Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Serum resistin levels in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and their relationship to severity of liver disease

Abstract Background: Resistin is a hormone that is linked to the development of insulin resistance (IR), but information on the direct relationship of resistin levels in humans with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and their effect on the histological severity of NAFLD, is lacking. Objective: The aim of the current study is to determine the circulating resistin levels obtained from patients with NAFLD and to correlate them with insulin resistance and hepatic histological features. Methods: Blood samples were collected from 30 consecutive patients with liver-biopsy-proven NAFLD and 30 subjects as controls. Serum resistin levels were measured. Body mass index (BMI) was calculated for all subjects, and serum insulin, C-peptide, and lipoprotein levels were also measured. Results: Mean serum resistin level and BMI in the NAFLD group were significantly higher than in the controls (both P > 0.001). Both men and women in the NAFLD group had higher mean serum resistin levels than did the men and women in the control group (all P > 0.001). Multivariate analysis showed that the percentage of hepatic steatosis, sex, BMI, and homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance [HOMA(IR)] were related to serum resistin levels. Conclusion: These data suggest increased resistin levels in NAFLD patients which are related to histological severity of the disease. These findings support the link between resistin, insulin resistance and BMI in these patients.
VALIDATION OF HPLC METHOD FOR THE DETERMINATION OF MYCOPHENOLIC ACID IN HUMAN PLASMA OBTAINED FROM RENAL TRANSPLANT RECIPIENTS

A simple, fast and sensitive HPLC method combined with protein precipitation has been developed and validated for the determination of mycophenolic acid in human plasma, obtained from renal transplant recipients. For the analysis to be performed, the C18 Bakerbond-BDC analytical column (250 mm x 4.6 mm i.d., particle size 5 μm) was used. For chromatographic separation the optimal conditions were established with the mobile phase acetonitrile - 10 mM phosphate buffer, pH 2.5 (50:50, v/v) at the flow rate of 1.0 mL/min, temperature 30°C, and detection at 215 nm. Chromatographic run time was about 6 minutes. Precipitation of plasma proteins was performed by the addition of 0.3% trifluoroacetic acid in acetonitrile (v/v). The HPLC method combined with protein precipitation was subjected to validation. Linearity was observed over the concentration range of 0.2- 100 μg/mL for mycophenolic acid with correlation coefficient 0.9995. Moreover, a good intra-day and inter-day precision was confirmed, with relative standard deviation below 8.64%, while accuracy ranged from 89.31% to 107.67% f or mycophenolic acid. Finally, the method was successfully applied in the analysis of plasma samples obtained from renal transplant recipients in polytherapy. Acta Medica Medianae 2016;55(4):28-36.
Cardiovascular Drug Therapy

Part One. Therapeutic Strategies in Patients and Diseases: Emerging Concepts in Cardiovascular Drug Therapy. Drug Treatment of Chronic Cardiovascular Disorders: Initial Therapy and Combination Therapy. Drug Treatment of Cardiovascular Emergencies. Special Clinical Situations. Part Two. Cardiovascular Drugs: Diuretics. Beta-Adrenoreceptor Blockers. Antiadrenergic Drugs. Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors. Angiotensin Inhibitors. Arteriolar and Venous Vasodilators. Calcium Entry Blockers. Lipid-Lowering Drugs. Positive Inotropic Agents. Antiarrhythmic Drugs. Antithrombotic Therapy. Cellular Anti-Ischemic Agents. Other Drugs for the Treatment of Cardiovascular Disorders.
Clinical anatomy of the anterior cruciate ligament and pre-operative prediction of ligament length

