Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Surgical Management of Acute Odontoid Fractures : surgery-related complications and long-term outcomes in a consecutive series of 97 patients 1

Background: The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of surgery for odontoid fractures and to study surgical mortality, surgical morbidity and long-term outcome in a large, contemporary, consecutive, single institution, surgical series of odontoid fractures. Methods: This is a retrospective study of all odontoid fractures treated by open surgery at our hospital during 2002–2009. The fractures were classified according to Grauer. Follow-up data, clinical examinations and cervical CTs were collected in 2010. Results: This study included 97 consecutive patients with a median age of 73.0 years. The incidence of open fixation of odontoid fractures in this population was 0.45 per 100.000, and the incidence increased with age. The fractures were classified as type IIA in 3 patients, type IIB in 63 patients, type IIC in 8 patients and type III in 23 patients. Anterior fixation and posterior fixation were performed in 41 and 56 patients, respectively. Immediate postoperative neurological status was unchanged or improved in 97% of the patients. None of the patients developed postoperative hematoma, wound infection, deep venous thrombosis or pulmonary embolism. Eleven patients underwent resurgery during the follow-up period; five had suboptimal reposition after the first surgery, one had suboptimal position of an anterior odontoid screw, two had rupture of fixation materials, and three developed pseudarthrosis. Overall survival (OS) rates after 1, 12 and 24 months were 96%, 84% and 75%, respectively. Fifty-seven patients were available for follow-up evaluation with a mean time of 37 months. Radiological follow-up showed definite bony fusion in 82% of the patients and uncertain bony fusion in 18% of the patients. Flexion-extension radiographs were obtained in six of the ten patients with uncertain bony fusion; five of these were defined as stable (fibrous union), and one was unstable. Multivariate logistic regression demonstrated increased odds of nonbony fusion in more displaced fractures (OR 1.44, 95% CI (1.04-2.16), p = 0.04) and when using the anterior fusion technique (OR 0.17, 95% CI (0.03-0.75), p = 0.02). There was no significant association between neck pain and fusion method (Mann-Whitney test, p = 0.86). Patients treated with a posterior fusion approach had significantly more neck stiffness than patients who underwent fusion with an anterior odontoid screw (Fisher test, p = 0.04). Conclusions: The annual incidence of open fixation of odontoid fractures was 0.45 per 100,000 inhabitants, and the incidence increased with age. Median age at time of surgery was 73.0 years, and the surgical mortality was 4%. Increased odds of non-bony fusion were observed in more displaced fractures and after anterior screw fixations. There were no significant differences between patients treated with anterior screw fixation versus posterior
5‐HT3 receptor antagonists ameliorate 5‐fluorouracil‐induced intestinal mucositis by suppression of apoptosis in murine intestinal crypt cells

Chemotherapeutic agents, including 5‐fluorouracil (5‐FU), frequently cause intestinal mucositis resulting in severe diarrhoea and morphological mucosal damage. 5‐HT3 receptor antagonists are clinically effective in the treatment of nausea and emesis during cancer chemotherapy. Therefore we here have examined the effects of 5‐HT3 receptor antagonists on 5‐FU‐induced intestinal mucositis in mice.
Tumor-associated neutrophils induce apoptosis of non-activated CD8 T-cells in a TNFα and NO-dependent mechanism, promoting a tumor-supportive environment

