Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Progression-free survival is a surrogate for survival in advanced colorectal cancer.

PURPOSE The traditional end point for assessing efficacy of first-line chemotherapies for advanced cancer is overall survival (OS), but this end point requires prolonged follow-up and is potentially confounded by the effects of second-line therapies. We investigated whether progression-free survival (PFS) could be considered a valid surrogate for OS in advanced colorectal cancer. PATIENTS AND METHODS Individual patient data were available from 10 historical trials comparing fluouracil (FU) + leucovorin with either FU alone (1,744 patients) or with raltitrexed (1,345 patients) and from three validation trials comparing FU + leucovorin with or without irinotecan or oxaliplatin (1,263 patients). Correlation coefficients were estimated in historical trials between the end points of PFS and OS, and between the treatment effects on these end points. Treatment effects on OS were predicted in validation trials, and compared with the observed effects. RESULTS In historical trials, 1,760 patients (57%) had progressed or died at 6 months, and 1,622 (52%) had died at 12 months. The rank correlation coefficient between PFS and OS was equal to 0.82 (95% CI, 0.82 to 0.83). The correlation coefficient between treatment effects on PFS and on OS ranged from 0.99 (95% CI, 0.94 to 1.04) when all trials were considered to 0.74 (95% CI, 0.44 to 1.04) after exclusion of one highly influential trial. In the validation trials, the observed OS hazard ratios were within the 95% prediction intervals. A hazard ratio of 0.77 or lower in terms of PFS would predict a benefit in terms of OS. CONCLUSION PFS is an acceptable surrogate for OS in advanced colorectal cancer.
Differences in Neurotransmitter Synthesis and Intermediary Metabolism between Glutamatergic and GABAergic Neurons during 4 Hours of Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion in the Rat: The Role of Astrocytes in Neuronal Survival

Astrocytes are intimately involved in both glutamate and γ-aminobutric acid (GABA) synthesis, and ischemia-induced disruption of normal neuroastrocytic interactions may have important implications for neuronal survival. The effects of middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) on neuronal and astrocytic intermediary metabolism were studied in rats 30, 60, 120, and 240 minutes after MCAO using in vivo injection of [1-13C]glucose and [1,2-13C]acetate combined with ex vivo13C magnetic resonance spectroscopy and high-performance liquid chromatography analysis of the ischemic core (lateral caudoputamen and lower parietal cortex) and penumbra (upper frontoparietal cortex). In the ischemic core, both neuronal and astrocytic metabolism were impaired from 30 minutes MCAO. There was a continuous loss of glutamate from glutamatergic neurons that was not replaced as neuronal glucose metabolism and use of astrocytic precursors gradually declined. In GABAergic neurons astrocytic precursors were not used in GABA synthesis at any time after MCAO, and neuronal glucose metabolism and GABA-shunt activity declined with time. No flux through the tricarboxylic acid cycle was found in GABAergic neurons at 240 minutes MCAO, indicating neuronal death. In the penumbra, the neurotransmitter pool of glutamate coming from astrocytic glutamine was preserved while neuronal metabolism progressively declined, implying that glutamine contributed significantly to glutamate excitotoxicity. In GABAergic neurons, astrocytic precursors were used to a limited extent during the initial 120 minutes, and tricarboxylic acid cycle activity was continued for 240 minutes. The present study showed the paradoxical role that astrocytes play in neuronal survival in ischemia, and changes in the use of astrocytic precursors appeared to contribute significantly to neuronal death, albeit through different mechanisms in glutamatergic and GABAergic neurons.
Knowledge and perception of physiotherapy by final year medical students of a Nigerian university.

