Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A pressure comparison between midline and paramedian approaches to the cervical epidural space.

BACKGROUND In the cervical spine, the ligamentum flavum (LF) is often incompletely fused at the midline. Therefore, accessing the epidural space (ES) using the loss of resistance (LOR) technique via the midline approach could be less reliable than the paramedian approach. Since the tactile sensation of LOR is due to abrupt loss of pressure upon entering the ES, we have compared pressure changes between the 2 different cervical epidural techniques. OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to compare pressure changes during the pathway to the cervical ES between the 2 approaches. STUDY DESIGN A prospective, open-labeled, randomized, comparative study. SETTING An interventional pain management practice in a hospital, Republic of Korea. METHODS The 74 patients were randomly assigned to either a midline or paramedian group. The pressure changes were monitored and classified into 4 grades according to the following criteria: Grade I. The pressure waveform sequence consisted of 3 components in chronological order: 1) a high positive pressure just prior to entering the ES; 2) an abrupt pressure decrease at the moment of entering the ES; and 3) a negative peak pressure before cervical epidural pressure equilibration. Grade II. A high positive pressure followed by a precipitous pressure drop, without negative peak pressure upon entering the ES. Grade III. High positive pressure before entering the ES, followed by continuous pressure decrease without negative pressure. Grade IV. No pressure changes before or after entering the cervical ES. RESULTS An abrupt pressure decrease at the moment of exiting the LF or entering the ES was more frequently observed when using the paramedian approach (P < 0.05) with the odds ratio of 4.96 (95% CI, 1.63 - 15.12) as compared with the midline approach. LIMITATIONS A correlation between the abrupt pressure decrease and LOR tactile sensation has been assumed. CONCLUSION Under the assumption that the LOR sensation is due to an abrupt decrease in pressure the moment the needle enters the ES or exits the LF, this study claims that the accuracy of accessing the cervical ES can be improved significantly using the paramedian approach. CLINICAL TRIAL NCT01009385. Institutional Review Board (IRB): H-1208-107-422.
Formas de futuro en un romanceamiento bíblico del siglo XIII

Para comodidad del lector resumo las tres distintas motivaciones que se han dado al paso del futuro latino de estructura sintotica al futuro vulgär de estructura analitica. Por una nxotivacion fono-morfo-sintactica abogan, entre otros, Lausberg, Menendez Pidal, Nunes, Väänänen y Wartburg: la heterogeneidad ( , -is y DEL-E-BO, -is, Die-AM, -ES y AUD-I-AM, -ES), la homonimia (fut. DICAM y pres. de subj. DICAM), la homofonia (AMÄBIT y AMÄvrr) y la catacresis (GRAS VENIT) llevaron a la estructura analitica del futuro latino vulgär. Proponen una motivacion semäntico-estilistica Bally, Meyer-Lübke, Spitzer y Vossler: tres nuevas connotaciones se hubieran sobrepuesto a la categoria temporal del futuro latino, coincidiendo con el uso de tres verbos auxiliares, a saber la de «posibilidad» con EABEBE, la de con DEBEBE y la de con VELLE, *VOLEBE. Aduce Coseriu una tercera motivacion de tipo historico como fundamento acomunador de las dos anteriores, juzgadas «insuficientes y vulnerables»
Raman Imaging of Lignocellulosic Feedstock

The main structural plant cell wall polymers cellulose, hemicelluloses, and lignin rank amongst the most abundant biopolymers in Earth’s carbon cycle. These three polymers form the lignocellulose complex and constitute the bulk of the cell wall with 40-50%, 10-40% and 5-30% of biomass by weight, respectively [1, 2]. Its highly ordered structure of cellulose microfibril aggregates, embedded in a matrix of hemicelluloses and lignin, provides the basis for its mechanical strength [3] and for the resistance to microbial attack [4], to which also low molecular mass extractives contribute [5]. Lignified cell walls are therefore a remarkably durable material. In nature, only higher fungi have developed biochemical systems to degrade the lignocellulose complex and perform the conversion and mineralisation of wood to carbon dioxide and water. Extensive reviews on decay pattern, chemistry and biochemistry of microbial wood degradation are available [4, 6, 7]. The natural processes occurring during fungal wood degradation may be utilised for industrial purposes and have a great potential for cellulose-producing and wood-processing industries as well as for high value-added conversion of lignocellulosic waste materials in Biorefineries. Particularly the molecular mechanisms of selective white-rot fungi offer a series of applications in the field of biotechnology of renewable resources [8].
New Systemic Treatment Approaches for Metastatic Renal Cell Carcinoma

