Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Preparation, Characterization, Thermal, and Dielectric Properties of Polypyrrole/h‐BN Nanocomposites

The aim of this study was to improve thermal stability and dielectric properties of polypyrrole (PPy) by adding hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN). PPy was synthesized, and PPy/h-BN nanocomposites were prepared by adding various proportions of h-BN to PPy. The chemical structures of the samples were investigated by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. Thermal properties of the nanocomposites were determined by thermogravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetry. X-ray diffraction analysis of the samples was carried out. The surface morphologies of the samples were investigated by a scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS). The obtained results prove that the nanocomposite system is more thermally stable than the pure PPy. Dielectric measurements revealed that the dielectric constant of the pellets increased with increasing temperature and decreased with increasing frequency. It is also observed that the dielectric constant of the pellets decreased with increasing nano-hBN content (between 1 and 4 wt%).
Ischemia-Modified albumin level in type 2 diabetes mellitus—Preliminary report

Aim: The main goal of the present study was the evaluation of ischemia-modified albumin (IMA) in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and estimation of its connection with vascular complications, glycemic control, hypertension, dyslipidemia and obesity. Methods: In 76 diabetic patients and 25 control subjects, a plasma level of IMA by manually performed, spectrophotometric Co(II)-albumin binding assay was determined. Other parameters such as glucose, fructosamine, HbA1c, total cholesterol and its fractions (HDL, LDL), triglicerydes were estimated by routine methods. Results: Diabetic patients had significantly higher level of IMA in comparison with control subjects. There were not significant differences between groups with various states of vascular complications although the lowest concentration of IMA was observed in patients with microangiopathy. Patients with poor glycemic control had higher IMA level in comparison with these with good glycemic control. Significant correlation was observed between IMA and HbA1c. Among the risk factors, only blood pressure and LDL showed a weak relationship with IMA level. Conclusions: Our results revealed, for the first time, higher level of IMA in diabetic patients which confirms that it may be of non-cardiac origin. We can suggest that the albumin molecule in plasma of diabetic patients is modified in the chronic hypoxia conditions provoked mainly by hyperglycemia and oxidative stress in diabetes.
The Use of Partial Least Square (PLS) to Explore the Importance of Sperm Characteristics in the Prediction of Bull Fertility

Even though a practical in vitro semen assay for determining bull fertility would be of great benefit to reproductive programs [6], it is unlikely that the evaluation of a single sperm characteristic may reflect the real sperm fertilization capacity of a semen sample. Hence, finding a set of sperm characteristics considered important for predicting conception rate would be a useful method of monitoring and/or predicting the sire fertility [16].
Road Crack Extraction with Adapted Filtering and Markov Model-based Segmentation - Introduction and Validation

La detection automatique de fissures de chaussees est un tâche cruciale dans de nombreux pays. En effet, elle permet la qualite de la surface des chaussees dans le but de determiner les ameliorations necessaires. De nombreuses methodes ont ete introduire pour realiser la detection de defauts de surfaces et, en particulier, les fissures : en utilisant des outils de morphologie mathematiques, des reseaux de neurones ou un filtrage multi-echelle. Le filtrage multi-echelle semble le plus approprie et c'est la raison pour laquelle notre travail porte sur la validation d'une methode a base de decomposition en ondelettes utilisee comme initialisation a une segmentation par modelisation markovienne. De nos jours, il n'existe pas d'outils permettant de comparer et d'evaluer precisement les performances et avantages des methodes, d'une part, et de quantifier l'efficacite d'une methode comparee a l'etat de l'art. En consequence, le deuxieme objectif de ce travail est d'introduire un protocole d'evaluation afin de valider la methode proposee et de decrire comment fixer les parametres.
Vasopeptidase inhibitor restores the balance of vasoactive hormones in progressive nephropathy.

