Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Modeling transcranial magnetic stimulation from the induced electric fields to the membrane potentials along tractography-based white matter fiber tracts

Objective. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a promising non-invasive tool for modulating the brain activity. Despite the widespread therapeutic and diagnostic use of TMS in neurology and psychiatry, its observed response remains hard to predict, limiting its further development and applications. Although the stimulation intensity is always maximum at the cortical surface near the coil, experiments reveal that TMS can affect deeper brain regions as well. Approach. The explanation of this spread might be found in the white matter fiber tracts, connecting cortical and subcortical structures. When applying an electric field on neurons, their membrane potential is altered. If this change is significant, more likely near the TMS coil, action potentials might be initiated and propagated along the fiber tracts towards deeper regions. In order to understand and apply TMS more effectively, it is important to capture and account for this interaction as accurately as possible. Therefore, we compute, next to the induced electric fields in the brain, the spatial distribution of the membrane potentials along the fiber tracts and its temporal dynamics. Main results. This paper introduces a computational TMS model in which electromagnetism and neurophysiology are combined. Realistic geometry and tissue anisotropy are included using magnetic resonance imaging and targeted white matter fiber tracts are traced using tractography based on diffusion tensor imaging. The position and orientation of the coil can directly be retrieved from the neuronavigation system. Incorporating these features warrants both patient- and case-specific results. Significance. The presented model gives insight in the activity propagation through the brain and can therefore explain the observed clinical responses to TMS and their inter- and/or intra-subject variability. We aspire to advance towards an accurate, flexible and personalized TMS model that helps to understand stimulation in the connected brain and to target more focused and deeper brain regions.
Maternal self-efficacy regarding children's eating and sedentary behaviours in the early years: associations with children's food intake and sedentary behaviours.

INTRODUCTION This cross-sectional study aimed to describe parents' views regarding self-efficacy to influence children's eating and sedentary behaviours at two time points in early childhood, and to examine associations between these views and children's eating and sedentary behaviours. METHODS Mothers of 1-year (n=60) and 5-year-old children (n=80) were recruited through Maternal and Child Health Centres and kindergartens in Victoria, Australia. Mothers reported children's dietary intake, television viewing and perceptions of their self-efficacy regarding children's eating and sedentary behaviours. RESULTS Overall, 5-year-old children consumed significantly more energy-dense food and drink and spent significantly more time viewing TV/DVD and video. Mothers of 1-year-olds were significantly more likely to report they felt confident to limit child's consumption of non-core foods/drinks, and to limit screen access (p<0.001). Measures of maternal self-efficacy were directly associated with 5-year-old children's water (p<0.05), and fruit and vegetable consumption (p<0.005), and with 1-year-old children's vegetable consumption (p<0.05), and were inversely associated with cordial and cake consumption (p<0.05). Maternal self-efficacy to limit viewing time was inversely associated with screen-time exposure in both age groups (p<0.01). CONCLUSION This study suggests that mother's self-efficacy regarding limiting non-core foods/drinks and limiting screen-time exposures may decline during the first few years of a child's life. Higher maternal self-efficacy was associated with children having more obesity protective eating and sedentary behaviours at both ages. Interventions to support the development of healthy lifestyle behaviours may be most effective if they target mothers' self-efficacy in these domains early in their child's life.
Do subfertile women adjust their habits when trying to conceive?

Abstract Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate lifestyle habits and lifestyle adjustments among subfertile women trying to conceive. Materials and methods: Women (n = 747) were recruited consecutively at their first visit to fertility clinics in mid-Sweden. Participants completed a questionnaire. Data were analyzed using logistic regression, t tests, and chi-square tests. Results: The response rate was 62% (n = 466). Mean duration of infertility was 1.9 years. During this time 13.2% used tobacco daily, 13.6% drank more than three cups of coffee per day, and 11.6% consumed more than two glasses of alcohol weekly. In this sample, 23.9% of the women were overweight (body mass index, BMI 25–29.9 kg/m2), and 12.5% were obese (BMI ≥30 kg/m2). Obese women exercised more and changed to healthy diets more frequently than normal-weight women (odds ratio 7.43; 95% confidence interval 3.7–14.9). Six out of ten women (n = 266) took folic acid when they started trying to conceive, but 11% stopped taking folic acid after some time. Taking folic acid was associated with a higher level of education (p < 0.001). Conclusions: Among subfertile women, one-third were overweight or obese, and some had other lifestyle factors with known adverse effects on fertility such as use of tobacco. Overweight and obese women adjusted their habits but did not reduce their body mass index. Women of fertile age would benefit from preconception counseling, and the treatment of infertility should routinely offer interventions for lifestyle changes.
Using the critical process targeting method to improve SMEs' process understanding: A tale of two Australian case studies

Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) exhibit limited understanding of their business processes. This lack of understanding limits the potential of these businesses and is a direct contributor to the high failure rates of this sector of the economy. Research has suggested that existing BP methods to not support SMEs in gaining an improved understanding of their processes due to the high complexity and resource intensity of these tools, more suitable for deployment within a large business context. The paper aims to discuss these issues. ,This paper reports on two qualitative case studies of medium-sized financial entities that employ a new approach, the critical process targeting method (CPTM), to improve their understanding of their processes. ,In reviewing these two case studies, the authors find that the CPTM can be considered a useful tool in improving process understanding in SMEs, and can lead to the achievement of strategic goals. This paper, however, also describes a number of practical limitations that were encountered when employing the CPTM within the SME context. ,This new contribution to theory adds significant and critical support to academia and practice in business process understanding where current methods are found to be too resource heavy for even some large organisations. These two case studies have also provided support for struggling management teams being overwhelmed by the need to understand business processes within their organisations. Published literature and the case study experience both suggest that medium-sized entities have difficulty understanding their business processes.
Secrecy Performance Analysis of Cognitive Decode-and-Forward Relay Networks in Nakagami- $m$ Fading Channels

This paper investigates the physical layer security problem of cognitive decode-and-forward relay networks over Nakagami- $m$ fading channels. We consider the relaying communication between one secondary user (SU) source and one SU destination by using an opportunistic relay selection from multiple SU relays and sharing the licensed spectrum of multiple primary users (PUs) in the underlay network. While the transmission between the SUs imposes interference on each PU, the relayed transmission is intercepted by one SU eavesdropper. In the absence of the eavesdropper’s channel state information, the relay selection is based on the largest channel gain of relay-to-destination link, which is assumed to be outdated due to feedback delay. We derive the exact probability of non-zero secrecy capacity and the exact secrecy outage probability (SOP) in the closed form. Furthermore, we derive the asymptotic SOP in two different cases, and explicitly show the effects of system parameters on the secrecy diversity order and the secrecy diversity gain, respectively. Both asymptotic analysis and simulation results show that the secrecy performance can be improved by increasing either the number of relays or the Nakagami parameter of the legitimate relay channels, whereas the secrecy diversity gain deteriorates as the number of the PUs increases.
Effect of pineal extracts on blood glutathione level in psychotic patients.

THE FUNCTION of the pineal gland is not established; evidence bearing on this matter has been reviewed in another publication from this laboratory. 1 The possibility that the pineal gland might influence metabolism in man has not been investigated extensively in the past, and it was therefore decided to make such a study here. Some negative findings were encountered; a constant positive finding was that the blood glutathione level changed during a course of injections of some pineal extracts. This was considered important since earlier work 2 had shown that the blood glutathione level is low in many patients with manic-depressive, involutional, or schizophrenic psychoses. A few observations on glucose tolerance were also made, in view of the belief currently held by some workers that glutathione influences carbohydrate metabolism. MATERIAL AND METHODS Nine experiments were performed with four pineal extracts, designated in this laboratory as A, RPA-4, TRPA-4, and TSD-D;
Disability: A Life Course Approach

Introduction. Chapter 1: Generating disability. Chapter 2: Birth rights. Chapter 3: Disability and childhood. Chapter 4: Transition? What transition? Chapter 5: The myths and realities of adulthood. Chapter 6: Becoming older. Chapter 7: A matter of life and death. Conclusion
Assessing Mitochondrial Movement Within Neurons: Manual Versus Automated Tracking Methods

Owing to the small size of mitochondria and the complexity of their motility patterns, mitochondrial tracking is technically challenging. Mitochondria are often tracked manually; however, this is time‐consuming and prone to measurement error. Here, we examined the suitability of four commercial and open‐source software alternatives for automated mitochondrial tracking in neurons compared with manual measurements. We show that all the automated tracking tools dramatically underestimated track length, mitochondrial displacement and movement duration, with reductions ranging from 45 to 77% of the values obtained manually. In contrast, mitochondrial velocity was generally overestimated. Only the number of motile mitochondria and their directionality were similar between strategies. Despite these discrepancies, we show that automated tools successfully detected transport alterations after applying an oxidant agent. Thus, automated methods appear to be suitable for assessing relative transport differences between experimental groups, but not for absolute quantification of mitochondrial dynamics. Although useful for objective and time‐efficient measurements of mitochondrial movements, results provided by automated methods should be interpreted with caution.
How Significant is Statistically Significant? The case of Audio Music Similarity and Retrieval

