Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Tongue‐to‐palate resistance training improves tongue strength and oropharyngeal swallowing function in subacute stroke survivors with dysphagia

Tongue function can affect both the oral and pharyngeal stages of the swallowing process, and proper tongue strength is vital for safe oropharyngeal swallowing. This trial investigated the effect of tongue-to-palate resistance training (TPRT) on tongue strength and oropharyngeal swallowing function in stroke with dysphagia patients. This trial was performed using a 4-week, two-group, pre-post-design. Participants were allocated to the experimental group (n = 18) or the control group (n = 17). The experimental group performed TPRT for 4 weeks (5 days per week) and traditional dysphagia therapy, whereas the control group performed traditional dysphagia therapy on the same schedule. Tongue strength was measured using the Iowa Oral Performance Instrument. Swallowing function was measured using the videofluoroscopic dysphagia scale (VDS) and penetration-aspiration scale (PAS) based on a videofluoroscopic swallowing study. Experimental group showed more improved in the tongue strength (both anterior and posterior regions, P = 0·009, 0·015). In addition, the experimental group showed more improved scores on the oral and pharyngeal phase of VDS (P = 0·029, 0·007), but not on the PAS (P = 0·471), compared with the control group. This study demonstrated the effectiveness of TPRT in increasing tongue muscle strength and improving swallowing function in patients with post-stroke dysphagia. Therefore, we recommend TPRT as an easy and simple rehabilitation strategy for improving swallowing in patients with dysphagia.
Mini-review: Antimicrobial central venous catheters – recent advances and strategies

Central venous catheters (CVCs) nowadays constitute critical devices used in medical care, namely in intensive care units. However, CVCs also represent one of the indwelling medical devices with enhanced risk of nosocomial device-related infection. Catheter-related infections (CRIs) are a major cause of patient morbidity and mortality, often justifying premature catheter removal and an increase in costs and use of resources. Adhesion and subsequent biofilm formation on the surfaces of indwelling catheters is elemental to the onset of pathogenesis. Seeking the prevention of CVC colonisation and CRI, a variety of approaches have been studied, tested and, in some cases, already applied in clinical practice. This review looks at the current preventive strategies often used to decrease the risk of CRIs due to colonization and biofilm formation on catheter surfaces, as well as at the more recent approaches under investigation.
A Soxhlet Extract of Gongronema latifolium Retains Moderate Blood Glucose Lowering Effect and Produces Structural Recovery in the Pancreas of STZ-Induced Diabetic Rats

Background: Gongronema latifolium Benth. (GL) possesses considerable glucose lowering effects able to be utilized on a large-scale. This paper investigates the effects of a Soxhlet extract on hyperglycemia, Langerhans islets and glucose uptake by abdominal muscles. Methods: Ethanol and a Soxhlet apparatus were used to obtain GL ethanolic Soxhlet extract (GLES). It was then administered to randomly-segregated male Sprague-Dawley, normal and STZ-induced diabetic rats, using oral gavage to evaluate blood glucose levels (BGLs), serum lipid profile, insulin levels and the pancreas post-treatment. Results: GLES significantly (p < 0.05) decreased BGLs of normal rats in glucose tolerance testing at a dose of 2 g/kg b.w. but failed to do so in diabetic rats undergoing acute 7-h treatment. Given twice-daily, 1 g/kg b.w. of GLES moderately controlled diabetic BGLs starting from day 10. After 14 days of treatment, 1 g/kg and 0.5 g/kg b.w. of GLES caused 44% and 50% respective increases in the average area of Langerhans islets compared to DC. Using isolated rat abdominal muscle, GLES was found to be a mild insulin-sensitizer. GC-MS analysis revealed the presence of the known glucose-lowering phytosterol, Sitostenone. Conclusion: Despite retaining moderate antidiabetic activity, Soxhlet extraction of Gongronema latifolium probably leads to the destruction of active heat-liable compounds.
DNA Methylation Profiles of Lymphoid and Hematopoietic Malignancies

