Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Numerical evaluation of the skull for human neuromodulation with transcranial focused ultrasound

Objective. Transcranial focused ultrasound is an emerging field for human non-invasive neuromodulation, but its dosing in humans is difficult to know due to the skull. The objective of the present study was to establish modeling methods based on medical images to assess skull differences between individuals on the wave propagation of ultrasound. Approach. Computational models of transcranial focused ultrasound were constructed using CT and MR scans to solve for intracranial pressure. We explored the effect of including the skull base in models, different transducer placements on the head, and differences between 250 kHz or 500 kHz acoustic frequency for both female and male models. We further tested these features using linear, nonlinear, and elastic simulations. To better understand inter-subject skull thickness and composition effects we evaluated the intracranial pressure maps between twelve individuals at two different skull sites. Main results. Nonlinear acoustic simulations resulted in virtually identical intracranial pressure maps with linear acoustic simulations. Elastic simulations showed a difference in max pressures and full width half maximum volumes of 15% at most. Ultrasound at an acoustic frequency of 250 kHz resulted in the creation of more prominent intracranial standing waves compared to 500 kHz. Finally, across twelve model human skulls, a significant linear relationship to characterize intracranial pressure maps was not found. Significance. Despite its appeal, an inherent problem with the use of a noninvasive transcranial ultrasound method is the difficulty of knowing intracranial effects because of the skull. Here we develop detailed computational models derived from medical images of individuals to simulate the propagation of neuromodulatory ultrasound across the skull and solve for intracranial pressure maps. These methods allow for a much better understanding of the intracranial effects of ultrasound for an individual in order to ensure proper targeting and more tightly control dosing.
Early development and progression of dementing illness in the elderly: a general-practice based study

Synopsis In a study carried out in 21 general practices in Mannheim, Germany, a stratified random sample (N = 507) of patients over the age of 65 years was drawn from the total of nearly 4000 who were medically documented. Eighty per cent of the sample were examined, using the Hierarchic Dementia Scale to test cognitive functioning and the CAMDEX criteria to assess global clinical severity. Repeat assessment after a mean interval of 27 months showed that all new cases of clinical dementia had arisen in persons with mild deficits initially and represented one-fifth of this group. The first-assessment ratings of cognitive function proved to be strongly predictive of risks for age-corrected mortality, admission to long-term care and dependency at follow-up, as well as of further progressive cognitive decline.
Recursive feasibility guarantees in move-blocking MPC

A method for enforcing recursive feasibility in time-invariant offset-move-blocking MPC schemes is proposed. The method constrains the state at the first prediction step to a controlled invariant feasible set, introduced recently by the authors for enforcing recursive feasibility in input-move- blocking MPC. Two algorithms for the determination of maximal controlled invariant feasible sets are presented. In the case of stabilizable, linear, time-invariant plants with time-invariant, polytopic constraints, both algorithms are semi-decidable. In situations where using one algorithm alone does not lead to decidability, both algorithms can be used together to determine a controlled invariant feasible under-approximation of the maximal controlled invariant feasible set to arbitrary accuracy.
Variable Perturbation Size Adaptive P&O MPPT Algorithm for Sudden Changes in Irradiance

In this paper, a variable perturbation size adaptive perturb and observe (P&O) maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithm is proposed to track the maximum power under sudden changes in irradiance. The proposed method consists of three algorithms, namely current perturbation algorithm (CPA), adaptive control algorithm (ACA), and variable perturbation algorithm (VPA). CPA always tries to operate the photovoltaic (PV) panel at maximum power point (MPP). ACA sets the operating point closer to MPP, only if the operating limits are violated. These operating limits are expressed in terms of the operating current range of the PV panel and the sudden changes in irradiance. VPA dynamically reduces the perturbation size based on polarity of change in power. Two-stage variable size perturbation is proposed in this paper. The proposed algorithm is realized using a boost converter. The effectiveness of proposed algorithm in terms of dynamic performance and improved stability is validated by detailed simulation and experimental studies.
A Miniaturized Dual-Mode Ring Bandpass Filter

