Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Imaging Biomarkers in Alzheimer’s Disease: A Practical Guide for Clinicians

Although recent developments in imaging biomarkers have revolutionized the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease at early stages, the utility of most of these techniques in clinical setting remains unclear. The aim of this review is to provide a clear stepwise algorithm on using multitier imaging biomarkers for the diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease to be used by clinicians and radiologists for day-to-day practice. We summarized the role of most common imaging techniques and their appropriate clinical use based on current consensus guidelines and recommendations with brief sections on acquisition and analysis techniques for each imaging modality. Structural imaging, preferably MRI or alternatively high resolution CT, is the essential first tier of imaging. It improves the accuracy of clinical diagnosis and excludes other potential pathologies. When the results of clinical examination and structural imaging, assessed by dementia expert, are still inconclusive, functional imaging can be used as a more advanced option. PET with ligands such as amyloid tracers and 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose can improve the sensitivity and specificity of diagnosis particularly at the early stages of the disease. There are, however, limitations in using these techniques in wider community due to a combination of lack of facilities and expertise to interpret the findings. The role of some of the more recent imaging techniques including tau imaging, functional MRI, or diffusion tensor imaging in clinical practice, remains to be established in the ongoing and future studies.
Differential effects of kindling and kindled seizures on place learning in the morris water maze

There is some controversy about the role of long‐term potentiation (LTP) in spatial learning. The authors have found that triggering generalized kindled seizures with stimulation of the perforant path disrupts spatial learning in the Morris water maze but that kindling per se does not affect spatial learning. It is suggested that abnormal electrical activity induced by high‐frequency stimulation of the perforant path may have been responsible for the disruption of spatial learning previously attributed to LTP saturation.
Robust Satellite Techniques (RST) for Natural and Environmental Hazards Monitoring and Mitigation: Theory and Applications

Several algorithms and data analysis techniques have been proposed using satellite observations (within atmospheric spectral windows) for cloud and surface parameters studies and for human environment monitoring applications. Quite all these algorithms are difficult to extend to different geographical, seasonal conditions, generally offering poor performances and uncertain reliability especially when applied in environmental risk prevision, monitoring and/or mitigation. In this paper the generalized satellite data analysis approach RST (Robust Satellite Technique) is described which extend the use of RAT (Robust AVHRR Techniques) approach -previously proposed by the same author in 1998 -to whatever satellite sensors. Successful RST applications are also described with reference to results so far achieved by using optical and microwaves passive sensors for volcanic eruption monitoring and prediction, forest fire detection, floods mapping, monitoring and early warning, possible earthquake precursors monitoring, oil spill detection and pipeline networks monitoring.
Metastatic gestational trophoblastic neoplasm presenting as spontaneous renal and cerebral hemorrhage with low titer of HCG: A case report of an unusual case

Gestational trophoblastic neoplasm includes tumor spectrum of four entities: hydatidiform mole (complete and partial), invasive mole, choriocarcinoma and placental site trophoblastic tumor. The hydatidiform mole is usually benign, but it is regarded as a pre-malignant disease. The other three conditions are malignant and are termed gestational trophoblastic tumor. Although most molar pregnancies behave in a benign fashion, metastatic tumors develop after complete molar pregnancy in 4% of patients. However, even when the disease is spread to many distal organs, it is highly curable with chemotherapy in most cases. We recently encountered an unusual case of metastatic gestational trophoblastic neoplasm following complete mole, presenting as spontaneous renal and cerebral hemorrhage with a fatal course.
Analysis of Anderson Acceleration on a Simplified Neutronics/Thermal Hydraulics System

