Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
EVIDENCE FOR GAMMA-RAY JETS IN THE MILKY WAY

Although accretion onto supermassive black holes in other galaxies is seen to produce powerful jets in X-ray and radio, no convincing detection has ever been made of a kpc-scale jet in the Milky Way. The recently discovered pair of 10 kpc tall gamma-ray bubbles in our Galaxy may be signs of earlier jet activity from the central black hole. In this paper, we identify a gamma-ray cocoon feature in the southern bubble, a jet-like feature along the cocoon's axis of symmetry, and another directly opposite the Galactic center in the north. Both the cocoon and jet-like feature have a hard spectrum with spectral index ∼ − 2 from 1 to 100 GeV, with a cocoon total luminosity of (5.5 ± 0.45) × 1035 and luminosity of the jet-like feature of (1.8 ± 0.35) × 1035 erg s−1 at 1–100 GeV. If confirmed, these jets are the first resolved gamma-ray jets ever seen.
Beyond antidoping and harm minimisation: a stakeholder-corporate social responsibility approach to drug control for sport

Debate about the ethics of drug control in sport has largely focused on arguing the relative merits of the existing antidoping policy or the adoption of a health-based harm minimisation approach. A number of ethical challenges arising from antidoping have been identified, and a number of, as yet, unanswered questions remain for the maturing ethics of applying harm minimisation principles to drug control for sport. This paper introduces a ‘third approach’ to the debate, examining some implications of applying a stakeholder theory of corporate social responsibility (CSR) to the issue of doping in sport. The introduction of the stakeholder-CSR model creates an opportunity to challenge the two dominant schools by enabling a different perspective to contribute to the development of an ethically robust drug control for sport.
A Regional Survey of Purse-String Sutures for Partial and Complete Closure of Mohs Surgical Defects

BACKGROUND The purse-string suture is a method for partial and complete closure of circular surgical defects. OBJECTIVE Short-term and long-term efficacy and cosmesis were assessed to evaluate the utility of purse-string closure as the sole method of closure of Mohs defects in different locations. MATERIALS AND METHODS Sixty-six circular wounds from Mohs surgery were closed with a running intradermal suture traversing the circumference of the wound. Preoperative and immediate postoperative wound areas were measured. Long-term cosmetic appearance was also assessed. RESULTS An immediate decrease in average wound area was observed, most notably in the neck and arm. Long-term cosmetic results were best in the head and neck and were remarkably similar for a given anatomic area. CONCLUSION The purse-string suture is rapid, simple, and associated with little morbidity. In properly selected cases, it is an excellent alternative for partial and complete closure of circular defects resulting from Mohs surgery.
Effect of chronic hypoxia on pulmonary artery blood velocity in rats as assessed by electrocardiography‐triggered three‐dimensional time‐resolved MR angiography

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a severe disease that leads to increased pulmonary vascular resistance and right heart failure. Noninvasive methods are needed to detect changes in the pulmonary artery circulation during PAH establishment and/or treatment. Pulmonary blood flow velocity can be evaluated by dynamic MR angiography, although the relevance of such data in the context of PAH remains to be demonstrated. A novel dynamic MR angiography technique was used in this work to measure blood flow velocity in the pulmonary arteries of the same living animals, before and after the establishment of chronic hypoxia‐induced PAH. Chronic hypoxia decreased significantly the blood flow velocity (43.8 ± 4.9 vs 24.3 ± 8.7 cm/s) on electrocardiography‐triggered time‐resolved angiograms. In parallel, chronic hypoxia‐induced PAH was confirmed from invasive measurements of the mean pulmonary arterial pressure (32.1 ± 4.8 vs 12.5 ± 2.2 mmHg) and the ratio of the right ventricle weight to the left ventricle plus septum weight (Fulton index: 0.54 ± 0.06 vs 0.27 ± 0.04). This study demonstrates the potential interest of dynamic MR angiography for the investigation of experimental models and for the evaluation of treatment efficacy. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Novel recombinant interleukin-13 peptide-based vaccine reduces airway allergic inflammatory responses in mice.

