Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Epidemiology of common cold.

The epidemiology of common cold and the role of some predisposing factors were studied by examining 2065 healthy children, aged 2.5-6 years. The examination included a questionnaire, completed by the parents, a general physical examination, a clinical E.N. T. -examination and various technical investigations. The mean annual incidence of common cold was 2.43 (as was reported by the parents) and 5 when taking into consideration the time span between the last episode of common cold and the date of examination. Mucoid and purulent rhinitis were less frequently found in older children. A positive history of upper respiratory tract infections in the parents showed to be the most important risk factor for the occurrence of infectious rhinitis in the children. The higher the weight of the child, the lower the incidence of common cold and the fewer pathological rhinoscopical findings. Children with a head circumference below the 2.5 percentile had the highest incidence of infectious rhinitis. Humid housing conditions showed to be connected with a higher incidence of infectious rhinitis. Children of parents with a higher profession had more rhinitis than children of labourers. Smoking habits of the parents had only little effect on the rhinological status of children.
Modern Trends in Imaging V: Optical Coherence Tomography for Rapid Tissue Screening and Directed Histological Sectioning

In pathology, histological examination of the “gold standard” to diagnose various diseases. It has contributed significantly toward identifying the abnormalities in tissues and cells, but has inherent drawbacks when used for fast and accurate diagnosis. These limitations include the lack of in vivo observation in real time and sampling errors due to limited number and area coverage of tissue sections. Its diagnostic yield also varies depending on the ability of the physician and the effectiveness of any image guidance technique that may be used for tissue screening during excisional biopsy. In order to overcome these current limitations of histology-based diagnostics, there are significant needs for either complementary or alternative imaging techniques which perform non-destructive, high resolution, and rapid tissue screening. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an emerging imaging modality which allows real-time cross-sectional imaging with high resolutions that approach those of histology. OCT could be a very promising technique which has the potential to be used as an adjunct to histological tissue observation when it is not practical to take specimens for histological processing, when large areas of tissue need investigating, or when rapid microscopic imaging is needed. This review will describe the use of OCT as an image guidance tool for fast tissue screening and directed histological tissue sectioning in pathology.
A CMOS centric 77GHz automotive radar architecture

A CMOS centric phase array radar architecture is proposed for long range detection with a high angular resolution and short range with a large field of view at once. And one channel transceiver is implemented in a 65nm CMOS technology and patch array antenna also fabricated on LTCC (Low Temperature Co-fired Ceramic) substrate for small form factor, low power radar. Measured 77GHz I/Q receiver showed a 22dB conversion gain with dynamic gain range of 76dB. Two kinds of VCO showed 69.6~81GHz and 75.2~79.2GHz tuning range. A gain of 14.3 dB and P1 dB of 10dBm is obtained at transformer coupled two-stage cascade power amplifier. All the measured results showed a good agreement with simulated one up to 110 GHz by modeling of passive/active test devices and EM (Electro Magnetic) simulations, and showed a the promising candidate for automotive radar applications.
Alteration of ischemia modified albumin and nitric oxide levels in hypothyroidism.

BACKGROUND Thyroid disorders especially hypothyroidism is associated with increased generation of oxidants. Nitric oxide and ischemia modified albumin are considered markers for oxidative stress. In addition, nitric oxide is involved in regulation of thyroid function and coagulation profile alteration in thyroid disorders may produce ischemia like conditions. METHODS Nitric oxide and ischemia modified albumin were estimated in fifty patients of newly diagnosed hypothyroidism using standard photocolorimetric techniques. Results were compared with fifty healthy euthyroid controls and subjected to appropriate statistical analysis. RESULTS Nitric oxide and ischemia modified albumin were found to be significantly raised (p < 0.05) in hypothyroid patients as compared to controls. A positive, but statistically insignificant correlation was observed between nitric oxide and ischemia modified albumin. CONCLUSIONS Estmation of nitric oxide and ischemia modified albumin in hypothyroidism may help to throw light on its pathogenesis and assessing the severity of the disease, though further research is needed to establish their role as biomarkers in hypothyroidism.
Power laws for family sizes in a duplication model