ABSTRACT A standard method for solving coupled multiphysics problems in light water reactors is Picard iteration, which sequentially alternates between solving single physics applications. This solution approach is appealing due to simplicity of implementation and the ability to leverage existing software packages to accurately solve single physics applications. However, there are several drawbacks in the convergence behavior of this method; namely slow convergence and the necessity of heuristically chosen damping factors to achieve convergence in many cases. Anderson acceleration is a method that has been seen to be more robust and fast converging than Picard iteration for many problems, without significantly higher cost per iteration or complexity of implementation, though its effectiveness in the context of multiphysics coupling is not well explored. In this work, we develop a one-dimensional model simulating the coupling between the neutron distribution and fuel and coolant properties in a single fuel pin. We show that this model generally captures the convergence issues noted in Picard iterations which couple high-fidelity physics codes. We then use this model to gauge potential improvements with regard to rate of convergence and robustness from utilizing Anderson acceleration as an alternative to Picard iteration.
Efficacy of an Absorbable Fibrin Sealant Patch (TachoSil) After Distal Pancreatectomy: A Multicenter, Randomized, Controlled Trial

Objective:To evaluate the role of an absorbable fibrin sealant patch (TachoSil) in reducing postoperative pancreatic fistula (POPF) after distal pancreatectomy (DP). Background:POPF remains the main complication after DP. Methods:This was a prospective, open, randomized, study in which patients undergoing elective DP were randomized to standard surgical suturing or stapling with or without TachoSil. The primary end point was the incidence of POPF according to International Study Group on Pancreatic Fistula criteria. Amylase level in drainage fluid, number of days until removal of drain, and duration of hospital stay were secondary end points. Results:A total of 275 patients were enrolled at 19 centers over a 2-year period (TachoSil, n = 145; standard, n = 130). Twenty percent of procedures were laparoscopic and 21% were spleen-preserving resections. The incidence of POPF was not significantly different between groups (TachoSil, 62%; standard 68%; P = 0.267). Grade A fistula rate was similar in both groups (TachoSil 54%; standard 55%), whereas the grade B + C fistula rate was 8% with TachoSil versus 14% without (P = 0.139). Amylase drainage level on postoperative day 1 was significantly reduced with TachoSil (P = 0.025). Median number of days until drainage removal and length of hospital stay were similar in both groups (7 and 10 days, respectively). Conclusions:The POPF rate was higher than expected when International Study Group on Pancreatic Fistula criteria were strictly applied, although the majority were biochemical fistulas. TachoSil had no significant effect on the rate of POPF, although there was a significant reduction of amylase level in drainage fluid on postoperative day 1.
Entry of Herpes Simplex Virus Mediated by Chimeric Forms of Nectin1 Retargeted to Endosomes or to Lipid Rafts Occurs through Acidic Endosomes

ABSTRACT Herpes simplex virus (HSV) enters cells by fusion with target membranes, commonly the plasma membrane. In some cells, including CHO cells expressing the nectin1 or herpesvirus entry mediator receptors, entry occurs through an endocytic route. We report the following results. (i) When expressed in J cells, nectin1 and HVEM mediated a pathway of entry insensitive to endosome acidification inhibitors. (ii) A chimeric nectin1 receptor competent for endosomal uptake by fusion of the nectin1 ectodomain with the transmembrane sequence and cytoplasmic tail of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR1) (nectin1-EGFR1) and chimeric nectin1 sorted to lipid rafts by a glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchor mediated endocytic entry blocked by the early endosome inhibitor wortmannin and by the endosome acidification inhibitors bafilomycin and NH4Cl. (iii) Entry mediated by nectin1-EGFR1 was selectively inhibited by AG1478, a tyrosine phosphorylation inhibitor that targets the EGFR1 cytoplasmic tail and blocks the signaling pathway that culminates in clathrin-dependent uptake of the receptor into endosomes. We draw the following conclusions. (i) The same receptor may initiate different routes of infection, depending on the cell in which it is expressed. Hence, the cell is a determinant that controls whether a given receptor initiates a plasma membrane or an endocytic route of entry. (ii) Receptors whose physiology involves uptake into endosomes or sorting to lipid rafts are suitable to serve as HSV receptors. (iii) Structural features of the receptors are additional determinants that control whether HSV entry occurs at the plasma membrane or at endosomes. These findings are relevant to studies of HSV retargeting to specific receptors.
Skin Cancer and UV Protection

