Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evaluation of short-term outcomes of experimental stifle luxation in feral pigeons (Columba livia domestica) treated with a hinged transarticular external skeletal fixator and physical therapy

: To evaluate the use of the FESSA hinged linear transarticular external fixator (HLTEF) and the effect of early physical therapy after experimental stifle luxation in pigeons, eight feral pigeons (Columba livia domestica) underwent surgery and afterwards one group started physical therapy on day 1 post surgery, while the other after HLTEF removal on day 21. Healing was evaluated with clinical, radiographic, pathologic, and histologic criteria for 43 days. All birds healed clinically and radiographically. No significant difference was detected between groups in range of motion, thigh thickness and circumference, or muscle/ joint histology. Regressive lameness and pododermatitis affected all birds. Pathology revealed joint capsule fibrosis, hemorrhagic synovial fluid, and callus formation around the pins. Degenerative joint changes were evident histologically. Concluding, this study demonstrated the successful use of the FESSA hinged linear transarticular external fixator for the treatment of stifle luxation and emphasized the difference between clinical and histological healing outcome. ABSTRACT To evaluate the use of the FESSA hinged linear transarticular external fixator (HLTEF) and the effect of early physical therapy after experimental stifle luxation in pigeons, eight feral pigeons ( Columba livia domestica ) underwent surgery and afterwards one group started physical therapy on day 1 post surgery, while the other after HLTEF removal on day 21. Healing was evaluated with clinical, radiographic, patho-logic, and histologic criteria for 43 days. All birds healed clinically and radiographi-cally. No significant difference was detected between groups in range of motion, thigh thickness and circumference, or muscle/ joint histology. Regressive lameness and pododermatitis affected all birds. Pathology revealed joint capsule fibrosis, hemorrhagic synovial fluid, and callus formation around the pins. Degenerative joint changes were evident histologically. Concluding, this study demonstrated the successful use of the FESSA hinged linear transarticular external fixator for the treatment of stifle luxation and emphasized the difference between clinical and histological healing outcome.
Antioxidant potential in lipophilic and hydrophilic extracts from medicinal herbs (Salvia officinalis and Echinacea angustifolia). A comparison between assays based on electron paramagnetic resonance and spectrophotometry

Recently, detection of antioxidant activity of plant extracts has caught the attention of researchers. Determination of antioxidant activity is usually performed using stable free radicals. A number of assays is available for screening the antioxidant activity of food constituents, but few of these methods are applicable to lipophilic substances. EPR is the analytical technique that directly measures free radicals making possible the analysis of turbid or highly colored samples. The aim of this study was to determine how the detection technique, plant species and the different growing conditions influenced the antioxidative activity of aqueous and lipid extracts from leaves. Sage (Salvia officinalis L.) and coneflower (Echinacea angustifolia DC.) grown in hydroponics and in soil, were analyzed. Radical decay kinetics, due to plant extracts, were monitored by an EPR spectrometer, equipped with a data acquisition system and a software package designed for analysis and simulation of spectra. Parameters obtained by the fitting of the curves allowed the calculation of the antioxidant potential. The radicals Fremy’s salt (hydrophilic) and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH, lipophilic) were employed. Comparisons with data obtained by a spectrophotometric detection with the radical cation ABTS+ [2,2’-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid)] were also made. Fremy’s salt and DPPH gave 1st and 2nd order kinetics, respectively. EPR can give more reliable measurements of the antioxidant potential than spectrophotometric assay. The reduced sensitivity of spectrophotometric detection was showed both for sage and coneflower extracts. Antioxidant potential of sage resulted extraordinary high compared to coneflower and a different ratio of aqueous to lipid antioxidant potential in the two species could be monitored. Antioxidant potentials were also higher for coneflower grown in hydroponics than in soil. In addition to the technique adopted, the detection of antioxidant potential was influenced by the growing conditions of plants and hydroponics showed to be able to increase antioxidant potential of both coneflower lipophilic and hydrophilic extracts. By registration of EPR kinetics we can get reliable measurements of the antioxidant potential of plant extracts, avoiding the artifacts due to the appearance of other radicals resulting from oxidative processes.
Tumor grade is associated with venous thromboembolism in patients with cancer: results from the Vienna Cancer and Thrombosis Study.

