Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Estimation of Some Nonlinear Panel Data Models With Both Time-Varying and Time-Invariant Explanatory Variables

The so-called “fixed effects” approach to the estimation of panel data models suffers from the limitation that it is not possible to estimate the coefficients on explanatory variables that are time-invariant. This is in contrast to a “random effects” approach, which achieves this by making much stronger assumptions on the relationship between the explanatory variables and the individual-specific effect. In a linear model, it is possible to obtain the best of both worlds by making random effects-type assumptions on the time-invariant explanatory variables while maintaining the flexibility of a fixed effects approach when it comes to the time-varying covariates. This article attempts to do the same for some popular nonlinear models.
Evaluation of the presence of Helicobacter species in the biliary system of Turkish patients with cholelithiasis.

BACKGROUND/AIMS Helicobacter genus and bile-resistant Helicobacter pylori are suggested to have a role in gallstone formation and epithelial cell proliferation in the gallbladder. The aim of this study was to evaluate the presence of Helicobacter species in the gallbladder tissue, bile and gallstones of Turkish patients with cholelithiasis. METHODS Forty-seven patients with calculous cholecystitis and 3 controls were evaluated for the presence of Helicobacter spp. by culture, polymerase chain reaction, and histological and immunohistochemistry methods. RESULTS Escherichia coli (10.6%), Enterobacter amnigenus (6.3%), Klebsiella planticola (2.1%), and Klebsiella ozaenae (2.1%) were isolated from the sample cultures of 8 patients. No other microorganisms, including H. pylori and other Helicobacter spp. , were detected. Polymerase chain reaction was negative for Helicobacter spp. and H. pylori. No microorganisms resembling Helicobacter spp. were seen on the histological sections. The association between the presence of bacteria and epithelial cell proliferation index was not statistically significant (p=0.48). CONCLUSIONS There was no association between the presence of Helicobacter spp. and development of cholelithiasis in our study group. The microorganisms found in the samples did not reveal any significant association with the underlying disease.
Atrial Reflexes during High Frequency Oscillatory Ventilation

Abstract High frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV) is a new method of artificial ventilation which has been advocated for use in critically ill individuals. It alters the discharge in pulmonary stretch receptors (SAR) from a phasic to a continuous pattern. Since some cardiovascular neurones in the medulla are influenced by the discharge from SAR, experiments were undertaken to determine whether the reflexes from the left atrial (volume) receptors (LAR) were influenced by HFOV. The reflex increases in heart rate and urine flow which result from activation of the (LAR) were examined during both intermittent positive pressure ventilation (IPPV) and HFOV. In five dogs, the increase in heart rate was 23.9 ± 4.3 and 24.5 ± 5.4 beats/min during IPPV and HFOV, respectively. In six dogs the response of an increase in urine flow was examined and this response also was not altered by HFOV. It is concluded that the integrity of these reflexes was unaffected by HFOV in the anesthetized dog model.
HLA Class II-Restricted CD4+ T Cell Responses Directed Against Influenza Viral Antigens Postinfluenza Vaccination 1

The memory T cell response is polyclonal, with the magnitude and specificity of the response controlled in part by the burst size of T cells expanded from effector/memory precursors. Sensitive assays using HLA class II multimers were used to detect low-frequency Ag-specific T cells directed against influenza viral Ags in subjects immunized with the influenza vaccine. Direct ex vivo tetramer staining of PBMC from five individuals identified frequencies of hemagglutinin (HA) 306–318 tetramer binding CD4+ T cells in the peripheral blood ranging from 1 in 600 to 1 in 30,000 CD4+ T cells. These frequencies were validated by counting CFSElow, tetramer-positive T cells after in vitro expansion. Low frequency of T cells directed to other influenza epitopes, including DRA1*0101/DRB1*0401-restricted matrix protein 60–73, DRA1*0101/DRB1*0101-restricted matrix protein 18–29, DRA1*0101/DRB1*0701-restricted HA 232–244 and DRA1*0101/DRB1*0101-restricted nucleoprotein 206–217 were also determined. T cells which occurred at a frequency as low as 1 in 350,000 could be ascertained by in vitro expansion of precursors. Peripheral HA306–318-responsive T cells expanded 2- to 5-fold following influenza vaccination. Examination of phenotypic markers of the HA306–318-responsive T cells in the peripheral blood indicated that the majority were CD45RA−, CD27+, CD25−, CD28+, and CD62L−, while T cell clones derived from this population were CD45RA−, CD27−, CD25+, CD28+, and CD62L−.
Epidemiology of Acute Carbon Monoxide Poisoning in a Spanish Region