Abstract The incidence of skin cancer is increasing by epidemic proportions. Basal cell cancer remains the most common skin neoplasm, and simple excision is generally curative. On the other hand, aggressive local growth and metastasis are common features of malignant melanoma, which accounts for 75% of all deaths associated with skin cancer. The primary cause of skin cancer is long exposure to solar ultraviolet radiation (UV-R) crossed with the amount of skin pigmentation and family genetics. It is believed that in childhood and adolescence, 80% of UV-R gets absorbed while in the remaining, 20 % gets absorbed later in the lifetime. This suggests that proper and early photoprotection may reduce the risk of subsequent occurrence of skin cancer. Reducing the exposure time to sunlight, using sunscreens and protective textiles are the three ways of UV protection. Most people think that all the clothing will protect them, but it does not provide full sun screening properties. Literature sources claim that only 1/3 of the spring and summer collections tested give off proper UV protection. This is very important during the summer months, when UV index is the highest. Fabric UV protection ability highly depends on large number of factors such as type of fiber, fabric surface, construction, porosity, density, moisture content, type and concentration of dyestuff, fluorescent whitening agents, UV-B protective agents (UV absorbers), as well as nanoparticles, if applied. For all of these reasons, in the present paper, the results of UV protecting ability according to AS/NZS 4399:1996 will be discussed to show that standard clothing materials are not always adequate to prevent effect of UV-R to the human skin; and to suggest the possibilities for its improvement for this purpose enhancing light conversion and scattering. Additionally, the discrepancy in UV protection was investigated in distilled water as well as Adriatic Sea water.
Quantum chi-squared and goodness of fit testing

A quantum mechanical hypothesis test is presented for the hypothesis that a certain setup produces a given quantum state. Although the classical and the quantum problems are very much related to each other, the quantum problem is much richer due to the additional optimization over the measurement basis. A goodness of fit test for i.i. d quantum states is developed and a max-min characterization for the optimal measurement is introduced. We find the quantum measurement which leads both to the maximal Pitman and Bahadur efficiencies, and determine the associated divergence rates. We discuss the relationship of the quantum goodness of fit test to the problem of estimating multiple parameters from a density matrix. These problems are found to be closely related and we show that the largest error of an optimal strategy, determined by the smallest eigenvalue of the Fisher information matrix, is given by the divergence rate of the goodness of fit test.
Utilisation de la syntaxe pour valider les réponses à des questions par plusieurs documents

RESUME. Cet article presente FIDJI, un systeme de questions-repons es pour le francais, combinant des informations syntaxiques sur la question et les d avec des techniques plus traditionnelles du domaine, telles que la reconnaissance d es entites nommees et la ponderation des termes. Notamment, nous experimentons dans ce systeme l a validation des reponses dans plusieurs documents, ainsi que des techniques specifiques p ermettant de repondre a differents types de questions (comme les questions attendant des repon ses multiples (liste) ou une reponse booleenne).
estimation and optimal algorithm for a mathematical model of intermittent androgen suppression therapy for prostate cancer

We propose an algorithm based on cross-entropy to determine parameters of a piecewise linear model, which describes intermittent androgen suppression therapy for prostate cancer. By comparing with clinical data, the parameter estimation for the switched system shows good ﬁtting accuracy and efﬁciency. We further optimize switching time points for the piecewise linear model to obtain a feasible therapeutic schedule. The simulation results of therapeutic effect are superior to those of previous strategy. V C 2013 AIP Publishing LLC . [http://dx.doi. org/10.1063/1.4833455] Prostate cancer is a serious cause of cancer-related death in men; for example, it is now the second leading cause in the United States. 1 Hormone therapy with androgen deprivation is a major treatment for advanced prostate cancer. However, possibility of recurrence is not low even for patients who have undergone prostatectomy for local-ized prostate cancer. Clinical trials suggest that intermittent androgen suppression (IAS) with alternating on- and off-treatment periods may be a good alternative strategy to delay the relapse. Recently, Hirata et al. 2 proposed a piecewise linear ordinary differential equation model for IAS therapy. In this paper, we show that the model can be well ﬁtted to clinical data by a reliable algorithm based on cross-entropy. The detail protocol is provided to suggest how to use this model to make a proper prediction.
Truth and Character: Sources That Older Adults Can Remember

