Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Antidepressants for patients with tinnitus.

BACKGROUND Tinnitus is described as the perception of sound or noise in the absence of real acoustic stimulation. It has been compared with chronic pain, and may be associated with depression or depressive symptoms which can affect quality of life and the ability to work. Antidepressant drugs have been used to treat tinnitus in patients with and without depressive symptoms. OBJECTIVES To assess the effectiveness of antidepressants in the treatment of tinnitus and to ascertain whether any benefit was due to a direct tinnitus effect or a secondary effect due to treatment of concomitant depressive states. SEARCH STRATEGY We searched the Cochrane Ear, Nose and Throat Disorders Group Trials Register, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) The Cochrane Library Issue 1, 2006); MEDLINE (January 1951 to 2006); EMBASE (1974 to 2006), CINAHL (to 2006), PSYCINFO (to 2006), LILACS (to 2006), and Cambridge Scientific Abstracts. The date of the most recent search was March 2006. SELECTION CRITERIA Randomised controlled clinical studies of antidepressant drugs versus placebo in patients with tinnitus. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS The studies retrieved were critically appraised and data extracted independently by two authors. Where necessary study authors were contacted for further information. MAIN RESULTS Five trials involving 525 patients were included. Four of these trials looked at the effect of tricyclic antidepressants on tinnitus, investigating 405 patients. One trial investigated the effect of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) in a group of 120 patients. No trials involving other antidepressant agents met the inclusion criteria. Only the trial using the SSRI drug met the highest quality standard. None of the other included trials met the highest quality standard, due to use of inadequate outcome measures, large drop out rates or failure to separate the effects on tinnitus from the effects on symptoms of anxiety and depression. All the trials assessing tricyclic antidepressants suggested that there was a slight improvement in tinnitus but these effects may have been attributable to methodological bias. The trial that investigated the SSRI drug found no overall improvement in any of the validated outcome measures that were used in the study although there was possible benefit for a subgroup that received higher doses of the drug. This observation merits further investigation. Reports of side effects including sedation, sexual dysfunction and dry mouth were common. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS There is insufficient evidence to say that antidepressant drug therapy improves tinnitus.
Fake fur rendering

A probabilistic lighting model is presented for thin coats of fur over skin. Previous methods for rendering furry objects and creatures have addressed the case where individual strands or tufts of hair may be resolvable at the pixel level. These methods are often computationally intensive. However, a large class of realworld cases where individual hairs are much smaller than the size of a pixel can be addressed using a probabilistic model for the expected value of reflected light within a small surface area. Under the assumption that hair parameters are slowly varying across the skin, lighting calculations are performed on a reference hair with prefiltered parameters. The reflected light from individual hairs and from the skin below is blended using the expectation of a ray striking a hair in that area as the opacity of the fur coating. Approximations for hair-to-hair shadowing and hair-to-skin shadowing can be made using the same hit-expectation model. Our system can be implemented in existing commercial surfacerendering software at a much lower computational cost than typical resolvable-hair methods. CR
Thermal and Electrical Properties of BCB-Liner Through-Silicon Vias

Through-silicon vias (TSVs) using benzocyclobutene (BCB)-liners as the insulator have the potential for reducing the TSV capacitances and the thermal expansion stresses. This paper reports the assessments of BCB-liner TSVs with respect to thermal and electrical properties. The C-V and I-V characteristics are measured at room temperature and at an elevated temperature as high as 125°C to characterize the electrical properties of capacitance and leakage current at different temperatures. Some C-V and I-V features associated with BCB-liners are discussed and the mechanisms are analyzed. Thermal cycling between -65°C and 150°C is performed, and the C-V and I-V characteristics are measured before and after thermal cycling to evaluate the thermomechanical stability of the BCB-liners, and the results show that the C-V and I-V properties are improved after thermal cycling. These preliminary results on the electrical and thermal properties of BCB-liner TSVs show that they have good thermal stability.
Indexing uncertain data