PURPOSE Patients with cancer are at risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE). Tumor-related factors could help estimate patients' individual risk for VTE. Currently, only scarce information on the association between tumor grade and VTE is available. We thus evaluated the role of tumor grade and its association with VTE. PATIENTS AND METHODS The Vienna Cancer and Thrombosis Study is a prospective, observational cohort study including patients with newly diagnosed cancer or progression of disease after remission. Study end point is the occurrence of symptomatic VTE. RESULTS Seven hundred forty-seven patients with solid tumors received follow-up for a median of 526 days. VTE occurred in 52 patients (7.0%). At study inclusion, 468 patients had low-grade tumors (G1 and G2) and 279 had high-grade tumors (G3 and G4). In multivariable Cox regression analysis including tumor grade, tumor histology, tumor sites, stage, sex, and age, patients with high-grade tumors had a significantly higher risk of VTE compared with those with low-grade tumors (hazard ratio, 2.0; 95% CI, 1.1 to 3.5; P = .015). The cumulative probability of developing VTE after 6 months was higher in patients with high-grade tumors than in those with low-grade tumors (8.2% v 4.0%; log-rank test P = .037). Patients with high-grade tumors had higher D-dimer levels (P = .008) and leukocyte counts (P < .001), and lower hemoglobin levels (P = .008). CONCLUSION The tumor grade may help identify patients with cancer who are at high risk of VTE. The association of tumor grade with recently identified biomarkers indicates a link between tumor differentiation and pathogenesis of cancer-associated VTE.
Backbone dynamics of a model membrane protein: measurement of individual amide hydrogen-exchange rates in detergent-solubilized M13 coat protein using 13C NMR hydrogen/deuterium isotope shifts.

Hydrogen-exchange rates have been measured for individual assigned amide protons in M13 coat protein, a 50-residue integral membrane protein, using a 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) equilibrium isotope shift technique. The locations of the more rapidly exchanging amides have been determined. In D2O solutions, a peptide carbonyl resonance undergoes a small upfield isotope shift (0.08-0.09 ppm) from its position in H2O solutions; in 1:1 H2O/D2O mixtures, the carbonyl line shape is determined by the exchange rate at the adjacent nitrogen atom. M13 coat protein was labeled biosynthetically with 13C at the peptide carbonyls of alanine, glycine, phenylalanine, proline, and lysine, and the exchange rates of 12 assigned amide protons in the hydrophilic regions were measured as a function of pH by using the isotope shift method. This equilibrium technique is sensitive to the more rapidly exchanging protons which are difficult to measure by classical exchange-out experiments. In proteins, structural factors, notably H bonding, can decrease the exchange rate of an amide proton by many orders of magnitude from that observed in the freely exposed amides of model peptides such as poly(DL-alanine). With corrections for sequence-related inductive effects [Molday, R. S. , Englander, S. W. , & Kallen, R. G. (1972) Biochemistry 11, 150-158], the retardation of amide exchange in sodium dodecyl sulfate solubilized coat protein has been calculated with respect to poly(DL-alanine). The most rapidly exchanging protons, which are retarded very little or not at all, are shown to occur at the N- and C-termini of the molecule. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Identifying Pneumocystis carinii in Pleural Effusions

