Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Acute Inflammation and Loss of Retinal Architecture and Function During Experimental Bacillus Endophthalmitis

Rapid vision loss and explosive inflammation are devastating consequences of Bacillus endophthalmitis that have not been well defined. We therefore analyzed the evolution of intraocular inflammation and loss of retinal architecture and function during experimental Bacillus endophthalmitis. Mice were intravitreally injected with 100 CFU of B. cereus, and eyes were analyzed for bacterial growth, retinal function, architectural changes and retinal cellular stress, inflammatory cytokines, and infiltrating cells. Retinal electrophysiologic and structural changes began as early as 4 to 6 hr postinfection. Significant declines in retinal function paralleled the loss of retinal architecture. Glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) was detected in retina, indicating potential stress. Polymorphonuclear leukocyte (PMN) infiltration into the vitreous began as early as 4 hr postinfection, coinciding with a significant increase in TNF-α in the eye. These results indicated that acute inflammation and detrimental architectural and electrophysiologic changes in the retina began earlier than once thought, suggesting that therapeutic intervention should be given at the earliest possible time to avoid vision loss during Bacillus endophthalmitis.
Social upgrading in developing country industrial clusters: A reflection on the literature

In this article, we examine the role of social upgrading in developing country industrial clusters. We argue that while economic growth and productivity enhancement matter, social conditions within clusters are influenced by state monetary, fiscal, and labour policies and regulations, as well as by dynamic processes of agency among cluster governance actors. We find that the state's policies and regulations might enable or constrain cluster actors to behave in ways that affect social upgrading or downgrading. These policies and regulations may also be used by the state to directly change social conditions in national contexts, including in cluster settings, in order to further the government's overall economic strategy. The conclusion outlines our main findings, and the research and policy implications of our analysis.
A NOISE TRADER MODEL AS A GENERATOR OF APPARENT FINANCIAL POWER LAWS AND LONG MEMORY

In various agent-based models, the stylized facts of financial markets (unit roots, fat tails, and volatility clustering) have been shown to emerge from the interactions of agents. However, the complexity of these models often limits their analytical accessibility. In this paper we show that even a very simple model of a financial market with heterogeneous interacting agents is capable of reproducing these ubiquitous statistical properties. The simplicity of our approach permits us to derive some analytical insights using concepts from statistical mechanics. In our model, traders are divided into two groups, fundamentalists and chartists, and their interactions are based on a variant of the herding mechanism introduced by A. Kirman (Ants, rationality, and recruitment, Quarterly Journal of Economics 108, 137–156, 1993). The statistical analysis of simulated data points toward long-term dependence in the autocorrelations of squared and absolute returns and hyperbolic decay in the tail of the distribution of raw returns, both with estimated decay parameters in the same range as those of empirical data. Theoretical analysis, however, excludes the possibility of “true” scaling behavior because of the Markovian nature of the underlying process and the boundedness of returns. The model, therefore, only mimics power law behavior. Similarly to the phenomenological volatility models analyzed by LeBaron (Stochastic volatility as a simple generator of apparent financial power laws and long memory, Quantitative Finance 1, 621–631, 2001), the usual statistical tests are not able to distinguish between true and pseudo-scaling laws in the dynamics of our artificial market.
Social Competence in Infants and Toddlers with Special Health Care Needs: The Roles of Parental Knowledge, Expectations, Attunement, and Attitudes toward Child Independence

Little research has empirically addressed the relationships among parental knowledge of child development, parental attunement, parental expectations, and child independence in predicting the social competence of infants and toddlers with special health care needs. We used baseline data from the Strengthening Families Project, a prevention intervention study that tested Bavolek’s Nurturing Program for Parents and Their Children with Health Challenges to explore the roles of these variables in predicting social competence in infants and toddlers with special health care needs. Bivariate relationships among the study variables were explored and used to develop and test a model for predicting social competence among these children. Study findings pointed to a combination of indirect and direct influences of parent variables in predicting social competence. Results indicated that parents who encouraged healthy behaviors for developing a sense of power/independence were more likely to have children with social competence developing on schedule. Elements related to parental expectations, however, did not have the hypothesized relationships to social competence. The present study provides preliminary data to support the development of knowledge based interventions. Within medical settings, such interventions may indeed maximize benefit while minimizing cost.
Phase II trial of preoperative chemoradiotherapy followed by surgical resection in patients with superior sulcus non-small-cell lung cancers: report of Japan Clinical Oncology Group trial 9806.