Querying uncertain data has emerged as an important problem in data management due to the imprecise nature of many measurement data. In this paper we study answering range queries over uncertain data. Specifically, we are given a collection P of n points in R, each represented by its one-dimensional probability density function (pdf). The goal is to build an index on P such that given a query interval I and a probability threshold τ, we can quickly report all points of P that lie in I with probability at least τ. We present various indexing schemes with linear or near-linear space and logarithmic query time. Our schemes support pdf's that are either histograms or more complex ones such as Gaussian or piecewise algebraic. They also extend to the external memory model in which the goal is to minimize the number of disk accesses when querying the index.
Influence of breastfeeding on maternal blood pressure at one month postpartum

Background The benefits of breastfeeding for improved health and developmental outcomes in mothers and their infants have been widely recognized. The purpose of the present study was to assess whether feeding modes influence maternal blood pressure at one month postpartum. Methods The pregnancy charts of 407 women who delivered at a birthing center in rural Japan between August 1998 and September 2007 were analyzed. The criteria for inclusion were low-risk, full-term pregnancy (duration, 37–42 weeks) resulting in spontaneous vaginal deliveries, intrapartum hemorrhage < 500 mL, and a healthy infant (Apgar score ≥ 8 at one minute). Results The subjects were classified into three groups based on feeding modes. The proportion of each mode was 28.3% in the breastfeeding group, 56.5% in the mixed-feeding group, and 15.2% in the formula-feeding group. The systolic blood pressure (SBP) in mothers at one month postpartum for each feeding mode was 118.4 ± 8.7 mmHg in the breastfeeding group, 120.6 ± 9.3 mmHg in the mixed-feeding group, and 122.0 ± 9.9 mmHg in the formula-feeding group. SBP at one month postpartum in the breastfeeding group was significantly lower than that in the other groups. No significant differences were observed in diastolic blood pressure in the three groups at one month postpartum. Conclusion Breastfeeding resulted in lower SBP in mothers at one month postpartum compared with those using other feeding modes, thus indicating an effect of breastfeeding on maternal blood pressure.
Prevention and cure of rotavirus infection via TLR5/NLRC4–mediated production of IL-22 and IL-18

Activators of innate immunity may have the potential to combat a broad range of infectious agents. We report that treatment with bacterial flagellin prevented rotavirus (RV) infection in mice and cured chronically RV-infected mice. Protection was independent of adaptive immunity and interferon (IFN, type I and II) and required flagellin receptors Toll-like receptor 5 (TLR5) and NOD-like receptor C4 (NLRC4). Flagellin-induced activation of TLR5 on dendritic cells elicited production of the cytokine interleukin-22 (IL-22), which induced a protective gene expression program in intestinal epithelial cells. Flagellin also induced NLRC4-dependent production of IL-18 and immediate elimination of RV-infected cells. Administration of IL-22 and IL-18 to mice fully recapitulated the capacity of flagellin to prevent or eliminate RV infection and thus holds promise as a broad-spectrum antiviral agent. Bacterial flagellin protein protects rotavirus-infected mice by stimulating cytokine production. Flagellin gives rotavirus a one-two punch Rotavirus causes gastroenteritis, which can be especially severe in infants and young children. The bacterial protein flagellin activates the innate immune system and protects mice against a variety of infectious and inflammatory agents. Zhang et al. now report that flagellin both prevented rotavirus infection in mice and cured mice chronically infected with rotavirus. It did so by activating two distinct innate immune signaling pathways, which led to cells in the infected mice producing the cytokines interleukin 22 and interleukin 18. Similar to flagellin, treating mice with both of these cytokines prevented or cured rotavirus infection. Science, this issue p. 861
Scheduling an Aircraft Repair Shop

