss (433 cases; quintile 5 vs quintile 1 MVRR = 0.56; 95% CI, 0.40-0.79; P for trend < .001) than for POAG with peripheral VF loss only (835 cases; quintile 5 vs quintile 1 MVRR = 0.85; 95% CI, 0.68-1.06; P for trend = .50). The association did not differ (P for heterogeneity = .75) by POAG subtypes defined by IOP (997 case patients with IOP ≥22 mm Hg: quintile 5 vs quintile 1 MVRR = 0.82; 95% CI, 0.67-1.01; P for trend = .11; 486 case patients with IOP <22 mm Hg: quintile 5 vs quintile 1 MVRR = 0.71; 95% CI, 0.53-0.96; P for trend = .12). Green leafy vegetables accounted for 56.7% of nitrate intake variation. Compared with consuming 0.31 servings per day, the MVRR for consuming 1.45 or more servings per day was 0.82 for all POAG (95% CI, 0.69-0.97; P for trend = .02) and 0.52 for POAG with paracentral VF loss (95% CI, 0.29-0.96; P for trend < .001). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Higher dietary nitrate and green leafy vegetable intake was associated with a lower POAG risk, particularly POAG with early paracentral VF loss at diagnosis.
The relationship of work avoidance and learning goals to perceived competence, externality and meaning.

BACKGROUND Motivational researchers have suggested that work avoidance may be an academic goal in which students seek to minimise the amount of work they do in school. Additionally, research has also suggested that emotions may be catalysts for goals. AIM This study examined the relationship between emotions and learning or work avoidance goals. Do emotions explain goals? SAMPLE The participants were 512 senior high school students in Eastern Canada. METHOD Students completed a survey assessing motivation related constructs. A structural equation model was postulated in which students' affect predicted learning goals and work avoidant goals. A cluster analysis of affect scores was performed followed by between-group and within-group contrasts of goal scores. RESULTS The structural equation model suggested that a sense of competence and control were predictive of a learning goal while lack of meaning was related to work avoidance. The cluster analysis showed that confidence and control were associated with a learning goal but that a sense of inadequacy, lack of control or lack of meaning could give rise to work avoidance. CONCLUSIONS Emotions seem to be directly linked to goals. Teachers who foster feelings of self-assuredness will be helping students develop learning goals. Students who feel less competent, bored or have little control will adopt work avoidant goals.
Perchlorate induces hermaphroditism in threespine sticklebacks

Recently, concern regarding perchlorate contamination has arisen in many contexts. Perchlorate has many military, commercial, and domestic applications, and it has been found in milk, drinking and irrigation water, and produce. Perchlorate is harmful at low levels, yet it remains unregulated in the United States while the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency attempts to establish acceptable exposure levels. The present study investigated potential reproductive effects on vertebrates using a model fish species, the threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus). Sticklebacks were raised from syngamy through sexual maturity in untreated water and in three target concentrations of sodium perchlorate–treated water. Perchlorate was found to interfere with the expression of nuptial coloration, courtship behavior, and normal sexual development. Genetic testing revealed that some females were masculinized to the extent that they produced both sperm and eggs, and histological analysis showed that these individuals had intersexual gonads (ovotestes) containing both oocytes and cells undergoing spermatogenesis. In vitro fertilizations revealed that those gametes were capable of self‐ and cross‐fertilization. However, crosses using sperm derived from genetic females died either during the blastula phase or near the onset of organogenesis. Sperm derived from genetic males produced viable fry when crossed with eggs derived from genetic females from all treatments. To our knowledge, the present study provides the first evidence that perchlorate produces androgenic effects and is capable of inducing functional hermaphroditism in a nonhermaphroditic vertebrate.