Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
DIRECT INSIGHTS INTO OBSERVATIONAL ABSORPTION LINE ANALYSIS METHODS OF THE CIRCUMGALACTIC MEDIUM USING COSMOLOGICAL SIMULATIONS

We study the circumgalactic medium (CGM) of a z = 0.54 simulated dwarf galaxy using hydroART simulations. We present our analysis methods, which emulate observations, including objective absorption line detection, apparent optical depth (AOD) measurements, Voigt profile (VP) decomposition, and ionization modeling. By comparing the inferred CGM gas properties from the absorption lines directly to the gas selected by low ionization H i and Mg ii, and by higher ionization C iv and O vi absorption, we examine how well observational analysis methods recover the “true” properties of CGM gas. In this dwarf galaxy, low ionization gas arises in sub-kiloparsec “cloud” structures, but high ionization gas arises in multiple extended structures spread over 100 kpc; due to complex velocity fields, highly separated structures give rise to absorption at similar velocities. We show that AOD and VP analysis fails to accurately characterize the spatial, kinematic, and thermal conditions of high ionization gas. We find that H i absorption selected gas and O vi absorption gas arise in totally distinct physical gas structures, calling into question current observational techniques employed to infer metallicities and the total mass of “warm-hot” CGM gas. We present a method to determine whether C iv and O vi absorbing gas is photo or collisionally ionized and whether the assumption of ionization equilibrium is sound. As we discuss, these and additional findings have strong implications for how accurately currently employed observational absorption line methods recover the true gas properties, and ultimately, our ability to understand the CGM and its role in galaxy evolution.
The Impact of EDI Controls on EDI Implementation

Electronic data interchange (EDI) has significantly changed business practices by eliminating paper and related audit trails and by allowing transactions to be processed at high speed without human intervention. The dependence of an organization on its trading partners and value-added network (VAN) increases with the number of partners and allows the possibility of sharing technology. As EDI is integrated with internal application systems and the speed of processing increases, errors in programming and data input can seriously affect the system's performance. The introduction of paperless transaction processing and procedures with external trading partners raises some serious information system control concerns. Controls must be in place to ensure that EDI systems operate efficiently and effectively. These controls are also needed to overcome potential risks and exposures inherent with integration and utilization of the system. Management must divert more resources to EDI controls to successfully integrate and utilize EDI systems. A research model proposes that EDI controls affect EDI implementation. EDI controls are classified largely into three dimensions: formal, informal, and automated controls, each of which has specific objectives and characteristics. EDI implementation has two dimensions: integration and utilization. The data was compiled from structured interviews with 110 companies in South Korea. The results empirically support the hypotheses that EDI controls affect EDI implementation.
Distinct heparan sulfate glycosaminoglycans are responsible for mediating fibroblast growth factor‐2 biological activity through different fibroblast growth factor receptors

Fibroblast growth factor (FGF) signaling is involved in many important biological processes such as smooth muscle cell (SMC) proliferation, a key event leading to atherosclerosis. It is well known that heparin/heparan sulfate‐like glycosaminoglycans (HLGAGs), found ubiquitously on the cell surface and in the extracellular matrix, modulate FGF signaling by interacting with both FGF and FGF receptor (FGFR). To study the modulatory effect of SMC‐derived HLGAGs on FGF2 signaling, we employed a panel of HLGAG‐degrading enzymes, or heparinases, to depolymerize cell surface HLGAGs isolated from SMCs and assayed their abilities to modulate FGF2 activity on engineered cell lines expressing defined FGFR isoforms. Our findings indicate that FGF2‐mediated proliferation is dependent on the composition of the SMC‐derived HLGAG fragments as well as the type of FGFR isoform expressed. We postulate that the chemical composition and sequence of HLGAGs dictate the specificity of interactions between FGF2 and a given FGFR.
Fonctionnement des cultures de maïs sous contrainte azotée : détermination et application d'un indice de nutrition

