Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Nutritional intake and recreational physical activity in healthy elderly women living in the community.

PURPOSE Recreational physical activity, which increases energy expenditure, may help to maintain proper food intake. To compare the nutritional intake of inactive, active and very active healthy elderly women. METHODS Eighty-two women were recruited in the community. Participants had to be > or = 65 years and in good health (< or = 2 drugs, < or = 1 major illness, < or = 1 surgical operation, no disability in basic or instrumental activities of daily living and no cognitive impairment). We compared food intakes between the 26 inactive (age 73.9 +/- 7.7 y, BMI 24.3 +/- 3.2 kg/m2), the 29 active (age 71.5 +/- 5.6 y, BMI 23.2 +/- 3.5 kg/m2) and the 27 very active (age 70.9 +/- 4.8 y, BMI 24.3 +/- 3.2 kg/m2) healthy women. The nutritional intake was evaluated by a three-day food record. Macronutrient, mineral and vitamin content were derived from tables. Self-reported type, duration and frequency of recreational physical activities during the last month were converted into energy expenditures. RESULTS Despite high levels of energy intake (mean 1743.9 kcal/d), mean intakes of calcium, vitamin B1, E and folic acid were lower than Recommended Dietary Allowances (-26.2%, -12%, -50.8%, -2.4% respectively) in the whole sample. There were no significant differences of energy intake and quantities of nutrients between the groups except for calcium intake which was significantly higher in inactive women (p=0.04). CONCLUSION Active healthy elderly women do not have a better nutritional profile than their inactive peers.
Les minéraux de titane et de zirconium dans les skarns du massif alcalin de Tagérane (Baikal, Sibérie)

La description de l'association des mineraux de titane et de zirconium (baddeleite, calcirtite, tageranite, geikielite, perovskite, azoproite, titanoludwigite) dans les skarns magnesiens du massif alcalin de Tagerane, qui est situe sur le bord occidental du lac Baikal, est donnee. Tageranite et azoproite sont des nouveaux mineraux decouverts a Tagerane.
Adjuvant chemotherapy in colorectal cancer with high-dose leucovorin and fluorouracil: impact on disease-free survival and overall survival.

PURPOSE The rationale for using adjuvant chemotherapy in colorectal cancer is to achieve better disease control and thus reduce the high rates of tumor recurrence and mortality in patients who undergo curative surgery. The current literature, including relevant abstracts, on clinical trials of fluorouracil (5-FU) in combination with high-dose leucovorin as adjuvant chemotherapy for colorectal cancer is reviewed. The intent is not to present new data, but to present the reader with a broad perspective and larger patient experience on which to base well-reasoned treatment decisions. DESIGN Published clinical trials and abstracts presented at the 1996 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) meeting that assessed 5-FU in combination with high-dose leucovorin as adjuvant chemotherapy for colorectal cancer were surveyed. End points of interest were disease-free survival (DFS), overall survival, and toxicity. RESULTS In randomized trials that used high-dose leucovorin at doses that ranged from daily-times-five 200 mg/m2 to weekly 500 mg/m2 in combination with 5-FU, significant improvements in both DFS and overall survival were observed over surgery alone (control). In patients treated with high-dose leucovorin/5-FU, DFS rates ranged from 71% to 77% compared with control (58% to 64%). A similar trend was seen in overall survival, with a range of 75% to 84% compared with control (63% to 77%). Toxicities observed for high-dose leucovorin administered on a weekly or daily-times-five schedule were diarrhea, stomatitis, myelosuppression, and nausea. CONCLUSION Overall, the results of these randomized trials support the use of high-dose leucovorin/5-FU as adjuvant therapy for colorectal cancer. Longer follow-up studies are needed to compare the benefits of these different regimens in terms of survival and to characterize adverse effects, especially those that may not be immediately evident. Adjuvant therapy with high-dose leucovorin/5-FU is an effective regimen that is well tolerated by many patients with colorectal cancer.
Resistance to Leishmania major is Linked to the H2 Region on Chromosome 17 and to Chromosome 9