Kidney cancer comprises 2-3% of all cancers according to Cancer Research UK statistics. (http:// info.cancerresearchuk.org). Renal Cell Carcinomas (RCC) is the most common subtype (around 90%) with clear-cell variant constituting up to 75% of all RCCs. Non clear-cell variant are less common and consist of papillary (Type I and II; 10-15%), chromophobe (4%) and collecting duct (including the rare medullary variant; <1%). [1, 2] At initial diagnosis, one third of patients have evidence of distant metastases, and amongst patients who undergo curative nephrectomy, a third will have a recurrence within 5 years. Historically, treatment options have been limited in metastatic RCC, as cytotoxic chemotherapy is not effective in this disease and immunotherapy is of modest benefit. [1] The treatment outlook for metastatic RCC has changed in the past decade, with the introduction of new therapeutic agents which target molecular pathways involved in tumour angiogenesis.
Aerobactin-mediated iron uptake by Escherichia coli isolates from human extraintestinal infections

A total of 516 strains of Escherichia coli were screened for the presence and expression of the aerobactin iron uptake system. The incidence was markedly higher among clinical isolates from patients with septicemia (68.8%), pyelonephritis (74.6%), and symptomatic (59.8%) and asymptomatic (63.2%) lower urinary tract infections than among normal human fecal isolates (34.3%).
Explorer Towards Bottom-Up Analysis of Social Food

Social media provide a wealth of information for research into public health by providing a rich mix of personal data, location, hashtags, and social network information. Among these, Instagram has been recently the subject of many computational social science studies. However despite Instagram’s focus on image sharing, most studies have exclusively focused on the hashtag and social network structure. In this paper we perform the first large scale content analysis of Instagram posts, addressing both the image and the associated hashtags, aiming to understand the content of partiallylabelled images taken in-the-wild and the relationship with hashtags that individuals use as noisy labels. In particular, we explore the possibility of learning to recognise food image content in a data driven way, discovering both the categories of food, and how to recognise them, purely from social network data. Notably, we demonstrate that our approach to food recognition can often achieve accuracies greater than 70% in recognising popular food-related image categories, despite using no manual annotation. We highlight the current capabilities and future challenges and opportunities for such data-driven analysis of image content and the relation to hashtags.
Burkholderia jiangsuensis sp. nov., a methyl parathion degrading bacterium, isolated from methyl parathion contaminated soil.

A methyl parathion (MP) degrading bacterial strain, designated MP-1(T), was isolated from a waste land where pesticides were formerly manufactured in Jiangsu province, China. Polyphasic taxonomic studies showed that MP-1(T) is a Gram-stain-negative, non-spore-forming, rod-shaped and motile bacterium. The bacterium could grow at salinities of 0-1 % (w/v) and temperatures of 15-40 °C. Strain MP-1(T) could reduce nitrate to nitrite, utilize d-glucose and l-arabinose, but not produce indole, or hydrolyse gelatin. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences demonstrated that MP-1(T) belongs to the genus Burkholderia, showing highest sequence similarity to Burkholderia grimmiae DSM 25160(T) (98.5 %), and similar strains including Burkholderia zhejiangensis OP-1(T) (98.2 %), Burkholderia choica LMG 22940(T) (97.5 %), Burkholderia glathei DSM 50014(T) (97.4 %), Burkholderia terrestris LMG 22937(T) (97.2 %) and Burkholderia telluris LMG 22936(T) (97.0 %). In addition, the gyrB and recA gene segments of strain MP-1(T) exhibited less than 89.0 % and 95.1 % similarities with the most highly-related type strains indicated above. The G+C content of strain MP-1(T) was 62.6 mol%. The major isoprenoid quinone was ubiquinone Q-8. The predominant polar lipids comprised phosphatidyl ethanolamine, phosphatidyl glycerol, aminolipid and phospholipid. The principal fatty acids in strain MP-1(T) were C18 : 1ω7c/C18 : 1ω6c (23.3 %), C16 : 0 (16.8 %), cyclo-C17 : 0 (15.0 %), C16 : 1ω7c/C16 : 1ω6 (8.5 %), cyclo-C19 : 0ω8c (8.1 %), C16 : 1 iso I/C14 : 0 3-OH (5.7 %), C16 : 0 3-OH (5.6 %) and C16 : 02-OH (5.1 %). The DNA-DNA relatedness values between strain MP-1(T) and the three type strains (B. grimmiae DSM 25160(T), B. zhejiangensis OP-1(T) and B. glathei DSM 50014(T)) ranged from 24.6 % to 37.4 %. In accordance with phenotypic and genotypic characteristics, strain MP-1(T) represents a novel species of the genus Burkholderia, for which the name Burkholderia jiangsuensis sp. nov. is proposed, the type strain is MP-1(T) (LMG 27927(T) = MCCC 1K00250(T)).
Ultrastructural localization of the transferrin receptor and transferrin on marrow cell surfaces