Nos objectifs sont de determiner la demande en azote des cultures de mais et d'analyser l'impact de la contrainte azotee sur leur fonctionnement. Pour comparer differentes doses d'azote et le fractionnement des apports, nous avons etudie les cinetiques de croissance des cultures irriguees pendant 4 annees dans le sud-ouest de la France. Nous avons determine une relation allometrique critique entre la teneur en azote et la biomasse aerienne accumulee pour diagnostiquer le statut azote du mais. Nous definissons un indice de nutrition azotee (INN) pour etudier les effets des traitements azotes. Il est compare a des techniques rapides de diagnostic comme le diagnostic foliaire ou un test nitrate plante. Un modele de croissance potentielle est determine a partir de nos resultats. Il decompose les processus de production en 3 grandes fonctions: installation du couvert foliaire, absorption et conversion du rayonnement solaire en biomasse, repartition des assimilats dans les racines et les epis. Il permet de simuler la croissance et de caracteriser les indicateurs de fonctionnement dans leur etat potentiel en fonction des temperatures et du rayonnement solaire. En utilisant INN, nous avons quantifie les effets de la contrainte azotee sur les principales variables du modele de croissance et sur les composantes du rendement. En 1991, des cinetiques d'utilisation des engrais marques (15N) sont comparees pour analyser les effets du fractionnement et des doses d'azote. Nous proposons une modelisation de la demande critique en azote du peuplement et des transferts dans la plante. Des simulations de la croissance potentielle et de la demande en azote des cultures de mais, en fonction d'etudes climatiques frequentielles, permettront d'ameliorer les recommandations de la fertilisation azotee pour preserver la qualite de l'environnement
The aetiology of anaemia in pregnancy in West Africa.

Anemia is responsible for an estimated 20% of maternal deaths in West Africa and contributes to still more deaths through obstetric hemorrhage. Anemia during pregnancy has been linked to iron and folate dietary deficiencies, the secondary effects of malaria and hookworm infestations, infections such as human immunodeficiency virus, and hemoglobinopathies. Parasitic infestations interfere with the normal increase (given a balanced diet) in iron absorption during pregnancy. An understanding of locally salient etiologic factors should form the basis of public health programs aimed at addressing anemia during pregnancy. There is a need for basic prevalence statistics, especially from West Africa's rural areas. Finally, reliable laboratory parameters that can be used in the assessment of iron and folate status and the degree of anemia attributable to malaria must be established. Although there is emerging evidence that serum transferrin receptor concentration is not affected by chronic disease or the physiological changes of pregnancy, further studies are needed to validate this measure.
Cracking the Codes : Do Electronic Medical Records Facilitate Hospital Revenue Enhancement ?

Electronic Medical Records (EMR) have great potential to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of patient care delivery. However, the use of EMR could enable hospitals to engage in “revenue-enhancing practice” such as upcoding, thereby raising health care expenditures and potentially jeopardizing quality. This study uses a longitudinal multistate patient discharge dataset to examine the effect of EMR adoption on medical coding and billing in inpatient settings. I find that the fraction of patients who are assigned to higher-paying DRGs increases significantly after EMR adoption. I estimate that this type of billing change alone increases the reimbursement for inpatient services by $1.3 billion annually. The effect of EMR on coding and billing is particularly strong among for-profit hospitals, financially distressed hospitals, Medicare patients, and billing codes where upcoding potential was previously less exploited. Hospitals document more diagnoses but do not perform more procedures. These findings together reveal that hospitals are sophisticated in their use of EMR as a tool to boost revenue. ∗Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University. bingyang-li@kellogg.northwestern. edu. I am indebted to David Dranove and Leemore Dafny for their continuous guidance and support. I am also grateful to Shane Greenstein, and Kai Zheng for their encouragement and advice. I would like to thank Jin Li, Jeff McCullough, Frank Limbrock, Michael Powell, Benjamin Jones, Chris Ody, Danielle Li, Kosuke Uetake and Zhuqing Yang for valuable discussions. Conversations with David Artz vastly improved my understanding of institutional background about health IT. This work has also benefited from the comments of seminar participants at Kellogg School of Management and the Fourth Annual Workshop on Health IT and Economics. I am responsible for all opinions and errors.
Autosomal recessive non-syndromic hearing loss in the Lebanese population: prevalence of the 30delG mutation and report of two novel mutations in the connexin 26 (GJB2) gene

