Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Manufacturing Process and Various uses of Savannah Herbal Tea ( Lippia multiflora ) in Côte d ’ Ivoire EKISSI

1 This study aims at determining the manufacturing process of tea from Lippia multiflora collected in Côte d’Ivoire and describe its various uses. A survey was conducted among pickers, sellers and consumers in five cities (Abidjan, Yamoussoukro, Toumodi, Katiola and Bondoukou). The results show that (92.11%) of the women harvesting tea, cut leafy stems at tea tree base, (80.65%) carry their harvests on the head and (60.95%) dry their harvest from 1 to 3 days or 7 days. The harvest period ranging from April to August is the most important one (80.15%). In Abidjan, the use of Lippia multiflora as food is 79.80 % and in other areas of the country, it is used for both food and medicine with the respective frequencies of 46.56 and 46.44 % and its insecticidal use represents only (6,16%). It appears from this survey that the leaves of Lippia multiflora are most used by consumers; the manufacturing of this herbal tea is performed according to traditional process. The savannah tea has nutritional, insecticidal and medicinal values. It would be better to afford the opportunity to transform the leaves of Lippia multiflora in tea in order to have a crop with a high added value.
Optical emission studies of nitrogen plasma generated by IR CO2 laser pulses

Large-scale plasma produced in nitrogen gas at room temperature and pressures ranging from 4 × 103 to 1.2 × 105 Pa by high-power laser-induced dielectric breakdown (LIDB) has been investigated. Time-integrated optical nitrogen gas spectra excited from a CO2 laser have been measured and analysed. The spectrum of the generated plasma is dominated by the emission of strong N+ and N and very weak N2+ atomic lines and molecular features of N+2(B2Σ+u–X2Σ+g), N+2(D2Πg–A2Πu), N2(C3Πu–B3Πg) and very weak N2(B3Πg–A3Σ+u). The relative intensities of the 0–0 band heads in the N2(C–B) and N+2(B–X) systems are very weak as compared with the chemiluminescence spectrum of nitrogen formed in a glow discharge. An excitation temperature Texc = 21 000 ± 1300 K was calculated by means of the relative intensity of ionized nitrogen atomic lines assuming local thermodynamic equilibrium. Optical breakdown threshold intensities in N2 at 9.621 µm have been determined. The physical processes leading to the LIDB of nitrogen in the power density range 0.4 < J < 4.5 GW cm−2 have been analysed. From our experimental observations we can suggest that, although the first electrons must appear via multiphoton ionization or natural ionization, electron cascade is the main mechanism responsible for the LIDB in nitrogen.
Low power device technology with SiGe channel, HfSiON, and poly-Si gate

We report solutions to the formidable challenges posed by integrating a HfSiON dielectric with a poly-Si gate for low-power device technology. A 1.5 nm EOT HfSiON is demonstrated with mobility comparable to SiO/sub 2/ and 3 orders of magnitude leakage reduction. A novel boron delta-doped strained-SiGe channel points a way out of the high threshold voltage problem associated with Fermi-pinning at the high-k/poly-Si interface and ameliorates short-channel effects in PMOS devices. In addition, a 20% hole mobility enhancement and 15% I/sub on/-I/sub off/ characteristics improvement are achieved owing to the compressive SiGe channel. NMOS PBTI lifetime of 35 years, and PMOS NBTI and NMOS hot carrier lifetimes of more than 1000 years are demonstrated at 1.2 V.
AN ELECTROPHORETIC STUDY OF THE PROTEIN COMPONENTS IN CEREBROSPINAL FLUID AND THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO THE SERUM PROTEINS.