Are age differences in source memory inevitable? The two experiments reported here examined the hypothesis that the type of source information being tested mediates the magnitude of age differences in source memory. In these studies, participants listened to statements made by two different speakers. We compared younger and older adults' source memory in a traditional perceptual source task (memory for voice) and in two affective, conceptually based source tasks (truth of the statements, character of a person in a photo). In both studies, the perceptual and conceptual source information were conveyed in the same manner, as one speaker was associated with one type of information (e.g., female voice speaks truth). Age differences were robust for decisions regarding who said each statement but were negligible for truth or character decisions. These findings are provocative because they suggest that the type of information can influence age-related patterns of performance for source-conveyed information.
Uterine Epithelioid Leiomyosarcomas With Clear Cells: Reactivity With HMB-45 and the Concept of PEComa

In this study, we investigated HMB-45 expression in epithelioid uterine leiomyosarcomas with clear cell areas. From 12 epithelioid leiomyosarcomas, we selected 5 that had: 1) clear cell areas and 2) spindle cell areas that were at least focally positive for desmin and caldesmon. The patients’ ages ranged from 47 to 82 years (mean 64 years). Presenting symptoms were uterine bleeding (three), abdominal pain (one), and a pelvic mass (one). There was no history of tuberous sclerosis or lymphangioleiomyomatosis. One patient had stage II disease, one stage III, and three stage IV. All were treated with total abdominal hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. Two received radiotherapy, and three were also treated with chemotherapy. The tumors ranged in size from 4 × 3 × 3 cm to 10 × 7 × 6 cm; all had significant cellular atypia, areas of coagulative necrosis, and between 10 and 90 mitoses per 10 high power fields. Vascular invasion was seen in three cases. The epithelioid component varied from 50% to 90% in each case; and the percentage of clear cells was <1% in one case, 5% in one case, and 10% to 80% in three cases. Smooth muscle actin and desmin were positive in all cases. Four cases were positive for HMB-45 only in the clear cell areas. The tumor with <1% of clear cells was negative for HMB-45. All were negative for S-100 and c-kit. Three patients died of disease at 9, 30, and 32 months; one patient is alive with progressive disease at 6 months, and one patient (stage II disease) is alive with no evidence of disease at 8 months. Unequivocal uterine epithelioid leiomyosarcomas may have clear cells positive for HMB-45. These tumors might belong to the group of lesion designated as PEComas; however, it is advisable to designate them as uterine leiomyosarcomas. In uterine smooth muscle tumors, some epithelioid cells most likely undergo clear cell changes and become positive for HMB-45. It would be advisable to perform this stain in all epithelioid smooth muscle tumors of the uterus.
Knowledge about tuberculosis among pulmonary tuberculosis patients: A cross-sectional study from Uttarakhand

Background: Tuberculosis (TB) is a major health problem in India. The Revised National TB Control Programme (RNTCP) is working towards elimination of TB in the country by 2025. As the RNTCP relies on passive case finding, it is crucial for the success of the RNTCP that TB patients have knowledge about their disease. The present study aimed to assess the knowledge of TB among pulmonary TB (PTB) patients. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire based study using a pretested semi-structured questionnaire among new and previously treated PTB patients at Haldwani Block of Nainital District of Uttarakhand State of North India. Data was analyzed using the software Epi Info version 7.2. 0.1. Results: A total of 111 PTB patients with mean age of 36.3 years were included for final analysis. Only 43.2% PTB patients were aware that TB is caused by germs, 48.6% knew that it is not a hereditary disease. Only 13.5% PTB patients knew that vaccine is available and majority (68.5%) were aware of covering mouth and nose while coughing and sneezing for prevention of the disease. Overall, only two-third (65%) patients had good knowledge about TB. Conclusions: About one-third of PTB patients had poor knowledge about TB. This highlights that to achieve elimination of TB, RNTCP needs to change the present information, education, and communication (IEC) system which is based on a bio-medical framework, and to design a culturally sensitive health education system. Alternatively, the Programme needs to shift from passive case finding to active case finding strategy.
Enhanced antitumour activity of 15‐residue bovine lactoferricin derivatives containing bulky aromatic amino acids and lipophilic N‐terminal modifications

