Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Outcomes of Botulinum Toxin Type A for equinovarus deformity in patients with CVA: A case series

ABSTRACT Background: There is evidence that Botulinum Toxin-A (BTX-A) reduces focal spasticity associated with equinovarus to improve gait in patients poststroke. However, there is little research examining whether gait improvements are maintained after the effectiveness period of BTX-A injections. The purpose of this observational study was to determine whether there was a difference in gait parameters in three patients before BTX-A injection versus four and ten weeks after. Case Series: Three women, ages 63, 60, and 42 postischemic stroke with hemiparesis and equinovarus underwent measurements for: plantar flexor spasticity, ankle dorsiflexion ROM, temporal–spatial gait parameters, and gait endurance. All participants improved in ankle ROM. At week 10, spasticity had returned to initial measurement levels in participants A and C. Base of support and step length symmetry ratios did not improve following injections. Participants A and B, who received physical therapy during the study, showed modest gains in gait endurance and velocity. Conclusion: Although BTX-A injections improved spasticity, this improvement did not translate to gait outcomes. Addition of physical therapy interventions appeared to improve gait outcomes in this case series. We suggest future randomized control studies to compare effects of physical therapy alone to BTX-A combined with physical therapy on gait outcomes.
Assessment of Model Forecast Temperature Bias During Cold Air Damming in the Central Appalachian Mountains

Cold-air damming (CAD) is a prevalent Mid-Atlantic United States weather phenomenon that occurs when cold, dense air is dammed alongside the eastern slopes of the Appalachian Mountains. Lower-than-normal maximum temperatures, increased and prolonged cloud cover, and precipitation that produces hazardous impacts are common features of this weather event, which are well known for presenting difficulties to both human forecasters and weather prediction models. This study explores CAD events between 2007 and 2016 archived in a Blacksburg National Weather Service ‘bust’ database – instances when forecasters erred by at least 8°F (4.4°C) on either maximum or minimum daily air temperature. The database includes the temperature error within Model Output Statistics (MOS) guidance in association with these forecast ‘busts. ’ During the 10-year study period, MOS guidance produced warm-biased maximum temperatures and cold-biased minimum temperatures for most of the problematic CAD events, suggesting MOS guidance tended to underestimate the strength of CAD in these cases, seeming to struggle with weaker CAD events. During CAD erosion, MOS tended to prematurely erode CAD scenarios at night and predicted them to persist for too long during the day. Hourly surface meteorological and synoptic atmosphere composites during these ‘busted’ CAD events failed to reveal obvious differences from what is expected for central Appalachian CAD. However, a comparison to well-forecast classic coldseason CAD events suggest that busted cases of this same type of CAD may be drier than is typical. As the atmospheric patterns associated with busted CAD events are typical of the phenomenon, but a bit weaker or more marginal, forecast errors appear to stem from subtle model errors rather than forecaster error. It is possible that the models may inadequately characterize low-level moisture, but further research is needed to isolate the source of model forecast error. Nonetheless, the results of this research serve as guidance for operational forecasters as they consider model guidance during weak CAD events. Assessment of Model Forecast Temperature Bias During Cold Air Damming in the Central Appalacian Mountains
SnipSuggest: Context-Aware Autocompletion for SQL

In this paper, we present SnipSuggest, a system that provides on-the-go, context-aware assistance in the SQL composition process. SnipSuggest aims to help the increasing population of non-expert database users, who need to perform complex analysis on their large-scale datasets, but have difficulty writing SQL queries. As a user types a query, SnipSuggest recommends possible additions to various clauses in the query using relevant snippets collected from a log of past queries. SnipSuggest's current capabilities include suggesting tables, views, and table-valued functions in the FROM clause, columns in the SELECT clause, predicates in the WHERE clause, columns in the GROUP BY clause, aggregates, and some support for sub-queries. SnipSuggest adjusts its recommendations according to the context: as the user writes more of the query, it is able to provide more accurate suggestions.We evaluate SnipSuggest over two query logs: one from an undergraduate database class and another from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey database. We show that SnipSuggest is able to recommend useful snippets with up to 93.7% average precision, at interactive speed. We also show that SnipSuggest outperforms naive approaches, such as recommending popular snippets.
Alterations to neuronal polarity following permanent axotomy: A quantitative analysis of changes to MAP2a/b and GAP‐43 distributions in axotomized motoneurons in the adult cat