RATIONALE Interleukin (IL)-13 plays a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of allergic asthma. Passive administration of its monoclonal antibody or soluble receptor to block overproduced IL-13 has been proven to be effective in controlling airway allergic responses in animal models, but these approaches have disadvantages of short half-lives, high costs, and possible adverse effects. OBJECTIVES We sought to develop a novel therapeutic strategy through constructing an IL-13 peptide-based vaccine for blocking IL-13 on a persistent effect basis and to evaluate its in vivo effects using a murine model. METHODS To break self-tolerance, truncated hepatitis B core antigen was used as a carrier. Vaccine was prepared by inserting a peptide derived from the receptor binding site of mouse IL-13 into the immunodominant epitope region of the carrier using gene recombination methods. Mice received vaccine subcutaneously three times, and then subjected to intraperitoneal sensitization and intranasal challenge with ovalbumin. Control animals received carrier or saline in place of vaccine. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS The vaccine presented as virus-like particles and induced sustained and high titered IL-13-specific IgG without the use of conventional adjuvant. Vaccination significantly suppressed ovalbumin-induced inflammatory cell number, and IL-13 and IL-5 levels in bronchoalveolar lavage fluids. Serum total and ovalbumin-specific IgE were also significantly inhibited. Moreover, allergen-induced goblet cell hyperplasia, lung tissue inflammatory cell infiltration, and pulmonary hyperresponsiveness to inhaled methacholine were significantly suppressed in vaccinated mice. CONCLUSIONS Our data indicate that IL-13 peptide-based vaccines could be an effective therapeutic approach in the treatment of asthma.
Quality of Life Following Endoscopic Resection of Skull Base Tumors

Abstract The objective of the study is to evaluate patients' quality of life (QOL) after endoscopic resection of skull base tumors. We estimated the QOL of 41 patients who underwent surgery for removal of skull base tumors via the expanded endonasal approach (EEA). The Anterior Skull Base Surgery Questionnaire (ASBS-Q), a multidimensional, disease-specific instrument containing 36 items was used. The rate of meningitis and cerebrospinal fluid leak was 1.4 and 0%, respectively. There was one case of uniocular visual impairment. The internal consistency of the instrument had a correlation coefficient (α-Cronbach score) of 0.8 to 0.92. Of 41 patients, 30 (75%) reported improvement or no change in overall QOL. Improved scores were reported in the physical function domain and worse scores in the specific symptoms domain. The most significant predictor of poor QOL was female gender, which led to a significant decrease in scores of all domains. Site of surgery, histology, age and comorbidity were not significant predictors of outcome. This paper further validates the use of the ASBS-Q for patients undergoing endoscopic skull base resection. The overall QOL of patients following endoscopic extirpation of skull base tumors is good. Female patients experience a significant decline in QOL compared with males.
The effects of basic fibroblast growth factor in an animal model of acute mechanically induced right ventricular hypertrophy

Abstract Objective To evaluate the effect of a continuous infusion of basic fibroblast growth factor on the adaptive potential of the right ventricular myocardium after 30 days of mechanically induced overload in rats. Materials and methods We banded the pulmonary trunk, so as to increase the systolic workload of the right ventricle, in six Lewis/HanHsd rats at the age of 11 weeks, using six adult rats as controls. The six adult rats were also banded and received an additional continuous infusion of basic fibroblastic growth factor, using six rats with a continuous infusion of basic fibroblastic growth factor only as controls. We analysed the functional adaptation and structural changes of the right ventricular myocardium, blood vessels, and interstitial tissue 30 days after the increased afterload. Results The pulmonary artery banding induced an increase in the right ventricular free wall thickness of banded rats when compared with controls, which was mainly justified by an increase in cardiomyocyte area and in the percentage of extracellular fibrosis. The infusion of basic fibroblastic growth factor promotes a more extensive capillary network in banded rats (p < 0.001), which modulates the compensatory response of the right ventricle, promoting the hypertrophy of contractile elements and limiting the areas in which fibrosis develops (p < 0.001). Conclusions The subcutaneous infusion with osmotic pumps was a valid and reproducible method of delivering basic fibroblast growth factor to heart tissue. This infusion contributed to better preserve the right ventricular capillary network, hampering the development of interstitial fibrosis.
What should we teach in an introductory programming course?

