Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Clinical evaluation of oral lesions associated with dermatologic diseases.

BACKGROUND Dermatologic diseases are not only represented by lesions affecting the skin but also by manifestations that may involve the mucous membranes, including oral mucosa. OBJECTIVES To evaluate the frequency of oral manifestations associated with dermatologic diseases considering location and clinical characteristics of the lesions found and also gender, age and race of patients. METHOD It was an observational, cross-sectional study of patients who sought for treatment at the Dermatology Service of the University Hospital (Hospital Presidente Dutra-HUPD); UFMA, between October 2007 and October 2008 (n=88). RESULTS Age varied from 5 to 88 and there was predominance of female patients. 35% of the cases studied were diagnosed as lichen planus; 33% as lupus erythematosus; 24% as erythema multiforme; 7% as pemphigus vulgaris and 1% as pemphigoid group. Oral manifestations were more common among patients suffering from lichen pplanus (51%) and lupus erythematosus (20%). The most common clinical presentation found was reticular lichen planus located most predominantly in the buccal mucosa. CONCLUSIONS It is essential that dentists know these pathologies to be able to diagnose them in an early stage of the disease and to direct patients to adequate treatment. Furthermore, intraoral examination should be included as a routine practice in dermatological services.
cis Expression of DC-SIGN Allows for More Efficient Entry of Human and Simian Immunodeficiency Viruses via CD4 and a Coreceptor

ABSTRACT DC-SIGN is a C-type lectin expressed on dendritic cells and restricted macrophage populations in vivo that binds gp120 and acts intrans to enable efficient infection of T cells by human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). We report here that DC-SIGN, when expressed in cis with CD4 and coreceptors, allowed more efficient infection by both HIV and simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) strains, although the extent varied from 2- to 40-fold, depending on the virus strain. Expression of DC-SIGN on target cells did not alleviate the requirement for CD4 or coreceptor for viral entry. Stable expression of DC-SIGN on multiple lymphoid lines enabled more efficient entry and replication of R5X4 and X4 viruses. Thus, 10- and 100-fold less 89.6 (R5/X4) and NL4–3 (X4), respectively, were required to achieve productive replication in DC-SIGN-transduced Jurkat cells when compared to the parental cell line. In addition, DC-SIGN expression on T-cell lines that express very low levels of CCR5 enabled entry and replication of R5 viruses in a CCR5-dependent manner, a property not exhibited by the parental cell lines. Therefore, DC-SIGN expression can boost virus infection in cis and can expand viral tropism without affecting coreceptor preference. In addition, coexpression of DC-SIGN enabled some viruses to use alternate coreceptors like STRL33 to infect cells, whereas in its absence, infection was not observed. Immunohistochemical and confocal microscopy data indicated that DC-SIGN was coexpressed and colocalized with CD4 and CCR5 on alveolar macrophages, underscoring the physiological significance of these cis enhancement effects.
Hepatocellular Carcinoma Recurrence and Death Following Living and Deceased Donor Liver Transplantation

We examined mortality and recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) among 106 transplant candidates with cirrhosis and HCC who had a potential living donor evaluated between January 1998 and February 2003 at the nine centers participating in the Adult‐to‐Adult Living Donor Liver Transplantation Cohort Study (A2ALL). Cox regression models were fitted to compare time from donor evaluation and time from transplant to death or HCC recurrence between 58 living donor liver transplant (LDLT) and 34 deceased donor liver transplant (DDLT) recipients. Mean age and calculated Model for End‐Stage Liver Disease (MELD) scores at transplant were similar between LDLT and DDLT recipients (age: 55 vs. 52 years, p = 0.21; MELD: 13 vs. 15, p = 0.08). Relative to DDLT recipients, LDLT recipients had a shorter time from listing to transplant (mean 160 vs. 469 days, p < 0.0001) and a higher rate of HCC recurrence within 3 years than DDLT recipients (29% vs. 0%, p = 0.002), but there was no difference in mortality or the combined outcome of mortality or recurrence. LDLT recipients had lower relative mortality risk than patients who did not undergo LDLT after the center had more experience (p = 0.03). Enthusiasm for LDLT as HCC treatment is dampened by higher HCC recurrence compared to DDLT.
The role of Japanese multinationals affiliates in China: A dynamic CGE analysis of FDI between Japan and China