A novel miniaturized dual-mode ring bandpass filter is proposed in this letter. The miniaturization is accomplished by slow-wave synthesized microstrip lines in an asymmetrical form. At the input/output ports, two saw-toothed coupling structures with quarter-wavelength open-circuited stubs are used to provide tight coupling. The miniaturized filter features a very compact size and the in-band responses are comparable to its conventional counterpart. The design methodology, circuit topology, and simulated and measured results are investigated and compared.
Persistence of climate changes due to a range of greenhouse gases

Emissions of a broad range of greenhouse gases of varying lifetimes contribute to global climate change. Carbon dioxide displays exceptional persistence that renders its warming nearly irreversible for more than 1,000 y. Here we show that the warming due to non-CO2 greenhouse gases, although not irreversible, persists notably longer than the anthropogenic changes in the greenhouse gas concentrations themselves. We explore why the persistence of warming depends not just on the decay of a given greenhouse gas concentration but also on climate system behavior, particularly the timescales of heat transfer linked to the ocean. For carbon dioxide and methane, nonlinear optical absorption effects also play a smaller but significant role in prolonging the warming. In effect, dampening factors that slow temperature increase during periods of increasing concentration also slow the loss of energy from the Earth’s climate system if radiative forcing is reduced. Approaches to climate change mitigation options through reduction of greenhouse gas or aerosol emissions therefore should not be expected to decrease climate change impacts as rapidly as the gas or aerosol lifetime, even for short-lived species; such actions can have their greatest effect if undertaken soon enough to avoid transfer of heat to the deep ocean.
Combination effects of dietary soy and methylselenocysteine in a mouse model of prostate cancer

High dietary intake of soy or selenium (Se) is associated with decreased risk of prostate cancer. Soy constituents and various chemical forms of Se have each been shown to downregulate expression of the androgen receptor (AR) and AR‐regulated genes in the prostate. We hypothesized that downregulation of AR and AR‐regulated genes by the combination of these dietary components would inhibit tumorigenesis in the TRansgenic Adenocarcinoma of Mouse Prostate (TRAMP) mouse.
Hydrodynamic deformation and removal of Staphylococcus epidermidis biofilms treated with urea, chlorhexidine, iron chloride, or DispersinB

The force‐deflection and removal characteristics of bacterial biofilm were measured by two different techniques before and after chemical, or enzymatic, treatment. The first technique involved time lapse imaging of a biofilm grown in a capillary flow cell and subjected to a brief shear stress challenge imparted through increased fluid flow. Biofilm removal was determined by calculating the reduction in biofilm area from quantitative analysis of transmission images. The second technique was based on micro‐indentation using an atomic force microscope. In both cases, biofilms formed by Staphylococcus epidermidis were exposed to buffer (untreated control), urea, chlorhexidine, iron chloride, or DispersinB. In control experiments, the biofilm exhibited force‐deflection responses that were similar before and after the same treatment. The biofilm structure was stable during the post‐treatment shear challenge (1% loss). Biofilms treated with chlorhexidine became less deformable after treatment and no increase in biomass removal was seen during the post‐treatment shear challenge (2% loss). In contrast, biofilms treated with urea or DispersinB became more deformable and exhibited significant biofilm loss during the post‐treatment flow challenge (71% and 40%, respectively). During the treatment soak phase, biofilms exposed to urea swelled. Biofilms exposed to iron chloride showed little difference from the control other than slight contraction during the treatment soak. These observations suggest the following interpretations: (1) chemical or enzymatic treatments, including those that are not frankly antimicrobial, can alter the cohesion of bacterial biofilm; (2) biocidal treatments (e.g., chlorhexidine) do not necessarily weaken the biofilm; and (3) biofilm removal following treatment with agents that make the biofilm more deformable (e.g., urea, DispersinB) depend on interaction between the moving fluid and the biofilm structure. Measurements such as those reported here open the door to development of new technologies for controlling detrimental biofilms by targeting biofilm cohesion rather than killing microorganisms. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2011;108: 2968–2977. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The Impact of Field Dependence/Independence Cognitive Styles and Gender Differences on Lexical Knowledge: The Case of Iranian Academic EFL Learners

