Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Comparison of blue dye and probe-assisted intraoperative lymphatic mapping in melanoma to identify sentinel nodes in 100 lymphatic basins.

OBJECTIVE To determine whether combining isosulfan blue dye with a radiopharmaceutical agent will increase intraoperative detection of sentinel nodes (SNs) in patients with early-stage melanoma. PATIENTS AND DESIGN Clinical trial with a consecutive sample. Eighty-seven patients with clinical stage I melanoma underwent preoperative lymphoscintigraphy with 1 of 3 radiopharmaceutical agents to identify the lymphatic basin and the site of the SN. All patients subsequently underwent intraoperative lymphatic mapping and selective lymph node dissection (SLND) with isosulfan blue dye and a radiopharmaceutical agent. A handheld gamma probe determined the radioactive counts over the draining lymph node basins and individual blue-stained lymph nodes before (in vivo) and after (ex vivo) their removal. An irrelevant body site was used as the denominator of a count ratio by which absolute counts were standardized for comparison. Completion lymphadenectomy was undertaken in patients whose SLND specimen had histopathologic evidence of tumor cells. SETTING Tertiary care cancer center. INTERVENTION Lymph node sampling. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Accuracy of SN detection by blue dye and radiopharmaceutical techniques. RESULTS Preoperative lymphoscintigraphic images identified 100 lymph node basins and 135 lymph nodes in 87 patients. All 3 radiopharmaceutical agents were equally effective in imaging the SN before surgery. During SLND, we identified and removed 136 blue-stained and radioactive (hot) SNs and 8 additional non-blue-stained hot nodes from 98 basins (98.0%). Of the 144 excised lymph nodes, 132 nodes (91.7%) from 83 basins had either an in vivo- or an ex vivo-background count ratio of 2:1 or more and 125 nodes (86.8%) from 77 basins had a count ratio of 3:1 or more. Twelve blue-stained SNs had count ratios of less than 2:1. Seventeen SNs (11.8%) from 15 basins contained metastases: 16 were identified with blue dye and probe and 1 was identified with blue dye alone. Four (1.1%) of 377 non-SNs excised during completion lymphadenectomy contained metastases. There have been no lymph node recurrences during mean follow-up of 16.3 months (range, 7-42 months). CONCLUSIONS The blue dye technique remains the criterion standard for SLND in melanoma. The addition of a radiopharmaceutical tracer serves as a useful adjunct to the visualization of blue-stained SNs.
Epoetin alpha, epoetin beta and darbepoetin alfa: Two‐dimensional gel electrophoresis isoforms characterization and mass spectrometry analysis

Since 1989 recombinant human erythropoietin (rhEPO) has been used as a drug for the correction of anemia, but the misuse of rhEPO as an ergogenic agent among athletes is a widespread doping practice. As a consequence there is a need for developing reference methods for the detection of rhEPO in biological fluids, and to be able to differentiate the recombinant from the natural protein. Recombinant human erythropoietin differs from its natural counterpart in the glycidic part of the molecule. Three different commercial recombinant products Epoetin alpha (Eprex, Janssen Cilag), Epoetin beta (Neorecormon, Roche) and Darbepoetin alfa (Nespo, Dompè) have been used to evaluate the performance of two‐dimensional gel electrophoresis (2‐DE) and mass spectrometry (MS) for the separation of isoforms and the identification of the proteins respectively. All the compounds studied were well separated by means of 2‐DE: Epoetin alpha and beta focused in the same isoelectric point region giving rise to six and eight spots respectively, whereas Darbepoetin alfa was found in a more acidic zone with two spots. Results obtained with micro high‐performance liquid chromatography‐electrospray ionization‐time of flight (TOF) MS and matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization‐time of flight MS for the three rhEPOs are reported. These preliminary results suggest that by means of 2‐DE and MS it should be possible to reveal the presence of rhEPOs for antidoping purposes.
Correlative aspects of hypervolemic hernodilution