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVE In the World Investment Prospect Survey by UNCTAD, China has always appeared as the world’s most attractive destination of foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2008-2012. In turn, Japan has recently recovered its position as the world wide second largest investor after the US. With the appreciation of the Japanese yen and weak growth at home, Japanese multinationals (MNEs) have been very actively looking for opportunities to invest abroad. The government has, further, offered incentives for the acquisition of foreign assets. Thus, Japanese outward FDI going to China more than doubled in 2011, while across its different destinies it doubled for that year. Prospects suggest this strong increase will continue in the future (UNCTAD, 2012). Due to the high volatility of investment, the latter expansion contrasts with the initial collapse of Japanese’s FDI in China at the beginning of the crisis. This paper analyses the impact of the evolution of Japanese MNEs in China experienced between 2007 and 2010, as well as, several future scenarios. The first question is how the pattern of FDI from Japan to China has transformed these domestic economies in terms of, especially, industrial composition and competition between local firms and MNEs. The second question is how much the evolution of FDI changed the comparative advantages of their industries and the resulting trade patterns between them. The connection between FTAs and the surge of FDI inflows among the nations is also an issue of interest as has been observed in Europe and other areas (e.g., Baldwin et al. (1996), Bajo-Rubio and Lopez-Pueyo, (2002), and Momodou (2011)). Our study could shed light, beyond the existing trade-focused models, on the prospective FTA between Japan and China. As South Korea is being involved in the negotiations, our study could also carry an implication on their tri-party FTA in East Asia, where FDI drives their rapid integration. MODELLING APPROACH AND .
Added Values of Time Series in Material Flow Analysis: The Austrian Phosphorus Budget from 1990 to 2011

Material flow analysis is a tool that is increasingly used as a foundation for resource management and environmental protection. This tool is primarily applied in a static manner to individual years, ignoring the impact of time on the material budgets. In this study, a detailed multiyear model of the Austrian phosphorus budget covering the period 1990–2011 was built to investigate its behavior over time and test the hypothesis that a multiyear approach can also contribute to the improvement of static budgets. Further, a novel method was applied to investigate the quality and characteristics of the data and quantify the uncertainty. The degree of change between the budgets was assessed and showed that approximately half of the flows have changed significantly and, at times, abruptly since 1990, but it is not possible to distinguish unequivocally between constant and moderately changing flows given their uncertainty. The study reveals that the phosphorus transported in waste flows has increased more rapidly than its recovery, which accounted for 55% to 60% of the total waste phosphorus in 1990 and only 40% in 2011. The loss ratio in landfills and cement kilns has oscillated in the range of 40% to 50%. From a methodological point of view, the multiyear approach has broadened the conceptual model of the budget, making it more suitable as a basis for material accounting and monitoring. Moreover, the analysis of the data reconciliation process over a long period of time proved to be a useful tool for identifying systematic errors in the model.
Reaction Time Correlations during Eye–Hand Coordination: Behavior and Modeling

During coordinated eye–hand movements, saccade reaction times (SRTs) and reach reaction times (RRTs) are correlated in humans and monkeys. Reaction times (RTs) measure the degree of movement preparation and can correlate with movement speed and accuracy. However, RTs can also reflect effector nonspecific influences, such as motivation and arousal. We use a combination of behavioral psychophysics and computational modeling to identify plausible mechanisms for correlations in SRTs and RRTs. To disambiguate nonspecific mechanisms from mechanisms specific to movement coordination, we introduce a dual-task paradigm in which a reach and a saccade are cued with a stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA). We then develop several variants of integrate-to-threshold models of RT, which postulate that responses are initiated when the neural activity encoding effector-specific movement preparation reaches a threshold. The integrator models formalize hypotheses about RT correlations and make predictions for how each RT should vary with SOA. To test these hypotheses, we trained three monkeys to perform the eye–hand SOA task and analyzed their SRTs and RRTs. In all three subjects, RT correlations decreased with increasing SOA duration. Additionally, mean SRT decreased with decreasing SOA, revealing facilitation of saccades with simultaneous reaches, as predicted by the model. These results are not consistent with the predictions of the models with common modulation or common input but are compatible with the predictions of a model with mutual excitation between two effector-specific integrators. We propose that RT correlations are not simply attributable to motivation and arousal and are a signature of coordination.
Different cytokine levels in thrombolysis patients as predictors for clinical outcome

Thrombolytic therapy not always improves clinical outcome in ischemic stroke patients. This could cause lymphomonocyte accumulation in the infarcted brain area. These produce an excessive amount of proinflammatory cytokines, such as IL‐1beta, IL‐6 and TNF‐alfa. The aim of our study was to determine ILs levels in fibrinolytic therapy treated patients, compared with healthy controls and to evaluate if the varying levels can predictors of neurological outcome. Eighteen patients underwent thrombolytic treatment with t‐PA within 3 h. Plasma levels of IL‐1beta, IL‐6, TNF‐alfa and IL‐10 were determined by ELISA method before and within 24 h after t‐PA infusion and compared with controls. Significantly higher levels of IL‐1beta and Il‐6 emerged in stroke patients before treatment compared with the control group (P < 0.05 and 0.04, respectively). Slightly higher plasma levels of TNF‐alfa and lower plasma levels of IL‐10 were also found at base line in stroke patients. After thrombolytic treatment no significant variations were observed in the levels of TNF‐alfa and IL‐6, whereas a trend toward lower values for IL‐1beta and higher levels for IL‐10 was observed. Positive correlations among the values of IL‐6, TNF‐alfa and National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) at discharges were observed. A similar correlation with modified Rankin scale score at 3 month was found. Pre‐treatment cytokine status seems to influence pre‐and long‐term clinical outcome. Therefore an investigation into the possible predictor of cytokines seem worthy.
Lumbar Bone Mineral Density Phantomless Computed Tomography Measurements and Correlation with Age and Fracture Incidence

