Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Activation of AMPK Enhances Neutrophil Chemotaxis and Bacterial Killing

An inability of neutrophils to eliminate invading microorganisms is frequently associated with severe infection and may contribute to the high mortality rates associated with sepsis. In the present studies, we examined whether metformin and other 5′ adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) activators affect neutrophil motility, phagocytosis and bacterial killing. We found that activation of AMPK enhanced neutrophil chemotaxis in vitro and in vivo, and also counteracted the inhibition of chemotaxis induced by exposure of neutrophils to lipopolysaccharide (LPS). In contrast, small interfering RNA (siRNA)-mediated knockdown of AMPKα1 or blockade of AMPK activation through treatment of neutrophils with the AMPK inhibitor compound C diminished neutrophil chemotaxis. In addition to their effects on chemotaxis, treatment of neutrophils with metformin or aminoimidazole carboxamide ribonucleotide (AICAR) improved phagocytosis and bacterial killing, including more efficient eradication of bacteria in a mouse model of peritonitis-induced sepsis. Immunocytochemistry showed that, in contrast to LPS, metformin or AICAR induced robust actin polymerization and distinct formation of neutrophil leading edges. Although LPS diminished AMPK phosphorylation, metformin or AICAR was able to partially decrease the effects of LPS/toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) engagement on downstream signaling events, particularly LPS-induced IκBα degradation. The IκB kinase (IKK) inhibitor PS-1145 diminished IκBα degradation and also prevented LPS-induced inhibition of chemotaxis. These results suggest that AMPK activation with clinically approved agents, such as metformin, may facilitate bacterial eradication in sepsis and other inflammatory conditions associated with inhibition of neutrophil activation and chemotaxis. Online address: https://doi.org/www.molmed. org
Counter‐Credit‐Risk Yield Spreads: A Puzzle in China's Corporate Bond Market

In this paper, using China's risk-free and corporate zero yields together with aggregate credit risk measures and various control variables from 2006 to 2013, we document a puzzle of counter-credit-risk corporate yield spreads. We interpret this puzzle as a symptom of the immaturity of China's credit bond market, which reveals a distorted pricing mechanism latent in the fundamental of this market. We also find interesting results about relationships between corporate yield spreads and interest rates and risk premia and the stock index, and these results are somewhat attributed to this puzzle.
Pelvic Exenteration for Rectal Cancer: A Systematic Review

BACKGROUND: Pelvic exenteration is a potentially curative treatment for locally advanced primary or recurrent rectal cancer. OBJECTIVE: This systematic review examines the current evidence regarding clinical and oncological outcomes in patients with locally advanced primary and recurrent rectal cancer who undergo pelvic exenteration. DATA SOURCES: A literature search of PubMed, Medline, and the Cochrane library was undertaken, and studies published in the English language from January 2000 to August 2012 were identified. STUDY SELECTION: Prospective and retrospective studies that report outcomes of pelvic exenteration for primary advanced and locally recurrent rectal cancer with or without subgroup evaluation were included for examination. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Oncological outcomes included 5-year survival, median survival, and local recurrence rates. Clinical outcomes included complication rates and perioperative mortality rates. RESULTS: A total of 23 studies with 1049 patients were reviewed. The complication rates ranged from 37% to 100% (median, 57%) and the perioperative mortality rate ranged from 0% to 25% (median, 2.2%). The rate of local recurrence ranged from 4.8% to 61% (median, 22%). The median survival for primary advanced rectal cancers was 14 to 93 months (median, 35.5 months) and 8 to 38 months (median, 24 months) for locally recurrent rectal cancer. LIMITATIONS: Our review was limited by the small sample sizes from single-institutional studies reporting outcomes over long periods of time with heterogeneity in both the disease and treatments reported. CONCLUSIONS: Although the human costs and risks are significant, the potentially favorable survival outcomes make this acceptable in the absence of other effective treatment modalities that would otherwise result in debilitating symptoms that afflict patients who have advanced pelvic malignancy.
Examining the existence of double jeopardy and negative double jeopardy within Twitter