Following axotomy, morphologically unusual, distal processes (UDPs) emerge from motoneuron dendrites. These processes contain an axonal protein, growth‐associated protein 43 (GAP‐43) but lack immunostaining for the dendritic protein microtubule‐associated protein 2a/b (MAP2a/b). Thus, it appears that neuronal polarity alters following axotomy. Our goal was to describe this change in neuronal polarity on a more detailed and quantitative level. We asked two questions: Following axotomy, where in the entire neuron does the immunoreactivity for MAP2a/b and GAP‐43 change and do these changes reflect a transformation of dendrite to axon or growth from terminal dendrites? Using intracellular labeling and immunocytochemistry, changes in MAP2a/b and GAP‐43 immunoreactivity were also found in processes with a morphology typical of terminal branches of intact motoneurons (called simple distal processes [SDPs]), as well as UDPs. Trajectories (the path from the soma to a single terminus) with UDPs and SDPs were longer than trajectories without these processes, and trajectories with UDPs were the longest. Trajectories without UDPs or SDPs were similar in length to trajectories from intact motoneurons. The distance from the soma to the point where MAP2a/b immunoreactivity became absent in trajectories with UDPs or SDPs was similar to the length of trajectories from intact motoneurons. Thus, following axotomy, two morphologically distinct types of axon‐like processes emerge from dendrites. The formation of these processes does not involve a transformation of the original dendrite, but rather growth at the ends of dendrites. J. Comp. Neurol. 450:318–333, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Proactive password checking with decision trees

The important problem of user password selection is addressed and a new proactive password checking technique is presented. In a training phase, a decision tree is generated based on a given dictionary of weak passwords. Then, the decision tree is used to determine whether a user password should be accepted. Experimental results described here show that the method leads to very high dictionary compression (from 100 to 3 in the average) with low error rates (of the order of 1%). We survey previous approaches to proactive password checking, and provide an in-depth comparison.
Interaction between antisecretory opioid and sympathetic mechanisms in the rat small intestine.

UNLABELLED The putative existence of an endogenous opioid antisecretory mechanism in the small intestine was tested in anaesthetized Sprague-Dawley rats. Cholera secretion was elicited with cholera toxin and net fluid secretion was measured in vivo using a gravimetric technique allowing on line registrations. Opioid blockade with naloxone (10 mg kg-1 i.v.) increased the cholera secretion significantly but had no effect on control absorption. Pretreatment with phentolamine (2 mg kg-1 i.v.) eliminated the effect of opioid blockade indicating an interaction between the opioid and the adrenergic mechanisms. The effect of naloxone on cholera secretion was unchanged after acute division of the sympathetic nerves to the intestine and removal of the adrenals. Chronic sympathetic denervation of the small intestine, on the other hand, abolished the effect of opiate blockade on the secretion. The antisecretory effect of sympathetic nerve stimulation was unchanged by opiate blockade. CONCLUSION An intrinsic antisecretory opioid mechanism has been demonstrated in the small intestine of the rat. This endogenous opioid mechanism seems to decrease secretion indirectly via peripheral activation of the sympathetic antisecretory system.
Serum Markers in the Diagnosis of Tubal Pregnancy

The introduction of highly sensitive methods, such as transvaginal sonography and measurement of serum β-human chorionic gonadotropin, has dramatically improved ectopic pregnancy diagnosis in recent years. Early diagnosis is the key to successful and conservative management of women with ectopic pregnancy; however, approximately 50 percent of such women are initially misdiagnosed, resulting in significant morbidity and mortality. In order to improve diagnosis, several serum markers are being investigated including progesterone, CA 125, pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A, vascular endothelial growth factor, and maternal creatine kinase. Measurement of serum vascular endothelial growth factor, alone or together with other markers, could be a promising method for earlier and more accurate differential diagnosis. However, the clinical applicability of these findings remains to be evaluated in larger prospective studies.
Assessment of texture features for Brazilian savanna classification: a case study in Brasilia National Park