Background: In Spain, as in most of the world, the incidence of acute carbon monoxide poisoning is probably underestimated. Methods: During an eighteen-month period we studied, by means of a standardized data collection form, all the cases of acute carbon monoxide poisoning that were diagnosed in 2 university hospitals. Results: During the study, 154 patients were diagnosed with carbon monoxide poisoning. The mean age was 32.2 ± 15.5 years. The two principal exposure sites were the kitchen (43%) and bathroom (23%). The majority of the cases related to malfunction of the water heater (30%) and of the central heating (23%) and 68% occurred in the home. Improper combustion of butane (31%), propane (13%), and natural gas (12%) were most frequent. The most prevalent clinical manifestations were headache (94%), dizziness (56%), nausea (45%), loss of consciousness (38%), and weakness (34%). Five patients died. In 14.4%, symptoms suggested delayed neurological syndrome. The largest number of cases of poisoning occurred during the months of December and January. Conclusions: Compared with previous Spanish series or with the antecedent year, acute carbon monoxide poisoning has a high prevalence in our region. Two factors appear to be essential to the accurate diagnosis of acute carbon monoxide poisoning: 1) the ability of emergency room physicians to recognize the clinical symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning and 2) access to a carbon monoxide-oximeter.
Group Key Management Protocol (GKMP) Architecture

This specification proposes a protocol to create grouped symmetric keys and distribute them amongst communicating peers. This protocol has the following advantages: 1) virtually invisible to operator, 2) no central key distribution site is needed, 3) only group members have the key, 4) sender or receiver oriented operation, 5) can make use of multicast communications protocols.
Signal-to-Noise Ratio Estimation in Passive Correlation-Based Imaging

We consider imaging with passive arrays of sensors using as illumination ambient noise sources. The first step for imaging under such circumstances is the computation of the cross correlations of the recorded signals, which have attracted a lot of attention recently because of their numerous applications in seismic imaging, volcano monitoring, and petroleum prospecting. Here, we use these cross correlations for imaging reflectors with travel-time migration. While the resolution of the image obtained this way has been studied in detail, an analysis of the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is presented in this paper along with numerical simulations that support the theoretical results. It is shown that the SNR of the image inherits the SNR of the computed cross correlations and therefore is proportional to the square root of the bandwidth of the noise sources times the recording time. Moreover, the SNR of the image is proportional to the array size. This means that the image can be stabilized by increasing the size of the array when the recorded signals are not of long duration, which is important in applications such as nondestructive testing. 1. Introduction. We consider passive array imaging using as illumination ambient noise sources. We compute the cross correlations of the signals recorded at the array of sensors and form an image by backpropagating or migrating them to a region of interest containing reflectors. In this paper we assess the quality of such images in terms of several parameters that affect it. There are two types of analyses that must be carried out. The first is a resolution analysis of the imaging functional (11), and the second is an analysis of the signal- to-noise ratio (SNR), which is done in this paper. Our main result is that the SNR of the image is proportional NR √ BT for an array of NR sensors placed at a distance of half a central wavelength or more, with B the bandwidth of the noise sources and T the recording time. The analysis and the numerical simulations are carried out in two space dimensions, but the result
Assessing Vegetation Dynamics Over Mainland Australia With Metop ASCAT

