Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Spontaneous Radiative Efficiency and Gain Characteristics of Strained-Layer InGaAs–GaAs Quantum-Well Lasers

The optical gain spectra, unamplified spontaneous emission spectra, and spontaneous radiative efficiency are extracted from the measurement of amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) on a single pass, segmented contact 0.98-mum-emitting aluminum-free InGaAs-InGaAsP-GaAs quantum-well (QW) laser diode. These measurements provide a baseline for which to compare higher strain InGaAs QW lasers emitting near 1.2 mum. The peak gain-current relationship is extracted from gain spectra and the peak gain parameter go is found to agree within 25% of the value extracted using conventional cavity length analysis for 0.98-mum-emitting devices. The spontaneous radiative current is extracted using the fundamental connection between gain and unamplified spontaneous emission, which in turn gives an estimate of the amount of nonradiative recombination in this material system. The spontaneous radiative efficiency, the ratio of spontaneous radiative current to total current, at room temperature of 0.98-mum-emitting InGaAs QW laser material is found to be in the range of 40%-54%, which is 2.5-3.5 times larger than that of highly strained InGaAs QW laser emitting near lambda = 1.2 mum. Whereas the gain parameter, g0 = dg/d(ln j), was measured to be 1130 and 1585 cm-1 for the 0.98-mum- and 1.2-mum-emitting materials, respectively. From the calculated below threshold current injection efficiency of 75%-85%, we deduce that the internal radiative efficiency of the QW material is ~ 20% higher than the ratio of internal radiative current to external injected current extracted directly from ASE measurements.
An efficient formulation and parameter selection for multiple image super-resolution

Enhancing the resolution of an image using the data available from multiple low-resolution images is termed as multiple image super-resolution. It is an ill-posed, inverse problem, the mathematical model of which takes the form of standard image reconstruction problem. The standard mathematical model of the imaging system involves matrix based operators for various effects that the scene undergoes in the process of imaging. The super-resolution problem formulation using this model has intensive storage and processing requirements. We propose an alternative approach to tackle the problem of super-resolution, wherein we view the image not as a vector to be estimated, but as a collection of pixel values on which the operators of the imaging system work. We show that this perspective eliminates the need for large storage requirements and processing times. We also propose a technique to automate the selection of the regularization parameter when the available low-resolution images are free of noise. We observe that this technique is intuitive and follows the variation of the true mean squared error with the regularization parameter.
Critical multiple angiogenic factors secreted by glioblastoma stem‐like cells underline the need for combinatorial anti‐angiogenic therapeutic strategies

Glioblastomas are the most frequent adult primary brain tumors that still remain fatal despite major clinical efforts. As in other solid tumors, populations of glioblastoma stem‐like cells (GSCs) endowed with tumor initiating and therapeutic resistance properties have been identified. Glioblastomas are highly vascularized tumors resulting in a rich dialog between GSCs and endothelial cells. In one direction, endothelial cells and their secreted proteins are able to sustain GSC properties while, in turn, GSCs can promote neoangiogenesis, modulate endothelial cell functions and may even transdifferentiate into endothelial cells. Accordingly, targeting tumor vasculature seems a promising issue despite incomplete and transient results obtained from anti‐vascular endothelial growth factor therapeutic trials. Recent findings of novel GSC‐secreted molecules with pro‐angiogenic properties (Semaphorin 3A, hepatoma‐derived growth factor) open the path to the design of a concerted attack of glioblastoma vasculature that could overcome the development of resistance to single‐targeted therapies while keeping away the toxicity of the treatments.
The Allostery Model of TCR Regulation

