Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The microstructural and biomechanical development of the condylar bone: a review.

BACKGROUND Bone constantly strives for optimal architecture. Mandibular condyle, which is subjected to various mechanical loads forcing it to be highly adaptive, has a unique structure and a relatively high remodelling rate. Despite the eminent clinical relevance of mandibular condyle, literature on its structural and biomechanical development and on the mechanical role of its mineralized and non-mineralized bone components is scarce. OBJECTIVE The aim of the present review is to provide a brief introduction to basic bone mechanics and a synopsis of the growth and development of human mandibular condyle. Subsequently, the current ideas on the relationship between the structural and biomechanical properties of bone in general and of mandibular condyle in particular are reviewed. Finally, up-to-date knowledge from fundamental bone research will be blended with the current knowledge relevant to clinical dentistry, above all orthodontics. METHODS A comprehensive literature study was performed with an emphasis on recent and innovative work focusing on the interaction between microarchitectural and micromechanical properties of bone. CONCLUSIONS Mandibular condyle is a bone structure with a high bone turnover rate. Mechanical properties of mandibular condyle improve during adolescence and are optimal during adulthood. Local mineralization degree might not be a decisive determinant of the local bone tissue stiffness as was believed hitherto. Bone collagen and its cross links play a role in toughness and tensile strength of bone but not in its compressive properties. Clinical procedures might affect mandibular condyle, which is highly reactive to changes in its mechanical environment.
No Increase of Plasma Malondialdehyde after Primary Coronary Angioplasty for Acute Myocardial Infarction

Objective : Free radicals formed after coronary artery occlusion and reperfusion are assumed to produce myocardial stunning and possibly other forms of reperfusion injury as well. Malondialdehyde (MDA) is an end product in the lipid peroxidation chain reaction and is frequently used as a marker for free oxygen radical production. Increased levels of plasma MDA have been found following successful thrombolytic therapy. The aim of this study was to investigate whether plasma MDA levels also increase after successful primary percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) in acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Design : In 23 patients with AMI, treated with primary PTCA, plasma MDA was analysed using a high-performance liquid chromatography method (HPLC). The results obtained with this method were compared with those obtained with a fluorimetric assay of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS). This assay measures MDA but with a lower specificity. Results : We found a significant decrease of plasma MDA from baseline 0.99 to 0.87 µmol/l at 30 min and to 0.90 µmol/l at 90 min following the primary PTCA ( p = 0.048 and 0.014, respectively). No significant changes in TBARS method levels were observed. Conclusion : Instead of the expected increase in MDA following reperfusion we found a significant decrease. The results from measurements of MDA and TBARS were significantly incompatible. The results raise serious doubts as to the usefulness of increased plasma levels of MDA as a marker of oxidative stress caused by coronary reperfusion in patients treated with angioplasty.
Energy Efficient Communication for Secure D2D Underlaid Cellular Networks

We study energy-efficient secure communication in large-scale device-to-device (D2D) underlaid cellular networks, where base stations (BSs) and D2D users send their messages occupying the same spectrum while eavesdroppers (Eve nodes) overhear their transmissions. First, we consider the secure cellular network where users operate only in the cellular mode. We propose a link adaptation of the cellular network that strikes a balance between secrecy energy efficiency (SEE) and secrecy spectral efficiency (SSE) by maximizing the weighted product of SEE and SSE. Besides, we show that SSE first increases and then decreases with the BS power when the ratio of the eavesdropper (Eve) node density to the BS density is above a certain threshold while it monotonically increases when the Eve-to-BS density ratio is below the threshold. On the other hand, SEE first increases and then decreases with the BS power regardless of the Eve-to-BS density ratio. Next, we study how to deploy the secure D2D network under the existing secure cellular network while guaranteeing an acceptable secrecy performance of the cellular network. We show that the secrecy performance of the cellular network decreases with the D2D power when the Eve nodes are sparse while it first increases and then decreases when the Eve nodes are dense. Based on the result, we propose a link adaptation for the D2D network that maximizes the weighted product of SEE and SSE under the secrecy performance constraint of the cellular network. Simulation results show that the proposed link-adaptation schemes can achieve all the points on the Pareto boundary in SSE–SEE plane.
Functional Foxp3+ CD4+ CD25(Bright+) “Natural” Regulatory T Cells Are Abundant in Rabbit Conjunctiva and Suppress Virus-Specific CD4+ and CD8+ Effector T Cells during Ocular Herpes Infection