Purpose: The theory of Double Jeopardy (DJ) is shown to hold across broad ranging geographies and physical product categories. However, there is very little research appertaining to the subject within an online environment. In particular, studies that investigate the presence of DJ and the contrasting view point to DJ, namely that of Negative Double Jeopardy (NDJ), are lacking. This study contributes to this identified research gap, and examines the presence of DJ and NDJ within a product category, utilising data from Twitter. Design/methodology/approach: 354,676 tweets are scraped from Twitter and their sentiment analysed and allocated into positive, negative and no-opinion clusters using fuzzy c-means clustering. The sentiment is then compared to the market share of brands within the beer product category to establish whether a DJ or NDJ effect is present. Findings: The data reveals an NDJ effect with regards to original tweets (i.e. tweets which have not been retweeted). That is, when analysing tweets relating to brands within a defined beer category, we find that larger brands suffer by having an increased negativity amongst the larger proportion of tweets associated with them. Research limitations/implications: The clustering approach to analyse sentiment in Twitter data brings a new direction to analysis of such sentiment. Future consideration of different numbers of clusters may further the insights this form of analysis can bring to the DJ/NDJ phenomenon. Managerial implications discuss the uncovered practitioner’s paradox of NDJ and strategies for dealing with DJ and NDJ effects. Originality/value: This study is the first to explore the presence of DJ and NDJ through the utilisation of sentiment analysis derived data and fuzzy clustering. DJ and NDJ are under-explored constructs in the online environment. Typically, past research examines DJ and NDJ in separate and detached fashions. Thus, the study is of theoretical value because it outlines boundaries to the DJ and NDJ conditions. Second, this research is the first study to analyse the sentiment of consumer-authored tweets to explore DJ and NDJ effects. This study also highlights the need to separate original tweets from retweets because our data shows that jeopardy dynamics differ in these different domains. Finally, the current study offers valuable insight into the DJ and NDJ effects for practicing marketing managers. Examining the existence of double jeopardy and negative double jeopardy within Twitter. Available from: https://www.researchgate. net/publication/313056508_Examining_the_existence_of_double_jeopardy_and_negative_double_jeopardy_within_Twitter [accessed May 2, 2017].
Stochastic misalignment model for magneto-inductive SISO and MIMO links

Magneto-inductive (MI) systems for wireless communications or power transfer usually suffer from coil mis-alignment, because of mobility or deployment. The impact on performance is hard to analyze because mutual inductance is an involved function of geometry. We focus on links whose coil separation exceeds coil dimensions, which is characteristic for communications links and becoming increasingly desired for wireless powering. In this regime, the dipole approximation allows for an accurate closed-form description of misalignment. In order to analyze fully unaligned links, we propose a stochastic misalignment model that assumes uniformly random coil orientation(s). To this effect, we derive the probability density function (PDF) of mutual inductance for practically relevant setups, comprising single coils and collocated coil arrays. This gives rise to a misalignment comparison of beamforming, coil selection, and single-input single-output (SISO) links. The PDFs lead to the expected attenuation due to misalignment. We relate misalignment to communications performance by means of a basic circuit. A byproduct of the stochastic model is the maximum likelihood range estimate for a noiseless mutual inductance measurement under unknown arrangement.
Validation of Abundance Estimates from Mark–Recapture and Removal Techniques for Rainbow Trout Captured by Electrofishing in Small Streams