PURPOSE To evaluate the safety and efficacy of preoperative chemoradiotherapy followed by surgical resection for superior sulcus tumors (SSTs). PATIENTS AND METHODS Patients with pathologically documented non-small-cell lung cancer with invasion of the first rib or more superior chest wall were enrolled as eligible; those with distant metastasis, pleural dissemination, and/or mediastinal node involvement were excluded. Patients received two cycles of chemotherapy every 4 weeks as follows; mitomycin 8 mg/m(2) on day 1, vindesine 3 mg/m(2) on days 1 and 8, and cisplatin 80 mg/m(2) on day 1. Radiotherapy directed at the tumor and the ipsilateral supraclavicular nodes was started on day 2 of each course, at the total dose of 45 Gy in 25 fractions, with a 1-week split. Thoracotomy was undertaken 2 to 4 weeks after completion of the chemoradiotherapy. Those with unresectable disease received boost radiotherapy. RESULTS From May 1999 to November 2002, 76 patients were enrolled, of whom 20 had T4 disease; 75 patients were fully assessable. Chemoradiotherapy was generally well tolerated. Fifty-seven patients (76%) underwent surgical resection, and pathologic complete resection was achieved in 51 patients (68%). There were 12 patients with pathologic complete response. Major postoperative morbidity, including chylothorax, empyema, pneumonitis, adult respiratory distress syndrome, and bleeding, was observed in eight patients. There were three treatment-related deaths, including two deaths owing to postsurgical complications and one death owing to sepsis during chemoradiotherapy. The disease-free and overall survival rates at 3 years were 49% and 61%, respectively; at 5 years, they were 45% and 56%, respectively. CONCLUSION This trimodality approach is safe and effective for the treatment of patients with SSTs.
Why marry? Race and the transition to marriage among cohabitors

Our study investigates the transition to first marriage among cohabiting black and white men and women, drawing on data from the National Survey of Families and Households. Our results underscore the importance of economic factors on the transition to marriage for both black and white cohabitors. We also find that for black cohabitors, but not for whites, socioeconomic disadvantage during childhood reduces the odds of marriage. The presence of children in cohabiting unions tends to increase the chances of marrying a cohabiting partner for both blacks and whites. Our results demonstrate the importance of including cohabitation in research on the marriage process.
The biological role of the female sex hormone estrogen in the periodontium--studies on human periodontal ligament cells.