ABSTRACT The role of neutrophils in tumor progression has become in recent years a subject of growing interest. Tumor-associated neutrophils (TANs), which constitute an important portion of the tumor microenvironment, promote immunosuppression in advanced tumors by modulating the proliferation, activation and recruitment of a variety of immune cell types. Studies which investigated the consequences of manipulating TAN polarization suggest that the impact of these neutrophils on tumor progression is considerably mediated by and dependent on the presence of CD8 T-cells. It has been previously shown that granulocytic myeloid regulatory cells, i.e. TANs and granulocytic myeloid-derived suppressor cells (G-MDSCs) are capable of suppressing CD8 T-cell proliferation and affect their activation. In the current study, we find that in addition, TANs isolated from different models of murine cancer promote immunosuppression by strongly inducing CD8 T-cell apoptosis. We demonstrate that the TNFα pathway in TANs is critical for the induction of apoptosis, and that the mechanism through which apoptosis is induced involves the production of NO, but not ROS. In the absence of pre-activation, TANs are capable of activating CD8 T-cells, but specifically induce the apoptosis of non-activated CD8+CD69− cells. Despite this contradictive effect on T-cell function, we show in vivo that TANs suppress the anti-tumor effect of CD8 T-cells and abolish their ability to delay tumor growth. Our results add another important layer on the understanding of the possible mechanisms by which TANs regulate the anti-tumor immune response mediated by CD8 T-cells, therefore promoting a tumor-supportive environment.
Number sense in infancy predicts mathematical abilities in childhood

Significance The uniquely human mathematical mind sets us apart from all other animals. How does this powerful capacity emerge over development? It is uncontroversial that education and environment shape mathematical ability, yet an untested assumption is that number sense in infants is a conceptual precursor that seeds human mathematical development. Our results provide the first support for this hypothesis. We found that preverbal number sense in 6-month-old infants predicted standardized math scores in the same children 3 years later. This discovery shows that number sense in infancy is a building block for later mathematical ability and invites educational interventions to improve number sense even before children learn to count. Human infants in the first year of life possess an intuitive sense of number. This preverbal number sense may serve as a developmental building block for the uniquely human capacity for mathematics. In support of this idea, several studies have demonstrated that nonverbal number sense is correlated with mathematical abilities in children and adults. However, there has been no direct evidence that infant numerical abilities are related to mathematical abilities later in childhood. Here, we provide evidence that preverbal number sense in infancy predicts mathematical abilities in preschool-aged children. Numerical preference scores at 6 months of age correlated with both standardized math test scores and nonsymbolic number comparison scores at 3.5 years of age, suggesting that preverbal number sense facilitates the acquisition of numerical symbols and mathematical abilities. This relationship held even after controlling for general intelligence, indicating that preverbal number sense imparts a unique contribution to mathematical ability. These results validate the many prior studies purporting to show number sense in infancy and support the hypothesis that mathematics is built upon an intuitive sense of number that predates language.
Women ’ s snowboarding – some experiences and perceptions of competition

This article focuses on female snowboarders’ experiences with, and perceptions of, snowboard competitions. The article is based on a study conducted at an international women’s snowboard camp. The purpose of the camp was to discuss strategies for promoting females’ participation in the snowboard organizations and in snowboard competition. Interviews were held with a eight participants aged 18–31 years. Most of the participants had been previously involved in competition. Their experience had been both negative and positive. Most of the participants perceived snowboard facilities (Big Air and Half-pipe) as being too large for females and a possible constraint on participation. Moreover, the study’s findings reveal ideas concerning alternative competition formats as well as arguments for “women-only” sessions as a feasible way to reach more female snowboarders, to provide skill enhancement, and to increase participation in the competitions. The findings are discussed in light of the development of snowboarding and Bourdieu’s theoretical framework.
The Latex-Fruit Syndrome : A Review on Clinical Features