We address a scheduling problem in the context of military aircraft maintenance where the goal is to meet the aircraft requirements for a number of missions in the presence of breakdowns. The assignment of aircraft to a mission must consider the requirements for the mission, the probability of aircraft failure, and capacity of the repair shop that maintains the aircraft. Therefore, a solution both assigns aircraft to missions and schedules the repair shop to meet the assignments. We propose a dispatching heuristic algorithm; three complete approaches based on mixed integer programming, constraint programming, and logic-based Benders decomposition; and a hybrid heuristic-complete approach. Experiments demonstrate that the logic-based Benders variation combining mixed integer programming and constraint programming outperforms the other approaches, that the dispatching heuristic can feasibly schedule the repair shop in a very short time, and that using the dispatching solution as a bound marginally improves the complete approaches.
Healthy eating: clarifying advice about fruit and vegetables

Consumers need health information which is clear and unambiguous. Advice to "eat more fruit and vegetables" gives consumers no guidance on the quantities involved. Popular advice is to eat "five portions a day. " This paper provides a rationale for determining which foods are included within this advice--for example, processed foods such as baked beans are but potatoes and nuts should not be. It also describes how much of the most commonly consumed fruit and vegetables constitutes a "portion. " A bowlful of salad, for example, is needed to make up a portion but an apple or banana on its own will count.
Right Anterior Insula: Core Region of Hallucinations in Cognitive Neurodegenerative Diseases

Objectives We investigated the neural basis of hallucinations Alzheimer's disease (AD) by applying voxel-based morphometry (VBM) to anatomical and functional data from the AD Neuroimaging Initiative. Methods AD patients with hallucinations, based on the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI-Q) (AD-hallu group; n = 39), were compared to AD patients without hallucinations matched for age, sex, educational level, handedness and MMSE (AD-c group; n = 39). Focal brain volume on MRI was analyzed and compared between the two groups according to the VBM method. We also performed voxel-level correlations between brain volume and hallucinations intensity. A similar paradigm was used for the PET analysis. “Core regions” (i.e. regions identified in both MRI and PET analyses, simply done by retaining the clusters obtained from the two analyses that are overlapping) were then determined. Results Regions with relative atrophy in association with hallucinations were: anterior part of the right insula, left superior frontal gyrus and lingual gyri. Regions with relative hypometabolism in association with hallucinations were a large right ventral and dorsolateral prefrontal area. "Core region" in association with hallucinations was the right anterior part of the insula. Correlations between intensity of hallucinations and brain volume were found in the right anterior insula, precentral gyrus, superior temporal gyrus, and left precuneus. Correlations between intensity of hallucinations and brain hypometabolism were found in the left midcingulate gyrus. We checked the neuropathological status and we found that the 4 patients autopsied in the AD-hallu group had the mixed pathology AD and Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). Conclusion Neural basis of hallucinations in cognitive neurodegenerative diseases (AD or AD and DLB) include a right predominant anterior-posterior network, and the anterior insula as the core region. This study is coherent with the top-down/bottom-up hypotheses on hallucinations but also hypotheses of the key involvement of the anterior insula in hallucinations in cognitive neurodegenerative diseases.
HspB2/Myotonic Dystrophy Protein Kinase Binding Protein (MKBP) as a Novel Molecular Chaperone: Structural and Functional Aspects

The small heat shock protein, human HspB2, also known as Myotonic Dystrophy Kinase Binding Protein (MKBP), specifically associates with and activates Myotonic Dystrophy Protein Kinase (DMPK), a serine/threonine protein kinase that plays an important role in maintaining muscle structure and function. The structure and function of HspB2 are not well understood. We have cloned and expressed the protein in E.coli and purified it to homogeneity. Far-UV circular dichroic spectrum of the recombinant HspB2 shows a β-sheet structure. Fluorescence spectroscopic studies show that the sole tryptophan residue at the 130th position is almost completely solvent-exposed. Bis-ANS binding shows that though HspB2 exhibits accessible hydrophobic surfaces, it is significantly less than that exhibited by another well characterized small HSP, αB-crystallin. Sedimentation velocity measurements show that the protein exhibits concentration-dependent oligomerization. Fluorescence resonance energy transfer study shows that HspB2 oligomers exchange subunits. Interestingly, HspB2 exhibits target protein-dependent chaperone-like activity: it exhibits significant chaperone-like activity towards dithiothreitol (DTT)-induced aggregation of insulin and heat-induced aggregation of alcohol dehydrogenase, but only partially prevents the heat-induced aggregation of citrate synthase, co-precipitating with the target protein. It also significantly prevents the ordered amyloid fibril formation of α-synuclein. Thus, our study, for the first time, provides biophysical characterization on the structural aspects of HspB2, and shows that it exhibits target protein-dependent chaperone-like activity.
Molecular characteristics of serum visfatin and differential detection by immunoassays.