Objective: Low bone quality is a contributing factor to motor vehicle crash (MVC) injury. Quantification of occupant bone mineral density (BMD) is important from an injury causation standpoint. The first aim of this study was to validate a technique for measuring lumbar volumetric BMD (vBMD) from phantomless computed tomography (CT) scans. The second aim was to apply the validated phantomless technique to quantify lumbar vBMD in Crash Injury Research and Engineering Network (CIREN) occupants for correlation with age, fracture incidence, and osteopenia/osteoporosis diagnoses. Methods: Quantitative CT (qCT) and dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) were collected prospectively for 50 subjects and used to validate a technique to measure vBMD from 281 phantomless CT scans of CIREN occupants. Hounsfield unit (HU) measurements were collected from the L1–L5 vertebrae, right psoas major muscle, and anterior subcutaneous fat for all subjects and from 3 phantom ports with known mg/cc calcium hydroxyapatite values for the validation group. qCT calibration was accomplished using regressions between the phantom HU and mg/cc values to convert L1–L5 HU values to mg/cc. A phantomless calibration technique was developed where the fat and muscle HU values were linearly regressed against fat (−69 mg/cc) and muscle (77 mg/cc) to establish a conversion for L1–L5 HU measurements to mg/cc. vBMD calculated from qCT versus the phantomless method was compared for the 50 subjects to assess agreement and a mg/cc osteopenia threshold was established using DXA T-scores. CIREN HU measurements were converted to mg/cc using the phantomless technique and the mg/cc osteopenia threshold was used to compare vBMD to age, fracture incidence, and osteopenia comorbidity classifications in CIREN. Results: Linear regression of lumbar vBMD derived from the qCT versus phantomless calibrations showed excellent agreement (R2 = 0.87, P <.0001). A 145 mg/cc threshold for osteopenia was established (sensitivity = 1, specificity = 0.57) and 44 CIREN occupants had vBMD below this threshold. Of these 44 occupants, 64% were not classified as osteopenic in CIREN, but vBMD suggested undiagnosed osteopenia. Age was negatively correlated with vBMD in both sexes (P <.0001) and CIREN occupants with less than 145 mg/cc vBMD sustained an average 1.7 additional rib/sternum fractures (P =.036). Conclusions: Because lumbar vBMD was estimated from phantomless CT scans with accuracy similar to qCT, the phantomless technique can be broadly applied to both prospectively and retrospectively assess patient bone quality for research and clinical studies related to MVCs, falls, and aging.
Myasthenia gravis: a long term follow-up study of Swedish patients with specific reference to thymic histology

Background: Myasthenia gravis (MG) is an autoimmune disorder of neuromuscular transmission. The majority of patients show abnormal thymic histology. Setting: The study was performed at the Myasthenia Gravis Centre, Karolinska University Hospital, and at the Immunological Research Laboratory, Centre for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. Patients and methods: Information was collected retrospectively from 1956 and prospectively from 1975 on clinical data, concomitant diseases, concentration of serum acetylcholine receptor antibodies (AChR-abs), immunosuppressive treatment (IS) and response to it, in 537 patients of whom 326 were thymectomised. Follow-up time was 1.5–50 years. Results: Age at onset of MG increased from a median age of 24 years before 1975 to a median age of 61 years after 2000. Thymoma was found in 65, hyperplasia (HPL) in 185 and a normal thymus in 76 patients. The trans-sternal surgical approach for thymectomy was used in 255 patients (78%). In five patients with thymoma, MG appeared after thymectomy. Of 537 patients, 466 (87%) had circulating AChR-abs. IS was given to 300 (56%) patients, mostly those with thymoma (85%). In total, 441 patients (82%) showed an improvement. One-third of patients with HPL, a quarter of those with thymoma, one-fifth of those with a normal thymus and one-seventh of those not operated on went into remission. Conclusion: The prognosis for the majority of patients with MG is favourable, irrespective of thymic histology. The cause may be the use of immunomodulating therapy.
A Regularized Monotonic Fuzzy Support Vector Machine Model for Data Mining With Prior Knowledge