Purpose: Aberrant methylation of the 5′ gene promoter regions is an epigenetic phenomenon that is the major mechanism for silencing of tumor suppressor genes in many cancer types. The aims of our study were (a) to compare the methylation profiles of the major forms of hematological malignancies and (b) to determine the methylation profile of monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) and compare it with that of multiple myeloma (MM). Experimental Design: We compared the aberrant promoter methylation profile of 14 known or suspected tumor suppressor genes in leukemias (n = 48), lymphomas (n = 42), and MMs (n = 40). We also examined the methylation profile of MGUS (n = 20), a premalignant plasma cell dyscrasia. The genes studied represent five of the six “hallmarks of cancer. ” Results: Peripheral blood lymphocytes (n = 14) from healthy volunteers were negative for methylation of all genes, and methylation percentages in 41 nonmalignant tissues (peripheral blood mononuclear cells, bone marrows, and lymph nodes) from hematological patients were low (0–9%) for all 14 genes, confirming that methylation was tumor specific. Ten of the genes were methylated at frequencies of 29–68% in one or more tumor types, and the methylation indices (an indicator of overall methylation) varied from 0.25 to 0.34. With two exceptions, the methylation patterns of leukemias and lymphomas were similar. However, the pattern of MMs varied from the other tumor types for six genes. In general, the methylation pattern of MGUS was similar to that of MM, although the methylation frequencies were lower (the methylation index of MGUS was 0.15, and that of MM was 0.3). However, the methylation frequencies of six genes were significantly higher in MGUS than in control tissues. The relatively high frequencies of methylation in MGUS are consistent with it being a premalignant condition. Conclusions: The three major forms of lymphoid/hematopoietic malignancies show overlapping but individual patterns of methylation.
Novel Designs of Dielectric Resonator Antenna for Wireless Communications

This article describes some recent designs of dielectric resonator antennas (DRAs) suitable for modern wireless applications. The DRA is advantageous over the conventional microstrips in some aspects, one of which is its compact size along with very high efficiency. Keeping this in view, researchers have explored several new geometries and techniques to design compact DRAs for wireless applications. Some recent contributions of the present authors are found to cover a significant fraction of the new techniques and as such they will be discussed along with a brief review of the state of the art in the limited scope of this article.
Improved Hamming Distance Search Using Variable Length Hashing

This paper addresses the problem of ultra-large-scale search in Hamming spaces. There has been considerable research on generating compact binary codes in vision, for example for visual search tasks. However the issue of efficient searching through huge sets of binary codes remains largely unsolved. To this end, we propose a novel, unsupervised approach to thresholded search in Hamming space, supporting long codes (e.g. 512-bits) with a wide-range of Hamming distance radii. Our method is capable of working efficiently with billions of codes delivering between one to three orders of magnitude acceleration, as compared to prior art. This is achieved by relaxing the equal-size constraint in the Multi-Index Hashing approach, leading to multiple hash-tables with variable length hash-keys. Based on the theoretical analysis of the retrieval probabilities of multiple hash-tables we propose a novel search algorithm for obtaining a suitable set of hash-key lengths. The resulting retrieval mechanism is shown empirically to improve the efficiency over the state-of-the-art, across a range of datasets, bit-depths and retrieval thresholds.
Tight focus of light using micropolarizer and microlens.

Using a binary microlens of diameter 14 μm and focal length 532 nm (NA=0.997) in resist, we focus a 633 nm laser beam into a near-circular focal spot with dimensions (0.35 ± 0.02)λ and (0.38 ± 0.02)λ (λ is incident wavelength) at full width half-maximum intensity. The area of the focal spot is 0. 105λ(2). The incident light is a mixture of linearly and radially polarized beams generated by reflecting a linearly polarized Gaussian beam at a 100 μm × 100 μm four-sector subwavelength diffractive optical microelement with a gold coating. The focusing of a linearly polarized laser beam (the other conditions being the same) is found to produce an elliptical focal spot measuring (0.40 ± 0.02)λ and (0.50 ± 0.02)λ. To our knowledge, this is the first implementation of subwavelength focusing of light using a pair of micro-optic elements (a binary microlens and a micropolarizer).
Characteristic Parameters Identification of Hybrid Supercapacitor with Aqueous Electrolyte Under Combined Effect of Current and Temperature