In a structure–antibacterial activity relationship study of a peptide fragment of bovine lactoferricin consisting of FKCRRWQWRMKKLGA (LFB 17–31), it was revealed that the two Trp residues were important for antibacterial activity. It has further been demonstrated that the size, shape and the aromatic character of the side chains were even more important than the Trp itself. In this study the antitumour effect of a series of LFB 17–31 derivatives are reported, in which the two Trp residues in position 6 and 8 were replaced with the larger non‐coded aromatic amino acids Tbt, Tpc, Bip and Dip. The counterproductive Cys in position 3 was also substituted with these larger aromatic residues. In addition, the effect of introducing lipophilic groups of different size and shape in the N‐terminal of the LFB 17–31 sequence was addressed. The resulting peptide derivatives were tested for activity against three human tumour cell lines and against normal human umbilical vein endothelial cells and fibroblasts. High antitumour activity by several of the peptides demonstrated that Trp successfully could be substituted by the bulky aromatic residues, and peptides containing the large and rigid Tbt residue in position 6 and/or 8 in LFB 17–31 were the most active candidates. The antitumour effect was even more increased by the Tbt‐modified peptides when the three counterproductive amino acids Cys3, Gln7 and Gly14 were replaced by Ala. Enhanced antitumour activity was also obtained by modifying the N‐terminal of LFB 17–31 with either long‐chained fatty acids or bulky moieties. Thus, our results revealed that the size and shape of the lipophilic groups and their position in the peptide sequence were important for antitumour activity. Copyright © 2003 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Hot Deformation Of Nanocrystalline Nd-Fe-B Alloys

Die-upset experiments on hot compacted commercial melt-spun powders MQP-A and MQP-B were carried out under an argon atmosphere at 500 to 800/spl deg/C with strain rates of 10/sup -4/ to 10/sup -1/ s/sup -1/. The kinetic analysis of the strain-rate stress relations yields the following dependences for the strain rate: (i) on flow stress, a power law with a stress exponent of 3, (ii) on temperature, a thermal activated process with activation energies of 280 and 400 kJ/mol for the MQP-A and -B samples, and (iii) on mean grain size, a reciprocal proportionality for MQP-A. These results indicate an interface-controlled solution precipitation process as the microstructural mechanism of hot deformation and texturing. Hereby the grain-boundary phase seems to be not required to be in the liquid state for deformation. Its presence is necessary for a crack-free deformation at high strain rates. In the case of radially textured ring magnets made by backward extrusion an area reduction of about 65% is necessary for optimization of the needed press stresses as well as the magnetic properties. Typical values are B/sub r/=1.25 T, /spl mu//sub 0/H/sub cj/=1.1 T and (BH)/sub max/=280 kJ/m/sup 3/.
Physical Exercise and Experienced Bodily Changes: The Emergence of Benefits and Limits on Benefits

Self-reports of levels of physical exercise, experienced bodily changes, and attitudinal and well-being variables were obtained from 407 adults, aged 26 to 95 years. The purpose was to assess the relative magnitudes of the experienced benefits of exercise across the exercise continuum. Cluster analyses identified three groups at each of four age levels: a) sedentary people who experienced negative bodily changes; b) modest exercisers who reported the most positive bodily changes; and c) high exercisers who reported only minimal bodily changes. Psychological barriers to exercise among sedentary people included negative exercise attitudes, attributions of negative bodily changes to aging, and low levels of exercise motivation and self-efficacy. Modest and high exercisers both scored high on attitude and well-being variables.