BACKGROUND The mechanism(s) underlying greater renoprotection of combined blockade of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) and neutral endopeptidase (NEP) by vasopeptidase over ACE inhibitors are ill defined. We previously found that progressive renal disease is associated with increased renal synthesis of endothelin-1 (ET-1) in the face of reduced generation of renal nitric oxide (NO) in the remnant kidney model. Here we compared changes in urinary excretion of ET-1 and nitrite/nitrate, markers of renal ET-1, and NO synthesis, respectively, and urinary cGMP, an indirect index of renal atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) synthesis, after administration of vasopeptidase or ACE inhibitor in rats with renal mass reduction (RMR). METHODS Twenty-one days after 5/6 nephrectomy, after the onset of hypertension and overt proteinuria, rats were divided in 3 groups (N= 7-8) and given daily by gavage: vehicle, the vasopeptidase inhibitor AVE7688 (3 mg/kg bid), or enalapril (5 mg/kg bid) until day 90. Normal rats (N= 5) served as control rats. RESULTS Systolic blood pressure in RMR rats was equally controlled by AVE7688 and enalapril. AVE7688 resulted in a significant antiproteinuric effect, with urinary protein levels being reduced on average by 83% in respect to vehicle (88 +/- 28 vs. 518 +/- 27 mg/day, P < 0.0001). Enalapril achieved a 47% reduction in proteinuria (277 +/- 81 mg/day, P < 0.01 vs. vehicle) to levels that remained higher (P < 0.01), however, than those after AVE7688. Renal function impairment and glomerular and tubular changes were significantly (P < 0.05 vs. vehicle) ameliorated by AVE7688, and partially affected by enalapril. AVE7688 reduced the abnormal urinary excretion of ET-1 of RMR animals (98 +/- 8 vs. vehicle: 302 +/- 50 pg/24 h, P < 0.001) more than enalapril (159 +/- 14 pg/24 h, P < 0.05 vs. AVE7688). Consistently, AVE7688 was more effective than enalapril in augmenting renal synthesis of NO (2487 +/- 267 and 1519 +/- 217 vs. vehicle: 678 +/- 71 nmol/15 h; P < 0.001, AVE7688 vs. vehicle, P < 0.01 AVE7688 vs. enalapril). AVE7688 significantly increased urinary cGMP (78 +/- 6 vs. vehicle 45 +/- 9 nmol/24 h; P < 0.01). CONCLUSION The superior renoprotection achieved by AVE7688 over enalapril in progressive renal injury is due to the correction of the altered balance of vasoconstrictor/vasodilator mediators in the kidney.
Carcinogen exposure, p53 alteration, and K‐ras mutation in synchronous multiple primary lung carcinoma

Synchronous multiple primary lung tumors (SMPLT) have been estimated to occur in 1% of lung carcinoma patients. Criteria for SMPLT diagnosis include different cancer histologies, location in different lobes of the lung, or genetic discordance. Patients with SMPLT have a poor clinical prognosis with decreased 5‐year disease survival, despite diagnosis at an early stage. Field cancerization (the induction of somatic mutation in large clones of epithelial cells after carcinogen exposure) has been proposed to be an integral process involved in the development of SMPLT. Host factors also may contribute to the development of SMPLT.
The Feasibility of Endoscopy-Assisted Breast Conservation Surgery for Patients with Early Breast Cancer

Purpose Breast conservation surgery (BCS) has become a standard treatment method for patients with early breast cancer. Endoscopy-assisted BCS (EABCS) can be performed through an inconspicuous periareolar and a small axillary incision for sentinel node biopsy, which may give better cosmetic outcomes than conventional BCS skin incisions. This study was designed to evaluate the feasibility of EABCS for patients with early breast cancer. Methods Forty-three patients were candidates for EABCS, and EABCS was performed in 40 patients with breast cancer between January 2008 and July 2010. Their clinicopathological features were retrospectively analyzed. Operative time, margin status, complications, and relapse-free survival were compared with those of patients treated by conventional BCS and who were treated at the same institute during the same period. Results The most common lesion site of the EABCS and conventional BCS groups was the upper area of the breast. Tumor size in all patients was less than 4 cm (range, 0.4-3.7 cm), and nodal involvement was found in eight (20%) patients in the BCS group. The mean operative time was 110 minutes for the EABCS group and 107 minutes for the conventional BCS group, and those were not significantly different. No significant difference in frozen or final margin status was observed between the EABCS and conventional BCS groups. Relapse-free survival was statistically equivalent between the groups with a median follow-up of 12 months. Postoperative complications occurred in five cases in four patients with EABCS, which was not significantly different from conventional BCS. Conclusion Performing EABCS in patients with early breast cancer seems to be feasible and safe. Further study with a longer-term follow-up may be needed to confirm the clinical value of EABCS.
Differential influences of negative emotion on spatial and verbal working memory: evidence from event-related potential and source current density analysis