Super capacitor is a kind of electrical energy storage device, which can be widely used in the applications such as hybrid electrical vehicle and regenerative braking energy recovery. Owing to the change of supercapacitor’ electrical performance during working processes, it is necessary to acquire the cell’s characteristic parameters, which can reflect the true property of the device. In this paper, we took the equivalent series resistance and capacitance as the supercapacitor’s characteristic parameters, and the classical equivalent circuit model was adopted in analysis. In order to make sure that the test results can reflect the more real working conditions, the factors of current and temperature which will impact the cell’s performance significantly were taken into consideration. Based on the test data and recursive least square method, we identified the characteristic parameters under combined effect of temperature and current. The results show that the characteristic parameters and the electric performances have close relationship with the two impact factors.
STUDIES ON IMMUNE CELLULAR INJURY II . FUNCTIONAL ROLE OF Ctl ESTERASE IN IMMUNE CYTOTOXICITY

I t was demonstrated in the preceding paper (1) that incubation of primary isolates of normal human amnion cells with specific rabbit antibody and normal human serum resulted in immune cellular injury as measured by two independent criteria of cytotoxicity. I t was further shown that the factors in normal human serum which were required in addition to specific antibody for production of cytotoxicity were indistinguishable from components of hemolytic complement and calcium and magnesium ions. Thus, no fundamental differences were apparent between requirements for immune injury of human amnion cells (immune cytotoxicity) and immune injury of sheep or human erythrocytes (immune hemolysis) (2, 3). The sequence of action of the components of complement in immune hemolysis was deduced by Pillemer, Seifter, and Ecker (4). In further dissection of this complex system, Mayer, Levine, and their associates showed that early events in immune hemolysis involved reactions between the sensitized erythrocyte and the first and fourth components of complement (C'I and C~4) in the presence of Ca ++ . The resulting complex could then react with the second component of complement (C'2) in the presence of Mg ++, forming a complex which could react with the third component (CI3) in the absence of divalent cations. The latter reaction effected injury of the erythrocyte leading to hemolysis (2). The biochemical as opposed to the descriptive events in immune hemolysis were unknown. A large body of evidence has accumulated from this laboratory and independently from Becker's laboratory that C'I is a proenzyme which may be activated by antigen-antibody reactions (5). The active enzyme is an esterase (C'I esterase) capable of hydrolyzing certain synthetic amino acid esters, such as N-acetyl-L-tyrosine ethyl ester and p-toluenesulfonyl-L-arginine methyl
Nutritional Status of Flemish Vegetarians Compared with Non-Vegetarians: A Matched Samples Study

The present study compares the nutritional status of vegetarian (V) with non-vegetarian (NV) subjects. A three-day food record and a health questionnaire were completed by 106 V and 106 NV matched for following characteristics: sex, age, BMI, physical activity, tobacco use and alcohol consumption. Total energy intake was not significantly different (men: V: 2,346 ± 685 kcal/d; NV: 2,628 ± 632 kcal/d; p = 0.078; women: V: 1,991 ± 539 kcal/d; NV: 1,973 ± 592 kcal/d; p = 0.849). Macronutrients intake differed significantly between the V and NV subjects for protein (men: V:12.7 ± 2.3 E%; NV:15.3 ± 4.5 E%; p = 0.003; women: V: 13.2 ± 2.3 E%; NV:16.0 ± 4.0 E%; p < 0.001), fat (men: V: 29.3 ± 8.4 E%; NV: 33.8 ± 5.3 E%; p = 0.010; women: V: 29.7 ± 6.9 E%; NV: 34.7 ± 9.0 E%; p < 0.001), and carbohydrate (men: V: 55.3 ± 10.1 E%; NV: 47.4 ± 6.9 E%; p < 0.001; women: V: 55.1 ± 7.6 E%; NV: 47.2 ± 8.2 E%; p < 0.001). The intake of most minerals was significantly different between the V and the NV subjects. V had a lower sodium intake, higher calcium, zinc, and iron intake compared to the NV subjects. Our results clearly indicate that a vegetarian diet can be adequate to sustain the nutritional demands to at least the same degree as that of omnivores. The intakes of the V subjects were closer to the recommendations for a healthy diet when compared to a group of well matched NV subjects.
Genetic variation in exon 17 of INSR is associated with insulin resistance and hyperandrogenemia among lean Indian women with polycystic ovary syndrome.