Increases in the total protein content of cerebrospinal fluid frequently occur in diseases of the nervous system, and the determination of total protein content is one of the most useful diagnostic laboratory procedures to the neurologist (1). The origin of the cerebrospinal fluid protein is usually considered to be the blood plasma and the increases in total protein content in meningitis are believed due to transudation of serum through the walls of inflamed vessels (1). In other conditions, such as polyneuritis, the reason for the elevated protein content is not clear (1). There are few data available regarding the composition of the cerebrospinal fluid proteins, chiefly because the small amounts of protein present make chemical studies difficult. Freund (2) has shown that the titre of antibody in the spinal fluid of passively immunized rabbits is about 1/300 that of the serum, which is of the same order as the ratio of the total protein of spinal fluid to that of serum. By the use of the Tiselius electrophoresis technic (3), the authors were able to demonstrate that the electrophoretic patterns of concentrated cerebrospinal fluids were similar to those of serum (4). The present report covers a more extensive study of the effect of variations in the serum proteins on the composition of the cerebrospinal fluid proteins, and of the changes in the proportions of the cerebrospinal fluid proteins in various neurological conditions. The fraction of cerebrospinal fluid associated with abnormal colloidal gold activity is identified, and the inhibiting effects of the albumin fraction on the colloidal gold reaction are considered.
Course The immune system in hypertension

Trott DW, Harrison DG. The immune system in hypertension. Adv Physiol Educ 38: 20–24, 2014; doi:10.1152/advan.00063. 2013. —While hypertension has predominantly been attributed to perturbations of the vasculature, kidney, and central nervous system, research for almost 50 yr has shown that the immune system also contributes to this disease. Inflammatory cells accumulate in the kidneys and vasculature of humans and experimental animals with hypertension and likely contribute to end-organ damage. We and others have shown that mice lacking adaptive immune cells, including recombinase-activating gene-deficient mice and rats and mice with severe combined immunodeficiency have blunted hypertension to stimuli such as ANG II, high salt, and norepinephrine. Adoptive transfer of T cells restores the blood pressure response to these stimuli. Agonistic antibodies to the ANG II receptor, produced by B cells, contribute to hypertension in experimental models of preeclampsia. The central nervous system seems important in immune cell activation, because lesions in the anteroventral third ventricle block hypertension and T cell activation in response to ANG II. Likewise, genetic manipulation of reactive oxygen species in the subfornical organ modulates both hypertension and immune cell activation. Current evidence indicates that the production of cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor, interleukin-17, and interleukin-6, contribute to hypertension, likely via effects on both the kidney and vasculature. In addition, the innate immune system also appears to contribute to hypertension. We propose a working hypothesis linking the sympathetic nervous system, immune cells, production of cytokines, and, ultimately, vascular and renal dysfunction, leading to the augmentation of hypertension. Studies of immune cell activation will clearly be useful in understanding this common yet complex disease.
Induction of proliferation of basal epidermal keratinocytes by cold atmospheric‐pressure plasma

Over the past few decades, new cold plasma sources have been developed that have the great advantage of operating at atmospheric pressure and at temperatures tolerable by biological material. New applications for these have emerged, especially in the field of dermatology. Recently it was demonstrated that cold atmospheric‐pressure plasma positively influences healing of chronic wounds. The potential of cold plasma lies in its capacity to reduce bacterial load in the wound while at the same time stimulating skin cells and therefore promoting wound closure. In recent years, there have been great advances in the understanding of the molecular mechanisms triggered by cold plasma involving signalling pathways and gene regulation in cell culture.
Systematic review of disparities in surgical care for Māori in New Zealand

Health equity for Indigenous peoples in the context of surgery has recently become topical amongst surgeons in Australasia. Health inequities are amongst the most consistent and compelling disparities between Māori and New Zealand Europeans (NZE) in New Zealand (NZ). We aimed to investigate where ethnic disparities in surgical care may occur and highlight some of the potential contributing factors, over all surgical specialties, between Māori and NZE adults in NZ.
Differential cytotoxic effect of natural thymocytotoxic autoantibody of NZB mice on functional subsets of T cells.

