Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Recommendation on How to Analyze In-Room PET for In Vivo Proton Range Verification Using a Distal PET Surface Method

We describe the rationale and implementation of a method for analyzing in-room positron emission tomography (PET) data to verify the proton beam range. The method is based on analyzing distal PET surfaces after passive scattering proton beam delivery. Typically in vivo range verification is done by comparing measured and predicted PET distribution for a single activity level at a selected activity line along the beam passage. In the method presented here, we suggest using a middle point method based on dual PET activity levels to minimize the uncertainty due to local variations in the PET activity. Furthermore, we introduce 2-dimensional (2D) PET activity level surfaces based on 3-dimensional maps of the PET activities along the beam passage. This allows determining not only average range differences but also range difference distributions as well as root mean square deviations (RMSDs) for a more comprehensive range analysis. The method is demonstrated using data from 8 patients who were scanned with an in-room PET scanner. For each of the 8 patients, the average range difference was less than 5 mm and the RMSD was 4 to 11 mm between the measured and simulated PET activity level surfaces for single-field treatments. An ongoing protocol at our institution allows the use of a single field for patients being imaged for the PET range verification study at 1 fraction during their treatment course. Visualizing the range difference distributions using the PET surfaces offers a convenient visual verification of range uncertainties in 2D. Using the distal activity level surfaces of simulated and measured PET distributions at the middle of 25% and 50% activity level is a robust method for in vivo range verification.
Functional expression of the peptide transporter PEPT2 in the mammalian enteric nervous system

The peptide transporter PEPT2 mediates transmembrane uptake of small peptides. So far, its expression has not been evidenced in the gastrointestinal tract. We have investigated peptide transport activity in the neuromuscular layers of the gastrointestinal tract by using the fluorescent tracer‐dipeptide β‐Ala‐Lys‐Nϵ‐7‐amino‐4‐methyl‐coumarin‐3‐acetic acid (Ala‐Lys‐AMCA). Whole‐mount preparations from mouse, rat, and guinea pig stomach and small and large intestine were incubated with Ala‐Lys‐AMCA in the presence or absence of the uptake‐inhibitors L‐histidine, D‐phenylalanyl‐L‐alanine (D‐Phe‐Ala), glycyl‐L‐sarcosine (Gly‐Sar), glycyl‐L‐glutamine (Gly‐Gln), benzylpenicillin, and cefadroxil. Fluorescence microscopy revealed that Ala‐Lys‐AMCA specifically accumulated in both ganglionic layers of the enteric nervous system (ENS) in all regions and species studied. This could be inhibited by Gly‐Sar, D‐Phe‐Ala, Gly‐Gln, and cefadroxil, but not by free histidine and benzylpenicillin, indicating uptake via PEPT2. Accordingly, dipeptide uptake was completely abolished in PEPT2‐deficient mice. Reverse transcriptase‐polymerase chain reaction analysis detected a PEPT2‐specific transcript in extracts from the ganglionic ENS layers of mouse small and large intestine, further proving that enteric dipeptide transport activity is specifically mediated via PEPT2. The cellular site of dipeptide uptake was immunohistochemically localized to enteric glial cells and tissue‐resident macrophages. In addition, dipeptide uptake occurred in a neurochemically defined subset of neurons in the guinea pig ENS. Our results constitute the first functional evidence for dipeptide transport activity in the ENS. PEPT2‐mediated dipeptide transport in enteric glia could contribute to the clearance of neuropeptides in the ENS. In addition, the fluorophore‐coupled dipeptide uptake via PEPT2 is a novel vital marker for glial cells in the ENS. J. Comp. Neurol. 490:1–11, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Gravitating dyons and the Lue-Weinberg bifurcation

Gravitating 't Hooft\char21{}Polyakov magnetic monopoles can be constructed in the Georgi-Glashow model coupled to gravitation. For a given value of the Higgs boson mass, these gravitating solitons exist up to a critical value of the ratio of the vector meson mass to the Planck mass. The critical solution is characterized by a degenerate horizon of the metric. As pointed out recently by Lue and Weinberg, two types of critical solutions can occur, depending on the value of the Higgs boson mass. Here we investigate the classical equations for gravitating dyons and we show that the value of the Higgs boson mass where the Lue-Weinberg transition occurs decreases when the electric charge parameter increases.
Nursing performance under high workload: a diary study on the moderating role of selection, optimization and compensation strategies.