Unilateral clipping of cerebral arteries in eight dogs reduced regional cortical blood flow (rCoBF) without altering cardiac output (CO) or intracranial pressure (ICP) and resulted in 10% hemispheric infarction. In ten dogs, total blood volume (TBV), CO, rCoBF in the region of the occluded artery, and ICP increased while the hematocrit (Hct) decreased following two low-molecular-weight dextran (D40) infusions. Hemispheric infarction was 4%. The CO, rCoBF, and ICP correlated directly with TBV, but inversely with Hct, while rCoBF correlated positively with CO. Two similar hemodiluting D40 infusions in nine control dogs raised TBV, CO, and ICP but not rCoBF. The CO, rCoBF, and ICP correlated positively with TBV but inversely with Hct while rCoBF correlated with CO. Thus, hypervolemic hemodilution with D40 enhances collateral perfusion to acutely ischemic regions of brain distal to segmental arterial occlusions and concomitantly augments CO and ICP. Correlations between CO and cerebral blood flow after D40 infusion may be secondary to lowered Hct.
Associations between behaviour problems and verbal and nonverbal cognitive abilities and disabilities in early childhood.

BACKGROUND We investigated associations between behaviour problems and verbal and nonverbal cognitive abilities at 2, 3 and 4 years of age both for the entire distribution and for the lowest 5% and 10% of the verbal and nonverbal cognitive disabilities. METHODS A community sample of 4,000 pairs of twins born in England and Wales in 1994 and 1995 was assessed by their parents at 2, 3 and 4 years using the Revised Rutter Parent Scale for Preschool Children (RRPSPC, behaviour problems), the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory (MCDI, verbal development), and the Parent Report of Children's Abilities (PARCA, nonverbal cognitive development). RESULTS For the entire sample, behaviour problem scores were modestly associated with lower MCDI and PARCA scores - correlations were less than . 30. Similarly modest effect sizes were found for relationships between behaviour problem scores and the lowest 5% and 10% of the MCDI and of the PARCA distributions. Associations were stronger for nonverbal than for verbal development, increased from 2 to 3 to 4 years, and, at the extremes of the distributions, were stronger for boys than for girls. Multivariate genetic analyses indicated that both genetic and shared environmental factors mediate the links between behaviour problems and cognitive development both for the total distribution and for the extremes. Genetic links may be stronger for the extremes than for the total sample. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that, in this community sample of young children, associations between behaviour problems and verbal and nonverbal cognitive development are generally modest for the entire distribution and are no greater at the extremes than expected on the basis of the associations for the entire distribution.
Prevalence and patterns of adult yoga use in the United States: results of a national survey.

BACKGROUND Although yoga appears to be popular in the United States, there are no published studies on yoga's prevalence or patterns of use. METHODS In 1998 we surveyed by telephone a nationally representative sample of 2055 English-speaking U.S. adults (60% weighted response rate) regarding yoga use. RESULTS Of the respondents, 7.5% used yoga at least once in their lifetime and 3.8% used yoga in the previous 12 months. Respondents who used yoga at least once were more likely than non-users to be female (68% vs. 51%), college educated (68% vs. 45%), and urban dwellers (93% vs. 74%). Factors independently associated with yoga use at least once included female gender (OR 2.5 [95% CI 1.7-3.8]), baby boomer age group (ages 34-53) compared to pre-baby boomers (> or = 54 (2.3 [1.4-4.0]), education beyond high school (2.2 [1.4-3.5]), residing in large and small metropolitan areas compared to non-metropolitan areas (3.8 [1.8-7.8] and 2.7 [1.3-5.8], respectively), and use of other CAM therapies (5.3 [2.7-10.5]). Of respondents using yoga in the previous 12 months, 64% reported using yoga for wellness, 48% for health conditions, and 21% specifically for back or neck pain. Ninety percent felt yoga was very or somewhat helpful and 76% did not report spending money related to their yoga. CONCLUSIONS In 1998 an estimated 15.0 million American adults had used yoga at least once in their lifetime and 7.4 million during the previous year. Yoga was used for both wellness and specific health conditions often with perceived helpfulness and without expenditure.
Valence-Specific Effects of BDNF Val66Met Polymorphism on Dopaminergic Stress and Reward Processing in Humans

