Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Survival Benefit of Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy in Non-small Cell Lung Cancer: An Updated Meta-Analysis of 13 Randomized Control Trials

Introduction: The survival effectiveness of neoadjuvant chemotherapy in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is still unclear based on the study of most up-to-date literatures. This article contributes to this problem by conducting an updated meta-analysis. Methods: Based on Burdett et al's (J Thorac Oncol 2006;1:611–621) systematic review, this meta-analysis was conducted. Articles were searched electrically. The possible survival benefit of neoadjuvant chemotherapy was assessed by hazard ratio (HR) in terms of overall survival. A subgroup meta-analysis with only stage III NSCLC was also conducted. The software of Review Manager was used for data management. Results: Thirteen randomized control trials, 6 of which were new ones, were included into this meta-analysis. The overall survival of NSCLC patients in neoadjuvant chemotherapy arm were improved significantly, comparing with those in surgery-alone arm (combined HR = 0.84; 95% confidence interval, 0.77–0.92; p = 0.0001). When only patients with stage III NSCLC were considered, the result was similar (combined HR = 0.84; 95% confidence interval, 0.75–0.95; p = 0.005). Conclusion: Neoadjuvant chemotherapy, as an addition of surgery, would significantly improve the overall survival of operable NSCLC patients, including patients with stage III NSCLC.
Perfil cognitivo e funcional de idosos moradores de uma instituição de longa permanência para idosos/Cognitive and functional profile of residents of a long term institution for elderly

Introducao: O Brasil e um dos paises em desenvolvimento onde a populacao de idosos mais cresce. Nesta fase da vida, estao presentes alteracoes, como cognitivas e funcionais, que tem grande influencia na vida do individuo e que podem levar a institucionalizacao. Objetivo: Identificar o perfil cognitivo e funcional de idosos de uma ILPI em Santos-SP e verificar correlacoes entre as variaveis. Metodos: Utilizou-se avaliacao cognitiva e funcional, alem de questionario de variaveis sociodemograficas. Participaram do estudo 15 idosos. Resultados: 100% dos idosos avaliados apresentaram deficits cognitivos e funcionais. Em relacao aos deficits cognitivos, foi identificado prejuizo, principalmente, nos dominios de Construcao Visomotora e Operacoes de Pensamento. O uso da mediacao melhorou o desempenho dos idosos, significativamente, nos dominios de Percepcao Visual, Percepcao Espacial, Praxis e Construcao Visomotora. Os idosos apresentaram 54% de independencia nas AVDs, sendo 66,27% de independencia nas ABVDs (principalmente alimentacao e continencia) e 52,18% nas AIVDs (principalmente uso do telefone). Houve associacao entre cognicao e funcionalidade (r = 0,57; p<0,05). Conclusao: Os idosos avaliados mostraram prejuizos cognitivos e funcionais, com forte correlacao; sugere-se avaliacao periodica para que novas acoes sejam propostas para melhora e manutencao funcional dos idosos.
Intra-Audit Firm Office Changes and Financial Reporting Quality

I examine a sample of companies who have switched engagement offices within the same audit firm. This setting has not been previously examined in the literature and allows me to research changes in audit quality while controlling for the endogenous nature of financial reporting quality and auditor choice. I find that switching from a small audit office to a large one is associated with a significant increase in accrual quality. I also find that the sensitivity of accrual quality to auditor industry specialization is dependent on the how big a role one might expect auditor expertise to play. Specifically, for firms in industries with especially complex accounting standards, the act of switching from a non-specialist to an industry specialist audit office is associated with an increase in accrual quality. I also examine stock price synchronicity as a measure of firmand industry-specific information in stock prices, a proxy for financial reporting quality, and find that switches both to large and industry specialist audit offices are associated with increases in stock price synchronicity. Further study reveals that industry specialist offices are associated with greater industry-specific future earnings information being impounded into stock prices.
Setting Occupational Sex Segregation in Motion