The activity of the αβ TCR is controlled by conformational switches. In the resting conformation, the TCR is not phosphorylated and is inactive. Binding of multivalent peptide-MHC to the TCR stabilizes the active conformation, leading to TCR signaling. These two conformations allow the TCRs to be allosterically regulated. We review recent data on heterotropic allostery where peptide-MHC and membrane cholesterol serve opposing functions as positive and negative allosteric regulators, respectively. In resting T cells cholesterol keeps TCRs in the resting conformation that otherwise would become spontaneously active. This regulation is well described by the classical Monod-Wyman-Changeux model of allostery. Moreover, the observation that TCRs assemble into nanoclusters might allow for homotropic allostery, in which individual TCRs could positively cooperate and thus enhance the sensitivity of T cell activation. This new view of TCR regulation will contribute to a better understanding of TCR functioning.
Ultrastructural analysis of dynorphin B–immunoreactive cells and terminals in the superficial dorsal horn of the deafferented spinal cord of the rat

Light microscopic studies have demonstrated important differences in the distribution of enkephalin and dynorphin cells and terminals in the dorsal horn. Most importantly, dynorphin neurons are located in regions almost exclusively associated with the transmission and/or control of nociceptive messages (laminae I, IIo, and V); enkephalin neurons, although located in the same regions, are also found in areas involved in the transmission of nonnociceptive messages, e.g., laminae IIi and III. To determine whether there are also differences in the synaptic organization of the two opioid peptides, we have examined the distribution of dynorphin B immunoreactivity at the ultrastructural level. The studies were performed in colchicine‐treated rats that underwent dorsal rhizotomy so that the relationship of dynorphin terminals and cells to primary afferent terminals could be established.
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis: prognostic value of changes in physiology and six-minute-walk test.

RATIONALE AND HYPOTHESIS Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is a fatal disease with a variable rate of progression. We hypothesized that changes in distance walked and quantity of desaturation during a six-minute-walk test (6MWT) would add prognostic information to changes in FVC or diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide. METHODS One hundred ninety-seven patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis were evaluated. Desaturation during the 6MWT was associated with increased mortality even if a threshold of 88% was not reached. Baseline walk distance predicted subsequent walk distance but was not a reliable predictor of subsequent mortality in multivariate survival models. The predictive ability of serial changes in physiology varied when patients were stratified by the presence/absence of desaturation < or = 88% during a baseline 6MWT. For patients with a baseline saturation < or = 88% during a 6MWT, the strongest observed predictor of mortality was serial change in diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide. For patients with saturation > 88% during their baseline walk test, serial decreases in FVC and increases in desaturation area significantly predicted subsequent mortality, whereas decreases in walk distance and in diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide displayed less consistent statistical evidence of increasing mortality in our patients. CONCLUSION These data highlight the importance of stratifying patients by degree of desaturation during a 6MWT before attributing prognostic value to serial changes in other physiologic variables.
Detection of respiratory syncytial virus antigen in nasal washings by Abbott TestPack enzyme immunoassay

We compared the new Abbott TestPack (TP) respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) enzyme immunoassay (EIA) with cell culture and two commercial RSV EIAs (from Abbott Diagnostics and Kallestad Laboratories) by using split samples of fresh nasal washings from children with suspected RSV disease. Two tubes of HEp-2 cells were inoculated and observed for cytopathic effect for 14 days, and isolates were confirmed by immunofluorescence. The TP EIA was performed by following the manufacturer's instructions. Specimens positive by TP EIA but negative by culture were examined in a competitive inhibition (blocking) assay using the TP EIA, and rabbit anti-RSV serum. Of 218 specimens, 93 were positive by culture, 105 were positive by TP EIA, 80 were positive by the Abbott Diagnostics EIA, and 87 were positive by the Kallestad Laboratories EIA. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of the TP EIA were 92, 86, 81, and 93%, respectively. Of 20 apparently false-positive TP EIAs, 10 of 14 that were positive when retested were neutralized in the blocking assay, indicating that they were truly positive. The recalculated sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of the TP EIA were 92, 91, 90, and 93%, respectively. We conclude that the TP EIA is easy to perform, rapid (less than 0.5 h), and accurate.
Reliability of ultrasound estimation of fetal weight in term singleton pregnancies.