BACKGROUND It has been shown that multidisciplinary interactions have become a feature of the changing medical education system. It is not clear to what extent medical students have been integrated into this newer model, more especially at the College of Medicine of the University of Lagos (CMUL), AIM: To assess the level of knowledge and perception of physiotherapy by the final year medical students of CMUL about physiotherapy. MATERIAL AND METHODS Ninety eight final year medical students of CMUL participated in the study. They were required to complete a standard 22 item closed-ended questionnaire which was self administered. Data were presented as mean +/- standard deviation; Inferential statistics of chi-square and t-tests were used to compare differences between variables. RESULTS The respondents displayed above average knowledge of physiotherapy as the mean scores obtained for knowledge of physiotherapy were 20.25 +/- 4.50 and 18.77 +/- 4.60 for males and females respectively. They also showed a fair perception towards physiotherapy as the mean scores obtained were 32.70 +/- 7.20 and 34.33 +/- 7.30 for males and females respectively. However there was a significant gender difference in the medical students' knowledge of physiotherapy (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION The sampled final year medical students of CMUL had a good knowledge and fair perception of physiotherapy. Their main source of knowledge was classroom lectures. The need for further education of medical students with particular emphasis on clinical interaction was identified. It is hereby suggested that interprofessional courses and communication should be given greater attention during medical training.
Comparative Corporate Governance: Findings from a Workshop, March 14-15, 2008

Comparative Corporate Governance Findings from a Workshop March 14-15, 2008 cosponsored by The Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE) 2521 Channing Way #5555 Berkeley, CA The Institute for European Studies (IES) 207 Moses Hall #2316 Berkeley, October 2, 2008 Mark Huberty Akasemi Newsome Alex Street J. Nicholas Ziegler
Stimulation of D‐2 Dopamine Receptors Decreases the Evoked In Vitro Release of [3H] Acetylcholine from Rat Neostriatum: Role of K+ and Ca2+

Abstract: Reportedly, stimulation of D‐2 dopamine receptors inhibits the depolarization‐induced release of acetylcholine from the neostriatum in a cyclic AMP‐independent manner. In the present study, we investigated the role of K+ and Ca2+ in the D‐2 receptor‐mediated inhibition of evoked [3H]acetylcholine release from rat striatal tissue slices. It is shown that the D‐2 receptor‐mediated decrease of K+‐evoked [3H]acetylcholine release is not influenced by the extracellular Ca2+ concentration. However, increasing extracellular K+, in the presence and absence of Ca2+, markedly attenuates the effect of D‐2 stimulation on the K+‐evoked [3H]acetylcholine release. Furthermore, it is shown that activation of D‐2 receptors in the absence of Ca2+ also inhibits the veratrine‐evoked release of [3H]acetylcholine from rat striatum. These results suggest that the D‐2 dopamine receptor mediates the decrease of depolarization‐induced [3H]acetylcholine release from rat striatum primarily by stimulation of K+ efflux (opening of K+ channels) and inhibition of intracellular Ca2+ mobilization.
Osmotic opening of tight junctions in cerebral endothelium

Hyperosmotic solutions of 3 M urea, either infused into one internal carotid artery or applied topically to the pia mater of rabbits, results in the opening of endothelial tight junctions through which horseradish peroxidase passes from blood to extracellular fluid of the brain. The evidence for this opening of the blood‐brain barrier to protein is the entry of peroxidase into the extracellular pools between successive tight junctions. In animals not receiving 3 M urea, the interjunctional pools are inaccessible to proteins. Having passed through the endothelial junctions, the peroxidase spreads along the extracellular channels of the perivascular neuropil for approximately 100 μ in 90 seconds. Most of the affected vessels are capillaries, though larger vessels are rendered leaky as well. Calyciform cisterns, that lie beneath shallow notches in the endothelium of untreated rabbits, appear to be enlarged after the administration of 3 m urea. It is undetermined whether these few endothelial cisterns and vesicles are involved in carrying protein from blood to the cerebral extracellular fluid.
Structure of glycolate oxidase from spinach.