We used the event-related potential technique to assess the influences of negative emotion on spatial and verbal working memory with a modified n-back task. In both spatial and verbal tasks, the anterior late positive component and the posterior P300 were affected by negative emotion. These effects were, however, greater in spatial tasks than in verbal ones. Especially, the parietal P300 was reduced by negative emotion in spatial tasks, but not in verbal tasks. Current density analysis revealed high current density in the frontal–parietal cortex, but only in the spatial tasks. The results suggest differential effects of negative emotion on spatial and verbal working memory and that the frontal–parietal cortex may be the area where negative emotion and spatial working memory interact.
An Intervention With Meaning: Perceptions of Safety Planning Among Veteran Health Administration Providers

Background: The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) health-care system utilizes a multilevel suicide prevention intervention that features the use of standardized safety plans with veterans considered to be at high risk for suicide. Aims: Little is known about clinician perceptions on the value of safety planning with veterans at high risk for suicide. Method: Audio-recorded interviews with 29 VHA behavioral health treatment providers in a southeastern city were transcribed and analyzed using qualitative methodology. Results: Clinical providers consider safety planning feasible, acceptable, and valuable to veterans at high risk for suicide owing to the collaborative and interactive nature of the intervention. Providers identified the types of veterans who easily engaged in safety planning and those who may experience more difficulty with the process. Conclusion: Additional research with VHA providers in other locations and with veteran consumers is needed.
Head Injuries to Restrained Occupants in Single-Vehicle Pure Rollover Crashes

Objective: Studies performed previously of seat-belted occupants in real-world passenger vehicle rollover-only crashes have identified the head as one of the body regions most often seriously injured. However, there have been few studies investigating how these head injuries occur in any detail. This study aims to investigate the characteristics and patterns of head injury to seat-belted occupants in real-world rollover-only crashes and to identify possible biomechanical mechanisms responsible for head injury to aid in the development of a dynamic rollover test protocol. Methods: National Automotive Sampling System–Crashworthiness Data System (NASS-CDS) data were used to generate summary statistics and perform logistic regression analysis of restrained and contained occupants in U.S. pure trip-over rollover crashes. Specific information from selected CDS cases focused on identifying potential mechanisms and patterns of serious head injury and the rollover conditions under which the injury occurred are also presented. Results: Twenty-one percent of seriously injured occupants in pure trip-over rollovers had a serious head injury. On average, occupants seated on the far side of the rollover sustained serious head injuries more frequently and were more likely to receive injuries to the inboard side of the head than near-side occupants. Serious head injuries appear to be decoupled from serious injuries to other body regions except for a relationship found between basal skull fractures and cervical spine fractures. Serious head injuries were sustained by some occupants who had less than 15 cm of roof crush above their seated position. Conclusions: Serious brain injuries appear to occur frequently as a result of loading to the periphery of the head from contact with the roof assembly. Two mechanisms of injury for basal skull fractures in rollover crashes were identified. The injury patterns and locations of contact to the head are sensitive to the seated position of the occupant.
Diabetic retinopathy in pregnancy

