Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Anaesthesia and the QT interval in humans

Prolongation of the QT interval may cause potentially hazardous arrhythmias. The effects on the QT interval (QTc, corrected for heart rate) of isoflurane and halothane followed by vecuronium have been investigated during induction of anaesthesia in 51 patients. All patients were ASA 1 or 2, without cardiovascular problems or electrolyte abnormalities and were not receiving medication. Midazolam 0.08mg. kg‐1 was administered intramuscularly for premedication. Anaesthesia was induced with either isoflurane (n = 26) or halothane (n = 25), and the inspired concentration increased to reach an end‐tidal concentration of 2.5% to 3%. Recordings of ECG, heart rate, systolic and diastolic arterial pressure were obtained at the following times: prior to induction of anaesthesia; 1 min and 3 min after a stable end‐tidal concentration had been reached; 1 min and 3 min following vecuronium administration, at the time of tracheal intubation and 1 min and 3 min later. Halothane significantly shortened QTc (p < 0.05 to p < 0.001), in contrast to isoflurane which prolonged it (p < 0.01). The heart rate decreased (p < 0.01 to p< 0.001) after induction of anaesthesia with halothane and returned to pre‐induction values after tracheal intubation. In contrast, heart rate increased after induction with isoflurane and increased further after laryngoscopy and tracheal intubation (p < 0.001). In the isoflurane group, ST depression was noticed in seven patients and nodal rhythm in two, while in the halothane group seven patients developed nodal rhythm and, in two patients, ventricular ectopics were recorded. There were no sequelae. In both groups, systolic and diastolic arterial pressure decreased after induction of anaesthesia (p < 0.01 to p < 0.001), increasing again after intubation.
Screening carotid sonography before elective coronary artery bypass graft surgery: who needs it.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to determine whether selection criteria for performing carotid sonographic screening before elective coronary artery bypass graft surgery can decrease the number of negative examinations without overlooking patients with significant carotid disease. SUBJECTS AND METHODS A history of peripheral vascular disease, a prior cerebrovascular event, smoking, diabetes, hypertension, cervical carotid disease, left main coronary disease, and patient sex were criteria prospectively gathered for 295 consecutive patients undergoing screening carotid sonography before elective coronary artery bypass surgery. Logistic regression modeling was used to determine if any single criterion or combination of criteria could be applied to decrease the number of screening examinations without sacrificing detection of significant (> or = 50% cross-sectional narrowing) carotid stenosis. RESULTS Smoking, diabetes, hypertension, a previous cerebrovascular event, peripheral vascular disease, left main coronary artery disease, and a history of cervical carotid disease were associated with significant carotid disease (chi-square test) in our subject population. Logistic modeling showed that the probability of detecting significant carotid disease increases 2.98 times for each additional selection criterion present. Possessing at least one selection criterion would still yield 100% examination sensitivity while increasing specificity to 30.0%. CONCLUSION Selection criteria should be applied when choosing patients for carotid sonographic screening before elective coronary artery bypass surgery. This approach would decrease the number of noncontributory examinations but would have little effect on the detection of significant carotid stenosis in this target population.
Cross-linking in collagen and elastin.

PERSPECTIVES AND SUMMARy 717 LYSYL OXIDASE 719 COLLAGEN 720 Allysine and Hydroxyallysine Pathways 720 Hydroxypyridinium Residues. 724 Molecular Sites 730 Basement Membranes 733 Methods oj Analysis 734 Alternative M echanisms . 734
Self-supervised Neural Architecture Search

Neural Architecture Search (NAS) has been used recently to achieve improved performance in various tasks and most prominently in image classification. Yet, current search strategies rely on large labeled datasets, which limit their usage in the case where only a smaller fraction of the data is annotated. Self-supervised learning has shown great promise in training neural networks using unlabeled data. In this work, we propose a self-supervised neural architecture search (SSNAS) that allows finding novel network models without the need for labeled data. We show that such a search leads to comparable results to supervised training with a "fully labeled" NAS and that it can improve the performance of self-supervised learning. Moreover, we demonstrate the advantage of the proposed approach when the number of labels in the search is relatively small.
Improved Preterm Prediction Based on Optimized Synthetic Sampling of EHG Signal

