Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The SF36 as an outcome measure of services for end stage renal failure.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the use of the short form 36 (SF36) as a measure of health related quality of life of patients with end stage renal failure, document the results, and investigate factors, including mode of treatment, which may influence it. DESIGN: Cross sectional survey of patients with end stage renal failure, with the standard United Kingdom version of the SF36 supplemented by specific questions for end stage renal failure. SETTING: A teaching hospital renal unit. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: 660 patients treated at the Sheffield Kidney Institute by haemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis, and transplantation. Internal consistency, percentage of maximal or minimal responses, SF36 scores, effect sizes, correlations between independent predictor variables and individual dimension scores of the SF36. Multiple regression analysis of the SF36 scores for the physical functioning, vitality, and mental health dimensions against treatment, age, risk (comorbidity) score, and other independent variables. RESULTS: A high response rate was achieved. Internal consistency was good. There were no floor or ceiling effects other than for the two "role" dimensions. Overall health related quality of life was poor compared with the general population. Having a functioning transplant was a significant predictor of higher score in the three dimensions (physical functioning, vitality, and mental health) for which multiple regression models were constructed. Age, sex, comorbidity, duration of treatment, level of social and emotional support, household numbers, and hospital dialysis were also (variably) significant predictors. CONCLUSIONS: The SF36 is a practical and consistent questionnaire in this context, and there is evidence to support its construct validity. Overall the health related quality of life of these patients is poor, although transplantation is associated with higher scores independently of the effect of age and comorbidity. Age, comorbidity, and sex are also predictive of the scores attained in the three dimensions studied. Further studies are required to ascertain whether altering those predictor variables which are under the influence of professional carers is associated with changes in health related quality of life, and thus confirm the value of this outcome as a measure of quality of care.
Consistency aspects of Wiener-Hammerstein model identification in presence of process noise

The Wiener-Hammerstein model is a block-oriented model consisting of two linear blocks and a static nonlinearity in the middle. Several identification approaches for this model structure rely on the fact that the best linear approximation of the system is a consistent estimate of the two linear parts, under the hypothesis of Gaussian excitation. But, these approaches do not consider the presence of other disturbance sources than measurement noise. In this paper we consider the presence of a disturbance entering before the nonlinearity (process noise) and we show that, also in this case, the best linear approximation is a consistent estimate of underlying linear dynamics. Furthermore, we analyse the impact of the process noise on the nonlinearity estimation, showing that a standard prediction error method approach can lead to biased results.
Tail Risk and Equity Risk Premia ∗

This paper develops a new semi-parametric estimation method based on an extended ICAPM dynamic model incorporating jump tails. The model allows for time-varying, asymmetric jump size distributions and a self-exciting jump intensity process while avoiding commonly used but restrictive affine assumptions on the relationship between jump intensity and volatility. The estimated model implies that the average annual jump risk premium is 6.75%. The model-implied jump risk premium also has strong explanatory power for short-to-medium run aggregate market returns. Empirically, I present new estimates of the model based equity risk premia of so-called ”Small-Big”, ”Value-Growth” and ”Winners-Losers” portfolios. Further, I find that they are all time-varying and all crashed in the 2008 financial crisis. Additionally, both the jump and volatility components of equity risk premia are especially important for the ”Winners-Losers” portfolio. ∗I benefited from discussions with my advisors Tim Bollerslev, George Tauchen, Hao Zhou, and Andrew Patton. I am also grateful for comments from Jia Li, Viktor Todorov and doctoral students in the Duke Financial Econometrics lunch group. All errors are my own. For an updated version of this paper, please check my personal website http://laixu.me. †Department of Economics, Duke University, Durham NC 27708 USA, Email lai.xu@duke.edu, Phone 919-257-0059.
Electrochemical Membrane Reactors for Sustainable Chlorine Recycling

Polymer electrolyte membranes have found broad application in a number of processes, being fuel cells, due to energy concerns, the main focus of the scientific community worldwide. Relatively little attention has been paid to the use of these materials in electrochemical production and separation processes. In this review, we put emphasis upon the application of Nafion membranes in electrochemical membrane reactors for chlorine recycling. The performance of such electrochemical reactors can be influenced by a number of factors including the properties of the membrane, which play an important role in reactor optimization. This review discusses the role of Nafion as a membrane, as well as its importance in the catalyst layer for the formation of the so-called three-phase boundary. The influence of an equilibrated medium on the Nafion proton conductivity and Cl− crossover, as well as the influence of the catalyst ink dispersion medium on the Nafion/catalyst self-assembly and its importance for the formation of an ionic conducting network in the catalyst layer are summarized.
Ward rounds: how prepared are future doctors?