In Leishmaniasis, as in many infectious diseases, clinical manifestations are determined by the interaction between the genetics of the host and of the parasite. Here we describe studies mapping two loci controlling resistance to murine cutaneous leishmaniasis. Mice infected with L. major show marked genetic differences in disease manifestations: BALB/c mice are susceptible, exhibiting enlarging lesions that progress to systemic disease and death, whereas C57BL/6 are resistant, developing small, self-healing lesions. F2 animals from a C57BL/6 × BALB/c cross showed a continuous distribution of lesion score. Quantitative trait loci (QTL) have been mapped after a non-parametric QTL analysis on a genome-wide scan on 199 animals. QTLs identified were confirmed in a second cross of 271 animals. Linkage was confirmed to a chromosome 9 locus (D9Mit67–D9Mit71) and to a region including the H2 locus on chromosome 17. These have been named lmr2 and lmr1, respectively.
Role of reductase and aromatase in sex determination in the red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta), a turtle with temperature-dependent sex determination.

In many turtles the temperature during the middle of incubation determines the gonadal sex of the hatchling. In the red-eared slider turtle (Trachemys scripta), an incubation temperature of 26 degrees C results in all male offspring, whereas an incubation temperature of 31 degrees C results in all female offspring; at temperatures intermediate to these (e.g. 29, 29.2, 29.4 degrees C) a mixed sex ratio is obtained. Administration of exogenous oestrogens will overcome the effects of an all-male producing incubation temperature to cause female sex determination, whereas administration of exogenous dihydrotestosterone (DHT) or testosterone to eggs incubating at an all-female temperature will have no discernible effect. Administration of DHT will cause male sex determination only if administered at intermediate incubation temperatures whereas administration of testosterone to eggs incubating at all male-producing and male-biased intermediate temperatures results in a significant number of female offspring, an effect presumably due to aromatization of testosterone to oestradiol (OE2). Since testosterone serves as the precursor to both DHT and OE2, being metabolized by reductase and aromatase respectively, three experiments were conducted to determine whether various putative reductase and aromatase inhibitors would overcome the effect of incubation temperature. First, while administration of testosterone to eggs incubating at all male-producing and male-biased intermediate temperatures produced females in a dose- and temperature-dependent manner, significant numbers of intersex individuals resulted from high dosage testosterone treatment to eggs incubating at a female-biased intermediate temperature. The reductase inhibitors 4MA and MK906 were capable of producing female offspring if administered at intermediate temperatures, but not in a dose-dependent fashion. Administration of the aromatase inhibitors CGS16949A and CGS20267 resulted in male offspring at both female-biased intermediate and at all female-producing temperatures in a dose-dependent fashion. Second, similar findings were obtained with combined doses of testosterone and reductase or aromatase inhibitors. Combined treatment of eggs at male-biased intermediate incubation temperatures with testosterone and reductase inhibitor resulted in female hatchlings, whereas combined treatment of testosterone and aromatase inhibitor at both female-biased intermediate and at all female-producing temperatures resulted in male hatchlings. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Comparison of Racemic Bupivacaine, Ropivacaine, and Levo-Bupivacaine for Pediatric Caudal Anesthesia: Effects on Postoperative Analgesia and Motor Block

Background and Objectives To compare ropivacaine, levo-bupivacaine, and racemic bupivacaine for caudal blockade in children. Methods Using a prospective observer blinded design, 60 sevoflurane anesthetized children (1 to 7 years) undergoing minor subumbilical surgery, were randomized to receive a caudal block (1 mL/kg) with either ropivacaine 0.2%, racemic bupivacaine 0.25%, or levo-bupivacaine 0.25%. Postoperative analgesia (number of patients needing supplemental analgesia as defined by an objective pain score [OPS] score of ≥ 5; time to first analgesic demand) during the first 24 postoperative hours was chosen as the primary end-point. Early postoperative motor block (3-point scale) was assessed as a secondary end-point. Results All blocks were judged to be clinically successful based on the presence of adequate intraoperative and early postoperative analgesia. An OPS score ≥ 5 was found in 5/20 patients in each study group. No difference regarding the time to first analgesic demand was found between the study groups. The use of ropivacaine (P = .02), but not levo-bupivacaine (P = .18), was found to be associated with less motor block during the first postoperative hour compared with racemic bupivacaine. Conclusion All 3 investigated local anesthetics were found to be clinically comparable despite the slight reduction of early postoperative motor block associated with the use of ropivacaine.
Empirical privacy and empirical utility of anonymized data