Preterm labor is the leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality and has attracted research efforts from many scientific areas. The inter-relationship between uterine contraction and the underlying electrical activities makes uterine electrohysterogram (EHG) a promising direction for preterm detection and prediction. Due the scarcity of EHG signals, especially those of preterm patients, synthetic algorithms are applied to create artificial samples of preterm type in order to remove prediction bias towards term, at the expense of a reduction of the feature effectiveness in machine-learning based automatic preterm detecting. To address such problem, we quantify the effect of synthetic samples (balance coefficient) on features' effectiveness, and form a general performance metric by utilizing multiple feature scores with relevant weights that describe their contributions to class separation. Combined with the activation/inactivation functions that characterizes the effect of the abundance of training samples in term and preterm prediction precision, we obtain an optimal sample balance coefficient that compromise the effect of synthetic samples in removing bias towards the majority and the side-effect of reducing features' importance. Substantial improvement in prediction precision has been achieved through a set of numerical tests on public available TPEHG database, and it verifies the effectiveness of the proposed method.
Combined sequence and sequence-structure-based methods for analyzing RAAS gene SNPs: a computational approach

Abstract The renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system (RAAS) plays a key role in the regulation of blood pressure (BP). Mutations on the genes that encode components of the RAAS have played a significant role in genetic susceptibility to hypertension and have been intensively scrutinized. The identification of such probably causal mutations not only provides insight into the RAAS but may also serve as antihypertensive therapeutic targets and diagnostic markers. The methods for analyzing the SNPs from the huge dataset of SNPs, containing both functional and neutral SNPs is challenging by the experimental approach on every SNPs to determine their biological significance. To explore the functional significance of genetic mutation (SNPs), we adopted combined sequence and sequence-structure-based SNP analysis algorithm. Out of 3864 SNPs reported in dbSNP, we found 108 missense SNPs in the coding region and remaining in the non-coding region. In this study, we are reporting only those SNPs in coding region to be deleterious when three or more tools are predicted to be deleterious and which have high RMSD from the native structure. Based on these analyses, we have identified two SNPs of REN gene, eight SNPs of AGT gene, three SNPs of ACE gene, two SNPs of AT1R gene, three SNPs of CYP11B2 gene and three SNPs of CMA1 gene in the coding region were found to be deleterious. Further this type of study will be helpful in reducing the cost and time for identification of potential SNP and also helpful in selecting potential SNP for experimental study out of SNP pool.
Audio computer assisted interviewing to measure HIV risk behaviours in a clinic population

Objectives: To examine whether audio computer assisted survey interviewing (ACASI) influenced responses to sensitive HIV risk behaviour questions, relative to interviewer administration of those questions (IAQ), among patients attending a sexually transmitted infection (STI) clinic and whether the impact of interview mode on reporting of risk behaviours was homogeneous across subgroups of patients (defined by age, sex, and previous STI clinic experience). Methods: 1350 clinic patients were assigned to complete a detailed behavioural survey on sexual risk practices, previous STIs and symptoms, condom use, and drug and alcohol use using either ACASI or IAQ. Results: Respondents assigned to ACASI were more likely to report recent risk behaviours such as sex without a condom in the past 24 hours (adjusted OR = 1.9), anal sex (adjusted OR = 2.0), and one or more new partners in the past 6 months (adjusted OR = 1.5) compared to those interviewed by IAQ. The impact of ACASI varied by sex but, contrary to expectations, not by whether the patient had previously visited an STI clinic. Mode of survey administration made little difference within this population in reports of STI knowledge, previous STIs, STI symptoms, or illicit drug use. Conclusion: ACASI provides a useful tool for improving the quality of behavioural data in clinical environments.
Moving to Restoration: The Experiences of Women Exiting Sex Trafficking