AIM To assess the reliability of ultrasound estimation of fetal weight undertaken antenatally at Wellington Hospital (Wellington City, New Zealand) in women with a singleton pregnancy = or >37 weeks gestation. METHOD Data were collected retrospectively for pregnant women who had undergone ultrasound estimation of fetal weight <7 days prior to a term delivery (= or >37 weeks gestation) over the period of July 1998-June 2005. Stillbirths and multiple pregnancies were excluded. Ultrasound fetal weight estimations, calculated using a locally modified Woo formula, were compared with the infant's actual birth weight. RESULTS A total of 1177 infants were studied. The mean absolute error and mean signed error (+/-SD) of ultrasound fetal weight estimations were 7.0+/-5.7% and -0.2+/-9.0%, respectively (n=1177). Three-quarters of estimations were within 10% of birth weight. Ultrasonic estimation of fetal weight tended to overestimate the weight of small infants (<2500 g; mean signed error = +3.5%+/-9.1%, n=98) and underestimate the weight of large infants (= or >4000 g; mean signed error = -3.3+/-8.7%, n=170). Both large and normal weight infants of women with diabetes tended to have their weight underestimated (mean signed error = -5.1+/-9.2%, n=48). Sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value for ultrasonic detection of fetal weight = or >4000 g in non-diabetic women were 61%, 96%, 69%, and 94%, respectively. For detection of fetal weight = or >4500, the figures were 50%, 98%, 47%, and 98%, respectively. CONCLUSION The accuracy of ultrasound estimations of fetal weight performed at Wellington Hospital within 7 days of delivery in term singleton pregnancies was at least similar and sometimes better than that reported in other studies. For one in four women, however, the fetal weight estimation was more than 10% different from the actual birth weight of their infant. Ultrasound measurements had a tendency to overestimate the weight of small infants while underestimating the weight of both large infants and the infants of diabetic mothers. As the reliability of ultrasound estimation of fetal weight to detect larger babies was poor, the use of such an objective measurement in the management of suspected macrosomia in term singleton pregnancies should be avoided.
Effect of Oral Pre-Meal Administration of Betaglucans on Glycaemic Control and Variability in Subjects with Type 1 Diabetes

We conducted a double-blind placebo-controlled crossover pilot study to investigate the effect of oat betaglucans (β-glucan) on glycaemic control and variability in adults with type 1 diabetes (T1D; n = 14). Stomacol® tablets (1.53 g of β-glucan) or placebo (Plac) were administered three times daily before meals for two weeks. Glucose levels were monitored during the second week by continuous glucose monitoring (CGM). There was an increase in basic measures of glycaemic control (maximal glucose value 341 ± 15 vs. 378 ± 13 mg/dL for Plac and β-glucan, p = 0.004), and average daily risk range (62 ± 5 vs. 79 ± 4 mg/dL for Plac and β-glucan, p = 0.003) favouring Plac over β-glucan, but no increase in the M-value (the weighted average of the glucose values) or other more complex measures. Basic measures of glucose variability were also slightly increased during β-glucan treatment, with no difference in more complex measures. However, glycaemic variability increased between the first and last two CGM days on Plac, but remained unchanged on β-glucan. In conclusion, in this pilot study we were unable to demonstrate a general positive effect of β-glucan before meals on glucose control or variability in T1D.
Can the chronic fatigue syndrome be defined by distinct clinical features?