An introductory course (and its successor) in programming should be concerned with three aspects of programming: 1. How to solve problems, 2. How to describe an algorithmic solution to a problem, 3. How to verify that an algorithm is correct. I should like to discuss mainly the first two aspects. The third is just as important, but if the first two are carried out in a systematic fashion, the third is much easier than commonly supposed. (Note that the third step is not “debugging,” because the word “debugging” conveys the impression that errors are alright—that they are a natural phenomenon which, like flies in a house, must be found and swatted. If “debugging” was called “getting rid of one's mistakes,” I'm sure most programmers would change their attitude and work harder at producing a correct program initially.)
The influence of hormonal replacement and growth hormone treatment on the lipids in Turner syndrome

Abstract Aim: Women with Turner syndrome (TS) have a risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. We assessed the lipid and carbohydrate metabolism in TS-women in the context of current hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and growth hormone (GH) treatment during childhood. Methods: The information were collected from medical documentation and anamnesis of 165 TS-women (24.9 ± 7.7 yr) between 1995 and 2011. The patients underwent a pituitary-gonadal axis assessment together with measurements of total cholesterol (TC), high- (HDL) and low- (LDL) density lipoproteins, triglycerides (TG), and glucose levels. Results: Only 58% of women were using HRT. No differences were found in the levels of the lipid components and glucose in women who were undergoing HRT compared to those without it. Compared to TS-women without (n = 113), prior GH treatment in 34 TS-women positively influenced the lipid parameters: TC 5.0 ± 1.1 versus 4.6 ± 0.9 mmol/l (p = 0.03), HDL 1.5 ± 0.5 versus 1.4 ± 0.4 mmol/l (p > 0.05), LDL 3.3 ± 0.9 versus 2.9 ± 0.7 mmol/l (p = 0.03), and TG 1.1 ± 0.6 versus 0.8 ± 0.3 g/l (p = 0.009), respectively. Conclusions: (1) HRT does not affect lipid metabolism in TS-women. (2) The use of GH in TS-children favorably influences their lipid profile in adulthood.
Effects of Immediate Dentin Sealing and Pulpal Pressure on Resin Cement Bond Strength and Nanoleakage.

OBJECTIVE The object of this study was to evaluate the simulated pulpal pressure (SPP) and immediate dentin sealing technique (IDS) effects on the microtensile bond strength (μTBS) and nanoleakage of interfaces produced by different luting agents. METHODS AND MATERIALS Two self-adhesive luting agents (RelyX Unicem [UC] and Clearfil SA Luting [SA]) and two conventional luting agents (Rely X ARC [RX] and Panavia F [PF]) were evaluated. Eighty human molars were divided in four groups according to luting agents. Each group was subdivided according to SPP (with or without) and dentin sealing (immediate or delayed) using Clearfil SE Bond (n=5). After IDS was performed, specimens were stored in water for seven days before luting procedures. Composite blocks were luted according to the manufacturers' instructions. One half of the specimens were subjected to 15 cm H2O of hydrostatic pressure for 24 hours before cementation procedures and continued for 24 hours afterward. Then, restored teeth were sectioned into beams and tested in tension. Two additional teeth per group were prepared for nanoleakage evaluation with scanning electron microscopy. Bond strength data were statistically analyzed by three-way analysis of variance and Tukey test. RESULTS μTBS of RX decreased when it was subjected to SPP without IDS. However, in the same conditions, μTBS of UC increased. The IDS prevented negative influence of SPP on μTBS of RX and PF; however, a decrease in μTBS of SA and UC was observed. Except for RX, IDS increased μTBS for all resin cements. CONCLUSION Independent of SPP, the IDS technique obtained higher μTBS for PF, SA, and UC and did not influence RX μTBS.
Operating Characteristics of Oval-Shaped Resistive Superconducting Fault Current Limiter