ABSTRACT In this article, we use qualitative interviews to learn from three sex-trafficking survivors how service providers can better help female victims of domestic sex trafficking with restoration and recovery, along with how to better identify female victims of sex trafficking and their needs. In this article, participants are referred to as survivors of sex trafficking because they are no longer being trafficked, and individuals who are currently being trafficked are referred to as victims of sex trafficking. Participants reported that therapy, having financial assistance and services provided at no cost, services that focused on rehabilitation to a more independent living and social support were services identified as most helpful for rehabilitation. Participants also discussed barriers to and resources that helped them exit sex trafficking. Implications for future research and for providers are offered.
Relevance of Transient Ischemic Attack to Early Neurological Recovery after Nonlacunar Ischemic Stroke

Background: We hypothesized that previous transient ischemic attack (TIA) had a favorable effect on early outcome after acute nonlacunar ischemic stroke. Methods: Data of 1,753 consecutive patients with ischemic stroke collected from a prospective hospital-based stroke registry were studied. A comparison was made of the groups with and without previous TIA. Favorable outcome included spontaneous neurological recovery or grades 0–2 of the modified Rankin scale at hospital discharge. Results: Previous TIA occurred in 55 (11.5%) of 484 patients with lacunar stroke and in 166 (13.1%) of 1,269 patients with nonlacunar stroke. The percentage of nonlacunar ischemic stroke patients with favorable outcome was 21.7% in those with a history of TIA compared to 15% without TIA (p < 0.03). In the lacunar stroke group, differences were not significant. In the multivariate analysis, TIA was an independent predictor of spontaneous in-hospital recovery. Conclusions: Prior TIA was associated with a favorable outcome in nonlacunar ischemic stroke, suggesting a neuroprotective effect of TIA possibly by inducing a phenomenon of ischemic tolerance allowing better recovery from a subsequent ischemic stroke.
Autonomous viewing and guidance for mobile pin welding inside a ship block

This paper describes a lightweight and low cost approach to viewing and guidance of a mobile manipulator for pin welding. Currently, this is an arduous manual task necessary for outfitting the interior of ship blocks. An embarked vision system has been developed that senses the bulkhead, identifies stiffener positions and windows, and decides on stud distribution. As a result, the 3D coordinates for the pins to weld are delivered to the arm controller. The developed system has been tested in laboratory trials using a real-scale sample of bulkhead, showing a good performance in terms of robustness to visual clutter and stud positioning accuracy.
A new method for power measurements in digital wireless communication systems

The paper arises from authors' will to overcome some of the limits that currently available instruments exhibit in performance testing of digital wireless communication systems and apparatus. Repeatability problems, usually accompanied by low accuracy, are, in fact, often experienced in power measurements, especially in those involving spread spectrum signals and requiring an integration process over a specified frequency range. Due to this concern, a new method for power measurements in digital wireless communication systems is presented. The method applies original and straightforward digital signal-processing algorithms to the input signal power spectrum, preliminarily provided by optimized versions of well-known estimators, such as those based on weighted overlapped segment averaging (WOSA) and multitaper approaches. The results of many experiments, conducted on spread spectrum signals typical of third generation telecommunication systems, confirm the efficacy of the proposed method in assuring reliable and accurate results in various types of power measurement.
Exaggerated Interventricular Dependence Among Patients With Pectus Excavatum: Combined Assessment With Cardiac MRI and Chest CT.

