Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Tomotherapeutic stereotactic body radiation therapy: Techniques and comparison between modalities

Presentation and comparison of tomotherapeutic intensity-modulated techniques for planning and delivery of stereotactic body radiation therapy. Serial tomotherapeutic SBRT has been planned and delivered at our institution since 8/2001. Since 12/2005, 12 patients have been treated using a helical tomotherapy unit. For these 12 patients both helical and serial tomotherapy plans were computed and clinically approved. Techniques and considerations of tomotherapy SBRT planning, associated image-guidance, and delivery are presented. The respective treatment plans were compared based on dosimetric parameters as well as time to develop a treatment plan and delivery times. Also the associated quality of megavoltage CT (MVCT) image-guidance inherent to the helical tomotherapy unit was assessed. Tumor volumes averaged 9.3, 9.8, and 58.7 cm3 for liver, lung, and spinal targets. Helical and serial tomotherapy plans showed comparable plan quality with respect to maximum and average doses to the gross tumor and planning target volumes. Time to develop helical tomotherapy plans averaged 3.5 h while serial tomotherapy planning consistently required less than one hour. Treatment delivery was also slower using helical tomotherapy, with differences of less than 10 min between modalities. MVCT image-guidance proved satisfactory for bony and lung targets, but failed to depict liver lesions, owing to poor soft-tissue contrast. SBRT planning and delivery is clinically feasible using either tomotherapeutic modality. While treatment planning time was consistently shorter and more readily accomplished in a standardized approach using the serial tomotherapy modality, actual plan quality and treatment delivery times are grossly comparable between the modalities. MVCT volumetric image-guidance, was observed to be valuable for thoracic and spinal target volumes, whereas it proved challenging for liver targets.
Expression and self-assembly of empty virus-like particles of hepatitis E virus

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a pathogenic agent that causes fecally-orally transmitted acute hepatitis. The genome, a single-stranded positive-sense RNA, encodes three forward open reading frames (ORFs), in which an approximately 2-kb structural protein is located in the 3' end. To produce HEV-like particles the structural protein, with its N terminus truncated (amino acid residues 112 to 660 of ORF2), was expressed in insect Tn5 cells by a recombinant baculovirus. In addition to the primary translation product with a molecular mass of 58 kDa, a large amount of a further-processed molecule with a molecular mass of 50 kDa was generated and efficiently released into the culture medium. Electron microscopic observation of the culture medium revealed that the 50-kDa protein self-assembled to form empty virus-like particles (VLPs). The buoyant density of the VLPs in CsCl was 1.285 g/cm3 and their diameter was 23.7 nm, a little smaller than the 27 nm of native HEV particles secreted into the bile or stools of experimentally infected monkeys. The yield of the VLPs was 1 mg per 10(7) cells as a purified form. The particles possess antigenicity similar to that of authentic HEV particles and, consequently, they appear to be a good antigen for the sensitive detection of HEV-specific immunoglobulin G (IgG) and IgM antibodies. Furthermore, the VLP may be the most promising candidate yet for an HEV vaccine, owing to its potent immunogenicity.
Enabling or limiting: the role of pre-packaged curriculum resources in shaping teacher learning

Pre-packaged curriculum resources that are purportedly designed to support teachers to deliver physical education in primary school settings have become prolific internationally. While both teachers and teacher educators use curriculum resources extensively, there has been little exploration into the effectiveness of resources in supporting teacher learning. The use of curriculum resources in one PD programme is used to illustrate the extent to which resources mediate teacher learning, acting as enablers and limiters for changing teacher practice, potentially both reskilling and deskilling teachers. The design and use of curriculum materials needs to be re-imagined in order to better support teacher learning.
Patrescence in Southern Thailand: cosmological and social dimensions of fatherhood among the Malay-Muslims

This paper examines fatherhood among the Malay Muslims of Southern Thailand (representing a minority at the national level, but constituting the majority population in the region). Traditional practices related to birth and the postpartum period are upheld as a marker of ethnic and religious identity by such groups. Building on the concept of patrescence as ‘becoming a father’, proposed by Dana Raphael, the data presented show how the process of assuming fatherhood develops during pregnancy and continues after birth through a series of ritual practices in which a man contributes to female postpartum practices. The medicalisation of birth in synergy with recent literalist interpretations of Islam has impacted on these practices, making it difficult to comply with the ritual burial of the afterbirth, which constitutes the cosmological and physical anchoring of individual and ethnic identity to the soil.
The map of payments in Hungary