AIMS The aim of this study was to investigate whether selective optimization with compensation constitutes an individualized action strategy for nurses wanting to maintain job performance under high workload. BACKGROUND High workload is a major threat to healthcare quality and performance. Selective optimization with compensation is considered to enhance the efficient use of intra-individual resources and, therefore, is expected to act as a buffer against the negative effects of high workload. DESIGN The study applied a diary design. Over five consecutive workday shifts, self-report data on workload was collected at three randomized occasions during each shift. Self-reported job performance was assessed in the evening. Self-reported selective optimization with compensation was assessed prior to the diary reporting. METHODS Data were collected in 2010. Overall, 136 nurses from 10 German hospitals participated. Selective optimization with compensation was assessed with a nine-item scale that was specifically developed for nursing. The NASA-TLX scale indicating the pace of task accomplishment was used to measure workload. Job performance was assessed with one item each concerning performance quality and forgetting of intentions. RESULTS There was a weaker negative association between workload and both indicators of job performance in nurses with a high level of selective optimization with compensation, compared with nurses with a low level. Considering the separate strategies, selection and compensation turned out to be effective. CONCLUSION The use of selective optimization with compensation is conducive to nurses' job performance under high workload levels. This finding is in line with calls to empower nurses' individual decision-making.
FACTORS INFLUENCING STRATEGIC CHANGE MANAGEMENT ON ORGANAZATION PERFORMANCE. A CASE STUDY OF KENYA POWER THIKA STATION

Systematic approach to change management is needed to ensure that an organization change is guided in the planned direction, conducted in a cost effective manner and completed within the targeted time frame and with the desired results. The purpose of this study was to analyze the factors that influence strategic change management on the performance of Kenya Power, Thika Station. The study was based on the following variables: organizational culture, communication strategies and stakeholders involvement. The research design adopted case study. The target population comprised of 1400 employees of Kenya Power in supervisory level and above in Central Kenya region working in Thika station and adopted simple random sampling technique. The sample size was 302 respondents selected using Krejcie and Morgan model. The research instruments used in this study was questionnaires. Pilot study was done on randomly selected staff within the Kenya Power Thika Station, and the Reliability coefficient of 0.81 was obtained hence the research instrument were treated to be reliable. Data was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics where the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 20 was used for data analysis. The study found out that organization culture, communication strategy and stakeholder involvement in the strategic change management had a positive relationship with the organization performance. The P-values for the variables were less than 0.05, and therefore evident of significant relationship between the strategic change management and performance at Kenya Power Thika station, Kenya. The study concluded that organization culture, communication strategy and stakeholder involvement affects organization performance. The study recommended for the management to continue implementing the strategic change management in achieving better organization performance. Key Words: Organization Culture, Communication Strategy, Stakeholders Involvement
How best to orient travellers with acquired brain injury: A comparison of three directional prompts

Primary objective: To compare the effects of written landmark, cardinal and left/right street directions on navigational success at the beginning of a walking route. Research design: Matched control group comparison design. Methods and procedures: This study compared navigational performance of 18 adults with acquired brain injury (ABI) to controls matched for gender, age and education. Participants followed written directions with landmark, cardinal or left/right directions at each of four locations. Dependent measures included accuracy, directness, stated confidence and preference. Main results: Participants with ABI demonstrated greater errors and hesitancy than controls when presented with cardinal and left/right directions. Both groups performed equally well with landmark directions. All participants stated preference for landmark directions. Participants with ABI were more likely to guess or become confused when following cardinal or left/right directions. Conclusions: Landmarks served as a performance equalizer between groups for navigational performance at the start of a walking route. Implications for the design of navigational assistive tools and future research are discussed.
Repair , Regeneration , and Fibrosis

Observations regarding the repair of wounds (i.e., wound healing) date to physicians in ancient Egypt and battle surgeons in classic Greece. The liver’s ability to regenerate forms the basis of the Greek myth involving Prometheus. The clotting of blood to prevent exsanguination was recognized as the first necessary event in wound healing. At the time of the American Civil War, the development of “laudable pus” in wounds was thought to be necessary, and its emergence was not appreciated as a symptom of infection but considered a positive sign in the healing process. Later studies of wound infection led to the discovery that inflammatory cells are primary actors in the repair process. Although scurvy (see Chapter 8) was described in the 16th century by the British navy, it was not until the 20th century that vitamin C (ascorbic acid) was found to be necessary for the function of prolyl hydroxylase, an enzyme required for proper folding and stabilization of collagen into a triple helix. The study of wound healing now encompasses a complex environment containing many cell types, matrix proteins, growth factors, and cytokines, which regulate and modulate the repair process. Nearly every stage in the repair process is redundantly controlled, and there is no single rate-limiting step, with the possible exception of the ingress of inflammatory cells. Successful healing maintains tissue function and repairs tissue barriers, preventing blood loss and infection, but is usually accomplished through collagen deposition or scarring (fibrosis). Advances in our understanding of growth factors, extracellular matrix and stem cell biology are improving healing, and offer the possibility of regenerating tissues to their normal architecture and of engineering replacement tissues. Successful repair relies upon a crucial balance between the yin of matrix deposition and the yang of matrix degradation. Regenerative processes are favored when the matrix composition and architecture are unaltered. Thus, wounds that do not heal may reflect excess proteinase activity, decreased matrix accumulation, or altered matrix assembly. Conversely, fibrosis and scarring may result from reduced proteinase activity or increased matrix accumulation. Whereas the formation of new collagen during repair is required for increased strength of the healing site, chronic fibrosis is a major component of diseases that involve chronic injury.
Whole‐body imaging of the distribution of mercury released from dental fillings into monkey tissues