OBJECTIVE We sought to explore whether patients with pectus excavatum have exaggerated interventricular dependence and to evaluate the impact of the malformation severity (assessed on CT) on both anatomic and functional cardiac parameters (assessed on cardiac MRI). SUBJECTS AND METHODS The current study involved consecutive patients with a diagnosis of pectus excavatum who were referred to undergo cardiac MRI and chest CT to establish surgical candidacy or to define treatment strategies. RESULTS Sixty-two patients with pectus excavatum underwent cardiac MRI and chest CT. Fifty (81%) patients were male, and the median age was 17.5 years (range, 14.0-23.0 years). Forty-seven (76%) patients had evidence of right ventricular compression. The left ventricle showed a significantly decreased end-diastolic volume (inspiration vs expiration: 70.4 ± 11.6 vs 76.1 ± 13.7 mL/m2, respectively; p = 0.01) and a significantly higher eccentricity index (1.52 ± 0.2 vs 1.20 ± 0.1, p < 0.0001) during inspiration than during expiration. The median respiratory-related septal excursion was 8.1% (interquartile range, 5.1-11.7%). Patients with pericardial effusion showed a significantly higher pectus excavatum severity index than patients without pericardial effusion (6.3 ± 3.4 vs 4.4 ± 1.3, respectively; p = 0.003). Patients with a relative septal excursion equal to or larger than 11.8% showed a significantly higher pectus excavatum severity index than patients with a relative septal excursion of less than 11.8% (6.3 ± 2.6 vs 4.7 ± 2.4, respectively; p = 0.05). CONCLUSION In this study, patients with pectus excavatum showed significant alterations of cardiac morphology and function that were related to the deformation severity and that manifest as an exaggerated interventricular dependence.
Multi-physics modeling of LED-based luminaires under temperature and humidity environment

The purpose of this work is to conduct the multi-physics simulation analysis of LED-based luminaires under certain temperature and humidity environment, and to find out the vulnerable spot of the luminaire. The coupled modeling of LED luminaire during step stress accelerated test (SSAT) is simulated by ANSYS. Five types of modeling, i.e. thermal and thermo-mechanical modeling, moisture diffusion and hygro-mechanical modeling, and thermo-mechanical-moisture modeling, at various temperature level of temperature 45°C, 85°C and 95°C, and 60% relative humidity are performed by multi-physics approach which using finite element method combined with additional user subroutines. Then, the effect of thermal expansion, hygroscopic swelling and delamination on the luminaire is predicted. Finally, SSAT is carried out to accelerate aging of LED bulbs, and the failure modes are found out. It is shown that the simulation results agree with vulnerable spot well from the test, which indicates that the multi-physics approach can be used for simulating the condition of LED-based luminaire in real and predicting the failure modes.
[Epidemiologic description of amyloidosis diagnosed at the University Hospital of Rennes from 1995 to 1999].

INTRODUCTION The frequency of amyloidosis is not well known in France. We compiled a register of amyloidosis diagnosed from 1995 to 1999 in the University Hospital of Rennes. PATIENTS AND METHODS This retrospective study was performed between 01 January 1995 and 31 december 1999. Diagnosis was assessed on positivity of red Congo by anatomopathology. Immunohistochemistry allowed the definition the type of amyloidosis. Clinical data, staging and outcome of patients were analysed. RESULTS Forty-three amyloidosis were diagnosed (27 women, 16 men) with an incidence of 8,6 new cases per year. Mean age was 63.7 years. Five diagnosis were realised in 1995, six in 1996, six in 1997, 12 in 1998, 14 in 1999. Twenty amyloidosis were AL type (46.5%), seven AA (16.3%), 1 beta2 microglobulin type, 15 (35%) remained of undetermined type. Thirty-three amyloidosis (77%) were systemic, 10 were localized to one organ (23%). When diagnosis was made, biopsies concerned affected organs in 86% of the cases, accessory sites (labial salivary glands, bone marrow) in only 14% of the cases. Twenty-five patients died (58%). Two deaths were treatment-related, 16 to amyloidois, seven patients died of another complaint. CONCLUSION Increased incidence of amyloidosis needs to be confirmed. We emphasize the importance of immunohistochemical typing on frozen samples, the value of accessory biopsies and the need for complete extension staging.
The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)

