Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Awareness of emergency contraception: a follow-up report

Background and methodology This study aimed to ascertain whether recent campaigns aimed at increasing awareness and use of progestogen-only emergency contraception (POEC) have been effective, by comparing the understanding and awareness of POEC in those attending the termination of pregnancy (TOP) clinic in 2006 to an earlier cohort studied in 2003. Questionnaires were handed to all women attending the TOP clinic during a 4-week period in September/October 2006. Questionnaires were collected before women left the clinic. Results All women (n = 77) attending the clinic received questionnaires; 72 were returned. Most (96%) of the women were familiar with POEC, compared with 78% of the 2003 cohort. 79% of the women felt confident about the ease of availability of POEC compared to 60% in 2003. More (51%) had used POEC in the past compared with 37% of the 2003 group. Only 46% knew the correct time limit for effectiveness of POEC compared to 59% in 2003. Time limit awareness was lower among the 16–20-year-old age group compared to the 21–25-year-old group. Most respondents (89%) said that they would consider using POEC in the future. Discussion and conclusions Awareness and use of POEC have improved since 2003 but accurate knowledge has not. There is confusion regarding the correct time limit for effectiveness of POEC, especially amongst the 16–20-year-old age group. Public awareness campaigns appear to have been effective in increasing awareness and availability of POEC in Fife, Scotland. More emphasis is needed on the appropriate and effective use of POEC, especially targeted to the 16–20-year-old age group.
Factors Associated with Self-Reported Arthritis 7 to 24 Years after a Traumatic Brain Injury

The purpose of this study was to profile characteristics of people with traumatic brain injury (TBI) who self-reported arthritis 7 to 24 yr. post-injury. Pre- and post-injury socio-demographic factors, injury-related factors, and post-injury standardized assessments measuring health, activity, and participation outcomes were assessed in a retrospective cohort study of 274 participants. The group self-reporting arthritis had significantly more sleep disturbances, poorer overall health, lower mental health and physical function, and decreased productivity. Also, they were older and reported a shorter length of loss of consciousness from TBI. These results suggest that musculoskeletal complaints from long-term survivors of TBI should be addressed in post-acute care and could guide future research on arthritis in the TBI population.
Optimizing Surgical Treatment of Internationally Adopted Children with Cleft Lip and/or Palate: Understanding the Family Experience

Objective To understand the experience of families with children undergoing cleft surgery following adoption from a country outside the United States. To identify factors, including the timing of surgery, that influence family function throughout the surgical experience. Design Semistructured qualitative interviews were conducted with parents of internationally adopted children postrepair of cleft lip and/or cleft palate and coded by a multidisciplinary study team. Mixed methods were used to contextualize themes derived from the parent interviews. Results Twenty parent interviews were conducted, and four core themes were identified: (1) parental anxieties prior to surgery, (2) considerations for the timing of surgery, (3) impact of the surgical experience on the child and family, and (4) modifiable sociocontextual factors. Parents considered a strong child bond with at least one parent and the ability of the child to communicate basic needs to be important before undergoing surgery. In retrospect, parents generally felt that the surgical experience did not have a negative impact on their child or their families and that the surgical experience may have even facilitated bonding and attachment with their child. Acceleration of family bonding was expressed more often by parents of children who were adopted at older than 2 years. Conclusions In our study, parents reported that cleft surgery soon after international adoption did not appear to impair child bonding or adjustment. Specific family and provider factors that could optimize the experience for families were identified.
OPTIMIZATION OF THE TEMPERATURE SUSCEPTIBILITY OF BITUMEN MODIFIED WITH WASTE TIRE RUBBER BY TAGUCHI METHOD

The purpose of this study is to optimize the temperature susceptibility of the bitumen modified with the tire rubber. For this purpose, 2, 5 and 10 % waste tire rubber (by weight of bitumen) is mixed into 70-100 penetration bitumen at mixing temperatures of 150, 160 and 170oC for mixing time of 30, 60 and 120 minute and mixing speed of 250, 350 and 450 rpm. Taguchi method is used as design of experiment method. The temperature susceptibility of the binders is evaluated by the penetration index (PI). It is found that the order of the importance of variables affecting the temperature susceptibility of binders is tire rubber content, mixing speed, mixing temperature and mixing time, respectively. Optimum conditions for the maximum PI of 3.72 are obtained at the mixing temperature of 150oC, mixing time of 120 minute tire rubber content of 10% and mixing speed of 250 rpm. As a result, this new binder is produced by fewer experiments using Taguchi method compared to the other experimental methods. Thus, using the Taguchi method could save time and energy. Moreover, it is seen that tire rubber modified bituminous binders can provide better resistance against permanent deformations due to the lower temperature susceptibility in hot climate regions.
Dynamical neural network organization of the visual pursuit system