A high-resolution structure determination of glycolate oxidase from spinach is reported. X-ray data were collected on films at the synchrotron radiation source in Daresbury, England. The structure was solved by using two heavy-atom derivatives and a solvent-flattening procedure developed by B. -C. Wang. The subunit structure is essentially a structure of the eight-stranded alpha/beta-barrel type first described for triosephosphate isomerase. In addition, there are 70 residues at the NH(2) terminus and 45 residues between strand four and helix four of the barrel, which are arranged in a helical domain outside the COOH end of the parallel strands of the barrel. The active site is in a cleft between these domains with the coenzyme FMN essentially bound to the barrel and a substrate analogue, thioglycolate, bound to the helical domain. The molecule is octameric with 422 symmetry and has a 15- to 20-A-wide hole in the middle.
Neuropsychological Impairment in Children With Sickle Cell Anemia and Cerebrovascular Accidents

Neuropsychological functioning of children with sickle cell anemia (HbSS) who have experienced a single stroke has not been extensively investigated. In this study, the neuropsychological functioning of 10 children with HbSS who were receiving transfusion therapy following stroke with no identifiable recurrence was examined. The patients were subgrouped into children with only left hemisphere stroke (LCI), N = 4, and those with only right hemisphere stroke (RCI), N = 6. Results indicated that these youngsters experienced significant impairments of cognitive functioning following stroke. It was found that the LCI and RCI children tended to perform more like adult stroke patients than what has been typically reported in children with infantile hemiplegia. These findings support the need for periodic neuropsychological evaluation following stroke in order to identify patterns of higher cortical dysfunction and assist in the development of appropriate rehabilitation and special education programs. Further, pediatricians, child neurologists, and psychologists who care for these children must act as strong advocates on their behalf in order to ensure that they receive appropriate rehabilitation and the special education services necessary for maximal recovery and future educational success.
Comparative Studies of 10 Programming Languages within 10 Diverse Criteria - a Team 10 COMP6411-S10 Term Report

This is a survey on the programming languages: C++, JavaScript, AspectJ, C#, Haskell, Java, PHP, Scala, Scheme, and BPEL. Our survey work involves a comparative study of these ten programming languages with respect to the following criteria: secure programming practices, web application development, web service composition, OOP-based abstractions, reflection, aspect orientation, functional programming, declarative programming, batch scripting, and UI prototyping. We study these languages in the context of the above mentioned criteria and the level of support they provide for each one of them.
Recovery from Linear Measurements with Complexity-Matching Universal Signal Estimation

We study the compressed sensing (CS) signal estimation problem where an input signal is measured via a linear matrix multiplication under additive noise. While this setup usually assumes sparsity or compressibility in the input signal during recovery, the signal structure that can be leveraged is often not known a priori. In this paper, we consider universal CS recovery, where the statistics of a stationary ergodic signal source are estimated simultaneously with the signal itself. Inspired by Kolmogorov complexity and minimum description length, we focus on a maximum a posteriori (MAP) estimation framework that leverages universal priors to match the complexity of the source. Our framework can also be applied to general linear inverse problems where more measurements than in CS might be needed. We provide theoretical results that support the algorithmic feasibility of universal MAP estimation using a Markov chain Monte Carlo implementation, which is computationally challenging. We incorporate some techniques to accelerate the algorithm while providing comparable and in many cases better reconstruction quality than existing algorithms. Experimental results show the promise of universality in CS, particularly for low-complexity sources that do not exhibit standard sparsity or compressibility.
A double-blind randomized controlled trial of fusidic acid and metronidazole for treatment of an initial episode of Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea.