The employment of women in female-dominated occupations and men in male-dominated occupations (sex traditional employment) is a fundamental source of economic sex inequality. Despite this, we know little about how organizational practices and policies link workers to sex traditional jobs. The author tests theoretically hypothesized determinants of sex traditional employment using data on the sex of the last hire and the sex type of his or her occupation in nearly 3,000 establishments. The results are generally consistent with deskilling and organizational staffing accounts of sex traditional employment and confirm that a different system of sex segregation operates for women and men.
Chapter IV: Construction and Educational Significance of Structured Inventories in Personality Measurement

COMPARISON of recent research on inventories of personality qualities with that published a decade ago indicates that lately there have been relatively few studies in which these inventories have been applied with uncritical acceptance in the study of educational problems. Many more studies directed toward the evaluation and improvement of the instruments themselves have appeared. This is a desirable trend which may eventually bring about some noteworthy improvements in technics for the appraisal of personality thru structured procedures. During the period covered by this issue of the REVIEW, much less research was published on structured inventories of personality than on unstructured or projective technics. However, several new inventories of personal qualities were issued and a considerable number of studies of existing inventories was made available. As Strang and Pansegrouw noted in the December 1948 issue of the REVIEW, the recent literature contains comparatively few studies of the older inventories, such as the Bernreuter Personality Inventory, the Bell Adjustment Inventory, and the Allport-Vernon Study of Values, while certain newer inventories have been the subject of a large amount of research. During this three-year period, the Minnesota Multiphasic Per­ sonality Inventory was studied much more extensively than was any other structured device for personality appraisal. A considerable proportion of the published articles in this field during the period of this REVIEW was based on research in the armed forces. Since psychological research in the armed forces was summarized in the December 1948 special edition of the REVIEW, as well as elsewhere, studies of military use of structural inventories will be omitted from the present REVIEW unless they have educational significance.
Discontinuous exponential stabilization of chained form systems

A transformation is proposed for single chained form systems. This transformation puts chained form systems in a form close to the Brunovsky linear canonical form and can be utilized to derive an almost stabilizing feedback. This feedback is then extended in order to treat the singularity that arises for some initial conditions in the previous approach. The so obtained feedback is static and discontinuous and globally exponentially stabilizes chained form systems. This feedback law has the advantageous property of being bounded for bounded states and converging to zero along the trajectories of the closed-loop system. This work is straightforwardly extendable to multi-input chained systems.
The vaccine adjuvant alum inhibits IL‐12 by promoting PI3 kinase signaling while chitosan does not inhibit IL‐12 and enhances Th1 and Th17 responses

Alum is the principal vaccine adjuvant for clinical applications but it is a poor inducer of cellular immunity and is not an optimal adjuvant for vaccines where Th1 responses are required for protection. The mechanism underlying the inefficiency of alum in promoting Th1 responses is not fully understood. We show that aluminium hydroxide, aluminium phosphate, and calcium phosphate adjuvants inhibit the secretion of the Th1 polarizing cytokine, IL‐12 by dendritic cells (DCs). Alum selectively inhibited DC expression of the IL‐12p35 subunit and the inhibitory effect results from adjuvant‐induced PI3 kinase signaling. To develop a more effective adjuvant for promoting cell‐mediated immunity, we investigated alternative particulates and found that in contrast to alum, the cationic polysaccharide chitosan did not inhibit IL‐12 secretion. A combination of chitosan and the TLR9 agonist CpG activated the NLRP3 inflammasome and enhanced secretion of IL‐12 and the other key Th1 and Th17‐cell polarizing cytokines. When used as an adjuvant, CpG‐chitosan induced NLRP3‐dependent antigen‐specific Th1 and Th17 responses. A combination of alum and CpG also enhanced Th1 and Th17 responses but was less effective than CpG‐chitosan. Therefore, chitosan is an attractive alternative to alum in adjuvants for vaccines where potent cell‐mediated immunity is required.
The evolutionary dynamics of HIV-1 quasispecies and the development of immunodeficiency disease.