The fate of mercury (Hg) released from dental “silver” amalgam tooth fillings into human mouth air is uncertain. A previous report about sheep revealed uptake routes and distribution of amalgam Hg among body tissues. The present investigation demonstrates the bodily distribution of amalgam Hg in a monkey whose dentition, diet, feeding regimen, and chewing pattern closely resemble those of humans. When amalgam fillings, which normally contain 50% Hg, are made with a tracer of radioactive 203Hg and then placed into monkey teeth, the isotope appears in high concentration in various organs and tissues within 4 wk. Whole‐body images of the monkey revealed that the highest levels of Hg were located in the kidney, gastrointestinal tract, and jaw. The dental profession's advocacy of silver amalgam as a stable tooth restorative material is not supported by these findings. — Hahn, L. J.; Kloiber, R. ; Leininger, R. W. ; Vimy, M. J.; Lorscheider, F. L. Whole‐body imaging of the distribution of mercury released from dental fillings into monkey tissues. FASEB J. 4: 3256‐3260; 1990.
Sphingomyelin potentiates chemotherapy of human cancer xenografts.

We propose that one manifestation of altered sphingolipid metabolism within tumor cells may be a reduced sensitivity to anti-cancer therapies because of an inability to produce a sufficient apoptotic signal via sphingomyelin hydrolysis to ceramide. If so, then sphingomyelin administration could reverse this effect and increase a tumor's sensitivity to chemotherapy. In vivo, intravenous sphingomyelin (10 mg/day, 7 days) potentiated 5-fluorouracil chemotherapy (0.45 mg/day, 5 days) when co-administered to HT29 human colonic xenograft-bearing nude mice. In vitro, sphingomyelin (SM) at its maximum tolerated concentration increased 5-fluorouracil and doxorubicin sensitivity of HCT15 and MOSER (1 mg/ml SM) and LS174T and SW480 human colonic tumor cells (0.1 mg/ml) approximately 100-300%. At 1 mg/ml SM, however, no effect was seen using HT29, LoVo and WiDr cells. There was no sensitization of normal human umbilical cord endothelial cells. Thus, sphingomyelin co-administration may be one method to improve the selective efficacy of chemotherapy in some tumors, possibly through enhancement of the apoptotic response.
Does thyroid supplementation accelerate tricyclic antidepressant response? A review and meta-analysis of the literature.

OBJECTIVE The delayed onset of therapeutic response to antidepressants remains a major problem in the treatment of depression. Among the strategies to accelerate response to treatment, the early addition of thyroid hormone to antidepressants has been suggested as a viable method. The authors performed a meta-analysis of the literature on the use of thyroid hormone supplementation to accelerate the treatment of depression to determine whether there is sufficient evidence to support the clinical efficacy of this strategy. METHOD Both a computer-aided search of the National Library of Medicine MEDLINE and an intensive search by hand were conducted to identify all double-blind, placebo-controlled studies assessing the concomitant administration of thyroid hormone and antidepressant to accelerate clinical response in patients with nonrefractory depression. RESULTS Six studies were identified. All were conducted with triiodothyronine (T(3)) and a tricyclic antidepressant. Five of the six studies found T(3) to be significantly more effective than placebo in accelerating clinical response. The pooled, weighted effect size index was 0.58, and the average effect was highly significant. Further, the effects of T(3) acceleration were greater as the percentage of women participating in the study increased. CONCLUSIONS This meta-analysis supports the efficacy of T(3) in accelerating clinical response to tricyclic antidepressants in patients with nonrefractory depression. Furthermore, women may be more likely than men to benefit from this intervention.
Pulmonary vascular effects of dobutamine in experimental pulmonary hypertension