ABSTRACT We studied the phenotype and distribution of “naturally” occurring CD4+ CD25+ T regulatory cells (CD4+ CD25+ nTreg cells) resident in rabbit conjunctiva, the main T-cell inductive site of the ocular mucosal immune system, and we investigated their suppressive capacities using herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1)-specific effector T (Teff) cells induced during ocular infection. The expression of CD4, CD25, CTLA4, GITR, and Foxp3 was examined by reverse transcription-PCR, Western blotting, and fluorescence-activated cell sorter analysis in CD45+ pan-leukocytes isolated from conjunctiva, spleen, and peripheral blood monocyte cells (PBMC) of HSV-1-infected and uninfected rabbits. Normal conjunctiva showed a higher frequency of CD4+ CD25(Bright+) T cells than did spleen and PBMC. These cells expressed high levels of Foxp3, GITR, and CTLA4 molecules. CD4+ CD25(Bright+) T cells were localized continuously along the upper and lower palpebral and bulbar conjunctiva, throughout the epithelium and substantia propria. Conjunctiva-derived CD4+ CD25(Bright+) T cells, but not CD4+ CD25(low) T cells, efficiently suppressed HSV-specific CD4+ and CD8+ Teff cells. The CD4+ CD25(Bright+) T-cell-mediated suppression was effective on both peripheral blood and conjunctiva infiltrating Teff cells and was cell-cell contact dependent but independent of interleukin-10 and transforming growth factor β. Interestingly, during an ocular herpes infection, there was a selective increase in the frequency and suppressive capacity of Foxp3+ CD4+ CD25(Bright+) T cells in conjunctiva but not in the spleen or in peripheral blood. Altogether, these results provide the first evidence that functional Foxp3+ CD4+ CD25(Bright+) Treg cells accumulate in the conjunctiva. It remains to be determined whether conjunctiva CD4+ CD25+ nTreg cells affect the topical/mucosal delivery of subunit vaccines that stimulate the ocular mucosal immune system.
Nonequilibrium landscape theory of neural networks

Significance The brain map project aims at mapping out human brain neuron connections. Even with given wirings, the global and physical understandings of the function and behavior of the brain are still challenging. Learning and memory processes were previously globally quantified for symmetrically connected neural networks. However, realistic neural networks of cognitive processes and physiological rhythm regulations are asymmetrically connected. We developed a nonequilibrium landscape–flux theory for asymmetrically connected neural networks. We found the landscape topography is critical in determining the global stability and function of the neural networks. The cognitive dynamics is determined by both landscape gradient and flux. For rapid-eye movement sleep cycles, we predicted the key network wirings based on landscape topography, in agreement with experiments. The brain map project aims to map out the neuron connections of the human brain. Even with all of the wirings mapped out, the global and physical understandings of the function and behavior are still challenging. Hopfield quantified the learning and memory process of symmetrically connected neural networks globally through equilibrium energy. The energy basins of attractions represent memories, and the memory retrieval dynamics is determined by the energy gradient. However, the realistic neural networks are asymmetrically connected, and oscillations cannot emerge from symmetric neural networks. Here, we developed a nonequilibrium landscape–flux theory for realistic asymmetrically connected neural networks. We uncovered the underlying potential landscape and the associated Lyapunov function for quantifying the global stability and function. We found the dynamics and oscillations in human brains responsible for cognitive processes and physiological rhythm regulations are determined not only by the landscape gradient but also by the flux. We found that the flux is closely related to the degrees of the asymmetric connections in neural networks and is the origin of the neural oscillations. The neural oscillation landscape shows a closed-ring attractor topology. The landscape gradient attracts the network down to the ring. The flux is responsible for coherent oscillations on the ring. We suggest the flux may provide the driving force for associations among memories. We applied our theory to rapid-eye movement sleep cycle. We identified the key regulation factors for function through global sensitivity analysis of landscape topography against wirings, which are in good agreements with experiments.
Event legacy framework and measurement