This paper presents a theory to explain the development of immunodeficiency disease after a long and variable incubation period of infection with HIV-1. Two assumptions are central to the theory: (1) mutation via reverse transcription during viral replication can generate viral strains resistant to neutralization by antibodies specific to earlier mutants in a particular host; (2) the virus can kill the CD4-positive lymphocytes that play a role in mounting an immunological attack directed at the virus. The theory is examined via the development of a mathematical model which reveals that an increasing number of antigenically distinct viral strains may overwhelm the immune system of the host. As the viral diversity increases beyond a certain level the immune system is unable to suppress the population growth of all the strains simultaneously. The intuitive explanation of this pattern of model behaviour lies in the assumption that each virus can kill CD4-positive lymphocytes that are specific to any of the viral strains, but each lymphocyte only directs immunological attack against a single viral strain. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Coincidence Timing of Finger, Arm, and Whole Body Movements

Two experiments investigated the effects of different types of movement responses on coincidence timing skill. The view was taken that the sensory-motor integration of the movement responses would be reflected in the accuracy and consistency of anticipation timing. A Bassin anticipation timer provided a light stimulus velocity of 3 mph for both experiments and the movements studied included a simple key press using a finger, an arm movement to a key press, and whole body movements culminating with a kick or step to a target. The experiments were modelled closely on the seminal study by Grose (1967). The results of Exp. 1 supported our prediction by demonstrating superiority of the finger task over the two larger movements for all measures of coincidence timing ability. The purpose of Exp. 2 was to compare the slightly different versions of the whole body task—that used in the first experiment and that used by Grose (1967). The results confirmed the close similarity of the two movement tasks and re-affirmed the results of Exp. 1. Exp. 2 also investigated sex effects on coincidence timing ability and, in contrast to previous evidence indicating that females perform with less accuracy and consistency than do males, no significant differences were found. Analysis of practice effects showed that, although there were no significant improvements over trial blocks in Exp. 1, there were significant improvements in Exp. 2. Comparisons with other research suggests that repeated practice in solving a coincident timing problem using whole body movements can lead to improved performance. In general, the findings are consistent with the constructs of action theory and emphasize the roles perceptual and movement variables have in defining situational constraints. Also, findings indicate that proficiency in coincidence anticipation appears to be influenced by the planning and organisation required for movement execution.
Optimal Alignment of 3D Data for Spatial Discretization

We present an algorithm that finds the rotation which best aligns a given configuration of directions on an unsorted set of directions. Using a cost function that we derive in the paper, we show that this algorithm efficiently finds the optimal coordinate frame for a given 3D data set in order to maximize the performance of axis-aligned bounding volumes such as octrees or occupancy grids with regard to the average storage or query cost. The optimization is independent from the initial orientation, since the whole space of rotations is explored. The evaluation becomes computationally feasible by using the Fourier transforms of spherical functions that describe the data as well as the cost function.
Évocation lexicale libre chez les patients atteints de la maladie de Parkinson : une analyse quantitative et qualitative des mots produits

Cette etude visait a explorer l'existence de differences qualitatives et quantitatives en evocation lexicale entre des patients atteints de la maladie de Parkinson (MP) et des sujets controles (SC). Un groupe de patients francophones atteints de la MP et un groupe de SC, apparies pour l'âge et le niveau de scolarite, ont effectue une tâche d'evocation lexicale libre ainsi que plusieurs tests neuropsychologiques. Le nombre de mots, la frequence, la familiarite, la concretude des mots et la strategie utilisee lors de l'evocation des mots ont ete analyses. Les resultats ont montre que les participants souffrant de la MP produisaient moins de mots que les SC, particulierement dans la premiere minute de la tâche d'evocation lexicale libre. Cependant, peu de differences qualitatives ont ete observees entre les deux groupes par rapport aux types de mots produits. Des liens semblent exister entre les resultats et les atteintes cognitives du groupe souffrant de la MP. Nous proposons que les deficits d'evocation lexicale observes dans la MP prennent leur origine dans les problemes executifs dont souffrent ces patients.
Power-efficient and scalable load/store queue design via address compression