In order to limit fault current from an accident in power grid, many research groups have developed resistive superconducting fault current limiters (SFCLs) with a bifilar solenoid and a bifilar pancake types. Comparing with a bifilar solenoid type, a bifilar pancake type has the advantage of its volume, but it has problems such as recovery and insulation of SFCLs. To eliminate the drawback of these two types, in this paper, a new type of coil that is an oval-shaped SFCL, have proposed. This type consists of inner and outer layers which are connected in parallel. A small-scale sample coil was fabricated and experiments for both a short circuit test and recovery characteristic test were performed in liquid nitrogen. Experimental results were compared with two types of coils; the bifilar solenoid and bifilar pancake coil. Consequently, we confirmed the feasibility of an oval-shaped type.
Comparison of naïve, Kenward–Roger, and parametric bootstrap interval approaches to small-sample inference in linear mixed models

ABSTRACT In mixed models the mean square error (MSE) of empirical best linear unbiased estimators generally cannot be written in closed form. Unlike traditional methods of inference, parametric bootstrapping does not require approximation of this MSE or the test statistic distribution. Data were simulated to compare coverage rates for intervals based on the naïve MSE approximation and the method of Kenward and Roger, and parametric bootstrap intervals (Efron's percentile, Hall's percentile, bootstrap-t). The Kenward–Roger method performed best and the bootstrap-t almost as well. Intervals were also compared for a small set of real data. Implications for minimum sample size are discussed.
Wrist Fusion through Centralisation of the Ulna for Recurrent Giant Cell Tumour of the Distal Radius

Purpose. To review the outcome of wide resection and wrist fusion through centralisation of the ulna for recurrent giant cell tumour (GCT) of the distal radius in 10 patients. Methods. Records of 7 women and 3 men aged 25 to 40 years who underwent wide resection and wrist fusion through centralisation of the ulna for grade I (n=6) and grade II (n=4) recurrent GCT of the distal radius were reviewed. Functional outcome was evaluated using the modified Musculoskeletal Tumor Society scoring system. Grip strength and range of motion of the metacarpophalangeal joint were also assessed. Results. The mean follow-up period was 45 (range, 30–60) months. All tumours were benign and there was no evidence of metastasis. The mean grip strength was 45% (range, 30–70%) of the contralateral side. All patients achieved normal range of motion of the metacarpophalangeal and interphalangeal joints, but 4 patients had an extensor lag of the thumb. The mean time to wrist fusion was 6 (range, 4–8) months: 3 to 4 months for the 6 patients with bone grafting and 5 to 6 months for the 4 patients without bone grafting who developed painful subluxation necessitating total wrist arthrodesis using a plate and morcellised bone grafts. Conclusion. Wrist fusion through centralisation of the ulna for recurrent GCT of the distal radius is a viable option, despite a loss of wrist motion.
Environment‐dependent reversal of a life history trade‐off in the seed beetle Callosobruchus maculatus

Abstract Environmental manipulations have consistently demonstrated a cost of reproduction in the capital‐breeding seed beetle, Callosobruchus maculatus, as females deprived of seeds or mates lay fewer eggs and thereby increase their longevity. Yet fecundity and longevity tend to be positively correlated within populations, perhaps as a consequence of individual differences in resource acquisition. We conducted a split‐brood experiment that combined a manipulation of seed availability (seeds present or absent) with a quantitative‐genetic analysis of fecundity and lifespan in each environment. Each trait was significantly heritable in each environment. Seed availability not only altered mean fecundity and longevity between environments, but also modified how the traits were correlated within environments. The signs of both the phenotypic and genetic correlations switched from positive when seeds were present to negative when seeds were absent. This reversal persisted even after the effect of body mass (a potential indicator of resource acquisition) was statistically controlled. Cross‐environment genetic correlations were positive but significantly less than one for each trait. We suggest that the reversal of the fecundity–longevity relationship depends on a shift in the relative importance of resource‐acquisition and resource‐allocation loci between environments. In particular, a cost of reproduction may be apparent at the individual level only when seeds are scarce or absent because differences in reproductive effort become large enough to overwhelm differences in resource acquisition. Despite their common dependence on resources acquired during larval stages, fecundity and lifespan in C. maculatus do not appear to be tightly coupled in a physiological or genetic sense.
Computed Tomographic Imaging in Connective Tissue Diseases