Procedures to anonymize data sets are vital for companies, government agencies and other bodies to meet their obligations to share data without compromising the privacy of the individuals contributing to it. Despite much work on this topic, the area has not yet reached stability. Early models (k-anonymity and ℓ-diversity) are now thought to offer insufficient privacy. Noise-based methods like differential privacy are seen as providing stronger privacy, but less utility. However, across all methods sensitive information of some individuals can often be inferred with relatively high accuracy. In this paper, we reverse the idea of a `privacy attack,' by incorporating it into a measure of privacy. Hence, we advocate the notion of empirical privacy, based on the posterior beliefs of an adversary, and their ability to draw inferences about sensitive values in the data. This is not a new model, but rather a unifying view: it allows us to study several well-known privacy models which are not directly comparable otherwise. We also consider an empirical approach to measuring utility, based on a workload of queries. Consequently, we are able to place different privacy models including differential privacy and early syntactic models on the same scale, and compare their privacy/utility tradeoff. We learn that, in practice, the difference between differential privacy and various syntactic models is less dramatic than previously thought, but there are still clear domination relations between them.
The Burden of Musculoskeletal Conditions

Objective Despite the burden of rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs), these conditions probably deserve more attention from public health authorities in several countries including developed ones. We assessed their contribution to disability. Methods Data on disabilities associated with RMDs were extracted from the national 2008–2009 Disability-Health Survey of 29,931 subjects representative of the population in France. We used the core set of disability categories for RMDs of the World Health Organization's International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health for analysis. Diagnosis and disabilities were self-reported. We assessed the risk of disability associated with RMDs using odds ratios (ORs) and the societal impact of RMDs using the average attributable fraction (AAF). Results Overall 27.7% (about 17.3 million people) (95% CI 26.9–28.4%) of the population reported having RMDs. The most prevalent RMDs were low back pain (12.5%, 12.1–13.1) and osteoarthritis (12.3%, 11.8–12.7). People reporting osteoarthritis were more disabled in walking (adjusted OR 1.9, 1.7–2.2) than those without. People reporting inflammatory arthritis were more limited in activities of daily living (from 1.4, 1.2–1.8 for walking to 2.1, 1.5–2.9 for moving around). From a societal perspective, osteoarthritis was the main contributor to activity limitations (AAF 22% for walking difficulties). Changing jobs was mainly attributed to neck pain (AAF 13%) and low back pain (11.5%). Conclusion RMDs are highly prevalent and significantly affect activity limitations and participation restrictions. More effort is needed to improve care and research in this field.
Periadolescent changes of D2–AMPA interactions in the rat nucleus accumbens

Many aspects of dopamine (DA) systems mature during adolescence. In the nucleus accumbens, the modulation of prefrontal cortical synaptic responses by DA becomes refined during adolescence with the recruitment of a gamma‐amino butyric acid (GABA) component. As this GABA component is depolarizing, it remains to be determined whether this change affects action potential firing in nucleus accumbens neurons. Here we tested whether a D2 agonist affects AMPA‐evoked cell firing in slices containing the nucleus accumbens from juvenile (postnatal day, PD 28–34) and adult (PD > 60) rats. 2‐amino‐3‐(5‐methyl‐3‐oxo‐1,2‐oxazol‐4‐yl)propanoic acid (AMPA) (0.1–0.4 μM) depolarized nucleus accumbens neurons and increased their firing in a dose‐dependent manner. The D2 agonist quinpirole (2 μM) had different effects in juvenile vs. adult slices. In the juvenile accumbens, quinpirole enhanced AMPA (0.2 μM) effects on evoked firing in a subset of neurons while it had no effect on the rest. In the adult accumbens, the D2 agonist instead attenuated the effect of AMPA on evoked firing, an interaction that was blocked by the GABA‐A antagonist picrotoxin (50 μM). Thus, D2 receptors modulate AMPA responses in the nucleus accumbens differently in juvenile than adult rats, and the adult effect requires local GABA transmission. The incorporation of a GABA component in the modulation of information processing in the nucleus accumbens by DA during adolescence may allow for a better contrast in cortically activated ensembles. Synapse, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Torsion MACCEPA: A novel compact compliant actuator designed around the drive axis

