Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Thrombolytic therapy for acute ischaemic stroke: successful implementation in an Australian tertiary hospital

Background: The use of tissue‐type plasminogen activator (t‐PA) in ischaemic stroke outside of experienced stroke centres remains controversial. The aim of this study was to present the initial experience with t‐PA in patients with ischaemic stroke at an institution with no prior experience in i.v. stroke thrombolysis and to compare results to published reports.
Case Study of the Distribution of Mucosa-Associated Bifidobacterium Species, Lactobacillus Species, and Other Lactic Acid Bacteria in the Human Colon

ABSTRACT The distribution of mucosa-associated bacteria, bifidobacteria and lactobacilli and closely related lactic acid bacteria, in biopsy samples from the ascending, transverse, and descending parts of the colon from four individuals was investigated by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). Bifidobacterial genus-specific, Lactobacillus group-specific, and universal bacterial primers were used in a nested PCR approach to amplify a fragment of the 16S rRNA gene. DGGE profiles of the bifidobacterial community were relatively simple, with one or two amplicons detected at most sampling sites in the colon. DGGE profiles obtained with Lactobacillus group-specific primers were complex and varied with host and sampling site in the colon. The overall bacterial community varied with host but not sampling site.
Corporate taxation and international competition

Countries around the world continue to tax corporate income at significant rates despite downward pressures from international competition. Average statutory corporate income tax rates fell from 46 percent in 1982 to 33 percent in 1999, though tax bases simultaneously broadened, as a result of which average corporate tax collections actually rose from 2.1 percent of GDP in 1982 to 2.4 percent of GDP in 1999. Two pieces of evidence point to the possibility that mobile capital has received favorable tax treatment in recent years as a result of tax competition. The first is the experience of American multinational firms, whose average effective foreign tax rates fell from 43 percent in 1982 to 26 percent in 1999. The second is the cross-sectional pattern of tax rate-setting: small countries, facing elastic supplies of world capital, taxed corporate income at significantly lower rates than did larger countries in 1982. Corporate tax rates in 1999 did not substantially differ between small and large countries, implying that large countries set their tax rates in response to the same competitive pressures that small countries have always faced.
B lymphocytes from patients with chronic lymphoproliferative disorders are equipped with different costimulatory molecules.

Several costimulatory molecules play a key role in the differentiation of B lymphocytes and in T-B-cell interactions. In this study, we addressed the question of whether different receptors and counter-receptors may be expressed on malignant B lymphocytes from chronic B-cell malignancies. Using flow cytometry and reverse transcription PCR analyses, the expression of molecules belonging to the tumor necrosis factor receptor (TNFR) and tumor necrosis factor ligand (TNFL) families, as well as the expression of CD80 and CD86 molecules, was analyzed in normal B cells and in different chronic lymphoproliferative disorders of B-cell type, including B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), mantle cell lymphoma, hairy cell leukemia (HCL), and HCL variant. Different patterns of expression of TNFR and TNFL superfamily molecules were demonstrated among B-cell malignancies. In particular, CD40 was commonly observed on all B cells (both tumor and normal), whereas its ligand (CD40L), which is usually undetectable on resting normal B lymphocytes, was expressed in CLL and HCL but not in other chronic lymphoproliferative disorders. CD27 was not shown in normal B cells, although it was present in all malignancies and with particularly high density in mantle cell lymphoma. CD70 was widely distributed on tumor B lymphocytes, but not on the CD5+ normal counterpart. CD30 was strongly expressed in HCL variant and weakly in B-cell CLL, whereas its ligand showed a wide pattern of expression, including all neoplastic and normal B cells. TNFR II (CD120b) and CD80 were distributed on neoplastic B cells from all groups, usually at an intermediate to high degree of intensity, whereas the CD86 molecule was present at lower intensity than CD80. Finally, reverse transcription PCR analysis confirmed the presence of CD40L, CD30, and CD30L mRNAs in those B cells expressing the corresponding membrane-bound proteins at low density. Our data indicate that TNFR and TNFL molecules are of use clinically both in differentiating B-cell malignancies from the normal counterpart (i.e., CD27, CD70, CD40L, CD30, and CD80) and in defining different chronic B-cell disorders (i.e., CD40L, CD27, and CD30). Interestingly, the observation that several receptors and their ligands (i.e., CD40/CD40L, CD30/CD30L, and CD27/CD70) can be expressed on the same cell suggests that these molecules play a role in initiating and maintaining the neoplastic process by mediating B-T and B-B interactions.
Reconstructions from zero crossings in scale space