Most of the research which has investigated the relationship between effective learners’ variables and language proficiency allows the researcher to quantify the strength of the relationship. The scope of this paper limited to examining the role of field dependence/independence cognitive styles and gender differences on EFL learners’ lexical knowledge. To attain the goals of the research, a number of EFL learners sat through the Vocabulary Size Test (VST) as well as the Group Embedded Figures Test (GEFT). The findings of the study indicate the need for caution when concluding that cognitive styles of field dependence/independence affect lexical knowledge in the absence of tests for possible interactions between FD/FI and other variables, including gender differences that may influence vocabulary knowledge. By the same token, understanding the effective role of students’ cognitive aspects and gender will enable teachers and researchers to design appropriate materials and activities to help students enhance their lexical competence.
Sero-prevalence of Brucellosis among Veterinarians and Livestock in Junagadh Region of Gujarat State

Brucellosis is one of the most wide-spread zoonoses and is believed to be a re-emerging disease affecting more than hal f a million humans each year. The disease is common among ruminants, which act as major reservoirs of the organism. The present study was c arried out to find out the sero-prevalence of Brucellosis amongst veterinarian s and animals in and around Junagadh district of Gujarat state. All the serum samples were initially screened by Rose-bengal plate test (RBPT) and further analyzed by standard tube agglutination test (STAT). A titre of more than 80 IU/ml or greater in human serum samples, 40 IU/ml or greater in cattle serum samples and 20 IU/ml or above in goat serum samples were considered as serologically positive. A total of 75 serum samples were collected from veterinarians working in the region. The animal ser um samples comprised of 168 cattle sera samples and 45 sheep sera sample s. The overall prevalence by RBPT and STAT were 9.3% and 5.3% in human samples and, 7.9% and 7% in animals, respectively. Since th is infection is a proven occupation-related disease, extension education cam paigns are needed to raise awareness on the risk to veterinarians. Besid es, regular surveillance of the disease needs to be undertaken at local and nat ional level.
Internal quality control: planning and implementation strategies

The first essential in setting up internal quality control (IQC) of a test procedure in the clinical laboratory is to select the proper IQC procedure to implement, i.e. choosing the statistical criteria or control rules, and the number of control measurements, according to the quality required for the test and the observed performance of the method. Then the right IQC procedure must be properly implemented. This review focuses on strategies for planning and implementing IQC procedures in order to improve the quality of the IQC. A quantitative planning process is described that can be implemented with graphical tools such as power function or critical-error graphs and charts of operating specifications. Finally, a total QC strategy is formulated to minimize cost and maximize quality. A general strategy for IQC implementation is recommended that employs a three-stage design in which the first stage provides high error detection, the second stage low false rejection and the third stage prescribes the length of the analytical run, making use of an algorithm involving the average of normal patients' data.
Fall 2002.

OBJECTIVE The Home Study Course is intended for the practicing colposcopist or practitioner who is seeking to develop or enhance his or her colposcopic skills. The goal of the course is to present colposcopic cases that are unusual or instructive in terms of appearance, presentation, or management or that demonstrate new and important knowledge in the area of colposcopy or pathology. Participants may benefit from reading and studying the material or from testing their knowledge by answering the questions. ACCME ACCREDITATION The American Society for Colposcopy and Cervical Pathology (ASCCP) is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to sponsor continuing medical education for physicians. The ASCCP designates this continuing medical education activity for 1 credit hour in Category I of the Physician's Recognition Award of the American Medical Association. Credit is available for those who choose to apply. The Home Study Course is planned and produced in accordance with the ACCME's Essential Areas and Elements.
Sequence Diversity of the Trypanosoma cruzi Complement Regulatory Protein Family

