Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Usefulness of screening tools for predicting driving performance in people with Parkinson's disease.

OBJECTIVE We used screening tests administered by a certified driving rehabilitation specialist and by Parkinson's disease (PD) specialty neurologists to develop a model to predict on-road outcomes for patients with PD. METHOD We administered a battery of screening tests to 41 patients with PD and 41 age-matched control participants before on-road testing. We used statistical models to predict actual on-road performance. RESULTS The PD group had a higher failure rate, indicating more on-road errors. For the PD participants, the Useful Field of View (UFOV) Subtest 2 and Rapid Pace Walk were responsible for most of the variance in the on-road test. The model accurately categorized pass-fail outcomes for 81% of PD patients. CONCLUSION Clinical screening batteries may be predictive of driving performance in PD. The UFOV Subtest 2, administered in approximately 15 min, may be the single most useful clinical test for such predictions.
125I‐Ifenprodil: Synthesis and Characterization of Binding to a Polyamine‐Sensitive Site in Cerebral Cortical Membranes

Abstract: The characteristics of binding sites in rat cerebral cortical synaptic membranes labeled by 125I‐ifenprodil, a noncompetitive NMDA receptor antagonist, are described. 125I‐ifenprodil was synthesized using Na125I in the presence of chloramine‐T and purified by paper chromatography. Binding of the 125I‐ligand was optimal at pH 7.7 in 5 mM Tris · HCl buffer. Equilibrium binding of 125I‐ifenprodil was displaced by spermine (1 mM) but not by ifenprodil or its analogue, SL 82.0715 (both 16.7 μM). Zn2+, Ca2+, and Mg2+ inhibited specific binding of 125I‐ifenprodil in a concentration‐dependent manner, with IC50 values of 0.11, 1.1, and 1.7 mM, respectively. The dissociation constant (KD) for unlabeled ifenprodil determined by saturation binding was 205 nM. Scatchard plots of saturation data appeared curvilinear but were best described by a single‐binding‐site model (Hill coefficient = 0.95), with a density of binding sites (Bmax) of 141 pmol/mg of protein. Binding of 125I‐ifenprodil was inhibited by polyamines, with a rank potency order of spermine > spermidine > putrescine = 1,3‐diaminopropane. The pattern of inhibition produced by spermidine was apparently competitive. Ifenprodil congeners also fully inhibited polyamine‐sensitive binding of 125I‐ifenprodil, with a rank potency order of ifenprodil > SL 82.0715 = tibalosine > nylidrin = isoxsuprine. It was found that σ/antitussive agents partially inhibited specific binding, but inclusion of the σ drug GBR 12909 had little effect on the binding of 125I‐ifenprodil, suggesting this site was not involved. The binding site labeled by 125I‐ifenprodil is polyamine sensitive, has a discrete pharmacological profile, and apparently is unrelated to the σ site.
Restricted feeding entrains liver clock without participation of the suprachiasmatic nucleus

There are two main stimuli that entrain the circadian rhythm, the light‐dark cycle (LD) and restricted feeding (RF). Light‐induced entrainment requires induction of the Per1 and Per2 genes in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), the locus of a main oscillator. In this experiment, we determined whether RF resets the expression of circadian clock genes in the mouse liver with or without participation of the SCN.
Clinical signs, evaluation of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, and assessment of pulmonary function in horses with inflammatory respiratory disease.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the association among clinical signs, results of cytologic evaluation of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid, and measures of pulmonary function in horses with inflammatory respiratory disease. ANIMALS 9 healthy horses, 5 horses with inflammatory airway disease (IAD), and 9 horses with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). PROCEDURES Clinical examination, lung function tests, and BAL were performed on each horse. RESULTS Standard lung mechanics of horses with exacerbated COPD differed significantly from those of healthy horses; however, there were few differences among horses with IAD, horses with COPD during remission, and healthy horses. Most variables for forced expiration (FE) in horses with COPD or IAD differed significantly from those for healthy horses. Results of clinical examination had low to moderate sensitivity and predictive values for a diagnosis of COPD (range, 67 to 80%). Results of FE tests had high sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values for a diagnosis of COPD (79 to 100%), and results of standard lung mechanics tests had low sensitivity and predictive values (22 to 69%). Percentage of neutrophils in BAL fluid was highly sensitive (100%) but moderately specific (64%) for a diagnosis of COPD. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Clinical examination is moderately accurate for establishing a diagnosis of COPD. Forced expiration tests can specifically detect early signs of airway obstruction in horses with COPD and IAD that may otherwise be inapparent. Cytologic evaluation of BAL fluid allows early detection of inflammatory respiratory disease, but it is not specific for COPD.
Spectrum of histopathological diagnosis in paediatric patients with liver disorders in Pakistan.