BACKGROUND: Ligament grafts used in anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction need to be the correct length for proper functioning. If the graft length is incorrect, the patient could risk knee instability, loss of range of motion, or failure of graft fixation. Easier and time-efficient reconstruction will be facilitated if the length of the ACL is predicted in advance. Apart from examining the morphological properties of the ACL, this study aimed to determine whether the epicondylar width of an individual can be used to predict ACL length and thereby assist in restoring the normal anatomy of the ACL. METHODS: Ninety-one adult cadavers were studied. Patellar ligament (PL) length, ACL length, ACL width and the maximum femoral epicondylar width (FECW) were measured. RESULTS: The morphology of the ACL and PL was determined. The results revealed that FECW was the most reliable predictor of ACL length. A linear regression formula was developed in order to determine ACL length by measuring maximum FECW. CONCLUSIONS: ACL and PL morphology compared well with the results found in previous studies. An individual's FECW can be used to predict ACL length pre-operatively. These results could improve pre-operative planning of ACL reconstruction.
Inteligencias Múltiples y Alta Habilidad

La teoria de las Inteligencias Multiples (IM) proporciona un marco teorico para el estudio de la alta habilidad, reconoce diferentes formas de ensenar y aprender, proponiendo procedimientos dinamicos de evaluacion cognitiva. Este estudio analiza las diferencias de padres, profesores y alumnos en la percepcion de las IM segun el perfil cognitivo ("alta habilidad" frente a "no alta habilidad"), y el genero. La muestra estuvo formada por 565 alumnos (53.45% chicos y 46.54% chicas), con edades comprendidas entre 11 y 17 anos (M = 14.05, DT = 1.08), de los cuales 385 fueron identificados como alumnos de alta habilidad siguiendo el procedimiento de Castello y Batlle (1998); ademas, 536 padres y 520 profesores participaron en este estudio. Se administra- ron tres cuestionarios basados en las IM, cuyos indices de fiabilidad fueron adecuados. Los re- sultados mostraron diferencias significativas en la percepcion de las inteligencias linguistica, lo- gico-matematica y naturalista (segun los tres informadores) a favor de los alumnos con alta ha- bilidad. No se encontraron diferencias significativas en las inteligencias musical, corporal o so- cial. Respecto al genero, se hallaron diferencias significativas a favor de las chicas en las inteli- gencias musical y social, y a favor de los chicos en la inteligencia logico-matematica. Palabras Clave: Inteligencias Multiples, altas habilidades, profesores, padres, alumnos. Multiple Intelligences and High Ability. The theory of Multiple Intelligences (MI) provides a theoretical framework in the study of the giftedness, as recognizes a multiplicity of ways of le- arning. This study analyze the differences that parents, teachers and students have on the percep- tion of MI according to students' cognitive profile (high ability vs. not high ability), and gender. The sample was composed of 565 students (53.45% boys and 46.54% girls) with aged between 11 and 18 years (M = 14.05; SD = 1.08), of whom 385 were identified as GyT according to the guidelines proposed by Castello and Batlle (1998). Also a sample of 536 parents and 520 tea- chers took part in this study. Three checklist based on the MI theory were used: parents' (α= .852) and teachers' (α= .919) ratings and students' (α= .807) self ratings. The results showed sig- nificant differences in the perception of students' IM (among the three informants) in the areas of linguistic, mathematical and naturalist intelligence favouring high ability' students. No signi- ficant differences were found in less academic areas like musical, kinaesthetic and social intelli- gence. Respect to gender, there were significant differences favouring girls in social and musi-
Worth it? Findings from a study of how academics assess students' Web 2.0 activities

Educational commentators have offered many pedagogical rationales for using Web 2.0 to support learning in higher education, and academics are being encouraged to find ways for their students to use social web technologies. Questions arise as to the value of these activities compared to more conventional assignments, and whether implementing such changes to student assessment is worth the effort. We conducted a survey of academics’ assessment of students’ Web 2.0 activities in Australian universities and found that this form of assessment is being conducted by a small number of academics, in a range of fields of study, but mainly in Humanities and Social Sciences, with varying kinds of intended and actual learning outcomes. Blogging and wiki-writing predominate, low and medium-stakes assessment are most common, and different methods of marking and feedback are in use. Qualitative feedback from the survey and follow-up interviews gave further insights into benefits and challenges ofWeb 2.0 assessment in relation to pedagogy, policy and practice. It appears that academics’ conservative approaches to conducting assessment and their novice approaches to utilising social web technologies are factors which seriously limit realising the potential of Web 2.0 for medium or high-stakes assessment. Keywords: assessment; assignments; higher education; social web; Web 2.0 (Published: 3 February 2012) Citation: Research in Learning Technology 2012, 20 : 16153 - DOI: 10.3402/rlt.v20i0/16153
The role of telecollaboration in language and intercultural learning: A synthesis of studies published between 2010 and 2015