INTRODUCTION Several studies have addressed the association between changes in levels of the female sex hormone, estrogen, and changes in the parameters of periodontitis, but the mechanism behind estrogenic effects in the periodontium is poorly understood. There are two subtypes of estrogen receptors (ER), ERalpha and ERbeta. The objectives of the present studies were to map periodontal ligament (PDL) cell ER-subtype expression patterns and to investigate their functional importance. This information is valuable for understanding the biological role of ERs in the periodontium. METHODS Human PDL cells were obtained from periodontal tissue explants from teeth that were extracted for orthodontic reasons. The progesterone receptor and ER-subtype expression patterns were studied using immunocytochemistry. The subcellular distribution of ERbeta was determined by immunogold electron microscopy and confocal imaging using the mitochondria-selective probe MitoTracker and ERbeta immunostaining. Expression of the mitochondrial protein, cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, was investigated using Western blotting. DNA and collagen synthesis was determined by measuring the incorporation of [3H]thymidine and [3H]proline, respectively. Interleukin-6 (IL-6), monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) and Creactive protein (CRP) were analyzed using ELISA. Alkaline phosphatase activity was determined colorimetrically. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Human PDL cells possessed immunoreactivity for ERP but not ERalpha, suggesting that estrogenic effects in PDL cells are mediated via ERbeta. PDL cells expressed no immunoreactivity for progesterone receptors, which implies that progesterone does not have a direct effect on PDL cell function. Confocal imaging and immunogold electron microscopy revealed that ERbeta immunoreactivity was distributed not only in the nucleus but also in the mitochondria. Incubation with estrogen down-regulated expression of cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, indicating functional significance for mitochondrial ER. Physiological concentrations of estrogen had no effect on PDL cell collagen and DNA synthesis but enhanced DNA synthesis in human breast cancer MCF-7 cells, probably reflecting a cell-typespecific ER-subtype expression pattern. The bacterial endotoxin, LPS, had no effect on the physiological properties of PDL cells (demonstrated by unaltered alkaline phosphatase activity, and DNA and collagen synthesis). However, LPS enhanced inflammatory characteristics of PDL cells, such as enhanced IL-6 and MCP-1 protein production. The LPS-induced effect on PDL cells was not reversed by estrogen, suggesting that estrogen has no anti-inflammatory effect via this mechanism. The enhanced MCP-1 expression in response to LPS suggests that PDL cells contribute to the recruitment of leukocytes in periodontal inflammation.
COMPARISON OF THE AMOUNT OF APICAL EXTRUSION OF BACTERIA FOLLOWING THE USE OF DIFFERENT INSTRUMENTATION TECHNIQUES - AN IN VITRO STUDY

Objectives : The objective of this study is to compare the amount of extrusion of bacteria beyond the apical foramen after instrumentation with Crown down and Step-back techniques using a manual and engine driven nickel-titanium instruments Materials and Methods : Seventy-five mandibular premolars with similar dimensions were used for the study. Access cavities prepared and root canals contaminated with a suspension of Enterococcus faecalis . The contaminated teeth were then divided into three experimental groups. Group 1(Crowndown group) divided into two: Group 1–A Hand files: root canals were instrumented using K-files and Group 1B – Rotary files: root canals were instrumented using ProTaper instruments. Group II (Step-back group) divided into two: Group II A– Hand files: root canals were instrumented using K-files and group II B–Rotary files: the root canals were instrumented using Light Speed LSX instruments. Group III (control group): no instrumentation was done. Bacteria were extruded after preparation were collected into vials, microbiological samples were incubated in culture media for 24hrs. The CFUs were determined for each sample. The data obtained was analyzed using the Kruskal-Wallis one way analysis of variance and Mann-Whitney U-tests. Results : There was a significant difference in the amount of bacteria extruded by both Crowndown and Step-back. The Stepback hand method extruded significantly more bacteria when compared with Crowndown hand technique. Conclusion : All instrumentation techniques extruded intracanal bacteria apically. There was a significant difference in both the engine driven instrumentation techniques, while the hand instrumentation by Step-back extruded more bacteria.
Semiconductor quantum-dot nanostructures: Their application in a new class of infrared photodetectors

Semiconductor quantum-dot nanostructures are interesting objects for fundamental as well as practical reasons. Fundamentally, they can form the basis of systems in which to study the quantum mechanics of electrons confined in zero-dimensional (0-D) space. In practice, the dots can be embedded in the active regions of a new class of electronic and optoelectronic devices with novel functionalities. This paper reviews the state-of-the-art in the use of these objects in infrared detectors. It describes the progress, challenges, and projections for continued development of normal-incidence intersublevel detectors operating in the spectral region between 6 and 20 /spl mu/m.
Opportunistic Detection of Glaucomatous Optic Discs within a Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Service