Editor—The most common sensory deficit in humans is hearing loss, affecting 1 in 1000 children, with approximately half of the cases having a genetic cause. The majority of these genetic causes are non-syndromic, of which approximately 75% have an autosomal recessive mode of inheritance.1 So far, nearly 30 genes that cause non-syndromic recessive deafness (NSRD) have been located (for review see http://dnalab-www.uia.ac.be/dnalab/hhh). The loci corresponding to NSRD are designated DFNB, with a number corresponding to the chronology of their localisation. The first locus, DFNB1 (MIM 220290), located on chromosome 13q11-12,2 has been shown to be responsible for nearly half of NSRD owing to mutations in the gene encoding the gap junction protein connexin 26 ( GJB2 ) (MIM 121011). 3 4 One mutation, 30delG (also referred to as 35delG), accounts for the majority of mutations in this gene in some ethnic groups,3-8 while it is rarer in others.9-15 The geographical position of Lebanon, a small country of 10 500 km2 on the eastern shores of the Mediterranean sea, has made it a historical crossroads between Asia, Africa, and Europe. As a consequence, the Lebanese population shows a wide genetic diversity, with no less than 17 ethno-religious communities. Today, the population is approximately 4 million people, with a world wide diaspora estimated at 15 million. In Lebanon, consanguineous marriages are still frequent (from 10 to 30%), favouring the incidence of autosomal recessive diseases,16 such as haemoglobinopathies, sickle cell anaemia, familial Mediterranean fever, congenital hypothyroidism, cystic fibrosis, and deafness. The purpose of this study is to summarise the different NSRD loci found in a case series of Lebanese families and to determine the carrier frequency of the 30delG mutation in selected Lebanese subjects. Forty eight multiplex Lebanese families with non-syndromic congenital moderate to profound deafness, from various …
Double-Sided Bidding Mechanism for Resource Sharing in Mobile Cloud

Recently, a new architecture regarding a crowd of mobile devices as mobile cloud has been proposed, where the neighboring mobile devices are pooled together for resource sharing. Most existing works focus on mobile cloud framework design and assume that the nearby users are willing to share their resources. Since each user is rational and self-interested, a proper market mechanism is needed to incentivize users to participate and allocate resources among multiple users. In this paper, we consider a broker-based mobile cloud, where multiple supplying users have idle resources to share, and multiple demanding users suffer from resource limitations. We propose and analyze a double-sided bidding mechanism where each demanding user submits a bid to choose a demand resource-price function, and each supplying user submits a bid to choose a supply resource-price function. We consider the cases with price-taking users and price-anticipating users who would anticipate the influence of their own bids on the price, respectively. For the case with price-taking users, we first show that the proposed mechanism admits a unique competitive equilibrium that maximizes the social welfare of the mobile cloud and then develop an optimal distributed algorithm to achieve the desired equilibrium point. For the case with price-anticipating users, we first formulate the interaction among multiple users as a strategic game and prove the existence and uniqueness of the Nash equilibrium and then develop a distributed algorithm to compute the Nash equilibrium. Numerical results validate the efficacy of our proposed algorithms and illustrate that the social welfare achieved at the Nash equilibrium is very close to the optimal social welfare.
Phytoplankton composition and microcystin concentrations in open and closed bays of Lake Victoria, Tanzania