ABSTRACT This article presents the development of a new approach for measuring mega sport event legacy and is based on the Olympic Games as a reference. The legacy of mega sport events has gained ever more importance during recent years for both academics and practitioners. While the sport organisations gain large revenues, cities lose. Such costs, mixed with political discussions over host government spending of public money, seem to evermore prove that there is the potential for corruption, and increased scrutiny by a variety of stakeholders has led to concerns over the benefits of the Olympic Games for the host region. Thus, the politicians call for referendums and over the past 6 years all of the referendums had negative results. Therefore, the research aims for this article are to identify the long-term costs and benefits of staging the Olympic Games and at least suggest some possible methodology for the measurement of those costs and benefits. The focus of the article is set investigating the shortcomings regarding legacy literature. A previously built theoretical framework will be expanded to provide a better manageable legacy framework.
Traffic sign recognition system for autonomous vehicle using cascade SVM classifier

In past two decades, developing a system that can navigate vehicle autonomously becomes more interesting problem. The vehicle is equipped by sensors, such as radar, laser, GPS, and camera for sensing the surrounding. Among them, utilization of camera with computer vision technique is the most adopted method for constructing such a system. It is because camera provides a lot of information and is low-cost device rather than other sensors. Traffic road sign, as one of the important information from camera, carries a lot of useful information that are required for navigating. Thus, in this work, traffic sign detection and recognition is addressed. First, the input image is converted into normalize red and blue color space, as traffic sign usually appear with red and blue color. Second, maximally extremal stable region is then performed for extracting candidate region. Using heuristic rule of geometry properties, the false region will be excluded. Third, histogram of oriented gradient method is applied in order to extract feature from candidate region. Lastly, cascade support vector machine classifier is then processed to classify region belong to certain class of traffic sign. The extensive experiment would be carried out over German traffic sign recognition database and video. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our systems.
Mast cell phenotype, location, and activation in severe asthma. Data from the Severe Asthma Research Program.

RATIONALE Severe asthma (SA) remains poorly understood. Mast cells (MC) are implicated in asthma pathogenesis, but it remains unknown how their phenotype, location, and activation relate to asthma severity. OBJECTIVES To compare MC-related markers measured in bronchoscopically obtained samples with clinically relevant parameters between normal subjects and subjects with asthma to clarify their pathobiologic importance. METHODS Endobronchial biopsies, epithelial brushings, and bronchoalveolar lavage were obtained from subjects with asthma and normal subjects from the Severe Asthma Research Program (N = 199). Tryptase, chymase, and carboxypeptidase A (CPA)3 were used to identify total MC (MC(Tot)) and the MC(TC) subset (MCs positive for both tryptase and chymase) using immunostaining and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction. Lavage was analyzed for tryptase and prostaglandin D2 (PGD2) by ELISA. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS Submucosal MC(Tot) (tryptase-positive by immunostaining) numbers were highest in "mild asthma/no inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) therapy" subjects and decreased with greater asthma severity (P = 0.002). In contrast, MC(TC) (chymase-positive by immunostaining) were the predominant (MC(TC)/MC(Tot) > 50%) MC phenotype in SA (overall P = 0.005). Epithelial MC(Tot) were also highest in mild asthma/no ICS, but were not lower in SA. Instead, they persisted and were predominantly MC(TC). Epithelial CPA3 and tryptase mRNA supported the immunostaining data (overall P = 0.008 and P = 0.02, respectively). Lavage PGD2 was higher in SA than in other steroid-treated groups (overall P = 0.02), whereas tryptase did not differentiate the groups. In statistical models, PGD2 and MC(TC)/MC(Tot) predicted SA. CONCLUSIONS Severe asthma is associated with a predominance of MC(TC) in the airway submucosa and epithelium. Activation of those MC(TC) may contribute to the increases in PGD2 levels. The data suggest an altered and active MC population contributes to SA pathology.
Using a Team-Based Learning Approach at National Meetings to Teach Residents Genomic Pathology.