The Mechanically Adjustable Compliance and Controllable Equilibrium Position Actuator (MACCEPA) is a Variable Stiffness Actuator (VSA) where both equilibrium position and stiffness of the actuator can be controlled independently. It uses only one linear spring and has a simple design but its compactness is limited by the spring. For this reason a MACCEPA utilizing torsion spiral springs was designed, reducing the planar dimensions of the actuator. Torsion spiral springs are placed around the joint axis, allowing a more compact VSA in comparison to previous designs. To the authors' best knowledge, this is the first VSA based on torsion springs. This paper firstly presents the design of the actuator as the static equations and secondly discusses the design and production of the torsion spiral springs. The newly presented actuator is built and experiments are conducted to validate the model and feasibility of the torsion MACCEPA.
The effects of rearranging ward routines on communication and eating behaviors of psychogeriatric patients.

Several aspects of ward routine were changed to study the effects of environmental manipulation on the behavior of 21 psychogeriatric patients. Furniture was rearranged to be more conductive to conversation (i.e., grouped around tables instead of along corridor walls), and mealtime routines were changed to allow patients more time to eat, more freedom in choosing the composition of the meal, and more pleasant surroundings. Patients were divided into experimental and control groups, and data were collected on the frequency of verbal and tactile communication and degree of skill in eating behavior. Following baseline, environmental changes were introduced across behaviors. Results show that the frequency of communication increased for the experimental group, as compared to both baseline and the control group. Eating behavior also improved significantly for the experimental group. The study shows that minor changes in the physical environment can promote therapeutic change in the behavior of patients diagnosed as senile dementia.
Effects of bilateral arytenoid cartilage stenting on canine laryngeal resistance ex vivo.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the effect of Nitinol stents for bilateral arytenoid lateralization on canine laryngeal resistance. STUDY DESIGN Ex vivo experimental study. ANIMALS Canine cadaver larynges (n=7). METHODS Laryngeal resistance was calculated in all specimens with the epiglottis in open and closed positions. Bilateral arytenoid stenting was performed, rima glottidis width measured, and laryngeal resistance calculated. The effects of stenting on laryngeal resistance were evaluated by repeated measures ANOVA. RESULTS Calculated laryngeal resistance in the 3 stented groups, 2 cm (0.034±0.059 cmH(2) O/L/s), 3 cm (0.034±0.059 cmH(2) O/L/s), and 4 cm (0.034±0.059 cm H(2) O/L/s), was significantly decreased versus the control (unstented) group (0.947±0.624 cmH(2) O/L/s; P=. 0098) with an epiglottis in the normal position. Calculated laryngeal resistance in the 3 stented groups, 2 cm (43.407±17.348 cm H(2) O/L/s), 3 cm (70.659±34.705 cmH(2) O/L/s), and 4 cm (92.637±44.509 cm H(2) O/L/s), was significantly increased versus the control (unstented) group (29.561±14.499 cm H(2) O/L/s) (P=.0185) with an epiglottis in the closed position. The width of the rima glottidis correlated with the size of the stent (r=0.95, P<.001). CONCLUSIONS Bilateral arytenoid stenting significantly reduced calculated laryngeal resistance with an open epiglottis. Stenting resulted in a significant increase in laryngeal resistance versus the control with a closed epiglottis. Use of bilateral arytenoid stenting in clinical cases of laryngeal paralysis may provide an adequate decrease in open-epiglottis airway resistance to alleviate clinical signs, while increasing closed-epiglottis airway resistance. This could potentially lead to a decrease in the risk of postoperative aspiration pneumonia.
Predicting dysthyroid optic neuropathy using computed tomography volumetric analyses of orbital structures