In computer vision, the one-parameter family of images obtained from the Laplacian-of-a-Gaussian-filtered version of the image, parameterized by the width of the Gaussian, has proved to be a useful data structure for the extraction of feature data. In particular, the zero crossings of this so-called scale-space data are associated with edges and have been proposed by D. Marr (1982) and others as the basis of a representation of the image data. The question arises as to whether the representation is complete and stable. The authors survey some of the studies and results related to these questions as well as several studies that attempt reconstructions based on this or related representations. They formulate a novel method for reconstruction from zero crossings in scale space that is based on minimizing equation error, and they present results showing that the reconstruction is possible but can be unstable. They further show that the method applies when gradient data along the zero crossings are included in the representation, and they demonstrate empirically that the reconstruction is then stable. >
Awareness about dengue syndrome and related preventive practices amongst residents of an urban resettlement colony of south Delhi.

Dengue is the most common disease among all the arthropod-borne viral diseases. Due to occurrence of remarkable changes in the epidemiology of dengue, currently dengue ranks as the most important mosquito-borne viral disease in the world. In the past 50 years, its incidence has increased 30-fold with significant outbreaks occurring in five of the six World Health Organization (WHO) regions. At present, dengue is endemic in 112 countries in the world1,2.
Survival over 12 years following acute stroke: initial treatment in a stroke unit vs general medical wards

Stavem K, Rønning OM. Survival over 12 years following acute stroke: initial treatment in a stroke unit vs general medical wards. Acta Neurol Scand: 2011: 124: 429–433. © 2011 John Wiley & Sons A/S.
Negotiating the Clouds Around Statistics and "Q": a Rejoinder and Independent Analysis

In 1994, the author critiqued a 1971 statistical study of "Q" by Charles E. Carlston and Dennis Norlin. Their recent reply has necessitated both a further clarification of their study's most serious flaws and an independent statistical analysis using a method that avoids these flaws. Such an analysis demonstrates that Matthew and Luke do not preserve "Q" sayings any more faithfully than Markan sayings. This can still be interpreted in support of "Q" being a single written source, but it is important to recall that the degree of Matt-Luke verbatim agreement is much lower than Carlston & Norlin's figures imply.
Disturbances of Hydrogen Ion Balance Occurring in Premature Infants I. Early Types of Acidosis

For many years it has been a universally accepted, though rather lonesome truth that the acid-base parameters of newborn infants differ to the acid side as compared with those of normal adults. Without questioning the existence of frank acidosis in the neonatal period, recent writers have proposed the view that healthy newborn infants are not acidotic sensu strict0 but normally adjusted to lower levels of blood pH and bicarbonate concentration, possibly reflecting a relative acidosis of the maternal environment during gestation
PHENOTYPIC DIVERSITY OF ALFALFA (MEDICAGO SATIVA L.) GERMPLASM

