Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of red blood cell (RBC) transfusion on sickle cell disease recipient plasma and RBC metabolism

Exchange transfusion is a mainstay in the treatment of sickle cell anemia. Transfusion recipients with sickle cell disease (SCD) can be transfused over 10 units per therapy, an intervention that replaces circulating sickle red blood cells (RBCs) with donor RBCs. Storage of RBCs makes the intervention logistically feasible. The average storage duration for units transfused at the Duke University Medical Center is approximately 2 weeks, a time window that should anticipate the accumulation of irreversible storage lesion to the RBCs. However, no metabolomics study has been performed to date to investigate the impact of exchange transfusion on recipients' plasma and RBC phenotypes.
A Notion of Inversion Number Associated to Certain Quiver Flag Varieties

We define an algebraic variety $X(d,A)$ consisting of matrices whose rows and columns are partial flags. This is a smooth, projective variety, and we describe it as an iterated bundle of Grassmannian varieties. Moreover, we show that $X(d,A)$ has a cell decomposition, in which the cells are parametrized by certain matrices of sets and their dimensions are given by a notion of inversion number. On the other hand, we consider the Spaltenstein variety of partial flags which are stabilized by a given nilpotent endomorphism. We partition this variety into locally closed subvarieties which are affine bundles over certain varieties called $Y_T$, parametrized by semistandard tableaux $T$. We show that the varieties $Y_T$ are in fact isomorphic to varieties of the form $X(d,A)$. We deduce that each variety $Y_T$ has a cell decomposition, in which the cells are parametrized by certain row-increasing tableaux obtained by permuting the entries in the columns of $T$ and their dimensions are given by the inversion number recently defined by P. Drube for such row-increasing tableaux.
Diagnostic accuracy of the implant stability quotient in monitoring progressive peri‐implant bone loss: An experimental study in dogs

OBJECTIVES To investigate the impact of progressive bone loss in an experimental peri-implantitis model in the dog upon the implant stability quotient (ISQ) measured in the course of induced and spontaneous conditions of disease, and to evaluate the association between the clinical parameters and ISQ. MATERIALS AND METHODS Seventy-two implants were placed in 12 Beagle dogs. Of these, 36 implants in six dogs were assessed during ligature-induced peri-implantitis (three timepoints) and at one timepoint following a period of spontaneous progression. The ISQ was recorded using resonance frequency analysis (RFA). Furthermore, the clinical peri-implant parameters were registered at four sites per implant at each timepoint. Marginal bone loss (MBL) was determined using computed tomography at four sites per implant and bone-to-implant contact (BIC) was assessed from histological samples. A linear regression model was estimated by generalized estimation equations (GEEs) in order to study the MBL-ISQ values at each measurement timepoint. Pearson's correlation test was applied. RESULTS None of the implants failed during the study period. At implant level, a strong negative correlation was found for all timepoints between ISQ and MBL (r = -0.58; p < 0.001). Accordingly, as follow-up progressed, lower ISQ and higher MBL values were observed. A prediction of MBL depending on the ISQ values and timepoints showed a decrease in one ISQ unit to be related to ~1 mm of MBL. Likewise, a statistically significant correlation was found between BIC and ISQ evaluated after spontaneous chronification of peri-implantitis (r = 0.34; p = 0.04). Nevertheless, the ISQ values failed to correlate to any of the clinical parameters recorded. CONCLUSION Resonance frequency analysis seems accurate in diagnosing progressive bone loss, as a statistically significant decrease in ISQ was recorded in the course of peri-implant disease. Nevertheless, the clinical relevance of this observation as a diagnostic tool is debatable, since implant stability remains high.
Pregnancy in multiple sclerosis

