Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Alloimmunization screening after transfusion of red blood cells in a prospective study

Background Several irregular red blood cell alloantibodies, produced by alloimmunization of antigens in transfusions or pregnancies, have clinical importance because they cause hemolysis in the fetus and newborn and in transfused patients. Objective a prospective analysis of patients treated by the surgical and clinical emergency services of Hospital de Clínicas of the Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro (HC/UFTM), Brazil was performed to correlate alloimmunization to clinical and epidemiological data. Methods Blood samples of 143 patients with initial negative antibody screening were collected at intervals for up to 15 months after the transfusion of packed red blood cells. Samples were submitted to irregular antibody testing and, when positive, to the identification and serial titration of alloantibodies. The Fisher Exact test and Odds Ratio were employed to compare proportions. Results Fifteen (10.49%) patients produced antibodies within six months of transfusion. However, for 60% of these individuals, the titers decreased and disappeared by 15 months after transfusion. Anti-K antibodies and alloantibodies against antigens of the Rh system were the most common; the highest titer was 1:32 (anti-K). There was an evident correlation with the number of transfusions. Conclusions Given the high incidence of clinically important red blood cell alloantibodies in patients transfused in surgical and clinical emergency services, we suggest that phenotyping and pre-transfusion compatibilization for C, c, E, e (Rh system) and K (Kell system) antigens should be extended to all patients with programmed surgeries or acute clinical events that do not need emergency transfusions.
Structure-function relationships in normal and glaucomatous eyes determined by time- and spectral-domain optical coherence tomography.

PURPOSE To compare the relationships between retinal mean sensitivity (MS) and retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness, as measured by time-domain (TD) and spectral-domain (SD) optical coherence tomography (OCT). METHODS Recruited subjects were divided into normal, glaucoma suspect, and glaucoma groups. RNFL thickness was measured with TD- and SD-OCT, and MS was assessed with visual field perimetry and expressed in decibels and 1/L, where L is luminance in lamberts. The relationship between SUPERIOR MS and INFERIOR RNFL thickness (clock-hour segments 5, 6, 7, and 8) and that between INFERIOR MS and SUPERIOR RNFL thickness (clock-hour segments 10, 11, 12, 1, 2, and 3) were correlated by linear and logarithmic regression analyses. Pearson's correlation coefficients (R), for both OCTs were compared by using Hotelling's t-test. RESULTS Ninety-five eyes of 76 subjects were prospectively included. Twenty-five eyes were classified as normal, 25 with glaucoma suspect, and 45 with glaucoma. In normal and glaucoma suspect eyes, there were no significant relationships between MS and RNFL thickness. In glaucomatous eyes, the associations between MS and RNFL thickness were R = 0.31 to 0.57 with TD-OCT and R = 0.47 to 0.66 with SD-OCT, and the correlation of SUPERIOR RNFL thickness with INFERIOR MS was significantly better with SD-OCT than with TD-OCT in both linear and logarithmic regression models. CONCLUSIONS The results showed that, in mild-to-moderate glaucoma, SD-OCT offers an improved structure-function correlation compared with TD-OCT, when applied to the detection of INFERIOR MS and SUPERIOR RNFL defects.
Imaging in multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a common central nervous system (CNS) disease characterised pathologically by the development of multifocal inflammatory demyelinating white matter lesions. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the gold standard imaging technique for the identification of demyelinating lesions which can be used to support a clinical diagnosis of MS, and MS can now be diagnosed in some patients after a clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) using new MRI diagnostic criteria. Clinical trials of disease modifying treatments include MRI outcome measures of disease activity. The use of MR techniques to study the evolution of MS pathology in vivo is an important tool for obtaining better insights into pathophysiological mechanisms underlying the clinical course. This article will concentrate on the practical application of MRI in the management of MS. MR images are said to have contrast if there are differing areas of signal intensity. The contrast can be controlled to a certain extent by the parameters used and can produce images which contain differing levels of contrast depending on tissue content. For example, fat and water produce different image contrast. Images can be weighted towards particular contrast mechanisms. In T1 weighted images, fat is bright and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is dark; with T2 weighting, fat is dark and CSF is bright. Proton density (PD) weighting produces image contrast on the basis of the PD of the tissue. Such weighting of images has been exploited to identify inflammatory demyelinating lesions at different stages in their evolution.1 ### T2 and PD weighted imaging T2 weighted imaging identifies MS lesions as high signal foci against the low signal background of white matter. However, periventricular lesions are often indistinguishable from the adjacent CSF which is also of high signal with T2 weighting. Contrast from the lesion can be improved here by using PD weighting because of the lower CSF signal with …
Analysis of grey matter in thalamus and basal ganglia based on EEG α3/α2 frequency ratio reveals specific changes in subjects with mild cognitive impairment