The objective of this study was to evaluate phenotypic diversity in the alfalfa germplasm collections using multivariate analysis to examine the extent of genetic diversity and contribution of selected characters to the total diversity and finally to select the most promising clusters/populations for further breeding work. Forty alfalfa populations/cultivars of different geographical origin were evaluated for 12 agro-morphological characters during two consecutive years. The populations/ cultivars were grouped into six clusters. In most cases populations/cultivars within clusters were not associated with their geographical origin. Intercluster distances were larger than the intracluster ones. This research revealed a broad phenotypic diversity within and between the alfalfa germplasm collections. The following characters contributed most to the total phenotypic diversity: dry matter yield in the first production year, plant height and length of central leaflet. Based on the mean value of the evaluated characters and determined distances between clusters, the most promising populations/cultivars belong to the clusters IV and V. Selected populations/cultivars could be considered as a valuable genetic material for the yield and quality improvement of alfalfa in our breeding programme.
Surgical Therapy for Osteonecotic Lesions of the Jaws in Patients in Therapy With Bisphosphonates

Objective: Surgical therapy to improve the symptoms and the lesions in osteonecrosis (ON) of the jaws in patients in therapy with bisphosphonates. Design: to evaluate the patient's therapeutic protocols, performance status, and factors promoting ON to prevent surgical failure. Materials and Methods: 18 patients affected by osteonecrotic lesions of the jaws associated to BF, were treated by surgery. Results: The results were recorded after 6 months. All the patients showed improvement of symptoms, in particular the pain. In addition, all the patients referred to a sensation of fresh and clean mouth, the disappearance of fetor ex ore, and a healthy mouth. Conclusions: The management and the resolution of BF osteonecrotic lesions is arguable and complex because in most cases, the patients are affected by oncologic disease when the better approach is prevention, but when the ON lesion is clear, surgery can improve the symptoms and in some cases, it can be resolute. To prevent surgical failure, it can be useful to evaluate the patient's therapeutic protocols, performance status, and factors promoting ON.
Prognosis in renal carcinoma evaluated from histological criteria.

Microscopic preparations of renal tumours from 76 nephrectomized patients were reviewed retrospectively, to establish a possible dependence of the prognosis on various histological criteria. The preparations were twice reviewed “blind”. The three criteria, cell type, necrosis, and structure, were found to be reproducible from the first to the second examination, but this was not the case with invasion. Of the three parameters, only cell type and necrosis were significant for the prognosis, tumours without necrosis and composed of clear cells having the best prognosis, while tumours composed of granular cells had the poorest prognosis. If there was more than one section from a tumour, there was often great variance in morphology from section to section. This finding has not been studied statistically in the present investigation.
Key Role of Toll-Like Receptor 2 in the Inflammatory Response and Major Histocompatibility Complex Class II Downregulation in Brucella abortus-Infected Alveolar Macrophages

ABSTRACT Alveolar macrophages (AM) seem to constitute the main cellular target of inhaled brucellae. Here, we show that Brucella abortus invades and replicates in murine AM without inducing cytotoxicity. B. abortus infection induced a statistically significant increase of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), CXCL1 or keratinocyte chemoattractant (KC), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), IL-6, and IL-12 in AM from C57BL/6 mice and BALB/c mice, but these responses were generally weaker and/or delayed compared to those elicited in peritoneal macrophages. Studies using knockout mice for TLR2, TLR4, and TLR9 revealed that TNF-α and KC responses were mediated by TLR2 recognition. Brucella infection reduced in a multiplicity of infection-dependent manner the expression of major histocompatibility complex class II (MHC-II) molecules induced by gamma interferon (IFN-γ) in AM. The same phenomenon was induced by incubation with heat-killed B. abortus (HKBA) or the lipidated form of the 19-kDa outer membrane protein of Brucella (L-Omp19), and it was shown to be mediated by TLR2 recognition. In contrast, no significant downregulation of MHC-II was induced by either unlipidated Omp19 or Brucella LPS. In a functional assay, treatment of AM with either L-Omp19 or HKBA reduced the MHC-II-restricted presentation of OVA peptides to specific T cells. One week after intratracheal infection, viable B. abortus was detected in AM from both wild-type and TLR2 KO mice, but CFU counts were higher in the latter. These results suggest that B. abortus survives in AM after inhalatory infection in spite of a certain degree of immune control exerted by the TLR2-mediated inflammatory response. Both the modest nature of the latter and the modulation of MHC-II expression by the bacterium may contribute to such survival.
Who You Are Affects What You Buy: The Influence of Consumer Identity on Brand Preferences