Summary. The monoclonal antibody OKT9 (a known transferrin receptor antibody) and a monoclonal antibody to transferrin (ATfn) were used to localize the transferrin receptor and transferrin on marrow cells. After incubation of cell suspensions with the antibody, the cells were reacted with an affinity purified Fab fragment of goat anti‐mouse IgG conjugated to horseradish peroxidase (GAM‐HRP), which was in turn visualized by reaction with 3,3′‐diaminobenzidine (DAB). Erythroblast cell surfaces stained intensely with OKT9‐GAM‐HRP‐DAB, weaker staining was observed on reticulocyte surfaces, whereas erythrocyte surfaces lacked staining. Staining was present on surface caveolae, which often contained endogenous ferritin particles. Moderate to strong OKT9 staining was observed on less than 10% of presumed lymphoid cells. Monocytes, macrophages, promyelocytes, granulocytes, megakaryocytes and platelets consistently lacked OKT9 staining. ATm‐GAM‐HRP‐DAB staining of erythroid cells was similar to that observed with OKT9 staining; however, in contrast to the latter staining, ATfn stained the surfaces of megakaryocytes, platelets, monocytes and most lymphocytes. Promyelocytes stained weakly, whereas late granulocytes lacked staining. These results indicate that the T9 transferrin receptor (1) is largely confined to erythroid cells in marrow, (2) is diffusely distributed on the surface of early erythroid cells, (3) decreases with cell maturation, and (4) is lost when haemoglobin synthesis is completed. Transferrin appears in a similar distribution on erythroid cell surfaces but also appears to bind to some cell surfaces lacking the T9 receptor.
Protein C system defects inflicted by the malaria parasite protein PfEMP1 can be overcome by a soluble EPCR variant

Summary The Endothelial Protein C receptor (EPCR) is essential for the anticoagulant and cytoprotective functions of the Protein C (PC) system. Selected variants of the malaria parasite protein, Plasmodium falciparum Erythrocyte Membrane Protein 1 (PfEMP1) associated with severe malaria, including cerebral malaria, specifically target EPCR on vascular endothelial cells. Here, we examine the cellular response to PfEMP1 engagement to elucidate its role in malaria pathogenesis. Binding of the CIDRα1. 1 domain of PfEMP1 to EPCR obstructed activated PC (APC) binding to EPCR and induced a loss of cellular EPCR functions. CIDRα1. 1 severely impaired endothelial PC activation and effectively blocked APC-mediated activation of protease-activated receptor-1 (PAR1) and associated barrier protective effects of APC on endothelial cells. A soluble EPCR variant (E86A-sEPCR) bound CIDRα1. 1 with high affinity and did not interfere with (A)PC binding to cellular EPCR. E86A-sEPCR used as a decoy to capture PfEMP1, permitted normal PC activation on endothelial cells, normal barrier protective effects of APC, and greatly reduced cytoadhesion of infected erythrocytes to brain endothelial cells. These data imply important contributions of PfEMP1-induced protein C pathway defects in the pathogenesis of severe malaria. Furthermore, the E86A-sEPCR decoy provides a proof-of-principle strategy for the development of novel adjunct therapies for severe malaria.
Relationship of Tissue Factor Pathway Inhibitor Activity to Plasma Lipoproteins and Myocardial Infarction at a Young Age