TO THE EDITOR: In their review of pleural effusions in patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), Joseph and colleagues [1] attribute 15% (nine cases) to Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. The organism was recovered in sputum or bronchoalveolar lavage, and the pneumonia and effusion resolved after specific therapy. Pleural fluid was obtained from only two of these patients and was not examined with special stains for the presence of P. carinii. We describe a case of P. carinii pneumonia that was diagnosed from a finding of organisms in routine stains of pleural fluid. A 45-year-old, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected, homosexual man developed low-grade fever, cough, and dyspnea. For 2 years he had received monthly P. carinii pneumonia prophylaxis with aerosolized pentamidine. A chest roentgenogram showed apical cystic lucencies, interstitial opacities in upper lung fields, and small bilateral pleural effusions. A presumptive diagnosis of P. carinii pneumonia was made, and the patient responded to treatment with intravenous pentamidine. Induced sputa processed for P. carinii with the Diff-Quik (Baxter Diagnostics, Inc., McGaw Park, Illinois) (Giemsa-like) stain [2] failed to show the organism. A thoracentesis was done, and the routine (Wright-stained) differential smear of the aspirated fluid showed forms resembling P. carinii trophozoites. The presence of P. carinii was confirmed by staining the fluid with the Diff-Quik method and by cytopathologic analysis of the specimen using Papanicolaou and silver methenamine stains. Visualizing P. carinii in routine smears of pleural fluid avoids time-consuming, cumbersome staining techniques, cytopathologic preparations, or invasive procedures such as bronchoalveolar lavage. We believe that in patients with equivocal diagnoses of P. carinii pneumonia, accompanying effusions should be aspirated and stained for P. carinii by routine or specific methods [3, 4].
On Fuzzy Soft Sets

We further contribute to the properties of fuzzy soft sets as defined and studied in the work of Maji et al. (2001), Roy and Maji (2007), and Yang et al. (2007) and support them with examples and counterexamples. We improve Proposition 3.3 by Maji et al., (2001). Finally we define arbitrary fuzzy soft union and fuzzy soft intersection and prove DeMorgan Inclusions and DeMorgan Laws in Fuzzy Soft Set Theory.
The ventilation problem in schools: literature review

Based on a review of literature published in refereed archival journals, ventilation rates in classrooms often fall far short of the minimum ventilation rates specified in standards. There is compelling evidence, from both cross-sectional and intervention studies, of an association of increased student performance with increased ventilation rates. There is evidence that reduced respiratory health effects and reduced student absence are associated with increased ventilation rates. Increasing ventilation rates in schools imposes energy costs and can increase heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning system capital costs. The net annual costs, ranging from a few dollars to about 10 dollars per person, are less than 0.1% of typical public spending on elementary and secondary education in the United States. Such expenditures seem like a small price to pay given the evidence of health and performance benefits.
Voltage pulse stress effect on gate stack TDDB distributions at nanometric scale: Consequence on aging by ESD

The effects of a voltage pulse stress on time to breakdown and breakdown voltage distributions of a 1.4nm thick SiON layer are investigated at nanometric scale using an atomic force microscope in conduction mode under ultra-high vacuum. Thanks to the reduced tip/sample contact area, a large window of voltage pulse amplitude and length is allowed. It is found that the pre-stress pulse does impact the slope of the cumulative failure distribution but has no effect on the voltage acceleration factor. Using this assumption an extrapolation formula is given to predict the decrease of the time to breakdown as a function of the pre-stress pulse parameters.
Macular thickness predictive of visual field sensitivity in ischaemic optic neuropathy

Purpose: To investigate the ability of optical coherence tomography (OCT) parameters of macular thickness (MT) and peripapillary retinal nerve fibre layer (RNFL) thickness to differentiate eyes with nonarteritic anterior ischaemic optic neuropathy (NAION) from uninvolved eyes and to identify the relationship between macular and RNFL parameters and visual field sensitivity (VFS).
Is There a Preferred Stroke Prevention Strategy for Diabetic Patients with Non-Valvular Atrial Fibrillation? Comparing Warfarin, Dabigatran and Rivaroxaban