During the last decade, latex IgE-mediated allergy has been recognized as a very important medical problem. At the same time, many studies have dealt with allergic cross-reactions between aeroallergens and foods. Recently, a "latex-fruit syndrome" has been postulated, because there is clear evidence of the existence of a significant clinical association between allergies to latex and certain fruits. Several studies have demonstrated that from 20% to 60% of latex-allergic patients show IgE-mediated reactions to a wide variety of foods, mainly fruits. Although implicated foods vary among the studies, banana, avocado, chestnut and kiwi are the most frequently involved. Clinical manifestations of these reactions may vary from oral allergy syndrome to severe anaphylactic reactions, which are not uncommon, thus demonstrating the clinical relevance of this syndrome. The diagnosis of food hypersensitivities associated with latex allergy is based on the clinical history of immediate adverse reactions, suggestive of an IgEmediated sensitivity. Prick by prick test with the fresh foods implicated in the reactions shows an 80% concordance with the clinical diagnosis, and therefore it seems to be the best diagnostic test currently available in order to confirm the suspicion of latex-fruit allergy. Once the diagnosis is achieved, a diet free of the offending fruits is mandatory. Recently, some of the common allergens responsible for the cross-reactions among latex and the fruits most commonly implicated in the syndrome have been identified. Class I chitinases, with an N-terminal hevein like domain, which cross-react with the major latex allergen "hevein", seem to be the panallergens responsible for the latex-fruit syndrome. (Internet Symposium on Food Allergens 2000, 2(3):125-35) latex allergy food allergy cross-reactivity latex-fruit syndrome class I chitinases
IDENTIFICATION OF A PSYCHROPHILIC GREEN ALGA FROM LAKE BONNEY ANTARCTICA: CHLAMYDOMONAS RAUDENSIS ETTL. (UWO 241) CHLOROPHYCEAE 1

An unusual psychrophilic green alga was isolated from the deepest portion of the photic zone (<0.1% of incident PAR) at a depth of 17 m in the permanently ice‐covered lake, Lake Bonney, Antarctica. Here we identify and report the first detailed morphological and molecular examination of this Antarctic green alga, which we refer to as strain UWO 241. To determine the taxonomic identity, UWO 241 was examined using LM and TEM and partial sequences of the small subunit (SSU), internal transcribed spacer (ITS) 1 and ITS2 regions (including the 5.8S) of the ribosomal operon. These data were compared with those of previously described taxa. We identified UWO 241 as a strain of Chlamydomonas raudensis Ettl (SAG 49.72). Chlamydomonas raudensis is closely related to C. noctigama Korshikov (UTEX 2289) as well as foraminifer symbionts such as C. hedleyi Lee, Crockett, Hagen et Stone (ATCC 50216). In addition, its morphology, pigment complement, and phototactic response to temperature are reported. Chlamydomonas raudensis (UWO 241) contains relatively high levels of lutein and low chl a/b ratios (1.6±0.15), and the phototactic response was temperature dependent. The Antarctic isolate (UWO 241) included the typical photosynthetic pigments found in all chl a/b containing green algae. It possesses a small eyespot and, interestingly, was positively phototactic only at higher nonpermissive growth temperatures. Comparison of SSU and ITS rDNA sequences confirms the identification of the strain UWO 241 as C. raudensis Ettl and contradicts the previous designation as C. subcaudata Wille.
Radio observations of the circumnuclear ring in NGC 6951

We present sensitive, high-resolution radio observations of the circumnuclear region of the barred spiral galaxy NGC 6951. These observations reveal a ring of radio emission with many discrete components and a marginally resolved nuclear component. We compare the radio ring with observations at other wavelengths, and discuss the nature of the compact radio components.
INTERNATIONAL TRADE PUZZLES: A SOLUTION LINKING PRODUCTION AND PREFERENCES

International trade literature tends to focus heavily on the production side of general equilibrium, leaving us with a number of empirical puzzles. There is, for example, considerably less world trade than predicted by Heckscher-Ohlin-Vanek (HOV) models. Trade among rich countries is higher and trade between rich and poor countries lower than suggested by HOV and other supply-driven theories, and trade-to-GDP ratios are higher in rich countries. Our approach focuses on the relationship between characteristics of goods and services in production and characteristics of preferences. In particular, we find a strong and significant positive correlation of more than 45% between a good’s skilled-labor intensity and its income elasticity, even when accounting for trade costs and cross-country price differences. Exploring the implications of this correlation for empirical trade puzzles, we find that it can reduce HOV’s overprediction of the variance of the net factor content of trade relative to that in the data by about 60%. Since rich countries are relatively skilled-labor abundant, they are relatively specialized in consuming the same goods and services that they are specialized in producing, and so trade more with one another than with poor countries. We also find a positive sector-level correlation between income elasticity and a sector’s tradability, which helps explain the higher trade-to-GDP ratios in high-income relative to low-income countries. JEL Codes: F10, F16, O10.
Height and Cognitive Function Among Older Europeans: Do People from 'Tall' Countries Have Superior Cognitive Abilities?