This study examined the extent to which individuals used their self-concepts to determine brand preference. It was predicted that individuals would prefer brands with images congruent with their own self-image more than brands’ images inconsistent with their self-image. The study also predicted that others would influence consumers’ brand preference, and participants would prefer brands consonant with their in-group associations. A total of 65 participants completed a survey inquiring about their self-image congruity, social identity and brand preferences. Linear regression analyses showed significant support for both hypotheses. Additional analyses among subgroups showed a statistically significant relationship between the self-image congruity and brand preference relationship among whites, minority group, males and females. But the statistically significant relationship did not exist between social identity and brand preference among whites and females.
Evaluating the impact of test-first programming and pair programming through software process simulation

In this article, we present a simulation model that we developed for exploring the influence of two key Extreme Programming (XP) practices — Test-first Programming and Pair Programming — on the evolution of an XP software project. We present the results obtained simulating a typical XP project changing the usage levels of the two practices. We focused on output variables related to effort, size, quality and released functionalities. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Pursuits-based Gaze Interaction using Real World Elements as Stimuli

Using gaze is a popular way to design concepts for Human-Computer-Interaction (HCI). It is especially often used for remote or hands-free communication with for example public displays, devices within smart homes or smart watches. With the introduction of Pursuits, a new technique, that exploits the smooth pursuit eye movement, was presented. It overcomes the need for calibration before working with an eye tracker, making it very attractive for spontaneous and user-independent interaction. The majority of applications currently focus on the adaption of Pursuits for moving on-screen targets and only very little research is directed at the use of Pursuits for real world target. However here usually the object is altered and animated to display a smooth pursuit stimulating movement. In this work we explore the potential and feasibility of Pursuits-based gaze interaction with moving stimuli in the form of real world elements. Therefore we compare the performance of Pursuits resulting from pursuing a real world target in different environments: (a) the real world situation, (b) the same situation shown in the form of an unedited video and (c) an abstracted video version dismissing potential depths cues, the two latter respectively on-screen. Based on the results of this experiment we designed a usability study in the real world, where we tested three scenarios on user acceptance and Pursuits performance. Gathering that exploiting natural smooth pursuits movements is perceived as a positive interaction method by the user.
Risk factors for delirium at discharge: development and validation of a predictive model.

BACKGROUND Persistent delirium at the time of hospital discharge is associated with poor outcomes. The objectives of this study were to develop and validate a predictive model for persistent delirium at hospital discharge. METHODS This study followed a prospective validation design. For the development cohort, 491 consecutive patients 70 years or older admitted to the hospital without delirium and surviving to discharge were enrolled from the general medical units of an academic teaching hospital. For the validation cohort, 461 comparable subjects were enrolled. Twenty-two candidate risk factors were examined, including 12 baseline factors (present on admission) and 10 precipitating factors (hospital related). The primary outcome was delirium at hospital discharge, measured by the Confusion Assessment Method. RESULTS Delirium at discharge was present in 58 patients (11.8%) in the development cohort. Five independent risk factors for delirium at discharge were identified: dementia (odds ratio [OR], 2.3; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.4-3.7); vision impairment (OR, 2.1; 95% CI, 1.3-3.2); functional impairment (OR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.2-3.0); high comorbidity (OR, 1.7; 95% CI, 1.1-2.6); and use of physical restraints during delirium (OR, 3.2; 95% CI, 1.9-5.2). A risk stratification system was created by adding 1 point for each factor present. Rates of delirium for the low-risk (0-1 factors), intermediate-risk (2-3 factors), and high-risk (4-5 factors) groups were 4%, 18%, and 63%, respectively (P < .001). The corresponding rates in the validation cohort, where 28 patients (6.1%) had delirium at discharge, were 3%, 14%, and 27% (P < .001). CONCLUSIONS A predictive model based on 5 risk factors has been successfully validated for prediction of delirium at discharge in hospitalized older patients. At least 4 of these risk factors are amenable to intervention strategies.
EXPERIMENTAL EVOLUTION OF RESISTANCE IN PARAMECIUM CAUDATUM AGAINST THE BACTERIAL PARASITE HOLOSPORA UNDULATA