GM (grey matter) changes of thalamus and basal ganglia have been demonstrated to be involved in AD (Alzheimer's disease). Moreover, the increase of a specific EEG (electroencephalogram) marker, α3/α2, have been associated with AD-converters subjects with MCI (mild cognitive impairment). To study the association of prognostic EEG markers with specific GM changes of thalamus and basal ganglia in subjects with MCI to detect biomarkers (morpho-physiological) early predictive of AD and non-AD dementia. Seventy-four adult subjects with MCI underwent EEG recording and high-resolution 3D MRI (three-dimensional magnetic resonance imaging). The α3/α2 ratio was computed for each subject. Three groups were obtained according to increasing tertile values of α3/α2 ratio. GM density differences between groups were investigated using a VBM (voxel-based morphometry) technique. Subjects with higher α3/α2 ratios when compared with subjects with lower and middle α3/α2 ratios showed minor atrophy in the ventral stream of basal ganglia (head of caudate nuclei and accumbens nuclei bilaterally) and of the pulvinar nuclei in the thalamus; The integrated analysis of EEG and morpho-structural markers could be useful in the comprehension of anatomo-physiological underpinning of the MCI entity.
Effects of Evidence-Based Psychotherapies with Ethnic Minority Youths

Nearly 45% ofyouth in the United States are ethnic minority or multiracial, and minority youth currently represent a numerical majority or near majority in 25% of U.S. counties (Pollard & Mather, 2009). Not surprisingly, ethnic minority youth also make up a large percentage of those who utilize mental health services in the United States (McCabe et aI., 1999), particularly in large metropolitan areas. Yet our understanding of opti­ mal ways to treat ethnic minority youth with behavioral/emotional problems is limitecl. Although evidence-based treatments (EBTs) exist for youth with diverse mental health problems, many doubt whether standard EBTs can be used effectively to treat ethnic minorities (e.g., Hall, 20Gl). In debates over treatment efficacy with ethnic minorities, the ethnic dIsparity and ethnic invariance perspectives make differem predictions concerning the possibility of ethnic differences in therapy outcomes. The ethnic disparity perspective argues that EBTs are less effective for ethnic minorities than for European Americans. EBTs might shortchange ethnic minorities because conventional treatments are developed by and for European Americans, and thus clinicians and clinical researrhers may be more inclined to ignore cultural considerations. In contrast, the ethnic invariance perspective suggests that EBTs affect all cultural groups equally because basic principles of thera­ peutic change are universal. The goal of this chapter is to shed some light on thi~ debate by summarizing what we know about EBTs for ethnic minority youth with psychosocial problems. Specifically, we examine several questions regarrling psychotherapy efficacy and engagement with minority youth. First, what treatments are efficacious for ethnic ~inority youth and how
Antibiotic resistance in the wild: an eco-evolutionary perspective