Recently, the slope and curvature estimation of the backscatter–incidence angle relationship within the TU Wien retrieval algorithm has been improved. Where previously only climatologies of the slope and curvature parameters were available, i.e., one value for every day of year, slope and curvature are now calculated for every day. This enables the retrieval of time series of vegetation optical depth (<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\tau _a$ </tex-math></inline-formula>) from backscatter observations. This study demonstrates the ability to detect interannual variability in vegetation dynamics using <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\tau _a$</tex-math> </inline-formula> derived from backscatter provided by the advanced scatterometer on-board Metop-A. <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\tau _a$</tex-math></inline-formula> time series over Australia for the period 2007–2014 are compared to leaf area index (LAI) from SPOT-VEGETATION by calculating the rank correlation coefficient (<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$r_s$</tex-math></inline-formula>) for original time series and anomalies. High values for <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$r_s$</tex-math></inline-formula> are found over bare soil and sparse vegetation in central Australia with median <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$r_s$ </tex-math></inline-formula> values of 0.78 and 0.58, respectively. Forests and ephemeral lakes and rivers impact the retrieval of <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\tau _a$</tex-math></inline-formula>, and the negative values for <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$r_s$</tex-math></inline-formula> are found in these areas. Looking at the annual averages of <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\tau _a$</tex-math></inline-formula>, LAI, and surface soil moisture, significantly high values are found for the anomalously wet years 2010 and 2011. Patterns in the increased <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\tau _a$</tex-math></inline-formula> correspond to regions with increased soil moisture and LAI. Values for <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\tau _a$</tex-math> </inline-formula> and LAI are anomalous especially in sparsely vegetated regions, where the flush of grasses increases <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\tau _a$</tex-math></inline-formula> and LAI. Regions with enough precipitation and higher woody vegetation component show a smaller increase in 2010 and 2011. This study demonstrates the skill of <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\tau _a$</tex-math></inline-formula>, and subsequently of scatterometers, to monitor the vegetation dynamics thanks to the multiincidence angle observation capability.
Time to definitive care for patients with moderate and severe traumatic brain injury--does a trauma system matter?

AIM The presence of a trauma system has been associated with improved outcomes in patients with traumatic brain injury (TBI) by speeding up transfers to a neurosurgical centre. Improved outcomes are associated with time to neurosurgical intervention for those with significant extradural and subdural haemorrhages of less than 4 hours. To compare the outcomes for patients with TBI transferred directly from the scene of injury to Auckland City Hospital (ACH) with those transferred from other hospitals, transfer times and outcomes were evaluated in a consecutive cohort of patients recorded on the ACH trauma registry. METHOD Patients admitted to ACH in 2004 and recorded on the trauma registry with a moderate or severe head injury (Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS) score of 3 or greater) were included. The primary outcomes assessed were median time from injury to arrival and surgery, patient mortality, length of ICU stay and length of hospital stay. RESULTS 198 patients were admitted at ACH in 2004 with moderate and severe TBI. 95 patients (48%) were transferred from another hospital. Patients transported to ACH from the scene of injury arrived to ACH and underwent neurosurgery within a mean of 3 hours 50 minutes, whereas patients transferred from another hospital took significantly longer than 4 hours to arrive at ACH. Patients transferred from another hospital had similar mortality rate, length of ICU stay and length of hospital stay to those admitted directly. CONCLUSION TBI patients who were transferred from another hospital arrived well outside the recommended guidelines. While no significant difference in outcome was noted in this small cohort of patients further studies are warranted. The development of a national trauma registry would allow accumulation of data on larger numbers of patients and determine the true relevance of international best practice guidelines in New Zealand.
A replication study: understanding what drives the performance in WikiMatch