Distinguishing Brazilian savanna physiognomies is an essential task to better evaluate carbon storage and potential emissions of greenhouse gases. In this study, we propose to evaluate the potential of texture features to improve the discrimination among ï¬ ve physiognomies in the Brazilian savanna: Open Grasslands, Shrubby Grassland, Shrubby Savanna, Savanna Woodland and Gallery Forest. Texture features extracted from RapidEye images and also from Spectral Linear Mixture Model components and Vegetation Index were evaluated. Results showed that texture features based on GLCM can reduce misclassiï¬ cation for Open Grasslands, Shrubby Grasslands and Shrubby Savanna classes.
Coordination of Heterogeneous Robots for Large-Scale Assembly

While many multi-robot systems rely on fortuitous cooperation between agents, some tasks, such as the assembly of large structures, require tighter coordination. We present a general software architecture for coordinating heterogeneous robots that allows for both autonomy of the individual agents as well as explicit coordination. This paper presents recent results with three robots with very different configurations. Working as a team, these robots are able to perform a high-precision docking task that none could achieve individually.
Integrated analysis of phenome, genome, and transcriptome of hybrid rice uncovered multiple heterosis-related loci for yield increase

Significance Because of its practical importance and scientific significance, heterosis (hybrid vigor) is an interesting topic for both breeders and biologists. However, although heterosis has been applied successfully to increase crop yields, the molecular mechanisms involved remain obscure. In this study, using an integrative approach, we found that multiple quantitative trait loci (QTLs) cumulatively drive yield heterosis in hybrid rice by regulating two grain-yield component traits in which the RH8 (rice heterosis 8) gene plays a major role. Our research highlights the importance of integrative methods to uncover the molecular mechanism of heterosis and thus pave a way toward revealing the molecular mechanisms in rice heterosis in detail. Hybrid rice is the dominant form of rice planted in China, and its use has extended worldwide since the 1970s. It offers great yield advantages and has contributed greatly to the world’s food security. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying heterosis have remained a mystery. In this study we integrated genetics and omics analyses to determine the candidate genes for yield heterosis in a model two-line rice hybrid system, Liang-you-pei 9 (LYP9) and its parents. Phenomics study revealed that the better parent heterosis (BPH) of yield in hybrid is not ascribed to BPH of all the yield components but is specific to the BPH of spikelet number per panicle (SPP) and paternal parent heterosis (PPH) of effective panicle number (EPN). Genetic analyses then identified multiple quantitative trait loci (QTLs) for these two components. Moreover, a number of differentially expressed genes and alleles in the hybrid were mapped by transcriptome profiling to the QTL regions as possible candidate genes. In parallel, a major QTL for yield heterosis, rice heterosis 8 (RH8), was found to be the DTH8/Ghd8/LHD1 gene. Based on the shared allelic heterozygosity of RH8 in many hybrid rice cultivars, a common mechanism for yield heterosis in the present commercial hybrid rice is proposed.
An improved PCR method for walking in uncloned genomic DNA.

Several PCR-based methods are available for walking from a known region to an unknown region in cloned or uncloned genomic DNA. The methods are of three types: inverse PCR (1), randomly primed PCR (2) and adaptor ligation PCR (3-6). However, these methods have not been generally applied to walking in uncloned genomic DNA because they are either complicated or inefficient. Recent improvements to these methods have been applied to uncloned genomic DNA (7,8), however, walks have been limited to distances of <1 kb. We have investigated the application of 'long and accurate PCR' (9,10) to walking in uncloned genomic DNA. We initially examined the use of 'unpredictably primed PCR' (3), a new method based on randomly primed PCR and 'vectorette PCR' (5), which is based upon adaptor ligation. As a model system we attempted to walk upstream from exon 1 of the human tissue-type plasminogen activator (TPA) gene which has been previously characterized (11). In our hands both 'unpredictably primed PCR' and 'vectorette PCR' generated multiple PCR products even after nested PCR was perforned. Although upon analysis some of the PCR products were found to be derived from successful walks, the presence of multiple PCR products would complicate further characterization without Southern blot hybridization or extensive cloning. We have improved upon the adaptor ligation method by combining 'vectorette PCR' with a newly developed method termed 'suppression PCR' (12). A special adaptor is ligated to the ends of DNA fragments generated by digestion of human genomicDNA with EcoRV, Scal, Dral, PvuII and SspI separately. Following adaptor ligation, a small amount of the DNA is used
Influenza virus entry and infection require host cell N-linked glycoprotein