Abstract In today’s globalized world, learning languages and developing intercultural skills are of paramount importance due to dynamic and complex global interdependencies. However, not every language student around the world has a chance to engage in face-to-face intercultural communication with people from different backgrounds. Telecollaboration offers a worthwhile opportunity by creating digital environments for language learners to communicate with people from diverse backgrounds. This qualitative meta-synthesis therefore aimed to investigate the research papers that were published between 2010 and 2015 in respect to language and intercultural learning within telecollaborative environments. Besides reporting emerging research trends among the studies, this synthesis study scrutinized recent emerging issues and observable patterns under five main themes: (1) the participants’ overall views on their telecollaborative experiences, (2) language learning through telecollaboration, (3) intercultural learning through telecollaboration, (4) the challenges experienced within the telecollaborative projects, and (5) the needs for further effective telecollaboration. Finally, this study synthesizes key emerging issues in telecollaborative projects and offers further research and practice directions in line with the current observable patterns.
Trends in healthy life expectancy in Japan: 1986 - 2004

This article examines the increasing life expectancy of Japanese men and women in relation to their health from 1986 to 2004. We computed healthy life expectancy for seven available time-points using the prevalence-based Sullivan method. The results showed that, for both sexes and at all ages, the gains in life expectancy prior to 1995 were mostly in years of good self-rated health, while the gains thereafter were in years of poor self-rated health. The exception was for women at age 85, among whom there was an almost continuous increase in the number of years in poor health. The proportion of life spent in different health states suggested evidence of morbidity compression until 1995, followed by an expansion of morbidity.
BRB: Mitigating Branch Predictor Side-Channels.

Modern processors use branch prediction as an optimization to improve processor performance. Predictors have become larger and increasingly more sophisticated in order to achieve higher accuracies which are needed in high performance cores. However, branch prediction can also be a source of side channel exploits, as one context can deliberately change the branch predictor state and alter the instruction flow of another context. Current mitigation techniques either sacrifice performance for security, or fail to guarantee isolation when retaining the accuracy. Achieving both has proven to be challenging. In this work we address this by, (1) introducing the notions of steady-state and transient branch predictor accuracy, and (2) showing that current predictors increase their misprediction rate by as much as 90% on average when forced to flush branch prediction state to remain secure. To solve this, (3) we introduce the branch retention buffer, a novel mechanism that partitions only the most useful branch predictor components to isolate separate contexts. Our mechanism makes thread isolation practical, as it stops the predictor from executing cold with little if any added area and no warm-up overheads. At the same time our results show that, compared to the state-of-the-art, average misprediction rates are reduced by 15-20% without increasing area, leading to a 2% performance increase.
Approximate models for the study of nonstationary queues and their applications to communication networks

The authors present numerical-methods-based techniques to model multiclass Markovian traffic, with and without priority, in ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) networks. The use of these methods is validated, under stationary and nonstationary traffic patterns, with simulation. The models developed are quite accurate, and provide substantial saving in computational time over the simulations done to validate the model. An illustrative application of the models to an ATM network is presented. <<ETX>>
2000 CDC Growth Charts: Background for Clinical Application

The 1977 National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) Growth Charts, revised by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), are now available as the 2000 CDC Growth Charts for the United States. New features include charts that extend to age 20 years, include the 3rd and 97th percentiles, allow calculation of z-scores that match the percentiles, and development of new body mass index-for-age growth charts. This article discusses the data sources, clinical applications and limitations including fundamentals of plotting and interpretation of the revised charts, and the Internet source for more comprehensive background and instructional materials (http://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts).
WAVELET-BASED ANALYSIS OF CEREBROVASCULAR DYNAMICS IN NEWBORN RATS WITH INTRACRANIAL HEMORRHAGES