OBJECTIVE To document spectrum of paediatric liver disorders confirmed on liver biopsy. METHODS The retrospective review of patients was conducted at Shifa International Hospital, Islamabad, Pakistan, and comprised data of all children who underwent ultrasound-guided percutaneous liver biopsy between December 2008 and June 2015. Frequency of individual diagnosis was assessed and compared on gender basis. SPSS 16 was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS There were medical records of 74 patients in the study with an overall median age of 6.9 years (interquartile range: 0.2-17.7 years). Metabolic 27(36.5%) and inflammatory 19(25.6%) disorders were the most common aetiologies. At presentation 29(39.1%) patients had cirrhosis; and 25(34%) children were <5 years of age. Metabolic disorders were the most common aetiology in children upto 10 years of age with 19(25.6%) patients. Above the age of 10 years, inflammatory disorders were more frequent and were seen in 10(13.5%). Based on gender, a trend towards significance was observed for metabolic disorders (p=0.08) and children who presented with cirrhosis (p= 0.07), but it was not statistically significant. CONCLUSIONS Metabolic disorders were the most common cause of liver disorders. A number of children at presentation had underlying cirrhosis.
Procalcitonin release patterns in a baboon model of trauma and sepsis: Relationship to cytokines and neopterin

ObjectivesProcalcitonin (PCT) has been described as an early, discriminating marker of bacteria-associated sepsis in patients. However, little is known of its source and actions, in part because no appropriate animal models have been available. We tested the hypothesis that plasma PCT increases during various pathophysiological conditions, such as hemorrhagic shock and sepsis, which differ with regard to the degree of associated endotoxemia. We further hypothesized that in sepsis, PCT would be significantly different in survivors vs. nonsurvivors. DesignProspective, blinded analysis of previously collected plasma of experimental animals. SettingIndependent nonprofit research laboratory in a trauma hospital and a contract research institute. SubjectsA total of 22 male baboons (17.5–31 kg). InterventionsHemorrhagic-traumatic shock was induced by hemorrhage for up to 3 hrs, reperfusion with shed blood and infusion of cobra venom factor (n = 7). By using a similar experimental setup, severe hyperdynamic sepsis was induced (n = 15) by intravenous infusion of live Escherichia coli (2 × 109 colony-forming units/kg) over 2 hrs, followed by antibiotic therapy (gentamicin 4 mg/kg twice a day). Measurements and Main ResultsPlasma PCT at baseline was barely detectable, but levels increased significantly (p < .05) to 2 ± 1.8 pg/mL 2 hrs after the start of reperfusion in the shock group, and to 987 ± 230 pg/mL at 4 hrs after E. coli in the sepsis group. Levels were maximal between 6 and 32 hrs and had returned nearly to baseline levels at 72 hrs. Interleukin-6 levels paralleled the course of PCT measurements, whereas a significant increase in neopterin was seen at 24 hrs. PCT levels were approximately three times higher in the sepsis group than in the shock group, corresponding to endotoxin levels (at the end of hemorrhage, 286 ± 144 pg/mL vs. 3576 ± 979 pg/mL at the end of E. coli infusion;p = .003). PCT levels were significantly different at 24 hrs between survivors (2360 ± 620 pg/mL) and nonsurvivors (4776 ± 563 pg/mL) in the sepsis group (p = .032), as were interleukin-6 (1562 ± 267 vs. 4903 ± 608 pg/mL;p = .01) and neopterin/creatinine ratio (0.400 ± 0.038 vs. 0.508 ± 0.037;p = .032). ConclusionsPCT is detectable in the baboon as in humans, both in hemorrhagic shock and sepsis. PCT levels are significantly higher in sepsis than in hemorrhage, a finding that is probably related to the differences in endotoxin. The baboon can be used for the study of PCT kinetics in both models; PCT kinetics are clearly different from other markers of sepsis, either IL-6 or neopterin, in both models. There are significant differences between survivors and nonsurvivors in the sepsis model.
Referential Effects on Articulatory Learning