Purpose To determine the prevalence of glaucoma among patients referred to a glaucoma service with suspicious disc photographs from the diabetic retinopathy (DR) screening program. Methods A clinical audit of all patients attending a single-center DR screening program in the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin, between July 2010 and October 2011 was conducted with a minimum follow-up of 30 months. The DR screening service uses trained technician graders to assess 2-field color retinal photographs for the features of DR. Recently, the service was enhanced so that optic discs are also assessed for signs of glaucoma. Results In the 16-month study period, 3,697 diabetic patients were photographed. Following photograph grading, 91 (2.46%) were judged to require referral for assessment at the glaucoma clinic. Of these, 63 (69.23%) presented for assessment. Thirteen patients (20.63%) were diagnosed with glaucoma, comprising 7 cases of low-tension glaucoma and 6 cases of primary open-angle glaucoma. Thirty-six patients (57.14%) were classified as glaucoma suspects and 14 patients (22.22%) were discharged back to the DR screening program following normal ocular examination. Only 6 (9.52%) of the 63 patients examined had an intraocular pressure greater than 21 mm Hg. Conclusions The assessment of DR screening photographs for signs of glaucomatous optic nerve damage should be considered as part of a strategy to improve glaucoma case detection and to reduce the burden of this disease on society.
Common and distinct signals specify the distribution of blood and vascular cell lineages in Xenopus laevis embryos

In an effort to elucidate the regulatory mechanisms that determine the fate of blood cells and vascular cells in the ventral blood island mesoderm, the embryonic expression of Xtie‐2, a Xenopus homolog of the tie‐2 receptor tyrosine kinase, was examined. Whole‐mount in situ hybridization analysis revealed that Xtie‐2 mRNA is expressed at the late tailbud stage within the regions where endothelial precursor cells exist. On the ventral side of embryos, Xtie‐2‐positive cells are predominantly present just outside the boundary of α‐globin‐positive cells, thus the expression pattern of these two markers seems mutually exclusive. Further experiments revealed that there is a consistent and strong correlation between the induction of Xtie‐2 and α‐globin expression in embryos and explant tissues. First, these two markers displayed overlapping expression in embryos ventralized by the removal of a ‘dorsal determinant’ from the vegetal cytoplasm at the 1‐cell stage. Second, expression of both Xtie‐2 and α‐globin were markedly induced in ectodermal explants (animal caps) from embryos co‐injected with activin and bone morphogenetic protein (BMP)‐4 RNA. Furthermore, both Xtie‐2 and α‐globin messages were strongly positive in dorsal marginal zone explants that had been injected with BMP‐4 RNA. In contrast, however, there was a clear distinction in the localization of these two transcripts in embryos dorsalized by LiCl treatment. Distinct localization was also found in the ventral marginal zone (VMZ) explants. Using the VMZ explant system, we demonstrate a role of fibroblast growth factor (FGF) signaling in enhancing the vascular cell marker and reducing the blood cell marker. The present study suggests that the early steps of blood and vascular cell differentiation are regulated by a common BMP‐4‐dependent signaling; however, distinct factor(s) such as FGF are involved in different distribution of these two cell lineages.
Gender Inequality Issues in India

The Problem India struggles with gender inequality issues beyond just equal economic growth and access to educational resource opportunities. Gender inequality exists in the form of socially constructed, predefined gender roles firmly anchored in India’s sociocultural fabric that has deep cultural and historical roots. Sociocultural influences have spillover effects across all domains, including the organizational workforce, and social and political contexts. This unquestionable influence is still accepted as the norm within the societal and familial periphery. The Solution The purpose of this article is to provide an analysis of the causes of gender inequality in India. A secondary purpose is to outline the possible policies and practices, within a human resource development (HRD) framework, that could be implemented as productive steps toward reducing gender inequality in the Indian workplace. The Stakeholders This article will be of interest to individuals who conduct research, teach, and practice HRD. It will assist researchers in their understanding of how social, cultural, and historical contexts must be considered when studying gender inequality in India. Information gained from this article will help curriculum developers understand the importance of social and cultural influences in developing HRD courses for use not only in higher education institutions but also in workplace settings.
Measuring Technological Novelty with Patent-Based Indicators