The influence of pregnancy on the course of multiple sclerosis (MS) has long been a topic of considerable interest to patients and health care practitioners because MS strikes most often in women of childbearing age. Until a few decades ago, women were discouraged from having a baby, fearing that pregnancy would worsen the course of disease. Since then, numerous studies have shown a reduced risk of relapse during pregnancy, followed by an increased risk of disease reactivation after delivery, most clearly revealed in a large prospective study published in 1998.1 Subsequently, the advent of the “treatment era” for MS has introduced complexity into family planning counseling and decision processes, which require additional consideration for numerous disease-modifying drugs (DMDs) before and after pregnancy. To support family planning decisions and to improve available health care services, there remains a great need for a better understanding of the natural history of MS and pregnancy in the context of an ever-expanding number of DMDs.2
Therapy-related myeloid neoplasms: clinical perspectives

Therapy-related myeloid neoplasms (t-MNs) are a complication of cytotoxic treatment for primary tumors and autoimmune diseases. t-MNs result from a complex interaction between individual predisposition and exposition to toxic agents. Some different biological and clinical characteristics can be recognized according to the type of anticancer drug. Compared to de novo myeloid neoplasms, prognosis of t-MN is dismal. Age and karyotype are the most important prognostic factors for t-MN, which should be treated with frontline chemotherapy treatments that are appropriate for patients with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and de novo acute myeloid leukemia (AML) with similar disease characteristics. Allogeneic stem cell transplantation should be considered particularly for unfavorable karyotypes and younger patients with aggressive disease.
Self-Esteem as a Complex Dynamic System: Intrinsic and Extrinsic Microlevel Dynamics

The variability of self-esteem is an important characteristic of self-esteem. However, little is known about the mechanisms that underlie it. The goal of the current study was to empirically explore these underlying mechanisms. It is commonly assumed that state self-esteem (the fleeting experience of the self) is a response to the immediate social context. Drawing from a complex dynamic systems perspective, the self-organizing self-esteem model asserts that this responsivity is not passive or stimulus-response like, but that the impact of the social context on state self-esteem is intimately connected to the intrinsic dynamics of self-esteem. The model suggests that intrinsic dynamics are the result of higher-order self-esteem attractors that can constrain state self-esteem variability. The current study tests this model, and more specifically, the prediction that state self-esteem variability is less influenced by changes in the immediate context if relatively strong, as opposed to weak, self-esteem attractors underlie intrinsic dynamics of self-esteem. To test this, parent-adolescent dyads (N=13, Mage=13.6) were filmed during seminaturalistic discussions. Observable components of adolescent state self-esteem were coded in real time, as well as real-time parental autonomy-support and relatedness. Kohonen’s self-organizing maps were used to derive attractor-like patterns: repeated higher-order patterns of adolescents’ self-esteem components. State space grids were used to assess how much adolescents’ self-esteem attractors constrained their state self-esteem variability. We found varying levels of attractor strength in our sample. In accordance with our prediction, we found that state self-esteem was less sensitive to changes in parental support and relatedness for adolescents with stronger self-esteem attractors. Discussion revolves around the implications of our findings for the ontology of self-esteem.
Therapeutic gardening: A counseling approach for bereavement from suicide

Abstract This article focuses on an innovative approach to treating people bereaved by the suicide of a loved one. Nature is powerful and restorative, and some research already supports the therapeutic use of nature to address grief. We outline a therapeutic gardening approach to use with survivors of suicide loss and present a case study. This approach can be used by counselors who work individually with people bereaved by suicide as a way of assisting and supporting them through their grief. Though we suggest that nature can be used as part of the therapeutic process, careful consideration should be made to ensure privacy and confidentiality. Implementing this approach requires planning and intentionality.
Future Pharmacotherapy for Non-alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH): Review of Phase 2 and 3 Trials

Abstract Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) results from inflammation and hepatocyte injury in the setting of hepatic steatosis. Non-alcoholic steatohepatitis increases the risk of progression to liver fibrosis and cirrhosis, and is the most rapidly growing etiology for liver failure and indication for liver transplantation in the USA. Weight loss and lifestyle modification remain the standard first-line treatment, as no USA Food and Drug Administration-approved pharmacotherapy currently exists. The past decade has seen an explosion of interest in drug development targeting pathologic pathways in non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, with numerous phase 2 and 3 trials currently in progress. Here, we concisely review the major targets and mechanisms of action by class, summarize results from completed pivotal phase 2 studies, and provide a detailed outline of key active studies with trial data for drugs in development, including obeticholic acid, elafibranor, cenicriviroc and selonsertib.
Semi‐supervised validation of multiple surrogate outcomes with application to electronic medical records phenotyping