Abstract Estimation of fish abundance in streams using the removal model or the Lincoln– Peterson mark–recapture model is a common practice in fisheries. These models produce misleading results if their assumptions are violated. We evaluated the assumptions of these two models via electrofishing of rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss in central Idaho streams. For one-, two-, three-, and four-pass sampling effort in closed sites, we evaluated the influences of fish size and habitat characteristics on sampling efficiency and the accuracy of removal abundance estimates. We also examined the use of models to generate unbiased estimates of fish abundance through adjustment of total catch or biased removal estimates. Our results suggested that the assumptions of the mark– recapture model were satisfied and that abundance estimates based on this approach were unbiased. In contrast, the removal model assumptions were not met. Decreasing sampling efficiencies over removal passes resulted in underestimated population.
CALL FOR PAPERS Integrative and Translational Physiology: Integrative Aspects of Energy Homeostasis and Metabolic Diseases Alterations in activity and energy expenditure contribute to lean phenotype in Fischer 344 rats lacking the cholecystokinin-1 receptor gene

James E. Blevins, Daniel H. Moralejo, Tami H. Wolden-Hanson, Brendan S. Thatcher, Jacqueline M. Ho, Karl J. Kaiyala, and Kozo Matsumoto VA Puget Sound Health Care System, Office of Research and Development Medical Research Service, Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Seattle, Washington; Division of Metabolism, Endocrinology and Nutrition, Department of Medicine, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington; Department of Dental Public Health Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington; Department of Veterinary Services, University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, Bastrop, Texas; and Department of Animal Medical Sciences, Faculty of Life Sciences, Kyoto Sangyo University, Kyoto, Japan
Defibrillation Depends on Conductivity Fluctuations and the Degree of Disorganization in Reentry Patterns

Introduction: Cardiac fibrillation is the deterioration of the heart's normally well‐organized activity into one or more meandering spiral waves, which subsequently break up into many meandering wave fronts. Delivery of an electric shock (defibrillation) is the only effective way of restoring the normal rhythm. This study focuses on examining whether higher degrees of disorganization requires higher shock strengths to defibrillate and whether microscopic conductivity fluctuations favor shock success.
Prenatal Risk Factors and Outcomes in Gastroschisis: A Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Gastroschisis is a congenital anomaly with increasing incidence, easy prenatal diagnosis and extremely variable postnatal outcomes. Our objective was to systematically review the evidence regarding the association between prenatal ultrasound signs (intraabdominal bowel dilatation [IABD], extraabdominal bowel dilatation, gastric dilatation [GD], bowel wall thickness, polyhydramnios, and small for gestational age) and perinatal outcomes in gastroschisis (bowel atresia, intra uterine death, neonatal death, time to full enteral feeding, length of total parenteral nutrition and length of in hospital stay). METHODS: Medline, Embase, and Cochrane databases were searched electronically. Studies exploring the association between antenatal ultrasound signs and outcomes in gastroschisis were considered suitable for inclusion. Two reviewers independently extracted relevant data regarding study characteristics and pregnancy outcome. All meta-analyses were computed using individual data random-effect logistic regression, with single study as the cluster unit. RESULTS: Twenty-six studies, including 2023 fetuses, were included. We found significant positive associations between IABD and bowel atresia (odds ratio [OR]: 5.48, 95% confidence interval [CI] 3.1–9.8), polyhydramnios and bowel atresia (OR: 3.76, 95% CI 1.7–8.3), and GD and neonatal death (OR: 5.58, 95% CI 1.3–24.1). No other ultrasound sign was significantly related to any other outcome. CONCLUSIONS: IABD, polyhydramnios, and GD can be used to an extent to identify a subgroup of neonates with a prenatal diagnosis of gastroschisis at higher risk to develop postnatal complications. Data are still inconclusive on the predictive ability of several signs combined, and large prospective studies are needed to improve the quality of prenatal counseling and the neonatal care for this condition.
Ultrasensitive Magnetic Field Sensing Based on Refractive-Index-Matched Coupling