Diabetic retinopathy is one of the major causes of preventable blindness in the UK and USA in those aged between 24 and 64 years.1 For a proportion of diabetic women, the first half of this period coincides with peak fertility and childbearing years. Diabetic eye disease may develop for the first time during pregnancy, and visual loss at this stage has serious implications for both the patient and her family. In the past, the prognosis for pregnancy in diabetic women with microvascular disease was so poor that many physicians advised avoidance or termination of pregnancy.2With the recognition that the level of glycaemia during pregnancy is directly related to the incidence of congenital malformations, the emphasis on the management of diabetic pregnancy has been one of meticulous control of blood sugar and this has undoubtedly resulted in lower rates of fetal malformations. However, intensive control of glycaemia may carry risks to diabetic mothers particularly to those with established microvascular diseases such as retinopathy and nephropathy. Studies on the influence of pregnancy on the natural history of diabetic retinopathy have shown that deterioration is frequently observed.3 4 Until recently there has been controversy as to whether the progression of retinopathy which occurs in such women is due to the natural tendency of diabetic retinopathy to worsen or to unique factors operative during pregnancy. Several major studies have gone some way towards explaining the mechanisms underlying progression of retinopathy during pregnancy. Klein et al performed a prospective study on a large series of individuals, comprising 171 pregnant and 298 non-pregnant insulin dependent diabetic women.5 The level of diabetic retinopathy in the first trimester was assessed using standard retinal photographs and compared with postpartum photographs. After adjusting for duration of diabetes, glycaemic control, and blood pressure current pregnancy was …
Sensitivity-Enhanced Pressure Sensor With Hollow-Core Photonic Crystal Fiber

We experimentally demonstrate a sensitivity-enhanced fiber-optic pressure sensor using a simplified hollow-core photonic crystal fiber (SHC-PCF). The sensing head is fabricated by splicing a single mode fiber to a section of SHC-PCF, while the air claddings at the end of the PCF are selectively blocked by glue sealing and femtosecond laser machining. By immersing the end into water, a compressible Fabry-Pérot cavity can be formed in the fiber core of the PCF. Since the air core is opened up to the air claddings at the splicing joint, changing of environmental pressure will cost a large change of the cavity length to balance the pressure, which greatly enhances the pressure sensitivity of the sensor. A pressure sensitivity of 18.15 μm/kPa is experimentally demonstrated in the pressure range from 110 to 130 kPa. This sensor has potential applications in the area of highly sensitive pressure measurement.
Filter Bubbles, Echo Chambers, and Online News Consumption

Online publishing, social networks, and web search have dramatically lowered the costs of producing, distributing, and discovering news articles. Some scholars argue that such technological changes increase exposure to diverse perspectives, while others worry that they increase ideological segregation. We address the issue by examining webbrowsing histories for 50,000 US-located users who regularly read online news. We find that social networks and search engines are associated with an increase in the mean ideological distance between individuals. However, somewhat counterintuitively, these same channels also are associated with an increase in an individual's exposure to material from his or her less preferred side of the political spectrum. Finally, the vast majority of online news consumption is accounted for by individuals simply visiting the home pages of their favorite, typically mainstream, news outlets, tempering the consequences -- both positive and negative -- of recent technological changes. We thus uncover evidence for both sides of the debate, while also finding that the magnitude of the effects is relatively modest
A Meta-analysis of the Effectiveness of Albendazole Compared with Metronidazole as Treatments for Infections with Giardia duodenalis