SYNOPSIS To determine whether patients diagnosed as having chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) constitute a clinically homogeneous class, multivariate statistical analyses were used to derive symptom patterns and potential patient subclasses in 565 patients. The notion that patients currently diagnosed as having CFS constitute a single homogeneous class was rejected. An alternative set of clinical subgroups was derived. The validity of these subgroups was assessed by sociodemographic, psychiatric, immunological and illness behaviour variables. A two-class statistical solution was considered most coherent, with patients from the smaller class (27% of the sample) having clinical characteristics suggestive of somatoform disorders. The larger class (73% of sample) presented a more limited combination of fatigue and neuropsychological symptoms, and only moderate disability but remained heterogeneous clinically. The two patient groups differed with regard to duration of illness, spontaneous recovery, severity of current psychological morbidity, utilization of medical services and CD8 T cell subset counts. The distribution of symptoms among patients was not unimodal, supporting the notion that differences between the proposed subclasses were not due simply to differences in symptom severity. This study demonstrated clinical heterogeneity among patients currently diagnosed as CFS, suggesting aetiological heterogeneity. In the absence of discriminative clinical features, current consensus criteria do not necessarily reduce the heterogeneity of patients recruited to CFS research studies.
Public health and obesity prevention campaigns – a case study and critical discussion

ABSTRACT Social marketing campaigns play a key role in responses to obesity. We examine a recent Australian obesity prevention campaign as a case study to explore public health values, and in particular consider the implications of the use of fear, risk, stigma, disgust, and personal responsibility in such campaigns. We examine the broader implications of such campaigns as forms of social control that promote certain images of body weight while problematising other body types. We consider the intended and unintended consequences of these campaigns. Responses to obesity are influenced by the political environment. The intended and unintended consequences and the political environment should be considered in the development of alternative models.
Auditing electroconvulsive therapy

Background This is the third large-scale audit in the past 20 years and compares the practice of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in England and Wales with the standards derived from the Royal College of Psychiatrists' 2nd ECT handbook. Method Facilities, equipment, practice, personnel and training were systematically evaluated during visits to all ECT clinics in the former North East Thames and East Anglia regions and Wales. All other English ECT clinics were surveyed with a postal questionnaire. Information was obtained for 184 (84%) of the 220 ECT clinics identified. Results Although some aspects of ECT administration had improved since the last audit in 1991, overall only one-third of clinics were rated as meeting College standards. Only 16% of responsible consultants attended their ECT clinic weekly and only 6% had sessional time for ECT duties. Fifty-nine per cent of all clinics had machines of the type recommended by the College and 7% were still using machines considered outdated in 1989. Only about one-third of clinics had clear policies to help guide junior doctors to administer ECT effectively. Conclusions Twenty years of activity by the Royal College of Psychiatrists and three large-scale audits have been associated with only modest improvement in local practice.
Importance of penicillinase production for activity of penicillin alone or in combination with sulbactam in experimental endocarditis due to methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus

The activity of penicillin, alone and in combination with sulbactam, against a heterogeneously methicillin-resistant, penicillinase-producing clinical isolate of Staphylococcus aureus and its penicillinase-negative derivative was investigated in vitro and in a rabbit experimental endocarditis model. Penicillin was significantly more effective than vancomycin against the penicillinase-negative derivative in vivo (P < 0.001), and it sterilized 25% of the vegetations. The combination of penicillin and sulbactam exhibited an in vivo synergistic effect on the penicillinase-producing strain (P < 0.01) but did not produce any advantage over treatment with vancomycin, even when a high dose of sulbactam was used (100 mg/kg of body weight every 6 h). This combination was significantly less effective against the penicillinase-producing strain than was penicillin alone against the penicillinase-negative derivative (P < 0.03). In addition, the most resistant subpopulation of the surviving bacteria, which grew on agar containing 16 micrograms of methicillin per ml, was detected in 5 of 6 animals treated with penicillin and a high dose of sulbactam against the penicillinase-producing strain compared with only 1 of 12 animals treated with penicillin alone against the penicillinase-negative derivative (P < 0.01). We conclude that penicillin is highly effective against penicillinase-negative methicillin-resistant S. aureus and that penicillinase production, rather than methicillin resistance, appears to be the limiting factor for the activity of the penicillin-sulbactam combination against penicillinase-producing, methicillin-resistant S. aureus.
Charging Ahead: The Growth and Regulation of Payment Card Markets