An ultrasensitive magnetic field sensor is proposed and investigated experimentally. The no-core fiber is fusion-spliced between two pieces of single-mode fibers and then immersed in magnetic fluid with an appropriate value of refractive index. Under the refractive-index-matched coupling condition, the guided mode becomes leaky and a coupling wavelength dip in the transmission spectrum of the structure is observed. The coupling wavelength dip is extremely sensitive to the ambient environment. The excellent sensitivity to the refractive index is measured to be 116.681 μm/RIU (refractive index unit) in the refractive index range of 1.45691–1.45926. For the as-fabricated sensors, the highest magnetic field sensing sensitivities of 6.33 and 1.83 nm/mT are achieved at low and high fields, respectively. The sensitivity is considerably enhanced compared with those of previously designed, similar structures.
The detectability of the pretreatment EGFR T790M mutations in lung adenocarcinoma using CAST-PCR and digital PCR.

BACKGROUND A gatekeeper T790M mutation is thought to cause resistance to epidermal growth factor receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitor (EGFR-TKI) treatment. The detection of a 2nd mutation is important for planning the next therapy when patients acquire resistance to the first line EGFR-TKI. METHODS We used a competitive allele-specific polymerase chain reaction (CAST-PCR) to analyze the incidence and clinical significance of T790M mutations in 153 lung adenocarcinomas with EGFR-activating mutations. To increase the sensitivity and specificity of the detection of T790M mutations, we subjected 20 of the 153 cases to a digital PCR. The genomic DNAs were extracted from frozen, surgically resected tumor tissue specimens. RESULTS The CAST-PCR detected T790M mutations in 45 (29.4%) of the 153 cases. The analytical sensitivity in the detection T790M mutations was 0.13-2.65% (average 0.27%, median 0.20%). In contrast, the digital PCR, detected T790M mutations in 8 (40%) out of 20 cases. CONCLUSIONS Our study shows that the pretreatment incidence of T790M mutation was less than that reported in previous studies. In order to clinically use pretreatment EGFR T790M mutation identification method, we should clarify the adequate methods and tissue preserved status.
Comparison of long-term feeding pattern between male and female Fischer 344 rats: influence of estrous cycle.

We studied the effect of gender on food intake, meal number, and meal size in eight 10-wk-old female and seven age-matched male Fischer 344 rats for 44 consecutive days. Although food intake (g/100 g body wt) was similar in males and females (5.42 +/- 0.10 vs. 5.13 +/- 0.13 g food.day-1.100 g body wt-1, respectively; not significant), weight gain in males was approximately seven times greater than in female rats (1.49 +/- 0.07 vs. 0.21 +/- 0.03 g/day, respectively; P < 0.001). During this time, males had a relatively constant food intake. They increased their meal size but decreased their meal number. In female rats, food intake was relatively stable for the duration of the study, despite cyclically and reciprocally recurring changes in meal number and meal size, which are synchronized with the estrous cycle. Data confirm that net food intake is a dynamic process and suggest that, in the rat, the homeostasis of food intake in response to external as well as internal stimuli is maintained via the modulation of meal number and size.
On Bayesian Upper Confidence Bounds for Bandit Problems

Stochastic bandit problems have been analyzed from two dierent perspectives: a frequentist view, where the parameter is a deterministic unknown quantity, and a Bayesian approach, where the parameter is drawn from a prior distribution. We show in this paper that methods derived from this second perspective prove optimal when evaluated using the frequentist cumulated regret as a measure of performance. We give a general formulation for a class of Bayesian index policies that rely on quantiles of the posterior distribution. For binary bandits, we prove that the corresponding algorithm, termed BayesUCB, satisfies finite-time regret bounds that imply its asymptotic optimality. More generally, Bayes-UCB appears as an unifying framework for several variants of the UCB algorithm addressing dierent
Targeting danger molecules in tendinopathy: the HMGB1/TLR4 axis