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the effects of referent changes on the articulatory learning of familiar words. Two groups of school-age children learned correct articulatory productions of /s/ in /saIn/ and /saId/ in sequences ranging from single-word imitation to spontaneous production in connected discourse. One group was presented with new definitions and pictorial referents when learning the utterances /saIn/ and /saId/, while the other group learned /saIn/ and /saId/ in the familiar semantic context. The results suggest that the articulatory response /s/, in /saIn/ and /saId/, may be learned more effectively by an approach that assigns a nonsense referent to /saIn/ and /saId/, rather than an approach that maintains the original meaningful referent while training correct /s/ productions. Correct /s/ productions learned in this nonsense context, however, do not readily generalize to original semantic contexts. Additional training must be provided to establish these correct productions when the phonemic configurations, /saIn/ and /saId/, are under the stimulus control of the original, meaningful referent. Lastly, it appears that /s/ productions learned in the original context are generalized more easily to other meaningful words than /s/ productions learned in the nonsense context.
The Impact of HCI Design on Health Behavior: The Case for Visual, Interactive, Personalized-content (VIP) Feedback

There is overwhelming evidence of patients’ low compliance with taking medication and keeping health related diets. In this work, we explore Visual, Interactive, and Personalized-content (VIP) feedback, as a novel method for increasing a patient's compliance with health care prescriptions. We hypothesize that VIP feedback positively affects intentions to change health behavior by affecting the users' sense of involvement, self-efficacy and comprehension, and, thereby, affecting their intentions to change behavior. We then test the mediation model through a longitudinal experiment in which the subjects used a nutritional information system that supplied them with personal medical information (n=155). The results support the mediation model and present interesting implications for design. VIP feedback offers an opportunity to develop longterm intervention effects on users’ behavior.
Ecdysone Metabolism in Diapause Eggs and Non-Diapause Eggs of the Silkworm, Bombyx mori

Abstract In order to compare ecdysone metabolism between diapause eggs and non-diapause eggs of the silkworm, Bombyx mori, 3H-ecdysone and its derivatives (3H-3-epiecdysone and 3H-ecdysone 22-phosphate) were injected into the eggs at various stages during early embryogenesis, and the resultant labelled metabolites were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography. From the quantitative and qualitative changes in the labelled metabolites between diapause eggs and non-diapause eggs, it was demonstrated that epimerization of ecdysone occurred during early embryogenesis irrespective of the embryonic stage in both diapause eggs and non-diapause eggs, and that phosphorylation of ecdysone was a major metabolic step in diapause eggs, whereas dephosphorylation of ecdysone 22-phosphate and its subsequent hydroxylation at the C-20 and C-26 positions were characteristic in non-diapause eggs.
MOS-PN Hybrid Device With Minimum Dark Current for Sensitive Digital Photodetection

This letter presents a CMOS-compatible photodetector displaying direct light-to-time conversion and intrinsic charge integration with a very low dark current. This device is particularly adapted for applications requiring high sensitivity such as bioluminescence detection. The effects of the physical structure, the process parameters, and the bias conditions on the device are discussed with the support of TCAD simulations and experimental measurements. The photodetector and its readout circuit are designed and implemented in standard 0.18-μm CMOS process. The experimental study shows promising tunability and sensitivity characteristics.
Mortality After Kidney Transplantation: What Lessons Can We Learn from Regional and Country Variation?