Introduction: Ward rounds are an essential activity for doctors in hospital settings and represent complex tasks requiring not only medical knowledge but also communication skills, clinical technical skills, patient management skills and team-work skills. The present study aimed to identify final year students’ deficiencies in conducting ward rounds in order to aid the development of appropriate teaching tools. Methods: 45 final year students participated in a simulated ward round session with three standardised patient scenarios: (1) myocardial infarction, (2) poorly controlled diabetes, and (3) acute fever in acute myeloid leukaemia. Videotaped sessions were rated by independent raters using binary item checklists which reflected predefined learning goals in five different domains: (I) information gathering, (II) communication with patient, (III) focused physical examination, (IV) chart reviewing/ prescription/ documentation and (V) team communication. Results: For the three patient scenarios, 64.3% of the domain-specific learning goals were attained for the domain “information gathering”, 79.4% for “communication with patient”, 62.6% for “focused physical examination”, 48.9% for “chart reviewing/ prescription/ documentation” and 86.0% for the domain “team communication”. Conclusion: Final year students’ ward round skills appear to be insufficient with a central deficit in reviewing charts and initiating appropriate prescriptions and documentation. Ward round training which eases the transition from observing ward rounds to conducting them on one's own is urgently required.
Clinical Outcome among Nasopharyngeal Cancer Patients in a Multi-Ethnic Society in Singapore

Background Nasopharyngeal cancer (NPC) is endemic among Chinese populations in Southeast Asia. However, the outcomes of non-Chinese NPC patients in Singapore are not well reported. Aim To determine if non-Chinese NPC patients have a different prognosis and examine the clinical outcomes of NPC patients in a multi-ethnic society. Methods Retrospective chart review of 558 NPC patients treated at a single academic tertiary hospital from 2002 to 2012. Survival and recurrence rates were analysed and predictive factors identified using the Kaplan-Meier method and Cox regression model. Results Our cohort comprised 409 males (73.3%) and 149 females (26.7%) with a median age of 52 years. There were 476 Chinese (85.3%), 57 Malays (10.2%), and 25 of other ethnic groups (4.5%). Non-Chinese patients were more likely to be associated with advanced nodal disease at initial presentation (p = 0.049), compared with the Chinese. However, there were no statistical differences in their overall survival (OS) or disease specific survival (DSS) (p = 0.934 and p = 0.857 respectively). The 3-year and 5-year cohort OS and DSS rates were 79.3%, 70.7%, and 83.2%, 77.4% respectively. Advanced age (p<0.001), N2 disease (p = 0.036), N3 disease (p<0.001), and metastatic disease (p<0.001) at presentation were independently associated with poor overall survival. N2 disease (p = 0.032), N3 disease (p<0.001) and metastatic disease (p<0.001) were also independently associated with poor DSS. No predictive factors were associated with loco-regional recurrence after definitive treatment. Advanced age (p = 0.044), N2 disease (p = 0.033) and N3 disease (p<0.001) were independently associated with distant relapse. Conclusion In a multi-ethnic society in Singapore, non-Chinese are more likely to present with advanced nodal disease. This however did not translate into poorer survival outcomes. Older patients with N2 or N3 disease are associated with a higher risk of distant relapse and poor overall survival.
Cooperative Handover Management in Dense Cellular Networks

Network densification has always been an important factor to cope with the ever increasing capacity demand. Deploying more base stations (BSs) improves the spatial frequency utilization, which increases the network capacity. However, such improvement comes at the expense of shrinking the BSs' footprints, which increases the handover (HO) rate and may diminish the foreseen capacity gains. In this paper, we propose a cooperative HO management scheme to mitigate the HO effect on throughput gains achieved via cellular network densification. The proposed HO scheme relies on skipping HO to the nearest BS at some instances along the user's trajectory while enabling cooperative BS service during HO execution at other instances. To this end, we develop a mathematical model, via stochastic geometry, to quantify the performance of the proposed HO scheme in terms of coverage probability and user throughput. The results show that the proposed cooperative HO scheme outperforms the always best connected based association at high mobility. Also, the value of BS cooperation along with handover skipping is quantified with respect to the HO skipping only that has recently appeared in the literature. Particularly, the proposed cooperative HO scheme shows throughput gains of 12% to 27% and 17% on average, when compared to the always best connected and HO skipping only schemes at user velocity ranging from 80 km/h to 160 Km/h, respectively.
Selected indicators related to smoking incidence in pregnant women in the Czech Republic