A widely held view of influenza virus infection is that the viral receptor consists of cell surface carbohydrate sialic acid, which can be present as glycoprotein or glycolipid. Here, we examined influenza virus entry and infection in Lec1 cells, a mutant CHO cell line deficient in terminal N-linked glycosylation caused by a mutation in the N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase I (GnT1) gene. We show that influenza virus cannot infect Lec1 cells, despite having full capacity to undergo virus binding and fusion. Lec1 cells also show no virus replication defect, and infection was restored in Lec1 cells expressing wild-type GnT1. Viruses were apparently arrested at the level of internalization from the plasma membrane and were not endocytosed. Lec1 cells were refractory to infection by several strains of influenza virus, including H1 and H3 strains of influenza A, as well as influenza B virus. Finally, cleavage of N-glycans from wild-type CHO cells markedly reduced infection by influenza virus. We suggest that influenza virus specifically requires N-linked glycoprotein for entry into cells, and that sialic acid, although acting as an efficient attachment factor, is not sufficient as an influenza virus receptor in vivo.
Assessment of a geographically targeted field intervention on gonorrhea incidence in two New York State counties.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Using study findings that demonstrated the importance of core group members in gonorrhea transmission, in 1984, one New York State county changed its approach toward gonorrhea control by targeting its field intervention activities toward infected persons from a geographic core area. In late 1988, New York State experienced an epidemic increase in the number of syphilis cases. In response, the New York State sexually transmitted disease (STD) control program enacted a Syphilis Initiative, which required the diversion of field staff from gonorrhea to syphilis control activities for a 3-year period. Each of these events held the possibility of impacting gonorrhea incidence in this county. GOAL OF THIS STUDY To evaluate the impact of core interventions on reducing gonorrhea incidence as compared to traditional nontargeted field intervention methods and to determine the influence on gonorrhea incidence of diverting field activities from gonorrhea to syphilis case finding. STUDY DESIGN A Poisson regression method was used to estimate gonorrhea incidence for a 22-year period in two similar counties: one county that used core intervention and one that applied traditional case-finding methods. The impact of core intervention was estimated in terms of the reduction in the gonorrhea incidence rate from the preintervention incidence rates. RESULTS After initiation of the core intervention, the relative risk of gonorrhea decreased by 61%. Between 30 % to 40% of the total reported cases were interviewed for contacts annually during the intervention period. In the control county, the relative risk was reduced by 50% despite a significantly higher percentage of annual case interviews (60%-70%). In addition, a small change in the definition of core (from census tracts encompassing 50% of gonorrhea cases to 30%-35%) during the Syphilis Initiative led to a significant increase (16%) in the relative risk of gonorrhea. CONCLUSION Targeting partner notification activities toward a geographic core area population appears effective in reducing the risk of gonorrhea, and it was more efficient because the overall percentage of cases interviewed was smaller than in a county using a nontargeted approach. Diversion of staff during a syphilis epidemic, combined with a narrowing of the geographic scope of the core intervention, was associated with an increase in gonorrhea incidence.
Lipid domains of acetylcholine receptor clusters detected with saponin and filipin