Until recently only aggregate data were available on national payment turnover. In reality, however, there are substantial differences across individual settlements (or between the various districts of Budapest). As a result, there is hardly any settlement which would be more or less on a par with the ‘national average’ in terms of the volume of payments. This paper presents Hungary’s payments infrastructure (its supply of bank branches, automated teller machines and merchant PoS terminals) and payment transactions between individual counties and settlements – which, in principle, reflect well their economic relationships – plotted on maps and summarised in table form. In addition, data on individual settlements are made available for researchers and those with interest in the subject.
Stock Market Synchronicity – An Alternative Approach to Assessing the Information Impact of Australian IFRS

How has the mandatory adoption in 2005 of International Financial Reporting Standards in (IFRS) affected information flow for investors in Australia? This paper investigates impact by examining synchronicity issues. Morck et al. (2000) label the degree to which stock prices depend upon market and industry wide information as market synchronicity, and the degree to which they reflect firm specific information as idiosyncratic dependency. Increased synchronicity can signal several events, including a loss of confidence in firm specific accounting data, reduced transparency, or evidence of a greater degree of cross sectional comparability. We develop and test three theoretical models on the impact of IFRS and find a general decrease in synchronicity in the first two post‐IFRS years, followed by a reversion to a significantly higher level in later years. Further tests reveal lower analyst forecast earnings errors post‐IFRS. Results provide restrictive support for the International Accounting Standards Board contention that IFRS accounting provides higher specific and comparable information content – at least for sophisticated financial analysts.
Macronutrient Intakes and Development of Type 2 Diabetes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Cohort Studies

Objective: To synthesize the best available evidence on the association between macronutrient intake and type 2 diabetes risk. Data Sources: MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, Cochrane Library, ProQuest, Mednar, and the JBI Library of Systematic Reviews were searched up to July 2012 to identify published and unpublished studies. The review was restricted to human participants only but was not restricted by date or by language. Study Eligibility: Studies were included in the review if they were a cohort study examining the relationship between dietary macronutrient intake and type 2 diabetes risk, included healthy participants with no history of type 2 diabetes at the baseline assessment, and reported risk estimates (odds ratios, hazards ratios, or relative risks [RRs]) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals for type 2 diabetes risk by comparison of the highest with the lowest level of macronutrient consumption. Methods: Data extraction and risk of bias assessments were performed in duplicate by 2 reviewers. Random-effects meta-analyses were performed to pool RR estimates from individual studies to assess the relationship between dietary macronutrient (carbohydrate, fat, protein, and macronutrient subtypes) intake and type 2 diabetes risk. Statistical heterogeneity was assessed using the I2 statistic. Sensitivity analyses were performed to assess robustness of results, and publication bias was evaluated by the visual inspection of funnel plots and was formally assessed using Egger's test. Results: Twenty-two relevant cohort studies were eligible for inclusion in this review. High intake of total dietary carbohydrate was associated with an increased type 2 diabetes risk (relative risk [RR] = 1.11, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.01 to 1.22, p = 0.035); however, this effect was not observed in an analysis stratified by gender. High vegetable fat intake was associated with a reduced type 2 diabetes risk in females (RR = 0.76, 95% CI: 0.68 to 0.85, p < 0.001). Other macronutrients were not significantly associated with type 2 diabetes risk. Conclusions and Implications: The results of this systematic review and meta-analysis indicate that total carbohydrate is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes; however, this effect was not observed in an analysis stratified by gender. High vegetable fat intake may decrease type 2 diabetes risk in females. There is a need for further well-designed prospective cohort studies to examine the potential association between macronutrient intake and type 2 diabetes risk.
Immigration and the Trade of Provinces

A link between immigration, imports, and exports has been found by a number of papers that have used the gravity equation to analyze bilateral trade patterns. We discuss what this research implies about the mechanisms through which immigrants expand trade and identify strengths and weakness of the various approaches. This paper also contributes to this literature by estimating immigrant effects for Canada using cross-province variation in international trade and immigration patterns. We derive an alternative functional form capturing the relationship between immigration and trade based on the proposition that immigrants use their connections and superior "market intelligence" to exploit trade opportunities that non-immigrants do not access. We find that the average new immigrant expands exports to his/her native country by $312 and expands imports by $944. Copyright 2002 by Scottish Economic Society.
Pain management and pain characteristics in obese and normal weight patients before joint replacement.