BACKGROUND Accumulating data suggest that team-based learning (TBL) is more effective than lecture-based teaching strategies. Educational sessions at national meetings, however, tend to be lecture-based, and unlike most examples of TBL, involve participants who do not know each other or the instructor. OBJECTIVE We evaluated a 1-day TBL genomic pathology workshop for residents held at 3 national meetings. METHODS A committee of experts developed the workshop. Prior to attending, participants were provided access to readings and asked to answer preparation questions. Each of the 4 modules within the workshop consisted of a 60-minute TBL activity flanked by 15- to 30-minute preactivity and postactivity lectures. We used surveys to acquire participant evaluation of the workshop. RESULTS From 2013-2014, 86 pathology residents from 61 programs participated in 3 workshops at national meetings. All workshops were well received, with over 90% of attendees indicating that they would recommend them to other residents and that the material would help them as practicing pathologists. An incremental approach facilitated decreasing faculty presence at the workshops: the first 2 workshops had 7 faculty each (1 facilitator for each team and 1 circulating faculty member), while the final workshop involved only 2 faculty for 6 teams. For this final session, participants agreed that circulating faculty provided adequate support. Participant "buy-in" (requiring completion of a preworkshop survey) was critical in enabling a TBL approach. CONCLUSIONS These results demonstrate that TBL is a feasible and effective strategy for teaching genomic medicine that is acceptable to pathology residents at national meetings.
Rasch analysis of the Perceived Stress Scale: Transformation from an ordinal to a linear measure

Rasch analysis was conducted to enhance the precision of the widely used 10-item Perceived Stress Scale using two datasets (n = 450 each) randomly selected from samples of the New Zealand general population (n = 1102), New Zealand university students (n = 479) and US university students (n = 396). The best Rasch model fit (χ2(27) = 29.92, p = . 36), good person separation reliability (.80) and coverage (98%) of the sample by the scale items were achieved when locally dependent items were combined into subtests. These findings support reliability and internal structural validity of the 10-item Perceived Stress Scale. The instrument precision can be further improved using the ordinal-to-linear conversion tables published here.
Cash flow forecasting with risk consideration using Bayesian Belief Networks (BBNS)

AbstractCash-flow management is very important for contractors given that inadequate cash resources typically are the main causes for bankruptcy of construction companies. In comparison to most other industries, the construction industry is severely plagued by risk, and the success of construction projects usually depends on valuating all risks. However, conventional methods suggested by extant research on cash flow forecasting do not consider comprehensive identification of risk factors, interactions between the factors, and simultaneous occurrences of the factors. This study introduced a simple and appropriate probabilistic cash flow forecasting model using Bayesian Belief Networks (BBNs) to avoid bankruptcy of contractors by considering influence diagrams and risk factors that affect a project. Workability and reliability of the proposed approach was tested on an important building construction project in Iran as a real case study, and the results indicated that the model performed well.
Simulated joint infection assessment by rapid detection of live bacteria with real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction.