ABSTRACT As a central component of innate immunity, complement activation is a critical mechanism of containment and clearance of microbial pathogens in advance of the development of acquired immunity. Several pathogens restrict complement activation through the acquisition of host proteins that regulate complement activation or through the production of their own complement regulatory molecules (M. K. Liszewski, M. K. Leung, R. Hauhart, R. M. Buller, P. Bertram, X. Wang, A. M. Rosengard, G. J. Kotwal, and J. P. Atkinson, J. Immunol. 176:3725-3734, 2006; J. Lubinski, L. Wang, D. Mastellos, A. Sahu, J. D. Lambris, and H. M. Friedman, J. Exp. Med. 190:1637-1646, 1999). The infectious stage of the protozoan parasite Trypanosoma cruzi produces a surface-anchored complement regulatory protein (CRP) that functions to inhibit alternative and classical pathway complement activation (K. A. Norris, B. Bradt, N. R. Cooper, and M. So, J. Immunol. 147:2240-2247, 1991). This study addresses the genomic complexity of the T. cruzi CRP and its relationship to the T. cruzi supergene family comprising active trans-sialidase (TS) and TS-like proteins. The TS superfamily consists of several functionally distinct subfamilies that share a characteristic sialidase domain at their amino termini. These TS families include active TS, adhesions, CRPs, and proteins of unknown functions (G. A. Cross and G. B. Takle, Annu. Rev. Microbiol. 47:385-411, 1993). A sequence comparison search of GenBank using BLASTP revealed several full-length paralogs of CRP. These proteins share significant homology at their amino termini and a strong spatial conservation of cysteine residues. Alternative pathway complement regulation was confirmed for CRP paralogs with 58% (low) and 83% (high) identity to AAB49414. CRPs are functionally similar to the microbial and mammalian proteins that regulate complement activation. Sequence alignment of mammalian complement control proteins to CRP showed that these sequences are distinct, supporting a convergent evolutionary pathway. Finally, we show that a clonal line of T. cruzi expresses multiple unique copies of CRP that are differentially recognized by patient sera.
ANALISIS FAKTOR YANG BERHUBUNGAN DENGAN RESPONSE TIME PERAWAT DI IGD RSU TIPE C DI KUPANG BERDASARKAN TEORI KINERJA GIBSON

Pendahuluan: Response time perawat merupakan salah satu indikator kinerja perawat. Response time yang tepat akan mengurangi angka mortalitas, morbiditas dan kepuasan pasien akan terpenuhi. Response time perawat dipengaruhi banyak faktor. Metode: penelitian ini bertujuan menganalisis hubungan tingkat pendidikan, lama kerja, kemampuan, keterampilan, imbalan dan motivasi perawat dengan response time perawat IGD Tipe C di Kupang. Desain penelitian ini menggunakan cross sectional. Populasi penelitian ini adalah semua perawat pelaksana yang bekerja di IGD RSU Tipe C di Kupang. Besar sampel penelitian 61 responden yang memenuhi kriteria inklusi. Variabel dependen yaitu response time perawat, sedangkan variabel independen yaitu tingkat pendidikan, lama kerja, kemampuan, keterampilan, imbalan dan motivasi. Data dikumpulkan menggunakan kuesioner dan observasi pada perawat. Data kemudian dianalisis menggunakan Regresi Logistik Berganda. Hasil: hasil menunjukkan bahwa tidak ada hubungan tingkat pendidikan dengan response time perawat (p=0,360)dan hubungan lama kerja (p=0,483), tidak ada hubungan kemampuan dengan response time perawat (p=0,414), dan juga keterampilan (p=0,508), tidak ada hubungan motivasi dengan response time perawat (p=0,320), namun ada hubungan yang signifikan antara besarnya imbalan dengan response time perawat (p=0,003). Diskusi: dapat disimpulkan bahwa tidak ada hubungan tingkat pendidikan, lama kerja, kemampuan, keterampilan, dan motivasi dengan response time perawat namun ada hubungan yang besarnya imbalan dengan response time perawat. Response time perawat sebagian besar <5 menit. Peneliti selanjutnya disarankan untuk meneliti tentang analisa faktor yang berkitan dengan response time perawat, seperti: struktur organisasi, persepsi, sikap, kepribadian.
The Involvement of PDGF-B/PDGFRβ Axis in the Resistance to Antiangiogenic and Antivascular Therapy in Renal Cancer.