RATIONALE, AIMS AND OBJECTIVES The objective was to compare the extent of pain interference and pain medication among persons who were classified as obese [body mass index (BMI)≥ 30 kg m(-2) ] and normal weighted (BMI ≤ 25 kg m(-2) ), before a hip or knee replacement surgery. METHODS Patients candidate for an orthopaedic surgery were successively enrolled, over a 6-month period, and classified in either the normal weight (BMI ≤ 25 kg m(-2) ) or the obese (BMI ≥ 30 kg m(-2) ) categories. Data were collected using self-administered questionnaires with items concerning pain characteristics, pain medication and pain interference. Two standardized questionnaires were associated: the Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression scale (HAD). RESULTS Fifty-two obese patients (candidates for 24 hip replacements and 28 knee replacements) and 51 non-obese (23 hip replacements and 28 knee replacements) were enrolled. Obese patients suffered from a higher rate of acute pain episodes than non-obese patients (65 versus 44%, P<0.05). Pain interference on walking distance, sleep and relations with others was higher in obese patients. HAD score showed no significant difference between groups. The use of strong opioids and of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) was significantly more important in obese patients (13 versus 0% and 31 versus 14%). CONCLUSIONS Obese patients suffer more significantly of unrelieved chronic pain, which lowers considerably their quality of life. Pain relief is more difficult to obtain, as it requires stronger pain medication and NSAIDs.
Multi-regime nonlinear capital asset pricing models

A multiple-regime threshold generalized autoregressive conditionally heteroskedastic capital asset pricing model is introduced. The model captures asymmetric risk through allowing market beta to change discretely between regimes that are driven by market information. Asymmetric volatility and mean equation dynamics are also captured. We confirm the time-varying nature of market risk, in response to changes in the market, and that this discrete time variation can differ across assets. These findings could have important implications for optimizing investment decisions: e.g. in risk assessment, portfolio selection and hedging decisions.
ACTH and beta-endorphin-related peptides are present in multiple sites in the reproductive tract of the male rat.

Immunostainable β-endorphin and ACTH are present in the cytoplasm of Leydig cells and in the epithelium of the epididymis, seminal vesicle. , and yas deferens of rats,. The intensity of immunostaining for β- endorphin is not altered by hypophysectomy, and epididymal staining persists after (Castration, β-endorphin, γ-endorphin, and N- and C-terminal ACTH activities are also detected by xadioimmunoassay of male tissue extracts, and their concentrations do not decrease following hypophysectomy. These peptides therefore appear to be of local rather than pituitary origin and may serve a paracrine function within the reproductive tract.
Use of Recombinant Activated Factor VII for Bleeding in Pancreatitis: A Case Series

Objectives: To describe the effects of recombinant activated factor VII (rFVIIa) in the treatment of bleeding in a series of patients with acute or chronic pancreatitis. Methods: Twelve patients (age, 2.5-65 years) with pancreatitis and bleeding were treated with 18.5 to 120 μg/kg of rFVIIa. Eight patients also had sepsis/infection and/or disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). The effects of rFVIIa on bleeding, coagulation status, and transfusion requirements were noted. Results: Bleeding stopped in 4 patients, was markedly reduced in 4 patients, was reduced in 3 patients, and was remained unchanged in 1 patient. For most patients with pre- and post-rFVIIa data, coagulation parameters improved and transfusion requirements reduced. No thrombotic adverse events occurred. Seven patients died for reasons considered to be unrelated to rFVIIa treatment. Conclusions: This case series indicates that rFVIIa may be an effective hemostatic treatment of patients with pancreatitis suffering from massive bleeding. There were no thromboembolic events in any patient, including those with sepsis or DIC.
The years after an injury: long-term consequences of injury on self-rated health.

BACKGROUND Knowledge on long-term consequences of injury on health is vital when injury prevention policies and emergency care are planned. However, few studies have described lasting health consequences associated with injury. This study analyses the relationship between injury and self-assessed health up to 10 years after the injury. METHODS The study makes use of a public health research database linking health interview survey information with data from national health registries. Using this database, the health of a group of Danish patients with injury events during 1995 to 2005 was compared with a noninjured group up to 10 years after the injury. The association between self-assessed general health and self-reported depression and injury-related factors were estimated using logistic regression analysis. RESULTS When patients with injuries compared with noninjured, the odds ratios of poor self-assessed general health and self-reported depression were 1.83 (confidence level, 1.53-2.19) and 1.33 (confidence level, 1.14-1.54), respectively. Although decreasing with time, the effect of injury on general health was significant up to 10 years after the injury. The injury type was significantly related to health, and in particular, patients with back, head, and neck injuries reporting poor general health. No gender differences were found in the effect of injury on self-assessed health. CONCLUSIONS Injuries have lasting consequences for physical and mental health up to 10 years after the injury event, in particular, for people sustaining head, neck, and back injuries. Sustaining an injury has the same effect on general health in men and women.
Industry perspectives on carbon-offset programs in Canada and the United States