OBJECTIVES Few treatment options are currently available to treat patients suffering from an initial episode of Clostridium difficile-associated diarrhoea (CDAD). PATIENTS AND METHODS A prospective, randomized controlled, double-blind trial was conducted to compare the efficacy of fusidic acid and metronidazole for treatment of patients experiencing a first episode of CDAD. The primary outcomes were clinical cure and clearance of C. difficile toxin determined on days 8-13, and secondary outcomes were clinical recurrence and reappearance of C. difficile toxin evaluated on days 35-40. RESULTS Of the patients in the fusidic acid group, 83% were clinically cured in comparison to 93% in the metronidazole group (P=0.116) at the first follow-up visit. Clearance of C. difficile toxin did not differ between the two groups at that time. Clinical recurrence and reappearance of C. difficile toxin were noted in 27% and in 13% of the patients receiving fusidic acid, respectively and in 29% and 10% of those given metronidazole at the second follow-up on days 35-40. CONCLUSION Since three of the four primary and secondary outcomes were almost identical for the two groups, the results indicate that fusidic acid is as effective as metronidazole in curing an initial episode of CDAD and can therefore be considered as an adequate alternative for treatment of this disease.
Infection of Arabidopsis thaliana leaves with Albugo candida (white blister rust) causes a reprogramming of host metabolism.

Abstract Albugo candida (Pers.) (O.) Kunze is a biotrophic pathogen which infects the crucifer Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh forming discrete areas of infection. Eight days after inoculation of leaves, white blisters became visible on the under surface of the leaf although no symptoms were apparent on the upper surface. By day 14, the region of leaf invaded by fungal mycelium had become chlorotic. Recently it has been hypothesized that an accumulation of soluble carbohydrates, following an increase in invertase activity, may trigger sugar signal transduction pathways leading to the repression of photosynthetic gene expression and to the induction of defence proteins. This hypothesis was investigated by quantifying localized changes in carbohydrate and photosynthetic metabolism and the expression of genes encoding photosynthetic and defence proteins. Quantitative imaging of chlorophyll fluorescence revealed that the rate of photosynthesis declined progressively in the invaded regions of the leaf. However, in uninfected regions of the infected leaf the rate of photosynthesis was similar to that measured in the control leaf until late on during the infection cycle when it declined. Images of nonphotochemical fluorescence quenching (NPQ) suggested that the capacity of the Calvin cycle had been reduced in infected regions and that there was a complex metabolic heterogeneity within the infected leaf. A. candida also caused localized changes in the carbohydrate metabolism of the leaf; soluble carbohydrates accumulated in the infected region whereas the amount of starch declined. The reverse was seen in uninfected regions of the infected leaf; carbohydrates did not accumulate until late on during infection and the amount of starch increased as the infection progressed. There was an increase in the activity of invertases which was confined to regions of the leaf invaded by the fungal mycelium. The increase in apoplastic invertase activity was of host origin, as mRNA levels of the ATbetaFRUCT1 gene (measured by semiquantitative RT-PCR) increased 40-fold in the infected region. The increase in soluble invertase activity resulted from the appearance of a new isoform in the invaded region of the leaf. Current evidence suggests that this was of fungal origin. Northern blot analysis of cab and rbcS showed that photosynthetic gene expression was repressed in the infected leaf from 6 days after inoculation (DAI) when compared to control leaves. In contrast, there was no detectable induction of defence proteins in the infected leaf. These data are discussed in the context of the sugar-sensing hypothesis presented above.
The concept of mind.

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Transport and transcriptional regulation of oil production in plants

Abstract Triacylglycerol (TAG) serves as an energy reservoir and phospholipids as build blocks of biomembrane to support plant life. They also provide human with foods and nutrients. Multi-compartmentalized biosynthesis, trafficking or cross-membrane transport of lipid intermediates or precursors and their regulatory mechanisms are not fully understood. Recent progress has aided our understanding of how fatty acids (FAs) and phospholipids are transported between the chloroplast, the cytoplasm, and the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), and how the ins and outs of lipids take place in the peroxisome and other organelles for lipid metabolism and function. In addition, information regarding the transcriptional regulation network associated with FA and TAG biosynthesis has been further enriched. Recent breakthroughs made in lipid transport and transcriptional regulation has provided significant insights into our comprehensive understanding of plant lipid biology. This review attempts to highlight the recent progress made on lipid synthesis, transport, degradation, and their regulatory mechanisms. Metabolic engineering, based on these knowledge-powered technologies for production of edible oils or biofuels, is reviewed. The biotechnological application of metabolic enzymes, transcription factors and transporters, for oil production and composition improvement, are discussed in a broad context in order to provide a fresh scenario for researchers and to guide future research and applications.
Adjuvant use of abciximab for balloon angioplasty of symptomatic middle cerebral artery stenosis