CONTEXT There are controversial results concerning the association of visfatin with obesity and diabetes. We aimed to characterize molecular features of visfatin, to assess visfatin detection by different immunoassays, and evaluate the association with human obesity and glucose metabolism. RESULTS Distinct preparations of human visfatin (recombinant, endogenously expressed from human adipocytes, and overexpressed in COS-7 cells) were readily identified by three currently available immunoassays. However, direct comparison of native human serum samples did reveal great discrepancies between these assays and complete lack of correlation. To specify putative molecular isoforms of visfatin, we fractionated iodine-125-labeled recombinant visfatin spiked into human serum and supernatants of visfatin-overexpressing COS-7 cells by size exclusion chromatography. We obtained a distinct peak at approximately 100 kDa that was confirmed by subsequent Western blotting of the fractions and is equivalent to the molecular mass of the dimer. Only one of the immunoassays detected a similar peak in native human size exclusion chromatography serum fractions, whereas the others detected a peak at more than 500 kDa or did not show any distinct peak. We did not observe any differences in visfatin serum levels between lean or obese patients. In addition, there was no correlation between visfatin serum levels with visfatin mRNA expression in sc or visceral fat and with parameters of glucose metabolism. CONCLUSION Differences in the qualitative and quantitative detection of visfatin by immunoassays need to be considered in clinical association studies and may explain the conflicting observations with respect to a putative relation of circulating visfatin to human obesity or insulin resistance.
Osteochondral Allograft Transplantation of the Knee: Analysis of Failures at 5 Years

Background: Osteochondral allograft transplantation (OAT) is being performed with increasing frequency, and the need for reoperations is not uncommon. Purpose: To quantify survival for OAT and report findings at reoperations. Study Design: Case series; Level of evidence, 4. Methods: A review of prospectively collected data of 224 consecutive patients who underwent OAT by a single surgeon with a minimum follow-up of 2 years was conducted. The reoperation rate, timing of reoperation, procedure performed, and findings at surgery were reviewed. Failure was defined by revision OAT, conversion to knee arthroplasty, or gross appearance of graft failure at second-look arthroscopic surgery. Results: A total of 180 patients (mean [±SD] age, 32.7 ± 10.4 years; 52% male) who underwent OAT with a mean follow-up of 5.0 ± 2.7 years met the inclusion criteria (80% follow-up). Of these, 172 patients (96%) underwent a mean of 2.5 ± 1.7 prior surgical procedures on the ipsilateral knee before OAT. Forty-eight percent of OAT procedures were isolated, while 52% were performed with concomitant procedures including meniscus allograft transplantation (MAT) in 65 (36%). Sixty-six patients (37%) underwent a reoperation at a mean of 2.5 ± 2.5 years, with 32% (21/66) undergoing additional reoperations (range, 1-3). Arthroscopic debridement was performed in 91% of patients with initial reoperations, with 83% showing evidence of an intact graft; of these, 9 ultimately progressed to failure at a mean of 4.1 ± 1.9 years. A total of 24 patients (13%) were considered failures at a mean of 3.6 ± 2.6 years after the index OAT procedure because of revision OAT (n = 7), conversion to arthroplasty (n= 12), or appearance of a poorly incorporated allograft at arthroscopic surgery (n = 5). The number of previous surgical procedures was independently predictive of reoperations and failure; body mass index was independently predictive of failure. Excluding the failed patients, statistically and clinically significant improvements were found in the Lysholm score, International Knee Documentation Committee score, Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score, and Short Form–12 physical component summary at final follow-up (P < .001 for all), with inferior outcomes (albeit overall improved) in patients who underwent a reoperation. Conclusion: In this series, there was a 37% reoperation rate and an 87% allograft survival rate at a mean of 5 years after OAT. The number of previous ipsilateral knee surgical procedures was predictive of reoperations and failure. Of the patients who underwent arthroscopic debridement with an intact graft at the time of arthroscopic surgery, 82% experienced significantly improved outcomes, while 18% ultimately progressed to failure. This information can be used to counsel patients on the implications of a reoperation after OAT.
Dynamic Energy Balance and Obesity Prevention