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels in dopaminergic (DA) cells within the ventral tegmental area (VTA)/nucleus accumbens (NAc) circuitry appear to be a candidate mechanism for the neuroadaptive changes that follow stress and reward responses in animal models. However, the role of the BDNF gene variants in responses to salient cues through DA neurotransmission in humans remains unexplored. Here, we studied the effect of the common functional BDNF Val66Met (rs6265) polymorphism on rewarding experiences in the striatum and DA-mediated responses to stress. Seventy-two healthy controls were genotyped for the BDNF Val66Met polymorphism and underwent the monetary incentive delay task during an functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) session. Forty-nine of them also underwent a sustained pain challenge with and without placebo administration with potential analgesic properties during PET measures of DA D2/3-receptor-mediated neurotransmission. Neuroimaging results revealed a significant effect of BDNF (Met66 carriers > Val/Val) on brain responses during the anticipation of monetary losses, baseline D2/3 receptor availability, and pain-stress-induced DA release in the NAc. Conversely, BDNF Met66 carriers showed no activation in response to monetary gains and a blunted DA response to the analgesic placebo in the NAc. These results provide initial human evidence regarding the effect of the BDNF Val66Met polymorphism on DA-mediated responses to stress, its cognitive regulation by positive expectations, and the anticipatory responses to monetary gains and losses in the VTA-NAc pathway. Our results are of relevance to the neurobiology of stress and reward interactions and the pathophysiology of stress-related disorders.
Association of clonal T‐cell large granular lymphocyte disease and paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria (PNH): further evidence for a pathogenetic link between T cells, aplastic anaemia and PNH

There is mounting evidence to suggest that T‐cell‐mediated suppression of haemopoiesis is a pathogenetic mechanism in three bone marrow failure syndromes: aplastic anaemia (AA), paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria (PNH) and myelodysplasia (MDS). T‐cell microclones can be detected by sensitive polymerase chain reaction (PCR)‐based methods in all three disorders. Recently, larger clonal populations of T‐cell large granular lymphocytes (T‐LGLs) have been observed in some patients with AA and MDS. Here, we report the development of a large clonal T‐LGL population in a patient with bona fide PNH. In this patient, we defined part of the sequence of the T‐cell receptor (TCR) β‐chain gene, and we have shown that the large T‐LGL population emerged from a background of multiple smaller T‐cell clones. Thus, T‐LGL clones in AA, MDS and PNH probably expand as a result of antigenic stimulation. It is postulated that the antigen driving clonal T‐cell proliferations in these disorders exists on haemopoietic stem cells.
Visuospatial Hemi-inattention Following Cerebellar/Brain Stem Bleeding

Neglect is a unilateral lack of responsiveness to stimuli caused by visuospatial hemi-inattention, a unilateral representation deficit and/or a unilateral hypokinesia. It results most frequently from right-hemisphere brain damage, particularly of the parietal lobe but also of the frontal cortex, the basal ganglia, the thalamus, and recently it has also been described after a cerebellar lesion. We report a patient with right-sided bleeding of the posterior inferior cerebellar artery, who developed a left-sided visual hemi-inattention. She had no visual field defects, yet she had problems detecting left-sided targets in visual extinction. Furthermore, she was impaired in detecting complex motion on the left side and targets in a fixation offset paradigm. Reactions to left-sided targets in covert shifts of attention were slowed in the in valid condition. Her text reading was impaired as she could not always find the initial word of the next line. However, she was aware of her deficit. Her visuoconstructive ability was normal and she gave no indication of tactile or acoustic extinction. As the cerebellar lesion was located in the right hemisphere and the inattention involved the left side of space, we suggest that the damage to the right brain stem led to a transient imbalance of the noradrenergic ascending activation system which may explain her hemi-inattention.
RAS-positive thyroid nodules