Qian, Luscombe and Gerstein [J. Molecular Biol. 313 (2001) 673-681] introduced a model of the diversification of protein folds in a genome that we may formulate as follows. Consider a multitype Yule process starting with one individual in which there are no deaths and each individual gives birth to a new individual at rate 1. When a new individual is born, it has the same type as its parent with probability 1 - r and is a new type, different from all previously observed types, with probability r. We refer to individuals with the same type as families and provide an approximation to the joint distribution of family sizes when the population size reaches N. We also show that if 1 << S << N 1-r , then the number of families of size at least S is approximately CNS -1/(1-r) , while if N 1-r << S the distribution decays more rapidly than any power.
THE ROLE OF OPSONINS IN THE CLEARANCE OF LIVING AND INERT PARTICLES BY CELLS OF THE RETICULOENDOTHELIAL SYSTEM

An investigation of the clearance of bacteria and colloids from the blood stream of mice has shown that both living and inert particles require serum factors (opsonins) in order that they may be phagocytosed by the macrophages of the reticuloendothelial system. It has been demonstrated that after the injection of a large dose of colloid there is a depletion of these serum opsonins which appears to account for the reduced rate of clearance of a second dose of colloid or living bacteria, since replacement of these factors leads to normal clearance. The significance of these results is discussed and it is suggested that in "blockaded" animals there is a depletion of serum opsonins rather than a saturation of phagocytic cells.
Current Status of Grafts and Implants in Rhinoplasty: Part I. Autologous Grafts

Learning Objectives: After reading this article, the participant should be able to: 1. Understand the challenges in restoring volume and structural integrity in rhinoplasty. 2. Identify the appropriate uses of various autografts in aesthetic and reconstructive rhinoplasty (septal cartilage, auricular cartilage, costal cartilage, calvarial and nasal bone, and olecranon process of the ulna). 3. Identify the advantages and disadvantages of each of these autografts. Summary: This review specifically addresses the use of autologous grafts in rhinoplasty. Autologous materials remain the preferred graft material for use in rhinoplasty because of their high biocompatibility and low risk of infection and extrusion. However, these advantages should be counterbalanced with the concerns of donor-site morbidity, graft availability, and graft resorption.
La publicitat institucional a Catalunya

A partir de les insercions publicitaries realitzades per la Generalitat de Catalunya durant el periode 1999-2009, s'analitza l'evolucio de la publicitat governamental catalana pertanyent als diferents ambits (social, politic, corporatiu i comercial) i sectors de la publicitat institucional, i centrem la nostra atencio, primordialment, en tres questions fonamentals: de que, quan i on fa publicitat el Govern catala. L'objecte d'aquesta investigacio es, doncs, coneixer el comportament de la Generalitat de Catalunya com a anunciant.
Defining Mononuclear Phagocyte Subset Homology Across Several Distant Warm-Blooded Vertebrates Through Comparative Transcriptomics

Mononuclear phagocytes are organized in a complex system of ontogenetically and functionally distinct subsets, that has been best described in mouse and to some extent in human. Identification of homologous mononuclear phagocyte subsets in other vertebrate species of biomedical, economic, and environmental interest is needed to improve our knowledge in physiologic and physio-pathologic processes, and to design intervention strategies against a variety of diseases, including zoonotic infections. We developed a streamlined approach combining refined cell sorting and integrated comparative transcriptomics analyses which revealed conservation of the mononuclear phagocyte organization across human, mouse, sheep, pigs and, in some respect, chicken. This strategy should help democratizing the use of omics analyses for the identification and study of cell types across tissues and species. Moreover, we identified conserved gene signatures that enable robust identification and universal definition of these cell types. We identified new evolutionarily conserved gene candidates and gene interaction networks for the molecular regulation of the development or functions of these cell types, as well as conserved surface candidates for refined subset phenotyping throughout species. A phylogenetic analysis revealed that orthologous genes of the conserved signatures exist in teleost fishes and apparently not in Lamprey.
Relationship between parental trinucleotide GCT repeat length and severity of myotonic dystrophy in offspring.