The central nervous system is a parallel dynamical system that connects sensory input with motor output for the performance of visual tracking. Elementary control system tools are applied to extend dynamical neural-network models to the visual smooth pursuit system. Observed eye position responses to target motions and characteristics of the plant (eye muscles and orbital mechanics) place dynamical constraints on the interposed neural-network controller. In the process of constructing a model for the controller, it is shown that two previous pursuit-system models, using efference copy and feedforward compensation, are equivalent from an input-output standpoint. A controller model possessing a potentially highly parallel implementation is introduced, and an example with supporting neural firing rate data is presented. Changes in time delays or other system dynamics are expected to lead to compensatory adaptive changes in the controller. A scheme to noninvasively simulate such changes in system dynamics was developed. <<ETX>>
Internalization of Flax Rust Avirulence Proteins into Flax and Tobacco Cells Can Occur in the Absence of the Pathogen[W]

This work examines translocation of the flax rust effector protein AvrM, showing that it accumulates in the haustorial wall and extracellular matrix and is delivered into the host cytoplasm. Protein fusions expressed in the plant showed that AvrM can be secreted by the plant and subsequently internalized in the absence of pathogen. Translocation of pathogen effector proteins into the host cell cytoplasm is a key determinant for the pathogenicity of many bacterial and oomycete plant pathogens. A number of secreted fungal avirulence (Avr) proteins are also inferred to be delivered into host cells, based on their intracellular recognition by host resistance proteins, including those of flax rust (Melampsora lini). Here, we show by immunolocalization that the flax rust AvrM protein is secreted from haustoria during infection and accumulates in the haustorial wall. Five days after inoculation, the AvrM protein was also detected within the cytoplasm of a proportion of plant cells containing haustoria, confirming its delivery into host cells during infection. Transient expression of secreted AvrL567 and AvrM proteins fused to cerulean fluorescent protein in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) and flax cells resulted in intracellular accumulation of the fusion proteins. The rust Avr protein signal peptides were functional in plants and efficiently directed fused cerulean into the secretory pathway. Thus, these secreted effectors are internalized into the plant cell cytosol in the absence of the pathogen, suggesting that they do not require a pathogen-encoded transport mechanism. Uptake of these proteins is dependent on signals in their N-terminal regions, but the primary sequence features of these uptake regions are not conserved between different rust effectors.
Variables that initiate and maintain an early-onset trajectory for juvenile offending

A trajectory defined by three time-ordered events was offered as a useful adjunct to building a development theory about antisocial behaviors. A sequence was defined with significant linkages between antisocial childhood behavior and early arrest and between early arrest and chronic offending. The majority of chronic offenders traveled through all three events in the sequence. Each event in the sequence shared a common process of disrupted family process plus frequent family transitions and marked social disadvantage. The findings support the hypothesis that the process that leads to antisocial behaviors at grade four may also maintain the entire sequence. The level of disrupted process at initiation and a time-based measure of involvement with deviant peers predicted which individuals moved forward in the sequence and which did not. The findings are consistent with the idea that the majority of chronic offending juveniles follow a trajectory that can be explained by a single theory.
Endothelium-dependent responses in patients with hypercholesterolemic coronary artery disease under the effects of simvastatin and enalapril, either separately or combined.