Purpose of review The current review focuses on the uncertainty regarding the management of rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog RAS-positive thyroid nodules. The application of oncogene testing has been heralded for improving risk assessment for indeterminate cytology thyroid nodules and has grown in clinical use. RAS mutations are historically considered oncogenic. However, RAS mutation detection in thyroid nodules has proven problematic, as these mutations are found in benign and malignant lesions. Recent findings RAS-positive thyroid nodules frequently have indeterminate cytology and a finding of a positive RAS mutation identifies a significant number of benign lesions as well as thyroid cancers. Long-term follow-up of RAS-positive nodules with benign cytology shows an indolent course not consistent with eventual malignant transformation. Many RAS-positive nodules previously diagnosed as follicular variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma now will be reclassified as noninvasive follicular thyroid neoplasm with papillary-like nuclear features, indicating a more indolent nature of these RAS-positive lesions. Summary Recent findings have underscored that diagnosis of a RAS-positive thyroid nodule is not synonymous with thyroid malignancy. The ideal clinical and surgical management of these nodules remains challenging.
Protective T cell immunity against respiratory syncytial virus is efficiently induced by recombinant BCG

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is one of the leading causes of childhood hospitalization and a major health burden worldwide. Unfortunately, because of an inefficient immunological memory, RSV infection provides limited immune protection against reinfection. Furthermore, RSV can induce an inadequate Th2-type immune response that causes severe respiratory tract inflammation and obstruction. It is thought that effective RSV clearance requires the induction of balanced Th1-type immunity, involving the activation of IFN-γ-secreting cytotoxic T cells. A recognized inducer of Th1 immunity is Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette–Guérin (BCG), which has been used in newborns for decades in several countries as a tuberculosis vaccine. Here, we show that immunization with recombinant BCG strains expressing RSV antigens promotes protective Th1-type immunity against RSV in mice. Activation of RSV-specific T cells producing IFN-γ and IL-2 was efficiently obtained after immunization with recombinant BCG. This type of T cell immunity was protective against RSV challenge and caused a significant reduction of inflammatory cell infiltration in the airways. Furthermore, mice immunized with recombinant BCG showed no weight loss and reduced lung viral loads. These data strongly support recombinant BCG as an efficient vaccine against RSV because of its capacity to promote protective Th1 immunity.
The Impact of Lymph Node Number on Survival in Patients With Lymph Node-Negative Pancreatic Cancer

Objectives: The role of lymph node (LN) dissection for pancreatic cancer remains uncertain, and guidelines for a minimum LN number have not been established. We hypothesized that LN number in node-negative (N0) pancreatic cancer influences survival. Methods: The Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database was queried for patients undergoing resection for N0 pancreatic adenocarcinoma between 1988 and 2003. Lymph node number was categorized as 1-10, 11-20, and >20. Results: In a cohort of 1915 patients, the median LN number was 7 (range 1-57); 1365 (71%) patients had <11 LN. Survival was significantly better in the 11 to 20 compared with the 1-10 group (median, 20 vs 15 months, respectively, P < 0.0001); no difference was observed between the 11-20 and >20 groups (median, 20 vs 23 months, respectively, P = 0.14). Multivariate analysis demonstrated the prognostic significance of LN number for determining overall survival (hazard ratio 0.98, 95% confidence interval: 0.97-0.99; P<0.0001). Conclusions: Pancreatic cancer lymphadenectomy with examination of >10 LN is associated with improved survival in N0 disease and should be considered a benchmark for adequacy of surgery and/or pathology. Currently, only a minority of patients are assessed by this measure. The variation in LN number may be indicative of diverse surgical technique and/or pathologic analysis and warrants further investigation.
A Single-Tier Virtual Queuing Memory Controller Architecture for Heterogeneous MPSoCs

Heterogeneous MPSoCs typically integrate diverse cores, including application CPUs, GPUs, and HD coders. These cores commonly share an off-chip memory to save cost and energy, but their memory accesses often interfere with each other, leading to undesirable consequences like a slowdown of application performance or a failure to sustain real-time performance. The memory controller plays a central role in meeting the QoS needs of real-time cores while maximizing CPU performance. Previous QoS-aware memory controllers are based on a classic two-tier queuing architecture that buffers memory transactions at the first tier, followed by a second tier that buffers translated DRAM commands. In these designs, QoS-aware policies are used to schedule competing transactions at the first stage, but the translated DRAM commands are served in FIFO order at the second stage. Unfortunately, once the scheduled transactions have been forwarded to the command stage, newly arriving transactions that may be more critical cannot be served ahead of those translated commands that are already queued at the second stage. To address this, we propose a scalable memory controller architecture based on single-tier virtual queuing (STVQ) that maintains a single tier of request queues and employs an efficacious scheduler that considers both QoS requirements and DRAM bank states. In comparison with previous QoS-aware memory controllers, the proposed STVQ memory controller reduces CPU slowdown by up to 13.9% while satisfying all frame rate requirements. We propose further optimizations that can significantly increase row-buffer hits by up to 66.2% and reduce memory latency by up to 19.8%.
Expression of the receptor of advanced glycation end products in the gingival tissue of smokers with generalized periodontal disease and after nornicotine induction in primary gingival epithelial cells.