OBJECTIVE To assess the relationship between the GCT repeat number in the myotonic dystrophy gene and the clinical phenotype and examine its predictive utility in prenatal testing. DESIGN DNA from patients was examined for the length of the myotonic dystrophy GCT repeat region, using both Southern blot analysis and polymerase chain reaction. The results were compared with the clinical onset of disease, as well as with pregnancy outcomes. SETTING Patient samples were referred to the Kleberg DNA Diagnostic Laboratory at the Baylor College of Medicine for DNA analysis by geneticists and genetic counselors (84%), neurologists (10%), and obstetricians and other specialists (6%). Clinical features including onset of disease and family pedigrees were determined by the referring centers. PATIENTS A total of 241 patient samples from 118 families referred from primarily genetic or neurological centers for genetic linkage analysis or mutation analysis for myotonic dystrophy. This included 44 families referred for prenatal diagnosis. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES A relationship between myotonic dystrophy disease onset and length of the GCT repeat allele, parental origin of the disease allele, and results of prenatal diagnosis predictions of disease status were measured. RESULTS There is a relationship between increasing repeat length and earlier clinical onset of disease. Essentially all (> 99%) myotonic mutations causing myotonic dystrophy are accounted for by GCT repeat amplification. Congenital myotonic dystrophy occurs with as few as 730 GCT repeats but only with alleles of maternal origin. Maternal GCT repeats were found as low as 75 (asymptomatic) that were amplified to result in a child with congenital myotonic dystrophy. Application of DNA diagnosis to 32 pregnancies provided an accurate method for identification of at-risk fetuses and allele enlargement. CONCLUSIONS The GCT repeat in myotonic dystrophy is highly mutable. The triplet repeat amplification is highly specific for mutations involving the myotonin protein kinase gene accounting for myotonic dystrophy. The quantitation of triplet repeats can be more sensitive than physical, ophthalmologic, and electromyography examinations since the mutation can be detected in patients without evidence of myotonic dystrophy clinical findings. The length of the triplet expansion is influenced by the sex of the transmitting parent and is related to the clinical onset of disease features. Prenatal measurement of the GCT triplet repeat has utility for families with myotonic dystrophy risk since mutant and normal repeats are distinguishable and the length of mutant repeat alleles is associated with clinical severity. Thus, GCT triplet measurement provides a highly accurate means of detecting the myotonic dystrophy mutation in patients and offers a new reproductive option for families at risk for myotonic dystrophy.
Composite resin color stability: influence of light sources and immersion media

Objective This study evaluated the influence of light sources and immersion media on the color stability of a nanofilled composite resin. Material and Methods Conventional halogen, high-power-density halogen and high-power-density light-emitting diode (LED) units were used. There were 4 immersion media: coffee, tea, Coke® and artificial saliva. A total of 180 specimens (10 mm x 2 mm) were prepared, immersed in artificial saliva for 24 h at 37±1ºC, and had their initial color measured with a spectrophotometer according to the CIELab system. Then, the specimens were immersed in the 4 media during 60 days. Data from the color change and luminosity were collected and subjected to statistical analysis by the Kruskall-Wallis test (p<0.05). For immersion time, the data were subjected to two-way ANOVA test and Fisher's test (p<0.05). Results High-power-density LED (∆E=1.91) promoted similar color stability of the composite resin to that of the tested halogen curing units (Jet Lite 4000 plus - ∆E=2.05; XL 3000 - ∆E=2.28). Coffee (∆E=8.40; ∆L=-5.21) showed the highest influence on color stability of the studied composite resin. Conclusion There was no significant difference in color stability regardless of the light sources, and coffee was the immersion medium that promoted the highest color changes on the tested composite resin.
Mathematical Modeling of the Central Carbohydrate Metabolism in Arabidopsis Reveals a Substantial Regulatory Influence of Vacuolar Invertase on Whole Plant Carbon Metabolism1[W]