BACKGROUND Endothelial dysfunction is an early event in atherosclerotic disease that precedes clinical manifestations and complications. The noninvasive assessment of endothelial function in patients with risk factors undergoing clinical treatment is an important medical advance. In this setting, altered endothelial function in patients with coronary hypercholesterolemia and its modifications by treatment with enalapril and simvastatin, either separately or in combination, was assessed in the brachial artery in a randomized, double-blind, 2-period crossover study. METHODS Thirty-eight patients were separated in 2 groups. Group 1 (18 patients, 3 female, mean age 63 +/- 6.0 years) received simvastatin 10 mg/d for 8 weeks and simvastatin plus enalapril 5 mg/d for another 8 weeks. Group 2 (20 patients, 3 female, mean age 64 +/- 5.8 years) received enalapril 5 mg/d for 8 weeks and enalapril plus simvastatin 10 mg/d for another 8 weeks. All subjects underwent measurements of brachial artery diameter before and after postischemic hyperemia with high-resolution ultrasound at basal conditions (control) and under the effects of the drugs at the end of 8 and 16 weeks. RESULTS Cholesterol and LDL cholesterol levels significantly decreased with simvastatin treatment alone or with enalapril. Mean baseline arterial diameter was 5.24 +/- 1.25 mm in group 1 and 4.83 +/- 0.99 mm in group 2 (not significant). In group 1 after the first 8 weeks, endothelium-dependent vasodilation significantly increased with simvastatin treatment (control, 4.4%; 8 weeks, 7.6%; P <.001). After 16 weeks with the addition of enalapril, a further increase in vasodilation was seen (8.6%, P <.05 vs 8 weeks). In group 2, with enalapril treatment an increase in vasodilation versus control was seen (control, 4.3%; 8 weeks, 5.8%; P <.01). After 16 weeks, with the addition of simvastatin an additional increase in vasodilation was observed (9.1%, P <.001 vs 8 weeks). After nitroglycerin, vasodilation in group 1 at control, 8, and 16 weeks was 17%, 17.5%, and 18%, respectively. In group 2, nitroglycerin vasodilation at control, 8, and 16 weeks was 21%, 21%, and 22%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Simvastatin significantly increased the postischemic vasodilator response in patients with coronary hypercholesterolemia, either as single treatment or added to enalapril. Similarly, the response was increased by enalapril, either alone or while simvastatin was being administered. Both drugs improve vasodilation and additive effects appear to be present.
A meta-ontology for knowledge acquisition and exploitation of collaborative social systems

Designing and/or managing collaborative social systems are obviously a complicated task, mainly due to the heterogeneity of the partners involved in terms of objectives, resources, information systems and so on. Whatever approach is adopted to support the collaboration (Mediation Information System, Peer-to-peer, Centralized Information System, etc.), one unavoidable issue is Knowledge Management. Gathering, formalizing and exploiting all the knowledge and information concerning a given collaborative situation is a critical requirement. In such a context, information and knowledge are widely distributed and the resources are classically not efficiently organized and utilized. A conceptualization is thus required to make the knowledge of the relations among the stakeholders explicit. This research work aims to provide a shared and common understanding of the management of collaboration, in order to be able to design and monitor future Decision-Making Support Tools and/or Collaborative Information Systems. Practically, the research works develops a generic meta-model and its ontology able to characterize a collaborative context and associated behaviors. All this knowledge is summarized through a Collaboration Meta-Ontology (CMO). Being in a formal format, the CMO provides partners with the means for acquiring, sharing and reasoning about collaborative information and knowledge. An illustration on the case of collaborative emergency management systems is developed.
A Pharmacokinetics and Safety Comparison of a Highly Concentrated Tobramycin Solution with TOBI

Background: Improved inhalation device/drug combinations are necessary to advance inhaled antibiotic therapy in cystic fibrosis (CF). Previously, for a novel drug/inhaler combination, equivalent lung deposition was demonstrated; here, we investigated its safety and pharmacokinetics. Methods: In a randomized, open-labeled, multicenter, active controlled, parallel 28-day study, we compared a new tobramycin formulation (T100 PARI, 150 mg/1.5 mL) nebulized with a drug-specific PARI eFlow nebulizer and TOBI (300 mg/5 mL) nebulized with a PARI LC PLUS nebulizer in 78 CF patients. Results: Noninferiority of the primary endpoint peak plasma tobramycin concentrations and the secondary endpoint area under the concentration time curves in plasma were observed. Sputum concentrations exceeded expected minimum inhibitory concentrations of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and were the same across both treatment groups, as were tolerability and safety. The nebulization time (4.6 vs. 16.1 min) was much shorter for the new drug/device combination. Conclusion: Inhaled therapy with T100 PARI delivered by an investigational eFlow offers a patient treatment time benefit and comparable safety and pharmacokinetics.
Histogenesis of the Inflammatory Component of Rosacea