Intracranial hemorrhage (IH) is a major problem of neonatal intensive care. The incidence of IH is typically asymptomatic and cannot be effectively detected by standard diagnostic methods. The mechanisms underlying IH are unknown but there is evidence that stress-induced disorders in adrenergic regulation of cerebral venous blood flow (CVBF) are among the main reasons. Quantitative and qualitative assessment of CVBF could significantly advance understanding of the nature of IH in newborns. In this work, we analyze variations of CVBF in newborn rats with an experimental model of stress-induced IH and adrenaline injection. Our analysis is based on the Doppler optical coherence tomography (DOCT) and a proposed adaptive wavelet-based approach that provides sensitive markers of abnormal reactions of the sagittal vein to external factors. The obtained results demonstrate that the incidence of IH in newborn rats is accompanied by a suppression of CVBF with the development of venous insufficiency and areactivity to adrenaline. We introduce a numerical measure θ, quantifying reactions of CVBF and show that the values θ < 1.23 estimated in the low-frequency (LF) spectral range corresponding to the sympathicus indicate abnormal reactions associated with the development of IH. We conclude that the revealed areactivity of the cerebral veins to adrenaline represents a possible mechanism responsible for pathological changes in CVBF.
Revision des Symphurus du Siboga

Ce m’est un devoir particulierement agreable que de saisir l’occasion de ce petit memoire pour remercier M. L. F. DE BEAUFORT, M. H. ENGEL, Directeur du Zoologisch Museum, ainsi que M. J. J. HOEDEMAN de l’accueil qu’a diverses reprises, j’ai recu de leur part, au Zoologisch Museum, et aussi des multiples obligeances dont ils m’ont fait beneficier, grâce a quoi il m’a ete permis d’etudier a loisir les Soleoidei de la fructueuse et memorable croisiere 1899—1900 du Siboga. Le present travail est consacre aux Cynoglossidae du seul genre Symphurus RAFINESQUE 1810, genre ou la discrimination des especes se fait particulierement difficile. Au tres petit nombre des caracteres utilisables ne s’ajoute que trop souvent l’etat precaire dans lequel ces etres fragiles et generalement de faible taille parviennent dans les collections, malmenes qu’ils sont inevitablement par la drague qui les ramene de profondeurs atteignant parfois 1.000 m. ou davantage. S’il arrive qu’elle se produise, l’erreur de determination d’un Symphurus est donc des plus excusable. Aussi bien, n’est-ce qu’apres avoir etudie plus d’un millier d’individus appartenant a la tres grande majorite des especes decrites, que j’ose publier ce travail, qui aura du moins pour resultat d’enrichir le Zoologisch Museum d’une espece dont le nom ne figurait pas encore dans ses archives.
A quasi-experimental study on improving arthritis self-management for residents of an aged people's home in Hong Kong

Arthritis is one of the most prevalent activity-limiting conditions among older persons in developed countries. The aim of this quasi-experimental study was to assess the effect of an Arthritis Self-Management Programme (ASMP) on residents in a home for elderly people in Hong Kong. Forty-two residents completed baseline assessment. Thirty-seven residents (88.0%) completed the ASMP course, 1 and 16 week post-intervention questionnaires and assessment. There were 16 residents in the control group and 21 residents in the intervention group. Residents in the intervention group received a 6-week ASMP course. The conventional ASMP course was followed except that we emphasized and coached Tai Chi movements during the last three sessions. Outcome measures included arthritis self-efficacy, arthritis pain rating, functional and emotional status. At 16 weeks, there was significant increased overall arthritis self-efficacy score (p = 0.05), reduction of current arthritis pain rating (p = 0.05), improvement from baseline in quadriceps muscle strength (p = 0.03) and hamstring muscle strength (p = 0.02). However, there were no other significant improvements from baseline between the intervention and control groups. Our findings suggest that a self-management programme is effective in enhancing overall self-efficacy to manage arthritis, improving muscle strength and reducing arthritis pain among older people in long-term care settings.
Teoría de la autodeterminación y comportamientos prosociales en jóvenes jugadores de fútbol