A mathematical model representing metabolite interconversions in the central carbohydrate metabolism of Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) was developed to simulate the diurnal dynamics of primary carbon metabolism in a photosynthetically active plant leaf. The model groups enzymatic steps of central carbohydrate metabolism into blocks of interconverting reactions that link easily measurable quantities like CO2 exchange and quasi-steady-state levels of soluble sugars and starch. When metabolite levels that fluctuate over diurnal cycles are used as a basic condition for simulation, turnover rates for the interconverting reactions can be calculated that approximate measured metabolite dynamics and yield kinetic parameters of interconverting reactions. We used experimental data for Arabidopsis wild-type plants, accession Columbia, and a mutant defective in vacuolar invertase, AtβFruct4, as input data. Reducing invertase activity to mutant levels in the wild-type model led to a correct prediction of increased sucrose levels. However, additional changes were needed to correctly simulate levels of hexoses and sugar phosphates, indicating that invertase knockout causes subsequent changes in other enzymatic parameters. Reduction of invertase activity caused a decline in photosynthesis and export of reduced carbon to associated metabolic pathways and sink organs (e.g. roots), which is in agreement with the reported contribution of vacuolar invertase to sink strength. According to model parameters, there is a role for invertase in leaves, where futile cycling of sucrose appears to have a buffering effect on the pools of sucrose, hexoses, and sugar phosphates. Our data demonstrate that modeling complex metabolic pathways is a useful tool to study the significance of single enzyme activities in complex, nonintuitive networks.
Examining RULA’s Postural Scoring System With Selected Physiological and Psychophysiological Measures

The Rapid Upper Limb Assessment (RULA) survey is a posture-sampling tool used specifically to examine the level of risk associated with upper limb disorders of individual workers. This paper examines the relationship between RULA’s postural scoring system and measures of surface electromyography (EMG), self-reports of discomfort, and job attitude questionnaires. Twenty participants each performed a 30-min typing task on a computer in 3 working postures based on RULA’s scoring system. A statistically significant difference was found only in perceived discomfort. The perceived discomfort results demonstrated that RULA was able to identify “high risk” postures. The next question we need to ask is, does perceived discomfort result in tissue damage, or does tissue damage yield discomfort?
Engineering domain fusion chimeras from I-OnuI family LAGLIDADG homing endonucleases

Although engineered LAGLIDADG homing endonucleases (LHEs) are finding increasing applications in biotechnology, their generation remains a challenging, industrial-scale process. As new single-chain LAGLIDADG nuclease scaffolds are identified, however, an alternative paradigm is emerging: identification of an LHE scaffold whose native cleavage site is a close match to a desired target sequence, followed by small-scale engineering to modestly refine recognition specificity. The application of this paradigm could be accelerated if methods were available for fusing N- and C-terminal domains from newly identified LHEs into chimeric enzymes with hybrid cleavage sites. Here we have analyzed the structural requirements for fusion of domains extracted from six single-chain I-OnuI family LHEs, spanning 40–70% amino acid identity. Our analyses demonstrate that both the LAGLIDADG helical interface residues and the linker peptide composition have important effects on the stability and activity of chimeric enzymes. Using a simple domain fusion method in which linker peptide residues predicted to contact their respective domains are retained, and in which limited variation is introduced into the LAGLIDADG helix and nearby interface residues, catalytically active enzymes were recoverable for ∼70% of domain chimeras. This method will be useful for creating large numbers of chimeric LHEs for genome engineering applications.
Converging evidence on contact effects on second and third generation immigrant Turkish

Studies of language contact have largely been based on analyses of contact effects, such as codeswitching or grammatical interference, in recordings of spontaneous in-group conversation among bilinguals. This also holds for the sizable body of research on the Turkish immigrant community in The Netherlands. However, with the growing acceptance of a usage-based approach as a basis for linguistic research, exclusively relying on this method has become a serious limitation, as various questions and issues become important that cannot be studied well with purely synchronic conversational data. In this paper, results are reported from two pilot studies with a wider range of research methods, including interviews, acceptability tasks and controlled elicitation. They allow conclusions about the degree to which various types of Dutch influence, such as loanwords, loan translations and grammatical features, have penetrated the Turkish as spoken in the immigrant setting. All in all, the extent of Dutch influence continues to be moderate, but there are signs that contactinduced change is accelerating in the third generation.
Trends and patterns in Euro-marriages in the Netherlands