Ăvod: RizikovĂS chovĂĄnĂ­ budoucĂ­ch rodiAĹŻ v podobA kouĹenĂ­ jiĹž pĹed poAetĂ­m a zejmĂSna pak prenatĂĄlnA hraje vĂ˝znamnou roli v etiologii rĹŻznĂ˝ch abnormalit vĂ˝voje a poruch zdravĂ­ dĂ­tAte. Ty se mohou projevit okamĹžitA, a nĂĄslednA i s dlouhodobou latencĂ­. Na chovĂĄnĂ­ budoucĂ­ch matek majĂ­ dopad znalosti, kterĂS tvoĹĂ­ zĂĄklad pro kaĹždodennĂ­ nĂĄvyky Ĺžen. KouĹenĂ­ Ĺžen v tAhotenstvĂ­ podmiĹujĂ­ faktory psychosociĂĄlnĂ­. VĂ˝skyt tohoto rizikovĂSho chovĂĄnĂ­ mĹŻĹže bĂ˝t pozitivnA ovlivnAn poskytovateli pĂSAe v rĂĄmci prenatĂĄlnĂ­ch poraden Ai kurzĹŻ; v optimĂĄlnĂ­m pĹĂ­padA jiĹž prekoncepAnA. CĂ­l: ZĂĄmArem prĂĄce bylo identifikovat faktory vĂ˝znamnA ovlivĹujĂ­cĂ­ kouĹenĂ­ AeskĂ˝ch Ĺžen ve vztahu k tAhotenstvĂ­ a popsat neĹžĂĄdoucĂ­ jevy, kterĂS se v nĂĄvaznosti na tento nĂĄvyk u Ĺžen objevujĂ­. Metodologie: Byla pouĹžita dotaznĂ­kovĂĄ metoda u Ĺžen po porodu ve vybranĂ˝ch lĹŻĹžkovĂ˝ch zdravotnickĂ˝ch zaĹĂ­zenĂ­ch Aech a Moravy a hodnocenĂ­ nAkterĂ˝ch antropometrickĂ˝ch parametrĹŻ Ĺžen a novorozencĹŻ. StatistickĂĄ analĂ˝za byla provedena pomocĂ­ Pearsonova testu χ2 (chi-square) pro testovĂĄnĂ­ Aetnosti a testu Anova (analĂ˝za rozptylu) pro vĂ­cenĂĄsobnĂS testovĂĄnĂ­ stĹednĂ­ch hodnot na hladinA vĂ˝znamnosti 0,05. VĂ˝sledky: Bylo zjiĹĄtAno, Ĺže i pĹes relativnA dobrou informovanost je v populaci budoucĂ­ch matek kuĹĂĄctvĂ­ rozĹĄĂ­ĹenĂ˝m nĂĄvykem a souvisĂ­ zejmĂSna se stupnAm dosaĹženĂSho vzdAlĂĄnĂ­ Ĺžen a kouĹenĂ­m v pĹŻvodnĂ­ rodinA Ĺženy. NAkterĂS Ĺženy (30 %) pĹestĂĄvajĂ­ kouĹit bAhem obdobĂ­ pĹĂ­pravy na tAhotenstvĂ­ nebo aĹž v jeho prĹŻbAhu. UrAitĂĄ AĂĄst Ĺžen (10 %) se svĂSho nĂĄvyku (aktivnA Ai pasivnA) nevzdĂĄvĂĄ ani pĹes informovanost o riziku, kterĂS tento nĂĄvyk pĹinĂĄĹĄĂ­ jak pro zdravĂ­ Ĺženy, tak dĂ­tAte. ZĂĄvAr: Je zĹejmĂS, Ĺže prevence a eliminace rizikovĂSho chovĂĄnĂ­ tAhotnĂ˝ch Ĺžen, v naĹĄem pĹĂ­padA kouĹenĂ­, vykazuje stĂĄle znaAnĂS rezervy. DĹŻleĹžitou souAĂĄstĂ­ ĂsAelnĂS prevence poĹĄkozenĂ­ plodu a budoucĂ­ho vĂ˝voje dĂ­tAte nejen v rĂĄmci prenatĂĄlnĂ­ pĂSAe je zdravotnĂ­ gramotnost, kterĂĄ mĹŻĹže bĂ˝t zlepĹĄena prostĹednictvĂ­m prenatĂĄlnĂ­ch kurzĹŻ a poraden vedenĂ˝ch porodnĂ­ asistentkou.
Dabigatran enhances clot susceptibility to fibrinolysis by mechanisms dependent on and independent of thrombin‐activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor

Summary. Background: Anticoagulants are expected to promote fibrinolysis by counteracting the antifibrinolytic effects of thrombin, which include thrombin‐activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor (TAFI) activation and clot structure enhancement. However, the efficiency of anticoagulants may vary remarkably, and the ability of direct thrombin inhibitors to facilitate clot lysis remains controversial. Objective: To evaluate the profibrinolytic effect of dabigatran, a new, direct thrombin inhibitor, using different in vitro models. Methods and Results: The resistance of tissue factor‐induced plasma clots to fibrinolysis by exogenous tissue‐type plasminogen activator (t‐PA) (turbidimetric method) was reduced by dabigatran in a concentration‐dependent manner, with ≥ 50% shortening of lysis time at clinically relevant concentrations (1–2 μm). A similar effect was observed in the presence of low (0.1 and 1 nm) but not high (10 nm) concentrations of thrombomodulin. Acceleration of clot lysis by dabigatran was associated with a reduction in TAFI activation and thrombin generation, and was largely, although not completely, negated by an inhibitor of activated TAFI, potato tuber carboxypeptidase inhibitor. The assessment of the viscoelastic properties of clots showed that those generated in the presence of dabigatran were more permeable, were less rigid, and consisted of thicker fibers. The impact of these physical changes on fibrinolysis was investigated using a model under flow conditions, which demonstrated that dabigatran made the clots markedly more susceptible to flowing t‐PA, by a mechanism that was largely TAFI‐independent. Conclusions: Dabigatran, at clinically relevant concentrations, enhances the susceptibility of plasma clots to t‐PA‐induced lysis by reducing TAFI activation and by altering the clot structure. These mechanisms might contribute to the antithrombotic activity of the drug.
Endocytosis of a cytotoxic human high density lipoprotein results in disruption of acidic intracellular vesicles and subsequent killing of African trypanosomes

The host range of Trypanosoma brucei brucei is restricted by the cytolytic effects of human serum high-density lipoprotein (HDL). The lytic activity is caused by a minor subclass of human serum HDL called trypanosome lytic factor (TLF). TLF binds in the flagellar pocket to specific TLF-binding sites. Internalization and localization of TLF to a population of endocytic vesicles, and ultimately large lysosome-like vesicles, precedes lysis of T. b. brucei. The membranes of these large vesicles are disrupted by the accumulation of TLF particles. Inhibitor studies with lysosomotropic amines have shown these large vesicles to be acidic in nature and that prevention of their rupture spares the cells from TLF-mediated lysis. Furthermore, leupeptin inhibition suggests that a thioprotease may be involved in the mechanism of TLF- mediated lysis of T. b. brucei. Based on these results, we propose a lytic mechanism involving cell surface binding, endocytosis and lysosomal targeting. This is followed by lysosomal disruption and subsequent autodigestion of the cell.
Changes of serum alkaline phosphatase isoenzymes in fasted rats.

Changes of serum alkaline phosphatase (sALP) isoenzymes under fasting conditions were examined using polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE), amino-acids (L-phenylalanine (L-Phe), L-homoarginine (L-HArg)) inhibition and wheat germ agglutinin (WGA) treatment. The sALP of non-fasted rats was separated into three bands (S1, S2, S3) by PAGE. The molecular weight (M.W.) of S1 corresponded to that of an isoenzyme found in the ileum. By the addition of L-Phe, the staining intensity of S1 was weakened, S2 and S3 remained unchanged and the total activity of the isoenzymes extracted from intestine decreased. On the other hand, the activity of isoenzymes extracted from kidney and bone decreased by the addition of L-HArg. Therefore, S1 was judged to be derived from intestine. The activities of total sALP and S1 decreased from 16 h of fasting. Total sALP activity and sALP activity of the supernatant prepared by WGA treatment decreased, whereas the ALP activity of the precipitate (difference between total sALP activity and supernatant sALP activity) did not change. The activity band of the precipitate corresponded to that of S3 by PAGE. Therefore, S3 was judged to be derived from bone. In conclusion, under fasting conditions, the activity of S1 decreased while the activities of S2 and S3 remained unchanged.
Predicted Geographic Ranges for North American Sylvatic Trichinella Species