This tendency to abnormal stasis and clotting of blood in the superficial dermal venules in acrocyanosis (Crocq 1896) and the resulting alteration in the anatomy of the blood vessels in the upper dermis can explain the associated signs of micropapular chilblains (erythema pernio papulosum, Haxthausen 1930, Hutchinson 1878), pink cinnabar spots (Stern 1937), and reticular patterning (Estes 1956). Micropapular chilblains are visible on the skin when the clotting has affected a sufficiently large cluster of microvessels.
A Fast Atmospheric Trace Gas Retrieval for Hyperspectral Instruments Approximating Multiple Scattering - Part 2: Application to XCO2 Retrievals from OCO-2

Satellite retrievals of the atmospheric dry-air column-average mole fraction of CO 2 (XCO 2 ) based on hyperspectral measurements in appropriate near (NIR) and short wave infrared (SWIR) O 2 and CO 2 absorption bands can help to answer important questions about the carbon cycle but the precision and accuracy requirements for XCO 2 data products are demanding. Multiple scattering of light at aerosols and clouds can be a significant error source for XCO 2 retrievals. Therefore, so called full physics retrieval algorithms were developed aiming to minimize scattering related errors by explicitly fitting scattering related properties such as cloud water/ice content, aerosol optical thickness, cloud height, etc. However, the computational costs for multiple scattering radiative transfer (RT) calculations can be immense. Processing all data of the Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) can require up to thousands of CPU cores and the next generation of CO 2 monitoring satellites will produce at least an order of magnitude more data. For this reason, the Fast atmOspheric traCe gAs retrievaL FOCAL has been developed reducing the computational costs by orders of magnitude by approximating multiple scattering effects with an analytic solution of the RT problem of an isotropic scattering layer. Here we confront FOCAL for the first time with measured OCO-2 data and protocol the steps undertaken to transform the input data (most importantly, the OCO-2 radiances) into a validated XCO 2 data product. This includes preprocessing, adaptation of the noise model, zero level offset correction, post-filtering, bias correction, comparison with the CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) greenhouse gas flux inversion model, comparison with NASA’s operational OCO-2 XCO 2 product, and validation with ground based Total Carbon Column Observing Network (TCCON) data. The systematic temporal and regional differences between FOCAL and the CAMS model have a standard deviation of 1.0 ppm. The standard deviation of the single sounding mismatches amounts to 1.1 ppm which agrees reasonably well with FOCAL’s average reported uncertainty of 1.2 ppm. The large scale XCO 2 patterns of FOCAL and NASA’s operational OCO-2 product are similar and the most prominent difference is that FOCAL has about three times less soundings due to the inherently poor throughput (11%) of the MODIS (moderate-resolution imaging spectroradiometer) based cloud screening used by FOCAL’s preprocessor. The standard deviation of the difference between both products is 1.1 ppm. The validation of one year (2015) of FOCAL XCO 2 data with co-located ground based TCCON observations results in a standard deviations of the site biases of 0.67 ppm (0.78 ppm without bias correction) and an average scatter relative to TCCON of 1.34 ppm (1.60 ppm without bias correction).
Wire retiming for system-on-chip by fixpoint computation

In the current and future System-On-Chips, a non-negligible part of operation time is spent on multiple-clock period wires. Retiming-that is moving flip-flops in a circuit without changing its functionality-can be explored to pipeline long interconnect wires in SOC designs. The problem of retiming over a netlist of macro-blocks, where the internal structures may not be changed and flip-flops may not be inserted on some wire segments is called the wire retiming problem. In this paper, we formulate the constraints of the wire retiming problem as a fixpoint computation and use an iterative algorithm to solve it. Experimental results show that this approach is multiple orders more efficient than the previous one.
A hemidesmosomal protein regulates actin dynamics and traction forces in motile keratinocytes