The Electronic Medical Records (EMR) data linked with genomic data have facilitated efficient and large scale translational studies. One major challenge in using EMR for translational research is the difficulty in accurately and efficiently annotating disease phenotypes due to the low accuracy of billing codes and the time involved with manual chart review. Recent efforts such as those by the Electronic Medical Records and Genomics (eMERGE) Network and Informatics for Integrating Biology & the Bedside (i2b2) have led to an increasing number of algorithms available for classifying various disease phenotypes. Investigators can apply such algorithms to obtain predicted phenotypes for their specific EMR study. They typically perform a small validation study within their cohort to assess the algorithm performance and then subsequently treat the algorithm classification as the true phenotype for downstream genetic association analyses. Despite the superior performance compared to simple billing codes, these algorithms may not port well across institutions, leading to bias and low power for association studies. In this paper, we propose a semi‐supervised method to make inferences about both the accuracy of multiple available algorithms and the effect of genetic markers on the true phenotype, leveraging information from both a large set of unlabeled data where both genetic markers and algorithm output information and a small validation data where labels are additionally available. The simulation studies show that the proposed method substantially outperforms existing methods from the missing data literature. The proposed methods are applied to an EMR study of how low density lipoprotein risk alleles affect the risk of cardiovascular disease among patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
Abnormal composition and function of high‐density lipoproteins in atopic dermatitis patients

2016;197:3771‐3781. 4. Puerta L, Fernandez-Caldas E, Mercado D, Lockey RF, Caraballo LR. Sequential determinations of Blomia tropicalis allergens in mattress and floor dust samples in a tropical city. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 1996;97:689‐691. 5. Arlian LG, Morgan MS, Neal JS. Dust mite allergens: ecology and distribution. Curr Allergy Asthma Rep. 2002;2:401‐411. 6. Barboza R, Camara NO, Gomes E, et al. Endotoxin exposure during Sensitization to Blomia tropicalis allergens shifts TH2 immunity towards a TH17‐mediated airway neutrophilic inflammation: role of TLR4 and TLR2. PLoS One. 2013;8:e67115. 7. Baqueiro T, Russo M, Silva VM, et al. Respiratory allergy to Blomia tropicalis: immune response in four syngeneic mouse strains and assessment of a low allergen‐dose, short‐term experimental model. Respir Res. 2010;11:51. 8. Lisbonne M, Diem S, de Castro Keller A, et al. Cutting edge: invariant V alpha 14 NKT cells are required for allergen‐induced airway inflammation and hyperreactivity in an experimental asthma model. J Immunol. 2003;171:1637‐1641. 9. Hahn YS, Taube C, Jin N, et al. Different potentials of gamma delta T cell subsets in regulating airway responsiveness: V gamma 1 + cells, but not V gamma 4 + cells, promote airway hyperreactivity, Th2 cytokines, and airway inflammation. J Immunol. 2004;172:2894‐2902.
Switching from Flash Glucose Monitoring to Continuous Glucose Monitoring on Hypoglycemia in Adults with Type 1 Diabetes at High Hypoglycemia Risk: The Extension Phase of the I HART CGM Study