Kim and colleagues interrogating the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (SRTR) from U.S. government mandated data collection and the Canadian Organ Procurement Register (CORR), report variant renal transplant mortality rates between the two countries. The transplant community has struggled with how to satisfy the moral and scientific imperative of reporting outcomes data in our field and the potential for raw data being misunderstood even culminating in false conclusion. To address this dialectic, members of United Network of Organ Sharing (UNOS), the organization tasked by Congress to collect and report transplant outcomes data, developed an explanatory algorithm which takes into account demographic and case-mix differences that define regions in the USA so that the public can interpret the raw data against expected norms. We believe the publication of the raw outcomes data in Kim et al., while hypothesis generating, demands further interpretation and explication. We would advance at least four possible explanations for the outcomes differences reported in this issue of the Journal which we will explore in turn; (1) the possible bias generated when mandatory registries are compared to those voluntary; (2) case-mix differences with particular reference to differences in the denominator in morbidity data in terms of comorbid burden; (3) differences in longterm practice both preand post-transplant; and finally, (4) differences imposed by the composition of the health care delivery systems between the two countries.
Suboccipital and cervical chordomas: the value of aggressive treatment at first presentation of the disease.

OBJECT Chordoma is a locally invasive tumor with a high tendency for recurrence for which radical resection is generally recommended. To assess the benefits of aggressive treatment of chordomas, the authors compared results in patients treated aggressively at the first presentation of this disease with results in patients who were similarly treated, but after recurrence. METHODS Among 36 patients with cervical chordomas who were treated at the authors' institution, 22 underwent primary aggressive treatment (Group A) and 14 were treated secondarily after tumor recurrence (Group B). Two cases were excluded from Group A because of unrelated early deaths and three from Group B because of insufficient pre- or postoperative data. Most tumors were located at the suboccipital level and only eight cases at a level below C-2. Radiotherapy and proton therapy were similarly conducted in both groups of patients. The actuarial survival rates were 80 and 65% at 5 and 10 years, respectively, in Group A patients and 50 and 0% at 5 and 10 years, respectively, in Group B patients (p = 0.049, log-rank test). The actuarial recurrence-free rates were 70 and 35% at 5 and 10 years, respectively, in Group A and 0% at 3 years in Group B (p < 0.0001, log-rank test). The numbers of recurrences per year were 0.15 in Group A and 0.62 in Group B (p > 0.05). All other parameters that were analyzed (patient age, delay before diagnosis, clinical symptoms, chondroid type of lesion, and histological features) did not prove to influence prognosis in a statistically significant manner. CONCLUSIONS Aggressive therapy, combining as radical a resection as possible with radiotherapy, seems to improve the prognoses of suboccipital and cervical chordomas when applied at the patient's first presentation with the disease.
Ceramide-dominant barrier repair lipids alleviate childhood atopic dermatitis: changes in barrier function provide a sensitive indicator of disease activity.

BACKGROUND It is currently fashionable to consider atopic dermatitis (AD), like other inflammatory dermatoses, as immunologic in pathogenesis ("inside-outside" hypothesis). Accordingly, topical glucocorticoids and other immunosuppressive agents are mainstays of therapy, but the risk of toxicity from these agents is not insignificant, particularly in children. Alternatively, because stratum corneum (SC) permeability barrier function is also abnormal in AD, it has been hypothesized that the barrier abnormality could drive disease activity. Yet commonly used emollients and moisturizers do not correct the SC ceramide deficiency, the putative cause of the barrier abnormality. OBJECTIVES We assessed the efficacy of a newly developed, ceramide-dominant, physiologic lipid-based emollient, when substituted for currently used moisturizers, in 24 children who were also receiving standard therapy for stubborn-to-recalcitrant AD. METHODS All subjects continued prior therapy (eg, topical tacrolimus or corticosteroids), only substituting the barrier repair emollient for their prior moisturizer. Follow-up evaluations, which included severity scoring of atopic dermatitis (SCORAD) values and several biophysical measures of SC function, were performed every 3 weeks for 20 to 21 weeks. RESULTS SCORAD values improved significantly in 22 of 24 patients by 3 weeks, with further progressive improvement in all patients between 6 and 20 or 21 weeks. Transepidermal water loss levels (TEWL), which were elevated over involved and uninvolved areas at entry, decreased in parallel with SCORAD scores and continued to decline even after SCORAD scores plateaued. Both SC integrity (cohesion) and hydration also improved slowly but significantly during therapy. Finally, the ultrastructure of the SC, treated with ceramide-dominant emollient, revealed extracellular lamellar membranes, which were largely absent in baseline SC samples. CONCLUSION These studies suggest that (1) a ceramide-dominant, barrier repair emollient represents a safe, useful adjunct to the treatment of childhood AD and (2) TEWL is at least as sensitive an indicator of fluctuations in AD disease activity as are SCORAD values. These studies support the outside-inside hypothesis as a component of pathogenesis in AD and other inflammatory dermatoses that are accompanied by a barrier abnormality.
Integrated Temporal Reasoning with Periodic Events