This paper proposes an address compression technique for load/store queue (LSQ) to improve the scalability and power efficiency. A load/store queue (LSQ) typically needs a fully-associative CAM structure to search the address for collision and consequently poses scalability challenges of power consumption and area cost. Using the proposed approach, the LSQ can reduce the area cost ranging from 32% to 66% and power consumption ranging from 38% to 71%, depending on the compression parameter. The approach can provide 3.08% overall processor energy reduction and causes only 0.22% performance loss at an optimal configuration.
Adolescência vulnerável: fatores biopsicossociais relacionados ao uso de drogas

Vulnerable adolescence: bio-psychosocial factors related to drug use The physical, psychological and social modifications in adolescence deepen the condition of vulnerability and increase the risk of precocious use of psychoactive substances (PAS). This cross-sectional study covered 229 adolescent users of PAS under treatment at a psychosocial center for the care of children and adolescents (CAPSIA), during the first ten years of the service, with the purpose of outlining the bio-socio-psychological of the users and profile of the users and identifying risk factors for beginning drug use among adolescents. Most of the medical records belonging to male patients who practice or had practiced misdemeanors as school dropouts and had lived or live with family members who use drugs, and/or in situations of family aggression. Such data reveal a profile of vulnerability that generates a need for additional protection on the part of the diverse services for child and adolescent care, in different spheres.
Assessment of microbiological quality of the pediatric oral liquid drugs

Present study performed a time course analysis of microbiological contamination level within the pediatric oral liquid drugs commonly available in Dhaka metropolis. Employing cultural and biochemical methods of microbial isolation, the contaminating microorganisms were quantified both from the fresh drugs in sealed bottles and also after 21 days of drug usage. All 20 samples were found to be populated with huge bacteria which were further found to be heightened after 21 days. While fungal presence was nominal during the initial assessment, most of the samples were found to support the fungal growth after 21 days. Staphylococcal growth was observed to be the most predominant after 21 days, followed by the growth of Klebsiella spp. , Pseudomonas spp. and E. coli. The study of antibiogram revealed that most of the bacterial isolates were found to be resistant against ampicillin 10 mg, ciprofloxacin 5 mg, amoxicillin 10 mg and piperacillin 10 mg. Other drugs, including ciprofloxacin 5 mg, gentamicin 10 mg, nalidixic acid 30 mg, ceftriazone 30 mg, chloramphenicol 10 mg, erythromycin 15 mg, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole 25 mg and erythromycin 15 mg were also found to be ineffective against the bacterial isolates to a moderate extent. Based on the findings of the increase in microorganisms along with the time of usage as well as the proliferation of drug-resistant bacteria with the pediatric drug samples tested, a stringent regulation on the regular microbiological assessment of the drugs is of significance for the sake of consumer safety as well as for the overall public health management.
Propofol Modulates Na+–Ca2+ Exchange Activity via Activation of Protein Kinase C in Diabetic Cardiomyocytes