The principal goal of the annual Music Information Retrieval Evaluation eXchange (MIREX) experiments is to determine which systems perform well and which systems perform poorly on a range of MIR tasks. However, there has been no systematic analysis regarding how well these evaluation results translate into real-world user satisfaction. For most researchers, reaching statistical significance in the evaluation results is usually the most important goal, but in this paper we show that indicators of statistical significance (i.e., small p-value) are eventually of secondary importance. Researchers who want to predict the realworld implications of formal evaluations should properly report upon practical significance (i.e., large effect-size). Using data from the 18 systems submitted to the MIREX 2011 Audio Music Similarity and Retrieval task, we ran an experiment with 100 real-world users that allows us to explicitly map system performance onto user satisfaction. Based upon 2,200 judgments, the results show that absolute system performance needs to be quite large for users to be satisfied, and differences between systems have to be very large for users to actually prefer the supposedly better system. The results also suggest a practical upper bound of 80% on user satisfaction with the current definition of the task. Reflecting upon these findings, we make some recommendations for future evaluation experiments and the reporting and interpretation of results in peer-reviewing.
School Success, Possible Selves, and Parent School Involvement*

Increased parent school involvement is associated with better academic outcomes; yet, proximal contribu- tors to this effect remain understudied. We focus on one potential proximal contributor, youth's positive and nega- tive future self-images or ''possible selves,'' reasoning that if parent school involvement fosters possible selves, then interventions aimed at enhancing youths' possible selves should moderate the negative effect of low parent school involvement. We examine a 2-year follow-up of a randomized clinical trial of a possible self-based intervention (N ¼ 239), demonstrating with regression equations that the intervention moderated the association of low parent school involvement with worse grades and less school-engaged behavior. Low parent school involvement negatively influenced achievement among control, not intervention youth, suggesting that school-based, possible self-focused interventions can moderate the undermining effect of low parent school involvement.
Clinical differentiation of bipolar II disorder from borderline personality disorder

Purpose of review Differentiating bipolar II disorder (BP II) from borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a common diagnostic dilemma. The purpose of this review is to focus on recent studies that have considered clinical differences between the conditions including family history, phenomenology, longitudinal course, comorbidity and treatment response, and which might advance their clinical distinction. Recent findings Findings suggest key differentiating parameters to include family history, onset pattern, clinical course, phenomenological profile of depressive and elevated mood states, and symptoms of emotional dysregulation. Less specific differentiation is provided by childhood trauma history, deliberate self-harm, comorbidity rates, neurocognitive features, treatment response and impulsivity parameters. Summary This review refines candidate variables for differentiating BP II from BPD, and should assist the design of studies seeking to advance their phenomenological and clinical distinction.
Neuronal activity regulates glutamate transporter dynamics in developing astrocytes

Glutamate transporters (GluTs) maintain a low ambient level of glutamate in the central nervous system (CNS) and shape the activation of glutamate receptors at synapses. Nevertheless, the mechanisms that regulate the trafficking and localization of transporters near sites of glutamate release are poorly understood. Here, we examined the subcellular distribution and dynamic remodeling of the predominant GluT GLT‐1 (excitatory amino acid transporter 2, EAAT2) in developing hippocampal astrocytes. Immunolabeling revealed that endogenous GLT‐1 is concentrated into discrete clusters along branches of developing astrocytes that were apposed preferentially to synapsin‐1 positive synapses. Green fluorescent protein (GFP)‐GLT‐1 fusion proteins expressed in astrocytes also formed distinct clusters that lined the edges of astrocyte processes, as well as the tips of filopodia and spine‐like structures. Time‐lapse three‐dimensional confocal imaging in tissue slices revealed that GFP‐GLT‐1 clusters were dynamically remodeled on a timescale of minutes. Some transporter clusters moved within developing astrocyte branches as filopodia extended and retracted, while others maintained stable positions at the tips of spine‐like structures. Blockade of neuronal activity with tetrodotoxin reduced both the density and perisynaptic localization of GLT‐1 clusters. Conversely, enhancement of neuronal activity increased the size of GLT‐1 clusters and their proximity to synapses. Together, these findings indicate that neuronal activity influences both the organization of GluTs in developing astrocyte membranes and their position relative to synapses. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
[The relationship between gene polymorphism of telomerase reverse transcriptase and susceptibility to hepatocellular carcinoma].