Purpose: To evaluate the safety of adjuvant intravenous use of abciximab in balloon angioplasty for symptomatic middle cerebral artery stenosis. Material and Methods: Seven patients with symptomatic stenosis at the main trunk (n = 5), or proximal post-trifurcation portion (n = 2) of the middle cerebral artery, were enrolled in the study. A bolus dose of abciximab (0.15 mg/kg) was given intravenously immediately before the procedure. The immediate morphologic results as well as the presence of hyperacute thrombosis or hemorrhage after angioplasty were evaluated. Clinical evaluation was performed 1 day and 1 month following angioplasty. Oral antiplatelets were administered during the follow-up period. Follow-up angiography was performed after 7 to 14 (mean 10.4) months. Stenosis of a vessel greater than 50% was considered as restenosis. Results: The procedure was technically successful in all patients. Immediate residual stenosis was insignificant in 4 and mild (less than 50%) in 3 patients. There was no evidence of intimal dissection. Mild gum bleeding was noted in two patients. All study patients were clinically stable at follow-up without newly developed neurological abnormality even though there was one case of occlusion and one case of restenosis on follow-up angiography. Angiographic patency rate was 71%. Conclusion: In performing proximal middle cerebral artery balloon angioplasty, abciximab may be safely used to prevent acute thrombosis. The mid-term patency of the vessels was also acceptable.
Complex PTSD and its correlates amongst female Yazidi victims of sexual slavery living in post‐ISIS camps

3. Kuoppasalmi K, L€ onnqvist J, Pylkk€ anen K et al. Psychiatria Fennica 1989; 20:65-81. 4. Sund R. Scand J Publ Health 2012;40:505-15. 5. Ohberg A, Lonnqvist J. Acta Psychiatr Scand 1998;98:214-8. 6. Crump C, Ioannidis JP, Sundquist K et al. J Psychiatr Res 2013;47:1298-303. 7. Chung DT, Ryan CJ, Hadzi-Pavlovic D et al. JAMA Psychiatry 2017;74:694-702. 8. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). http:// stats.oecd. org. 9. Finnish National Institute for Health and Welfare. https://www.sotkanet. fi.
Nucleotide sequence of the streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxin type B gene and relationship between the toxin and the streptococcal proteinase precursor

The streptococcal pyrogenic exotoxin (SPE) type B-encoding structural gene, speB, was subcloned from a 4.5-kilobase streptococcal DNA insert onto a 2.4-kilobase insert, which was then sequenced. Studies indicated that a 1,194-base-pair open reading frame encoded a 398-amino-acid protein. Removal of the putative signal peptide resulted in a mature protein with 371 residues (molecular weight, 40,314), which was subsequently proteolyzed to yield a 253-residue breakdown product (molecular weight, 27,588). This processing was confirmed by amino-terminal sequencing of both the 40,314-molecular-weight protein and the breakdown product. Monte Carlo analysis indicated that SPE B was relatively dissimilar to other members of the pyrogenic toxin family that also includes SPEs A and C, toxic shock syndrome toxin 1, and the staphylococcal enterotoxins. Comparison with the published amino acid sequence of streptococcal proteinase precursor as well as DNA hybridization experiments indicated that SPE B is a variant of this protein even though the particular gene sequenced did not encode a proteolytically active molecule.
Wavelength trimming by photoabsorption-included disordering for multiple-wavelength distributed-feedback laser arrays

In this letter, we describe a simple method to adjust the oscillation wavelength of distributed-feedback (DFB) lasers after the device fabrication without using any external active tuning. The method utilizes a permanent change of refractive index in the quantum well active layer induced by external laser beam irradiation. We have demonstrated 0.36 nm adjustment in a 1.55-/spl mu/m ridge waveguide DFB laser.