During wound healing of the skin, keratinocytes disassemble hemidesmosomes and reorganize their actin cytoskeletons in order to exert traction forces on and move directionally over the dermis. Nonetheless, the transmembrane hemidesmosome component collagen XVII (ColXVII) is found in actin‐rich lamella, situated behind the lamellipodium. A set of actin bundles, along which ColXVII colocalizes with actinin4, is present at each lamella. Knockdown of either ColXVII or actinin4 not only inhibits directed migration of keratinocytes but also relieves constraints on actin bundle retrograde movement at the site of lamella, such that actin bundle movement is enhanced more than 5‐fold. Moreover, whereas control keratinocytes move in a stepwise fashion over a substrate by generating alternating traction forces, of up to 1.4 kPa, at each flank of the lamellipodium, ColXVII knockdown keratinocytes fail to do so. In summary, our data indicate that ColXVII‐actinin4 complexes at the lamella of a moving keratinocyte regulate actin dynamics, thereby determining the direction of cell movement. —Hiroyasu, S. , Colburn, Z. T. , Jones, J. C. R. A hemidesmosomal protein regulates actin dynamics and traction forces in motile keratinocytes. FASEB J. 30, 2298–2310 (2016). www.fasebj. org
Alterations in mRNA expression and protein products following spinal cord injury in humans

We examined the effects of spinal cord injury (SCI) on alterations in gene expression and respective protein products in human skeletal muscle 2 days and 5 days post‐SCI. Biopsies were taken from skeletal muscle of 9 men and 1 woman (n= 10) (43.9 ± 6.7 years) 2 days and 5 days post‐SCI and from 5 healthy young men who served as controls (20.4 ± 0.5 years). Global changes in gene expression were analysed using Affymetrix GeneChips on a subsample of subjects (n= 3). Candidate genes were then pursued via qRT‐PCR. Western blotting (WB) was used to quantify protein products of candidate genes. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was used to localize proteins. Groups of transcripts showing the greatest percentage of altered expression, the most robust fold‐changes, and indicative of involvement of an entire pathway using the GeneChip included genes involved in the ubiquitin proteasome pathway (UPP), metallothionein function, and protease inhibition. qRT‐PCR analysis confirmed increases in gene expression for UPP components (UBE3C, Atrogin‐1, MURF1, and PSMD11), the metallothioneins (MT1A, MT1F, MT1H), and the protease inhibitor, SLPI (P < 0.05) at 2 days and 5 days post‐SCI. Protein levels of the proteasome subunit (PSMD11) and the metallothioneins were increased 5 days post‐SCI. Protein levels of UBE3C, Atrogin‐1, MURF1 and SLPI were unchanged (P > 0.05). IHC showed increased staining for PSMD11 and the metallothioneins 5 days post‐SCI, along the peripheral region of the cells. IHC also showed altered staining for Atrogin‐1 at 5 days post‐SCI along the membrane region. Thus, there was a profound increase in gene expression of UPP components, the metallothioneins, and the protease inhibitor, SLPI, within 5 days of SCI. Increased protein levels for PSMD11 and the metallothioneins 5 days post‐SCI, specifically along the cell periphery, indicate that proteins in this region may be early targets for degradation post‐SCI.
A novel wafer reclaim method for amorphous SiC and carbon doped oxide films

Amorphous SiC (a-SiC) films are the most promising dielectric diffusion barriers to replace silicon nitride in Cu-interconnect technology. However, reclaim of wafers with a-SiC films is a challenge issue for mass production. In this paper, a novel wafer reclaim method is proposed. It is observed that a-SiC can be oxidized to SiO/sub 2/ in both dry O/sub 2/ and steam ambients at temperatures as low as 550/spl deg/C. The oxidation mechanism can be described by the Deal-Grove model that is traditionally used to describe oxidation of Si. Experiments prove that the oxidation process is clean and uniform. It is also observed that carbon doped oxide (CDO) films can be oxidized easily, too. Therefore, oxidation followed by HF etching could be a universal process to reclaim wafers deposited with a-SiC or CDO films. Since the oxidation rate of Si substrates at medium temperatures is much lower than that of a-SiC and CDO films, the oxidation process is virtually self-limiting. Compared with a traditional reclaim method based on wafer polishing, this universal oxidation-etching method exhibits great benefits in terms of low cost, high throughput, and the ability to perform nearly unlimited numbers of reclaim cycles.