This new book provides an article-by-article commentary on the new EU General Data Protection Regulation. Adopted in April 2016 and applicable from May 2018, the GDPR is the centrepiece of the recent reform of the EU regulatory framework for protection of personal data. It replaces the 1995 EU Data Protection Directive and has become the most significant piece of data protection legislation anywhere in the world. This book is edited by three leading authorities and written by a team of expert specialists in the field from around the EU and representing different sectors (including academia, the EU institutions, data protection authorities, and the private sector), thus providing a pan-European analysis of the GDPR. It examines each article of the GDPR in sequential order and explains how its provisions work, thus allowing the reader to easily and quickly elucidate the meaning of individual articles. An introductory chapter provides an overview of the background to the GDPR and its place in the greater structure of EU law and human rights law. Account is also taken of closely linked legal instruments, such as the Directive on Data Protection and Law Enforcement that was adopted concurrently with the GDPR, and of the ongoing work on the proposed new E-Privacy Regulation.
The impact of Hi-Tech technology on consumer behaviour in a chosen tourist destination

Tourists are the main players in tourism and the tourist market, and that makes them the reason for starting developments and improving services within the tourist market. The desire for advancement and prominence within the tourist market channels tourist destinations and all other bidders of the integrated tourism product to satisfy the needs of tourists, that is to say to satisfy their expectations. Through the theoretical background about the selection of tourist destinations, the existing findings about the behaviour of consumers in tourism will be determined in this paper and will give out a detailed explanation of the phases of choosing a tourist destination that represent one of the key areas of this paper. The move from choosing a tourist destination and the focus on the conceptual framework of social media represents a turning point of this paper when compared to the existing research aimed at the choice of a tourist destination. Through theoretical findings about social media and the content generated on them, in this paper social media platforms will be viewed as well as an in-depth explanation of characteristics of platforms and social media that are important for the appearance of the tourist market by affecting the changes in consumer behaviour in tourism.
The welfare costs of traffic congestion in São Paulo Metropolitan Area

VALE, R. C. C.The welfare costs of traffic congestion in São Paulo Metropolitan Area. Thesis (Master’s Degree) – School of Economics, Business and Accounting at Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, 2018. This thesis presents new evidences of negative impacts of traffic congestion in São Paulo Metropolitan Area, indicating that the omission or retardation of policy to alleviate that charges society with a high cost. Besides that, we shed light on Waze application’s impacts, evidencing GPS-based participatory navigation is a key element of the traffic in the contemporary cities. Induced by the economic theory, one can see that traffic slowness derived from the general demand for automotive vehicles corresponds to a social cost. With the objective of translating this cost to monetary units, we developed an approach that matches the 2012 Origin-Destination survey to Google Maps data. An econometric travel mode choice model is estimated and through that we infer the Value of Time for trips. From counterfactual analysis for travel duration, we estimate the delays of the trips in relation to a hypothetic free flow situation. Joining the calculations, we estimate that 89% of the trips motivated by work in São Paulo are retarded by traffic frictions, generating an annual welfare cost that amounts to R$7.338 billions. Additionally, we analyze widespread Waze malfunctioning at 10/23/2017. Combining congestion data to the Value of Time, we estimate that the Waze bug approximatedely tripled the welfare costs in regards to a typical day, showing the magnitude of mass effects that a social navigation application is able to trigger.
Overexpression of FABP3 promotes apoptosis through inducing mitochondrial impairment in embryonic cancer cells

Fatty acid‐binding protein 3 (FABP3) is a low‐molecular‐weight protein with a distinct tissue distribution that may play an important role in fatty acid transport, cell growth, cellular signaling, and gene transcription. Previously, we have found that FABP3 was involved in apoptosis‐associated congenital cardiac malformations, but the underlying mechanisms have not yet been described. In the present study, we investigated the characteristics of mitochondrial dysfunction in embryonic cancer cells (P19 cells) that overexpressed FABP3. We demonstrated that in FABP3‐overexpressing P19 cells a lower cellular ATP production was accompanied by a dramatic decrease in mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP), despite the lack of a substantial decrease in the mtDNA copy number. In addition, FABP3 overexpression also led to an imbalance in mitochondrial dynamics and to excess intracellular reactive oxygen species production. Collectively, our results indicated that overexpression of FABP3 in P19 cells caused mitochondrion dysfunction that might be responsible for the development of FABP3‐induced apoptosis. J. Cell. Biochem. 113: 3701–3708, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.