ObjectiveTo characterize the dose-related effects of dobutamine on pulmonary vascular tone and associated changes in right ventricular afterload in canine microembolic lung injury. DesignProspective, interventional study. SettingUniversity laboratory. SubjectsTen anesthetized and ventilated dogs. InterventionsRight heart catheterization for the measurement of pulmonary vascular resistance by multipoint mean pulmonary artery pressure (Ppa)/cardiac output (Q) plots, partitioning of pulmonary vascular resistance by the occlusion method, and determination of pulmonary arterial input impedance from spectral analysis of Ppa and Q waves, in ten anesthetized and ventilated dogs, before and after induction of acute microembolic lung injury, and without or with 5, 10, 15, and 20 &mgr;g·kg−1·min−1 dobutamine. Measurements and Main ResultsMicroembolic pulmonary hypertension was associated with a shift of Ppa/Q plots to higher pressures, a slight decrease in the arterial component of pulmonary vascular resistance, a decrease in characteristic impedance, and an increase in the pulsatile component of right ventricular hydraulic load. At baseline, dobutamine had no effect on Ppa/Q plots at 5 and 10 &mgr;g·kg−1·min−1 but increased Ppa at 15 and 20 &mgr;g·kg−1·min−1. In microembolic pulmonary hypertension, the only effect of dobutamine on Ppa/Q plots was a decrease in Ppa at 20 &mgr;g·kg−1·min−1. Dobutamine had no effect on the partitioning of pulmonary vascular resistance or on pulmonary arterial input impedance spectrum. ConclusionsDobutamine at doses up to 10 &mgr;g·kg−1·min−1 has no flow-independent effect on the normal or the acutely hypertensive pulmonary circulation. Higher doses may be constricting or dilating depending on preexisting tone.
Template Requirement and Initiation Site Selection by Hepatitis C Virus Polymerase on a Minimal Viral RNA Template*

RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, NS5B protein, catalyzes replication of viral genomic RNA, which presumably initiates from the 3′-end. We have previously shown that NS5B can utilize the 3′-end 98-nucleotide (nt) X region of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) genome as a minimal authentic template. In this study, we used this RNA to characterize the mechanism of RNA synthesis by the recombinant NS5B. We first showed that NS5B formed a complex with the 3′-end of HCV RNA by binding to both the poly(U-U/C)-rich and X regions of the 3′-untranslated region as well as part of the NS5B-coding sequences. Within the X region, NS5B bound stem II and the single-stranded region connecting stem-loops I and II. Truncation of 40 nt or more from the 3′-end of the X region abolished its template activity, whereas X RNA lacking 35 nt or less from the 3′-end retained template activity, consistent with the NS5B-binding site mapped. Furthermore, NS5B initiated RNA synthesis from a specific site within the single-stranded loop I. All of the RNA templates that have a double-stranded stem at the 3′-end had the same RNA initiation site. However, the addition of single-stranded nucleotides to the 3′-end of X RNA or removal of double-stranded structure in stem I generated RNA products of template size. These results indicate that HCV NS5B initiates RNA synthesis from a single-stranded region closest to the 3′-end of the X region. These results have implications for the mechanism of HCV RNA replication and the nature of HCV RNA templates in the infected cells.
UC Merced Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society Title Information Selection in the Blogosphere : The Effect of Expertise , Community Rating

The World Wide Web offers a lot of information that has been provided by laypersons instead of experts or professional journalists. This raises the question how Internet users perceive credibility of online authors and which information on the source influences the users’ selection and processing of texts. Our study investigated the effect of selfreported expertise, community rating, and age of weblog authors. In an online laboratory experiment, information seeking behavior of 60 participants on a science weblog was analyzed. As exemplary scenario, the discussion on the effects of violent media contents on children was chosen. Results showed that authors with a high level of expertise (operationalized by the author’s self-reported profession) were rated as more credible and their texts were selected for further reading more frequently. This suggests that selfreported expertise emerges as a strong cue for information selection, whereas there was only partial evidence for the importance of community ratings.
Arsenic Trioxide Prevents Murine Sclerodermatous Graft-versus-Host Disease

Chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) follows allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. It results from alloreactive processes induced by minor MHC incompatibilities triggered by activated APCs, such as plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs), and leading to the activation of CD4 T cells. Therefore, we tested whether CD4+ and pDCs, activated cells that produce high levels of reactive oxygen species, could be killed by arsenic trioxide (As2O3), a chemotherapeutic drug used in the treatment of acute promyelocytic leukemia. Indeed, As2O3 exerts its cytotoxic effects by inducing a powerful oxidative stress that exceeds the lethal threshold. Sclerodermatous GVHD was induced in BALB/c mice by body irradiation, followed by B10.D2 bone marrow and spleen cell transplantation. Mice were simultaneously treated with daily i.p. injections of As2O3. Transplanted mice displayed severe clinical symptoms, including diarrhea, alopecia, vasculitis, and fibrosis of the skin and visceral organs. The symptoms were dramatically abrogated in mice treated with As2O3. These beneficial effects were mediated through the depletion of glutathione and the overproduction of H2O2 that killed activated CD4+ T cells and pDCs. The dramatic improvement provided by As2O3 in the model of sclerodermatous GVHD that associates fibrosis with immune activation provides a rationale for the evaluation of As2O3 in the management of patients affected by chronic GVHD.