Abstract Carbon offsetting is often put forward as a possible mitigation strategy for climate change. This study examines carbon-offset businesses in Canada and the United States to better understand their standards, project types, and project locations and to determine their perspectives regarding the challenges of the carbon-offset industry. Twenty companies (a 40% response rate) agreed to a structured interview, although many were reluctant to share some information. Several salient themes emerged and are discussed in more detail: involvement of the hospitality and tourism industry, financial commitment, confusion in the marketplace, transparency, and needs for education. Implementation of three recommendations—covering standardization, education, and further engagement among the industry, its customers, and researchers—could reduce confusion and increase the transparency of carbon offsetting. Yet these changes might not help business since customers might decide that purchasing carbon offsets does little to address climate change.
Herpes simplex virus type 1 dysregulates anti‐fungal defenses preventing monocyte activation and downregulating toll‐like receptor‐2

We investigated the interplay occurring between pathogens in the course of dual infections, using an in vitro model in which the THP‐1 monocytic cell line is first infected with HSV‐1 and then exposed to Ca or Cn. These three pathogens share some pathogenic features: they cause opportunistic infections, target macrophages and are neurotropic. Here, we show that HSV‐1‐infected THP‐1 cells exhibited augmented phagocytosis against the two opportunistic fungi but reduced capability to counteract fungal infection: the better ingestion by monocytes was followed by facilitated fungal survival and replication. Reduced IL‐12 production was also observed. Cytofluorimetric analysis showed that HSV‐1‐infected monocytes exhibit: (i) downregulated TLR‐2 and TLR‐4, critical structures in fungal recognition; (ii) reduced expression of CD38 and CD69, known to be important markers of monocyte activation; and (iii) enhanced expression of apoptosis and necrosis markers, in the absence of altered cell proliferation. Overall, these findings imply that HSV‐1 infection prevents monocyte activation, thus leading to a significant dysfunction of the monocyte‐mediated anti‐Candida response; HSV‐1 induced apoptosis and necrosis of monocytes further contribute to this impairment.
Factors Associated With the Completion of Hepatitis B Vaccine among University Students in Nigeria

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) has been identified by WHO as one of the deadliest viral diseases in Africa due to its high prevalence and complications. Thus urgent research and policy attention is needed to stem its spread. The study assessed factors associated with the completion of hepatitis B vaccine among Babcock University students, Nigeria. Multistage sampling procedure was employed to select 360 students to participate in the study after completing all requirements for ethical clearance. Data gathered from the respondents were subjected to descriptive analysis using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS Ver. 17). Most of the respondents are adults above 20 years and were aware of the HBV (89%). Despite serious efforts made by the University at educating the students about Hepatitis B, more than 40 % of the students still do not know the causative organism and are totally oblivious of the importance of vaccination. Also, 73% of the students had not completed the recommended 3 dosage vaccines. The findings also showed that despite the high level of awareness up to 44 percent of the students were not sure of their status or have not been previously immunized, indicating that their knowledge did not motivate their actions or practice. Factors which positively influenced completion of immunization dosage were the students’ perceived need to be protected from HBV, the availability of vaccine, their knowledge of the fact that the monetary cost of vaccine had already been included in the school bills, their opinion that immunization is part of the criteria for complete registration, their knowledge of the effectiveness of the vaccine to protect against HBV, and their perceived susceptibility to HBV infection. Conversely, factors constraining respondents’ completion of immunization dosage were their forgetting the date for next appointment, their perception that the vaccine was not necessary, their lack of knowledge about the total number of doses to be take
Fluorine-18-fluorouracil to predict therapy response in liver metastases from colorectal carcinoma.

UNLABELLED Prediction of chemotherapy response is still a problem in oncological patients. METHODS Studies with PET and 18F-fluorouracil (FU) were used for measurements of drug concentrations in patients with liver metastases from colorectal carcinoma. The PET data obtained before onset of FU chemotherapy were correlated to the growth rate of the metastases after therapy. The final evaluation included 25 metastases obtained in 17 patients. CT preceded the first chemotherapeutic cycle and was repeated within 3-11 mo after onset of treatment. The uptake of the cytostatic agent was evaluated in the liver metastases using the SUV at 120 min after tracer infusion. Tumor growth rate of the metastases was calculated based on CT volumetric data. RESULTS The trapping of 18F-FU was highly variable even for multiple metastases in the same patients. Six metastases with high 18F-FU uptake values exceeding 3.0 SUV correlated with negative growth rate values, 5 of 25 metastases with intermediate uptake values ranging from 2.0-3.0 SUV were associated with almost stable growth rate values nearly zero and 14 of 25 metastases with low uptake values <2.0 SUV demonstrated positive growth rate values. Only metastases with a 18F-FU uptake exceeding 3.0 SUV at 120 min postinjection demonstrated a response to therapy. A significant correlation of 0.86 (p < 0.001) was found between the 18F-FU uptake values in the metastases measured before chemotherapy and the growth rate of the lesions after treatment. CONCLUSION The data show, that FU chemotherapy outcome can be predicted using a single PET study with 18F-FU before onset to therapy.