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the ability of orbital apex crowding volume measurements calculated with multidetector-computed tomography to detect dysthyroid optic neuropathy. METHODS: Ninety-three patients with Graves' orbitopathy were studied prospectively. All of the patients underwent a complete neuro-ophthalmic examination and computed tomography scanning. Volumetric measurements were calculated from axial and coronal contiguous sections using a dedicated workstation. Orbital fat and muscle volume were estimated on the basis of their attenuation values (in Hounsfield units) using measurements from the anterior orbital rim to the optic foramen. Two indexes of orbital muscle crowding were calculated: i) the volumetric crowding index, which is the ratio between soft tissue (mainly extraocular muscles) and orbital fat volume and is based on axial scans of the entire orbit; and ii) the volumetric orbital apex crowding index, which is the ratio between the extraocular muscles and orbital fat volume and is based on coronal scans of the orbital apex. Two groups of orbits (with and without dysthyroid optic neuropathy) were compared. RESULTS: One hundred and two orbits of 61 patients with Graves' orbitopathy met the inclusion criteria and were analyzed. Forty-one orbits were diagnosed with Graves' orbitopathy, and 61 orbits did not have optic neuropathy. The two groups of orbits differed significantly with regard to both of the volumetric indexes (p<0.001). Although both indexes had good discrimination ability, the volumetric orbital apex crowding index yielded the best results with 92% sensitivity, 86% specificity, 81%/94% positive/negative predictive value and 88% accuracy at a cutoff of 4.14. CONCLUSION: This study found that the orbital volumetric crowding index was a more effective predictor of dysthyroid optic neuropathy than previously described computed tomography indexes were.
A short variational proof of equivalence between policy gradients and soft Q learning

Two main families of reinforcement learning algorithms, Q-learning and policy gradients, have recently been proven to be equivalent when using a softmax relaxation on one part, and an entropic regularization on the other. We relate this result to the well-known convex duality of Shannon entropy and the softmax function. Such a result is also known as the Donsker-Varadhan formula. This provides a short proof of the equivalence. We then interpret this duality further, and use ideas of convex analysis to prove a new policy inequality relative to soft Q-learning.
Speckle-Tracking Echocardiography Elucidates the Effect of Pacing Site on Left Ventricular Synchronization in the Normal and Infarcted Rat Myocardium

Background Right ventricular (RV) pacing generates regional disparities in electrical activation and mechanical function (ventricular dyssynchrony). In contrast, left ventricular (LV) or biventricular (BIV) pacing can improve cardiac efficiency in the setting of ventricular dyssynchrony, constituting the rationale for cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). Animal models of ventricular dyssynchrony and CRT currently relay on large mammals which are expensive and not readily available to most researchers. We developed a methodology for double-site epicardial pacing in conscious rats. Here, following post-operative recovery, we compared the effects of various pacing modes on LV dyssynchrony in normal rats and in rats with ischemic cardiomyopathy. Methods Two bipolar electrodes were implanted in rats as follows: Group A (n = 6) right atrial (RA) and RV sites; Group B (n = 7) RV and LV sites; Group C (n = 8) as in group B in combination with left coronary artery ligation. Electrodes were exteriorized through the back. Following post-operative recovery, two-dimensional transthoracic echocardiography was performed during pacing through the different electrodes. Segmental systolic circumferential strain (Ecc) was used to evaluate LV dyssynchrony. Results In normal rats, RV pacing induced marked LV dyssynchrony compared to RA pacing or sinus rhythm, as measured by the standard deviation (SD) of segmental time to peak Ecc, SD of peak Ecc, and the average delay between opposing ventricular segments. LV pacing and, to a greater extend BIV pacing diminished the LV dyssynchrony compared to RV pacing. In rats with extensive MI, the effects of LV and BIV pacing were markedly attenuated, and the response of individual animals was variable. Conclusions Rodent cardiac pacing mimics important features seen in humans. This model may be developed as a simple new tool to study the pathophysiology of ventricular dyssynchrony and CRT.
Fixed points of Abelian actions

We prove that if $\mathfrak{F}$ is an abelian group of $C^1$ diffeomorphisms isotopic to the identity of a closed surface $S$ of genus at least two, then there is a common fixed point for all elements of $\mathfrak{F}$. If $\mathfrak{F}$ is an abelian group of $C^1$ diffeomorphisms (not necessarily isotopic to the identity) of a closed surface $S$ of genus at least two, then $\mathfrak{F}$ has a subgroup of finite index all of whose elements share a common fixed point.