Previous research has found that height is correlated with cognitive functioning at older ages. It therefore makes sense to ask a related question: do people from countries where the average person is relatively tall have superior cognitive abilities on average? Using data from the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), we find empirical evidence that this is the case, even after controlling for self-reported childhood health, self-reported childhood abilities, parental characteristics and education. We find that people from countries with relatively tall people, such as Denmark and the Netherlands, have on average superior cognitive abilities compared to people from countries with relatively shorter people, such as Italy and Spain. We exploit variations in height trends due to nutritional deprivation in World War II in Europe and use an instrumental variable analysis to further estimate the potential impact of height on cognitive function. We find some suggestive evidence that a causal link from height to cognitive outcomes could be operating via nutrition and not via educational attainment.
Modelled glacier equilibrium line altitudes during the mid-Holocene in the southern mid-latitudes

Abstract. Glacier behaviour during the mid-Holocene (MH, 6000 years BP) in the Southern Hemisphere provides observational data to constrain our understanding of the origin and propagation of palaeoclimate signals. In this study we examine the climatic forcing of glacier response in the MH by evaluating modelled glacier equilibrium line altitudes (ELAs) and climatic conditions during the MH compared with pre-industrial time (PI, year 1750). We focus on the middle latitudes of the Southern Hemisphere, specifically Patagonia and the South Island of New Zealand. Climate conditions for the MH were obtained from PMIP2 model simulations, which in turn were used to force a simple glacier mass balance model to simulate changes in ELA. In Patagonia, the models simulate colder conditions during the MH in austral summer (−0.2 °C), autumn (−0.5 °C), and winter (−0.4), and warmer temperatures (0.2 °C) during spring. In the Southern Alps the models show colder MH conditions in autumn (−0.7 °C) and winter (−0.4 °C), warmer conditions in spring (0.3 °C), and no significant change in summer temperature. Precipitation does not show significant changes but exhibits a seasonal shift, with less precipitation from April to September and more precipitation from October to April during the MH in both regions. The mass balance model simulates a climatic ELA that is 15–33 m lower during the MH compared with PI conditions. We suggest that the main causes of this difference are driven mainly by colder temperatures associated with the MH simulation. Differences in temperature have a dual effect on glacier mass balance: (i) less energy is available for ablation during summer and early autumn and (ii) lower temperatures cause more precipitation to fall as snow rather than rain in late autumn and winter, resulting in more accumulation and higher surface albedo. For these reasons, we postulate that the modelled ELA changes, although small, may help to explain larger glacier extents observed by 6000 years BP in South America and New Zealand.
Sensitizing Employees ’ Corporate IS Security Risk Perception Completed Research Paper

Motivated by recent practical observations of employees’ unapproved sourcing of cloud services at work, this study empirically evaluates bring your own cloud (BYOC) policies and social interactions of the IT department to sensitize employees’ security risk perception. Based on social information processing theory, BYOC strategies varying in the level of restriction from the obligatory, recommended, permitted, not regulated, to the prohibited usage of cloud services in the organization as well as social information including IT department’s policies, recommendations and responsiveness, are assessed according to their influence on employees’ perceived security risk to the organization. Results of a mixed-method approach containing expert interviews and survey data of 115 computer users in SME and large-scale enterprises analyzed using Kruskal-Wallis and WarpPLS-SEM identify the organizational-wide prohibition of and IT department’s advices against the cloud service usage at the workplace as the most effective actions to guarantee the protection of the organizational IT assets.
Modular organization of the Friend murine leukemia virus envelope protein underlies the mechanism of infection