BACKGROUND The association between smoking and periodontal disease is well established; however, the mechanism by which smoking augments the destruction of periodontal tissue is not clear. We hypothesize that smoking is related to an increased expression of receptor of advanced glycation end products (RAGE) in gingival tissues of smokers. METHODS Gingival biopsies from five smokers and five age- and gender-matched non-smokers were examined. In addition, gingival epithelial cells (GECs) were reacted with 1 muM nornicotine for 4, 16, 24, and 48 hours for mRNA for RAGE and an additional 72 hours for protein expression. RAGE mRNA was amplified by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), and expression of RAGE at the protein level in GECs was studied with Western blots. RESULTS In the gingival biopsies from all 10 subjects, RT-PCR with RAGE-specific primers produced a band of the predicted size. For all pairs, the smoker biopsies expressed a greater level of RAGE compared to the matched non-smokers. When viewed as groups, analysis of the band intensity indicated that RAGE mRNA in smokers was approximately 1.4-fold of the expression in non-smokers (Wilcoxon test; P = 0.031). In GECs treated with nornicotine, there was a time-dependent increase in RAGE expression up to two-fold at 48 hours. RAGE protein levels initially were reduced but increased to 1.4-fold after 48 hours. CONCLUSION The ability of nornicotine to elevate RAGE expression in GECs, along with increased RAGE expression in inflamed gingival tissue from smokers, indicates that RAGE may be associated with periodontal disease linked to smoking.
African American Organ Donor Registration: A Mixed Methods Design Using the Theory of Planned Behavior

Context A large racial disparity exists in organ donation. Objective To identify factors associated with becoming a registered organ donor among African Americans in Alabama. Methods Concurrent mixed methods design guided by the Theory of Planned Behavior to analyze African Americans' decisions to become a registered organ donor by using both qualitative (focus groups) and quantitative (survey) methods. Results The sample consisted of 22 registered organ donors and 65 nonregistered participants from 6 focus groups completed in urban (n = 3) and rural (n = 3) areas. Participants emphasized the importance of the autonomy to make one's own organ donation decision and have this decision honored posthumously. One novel barrier to becoming a registered organ donor was the perception that organs from African Americans were often unusable because of the high prevalence of chronic medical conditions such as diabetes and hypertension. Another novel theme discussed as an advantage to becoming a donor was the subsequent motivation to take responsibility for one's health. Family and friends were the most common groups of persons identified as approving and disapproving of the decision to become a donor. The most common facilitator to becoming a donor was information, whereas fear and the lack of information were the most common barriers. In contrast, religious beliefs, mistrust, and social justice themes were infrequently referenced as barriers to becoming a donor. Conclusion Findings from this study may be useful for prioritizing organ donation community-based educational interventions in campaigns to increase donor registration.
Exact and approximated analysis of voltage-commutated DC-TO-DC converters

Due to the voltage-commutation, one has to take an additional subinterval into account during analysis. The difference equation of sample values is set up starting from piecewise linear differential equations. For pulse-width modulated control a dynamic model follows, linearized around the steady state working point. In the case of dc choppers the useful signal is the low-frequency mean value. The difference equation of the mean value behaviour can be obtained via a discrete relation between mean- and sample value. If sufficient smoothing is provided a continuous equivalent differential equation can be derived. One obtains via series expansions an analytical approximation model, which simply can be interpreted as continuous equivalent circuit. Then a further analysis follows with the well known methods of dc networks.