Summary Tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) activity was quantified in two cohorts of young male post-infarction patients and in population-based control subjects to explore the relationships between TFPI activity and plasma lipoproteins and to address the issue of coordinate regulation of factor VII and TFPI in hyperlipidaemia and premature coronary heart disease (CHD). Participants were investigated in the fasting state and after an oral fat load. Basal TFPI activity and factor VII antigen (VIIag) levels were found to be increased in the patients (TFPI activity 1.25 ± 0.23 vs 1.17 ± 0.20 U/ml, p <0.05; VIIag 537.7 ± 127.7 vs 479.4 ± 93.4 ng/ml, p <0.001). The parallel increase was accounted for by patients with hypertriglyceridaemic lipoprotein phenotypes. In contrast, the level of activated factor VII (VIIa) neither differed significantly between patients and controls, nor between patients with different lipoprotein phenotypes. The elevated TFPI activity in the patients was closely associated with the plasma level of dense low density lipoprotein (LDL) particles (r = 0.46, p <0.001) and with the plasma concentration of the small, dense high density lipoprotein (HDL) subspecies HDL3b (r = 0.34, p <0.01).
One Piece of the Whole: Teacher Evaluation as Part of a Comprehensive System for Teaching and Learning.

The United States is at a critical moment in teacher evaluation. e evaluation process is undergoing extensive changes, some of them quite radical, in nearly every state and district across the country. As we embark on these reforms, it is crucial for schools, teachers, and, especially, students that new policies improve the quality of teaching while avoiding pitfalls that could damage education. It is imperative that we not substitute new problems for familiar ones, but that we instead use this moment of transformation to get teacher evaluation right. Virtually everyone agrees that teacher evaluation in the United States needs an overhaul. Existing systems rarely help teachers improve or clearly distinguish those who are succeeding from those who are struggling. e tools that are used do not always represent the important features of good teaching. It is nearly impossible for principals, especially in large schools, to have su cient time or content expertise to evaluate all of the teachers they supervise, much less to address the needs of some teachers for intense instructional support. And many principals have not had access to the professional development and support they need to become expert instructional leaders and evaluators of teaching. us, evaluation in its current form often contributes little either to teacher learning or to accurate, timely information for personnel decisions. ese problems are long-standing. ey were obvious when my colleagues and I rst studied U.S. teacher evaluation systems in the Linda Darling-Hammond is the Charles E. Ducommun Professor of Education at Stanford University, where she is the faculty director of the Stanford Center for Opportunity Policy in Education and the founding director of the School Redesign Network. She is a former president of the American Educational Research Association and a member of the National Academy of Education. is article is adapted, with permission of Teachers College Press, from Linda Darling-Hammond, Getting Teacher Evaluation Right: What Really Matters for E ectiveness and Improvement. Copyright 2013 by Teachers College, Columbia University. All rights reserved. e book was inspired by the Good Schools Seminar Series, supported by the Albert Shanker Institute, a nonpro t, nonpartisan organization endowed by the American Federation of Teachers to promote excellence in public education. One Piece of the Whole Teacher Evaluation as Part of a Comprehensive System for Teaching and Learning
Body weight measurement of patients receiving nutritional support.

A review of patient records over a 14-day period revealed that daily weights were recorded in only 65.5% of patients receiving parenteral nutrition and 53% of patients receiving enteral alimentation despite a hospital nursing practice requirement for daily weights during nutritional support. A semi-structured questionnaire was given to staff nurses to elicit their opinions regarding the importance of weight obtainment and to ascertain their reasons why patients are not weighted. Of 74 staff nurses who completed the survey, 68% considered weights "very important" but only 34% believed this attitude to be prevalent among their co-workers. The three reasons most often cited for failure to weigh patients were: (1) "patient too critically ill"; (2) "nurse felt other priorities of care existed; and, (3) "patient refuses. " The two factors nurses most often felt should be changed to increase body weight measurement were "nurse staffing shortage" and "scales broken and/or unreliable. " This study documents a need for both logistical changes (eg, equipment availability and reliability and timing of patient weights) and educational changes at both nursing staff and patient level to improve compliance with established requirements for daily weights during nutritional support.
Does Dividend Policy Affect Firm Earnings? Empirical Evidence from Nigeria