This study was carried out in order to investigate the spatial variation of algal toxin (microcystin) concentrations along the shoreline of Lake Victoria. A total of 16 nearshore stations differing in connectivity to the main lake basin were categorized as either closed bays (ratio of bay area to bay opening <1) or open bays (ratio ≥1) and sampled during November and December 2009. Water samples were analyzed for total phosphorus, chlorophyll a, phytoplankton community composition and concentrations of microcystin. Open and closed bays were significantly different for phytoplankton abundance and composition: Average phytoplankton biovolume was higher for closed bays (45 mm3l−1 ± 11 SE) than open bays (5 ± 2 mm3l−1). Cyanobacterial biovolume (mainly Microcystis spp., Anabaena spp. and Planktolyngbya spp.) was also significantly higher in closed bays (82 ± 9% of total biovolume) than in open bays (44 ± 5%). In contrast, diatom biovolume was lower in closed bays (7 ± 1%) than in open bays (36 ± 6%). Microcystins were found only among sites from closed bays and concentrations ranged from 0.4 to 13 µg l−1 Microcystin-LR equivalent and coincided with high abundance of Microcystis spp. It is concluded that the level of water exchange from individual bays to the main basin is an important factor influencing eutrophication and microcystin production in nearshore habitats of Lake Victoria.
Oestradiol and genistein reduce food intake in male and female overweight cats after gonadectomy

Abstract AIM: To determine if exogenous oestradiol or the phyto-oestrogen genistein could reduce food intake in male and female cats fed ad libitum that had been allowed to accrue excessive bodyfat following neutering. METHODS: Sixteen adult (eight female, eight male) cats were neutered and allowed to increase their bodyweight (BW) through feeding ad libitum of a complete and balanced dry diet. Oestradiol was injected subcutaneously for 5-day periods in incremental doses (0.25–4 µg per cat), then food intake was recorded, and vaginal cytological changes were observed in females. Similarly, genistein was administered orally for 5-day periods in incremental doses (5–100 mg/kg). RESULTS: In males and females, both oestradiol (p<0.001) and genistein (p=0.037) significantly reduced food intake during treatment, and the minimum daily doses that produced a significant effect were 0.5 µg and 100 mg/kg, respectively. The minimum daily dose of oestradiol that produced a significant effect on food intake was not associated with changes in vaginal cytology over the 5-day treatment period. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Gonadal oestradiol appeared to be a key modulator of food intake in both male and female cats, and replacement of oestrogen to neutered cats via oestradiol or an oestrogen surrogate such as genistein has potential for reducing the prevalence of obesity in neutered cats.
Using Certificate-based Binding Update Protocol to Hide the Movement of Mobile Nodes in MIPv6

When a mobile node roams, its location information can be revealed from the IP prefix information of its care-of address. This paper proposes a technique for hiding a mobile node's care-of address from its correspondent node and its home address from an eavesdropper using reverse tunneling mode. In the protocol, any two real addresses regarding route optimization will never be included in a traffic packet. Hence the movement of mobile node can be hidden from third party monitoring
arly detection of crop injury from herbicide glyphosate by leaf iochemical parameter inversion

Early detection of crop injury from herbicide glyphosate is of significant importance in crop management. In this paper, we attempt to detect glyphosate-induced crop injury by PROSPECT (leaf optical PROperty SPECTra model) inversion through leaf hyperspectral reflectance measurements for non-GlyphosateResistant (non-GR) soybean and non-GR cotton leaves. The PROSPECT model was inverted to retrieve chlorophyll content (Ca+b), equivalent water thickness (Cw), and leaf mass per area (Cm) from leaf hyperspectral reflectance spectra. The leaf stress conditions were then evaluated by examining the temporal variations of these biochemical constituents after glyphosate treatment. The approach was validated with greenhouse-measured datasets. Results indicated that the leaf injury caused by glyphosate treatments could be detected shortly after the spraying for both soybean and cotton by PROSPECT inversion, with Ca+b of the leaves treated with high dose solution decreasing more rapidly compared with leaves left untreated, whereas the Cw and Cm showed no obvious difference between treated and untreated leaves. For both non-GR soybean and non-GR cotton, the retrieved Ca+b values of the glyphosate treated plants from leaf hyperspectral data could be distinguished from that of the untreated plants within 48 h after the treatment, which could be employed as a useful indicator for glyphosate injury detection. These findings demonstrate the feasibility of applying the PROSPECT inversion technique for the early detection of leaf injury from glyphosate and its potential for agricultural plant status monitoring. © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Human Cytomegalovirus Inhibits Differentiation of Monocytes into Dendritic Cells with the Consequence of Depressed Immunological Functions