This study provides a new, more comprehensive measurement of technological novelty. Integrating insights from the existing economics and management literature, we characterize inventions ex ante along two dimensions of technological novelty: Novelty in Recombination and Novelty in Knowledge Origins. For the latter dimension we distinguish between Novel Technological and Novel Scientific Origins. For each dimension we propose an operationalization using patent classification and citation information. Results indicate that the proposed measures for the different dimensions of technological novelty are correlated, but each conveys different information. We perform a series of analyses to assess the validity of the proposed measures and compare them with other indicators used in the literature. Moreover, an analysis of the technological impact of inventions identified as novel shows that technological novelty increases the variance of technological impact and the likelihood of being among the positive outliers with respect to impact. This holds particularly for those inventions that combine Novelty in Recombination with Novelty in Technological and Scientific Origins. The results support our indicators as ex ante measures of technological novelty driving potentially radical impact.
Complete Genome Sequences of Low-Passage Virulent and High-Passage Avirulent Variants of Pathogenic Leptospira interrogans Serovar Manilae Strain UP-MMC-NIID, Originally Isolated from a Patient with Severe Leptospirosis, Determined Using PacBio Single-Molecule Real-Time Technology

ABSTRACT Here, we report the complete genome sequences of low-passage virulent and high-passage avirulent variants of pathogenic Leptospira interrogans serovar Manilae strain UP-MMC-NIID, a major causative agent of leptospirosis. While there were no major differences between the genome sequences, the levels of base modifications were higher in the avirulent variant.
Development and comparison of a new personalized warfarin stable dose prediction algorithm in Chinese patients undergoing heart valve replacement.

BACKGROUND Pharmacogenetics-based algorithms would be especially desirable for patients undergoing heart valve replacement (HVR), who are particularly sensitive to warfarin during the initial treatment phase following surgery. We aimed to derive a warfarin dosing algorithm from data of Chinese patients undergoing HVR, and to compare it with previously published dosing algorithms as applied to our HVR patients. METHODS 641 Chinese HVR patients on stable maintenance dose of warfarin were enrolled from a single clinic site. Data of 321 patients were used to derive a warfarin dosing algorithm using stepwise multiple linear regression analysis. Previously published algorithms were selected from Pubmed database for comparison. The performance of all the algorithms was characterized according to mean absolute error (MAE) and percentage of predicted doses falling within +/- 20% of clinically observed doses (percentage of ideal prediction) in the other 320 patients. RESULTS The newly developed algorithm included eight factors: VKORC1-1639G > A, CYP2C9*3, BSA, age, number of increasing INR drugs, smoking habit, preoperative stroke history and hypertension. Our algorithm accounted for 56.4% of variations in the inter-patient warfarin stable doses. All the algorithms showed better performance in a medium-dose (1.88-4.38 mg/day) and high-dose (> or = 4.38 mg/day) groupings than in a low-dose (< or = 1.88 mg/day) grouping. Compared with the 14 previously published algorithms, our algorithm had the lowest MAE (-0.07 mg/day) and the highest percentage of ideal prediction (62.8%) in the total validation cohort. CONCLUSIONS Our warfarin dosing algorithm is potentially useful for patients whose population profiles are similar to those of our patients.
Warm or Cool, Large or Small? The Challenge of Thermal Displays

Thermal displays have been developed to present thermal cues to the hand to facilitate object recognition in virtual environments or in teleoperated robotic systems. This review focuses on this application domain of thermal displays and considers the models developed to simulate the thermal interaction between an object and the hand as they make contact. An overview of thermal perception and the mechanisms underlying the processing of thermal information is provided to give a framework for analyzing the design of thermal displays. The models developed to simulate thermal feedback are examined together with a description of the implementation of these models in thermal displays. The domains in which thermal displays have been used are described; this includes the simulation of material properties, the recreation of large-scale thermal effects in virtual environments, the encoding of abstract concepts and the use of thermal feedback in interactive art. The review concludes by considering the advantages and challenges associated with using thermal displays in these diverse areas.