The effect of the natural thymocytotoxic autoantibody (NTA) of NZB mice on the functional T cell subsets was studied in an in vitro secondary antibody response. Dinitrophenylated keyhole limpet hemocyanin (DNP-KLH)-primed BALB/c spleen cells were treated with appropriate dilutions of NTA and complement, and then stimulated with DNP-KLH. Whereas the cytotoxic treatment of DNP-KLH-primed spleen cells with a low dilution of NTA and complement slightly suppressed the anti-DNP antibody response, the treatment at a higher dilution resulted in a significant enhancement of the antibody response. The enhancement was found due to the selective elimination of a part of T cells including suppressor T cells, which were more sensitive to NTA than helper T cells. This was confirmed by an experiment in which KLH-primed spleen cells were treated with appropriate dilutions of NTA and complement and then co-cultured with DNP-KLH-primed B cells resulting in a marked enhancement of the anti-DNP antibody response. The treatment of KLH-primed spleen cells with NTA in the same manner resulted in the loss of activity of the extractable antigen-specific suppressive T cell factor (TsF). Both antigen-specific helper T cells and memory B cells were found to be highly resistant to the cytotoxicity of NTA. Fluorescence-activated cell sorter (FACS) analyses revealed that the cytotoxic treatment of splenic T cells with NTA with an appropriate dilution selectively eliminated the T cells bearing a high density of NTA-reactive antigen. These results suggest that NTA is responsible for the selective loss of the suppressor T cell function that appears early in life in New Zealand mice and plays, at least in part, a causative role in the development of autoimmune diseases.
Estimating mortality and causes of death in Turkey: methods, results and policy implications.

BACKGROUND Cause-specific mortality statistics are primary evidence for health policy formulation, programme evaluation, and epidemiological research. In Turkey, a partially functioning vital registration system in urban areas yields fragmentary evidence on levels and causes of mortality. This article discusses the application of innovative methods to develop national mortality estimates in Turkey, and their implications for national health development policies. METHODS Child mortality levels from the Demography and Health Survey (DHS) were applied to model life tables to estimate age-specific death rates. Reported causes of death from urban areas were adjusted using re-distribution algorithms from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study. Rural cause structure was estimated from epidemiological models. Local epidemiological data was used to adjust model-based estimates. RESULTS Life expectancy at birth in 2000 was estimated to be 67.7 years (males) and 71.9 years (females), about 8-10 years lower than in Western Europe. Leading causes of death include major vascular diseases (ischaemic heart disease, stroke) causing 35-38% of deaths, chronic obstructive lung disease and lung cancer in men, but also perinatal causes, lower respiratory infections and diarrhoeal diseases. Injuries cause about 6-8% of deaths, although this may be an underestimate. CONCLUSIONS Mortality estimates are uncertain in Turkey, given the poor quality of death registration systems. Application of burden of disease methods suggests that there has been progress along the epidemiological transition. Key health development strategies for Turkey include improved access to communicable disease control technologies, and urgent attention to the development of a reliable, nationally representative health information system.
A cancer stem cell model for studying brain metastases from primary lung cancer.

BACKGROUND Brain metastases are most common in adults with lung cancer, predicting uniformly poor patient outcome, with a median survival of only months. Despite their frequency and severity, very little is known about tumorigenesis in brain metastases. METHODS We applied previously developed primary solid tumor-initiating cell models to the study of brain metastases from the lung to evaluate the presence of a cancer stem cell population. Patient-derived brain metastases (n = 20) and the NCI-H1915 cell line were cultured as stem-enriching tumorspheres. We used in vitro limiting-dilution and sphere-forming assays, as well as intracranial human-mouse xenograft models. To determine genes overexpressed in brain metastasis tumorspheres, we performed comparative transcriptome analysis. All statistical analyses were two-sided. RESULTS Patient-derived brain metastasis tumorspheres had a mean sphere-forming capacity of 33 spheres/2000 cells (SD = 33.40) and median stem-cell frequency of 1/60 (range = 0-1/141), comparable to that of primary brain tumorspheres (P = .53 and P = .20, respectively). Brain metastases also expressed CD15 and CD133, markers suggestive of a stemlike population. Through intracranial xenotransplantation, brain metastasis tumorspheres were found to recapitulate the original patient tumor heterogeneity. We also identified several genes overexpressed in brain metastasis tumorspheres as statistically significant predictors of poor survival in primary lung cancer. CONCLUSIONS For the first time, we demonstrate the presence of a stemlike population in brain metastases from the lung. We also show that NCI-H1915 tumorspheres could be useful in studying self-renewal and tumor initiation in brain metastases. Our candidate genes may be essential to metastatic stem cell populations, where pathway interference may be able to transform a uniformly fatal disease into a more localized and treatable one.
Retrospective Review of Patients With Locally Advanced Esophageal Cancer Treated at the University of Pittsburgh