The connective tissue diseases are a group of autoimmune mediated disorders characterized by multiorgan damage. High-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) plays an important role in identifying patients with respiratory involvement. Although there is some overlap, typical HRCT appearances are increasingly recognized for each of the major connective tissue diseases and are described in detail in this review (rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, systemic sclerosis, Sjögren syndrome, polymyositis/dermatomyositis, mixed connective tissue disease). The clinical utility of HRCT is discussed with respect to the detection of disease, diagnosis, staging of disease severity, prognostic evaluation, and monitoring of disease progression. The difficult problem of establishing the clinical significance of CT abnormalities is also addressed.
The acute effect of moderate intensity aquatic exercise on coagulation factors in haemophiliacs

The objective of this cross‐sectional study was to analyse the acute effect of aquatic exercise on haemostasis in persons with haemophilia. Ten adult haemophiliacs (8 type A, 2 type B) familiarized with aquatic training performed a 20‐min exercise session in a swimming pool at an intensity of ~70% maximum heart rate (HR). Blood samples were collected immediately after the training session. The haemostatic parameters selected for analyses were factor VIII (FVIII), prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) and fibrinogen. There were unclear effects of the exercise bout on FVIII and APTT, with a possibly beneficial effect on PT (−11·4%; 90% confidence interval: −26·1;3·3%), and a trivial change on fibrinogen levels. It was found an association between the mean rise in HR during exercise and the decrement in PT after exercise (r = 0·729; P = 0·026). The greater changes were observed in the patients diagnosed with a moderate level of haemophilia. It is concluded that a short bout of moderate intensity of aquatic exercise may have a positive influence on PT in adults with haemophilia with greater changes in those individuals exhibiting a greater rise in HR during exercise. This may be an important issue to the haemostatic control of haemophiliacs in clinical settings. Further studies are warranted for testing the influence of different aquatic exercise intensities on haemostasis.
Comparative study of scalable batching policies in disk-array-based deterministic video-on-demand servers

Presented is a comparative study of various batching policies in deterministic video-on-demand (DVoD) servers under realistic conditions including customers' behavior storage organization, and time variations in request arrival rates. DVoD servers provide video playback without any interaction support and customers' QoS is simply expressed in terms of average waiting time to receive service and defection rate caused by long waits. We focus on disk-array-based DVoD servers, whose movie selection and channel capacity are determined by cost and the underlying striping scheme. We analyze the well-known lack of scalability of on-demand batching, and introduce a methodology to measure scalability. We then compare various scalable batching policies and show that even the simplest batching policy may vastly improve on-demand channel allocation. Finally we study the feasibility of different storage organizations in which disks are partitioned into several clusters to reduce service disruptions during their reconfiguration. We also show that high service availability and scalable batching can be achieved in a cost-effective way.
Balanced SSFP imaging of the musculoskeletal system

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), with its unique ability to image and characterize soft tissue noninvasively, has emerged as one of the most accurate imaging methods available to diagnose bone and joint pathology. Currently, most evaluation of musculoskeletal pathology is done with two‐dimensional acquisition techniques such as fast spin echo (FSE) imaging. The development of three‐dimensional fast imaging methods based on balanced steady‐state free precession (SSFP) shows great promise to improve MRI of the musculoskeletal system. These methods may allow acquisition of fluid sensitive isotropic data that can be reformatted into arbitrary planes for improved detection and visualization of pathology. Sensitivity to fluid and fat suppression are important issues in these techniques to improve delineation of cartilage contours, for detection of marrow edema and derangement of other joint structures. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.