Background:The authors' objective was to identify the role of the Na+–Ca2+ exchanger (NCX) in mediating the contractile dysfunction observed in diabetic cardiomyocytes before and after exposure to propofol. Methods:Freshly isolated ventricular myocytes were obtained from normal and diabetic rat hearts. Intracellular concentration of Ca2+ and cell shortening were simultaneously measured in electrically stimulated, ventricular myocytes using fura-2 and video-edge detection, respectively. Postrest potentiation (PRP) and sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ load were used to assess propofol-induced changes in the activity of the NCX. Results:Propofol (10 &mgr;m) increased PRP in diabetic cardiomyocytes but had no effect on PRP in normal cardiomyocytes. Removal of sodium enhanced and KB-R7943 (reverse mode NCX inhibitor) blocked PRP in both normal and diabetic cardiomyocytes. In the absence of sodium, propofol enhanced PRP in diabetic cardiomyocytes but had no additional effect in normal cardiomyocytes. KB-R7943 completely blocked propofol-induced potentiation of peak intracellular concentration of Ca2+ and shortening in both cell types. Propofol increased sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ load and prolonged removal of cytosolic Ca2+ in diabetic cardiomyocytes, but not in normal cardiomyocytes. Removal of sodium enhanced propofol-induced increases in sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ load and further prolonged removal of cytosolic Ca2+, whereas KB-R7943 completely blocked propofol-induced increase in sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ load. Protein kinase C inhibition with bisindolylmaleimide I prevented the propofol-induced increase in PRP and prolongation in Ca2+ removal. Conclusions:These data suggest that propofol enhances PRP via activation of reverse mode NCX, but attenuates Ca2+ removal from the cytosol via inhibition of forward mode NCX in diabetic cardiomyocytes. The actions of propofol are mediated via a protein kinase C–dependent pathway.
Matching and Retrieval of Distorted and Occluded Shapes Using Dynamic Programming

We propose an approach for matching distorted and possibly occluded shapes using dynamic programming (DP). We distinguish among various cases of matching such as cases where the shapes are scaled with respect to each other and cases where an open shape matches the whole or only a part of another open or closed shape. Our algorithm treats noise and shape distortions by allowing matching of merged sequences of consecutive small segments in a shape with larger segments of another shape, while being invariant to translation, scale, orientation, and starting point selection. We illustrate the effectiveness of our algorithm in retrieval of shapes on two data sets of two-dimensional open and closed shapes of marine life species. We demonstrate the superiority of our approach over traditional approaches to shape matching and retrieval based on Fourier descriptors and moments. We also compare our method with SQUID, a well-known method which is available on the Internet. Our evaluation is based on human relevance judgments following a well-established methodology from the information retrieval field.
The Role of Intracellular Calcium for the Development and Treatment of Neuroblastoma

Neuroblastoma is the second most common paediatric cancer. It develops from undifferentiated simpatico-adrenal lineage cells and is mostly sporadic; however, the aetiology behind the development of neuroblastoma is still not fully understood. Intracellular calcium ([Ca2+]i) is a secondary messenger which regulates numerous cellular processes and, therefore, its concentration is tightly regulated. This review focuses on the role of [Ca2+]i in differentiation, apoptosis and proliferation in neuroblastoma. It describes the mechanisms by which [Ca2+]i is regulated and how it modulates intracellular pathways. Furthermore, the importance of [Ca2+]i for the function of anti-cancer drugs is illuminated in this review as [Ca2+]i could be a target to improve the outcome of anti-cancer treatment in neuroblastoma. Overall, modulations of [Ca2+]i could be a key target to induce apoptosis in cancer cells leading to a more efficient and effective treatment of neuroblastoma.
Befriending patients with medication-resistant schizophrenia: can psychotic symptoms predict treatment response?

OBJECTIVES Supportive interventions are used in schizophrenia, but little research has been conducted into whether any baseline variable predicts treatment response. The aim of this study was to establish if baseline delusions or hallucinations are associated with changes in overall symptoms in patients who received a befriending intervention. DESIGN The sample consisted of 44 patients with schizophrenia. These patients comprised the befriending arm of a multicentre randomized controlled trial which compared the efficacy of using CBT against befriending as an adjunct to routine care for patients with medication-resistant schizophrenia. METHODS Scores for auditory hallucinations and delusions relating to persecution or control were entered into two regression models. The dependent variables were change in overall symptoms (1) between baseline and end of the intervention, and (2) between baseline and 9 months post-intervention. RESULTS Baseline delusions predicted a good response and auditory hallucinations predicted a poor response at 9 months. CONCLUSIONS Baseline psychotic symptoms strongly predicted outcome in this sample. The finding that hallucinations predicted a poor outcome is consistent with previous research. These results may help to determine which patients would benefit from supportive interventions.