Abstract Background: The I HART CGM study showed that real-time continuous glucose monitoring (RT-CGM) has greater beneficial impact on hypoglycemia than intermittent flash glucose monitoring (flash) in adults with type 1 diabetes (T1D) at high risk. The impact of continuing RT-CGM or switching from flash to RT-CGM for another 8 weeks was then evaluated. Methods: Prospective randomized parallel group study with an extension phase. After a 2-week run-in with blinded CGM, participants were randomized to either RT-CGM or flash for 8 weeks. All participants were then given the option to continue with RT-CGM for another 8 weeks. Glycemic outcomes at 8 weeks are compared with the 16-week endpoint. Results: Forty adults with T1D on intensified multiple daily insulin injections and with impaired awareness of hypoglycemia or a recent episode of severe hypoglycemia were included (40% female, median [IQR] age 49.5 [37.5–63.5] years, diabetes duration 30.0 [21.0–36.5] years, HbA1c 56 [48–63] mmol/mol, and Gold Score 5 [4–5]), of whom 36 completed the final 16-week extension. There was a significant reduction in percentage time in hypoglycemia (<3.0 mmol/L) in the group switching from flash to RT-CGM (from 5.0 [3.7–8.6]% to 0.8 [0.4–1.9]%, P = 0.0001), whereas no change was observed in the RT-CGM group continuing with the additional 8 weeks of RT-CGM (1.3 [0.4–2.8] vs. 1.3 [0.8–2.5], P = 0.82). Time in target (3.9–10 mmol/L) increased in the flash group after switching to RT-CGM (60.0 [54.5–67.8] vs. 67.4 [56.3–72.4], P = 0.02) and remained the same in the RT-CGM group that continued with RT-CGM (65.9 [54.1–74.8] vs. 64.9 [49.2–73.9], P = 0.64). Conclusions: Our data suggest that switching from flash to RT-CGM has a significant beneficial impact on hypoglycemia outcomes and that continued use of RT-CGM maintains hypoglycemia risk benefit in this high-risk population.
In vivo characterization of light scattering properties of human skin in the 475- to 850-nm wavelength range in a Swedish cohort

Abstract. We have determined in vivo optical scattering properties of normal human skin in 1734 subjects, mostly with fair skin type, within the Swedish CArdioPulmonary bioImage Study. The measurements were performed with a noninvasive system, integrating spatially resolved diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and laser Doppler flowmetry. Data were analyzed with an inverse Monte Carlo algorithm, accounting for both scattering, geometrical, and absorbing properties of the tissue. The reduced scattering coefficient was found to decrease from 3.16 ± 0.72 to 1.13 ± 0.27 mm−1 (mean ± SD) in the 475- to 850-nm wavelength range. There was a negative correlation between the reduced scattering coefficient and age, and a significant difference between men and women in the reduced scattering coefficient as well as in the fraction of small scattering particles. This large study on tissue scattering with mean values and normal variation can serve as a reference when designing diagnostic techniques or when evaluating the effect of therapeutic optical systems.
A Decomposition-Based Multiobjective Evolutionary Algorithm with Adaptive Weight Adjustment

Recently, decomposition-based multiobjective evolutionary algorithms have good performances in the field of multiobjective optimization problems (MOPs) and have been paid attention by many scholars. Generally, a MOP is decomposed into a number of subproblems through a set of weight vectors with good uniformly and aggregate functions. The main role of weight vectors is to ensure the diversity and convergence of obtained solutions. However, these algorithms with uniformity of weight vectors cannot obtain a set of solutions with good diversity on some MOPs with complex Pareto optimal fronts (PFs) (i.e., PFs with a sharp peak or low tail or discontinuous PFs). To deal with this problem, an improved decomposition-based multiobjective evolutionary algorithm with adaptive weight adjustment (IMOEA/DA) is proposed. Firstly, a new method based on uniform design and crowding distance is used to generate a set of weight vectors with good uniformly. Secondly, according to the distances of obtained nondominated solutions, an adaptive weight vector adjustment strategy is proposed to redistribute the weight vectors of subobjective spaces. Thirdly, a selection strategy is used to help each subobjective space to obtain a nondominated solution (if have). Comparing with six efficient state-of-the-art algorithms, for example, NSGAII, MOEA/D, MOEA/D-AWA, EMOSA, RVEA, and KnEA on some benchmark functions, the proposed algorithm is able to find a set of solutions with better diversity and convergence.
Human Factor H Domains 6 and 7 Fused to IgG1 Fc Are Immunotherapeutic against Neisseria gonorrhoeae