Incorporating prior knowledge into data mining is an interesting but challenging problem, and this study proposes a novel fuzzy support vector machine (SVM) model to explore this issue. It considers the fact that in many applications, each input point may not be exactly labeled as one particular class, and thus, it applies a fuzzy membership to each input point. It also utilizes expert knowledge concerning the monotonic relations between the response and predictor variables, which is represented in the form of monotonicity constraints. We formulate the classification problem of a monotonically constrained fuzzy SVM, called a monotonic FSVM, derive its dual optimization problem, and theoretically analyze its monotonic property. The Tikhonov regularization method is further applied to ensure that the solution is unique and bounded. A new measure, i.e., the frequency monotonicity rate, is proposed to evaluate the ability of the model to retain the monotonicity. The results of the experiments on real-world and synthetic datasets show that this method, which considers different contributions of each data and the prior knowledge of the monotonicity, has a number of advantages with regard to predictive ability and retaining monotonicity over the original FSVM and SVM models when applied to classification problems.
Small nodule detectability evaluation using a generalized scan-statistic model

In this paper is investigated the use of the scan statistic for evaluating the detectability of small nodules in medical images. The scan-statistic method is often used in applications in which random fields must be searched for abnormal local features. Several results of the detection with localization theory are reviewed and a generalization is presented using the noise nodule distribution obtained by scanning arbitrary areas. One benefit of the noise nodule model is that it enables determination of the scan-statistic distribution by using only a few image samples in a way suitable both for simulation and experimental setups. Also, based on the noise nodule model, the case of multiple targets per image is addressed and an image abnormality test using the likelihood ratio and an alternative test using multiple decision thresholds are derived. The results obtained reveal that in the case of low contrast nodules or multiple nodules the usual test strategy based on a single decision threshold underperforms compared with the alternative tests. That is a consequence of the fact that not only the contrast or the size, but also the number of suspicious nodules is a clue indicating the image abnormality. In the case of the likelihood ratio test, the multiple clues are unified in a single decision variable. Other tests that process multiple clues differently do not necessarily produce a unique ROC curve, as shown in examples using a test involving two decision thresholds. We present examples with two-dimensional time-of-flight (TOF) and non-TOF PET image sets analysed using the scan statistic for different search areas, as well as the fixed position observer.
Performance comparison between total variation (TV)-based compressed sensing and statistical iterative reconstruction algorithms

Of all available reconstruction methods, statistical iterative reconstruction algorithms appear particularly promising since they enable accurate physical noise modeling. The newly developed compressive sampling/compressed sensing (CS) algorithm has shown the potential to accurately reconstruct images from highly undersampled data. The CS algorithm can be implemented in the statistical reconstruction framework as well. In this study, we compared the performance of two standard statistical reconstruction algorithms (penalized weighted least squares and q-GGMRF) to the CS algorithm. In assessing the image quality using these iterative reconstructions, it is critical to utilize realistic background anatomy as the reconstruction results are object dependent. A cadaver head was scanned on a Varian Trilogy system at different dose levels. Several figures of merit including the relative root mean square error and a quality factor which accounts for the noise performance and the spatial resolution were introduced to objectively evaluate reconstruction performance. A comparison is presented between the three algorithms for a constant undersampling factor comparing different algorithms at several dose levels. To facilitate this comparison, the original CS method was formulated in the framework of the statistical image reconstruction algorithms. Important conclusions of the measurements from our studies are that (1) for realistic neuro-anatomy, over 100 projections are required to avoid streak artifacts in the reconstructed images even with CS reconstruction, (2) regardless of the algorithm employed, it is beneficial to distribute the total dose to more views as long as each view remains quantum noise limited and (3) the total variation-based CS method is not appropriate for very low dose levels because while it can mitigate streaking artifacts, the images exhibit patchy behavior, which is potentially harmful for medical diagnosis.
Phosphatidylcholine is essential for efficient functioning of the mitochondrial glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase Gut2 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Gut2, the mitochondrial glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase, was previously shown to become preferentially labelled with photoactivatable phosphatidylcholine (PC), pointing to a functional relation between these molecules. In the present study we analyzed whether Gut2 functioning depends on the PC content of yeast cells, using PC biosynthetic mutants in which the PC content was lowered. PC depletion was found to reduce growth on glycerol and to increase glycerol excretion, both indicating that PC is needed for optimal Gut2 functioning in vivo. Using several in vitro approaches the nature of the dependence of Gut2 functioning on cellular PC contents was investigated. The results of these experiments suggest that it is unlikely that the effects observed in vivo are due to changes in cellular Gut2 content, in specific activity of Gut2 in isolated mitochondria, or in the membrane association of Gut2, upon lowering the PC level. The in vivo effects are more likely an indirect result of PC depletion-induced changes in the cellular context in which Gut2 functions, that are not manifested in the in vitro systems used.