BACKGROUND Although microbiological bacterial culture is currently considered the gold standard for diagnosis of septic arthritis, many studies have documented substantial false-negative and false-positive rates. The objective of this study was to determine whether real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction can be used to detect bacterial messenger RNA (mRNA) in synovial fluid as a way to distinguish live and dead bacteria as an indicator of active infection. METHODS Synovial fluid samples were obtained from twelve consecutive patients who presented with knee pain and effusion but no evidence of infection. Following assurance of sterility with plate cultures, each sample was inoculated with clinically relevant bacteria and incubated for twenty-four hours to simulate septic arthritis. Bacterial viability and load were assessed with cultures. Selected samples were also treated with a single dose of a combination of two antibiotics, vancomycin and gentamicin, and sampled at several time points. Total RNA isolated from each sample was analyzed in triplicate with one-step real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction to detect mRNA encoding for the genes groEL or femC. Controls included sterile, uninoculated samples and inoculated samples analyzed with quantitative polymerase chain reaction without reverse transcription. mRNA content was estimated on the basis of detection limits as a function of serial dilutions and was expressed as a function of colony number in bacterial cultures and RNA content as determined spectrophotometrically. RESULTS All synovial fluid samples that had been inoculated with one of the four bacterial species, and analyzed in triplicate, were identified (distinguished from aseptic synovial fluid) with real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction; there were no false-negative results. All inoculated samples produced bacterial colonies on culture plates, while cultures of the aseptic samples were negative for growth. The detection limit of the one-step bacterial mRNA-based real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction varied depending on the bacterial species. A time-dependent decrease in the concentration of detectable bacterial mRNA was seen after incubation of bacteria with antibiotics. CONCLUSIONS The direct quantification of the concentration of viable bacterial mRNA with real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction allows identification of both culture-positive bacterial infection and so-called unculturable bacterial infection in a simulated septic arthritis model. In contrast to conventional polymerase chain reaction, real-time quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction minimizes false-positive detection of nonviable bacteria and thus provides relevant information on the success or failure of antibiotic therapy.
Potential Dual Role of Activating Transcription Factor 3 in Colorectal Cancer.

BACKGROUND/AIM Activating transcription factor 3 (ATF3) is a member of the ATF/CREB transcription factor family and has been proposed as a molecular target for cancer therapy. The present study was undertaken in order to investigate whether ATF3 influences cancer-related phenotypes in colorectal cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS ATF3 was overexpressed in human colorectal cancer cells and the effects of ATF3 on apoptosis, cell cycle, cell migration and epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT) were investigated. B-cell lymphoma-2 (Bcl-2) promoter was cloned and used for luciferase assay in cells transfected with control or ATF3 expression vector. RESULTS ATF3 down-regulated the expression of Bcl-2 and promoter activity of the Bcl-2 gene. ATF3 increased collective cell migration and expression of cluster of differentiation 44 (CD44) and decreased retinoblastoma (Rb) expression. In addition, ATF3 down-regulated EMT-inducing transcription factors and β-catenin. CONCLUSION ATF3 may play a dichotomous role in apoptosis and metastasis in human colorectal cancer cells.
Stress-Activated Protein Kinases Are Involved in Coxsackievirus B3 Viral Progeny Release

ABSTRACT Stress-activated protein kinases (SAPKs), consisting of c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK), are activated upon various environmental stimuli, including viral infections. Cellular survival and death signaling events following coxsackievirus B3 (CVB3) infection have been studied in relationship to viral replication, but the role of SAPKs has not been scrutinized. In this study, we found that the phosphorylation of JNK1/2 and p38 MAPK was increased during active replication of CVB3 and that their phosphorylation was independent of CVB3-induced caspase activation or production of reactive oxygen species. The roles of these kinases in CVB3 infection were further evaluated using specific inhibitors: SP600125 for JNK1/2 and SB203580 for p38 MAPK. JNK1/2 inhibitors reduced CVB3-induced phosphorylation of activating transcription factor 2, and the p38 MAPK inhibitor reduced CVB3-induced phosphorylation of heat shock protein 27. Although inhibition of these kinases by specific inhibitors did not affect CVB3 viral protein synthesis, inhibition of p38 MAPK but not of JNK1/2 resulted in significant reduction of viral progeny release, suppression of CVB3-induced cell death, and blockage of CVB3-induced caspase-3 activation in infected cells. We conclude that SAPK pathways play critical roles in the life cycle of CVB3, particularly in viral progeny release.