Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Whole-body diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging at 3 Tesla for early assessment of treatment response in non-Hodgkin lymphoma: a pilot study

Abstract Objective: To evaluate 3 Tesla (T) whole-body diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (WB DWI) for early treatment assessment in aggressive non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). Methods: Fourteen patients with NHL treated with standard chemotherapy underwent 3-T WB DWI before and 2 and 4 weeks during treatment, using b-values of 0–1000 s/mm2 from which the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) was calculated. Patient follow-up (average 20.3 months, range 15–23 months) was the reference standard. Volume and ADC changes between baseline and 2 weeks (Vratio2w, ADCratio2w) and 4 weeks (Vratio4w, ADCratio4w) of responding and non-responding lesions (lymph node and organ lesions) were compared using Mann–Whitney U tests. The per patient values of VratioN and ADCratioN to predict progression-free survival were determined with a log-rank test. Results: Eight patients showed complete remission and 6 showed tumour progression. The ADCratio2w and ADCratio4w differed significantly in lesions showing tumour progression versus complete remission (ADCratio2w = 4 ± 21% versus 119 ± 68%; ADCratio4w = 18 ± 61% versus 155 ± 78%; both P < 0.0001); the Vratio2w and Vratio4w did not (P > 0.05). Per body region, the ADCratio2w showed a negative predictive value of 100% and positive predictive value of 86%. Per patient, the ADCratio2w and ADCratio4w correlated significantly with progression-free survival (P < 0.05). Conclusion: 3-T WB DWI with ADC quantification may enable early treatment assessment of aggressive NHL.
Performance-Based Modeling of Spatial and Temporal Variability of Treated Wastewater Quality for Improved Nutrient Management

A hierarchical modeling approach is used to diagnose the variability of US wastewater treatment facility compliance with existing ammonia discharge permit limits. The first level of hierarchy models monthly variability in effluent ammonia concentration, over a four-year period, using a Generalized Linear Model (GLM), which relates compliance to plant characteristics such as flow rate, capacity utilization, seasonality and compliance history. The residuals from this model are subjected to a spatial analysis using Kriging in the second level of hierarchy, to model spatial co-variability. This hierarchical approach used Discharge Monthly Report (DMR) data for the period 2004 2008 from a sample of 106 municipal plants. The first level of hierarchy captures most of the total variance in compliance data for
Cell-free microRNA expression signatures in urine serve as novel noninvasive biomarkers for diagnosis and recurrence prediction of bladder cancer

Urinary microRNAs (miRNAs) are potential biomarkers for the noninvasive diagnosis of bladder cancer (BC). In this study, we aimed to develop a urinary miRNAs panel for diagnosing and predicting recurrence of BC. Genome-wide miRNAs analysis by deep sequencing followed by two phases of quantitative real-time PCR assays were performed on urine supernatant of 276 BC patients and 276 controls. We identified a seven-miRNA panel (miR-7-5p, miR-22-3p, miR-29a-3p, miR-126-5p, miR-200a-3p, miR-375, and miR-423-5p) that provided high diagnostic accuracy of BC with an AUC of 0.923 and 0.916 in training and validation set, respectively. The corresponding AUCs of this panel for Ta, T1 and T2-T4 were 0.864, 0.930 and 0.978, significantly higher than those of urine cytology, which were 0.531, 0.628 and 0.724, respectively (all p < 0.05). Moreover, Kaplan–Meier analysis showed that nonmuscle-invasive BC (NMIBC) patients with high miR-22-3p and low miR-200a-3p level had worse recurrence-free survival (RFS) (p = 0.002 and 0.040, respectively). Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed that miR-22-3p and miR-200a-3p were independently associated with RFS of NMIBC (p = 0.024 and 0.008, respectively). In conclusion, our results suggested that urinary miRNAs may have considerable clinical value in diagnosis and recurrence prediction of BC.
Venting or Rapid Recompression Increase Survival and Improve Recovery of Red Snapper with Barotrauma