This study examines the effect of dividend policy on firmi¯s returns using data of seventeen (17) manufacturing firms listed on the Nigerian stock Exchange. Employing descriptive statistics, correlation analysis and panel regression technique, where the fixed effect regression was adopted, the findings reveal that current dividend payout, growth opportunity of firms and dividend per share have positive and significant effect on earnings per share, with that of growth having an overwhelming influence. Current dividend payout and dividend per share are both significant at the 5percent level. One lagged dividend payout (previous dividend payout), cash flow and leverage have positive but not significant influence on EPS, while the impact of size is negative and not significant. The study recommends the implementation of effective and result-oriented dividend policies by financial managers of firms as well as sound investment, effective regulatory and supervisory framework by capital market regulators in order to enhance firmsi¯ earnings and performance in Nigeria.
A randomized trial of diagnostic ultrasound to improve outcomes in focal neuropathies

Introduction: Neuromuscular ultrasound is valid, reliable, and accurate, but it is not known whether combining it with electrodiagnostic studies leads to better outcomes in individuals with focal neuropathies. Methods: One hundred twenty individuals with focal neuropathy, based on history, examination, and electrodiagnosis, were enrolled in this study. All patients underwent neuromuscular ultrasound and were randomized to either have their ultrasound results sent to the referring physician or not have them sent. Outcomes were assessed at 6 months by evaluators blinded to group assignment. Results: The Overall Disability Sum Score and 7 of 8 domains of the Medical Outcomes Study 36‐item Short‐Form Health Survey (SF‐36) showed more improvement in the “report sent” group, although only the general health perception domain was significant (P = 0.005). Conclusions: Most 6‐month outcomes did not reach statistical significance between the 2 groups. However, the “report sent” group had trends toward better outcomes, with significance being reached in the general health perception domain of the SF‐36. Muscle Nerve 52: 746–753, 2015
Asymptotic behavior of the minimum mean squared error threshold for noisy wavelet coefficients of piecewise smooth signals

This paper investigates the asymptotic behavior of the minimum risk threshold for wavelet coefficients with additive, homoscedastic, Gaussian noise and for a soft-thresholding scheme. We start from N samples from a signal on a continuous time axis. For piecewise smooth signals and for N/spl rarr//spl infin/, this threshold behaves as C/spl radic/(2logN)/spl sigma/, where /spl sigma/ is the noise standard-deviation. The paper contains an original proof for this asymptotic behavior as well as an intuitive explanation. The paper also discusses the importance of this asymptotic behavior for practical cases when we estimate the minimum risk threshold.
High risk for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder among children of parents with childhood onset of the disorder: a pilot study.

OBJECTIVE Although well-documented in clinical and epidemiological studies of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children, the familial nature of the adult syndrome has not been well investigated. One approach to evaluate the familial nature of adult ADHD is through a high-risk design aimed at estimating the risk for the disorder in children of parents with child-hood-onset ADHD. METHOD Children at risk for ADHD were ascertained from the study group of 84 referred adults with clinical diagnoses of childhood onset of the disorder, confirmed by structured interviews. Diagnostic information on the disorder was derived from the ADHD module of the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School Age Children--Epidemiologic Version, supplemented with information regarding treatment for ADHD for the affected child and school history including repeated grades, placement in special classes, and tutoring. RESULTS Of the 84 children at risk, 48 (57%) met criteria for ADHD. The rate of the disorder in children of adults with the disorder was significantly higher than the previously reported rate of ADHD among siblings of children with the disorder. Of the 48 ADHD children of parents with the disorder, 36 (75%) were treated for it. The rates of school failure were almost identical to those previously reported in a group of referred children and adolescents with ADHD. CONCLUSIONS These results support the validity of the adult diagnosis of ADHD and suggest that the adult form of this disorder may have stronger familial etiological risk factors than its pediatric form. If these results are confirmed, families selected through adult probands with ADHD might be especially useful for testing genetic hypotheses about the disorder.