OBJECTIVE Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a multigenic disorder, and insulin resistance is one of its hallmark features. Polymorphisms in exon 17 of insulin receptor (INSR) gene are reported to be associated with PCOS. We investigated this association in Indian women and its putative relationship with PCOS associated traits, which has not been explored so far. METHODS In this case control study, the polymorphisms were investigated by direct sequencing in 180 women with PCOS and 144 age matched controls. Clinical, anthropometric, biochemical, and hormonal parameters were also estimated. RESULTS The silent C/T polymorphism at His1058 in exon 17 of INSR was found to be present in our study population. The polymorphic genotype (CT+TT) was significantly associated with PCOS in lean women (chi(2)=8.493, df=1, P=0.004). It showed association with higher fasting insulin levels (P=0.02), homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (P=0.005), free androgen index (P=0.03), and lower quantitative insulin sensitivity check index (P=0.004) in lean PCOS women. No other novel or known polymorphism was identified in exon 17 in this cohort. CONCLUSIONS The study shows significant association of C/T polymorphism at His1058 of INSR with PCOS in the lean rather than obese Indian women. Its association with indices of insulin resistance and hyperandrogenemia is also seen in the same group. The findings strengthen the concept that pathogenesis of PCOS is different in lean and obese women.
An experimental analysis of self-adjusting computation

Dependence graphs and memoization can be used to efficiently update the output of a program as the input changes dynamically. Recent work has studied techniques for combining these approaches to effectively dynamize a wide range of applications. Toward this end various theoretical results were given. In this paper we describe the implementation of a library based on these ideas, and present experimental results on the efficiency of this library on a variety of applications. The results of the experiments indicate that the approach is effective in practice, often requiring orders of magnitude less time than recomputing the output from scratch. We believe this is the first experimental evidence that incremental computation of any type is effective in practice for a reasonably broad set of applications.
Arch Index : An Easier Approach for Arch Height ( A Regression Analysis )

Background: Arch-height estimation though practiced usually in supine posture; is neither correct nor scientific as referred in literature, which favour for standing x-rays or archindex as yardstick. In fact the standing x-rays can be excused for being troublesome in busy OPD, but an ink-footprint on simple graph-sheet can be documented, as it is easier, cheaper and requires almost no machineries and expertisation. Objective: So this study aimed to redefine the inter-relationship of the radiological standing arch-heights with the arch-index for correlation and regression so that from the later we can derive the radiographical standing arch-height values indirectly, avoiding the actual maneuver. Methods: The study involved 103 adult subjects attending at a tertiary care hospital of North Bengal. From the standing xrays of foot, the standing navicular, talar heights were measured, and ‘normalised’ with the foot length. In parallel foot-prints also been obtained for arch-index. Finally variables analysed by SPSS software. Result: The arch-index showed significant negative correlations and simple linear regressions with standing navicular height, standing talar height as well as standing normalised navicular and talar heights analysed in both sexes separately with supporting mathematical equations. Conclusion: To measure the standing arch-height in a busy OPD, it is wise to have the foot-print first. Arch-index once get known, can be put in the equations as derived here, to predict the preferred standing arch-heights in either sex.
Output agreement in networks with unmatched disturbances and algebraic constraints

This paper considers a problem of output agreement in heterogeneous networks with dynamics on the nodes as well as on the edges. The control and disturbance signals entering the nodal dynamics are “unmatched” meaning that some nodes are only subject to disturbances, and are deprived of actuating signals. To further enrich our model, we accommodate (solvable) algebraic constraints in a subset of nodal dynamics. We show that appropriate dynamic feedback controllers achieve output agreement on a desired vector. We also investigate the case of an optimal steady-state control over the network. The proposed results are applied to a heterogeneous microgrid.
Comparative safety and effectiveness of sitagliptin in patients with type 2 diabetes: retrospective population based cohort study