ObjectivesThe management of locally advanced esophageal cancer is controversial. Treatment options include neoadjuvant chemotherapy or chemoradiation therapy (CRT) followed by definitive surgery or definitive chemoradiation. A single center experience was reviewed to determine the oncologic outcomes of these 3 approaches. MethodsWe retrospectively reviewed records of 100 patients with adenocarcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma of the esophagus of which 22 patients received neoadjuvant chemotherapy, 49 patients received neoadjuvant CRT, and 18 patients received definitive CRT. The majority of patients underwent minimally invasive esophagectomy (74%). The mean follow-up was 34 months (median, 22 mo; range, 1 to 180 mo). ResultsMedian survival of the entire group was 22.9 months [95% confidence interval (CI) 19.3-30.4]. The 2-year and 5-year overall survival rates were 47.9% and 23.2%, respectively. Median survival of patients who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy, neoadjuvant CRT, and definitive CRT was 31.9 (95% CI 21.2-51.5), 28.7 (95% CI 20.2-40.7), and 8.9 (95% CI 5.7-14.4) months, respectively. Patients who received neoadjuvant CRT were more likely to have pathologic complete response (pCR) (20%) compared with patients who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy alone (0%; P=0.04). The 2-year and 5-year overall survival rates of patients with pCR were 75% and 50%, respectively. ConclusionsThere was no survival benefit or differences in failure pattern seen among the 3 treatment approaches in this series. However, patients who received neoadjuvant CRT were more likely to have pCR and these patients showed a trend toward improved survival.
Graphene FETs in Microwave Applications

Graphene is a one-atom-thick sheet of carbon with numerous impressive properties. It is a promising material for future high-speed nanoelectronics due to its intrinsic superior carrier mobility and very high saturation velocity. These exceptional carrier transport properties suggest that graphene field effect transistors (G-FETs) can potentially outperform other FET technologies. This doctoral thesis presents the realisation of G-FET circuits at microwave frequencies (0.3-30 GHz) with emphasis on a novel subharmonic resistive mixer. The work covers device manufacturing, modelling, circuit design, and characterisation. The developed mixer exploits the G-FETs ability to conduct current in both n-channel and p-channel modes for subharmonic (×2) mixing. Consequently, the mixer operates with a single transistor and unlike the conventional subharmonic resistive FET mixers, it does not need any balun at the local oscillator (LO) port. In addition, the mixer has potential to operate unbiased. These aspects enable us to utilise G-FET subharmonic mixers in compact high frequency heterodyne detectors. A 30 GHz mixer is realised in microstrip technology on a 250 μm high resistivity silicon substrate. A conversion loss (CL) of 19 ± 1 dB in the frequency range of 24 to 31 GHz is obtained with an LO to RF isolation better than 20 dB. For designing and analysing G-FET circuits a closed-form semiempirical largesignal model is proposed and experimentally verified under both DC and RF operation. The model is implemented in a standard Electronic Design Automation (EDA) software for device-circuit co-design. By using the model, the first G-FET microwave amplifier is realised. The amplifier exhibits a small-signal power gain of 10 dB at 1 GHz.
Accidental Ligature Strangulation Deaths in East Delhi (India)

Ligature strangulations are usually homicidal. Accidental cases are quite uncommon, especially among adults. A retrospective ten-year study conducted in East Delhi revealed that in a total of 98 cases of death due to strangulation, five cases (∼5%) among all medico-legal deaths were of fatal ligature strangulation, involving adults who were neither intoxicated nor indulging in paraphiliac activity. The causative agent in three cases was a cycle rickshaw, in one case it was a rotatory part of a machine, and the fifth case occurred due to entanglement while tying up a cow. The cases and their autopsy findings have been described in this paper, together with the review and preventive aspects of such cases.
Alcohol abuse and pulmonary disease