Abstract Red Snapper Lutjanus campechanus are the most economically important reef fish in the Gulf of Mexico and a heavily targeted fishery. When brought to the surface from deep water, this species often suffers pressure-related injuries collectively known as barotrauma. This trauma results in high discard mortality and has affected recovery of the fishery. In laboratory experiments using hyperbaric chambers, we assessed sublethal effects of barotrauma and subsequent survival rates of Red Snapper after capture events from pressures corresponding to 30 and 60 m deep. We then evaluated the use of rapid recompression and venting to increase survival and improve recovery after release in this controlled environment. Vented fish in simulated surface release and rapid-recompression treatments had 100% survival. Fish released at the surface that were not vented had 67% survival after decompression from 30 m but only 17% survival from 60 m, while nonvented rapidly recompressed fish had 100% survival from 30 m and 83% survival from 60 m. Fish that were vented upon release at the surface showed significantly better ability to achieve an upright orientation and evade a simulated predator. Results showed clear benefits of venting or recompression. Our data also show strong depth effects resulting in increased barotrauma injuries, more impaired reflexes, and greater mortality as depth increases. Overall, our data support venting or rapid recompression as effective tools for alleviating barotrauma symptoms, improving predator evasion, and increasing overall survival.
Effects of stocking rate, forage management, and grazing management on performance and economics of cow-calf production in Southwest Arkansas.

The objective this research was to determine the effect of application of multiple grazing management practices at 2 stocking rates (SR) on the productivity and economics of the cow-calf enterprise in the Southeastern United States over a 4-yr period. Pasture management systems included: continuous grazing management at a moderate SR (0.8 ha/cow; CG) without additional forage management, rotational grazing management at a moderate SR (0.8 ha/cow (MR) with addition of stockpiled bermudagrass [ (L.) Pers. ] and complementary cool season annuals, and rotational grazing management similar to MR but with a high SR (0.4 ha/cow; HR). Stockpiling in MR and HR was managed by fertilization of 0.2 ha/cow of bermudagrass in early August with 168 kg ammonium nitrate and deferring grazing until November. Wheat (; 112 kg/ha) and annual ryegrass ( Lam.; 28 kg/ha) were interseeded (0.2 ha/cow) in HR and MR with a no-till drill in the fall. Cow and calf performance and economics data were analyzed by ANOVA using the MIXED procedure of SAS (SAS Inst. Inc., Cary, NC) and pregnancy percentage was analyzed using the GLIMMIX procedure of SAS; pasture was the experimental unit and year was the random block. Hay feeding days decreased ( < 0.01) from 107 ± 10.9 d for CG to 37 ± 10.9 d for HR, which was further reduced ( = 0.01) to 15 ± 10.9 d for MR. Pregnancy percentage did not differ ( = 0.20) among treatments. Weaning BW in CG (237 ± 7.3 kg) tended ( = 0.09) to be greater than in MR (227 ± 7.3 kg) and were greater ( < 0.01) than in HR (219 ± 7.3 kg). However, total weaning BW per hectare was 89% greater ( < 0.01) for HR compared with CG and MR, which did not differ ( = 0.31). With rotational stocking, there was the opportunity to harvest excess forage as hay in both MR and HR with a net value of US$52.90/ha ± 25.73 and $15.50/ha ± 25.73, respectively. Net returns per hectare did not differ ( = 0.30) between CG ($429 ± 63.0/ha) and MR ($479 ± 63.0/ha) but were increased ( < 0.01) by 107% by HR ($1,024 ± 63.0/ha). Using rotational grazing, stockpiled bermudagrass, and complementary cool-season annual grasses can drastically reduce winter feed requirements and simultaneously increase carrying capacity and net return.
Distributed Strategies for Channel Allocation and Scheduling in Software-Defined Radio Networks

Equipping wireless nodes with multiple radios can significantly increase the capacity of wireless networks, by making these radios simultaneously transmit over multiple non-overlapping channels. However, due to the limited number of radios and available orthogonal channels, designing efficient channel assignment and scheduling algorithms in such networks is a major challenge. In this paper, we present provably-good distributed algorithms for simultaneous channel allocation of individual links and packet-scheduling, in software-defined radio (SDR) wireless networks. Our distributed algorithms are very simple to implement, and do not require any coordination even among neighboring nodes. A novel access hash function or random oracle methodology is one of the key drivers of our results. With this access hash function, each radio can know the transmitters' decisions for links in its interference set for each time slot without introducing any extra communication overhead between them. Further, by utilizing the inductive-scheduling technique, each radio can also backoff appropriately to avoid collisions. Extensive simulations demonstrate that our bounds are valid in practice.
Cohort studies of fat intake and the risk of breast cancer--a pooled analysis.