El objetivo del presente estudio era relacionar la Teoria de la Autodeterminacion con los comportamientos e intenciones prosocia¬les en el contexto deportivo. Para ello, 97 jugadores de futbol de categoria infantil y cadete, con edades comprendidas entre los 12 y los 16 fueron empleados como muestra. Los resultados establecen una relacion significativa y positiva entre los niveles mas altos de autodeterminacion y la aparicion de comportamientos e intenciones prosociales. Asimismo, se comprobo que hay una alta relacion entre los mediadores afiliacion y autonomia con la aparicion de este tipo de conductas, resultados que corroboran los estudios realiza¬dos anteriormente por otros autores (Gagne, 2003). Como conclusion, se puede proponer la necesidad de que padres y entrenadores inculquen en los jugadores niveles altos de autodeterminacion, con el objetivo de conseguir que aumenten las conductas deportivas.
La rappresentazione del sé corporeo in bambini con patologie croniche diversamente trattate

Il contributo presenta uno studio sulla rappresentazione del se corporeo in bambini con patologie croniche diversamente trattate, al fine di esplorare possibili risorse funzionali alla gestione della condizione di rischio costituita dalla patologia; nello specifico, gli indicatori delle risorse vanno individuati, su un piano qualitativo, nell’adeguatezza dell’immagine del corpo, nell’integrita dell’immagine di se, nell’integrazione di mappe cognitive e, su un piano quantitativo, nel quoziente di maturita cognitiva. Lo studio ha previsto il coinvolgimento di un gruppo di 52 bambini (eta media 10 anni) di cui un 50% con patologie croniche che prevedono trattamenti invasivi, caratterizzati da "pratiche" sul corpo costanti che alterano la serenita del quotidiano (es. trasfusioni, cateteri venosi, iniezioni di insulina, microinfusioni), l’altro 50% con cardiopatie sottoposti a trattamenti solo farmacologici. L’indagine ha previsto l’uso del Disegno della Figura Umana. I risultati, pur mostrando, in generale, livelli medi di adeguatezza e di integrita corporea, sottolineano differenze statisticamente significative in relazione alla tipologia di trattamento, laddove i bambini sottoposti a trattamenti invasivi presentano livelli piu elevati sia di adeguatezza che di integrita corporea. Relativamente al quoziente di maturita, invece, non si evidenziano differenze tra i due gruppi, sottolineando la presenza di alcune risorse cognitive funzionali all’adattamento alla patologia.
Discrimination upon Recruitment. The Influence of Ethnic Characteristics on Recruiters’ Decisions in Personnel Selection – A Study on the Applicability of Research Material.

The present study consists of paper-and-pencil surveys (i.e., questionnaires), handed out to students at the Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) in the Netherlands and to working people from Belgium and the Netherlands, with the purpose of testing and developing research materials for a series of studies on discrimination in recruitment (Derous, Nguyen & Ryan, May 2006). Four aspects that are potentially related to discrimination in recruitment practices, are pilot tested, namely equivalence of resumes, ethnicity of first and last names, ethnicity of affiliations, and whether jobs are considered either front office jobs or back office jobs. The results of the studies show that the presented resumes are generally perceived as equivalent by both groups of respondents, regarding most aspects (i.e., type of education, level of education and amount of work experience), except for “kind of work experience” and “hobbies”. Generally, affiliations and last/first names are appropriate for further research. However, some affiliations and last/first names are not, since the respondents’ attributions are not in line with the ethnicity assumed by the researchers. Finally, the results show that the presented jobs are difficult to divide into the front office and back office categories. Indeed, it turns out that most jobs are not suitable for such labelling, except for “public relations specialist”, “technical writer”, “occupational therapist” and “clinical laboratory technologist”. This is mainly due to the contribution from the group of working people.