OBJECTIVE To explore the correlation between single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) rs2736098 and rs2736100 and the susceptibility to hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). METHODS This case-control study design included 1300 diagnosed HCC patients with HBsAg positive and 1344 HBsAg positive people as control-group.rs2736098 and rs2736100 on TERT were selected as research sites, whose polymorphisms were detected by TaqMan allelic discrimination assay. The OR values (95%CI) were calculated by logistic regression to compare the correlation between different genotype and susceptibility to HCC. RESULTS The distribution frequencies of three genotypes as GG, AG and AA on rs2736098 were separately 39.3% (500/1273), 44.2% (563/1273) and 16.5% (210/1273) in case group; while respectively 39.6% (526/1328), 45.5% (604/1328) and 14.9% (198/1328) in control group. The distribution frequencies of three genotypes as AA, AC and CC on rs2736100 were separately 33.7% (428/1269), 49.9% (633/1269) and 16.4% (208/1269) in case group; while respectively 34.0% (449/1322), 49.2% (651/1322) and 16.8% (222/1322) in control group. The multi-variates logistic regression analysis showed that there was no significant difference between rs2736098 mutated A carriers and genotype GG carriers in the susceptibility to HCC after adjusting by age, sex, smoking and drinking factors (rs2736098, AA + AG vs GG: adjusted OR = 1.00 (95%CI: 0.86 - 1.18)); and there was no significant different between rs2736100 mutated C carriers and genotype AA carriers in the susceptibility to HCC either (AC + CC vs AA: adjusted OR = 1.03 (95%CI: 0.87 - 1.22)). CONCLUSION The polymorphisms of rs2736098 and rs2736100 on TERT may not play a landmark role in susceptibility to HCC among Chinese population.
Causal Discovery of Linear Cyclic Models from Multiple Experimental Data Sets with Overlapping Variables

Much of scientific data is collected as randomized experiments intervening on some and observing other variables of interest. Quite often, a given phenomenon is investigated in several studies, and different sets of variables are involved in each study. In this article we consider the problem of integrating such knowledge, inferring as much as possible concerning the underlying causal structure with respect to the union of observed variables from such experimental or passive observational overlapping data sets. We do not assume acyclicity or joint causal sufficiency of the underlying data generating model, but we do restrict the causal relationships to be linear and use only second order statistics of the data. We derive conditions for full model identifiability in the most generic case, and provide novel techniques for incorporating an assumption of faithfulness to aid in inference. In each case we seek to establish what is and what is not determined by the data at hand.
Three- and four-dimensional mapping of speech and language in patients with epilepsy

Functional brain maps were first delineated in two dimensions 80 years ago. By analysing stimulation and intracranial EEG data from 100 patients with epilepsy, Nakai et al. generate 3D and 4D language maps incorporating space, time and causality. These whole-brain maps allow prediction of language areas for patients undergoing neurosurgery.
Spatiotemporal Dynamics of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor mRNA Induction in the Vestibulo-Olivary Network during Vestibular Compensation

Vestibular compensation, which is the behavioral recovery from vestibular dysfunction produced by unilateral labyrinthectomy (UL), is attributed to functional and structural reorganization of neural networks in the central vestibular system. To assess the possible contribution of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) to this recovery process, we investigated changes in mRNA expression levels in the central vestibular system after UL. We evaluated BDNF mRNA expression levels by quantitative reverse transcription-PCR andin situ hybridization. We found that BDNF mRNA is differentially induced in the medial vestibular nucleus ipsilateral to UL and in the prepositus hypoglossi and inferior olive on the contralateral side. The BDNF mRNA induction lasted for at least 24 hr and returned to the basal expression level within 72 hr after UL. In contrast to BDNF mRNA induction, the expression of an immediate-early gene, c-fos, quickly reached the maximum level at 3 hr and decreased to the basal level within 24 hr after UL. Neither BDNF or c-fos induction was observed in sham-operated animals. The persistent induction of BDNF after UL temporally corresponded to early behavioral manifestations of vestibular compensation. We further found that trkB mRNA was expressed in the central vestibular network at high levels, although its expression levels did not change over time after UL. Because BDNF is implicated in regulating synaptic structure and function, these results provide support for the hypothesis that BDNF is involved in neuronal reorganization that allows vestibular compensation.
Identification of NDM-1 in a Putatively Novel Acinetobacter Species (“NB14”) Closely Related to Acinetobacter pittii

ABSTRACT In this study, we describe the molecular characterization of a plasmid-located blaNDM-1 harbored by an Acinetobacter clinical isolate recovered from a patient in Turkey that putatively constitutes a novel Acinetobacter species, as shown by its distinct ARDRA (amplified 16S ribosomal DNA restriction analysis) profile and molecular sequencing techniques. blaNDM-1 was carried by a conjugative plasmid widespread among non-baumannii Acinetobacter isolates, suggesting its potential for dissemination before reaching more clinically relevant Acinetobacter species.