The acetylcholine receptor (AChR) clusters of cultured rat myotubes contain two distinct, interdigitating, membrane domains, one enriched in AChR, the other poor in AChR but associated with sites of myotube- substrate contact (Bloch, R.J., and B. Geiger, 1980, Cell, 21:25-35). We have used two cholesterol-specific cytochemical probes, saponin and filipin, to investigate the lipid nature of these membrane domains. When studied with freeze-fracture electron microscopy or fluorescence microscopy, these reagents reacted moderately and preferentially with the AChR-rich domains of AChR clusters. Little or no reaction with the membrane in "contact" domains was seen. In contrast, membrane regions surrounding the AChR clusters reacted extensively with filipin. These results suggest that, in rat myotubes, the composition or the state of the lipids differs between the two membrane domains of the AChR clusters, and between clusters and surrounding membrane. In chick myotubes, AChR clusters do not appear to react with filipin or saponin, although surrounding membrane reacts extensively with these reagents.
An atypical reproductive cycle in a common viviparous Asia Agamid Phrynocephalus vlangalii

Abstract Viviparous lizards living in cold climate of high altitude often exhibit atypical reproductive cycles, in which mating and fertilization occur synchronously and annually with parturition occurring at the end of the year. Nevertheless, detailed case studies on atypical reproductive cycles are few. Using anatomical data combined with behavioral observations, we examined the reproductive cycle of a common Asian agamid, Phrynocephalus vlangalii, from a high‐elevation area in Sichuan, China. Male spermiation of P. vlangalii occurred in May, and spermatogenesis began in June and reached a maximum in October. For females, ovulation and fertilization occurred in May, and females developed gestation and pregnancy in 3 months from June to August, without vitellogenesis during this period. Females gave birth synchronously in late August, then vitellogenesis began and lasted until May of the next year. All adult males and females were synchronized in the same reproductive condition each month. The synchronous and annual reproductive cycle of P. vlangalii clearly represents an atypical cycle. The male courtship and mating behaviors were concordant with gonadal cycle and mainly happened in May and June. Despite the short growth period for neonates, they had a high over‐winter survival rate of 84.4%, suggesting that autumn parturition did not generate high costs to this reproductive cycle. We propose that the high over‐winter survival rate of neonates is likely linked with female delayed sexual maturity, female asynchronous vitellogenesis and gestation, large relative clutch mass (RCM), and adult‐offspring burrow sharing behavior during hibernation.
Omega-3 fatty acid ethyl ester supplementation decreases very-low-density lipoprotein triacylglycerol secretion in obese men.

Dysregulated VLDL-TAG (very-low-density lipoprotein triacylglycerol) metabolism in obesity may account for hypertriacylglycerolaemia and increased cardiovascular disease. ω-3 FAEEs (omega-3 fatty acid ethyl esters) decrease plasma TAG and VLDL concentrations, but the mechanisms are not fully understood. In the present study, we carried out a 6-week randomized, placebo-controlled study to examine the effect of high-dose ω-3 FAEE supplementation (3.2 g/day) on the metabolism of VLDL-TAG in obese men using intravenous administration of d5-glycerol. We also explored the relationship of VLDL-TAG kinetics with the metabolism of VLDL-apo (apolipoprotein) B-100 and HDL (high-density lipoprotein)-apoA-I. VLDL-TAG isotopic enrichment was measured using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Kinetic parameters were derived using a multicompartmental model. Compared with placebo, ω-3 FAEE supplementation significantly lowered plasma concentrations of total (-14%, P<0.05) and VLDL-TAG (-32%, P<0.05), as well as hepatic secretion of VLDL-TAG (-32%, P<0.03). The FCR (fractional catabolic rate) of VLDL-TAG was not altered by ω-3 FAEEs. There was a significant association between the change in secretion rates of VLDL-TAG and VLDL-apoB-100 (r=0.706, P<0.05). However, the change in VLDL-TAG secretion rate was not associated with change in HDL-apoA-I FCR (r=0.139, P>0.05). Our results suggest that the TAG-lowering effect of ω-3 FAEEs is associated with the decreased VLDL-TAG secretion rate and hence lower plasma VLDL-TAG concentration in obesity. The changes in VLDL-TAG and apoB-100 kinetics are closely coupled.