We replicate and demonstrate that the performance of the WikiMatch automated ontology alignment system may be driven not by the particular information from Wikipedia directly used by the system, but rather by string similarity and Wikipedia’s manually curated synonym sets, as encoded in the site’s query resolution and page redirection system. In order to gain a detailed understanding of how Wikipedia contributes to WikiMatch, we replicate results reported for WikiMatch and analyze the results to evaluate our hypothesis.
Cellular composition of long-standing gingivitis and periodontitis lesions.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE Insufficient information on the cellular composition of long-standing gingivitis lesions without signs of attachment loss makes an understanding of differences in cellular composition between "destructive" and "nondestructive" periodontal lesions difficult. The aim of the current study was to analyze differences in cell characteristics between lesions representing long-standing gingivitis and severe periodontitis. MATERIAL AND METHODS Two groups of patients were recruited. One group consisted of 36 patients, 33-67 years of age, with severe generalized periodontitis (periodontitis group). The second group consisted of 28 patients, 41-70 years of age, with overt signs of gingival inflammation but no attachment loss (gingivitis group). From each patient a gingival biopsy was obtained from one selected diseased site and prepared for immunohistochemical analysis. RESULTS Periodontitis lesions were twice as large and contained significantly larger proportions, numbers and densities of cells positive for CD138 (plasma cells) and CD68 (macrophages) than did gingivitis lesions. The proportion of B cells that expressed the additional CD5 marker (B-1a cells) was significantly larger in periodontitis lesions than in gingivitis lesions. The densities of T cells and B cells did not differ between periodontitis lesions and gingivitis lesions. T cells were not the dominating cell type in gingivitis lesions, as B cells together with their subset plasma cells comprised a larger number and proportion than T cells. CONCLUSION Periodontitis lesions at teeth with advanced attachment and bone loss exhibit quantitative and qualitative differences in relation to gingivitis lesions at teeth with no attachment and bone loss. It is suggested that the large number and high density of plasma cells are the hallmarks of advanced periodontitis lesions and the most conspicuous difference in relation to long-standing gingivitis lesions.
Sex Differences in the Daily Rhythm of Vasoactive Intestinal Polypeptide But Not Arginine Vasopressin Messenger Ribonucleic Acid in the Suprachiasmatic Nuclei* * This work was supported by NIH Grants AGO5755 (to K.K.), AGO5762 (to M.L.K.), and AGO2224 (to P.M.W.).

The timing of the preovulatory surge of LH in female rodents is tightly coupled to the environmental light/dark cycle. This coupling is mediated by the circadian pacemaker located in the suprachiasmatic nuclei (SCN). Studies indicate that vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) and arginine vasopressin (AVP), which are synthesized in the SCN, transmit circadian information from the SCN to GnRH neurons, thereby regulating the timing of the LH surge. However, to date, the rhythmic expression of these two peptides in the SCN has only been examined in males. The pattern of VIP expression in males is difficult to reconcile with its role in the LH surge. The purpose of the present study was to assess the rhythm of VIP messenger RNA (mRNA) levels in the SCN of female rats under several endocrine conditions. We compared this rhythm to that in males and to AVP mRNA rhythms in all experimental groups. In all groups of females, VIP mRNA levels were rhythmic, with peak expression occurring during the light phase and .
Leuconostoc oenos sp.nov.

SUMMARY: Nineteen strains of Gram-positive cocci isolated from wine and belonging to the genus Leuconostoc were examined and are considered to form a new species which is named Leuconostoc oenos. These strains differ from other leuconostocs because they grow better in a medium containing tomato juice than in yeast glucose citrate broth normally used in this laboratory for the genus. Furthermore, they grow well in media in which the pH value is too acid for other Leuconostoc species to initiate growth. The cultures of L. oenos do not form dextran from sucrose. They form acid from fructose, glucose, trehalose and aesculin, generally from melibiose and salicin. They may form acid from arabinose, xylose, galactose, mannose and cellobiose, but not from lactose, maltose, sucrose, raffinose, dextrin, glycerol, mannitol or sorbitol.
SPLENIC FUNCTION IN OMANI CHILDREN WITH SICKLE CELL DISEASE: Correlation with Severity Index, Hemoglobin Phenotype, Iron Status, and α -Thalassemia Trait