The legacy of the use and misuse of antibiotics in recent decades has left us with a global public health crisis: antibiotic-resistant bacteria are on the rise, making it harder to treat infections. At the same time, evolution of antibiotic resistance is probably the best-documented case of contemporary evolution. To date, research on antibiotic resistance has largely ignored the complexity of interactions that bacteria engage in. However, in natural populations, bacteria interact with other species; for example, competition and grazing are import interactions influencing bacterial population dynamics. Furthermore, antibiotic leakage to natural environments can radically alter bacterial communities. Overall, we argue that eco-evolutionary feedback loops in microbial communities can be modified by residual antibiotics and evolution of antibiotic resistance. The aim of this review is to connect some of the well-established key concepts in evolutionary biology and recent advances in the study of eco-evolutionary dynamics to research on antibiotic resistance. We also identify some key knowledge gaps related to eco-evolutionary dynamics of antibiotic resistance, and review some of the recent technical advantages in molecular microbiology that offer new opportunities for tackling these questions. Finally, we argue that using the full potential of evolutionary theory and active communication across the different fields is needed for solving this global crisis more efficiently. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Human influences on evolution, and the ecological and societal consequences'.
The 23-kilodalton E1 phosphoprotein of bovine papillomavirus type 1 is nonessential for stable plasmid replication in murine C127 cells

The 23-kDa protein encoded by the 5' segment of the E1 open reading frame of bovine papillomavirus type 1 (BPV1) was previously ascribed a negative regulatory function for the replication of viral plasmid DNA. However, results from recent functional and biochemical studies do not readily support this genetic assignment. Therefore, we have reassessed the role of this protein in papillomavirus DNA replication by using a mutant of BPV1 which is unable to express this E1 protein. This mutant viral DNA was found to replicate extrachromosomally with stability and copy number per cell similar to those of wild-type plasmid DNA. Thus, the absence of expression of the 23-kDa E1 protein did not lead to deregulated viral plasmid replication. We conclude that the 23-kDa E1 protein is nonessential for stable plasmid replication.
Optimizing storage performance of Android smartphone

Recently, mobile platform devices such as smartphone and tablet have spread widely. These devices have embedded NAND flash storage devices. For example, recent smartphones use embedded multimedia cards (eMMC) to store application and data. The performance of smart devices is strongly related with the embedded storage. Recent products of eMMC provide several special features for higher performance. In this paper, we investigated the performance-related features of eMMC device at Android-based smartphone. First, we study the effect of packed command which is introduced at eMMC 4.5 specification. Second, we examine the performance degradation by Least Significant Bit (LSB) backup on MLC eMMC devices. Finally, we observed the performance difference under different ext4 file system configurations such as flex group. From experiments, we found that the storage subsystem of current Android platform needs further optimizations considering the special features of eMMC.
Antideuterons as a probe of primordial black holes

In most cosmological models, primordial black holes () should have formed in the early Universe. Their Hawking evaporation into particles could eventually lead to the formation of antideuterium nuclei. This paper is devoted to a first com- putation of this antideuteron flux. The production of these antinuclei is studied with a simple coalescence scheme, and their propagation in the Galaxy is treated with a well-constrained diffusion model. We compare the resulting primary flux to the secondary background, due to the spallation of protons on the interstellar matter. Antideuterons are shown to be a very sensitive probe for primordial black holes in our Galaxy. The next generation of experiments should allow investigators to significantly improve the current upper limit, nor even provide the first evidence of the existence of evaporating black holes.
Management of left ventricular rupture after myocardial infarction solely with ECMO.