Although the European Union is usually viewed as a project aimed at creating a single commodity market, one of its primary purposes was more generally to remove social and cultural boundaries between the European nation-states. Intermarriage is a classical indicator of the formation of social ties and communities. One could claim that the creation of a real social, political, cultural, and supranational European space is only complete if people are also willing to accept each other as their spouses. As part of Europe's social integration, Euro-marriage can be regarded as the litmus test of European integration, and the Netherlands with his status as a founding member should have enjoyed the benefits of one single European marriage market longer than more recent members. Despite this obvious role of intermarriage as a key indicator of European integration, little is known about marriages between Europeans (‘Euro-marriages’) in the Netherlands. This paper tries to fill this gap by describing the patterns of Euro-marriages in the Netherlands, on the basis of register data on bi-national newlyweds and household structure in the Netherlands since 1995. One of the key findings is that Euro-marriages have not become more popular since 1995 and that this is only to some extent compensated by increased cohabitation.
Phase II study comparing volociximab (an antiangiogenic antibody) and pegylated liposomal doxorubicin (PLD) with PLD alone in recurrent ovarian or primary peritoneal cancer.

5560 Background: Volociximab (V), a chimeric monoclonal antibody with direct antitumor effects, blocks α5β1 binding to fibronectin and induces apoptosis in proliferating endothelial cells. A Phase I/II study was performed to evaluate PLD with/without V in patients (pts) with recurrent ovarian or primary peritoneal cancer that relapsed after platinum/taxane-based chemotherapy (maximum 2 prior lines). METHODS A 3-arm adaptive randomization design compared efficacy and safety of PLD (40 mg/m2 q4wk) + V (15 mg/kg q2wk or qwk) vs. PLD alone. Pts were stratified by platinum sensitivity and received treatment until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS). Pharmacokinetic (PK) and pharmacodynamic effects were also evaluated. RESULTS There were 6 iterations of adaptive randomization based on accumulating PFS data. 127 pts were randomized: 66 in Group A (PLD), 34 in Group B (PLD+V [q2wk]), and 27 in Group C (PLD+V [qwk]). The incidence of AEs was balanced across treatment groups. The most common Grade 3/4 AEs (≥5% in any group) were abdominal pain, intestinal obstruction, ascites, fatigue, hypoalbuminemia, and cytopenias. Based on preclinical data, therapeutic levels of V were maintained during treatment, and V did not appear to alter the PK of PLD. Response rates were comparable across groups. There were no CRs; PRs were 16%, 18%, and 19%. The median PFS estimates were 193, 164, and 221 days. CONCLUSIONS The safety profile of V+PLD appeared similar to PLD alone. Preliminary analysis of PFS suggested that there was a low probability of detecting a statistically significant difference in favor of V+PLD, so the study was closed to enrollment. Analyses correlating PFS with platinum sensitivity and α5β1 tumor expression are ongoing. [Table: see text].
Micro-Expression Spotting: A Benchmark

Micro-expressions are rapid and involuntary facial expressions, which indicate the suppressed or concealed emotions. Recently, the research on automatic micro-expression (ME) spotting obtains increasing attention. ME spotting is a crucial step prior to further ME analysis tasks. The spotting results can be used as important cues to assist many other human-oriented tasks and thus have many potential applications. In this paper, by investigating existing ME spotting methods, we recognize the immediacy of standardizing the performance evaluation of micro-expression spotting methods. To this end, we construct a micro-expression spotting benchmark (MESB). Firstly, we set up a sliding window based multi-scale evaluation framework. Secondly, we introduce a series of protocols. Thirdly, we also provide baseline results of popular methods. The MESB facilitates the research on ME spotting with fairer and more comprehensive evaluation and also enables to leverage the cutting-edge machine learning tools widely.