ARDS is a severe form of lung injury characterized by increased permeability of the alveolar capillary membrane, diffuse alveolar damage, the accumulation of proteinaceous interstitial and intra‐alveolar edema, and the presence of hyaline membranes. These pathological changes are accompanied by physiological alterations, including severe hypoxemia, an increase in pulmonary dead space, and decreased pulmonary compliance. Approximately 200,000 individuals develop ARDS in the United States each year [ 1 ], and nearly 50% of these patients have a history of alcohol abuse. We have identified alcohol abuse as an independent risk factor for the development of ARDS [ 2 3 4 5 ], and more recent studies have validated these findings in patients following lung resection and blood transfusion [ 2 , 3 ]. In ARDS survivors, alcohol abuse is also associated with an increased duration of mechanical ventilation and prolonged ICU length of stay [ 5 ]. Despite studies aimed at improving outcomes in patients with ARDS, the mortality remains high at >40% [ 6 ]. For those who abuse alcohol, the mortality is even higher, at 65% [ 4 ]. In this review, we will discuss the relationship between alcohol abuse and ARDS, the effects of alcohol abuse on pulmonary function, and future directions and potential therapeutic targets for patients at risk for ARDS as a result of alcohol abuse, which impairs immune function, decreases pulmonary antioxidant capacity, decreases alveolar epithelial cell function, alters activation of the renin angiotensin system, and impairs GM‐CSF signaling. These pathways represent potential therapeutic targets for patients at risk for ARDS as a result of alcohol abuse.
Release of mycobacterial antigens

Mycobacterium tuberculosis has evolved from a Mycobacterium canettii‐like progenitor pool into one of the most successful and widespread human pathogens. The pathogenicity of M. tuberculosis is linked to its ability to secrete/export/release selected mycobacterial proteins, and it is also established that active release of mycobacterial antigens is a prerequisite for strong immune recognition. Recent research has enabled mycobacterial secretion systems and vesicle‐based release of mycobacterial antigens to be elucidated, which together with host‐related specificities constitute key variables that determine the outcome of infection. Here, we discuss recently discovered, novel aspects on the nature and the regulation of antigen release of the tuberculosis agent with particular emphasis on the biological characterization of mycobacteria‐specific ESX/type VII secretion systems and their secreted proteins, belonging to the Esx, PE, and PPE categories. The importance of specific mycobacterial antigen release is probably best exemplified by the striking differences observed between the cellular events during infection with the ESX‐1‐deficient, attenuated Mycobacterium bovis BCG compared to the virulent M. tuberculosis, which are clearly important for design of more specific diagnostics and more efficient vaccines.
Analytical comparison of MAC schemes for Energy Harvesting — Wireless Sensor Networks

MAC protocols for multi-hop WSNs have to address the challenge of coordinating duty-cycling transmitters with duty-cycling receivers. All the suggested protocols can be classified into three basic paradigms: the synchronization, the preamble and the beaconing paradigm. In this paper, we discuss the suitability of the three paradigms in the context of Energy Harvesting - Wireless Sensor Networks (EH-WSNs) in which nodes are powered by energy that they harvest from their surrounding environment. The two suitable paradigms are modeled and compared to each other. The analysis indicates the specific conditions under which a scheme is more suitable than the other.
Protozoa in Subsurface Sediments from Sites Contaminated with Aviation Gasoline or Jet Fuel

Numbers of protozoa in the subsurface of aviation gasoline and jet fuel spill areas at a Coast Guard base at Traverse City, Mich. , were determined. Boreholes were drilled in an uncontaminated location, in contaminated but untreated parts of the fuel plumes, and in the aviation gasoline source area undergoing H2O2 biotreatment. Samples were taken from the unsaturated zone to depths slightly below the floating free product in the saturated zone. Protozoa were found to occur in elevated numbers in the unsaturated zone, where fuel vapors mixed with atmospheric oxygen, and below the layer of floating fuel, where uncontaminated groundwater came into contact with fuel. The same trends were noted in the biotreatment area, except that numbers of protozoa were higher. Numbers of protozoa in some contaminated areas equalled or exceeded those found in surface soil. The abundance of protozoa in the biotreatment area was high enough that it would be expected to significantly reduce the bacterial community that was degrading the fuel. Little reduction in hydraulic conductivity was observed, and no bacterial fouling of the aquifer was observed during biotreatment.