We present the first case of left ventricular (LV) rupture after myocardial infarction treated with only extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans after treatment revealed good ventricular function and a healed rupture. We show for the first time the use of ECMO as a means of supporting a patient with LV rupture without surgery. Furthermore, it has the potential of stabilizing the patient preoperatively so that surgery can be performed under optimal circumstances. Left ventricular rupture is a feared complication following myocardial infarction (MI). It occurs in approximately 1% to 4% of the patients with MI and accounts for 12% to 21% of their mortality.1 Diagnosis is usually clinical (hemodynamically unstable patient) and supported by transthoracic echocardiography (TTE), indicating cardiac tamponade. It is recommended that, for patients with substantial bleeding, suturing with a patch is the technique of choice. For slow leakage, the sutureless technique is preferable.2 Here, we report what we believe to be the first case of ventricular rupture and circulatory shock successfully supported with ECMO without performing cardiac surgery. Even after the acute phase, surgery was no longer deemed necessary. A 63-year-old male nonsmoker, with a history of hypertension and a prior posterior MI, was referred to the emergency room (ER) because of central chest pains with a duration of 4 …
THE ACQUISITION OF CASE MARKING BY ADULT LEARNERS OF RUSSIAN AND GERMAN

This study investigated the acquisition of the comprehension of overt morphological case marking by adult native speakers of English who were learning Russian or German as a second language (L2). The Russian case-marking system is more complex than the German system, but it almost always provides the listener with case inflections that are reliable cues to sentence interpretation. Two approaches to learning of inflectional morphology were contrasted: the rule-based approach, which predicts that learning is determined by paradigm complexity; and the associative approach, which predicts that learning is determined by the cue validity of individual inflections. A computerized picture-choice task probed the comprehension of L2 learners by varying the cues of case marking, noun configuration, and noun animacy. The results demonstrated that learners of Russian use case marking much earlier than learners of German and that learners of German rely more on animacy to supplement the weaker case-marking cue. In order to further explore the underlying mechanisms of learning, a connectionist model was developed that correctly simulated the obtained results. Together, these findings support the view that adult L2 learning is associative and driven by the validity of cues in the input.
Assessing the Online Social Environment for Surveillance of Obesity Prevalence

Background Understanding the social environmental around obesity has been limited by available data. One promising approach used to bridge similar gaps elsewhere is to use passively generated digital data. Purpose This article explores the relationship between online social environment via web-based social networks and population obesity prevalence. Methods We performed a cross-sectional study using linear regression and cross validation to measure the relationship and predictive performance of user interests on the online social network Facebook to obesity prevalence in metros across the United States of America (USA) and neighborhoods within New York City (NYC). The outcomes, proportion of obese and/or overweight population in USA metros and NYC neighborhoods, were obtained via the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance and NYC EpiQuery systems. Predictors were geographically specific proportion of users with activity-related and sedentary-related interests on Facebook. Results Higher proportion of the population with activity-related interests on Facebook was associated with a significant 12.0% (95% Confidence Interval (CI) 11.9 to 12.1) lower predicted prevalence of obese and/or overweight people across USA metros and 7.2% (95% CI: 6.8 to 7.7) across NYC neighborhoods. Conversely, greater proportion of the population with interest in television was associated with higher prevalence of obese and/or overweight people of 3.9% (95% CI: 3.7 to 4.0) (USA) and 27.5% (95% CI: 27.1 to 27.9, significant) (NYC). For activity-interests and national obesity outcomes, the average root mean square prediction error from 10-fold cross validation was comparable to the average root mean square error of a model developed using the entire data set. Conclusions Activity-related interests across the USA and sedentary-related interests across NYC were significantly associated with obesity prevalence. Further research is needed to understand how the online social environment relates to health outcomes and how it can be used to identify or target interventions.
CD8α+ plasmacytoid precursor DCs induce antigen-specific regulatory T cells that enhance HSC engraftment in vivo.