The prevalence of functional asplenia in Omani children with sickle cell disease (SCD) has not been previously defined. In this study, the authors aim to compare the natural history of splenic dysfunction in their patients to other reports. The splenic function was studied in 72 Omani patients with sickle cell disease (50 homozygous for hemoglobin S (HbS-S), 11 double heterozygotes for HbS and g 0 -thalassemia (HbS- g 0 -thal), 5 HbS- g + -thal, 5 patients with hemoglobin S-D disease, and 1 child with hemoglobin S oman trait) aged 4.8-16 years, using 99m Tc-labeled tin colloid scintigraphy. The study revealed 4 groups according to their colloid uptake: group I included 20 patients (28%) with normal splenic function; group II, 6 patients (8%) with mild hyposplenism; group III, 20 (28%) with severe hyposplenism; and group IV, 26 (36%) patients with functional asplenia. Overall, more than 60% of them had preserved splenic function. Except for HbS- g + patients, the developmental pattern of hyposplenism was not different among the different Hb phenotypes. Factors associated with preservation of spleen function in these patients were larger splenic size ( p < .01), less clinical severity ( p < .05), lower MCH ( p < .01), higher HbF ( p < .001), and presence of f -thalassemia trait ( p < .05).
A New Class of Single-Phase High-Frequency Isolated Z-Source AC–AC Converters With Reduced Passive Components

In this paper, a class of single-phase Z-source (ZS) ac–ac converters is proposed with high-frequency transformer (HFT) isolation. The proposed HFT isolated (HFTI) ZS ac–ac converters possess all the features of their nonisolated counterparts, such as providing wide range of buck-boost output voltage with reversing or maintaining the phase angle, suppressing the in-rush and harmonic currents, and improved reliability. In addition, the proposed converters incorporate HFT for electrical isolation and safety, and therefore can save an external bulky line frequency transformer, for applications such as dynamic voltage restorers, etc. The proposed HFTI ZS converters are obtained from conventional (nonisolated) ZS ac–ac converters by adding only one extra bidirectional switch, and replacing two inductors with an HFT, thus saving one magnetic core. The switching signals for buck and boost modes are presented with safe-commutation strategy to remove the switch voltage spikes. A quasi-ZS-based HFTI ac–ac is used to discuss the operation principle and circuit analysis of the proposed class of HFTI ZS ac–ac converters. Various ZS-based HFTI proposed ac–ac converters are also presented thereafter. Moreover, a laboratory prototype of the proposed converter is constructed and experiments are conducted to produce output voltage of 110 Vrms / 60 Hz, which verify the operation of the proposed converters.
Probing the activation requirements for naive CD8+ T cells with Drosophila cell transfectants as antigen presenting cells

Summary: Activation of T cells involves multiple receptor‐ligand interactions between T cells and antigen presenting cells (APC), At least two signals are required for T‐cell activation: Signal 1 results from recognition of MHC/peptide complexes on the APC by cell surface T‐cell receptors (TCR). whereas Signal 2 is induced by the interactions of co‐stimulatory molecules on APC with their complementary receptors on T cells. This review focuses on our attempts to understand these various signals in a model system involving the 2C TCR. The structural basis of Signal 1 was investigated by determining the crystal structure of 2C TCR alone and in complex with MHC/peptide. Analysis of these structures has provided some basic rules for how TCR and MHC/peptide interact; however, the critical question of how this interaction transduces Signal I to T cells remains unclear. The effects of Signal 1 and Signal 2 on T‐cell activation were examined with naive T cells from the 2C TCR transgenic mice, defined peptides as antigen and transfected Drosophila cells as APC. The results suggest that, except under extreme conditions, Signal I alone is unable to activate naive CD8 T cells despite the induction of marked TCR downregulation. Either B7 or intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)‐l can provide the second signal for CD8 T‐cell activation. However, especially at low MHC/peptide densities, optimal activation and differentiation of CD8 T cells required interaction with both B7 and [CAM‐1 on the same APC. Thus, the data suggest that at least two qualitatively different co‐stimulation signals are required for full activation of CD8 T cells under physiological conditions.