ABSTRACT Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infections in immunocompromised patients are associated with impaired immunological functions. Blood monocytes, which can differentiate into dendritic cells upon cytokine stimulation, play a central role in adequate immune reactivity and are believed to carry latent HCMV. We demonstrate here that HCMV infection of monocytes results in a block in the cytokine-induced differentiation of monocytes into functionally active CD1a-positive dendritic cells, which exhibited severely depressed immunological functions in vitro. The HCMV-infected cells exhibited a significantly reduced ability to endocytose fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled dextran particles as well as a more than 90% reduced ability to migrate in response to the chemoattractant factors RANTES, MIP-1α, and MIP-3β. Interestingly, HCMV-infected cells expressed high levels of the costimulatory molecule CD86, in contrast to the low levels of expression that was observed on uninfected monocytes and uninfected immature dendritic cells. Furthermore, HCMV-infected CD1a-negative cells were unable to induce a T-cell response. Thus, these observations suggest that HCMV infection of monocytes in vitro blocks cytokine-induced dendritic cell differentiation, and since dendritic cells play a central role in initiating immune responses, these findings suggest a powerful tactic to avoid immune recognition and to blunt the immune response at early phases of infection.
Angiogenesis in cutaneous melanoma: Pathogenesis and clinical implications

Neovacularization is an essential step in the multistage progression of malignant melanoma. The onset of new blood vessel formation is ushered in by the release of VEGF and numerous other angiogenic molecules by the tumor cells. Human melanoma is unique among neoplasms that both avascular (early horizontal growth phase characterized by very slow progression and 99%, 10‐year survival) and vascular (late radial and vertical growth phase associated with rapid growth, metastasis and death in many cases), phases are discernible by the naked eye. Although cell biologists have made great strides in unraveling the mechanisms involved in the laying down of tumor vasculature and the factors that inhibit it, clinicians treating melanoma have been rather slow to realize and utilize the full potential of suppressing the tumor blood flow to the best advantage of the patient. We suggest a consorted endeavor by all the melanoma experts across the globe to establish an “angiogenesis database” wherein they pool the blood flow and vascularity information along with Breslow's thickness, Clark's level of invasion, lymphatic and vascular invasion, regression, and outcome of their patients. Microsc. Res. Tech. 60:208–224, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
THE EFFECT OF LASER IRRADIATION ON THE RELEASE OF bFGF FROM 3T3 FIBROBLASTS

Studies have shown that low‐level laser irradiation increases the proliferation of fibroblasts in cell culture. The mechanism of action is unknown. Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) is a multifunctional polypeptide that has been detected in most tissues and which supports cell proliferation and differentiation. The purpose of this study was to determine whether laser irradiation (660 nm) can stimulate production of bFGF from fibroblast cells in cell culture. Our study showed that fibroblasts irradiated with laser energy at 2.16 J/cm2 demonstrated increased cell proliferation and enhanced production of bFGF, whereas fibroblasts irradiated with laser energy at 3.24 J/cm2 neither demonstrated increased cell proliferation or an enhanced release of bFGF as compared to the control group. These results provide direct evidence that the proliferation of fibroblasts as a result of stimulation by low level laser irradiation may be associated with the autocrine production of bFGF from fibroblasts.
Thrombo-embolic prevention after transcatheter aortic valve implantation

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) has emerged as a valuable treatment alternative to surgical aortic valve replacement among patients with symptomatic aortic stenosis at increased surgical risk. The rapid technological evolution from early to current-generation TAVI systems with low-profile delivery catheters, bioprosthetic valves with proven midterm durability, and improved positioning and retrieval features have made important contributions to the widespread clinical use of this minimal invasive therapy. Although peri-procedural and long-term thrombotic and bleeding events after TAVI remain a relevant concern, the optimal antithrombotic strategy and duration to mitigate these risks remain unclear. This review provides an overview of recent insights in this field, and highlights current and future antithrombotic trials focusing on optimizing outcomes in patients undergoing TAVI.