CD8-positive/T-cell receptor-negative (CD8(+)/TCR(-)) graft facilitating cells (FCs) are a novel cell population in bone marrow that potently enhance engraftment of hemopoietic stem cells (HSCs). Previously, we showed that the CD11c(+)/B220(+)/CD11b(-) plasmacytoid-precursor dendritic cell (p-preDC) FC subpopulation plays a critical but nonredundant role in facilitation. In the present study, we investigated the mechanism of FC function. We report that FCs induce antigen-specific CD4(+)/CD25(+)/FoxP3(+) regulatory T cells (Tregs) in vivo. The majority of chimeric Tregs were recipient derived. Chimeric Tregs harvested at ≥ 4 weeks after transplantation significantly enhanced engraftment of donor- and recipient-derived HSCs, but not third-party HSCs, in conditioned secondary recipients, demonstrating antigen specificity. Although Tregs were present 2 and 3 weeks after transplantation, they did not enhance engraftment. In contrast, week 5 and greater Tregs potently enhanced engraftment. The function of chimeric Tregs was directly correlated with the development of FoxP3 expression. Chimeric Tregs also induced significantly stronger suppression of T-cell proliferation to donor antigen in vitro. Removal of p-preDC FCs resulted in impaired engraftment of allogeneic HSCs and failure to produce chimeric Tregs, suggesting that the CD8α(+) p-preDC subpopulation is critical in the mechanism of facilitation. These data suggest that FCs induce the production of antigen-specific Tregs in vivo, which potently enhance engraftment of allogeneic HSCs. FCs hold clinical potential because of their ability to remain tolerogenic in vivo.
How Surface Roughness Performance of Printed Parts Manufactured by Desktop FDM 3D Printer with PLA+ is Influenced by Measuring Direction

Design work related to the implementation of new elements requires the use of 3D CAD modelling techniques and rapid prototyping, which makes it possible to accelerate the deployment of new solutions significantly. In this paper, six successful assembly parts are 3D printed with advanced polylactic acid (PLA+) using the fused deposition modeling (FDM) method and are expressed by the arithmetic mean surface roughness, Ra. The surface roughness was measured in three different angular directions 0°, 45° and 90° during the investigation along with various independent process parameters of nozzle diameter (0.5, 0.3, 0.2 mm), layer height (0.3, 0.2, 0.1 mm) and other dependent variables, i.e., nozzle temperature (220°C), print speed (30 mm/s) and infill density (0%). Experimental results show that nozzle diameter and layer height play a major role in terms of part quality finish, build time and ultimately part cost. Nozzle diameter and a layer height of 0.3 mm and 0.1 mm, respectively, represent the optimal manufacturing process parameters that can be selected. The surface roughness behaviour does not change and remains relatively constant and follows a similar trend with minor variations for both 45° and 90° measuring angle. Whereas, the surface roughness values are susceptible to 0° measuring direction to the build orientation as compared to other angles.
Stress on the Ward: Evidence of Safety Tipping Points in Hospitals

Do hospitals experience safety tipping points as utilization increases, and if so, what are the implications for hospital operations management? We argue that safety tipping points occur when managerial escalation policies are exhausted and workload variability buffers are depleted. Front-line clinical staff is forced to ration resources and, at the same time, becomes more error prone as a result of elevated stress hormone levels. We confirm the existence of safety tipping points for in-hospital mortality using the discharge records of 82,280 patients across six high-mortality-risk conditions from 256 clinical departments of 83 German hospitals. Focusing on survival during the first seven days following admission, we estimate a mortality tipping point at an occupancy level of 92.5%. Among the 17% of patients in our sample who experienced occupancy above the tipping point during the first seven days of their hospital stay, high occupancy accounted for one in seven deaths. The existence of a safety tipping point has important implications for hospital management. First, flexible capacity expansion is more cost-effective for safety improvement than rigid capacity, because it will only be used when occupancy reaches the tipping point. In the context of our sample, flexible staffing saves more than 40% of the cost of a fully staffed capacity expansion, while achieving the same reduction in mortality. Second, reducing the variability of demand by pooling capacity in hospital clusters can greatly increase safety in a hospital system, because it reduces the likelihood that a patient will experience occupancy levels beyond the tipping point. Pooling the capacity of nearby hospitals in our sample reduces the number of deaths due to high occupancy by 34%. This paper was accepted by Serguei Netessine, operations management.