Objectives To seek evidence of the danger molecule, high-mobility group protein B1 (HMGB1) expression in human tendinopathy and thereafter, to explore mechanisms where HMGB1 may regulate inflammatory mediators and matrix regulation in human tendinopathy. Methods Torn supraspinatus tendon (established pathology) and matched intact subscapularis tendon (representing ‘early pathology’) biopsies were collected from patients undergoing arthroscopic shoulder surgery. Control samples of subscapularis tendon were collected from patients undergoing arthroscopic stabilisation surgery. Markers of inflammation and HMGB1 were quantified by reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) and immunohistochemistry. Human tendon-derived primary cells were derived from hamstring tendon tissue obtained during hamstring tendon anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction and used through passage 3. In vitro effects of recombinant HMGB1 on tenocyte matrix and inflammatory potential were measured using quantitative RT-PCR, ELISA and immunohistochemistry staining. Results Tendinopathic tissues demonstrated significantly increased levels of the danger molecule HMGB1 compared with control tissues with early tendinopathy tissue showing the greatest expression. The addition of recombinant human HMGB1 to tenocytes led to significant increase in expression of a number of inflammatory mediators, including interleukin 1 beta (IL-1β), IL-6, IL-33, CCL2 and CXCL12, in vitro. Further analysis demonstrated rhHMGB1 treatment resulted in increased expression of genes involved in matrix remodelling. Significant increases were observed in Col3, Tenascin-C and Decorin. Moreover, blocking HMGB1 signalling via toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) silencing reversed these key inflammatory and matrix changes. Conclusion HMGB1 is present in human tendinopathy and can regulate inflammatory cytokines and matrix changes. We propose HMGB1 as a mediator driving the inflammatory/matrix crosstalk and manipulation of the HMGB1/TLR4 axis may offer novel therapeutic approaches targeting inflammatory mechanisms in the management of human tendon disorders.
Best-Practice Guidelines for Physical Activity at Child Care

Research has indicated that the child care center is a very strong predictor of preschool-aged children's physical activity levels, making this an important setting to help young children obtain physical activity that is appropriate for their health and development. However, some evidence suggests that organized child care may not adequately support children's physical activity needs. Although many organizations provide recommendations, guidelines, or standards for motor skill development and physical activity opportunities, no set of guidelines exist that directly target the overall physical activity environment at child care. Because of the lack of comprehensive recommendations, the Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-assessment for Child Care best-practice guidelines for healthy weight development were created on the basis of an extensive review of existing guidelines, research evidence, and expert review. The purpose of this article is to present these physical activity best-practice guidelines and provide data on how these guidelines compare to current practice in a large sample (N = 96) of child care centers in North Carolina. These best-practice guidelines include recommendations for 8 unique components of the child care environment, including active opportunities, fixed play environment, portable play environment, sedentary opportunities, sedentary environment, staff behavior, staff training/education, and physical activity policies. Our results showed that only a few of the best-practice guidelines were achieved by a majority of the 96 North Carolina child care centers that participated in this study. Establishing comprehensive guidelines for physical activity at child care could result in higher activity levels and healthier children, but more research is needed.
Breast volume is affected by body mass index but not age

Abstract Background: This study aimed to establish normative breast volume data for women of varying ages, body masses and breast sizes, and to determine the effect of age and body mass index (BMI) on breast volume. Methods: The breast volume of 356 women (age range: 18.1–83.7 years; BMI range: 18.4–54.5 kg/m²) was measured using three-dimensional scanning in a prone position. Results: Breast volumes ranged from 48 to 3100 mL. Although breast volume was not significantly affected by age, it was significantly affected by BMI, with the breast volume of overweight and obese women being two-to-three times greater than women with normal BMI’s. Conclusion: It is recommended that bra cups must be designed to support the wide range and increasing magnitude of breast volumes exhibited by women. Practitioner summary: This original research provides evidence for bra designers and manufacturers on the range of breast volumes of women and the significant effect of BMI on breast volume. Bra cups need to be designed to support the wide range and increasing magnitude of breast volumes exhibited by women.