Objective To determine if the use of sitagliptin in newly treated patients with type 2 diabetes is associated with any changes in clinical outcomes. Design Retrospective population based cohort study. Setting Large national commercially insured US claims and integrated laboratory database. Participants Inception cohort of new users of oral antidiabetic drugs between 2004 and 2009 followed until death, termination of medical insurance, or December 31 2010. Main outcome measure Composite endpoint of all cause hospital admission and all cause mortality, assessed with time varying Cox proportional hazards regression after adjustment for demographics, clinical and laboratory data, pharmacy claims data, healthcare use, and time varying propensity scores. Results The cohort included 72 738 new users of oral antidiabetic drugs (8032 (11%) used sitagliptin; 7293 (91%) were taking it in combination with other agents) followed for a total of 182 409 patient years. The mean age was 52 (SD 9) years, 54% (39 573) were men, 11% (8111) had ischemic heart disease, and 9% (6378) had diabetes related complications at the time their first antidiabetic drug was prescribed. 14 215 (20%) patients met the combined endpoint. Sitagliptin users showed similar rates of all cause hospital admission or mortality to patients not using sitagliptin (adjusted hazard ratio 0.98, 95% confidence interval 0.91 to 1.06), including patients with a history of ischemic heart disease (adjusted hazard ratio 1.10, 0.94 to 1.28) and those with estimated glomerular filtration rate below 60 mL/min (1.11, 0.88 to 1.41). Conclusions Sitagliptin use was not associated with an excess risk of all cause hospital admission or death compared with other glucose lowering agents among newly treated patients with type 2 diabetes. Most patients prescribed sitagliptin in this cohort were concordant with clinical practice guidelines, in that it was used as add-on treatment.
Importance of wind and river discharge in influencing nutrient dynamics and phytoplankton production in summer in the central Strait of Georgia

A cruise was conducted during August 6-14, 3 991 to investigate the dynam~cs of nutrients and phytoplankton pi-oduction in the central Strait of Georgld, British Columbia, Canada, dunng a period when strong stratification resulted In nitrogen-l~mited primary productivity. High resolution vertical profiles of salinity, temperature, fluorescence and nutrients (nitrate and phosphate) were taken daily along a transect. A wind event occurred on August 7 and a rapid increase in the Fraser River discharge took place from August 8 to 14 . The wind event mixed the water column and nutrients increased at the same time. Phytoplankton responded to the incrcdscb in nutrients and a bloom occurred soon after the wind event. The rapid increase in river discharge caused the entrainment of nltrate in the estuanne plume and, a s a result, a subsurface maxlmum of chl a was developed. Our results clearly demonstrated that summer phytoplankton productivity in the central Strait of Georgia is fueled by a supply of nutrients from the nitracline through vertical mixing induced by the interaction of winds, rlver discharge and tidal cycles. Of these 3 factors, winds are the most variable and therefore a summer with frequent wind events could result in higher than normal productivity. The mechanism for t h ~ s is that part of the nitracline was maintained above the euphotic zone due to various physical processes in spite of the strong stratification, and therefore, nutrients were frequently available for phytoplankton uptake caused by across-pycnocline mixing due to w ~ n d , rlver dischdrge and tides.
Cholesterol Metabolism and Its Role in Cancer

The roles played by cholesterol in cancer development and the potential of therapeutically targeting cholesterol homeostasis is a controversial area in the cancer community. Several epidemiologic studies report an association between cancer and serum cholesterol levels or statin use, while others suggest that there is not one. Furthermore, the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) project using next-generation sequencing has profiled the mutational status and expression levels of all the genes in diverse cancers, including those involved in cholesterol metabolism, providing correlative support for a role of the cholesterol pathway in cancer development. Finally, preclinical studies tend to more consistently support the role of cholesterol in cancer, with several demonstrating that cholesterol homeostasis genes can modulate development. Because of space limitations, this review provides selected examples of the epidemiologic, TCGA, and preclinical data, focusing on alterations in cholesterol homeostasis and its consequent effect on patient survival. In melanoma, this focused analysis demonstrated that enhanced expression of cholesterol synthesis genes was associated with decreased patient survival. Collectively, the studies in melanoma and other cancer types suggested a potential role of disrupted cholesterol homeostasis in cancer development but additional studies are needed to link populationbased epidemiological data, the TCGA database results, and preclinical mechanistic evidence to concretely resolve this controversy. Cancer Res; 76(8); 1–8. 2016 AACR.