Dynamic energy balance can give clinicians important answers for why obesity is so resistant to control. When food intake is reduced for weight control, all components of energy expenditure change, including metabolic rate at rest (resting energy expenditure [REE]), metabolic rate of exercise, and adaptive thermogenesis. This means that a change in energy intake influences energy expenditure in a dynamic way. Mechanisms associated with reduction of total energy expenditure following weight loss are likely to be related to decreased body mass and enhanced metabolic efficiency. Reducing calorie intake results in a decrease in body weight, initially with a marked reduction in fat free mass and a decrease in REE, and this change is maintained for several years in a reduced state. Metabolic adaptation, which is not explained by changes in body composition, lasts for more than several years. These are powerful physiological adaptations that induce weight regain. To avoid a typically observed weight-loss and regain trajectory, realistic weight loss goals should be established and maintained for more than 1 year. Using a mathematical model can help clinicians formulate advice about diet control. It is important to emphasize steady efforts for several years to maintain reduced weight over efforts to lose weight. Because obesity is difficult to reverse, clinicians must prioritize obesity prevention. Obesity prevention strategies should have high feasibility, broad population reach, and relatively low cost, especially for young children who have the smallest energy gaps to change.
Characterization of the Contribution of Genetic Background and Gender to Disease Progression in the SOD1 G93A Mouse Model of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: A Meta-Analysis

Abstract Background: The SOD1 G93A mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is the most frequently used model to examine ALS pathophysiology. There is a lack of homogeneity in usage of the SOD1 G93A mouse, including differences in genetic background and gender, which could confound the field’s results. Objective: In an analysis of 97 studies, we characterized the ALS progression for the high transgene copy control SOD1 G93A mouse on the basis of disease onset, overall lifespan, and disease duration for male and female mice on the B6SJL and C57BL/6J genetic backgrounds and quantified magnitudes of differences between groups. Methods: Mean age at onset, onset assessment measure, disease duration, and overall lifespan data from each study were extracted and statistically modeled as the response of linear regression with the sex and genetic background factored as predictors. Additional examination was performed on differing experimental onset and endpoint assessment measures. Results: C57BL/6 background mice show delayed onset of symptoms, increased lifespan, and an extended disease duration compared to their sex-matched B6SJL counterparts. Female B6SJL generally experience extended lifespan and delayed onset compared to their male counterparts, while female mice on the C57BL/6 background show delayed onset but no difference in survival compared to their male counterparts. Finally, different experimental protocols (tremor, rotarod, etc.) for onset determination result in notably different onset means. Conclusions: Overall, the observed effect of sex on disease endpoints was smaller than that which can be attributed to the genetic background. The often-reported increase in lifespan for female mice was observed only for mice on the B6SJL background, implicating a strain-dependent effect of sex on disease progression that manifests despite identical mutant SOD1 expression.
Effects of symmetrical voltage sags on three-phase three-legged transformers

This paper describes the effects of symmetrical voltage sags on three-phase three-legged transformers. The transformer model includes saturation and is based on experimental parameters. It has been implemented in PSpice. Voltage recovery after a voltage sag can produce transformer saturation. This saturation produces an inrush current similar to that of the transformer energizing. The variables that influence the peak value of the inrush current, namely depth, duration, and initial point-on-wave are studied. A result that must be emphasized is the periodical influence of the sag duration.