Abstract Background The prevalence of diabetes is growing, and diabetes is an independent risk factor for both atrial fibrillation (AF) and stroke. However, the relative effectiveness and safety of different oral anticoagulants for diabetic patients with non-valvular AF remain unclear. We aimed to compare thromboembolic events, bleeding and mortality in diabetic AF patients treated with rivaroxaban, dabigatran and warfarin. Methods and Results Diabetic AF patients taking dabigatran (n = 322), rivaroxaban (n = 320) or warfarin (n = 1,899) were identified from the nationwide diabetes pay-for-performance program (n = 814,465) in Taiwan. Outcomes and comorbidities were evaluated by linking with Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. Propensity score weighting method was used to balance covariates across study groups. Patients were followed up until the first occurrence of any study outcome or the study end date. Compared with warfarin, dabigatran significantly decreased the risk of all-cause mortality (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.348, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.157–0.771) and gastrointestinal bleeding (HR = 0.558, 95% CI = 0.327–0.955). Relative effectiveness and safety outcomes between rivaroxaban and warfarin were comparable. Compared with rivaroxaban, dabigatran significantly decreased the risk of all-cause mortality (HR = 0.310, 95% CI = 0.121–0.798) and was associated with a borderline reduced risk for composite safety end points (HR = 0.670, 95% CI = 0.421–1.067). Conclusion In diabetic AF patients, dabigatran and rivaroxaban showed a superior or non-inferior effectiveness and safety profile compared with warfarin. Dabigatran was associated with a significantly lower risk of mortality than rivaroxaban.
Semi-fragile Watermarking Scheme for H.264/AVC Video Content Authentication Based on Manifold Feature

Authentication of videos and images based on the content is becoming an important problem in information security. Unfortunately, previous studies lack the consideration of Kerckhoffs"s principle in order to achieve this (i.e., a cryptosystem should be secure even if everything about the system, except the key, is public knowledge). In this paper, a solution to the problem of finding a relationship between a frame’s index and its content is proposed based on the creative utilization of a robust manifold feature. The proposed solution is based on a novel semi-fragile watermarking scheme for H.264/AVC video content authentication. At first, the input I-frame is partitioned for feature extraction and watermark embedding. This is followed by the temporal feature extraction using the Isometric Mapping algorithm. The frame index is included in the feature to produce the temporal watermark. In order to improve security, the spatial watermark will be encrypted together with the temporal watermark. Finally, the resultant watermark is embedded into the Discrete Cosine Transform coefficients in the diagonal positions. At the receiver side, after watermark extraction and decryption, temporal tampering is detected through a mismatch between the frame index extracted from the temporal watermark and the observed frame index. Next, the feature is regenerate through temporal feature regeneration, and compared with the extracted feature. It is judged through the comparison whether the extracted temporal watermark is similar to that of the original watermarked video. Additionally, for spatial authentication, the tampered areas are located via the comparison between extracted and regenerated spatial features. Experimental results show that the proposed method is sensitive to intentional malicious attacks and modifications, whereas it is robust to legitimate manipulations, such as certain level of lossy compression, channel noise, Gaussian filtering and brightness adjustment. Through a comparison between the extracted frame index and the current frame index, the temporal tempering is identified. With the proposed scheme, a solution to the Kerckhoffs"s principle problem is specified.
Health System Quality Improvement: Impact of Prompt Nutrition Care on Patient Outcomes and Health Care Costs

Among hospitalized patients, malnutrition is prevalent yet often overlooked and undertreated. We implemented a quality improvement program that positioned early nutritional care into the nursing workflow. Nurses screened for malnutrition risk at patient admission and then immediately ordered oral nutritional supplements for those at risk. Supplements were given as regular medications, guided and monitored by medication administration records. Post–quality improvement program, pressure ulcer incidence, length of stay, 30-day readmissions, and costs of care were reduced.
The Protooncogene c- jun Contains an Unusual Estrogen-inducible Enhancer within the Coding Sequence (*)

Estrogens have previously been shown to induce c- jun mRNA levels in target cells during hormone induced proliferation, and this appears to be a primary hormonal response involving transcriptional activation. In this report we have now identified an estrogen dependent enhancer within the coding sequence of c- jun. This element has the sequence GCAGA nnnTGACC which is identical to the consensus estrogen response element GGTCA nnnTGACC in the second half site, but varies considerably in the first half site. Synthetic oligodeoxynucleotides containing this jun sequence bind the estrogen receptor in cell-free studies using a competitive band shift assay with the consensus element. The jun element also confers hormone inducibility to reporter plasmids in yeast and mammalian based transcriptional systems. Structure-function studies illustrate that the TGACC half-site and its immediate flanking dinucleotides, but not the GCAGA half-site, are required for estrogen receptor binding. In contrast, both the GCAGA and TGACC half-sites are obligatory for hormone-inducible transcriptional activation. These results suggest a model in which the estrogen receptor functions as a heterodimer to regulate transcription of the c- jun protooncogene. Coupled with reports of estrogen response elements in c- fos and estrogenic induction of c- fos and c- jun in vivo, these findings also support a role for AP-1 components as early response genes in estrogen-induced proliferation.
Down-regulation of red blood cell beta-adrenoreceptors in response to chronic elevation of plasma catecholamine levels in the rainbow trout.