BACKGROUND/AIM Studies developed in the field of platelet-derived growth factors/platelet-derived growth factor receptors (PDGFs/PDGFRs) inhibition have focused on the therapeutic effects on tumor cells, neglecting their potential effects on tumor blood vessels. We herein propose a differential and critic assessment of platelet-derived growth factor B (PDGF-B) and platelet-derived growth factor receptor β (PDGFRβ) in renal cell carcinoma, correlated with the four main vascular patterns previously reported by our team. MATERIALS AND METHODS PDGF-B and PDGFRβ were evaluated on 50 archival paraffin embedded specimens related to vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), its inhibitory isoform VEGF165b and vascular patterns. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION Our results support the involvement of VEGF165b in the phosphorylation of PDGFRβ with an inhibitory effect on endothelial proliferation and migration. The simultaneous action of PDGF-B/PDGFRβ and VEGF165b on the same type of receptor may explain the resistance to antiangiogenic therapy, which depends on the degree of modulation of PDGFRβ phosphorylation.
Effect of COX-2-specific inhibition on fracture-healing in the rat femur.

BACKGROUND Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications have been shown to delay fracture-healing. COX-2-specific inhibitors such as celecoxib have recently been approved for human use. Our goal was to determine, mechanically, histologically, morphologically, and radiographically, whether COX-2-specific inhibition affects bone-healing. METHODS A nondisplaced unilateral fracture was created in the right femur of fifty-seven adult male rats. Rats were given no drug, indomethacin (1 mg/kg/day), or celecoxib (3 mg/kg/day) daily, starting on postoperative day 1. Fractures were analyzed at four, eight, and twelve weeks after creation of the fracture. Callus and bridging bone formation was assessed radiographically. The amounts of fibrous tissue, cartilage, woven bone, and mature bone formation were determined histologically. Morphological changes were assessed to determine fibrous healing, callus formation, and bone-remodeling. Callus strength and stiffness were assessed biomechanically with three-point bending tests. RESULTS At four weeks, only the indomethacin group showed biomechanical and radiographic evidence of delayed healing. Although femora from rats treated with celecoxib appeared to have more fibrous tissue than those from untreated rats at four and eight weeks, radiographic signs of callus formation, mechanical strength, and stiffness did not differ significantly between the groups. By twelve weeks, there were no significant differences among the three groups. CONCLUSIONS Postoperative administration of celecoxib, a COX-2-specific inhibitor, did not delay healing as seen at twelve weeks following fracture in adult rat femora. At four and eight weeks, fibrous healing predominated in the celecoxib group as compared with the findings in the untreated group; however, mechanical strength and radiographic signs of healing were not significantly inhibited. CLINICAL RELEVANCE Many orthopaedists rely on narcotic analgesia for postfracture and postoperative pain, despite deleterious side effects and morbidity. Traditional nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications have been shown to delay fracture union. This effect may be smaller with COX-2-specific inhibitors.
Effects of the rotor design parameters on the torque production of a PMaSynRM for washing machine applications

This paper presents the effects and importance of the rotor design parameters on the performance of a permanent magnet assisted synchronous reluctance motor (PMaSynRM). At the beginning of the design, number of stator slots and rotor flux barriers are considered. Rotor design parameters such as different insulation ratios and magnet positions are investigated after choosing the number of stator slots and rotor flux barriers combination. The rotor design process is iterated with different d−q axis insulation ratios on rotor to determine the best value for maximum average torque and minimum torque ripple. Permanent magnets are placed in different combinations inside the rotor barriers and results are compared in terms of average torque, torque ripple and efficiency as well. The chosen best model is prototyped and tested. The comparison between the experimental and the simulation results are also presented.