D. , Abstract Background. Experiments in animals, inter- national correlation comparisons, and case–control studies support an association between dietary fat intake and the incidence of breast cancer. Most cohort studies do not corroborate the association, but they have been crit- icized for involving small numbers of cases, homoge-neous fat intake, and measurement errors in estimates of fat intake. Methods. We identiﬁed seven prospective studies in four countries that met speciﬁc criteria and analyzed the primary data in a standardized manner. Pooled estimates of the relation of fat intake to the risk of breast cancer were calculated, and data from study-speciﬁc validation studies were used to adjust the results for measurement error. Results. Information about 4980 cases from studies including 337,819 women was available. When women in the highest quintile of energy-adjusted total fat intake
Effective Approaches for Programming to Reduce Adolescent Vulnerability to HIV Infection, HIV Risk, and HIV-Related Morbidity and Mortality: A Systematic Review of Systematic Reviews

Background:In 2012, an estimated 2.1 million adolescents were living with HIV. Though there are effective interventions to prevent and treat HIV infection, adolescents face specific barriers in accessing them. As a result, new infections and poor outcomes among HIV-infected adolescents are common. HIV programming for adolescents should focus on interventions of proven effectiveness and address underlying factors driving incidence and lack of effective treatment and care in this age group. Methods:We conducted a systematic review of systematic reviews to summarize the global data on effectiveness of 20 intervention types, to identify characteristics of effective interventions, and to explore evidence of how adolescents can access interventions with proven effectiveness. Interventions were in 2 broad categories: those designed primarily for adults and those designed specifically for adolescents. Where available, we evaluated the evidence of impact on the key outcomes: HIV risk, HIV transmission, and HIV morbidity and mortality. Results:Among the interventions designed for adolescents, there was high-quality evidence that in-school interventions and some interventions in geographically defined communities can positively impact important HIV-related outcomes, such as self-reported sexual risk behaviors. Interventions designed primarily for adults that had high-quality, consistent biological evidence of efficacy included voluntary medical male circumcision (VMMC), antiretrovirals for the prevention of mother-to-child transmission, HIV testing and counseling, HIV treatment, condom use, and provision of sterile injecting equipment to people who inject drugs. There was also an evidence of potential efficacy for oral preexposure prophylaxis and behavior change interventions among certain populations. There was a dearth of systematic review data on how best to enable adolescents to access the intervention types identified as having proven effectiveness among adults. Conclusions:This series of reviews allowed us to rigorously and systematically review a large number of intervention types at once using a standard, transparent methodology. Eight key interventions showed clear evidence of effectiveness, with evidence of potential efficacy for some additional interventions among certain populations. Discussion:These priority interventions with proven effectiveness should be included in all HIV prevention programming for adolescents. There is a pressing need for more rigorous research on how best to enable adolescents to access these effective interventions.
Under Pressure: Response Urgency Modulates Striatal and Insula Activity during Decision-Making under Risk

When deciding whether to bet in situations that involve potential monetary loss or gain (mixed gambles), a subjective sense of pressure can influence the evaluation of the expected utility associated with each choice option. Here, we explored how gambling decisions, their psychophysiological and neural counterparts are modulated by an induced sense of urgency to respond. Urgency influenced decision times and evoked heart rate responses, interacting with the expected value of each gamble. Using functional MRI, we observed that this interaction was associated with changes in the activity of the striatum, a critical region for both reward and choice selection, and within the insula, a region implicated as the substrate of affective feelings arising from interoceptive signals which influence motivational behavior. Our findings bridge current psychophysiological and neurobiological models of value representation and action-programming, identifying the striatum and insular cortex as the key substrates of decision-making under risk and urgency.
The Bacillus subtilis Conjugative Plasmid pLS20 Encodes Two Ribbon-Helix-Helix Type Auxiliary Relaxosome Proteins That Are Essential for Conjugation