Background Metronidazole is the most commonly used drug for the treatment of giardiasis in humans. In spite of its therapeutic efficacy for giardiasis, low patient compliance, especially in children, side effects, and the emergence of metronidazole-resistant strains may restrict its use. Albendazole has been used to treat Giardia duodenalis infections in recent years. However, efficacy studies in vivo and in vitro have produced diverse results as to its effectiveness. A moderately benign side effect profile, combined with established efficacy against many helminths, renders it promising for treatment of giardiasis in humans. Methodology and Principal Findings We performed a search in the PubMed, Scopus, EMBASE, the ISI Web of Science, LILIACS, and Cochrane Controlled Trials Register for trials published before February 2010 as well as in references of relevant research and review articles. Eight randomized clinical trials (including 900 patients) comparing the effectiveness of albendazole with that of metronidazole were included in meta-analysis. After extracting and validating the data, the pooled risk ratio (RR) was calculated using an inverse-variance random-effects model. Albendazole was found to be equally as effective as metronidazole in the treatment of giardiasis in humans (RR 0.97; 95% CI, 0.93, 1.01). In addition, safety analysis suggested that patients treated with albendazole had a lower risk of adverse effects compared with those who received metronidazole (RR 0.36; 95% CI, 0.10, 1.34), but limitations of the sample size precluded a definite conclusion. Conclusions/Significance The effectiveness of albendazole, when given as a single dose of 400 mg/day for 5 days, was comparable to that of metronidazole. Patients treated with albendazole tended to have fewer side effects compared with those who took metronidazole. Given the safety, effectiveness, and low costs of albendazole, this drug could be potentially used as an alternative and/or a replacement for the existing metronidazole therapy protocols in the treatment of giardiasis in humans.
Inhibition of Eg5 Acts Synergistically with Checkpoint Abrogation in Promoting Mitotic Catastrophe

The G2 DNA damage checkpoint is activated by genotoxic agents and is particularly important for cancer therapies. Overriding the checkpoint can trigger precocious entry into mitosis, causing cells to undergo mitotic catastrophe. But some checkpoint-abrogated cells can remain viable and progress into G1 phase, which may contribute to further genome instability. Our previous studies reveal that the effectiveness of the spindle assembly checkpoint and the duration of mitosis are pivotal determinants of mitotic catastrophe after checkpoint abrogation. In this study, we tested the hypothesis whether mitotic catastrophe could be enhanced by combining genotoxic stress, checkpoint abrogation, and the inhibition of the mitotic kinesin protein Eg5. We found that mitotic catastrophe induced by ionizing radiation and a CHK1 inhibitor (UCN-01) was exacerbated after Eg5 was inhibited with either siRNAs or monastrol. The combination of DNA damage, UCN-01, and monastrol sensitized cancer cells that were normally resistant to checkpoint abrogation. Importantly, a relatively low concentration of monastrol, alone not sufficient in causing mitotic arrest, was already effective in promoting mitotic catastrophe. These experiments suggest that it is possible to use sublethal concentrations of Eg5 inhibitors in combination with G2 DNA damage checkpoint abrogation as an effective therapeutic approach. Mol Cancer Res; 10(5); 626–35. ©2012 AACR.
Growth and Development of Infants with Asymptomatic Congenital Cytomegalovirus Infection

Purpose To observe changes in audiology, intellectual development, behavior development, and physical growth during systematic follow-up of infants with asymptomatic congenital human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection. Materials and Methods Fifty-two infants diagnosed with asymptomatic congenital HCMV infection from July 2003 to July 2007 served as the infection group, and 21 healthy infants served as the control group. All infants were confirmed to have HCMV infection by Fluorescent Quantative polymerase chain reaction (FQ-PCR). In both the infection and control groups, the neonates and infants at 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year of age underwent examinations. Results 1) 20 items of National Black Nurses Association (NBNA) scores of neonates 12-14 days after birth in 2 groups were 38.3 ± 1.95 and 38.5 ± 2.29, without significant differences. 2) Auditory test: 50 ears of 25 cases in the infection group showed abnormal auditory thresholds in V waves with an abnormal rate of 14%, while no abnormalities were found in 21 cases in the control group. 3) Mental and psychomotor development index scores in the control group (107.49 ± 11.31 and 107.19 ± 10.98) were compared with those in 41 asymptomatically infected infants at 1 year of age (107.21 ± 9.96 and 108.31 ± 11.25), and no statistically significant difference was noted. Conclusion 1) An elevated threshold in the V wave was present in asymptomatically infected infants, but could not be detected through otoacoustic emission (OAE) screening. 2) Either in the neonatal or infant periods, asymptomatic congenital HCMV infection did not have a significant influence on nervous behavior or on physical and intellectual development.