While such a partnership could provide corporations with legitimacy to pursue certain poverty-reducing efforts in a collaborative environment, the potential benefits to formalizing and centralizing corporate influence within the UN bureaucracy are unconvincing. In the same way that Jeffrey Sachs' ideas of "clinical economics" which the authors laud has been criticized for overambitious goals and unfulfilled promises, the WDC as presented is prone to fall victim to the same good intentions. Another approach would be to encourage profitable pursuits that open up the enormous markets of developing countries, creating mutually beneficial relationships among governments, corporations, and developing populations. Lodge and Wilson intend for this book "to help the managers of the world's multinational corporations understand and better deal with the threats to their legitimacy" (p. 1). While they do a superb job surveying the landscape of international business legitimacy, they leave the corporate reader wont of any specific recommendations of ways to use the commercial wealth-creation machine for the benefit of the global poor.
Discrimination of unilocular macrocystic serous cystadenoma from pancreatic pseudocyst and mucinous cystadenoma with CT: initial observations.

PURPOSE To compare the computed tomographic (CT) appearance of pancreatic unilocular macrocystic serous cystadenoma, mucinous cystadenoma, and pseudocyst to determine if there are findings that assist in the differential diagnosis. MATERIALS AND METHODS CT findings in 33 patients (24 women, nine men; age range, 18-84 years; mean age, 41 years) with unilocular pancreatic lesions (macrocystic serous cystadenoma, n = 12; mucinous cystadenoma, n = 11; pseudocyst, n = 10) were retrospectively and jointly reviewed by two blinded observers. Twenty-three patients underwent helical CT, which included pancreatic and portal venous phase imaging with delays of 40 seconds and 65 seconds, respectively, after contrast material injection. Ten patients underwent conventional (nonhelical) CT. The number, size, location, and contour of lesions were reviewed, along with wall thickness and enhancement and other signs of pancreatic and peripancreatic involvement. Diagnosis was based on lesion resection (n = 22) or on a combination of cytologic findings, biochemical markers, and tumor markers (n = 11). The Fisher exact test was used to analyze the results. RESULTS Three of four CT findings were independently specific for macrocystic serous cystadenoma: location in the pancreatic head, lobulated contour, and absence of wall enhancement. When two of these four criteria were used in combination, 83% (10 of 12) of patients with unilocular macrocystic serous cystadenoma were identified. When three or four of these criteria were used, a specificity of 100% was achieved. Location in the pancreatic head (P <.05), lobulated contour (P <.005), and lack of wall enhancement (P <.005) were specific for macrocystic serous cystadenoma in comparison with mucinous cystic tumor. Lobulated contours (P <.005) were specific for macrocystic serous cystadenoma in comparison with pseudocyst. Other CT findings were not helpful in distinguishing between the three types of lesions. CONCLUSION A combination of CT findings is helpful in making the diagnosis of pancreatic unilocular macrocystic serous cystadenoma.
Characterization of the unfolded state of repeat proteins

The unfolded state ensemble of proteins has been described as a structurally featureless state. While this approach is supported by the fact that many unfolded proteins follow the scaling law behavior of a random coil, there is evidence that the unfolded states of various proteins are stabilized by native or non‐native interactions. Recently, the existence of extensive non‐native structure was reported for a repeat protein, which resulted in a scaling law exponent that is significantly smaller than that of a random polymer [Cortajarena et al., J. Mol. Biol. 382(1), 203–212 (2008)]. It was concluded that the high compactness of this protein stems from a significant fraction of interacting PPII helical segments in the unfolded state. In this study, we aim at providing possible molecular understanding of this anomalous compactness of the unfolded state and to investigate its origin. Using a hierarchy of computational models, we ask whether in general the unfolded state of a repeat protein is likely to be intrinsically more compact than the unfolded state of globular proteins, or whether this phenomenon depends mostly on the occurrence of a specific sequence that promotes PPII conformations. Our results suggest that the formation of the PPII conformation is indeed essential, yet the recurring sequence of repeat proteins promotes the interactions between these PPII segments and the formation of non‐native interactions in the unfolded state.