In many teleost fish, including the rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, catecholamines are mobilized into the blood in situations when enhanced oxygen transport is necessary, such as hypoxia, anaemia, hypercapnia and strenuous exercise (see review by Thomas and Perry, 1992). These hormones initiate a series of integrated physiological responses that optimize cardiovascular and respiratory functions (see reviews by Perry and Wood, 1989; Randall and Perry, 1992; Thomas and Perry, 1992). Stimulation of red blood cell b-adrenoreceptors leads to the activation of a red blood cell membrane Na+/H+ antiporter which extrudes protons in exchange for plasma Na+, thereby elevating intracellular pH (pHi) (Baroin et al. 1984; Cossins and Richardson, 1985; see review by Nikinmaa, 1992). The binding of catecholamines to badrenoreceptors, which are coupled to adenylate cyclase, engenders the formation of cyclic AMP. This second messenger, in turn, presumably initiates a phosphorylation cascade which ultimately activates the Na+/H+ antiporter. Erythrocyte alkalization can increase haemoglobin oxygen-binding affinity and capacity via the Bohr and Root effects, thus increasing the ability of the blood to transport oxygen (Tufts and Randall, 1989; see also reviews by Nikinmaa and Tufts, 1989; Perry and Wood, 1989; Randall and Perry, 1992; Thomas and Perry, 1992). Chronic elevation of plasma catecholamine concentrations appears to attenuate the red blood cell adrenergic response. Rainbow trout exposed to moderate levels of hypoxia (water partial pressure of oxygen 6.7–9.3 kPa) for 48 h exhibited elevated plasma adrenaline levels, and the sensitivity of red blood cell Na+/H+ exchange to exogenous adrenaline, in vitro, was reduced by 60–100 % (Thomas et al. 1991). Further, the intensity of proton extrusion in response to adrenaline addition was found to be inversely correlated to the endogenous plasma adrenaline concentration (Thomas et al. 1991). Thomas and co-workers suggested that a reduction in functional red blood cell
A Prospective, Randomized Trial Comparing Expansile Cervical Laminoplasty and Cervical Laminectomy and Fusion for Multilevel Cervical Myelopathy

BACKGROUND: Controversy exists as to the best posterior operative procedure to treat multilevel compressive cervical spondylotic myelopathy. OBJECTIVE: To determine clinical, radiological, and patient satisfaction outcomes between expansile cervical laminoplasty (ECL) and cervical laminectomy and fusion (CLF). METHODS: We performed a prospective, randomized study of ECL vs CLF in patients suffering from cervical spondylotic myelopathy. End points included the Short Form-36, Neck Disability Index, Visual Analog Scale, modified Japanese Orthopedic Association score, Nurick score, and radiographic measures. RESULTS: A survey of academic North American spine surgeons (n = 30) demonstrated that CLF is the most commonly used (70%) posterior procedure to treat multilevel spondylotic cervical myelopathy. A total of 16 patients were randomized: 7 to CLF and 9 to ECL. Both groups showed improvements in their Nurick grade and Japanese Orthopedic Association score postoperatively, but only the improvement in the Nurick grade for the ECL group was statistically significant (P < .05). The cervical range of motion between C2 and C7 was reduced by 75% in the CLF group and by only 20% in the ECL group in a comparison of preoperative and postoperative range of motion. The overall increase in canal area was significantly (P < .001) greater in the CLF group, but there was a suggestion that the adjacent level was more narrowed in the CLF group in as little as 1 year postoperatively. CONCLUSION: In many respects, ECL compares favorably to CLF. Although the patient numbers were small, there were significant improvements in pain measures in the ECL group while still maintaining range of motion. Restoration of spinal canal area was superior in the CLF group.