Novel therapeutics against multidrug-resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae are urgently needed. Gonococcal lipooligosaccharide often expresses lacto-N-neotetraose (LNnT), which becomes sialylated in vivo, enhancing factor H (FH) binding and contributing to the organism’s ability to resist killing by complement. We previously showed that FH domains 18–20 (with a D-to-G mutation at position 1119 in domain 19) fused to Fc (FHD1119G/Fc) displayed complement-dependent bactericidal activity in vitro and attenuated gonococcal vaginal colonization of mice. Gonococcal lipooligosaccharide phase variation can result in loss of LNnT expression. Loss of sialylated LNnT, although associated with a considerable fitness cost, could decrease efficacy of FHD1119G/Fc. Similar to N. meningitidis, gonococci also bind FH domains 6 and 7 through Neisserial surface protein A (NspA). In this study, we show that a fusion protein comprising FH domains 6 and 7 fused to human IgG1 Fc (FH6,7/Fc) bound to 15 wild-type antimicrobial resistant isolates of N. gonorrhoeae and to each of six lgtA gonococcal deletion mutants. FH6,7/Fc mediated complement-dependent killing of 8 of the 15 wild-type gonococcal isolates and effectively reduced the duration and burden of vaginal colonization of three gonococcal strains tested in wild-type mice, including two strains that resisted complement-dependent killing but on which FH6,7/Fc enhanced C3 deposition. FH/Fc lost efficacy when Fc was mutated to abrogate C1q binding and in C1q−/− mice, highlighting the requirement of the classical pathway for its activity. Targeting gonococci with FH6,7/Fc provides an additional immunotherapeutic approach against multidrug-resistant gonorrhea.
Minimax design of digital FIR filters using linear programming in bandwidth interleaving digital-to-analog converter

: Bandwidth interleaving digital-to-analog converter (BI-DAC) is a new method for breaking through the bandwidth restriction of the DAC to generate a wideband signal. However, there are some errors in the BI-DAC system such as the aliasing errors caused by the non-ideal performance of the analog ﬁ lters. To achieve the aliasing errors cancellation, this paper studied the minimax design of digital ﬁ nite impulse response (FIR) ﬁ lters. The design goal was to meet a given desired spurious free dynamic range (SFDR) of the BI-DAC system. The problem of designing the digital FIR ﬁ lters was formulated as a linear programming (LP) problem which could be used to ﬁ nd the global optimal solution of the coe ﬃ cients of the digital FIR ﬁ lters. Additionally, this proposed design method performance analysis consist of the computational complexity was derived. Finally, all the proposed designs are veri ﬁ ed by both theoretical analysis and numerical simulations, and satisfactory simulation results were achieved.
Superior articular process cross-sectional area is a new sensitive parameter for the diagnosis of lumbar central canal spinal stenosis

Purpose Previous studies reported that hypertrophied superior articular process (SAP) was associated with an increased risk of lumbar foraminal stenosis. However, no study investigated the effect of SAP hypertrophy in lumbar central canal spinal stenosis (LCCSS). We hypothesized that the SAP cross-sectional area (SAPCSA) is the main morphologic feature in the diagnosis of LCCSS. Patients and methods Data regarding the SAPCSA were collected from 109 patients with LCCSS. All patients were enrolled after the LCCSS diagnosis was confirmed by an experienced, board-certified neuroradiologist. All patients had clinical manifestations compatible with LCCSS. A total of 120 subjects in the control group underwent lumbar spine MRI as part of non-symptomatic medical examination. T2-weighted axial images were obtained from the 2 groups. Using a picture archiving and communications system, we analyzed the CSA of the bone margin of SAP at the level of L4–L5 facet joint on MRI. Results The average SAPCSA was 96.63±13.37 mm2 in the control group, and 123.59±14.18 mm2 in the LCCSS. The LCCSS group showed significantly higher levels of the SAPCSA (P<0.001) compared with the control one. Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed to determine the validity of the SAPCSA as a predictor of LCCSS. In the LCCSS group, the optimal cut-off-point was 110.71 mm2, with 83.5% sensitivity, 83.3% specificity, and area under the curve of 0.92 (95% CI: 0.88–0.95). Conclusion Higher SAPCSA values were associated with a higher possibility of LCCSS. These results are important in the evaluation of patients with LCCSS.