Bacterial conjugation is the process by which a conjugative element (CE) is transferred horizontally from a donor to a recipient cell via a connecting pore. One of the first steps in the conjugation process is the formation of a nucleoprotein complex at the origin of transfer (oriT), where one of the components of the nucleoprotein complex, the relaxase, introduces a site- and strand specific nick to initiate the transfer of a single DNA strand into the recipient cell. In most cases, the nucleoprotein complex involves, besides the relaxase, one or more additional proteins, named auxiliary proteins, which are encoded by the CE and/or the host. The conjugative plasmid pLS20 replicates in the Gram-positive Firmicute bacterium Bacillus subtilis. We have recently identified the relaxase gene and the oriT of pLS20, which are separated by a region of almost 1 kb. Here we show that this region contains two auxiliary genes that we name aux1LS20 and aux2LS20, and which we show are essential for conjugation. Both Aux1LS20 and Aux2LS20 are predicted to contain a Ribbon-Helix-Helix DNA binding motif near their N-terminus. Analyses of the purified proteins show that Aux1LS20 and Aux2LS20 form tetramers and hexamers in solution, respectively, and that they both bind preferentially to oriTLS20, although with different characteristics and specificities. In silico analyses revealed that genes encoding homologs of Aux1LS20 and/or Aux2LS20 are located upstream of almost 400 relaxase genes of the RelLS20 family (MOBL) of relaxases. Thus, Aux1LS20 and Aux2LS20 of pLS20 constitute the founding member of the first two families of auxiliary proteins described for CEs of Gram-positive origin.
Item and Order Memory for Novel Visual Patterns Assessed by Two–Choice Recognition

Five experiments examined item and order memory for short lists of novel visual patterns. Memory was tested either by an item recognition test, choosing between a target and a similar foil (Experiments 1, 3a, and 4), or by a relative recency decision between two patterns that occupied adjacent list positions (Experiments 2, 3b, and 5). For both item recognition and relative recency tasks, accuracy was in most cases constant across serial positions, except for a recency advantage that was usually restricted to the most recent item or recency decision. Only a small and marginally significant effect of list length was observed for item recognition. Relative recency was more sensitive to list length and fell to near–chance levels with lists of eight items. We conclude that for these materials, prerecency item recognition depends on stable, context–free descriptions of items. Relative recency judgements are sensitive to list properties, but fail to show evidence of primacy or extended recency that are observed when other techniques are used to study serial order memory. We discuss the results in relation to four current models of serial order memory that embody different assumptions in the way that serial order is represented.
Identifying Team Style in Soccer Using Formations Learned from Spatiotemporal Tracking Data

To the trained-eye, experts can often identify a team based on their unique style of play due to their movement, passing and interactions. In this paper, we present a method which can accurately determine the identity of a team from spatiotemporal player tracking data. We do this by utilizing a formation descriptor which is found by minimizing the entropy of role-specific occupancy maps. We show how our approach is significantly better at identifying different teams compared to standard measures (i.e., Shots, passes etc.). We demonstrate the utility of our approach using an entire season of Prozone player tracking data from a top-tier professional soccer league.
Oncotargets and Therapy Dovepress Dovepress