In many areas of Computer Science, including planning, workflows, guidelines, and protocol management, one has to deal with abstract plans, procedures, or schedules involving temporal constraints between classes of actions that have to be repeated at periodic times and may be instantiated in different ways for different executions of the plans (procedures, schedules). In this paper we propose an integrated framework to deal with both qualitative temporal constraints on classes of actions and temporal constraints between instances of actions, in which temporal reasoning is used to amalgamate both types of constraints and to check their consistency. In particular, we consider an expressive formalism to deal with temporal constraints between classes of actions (with special attention to periodic actions) which takes into account different components such as frame times, numeric quantification, periods, and qualitative relations. We define the notions of (contextual) concretization of qualitative temporal constraints between classes and use this notion to formally define the consistency of a knowledge base of temporal constraints between classes and a set of temporal constraints on instances, and to define the algorithm for checking such a consistency. An application for scheduling lessons in a school is shown in an example.
Production, Manufacturing and Logistics On ''An EOQ model for perishable items under stock-dependent selling rate and time-dependent partial backlogging'' by Dye and Ouyang

AbstractIn 2005, Dye and Ouyang proposed an EOQ model for perishable items under stock-dependent selling rate and time-dependent partial backlogging, and then established the unique optimal solution to the problem when building upinventory is not proﬁtable. However, they did not provide the optimal solution to the problem when building up inven-tory is proﬁtable. In this note, we establish an appropriate model in which building up inventory is proﬁtable, and thenprovide an algorithm to ﬁnd the optimal solution to the problem. A numerical example is used to illustrate the proposedmodel. 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Inventory; Stock-dependent demand; Deteriorating items 1. IntroductionPadmanabhan and Vrat [4] considered an economic order quantity (i.e., EOQ) model for perishableitems with stock-dependent demand, and presented three shortage models: without backlogging, with back-logging, and partial backlogging. They assumed that the backlogging rate depends on the amount of
Apolipoprotein E increases cell association of amyloid-β 40 through heparan sulfate and LRP1 dependent pathways

Abstract The increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) associated with specific apolipoprotein E (ApoE) isoforms appears to relate to altered amyloid-β (Aβ) homeostasis. Clearance of Aβ from the brain is reduced in the presence of the AD-associated ApoE4 isoform, which may contribute to the accumulation of Aβ deposits in the parenchyma and vasculature. The low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1 (LRP1) and heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs), both established ApoE receptors, are involved in Aβ uptake, with LRP1 additionally implicated in Aβ transcytosis across the blood–brain barrier. In this study, we detected the co-distribution of heparan sulfate (HS), ApoE and LRP1 in Aβ(1-40)-positive brain microvessels from individuals with Down’s syndrome diagnosed with AD. In addition, ApoE was pulled-down from AD cerebrospinal fluid with anti-Aβ antibodies. Using Chinese hamster ovary cells deficient in HS or LRP1, we found that ApoE increases cell association of Aβ in a HSPG- and LRP1-dependent manner; and further, ApoE processing is altered in the absence of cellular HS. These interactions may facilitate Aβ clearance from the brain, but if overwhelmed could contribute to Aβ accumulation and the pathogenesis of AD.