Abstract Because of a lack of comprehensive surveys, the geographic distributions of the North American species of encapsulating Trichinella (T. nativa and its variant T6, T. murrelli, and T. spiralis) are poorly characterized in detail. These species are potentially zoonotic; therefore, biogeographic information is critical to monitoring their status and any distribution changes due to climatic and man-made environmental impacts. The maximum entropy (Maxent) program was used to model predicted ranges for these sylvatic Trichinella spp. , using a limited number of available location records with confirmed species identifications collected over 55 yr throughout North America. The resulting prediction models were shown to be robust, and the species maps created are presented. The predicted range of T. nativa is primarily north of the 48°–52° latitudes, overlapping the Tundra, sub-Arctic, and Warm Continental eco-regions. Its sympatric genotypic variant, T6, has a predicted range covering primarily the sub-Arctic and mountainous Temperate Steppe eco-regions, the latter extending below 48°N latitude. In the east, the T6 range includes the Warm Continental and the mountainous Hot Continental eco-regions; the T6 range is also predicted to extend to the Sierra Madre Mountains of Mexico. The most probable range of T. murrelli is centered in the Midwest within the Hot Continental and Prairie eco-regions, with an extension southward to the Subtropical and Tropical/Subtropical Steppe and Desert eco-regions. In the west, it exists in a restricted range characterized as mountainous Mediterranean. The most probable distribution of sylvatic T. spiralis is along the humid east North American coast (Hot Continental south to Subtropical), and along the coast of northwest North America (Marine) to Alaska (sub-Arctic and Tundra). Its most southerly range extends into central Mexico (Tropical/Subtropical Desert). The difference in relative freeze resistance between T. nativa/T6 and T. murrelli undoubtedly accounts for much of this geographic separation. However, the factors responsible for the absence of a more southerly distribution of T. nativa are not obvious, given the overlap in host range with T. murrelli. The maximum July temperature appears to have a significant effect on this distribution pattern. The results of the model building highlight subjects for future research on the biotic and abiotic factors important in determining Trichinella spp. distributions and directions for model validation research.
Observer-based event-triggered control co-design for linear systems

The paper deals with an observer-based event-triggered control strategy for linear systems using only local (that is available) variables. Sufficient conditions based on linear matrix inequalities (LMI) associated to convex optimization problems are proposed to ensure the asymptotic stability of the closed loop and the output convergence to a constant reference in both emulation and co-design contexts. Indeed, the proposed approach allows either to design the event-triggering rules or co-design the event-triggering rule along with the controller gain.
Nutraceutic Potential of Two Allium Species and Their Distinctive Organosulfur Compounds: A Multi-Assay Evaluation

This study aimed to evaluate the biological activities of two Allium species (garlic and onion) as well as diallyl disulphide (DADS) and dipropyl disulphide (DPDS) as their representative bioactive compounds in a multi-assay experimental design. The genotoxic, antigenotoxic, and lifespan effects of garlic, onion, DADS, and DPDS were checked in Drosophila melanogaster and their cytotoxic, pro-apoptotic, and DNA-clastogenic activities were analyzed using HL60 tumoral cells. All compounds were non-genotoxic and antigenotoxic against H2O2-induced DNA damage with a positive dose-response effect and different inhibition percentages (the highest value: 95% for DADS) at all tested concentrations. Daily intake of Allium vegetables, DADS, or DPDS had no positive effects on flies’ lifespan and health span. Garlic and DADS exerted the highest cytotoxic effects in a positive dose-dependent manner. Garlic and DADS exerted a DNA-internucleosomal fragmentation as an index of induced proapoptotic activity on HL60 cells. Allium vegetables and DADS were able to induce clastogenic strand breaks in the DNA of HL60 cells. This study showed the genomic safety of the assayed substances and their protective genetic effects against the hydrogen peroxide genotoxine. Long-term treatments during the whole life of the Drosophila genetic model were beneficial only at low-median concentrations. The chemo-preventive activity of garlic could be associated with its distinctive organosulfur DADS. We suggest that supplementary studies are needed to clarify the cell death pathway against garlic and DADS.