hereby accept the Terms. Non-commercial uses of the work are permitted without any further permission from Dove Medical Press Limited, provided the work is properly attributed. For permission for commercial use of this work, please see paragraphs 4.2 and 5 of our Terms Tumor necrosis factor-308 polymorphism with the risk and prognosis of non-hodgkin lymphomas: a meta-analysis study sicheng gao 1, Background: Tumor necrosis factor-308 (TNF-308) was implied to be associated with the development of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). The aim of this meta-analysis study was to investigate the association of TNF-308A polymorphism with the susceptibility to, and prognosis of, NHL. searched up to May 2015. The association of TNF-308 polymorphism with the risk of NHL and prognosis was assessed by odds ratio and hazard ratio, respectively. Results: Overall, TNF-308G.A polymorphism increased the risk of NHL, B-cell lymphomas (BCL), and T-cell lymphomas and decreased the risk of follicular lymphomas. In stratified analysis, increased risk of BCL and diffuse large B-cell lymphomas (DLBCL) were observed in Caucasians and population-based studies, whereas decreased risk of NHL, BCL, and DLBCL were detected in Asians and hospital-based studies. Furthermore, pooled results of 1,192 patients with NHL from five studies suggested that TNF-308A was correlated with shorter progression-free survival and overall survival in patients with NHL, BCL, and DLBCL. Conclusion: Current evidence indicated that TNF-308A polymorphism was significantly associated with the risk and prognosis of NHL. Future studies should further confirm these associations in other NHL subtypes and ethnicities.
A study on the determination of risk factors associated with babesiosis and prevalence of Babesia sp., by PCR amplification, in small ruminants from Southern Punjab (Pakistan)

Babesiosis is a parasitic infection due to the multiplication of tick borne parasite, Babesia sp. , in erythrocytes of host, which includes a wide variety of vertebrates including small ruminants causing decreased livestock output and hence economic losses. The objective of the present study was to establish a PCR based method for the detection of Babesia sp. in small ruminant population in Southern Punjab and to determine the risk factors involve in the spread of babesiosis. A total of 107 blood samples were collected from 40 sheep and 67 goats in seven districts of Southern Punjab from randomly selected herds. Data on the characteristics of the animals and the herd were collected through questionnaires. 36 blood samples (34% of total) produced the DNA fragment specific for 18S rRNA gene of Babesia sp. , by PCR amplification, of which 20 were sheep and 16 were goats. Samples from all seven district contained Babesia positive samples and prevalence varied between 18 to 68%. It was observed that male animals (P = 0.009) and young animals under one year of age (P = 0.01) were more prone to the parasite. It was observed that herds consist of more than 15 animals (P = 0.007), composed of mixed species of small ruminants (P = 0.022), associated with dogs (P = 0.003) and dogs having ticks on their bodies (P = 0.011) were among the major risk factors for the spread of babesiosis in small ruminants.
SPATIOTEMPORAL DYNAMICS OF TOXOPLASMA GONDII INFECTION IN CANADIAN LYNX (LYNX CANADENSIS) IN WESTERN QUÉBEC, CANADA

Toxoplasma gondii, one of the more common zoonotic parasites in the world, can cause serious illness in humans and other animals worldwide. Felids are the only known host that can shed T. gondii oocysts, which are essential to the perpetuation of the parasite. In much of boreal Canada, the Canadian lynx (Lynx canadensis) is the only wild felid host that could contribute to environmental contamination with T. gondii oocysts. We estimated the prevalence of T. gondii antibodies in Canadian lynx from western Québec and compared our results with earlier findings in the same region 12 yr earlier. We investigated factors associated with seroconversion, including age, sex, geographic location, and possible co-occurrence with domestic cats (Felis catus), and we assessed the proportion of lynx shedding T. gondii oocysts. Blood and fecal samples were collected from 84 lynx harvested by trappers in the eastern part of the study area during winter 2009–2010. Sera were tested for antibodies to T. gondii by the modified agglutination test (cutoff titer 1:50) and fecal samples for parasite eggs by fecal flotation. Antibodies to T. gondii were detected in sera of 14% of 84 lynx. Numerous helminth ova and coccidian oocysts were found in feces, whereas T. gondii–like oocysts were not detected. Antibody prevalence increased with age class (odds ratio [OR]=4.33, 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.57–11.99, P<0.01). Antibody prevalence (14%) in our study was significantly lower than in 84 lynx (36%) trapped in the western part of the study area during winter 1997–1998 (OR=0.18, 95% CI=0.08–0.44, P<0.001). Our results suggest there may be significant spatiotemporal dynamics of T. gondii infection in lynx in Canada, and we review possible abiotic and biotic ecologic factors supporting these findings.