Abstract Host-parasite coevolution is often described as a process of reciprocal adaptation and counter adaptation, driven by frequency-dependent selection. This requires that different parasite genotypes perform differently on different host genotypes. Such genotype-by-genotype interactions arise if adaptation to one host (or parasite) genotype reduces performance on others. These direct costs of adaptation can maintain genetic polymorphism and generate geographic patterns of local host or parasite adaptation. Fixation of all-resistant (or all-infective) genotypes is further prevented if adaptation trades off with other host (or parasite) life-history traits. For the host, such indirect costs of resistance refer to reduced fitness of resistant genotypes in the absence of parasites. We studied (co)evolution in experimental microcosms of several clones of the freshwater protozoan Paramecium caudatum, infected with the bacterial parasite Holospora undulata. After two and a half years of culture, inoculation of evolved and naive (never exposed to the parasite) hosts with evolved and founder parasites revealed an increase in host resistance, but not in parasite infectivity. A cross-infection experiment showed significant host clone-by-parasite isolate interactions, and evolved hosts tended to be more resistant to their own (local) parasites than to parasites from other hosts. Compared to naive clones, evolved host clones had lower division rates in the absence of the parasite. Thus, our study indicates de novo evolution of host resistance, associated with both direct and indirect costs. This illustrates how interactions with parasites can lead to the genetic divergence of initially identical populations.
REPLY TO KLAUSENBURGER

TThe analysis of French liaison proposed in Clements and Keyser (1983) and eliaborated in Booij (1984) is indeed similar to the Standard analysis of Scchane (1968) in that it assumes underlying word-final consonants. Therefcore, some of the objections that have been raised in the literature to a cconsonant-deletion analysis of liaison are also relevant for the analysis deefended in my paper. However, I do not think that these objections are äs forceful äs Klausenbiurger thinks they are. Let me mention two of these objections to make this chear. One is that in certain pairs of words we find alternations between 0 amd more than one consonant, e.g. sirop/sirupeux/siroter, where 0 alternaates with both /p/ and /t/. I agree that here "some form of lexical treatrment is necessary to account for the presence of the consonants between the sUems and Suffixes" (Tranel 1981:207), but this does not necessarily imply a llexical treatment for all C/0 alternations. In the t/0 alternation mpetit/petitte/petitesse, for example, the same consonant surfaces both in inflectional amd derivational morphology and in liaison context. A second type of objection is that one finds cases of "false liaison", e.g. qtuatre-z-enfants (Klausenburger 1984:33), which are claimed to support inseirtion/suppletion analyses of liaison. Such observations do not have a stiraightforward consequence for the choice between competing analyses. It is very well possible to assume a performance theory that explains these catses of false liaison without the implication that the consonant-deletion arnalysis is wrong: false liaison indeed indicates that Speakers memorize certaiin phonetic forms äs they occur in liaison contexts. However, we also kniow that Speakers memorize "far too much" from the point of view of the language System, i.e. they memorize forms that are completely predictable by rule, along with these rules. Psychology teils us that human memory has am enormous capacity, and that very often in real time processing it is faster to use a memorized form than to compute this form by means of rules. Therefore, false liaison does not necessarily prove that a consonant-deletion analysis of liaison is wrong. As far äs the details of my analysis are concerned, I am not convinced by Klausenburger's objections. I fail to see why the assumption of a universal convention of not phonetically interpreting extrasyllabic consonants at the