Retrovirus infection is initiated by receptor-dependent fusion of the envelope to the cell membrane. The modular organization of the envelope protein of C type retroviruses has been exploited to investigate how binding of the surface subunit (SU) to receptor triggers fusion mediated by the transmembrane (TM) subunit. We show that deletion of the receptor-binding domain (RBD) from SU of Friend murine leukemia virus (Fr-MLV) abolishes infection that is restored by supplying RBD as a soluble protein. Infection by this mechanism remains dependent on receptor expression. When membrane attachment of the virus lacking RBD is reestablished by inserting the hormone erythropoietin, infection remains dependent on the RBD/receptor complex. However, infection increases 50-fold to 5 × 105 units/ml on cells that also express the erythropoietin receptor. Soluble RBD from Fr-MLV also restores infection by amphotropic and xenotropic MLVs in which RBD is deleted. These experiments demonstrate that RBD has two functions: mediating virus attachment and activating the fusion mechanism. In addition, they indicate that receptor engagement triggers fusion by promoting a subgroup-independent functional interaction between RBD and the remainder of SU and/or TM.
State and trajectory decoding of upper extremity movements from electrocorticogram

Electrocorticography has been widely explored as a long-term signal acquisition platform for brain-computer interface (BCI) control of upper extremity prostheses. However, a comprehensive study of elementary upper extremity movements and their relationship to electrocorticogram (ECoG) signals has yet to be performed. This study examines whether kinematic parameters of 6 elementary upper extremity movements can be decoded from ECoG signals in 3 subjects undergoing subdural electrode placement for epilepsy surgery evaluation. To this end, we propose a 2-stage decoding approach that consists of a state decoder to determine idle/move states, followed by a Kalman filter-based trajectory decoder. This proposed decoder successfully classified idle/move states with an average accuracy of 91%, and the correlation between decoded and measured trajectory averaged 0.70 for position and 0.68 for velocity. These performances represent an improvement over a simple regression-based approach.
Sexual transmission ’ s role on the Zika ’ s virus spread

Even though ZIKV has existed since 1947 in Africa, there has been recent outbreaks in several countries of South America. The first virus arrived to the continent in 2015, where the first cases were confirmed in May [2] in Brazil. In Colombia it arrived in October of the same year and it has spread faster than its relative Chikungunya [3]. Due to the different outbreaks and fast spread of the disease over the last year, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared ZIKV a public health emergency of international concern [4].
Mixed flowing gas studies of creep corrosion on plastic encapsulated microcircuit packages with noble metal pre-plated leadframes

This paper describes tests and analysis of creep corrosion on plastic encapsulated electronic components with Ni/Pd or Ni/Pd/Au plated copper leadframes. Samples were subjected to three standard mixed flowing gas (MFG) tests to simulate corrosion effects in an accelerated manner, which included Telcordia Outdoor, and Battelle Class III Telcordia Indoor MFG environments. With an MFG exposure of 10 days, creep corrosion was observed over the plastic molding compound surface in the first two of the test environments. The formation and thickness of creep corrosion products on molding compound surface were characterized by microscopic observation. A four-decade drop in insulation resistance was measured between adjacent leads with visible bridging of corrosion products. Energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) was used to assess the elemental composition of corrosion products on both the component leads and the molding compound surfaces, and corrosion products were found to be copper salts. Sample pre-conditions, including surface cleaning, mold compound surface roughness, additional lead scratches, and applied voltage biases, were evaluated, and found to have no significant effects on the creep corrosion process. Conformal coating of the components was found to be an effective mitigation strategy to eliminate creep corrosion on packages with noble metal pre-plated leadframes.