Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Critical Appraisal of Methods to Grade Transplant Glomerulitis in Renal Allograft Biopsies

Transplant glomerulitis is an increasingly recognized lesion in renal transplant biopsies. To develop a refined grading system, we defined glomerulitis by the presence of ≥5 leukocytes/glomerulus and evaluated 111 biopsies using three different grading systems: (i) percentage of glomerular involvement, (ii) peak inflammation in the most severely affected glomerulus and (iii) presence/absence of endocapillary occlusion by inflammatory cells. Endocapillary occlusion had no impact on graft survival, but was associated with increased serum creatinine, proteinuria and subsequent transplant glomerulopathy. Grading based on either percent or peak glomerular involvement correlated with graft failure and peritubular capillaritis. However, the percent glomerular involvement method had the additional advantage of displaying associations with: concurrent proteinuria, focal or diffuse immunoperoxidase peritubular capillary C4d staining, 1‐year postbiopsy serum creatinine, subsequent detection of donor‐specific antibody and development of transplant glomerulopathy. Patients with >75% glomerular involvement also revealed persistent high‐grade glomerulitis on follow‐up biopsies despite antirejection treatment. In conclusion, grading of glomerulitis is a meaningful exercise, and a quantification system based on percentage of glomerular involvement shows the most robust associations with clinical parameters and prognosis.
A Tutorial on the Synthesis of the Maximally Permissive Liveness Enforcing Supervisory Policy in Discrete-Event / Discrete-State Systems modeled by a Class of General Petri Nets

A Discrete-Event/Discrete-State (DEDS) system is in a livelocked-state, if some process has entered into a state of suspended-animation for perpetuity. If every process of the DEDS system is in a state of suspended animation, the DEDS system is deadlocked. A livelock-free DEDS system does not have deadlocked-states, but a deadlock-free DEDS system can still experience livelocks. A livelock-prone DEDS system can be regulated by a liveness enforcing supervisory policy (LESP) to ensure the supervised-system is livelock-free. A LESP is said to be maximally permissive, if the fact that it prevents the occurrence of an event a state leads us to infer that every LESP, irrespective of the implementation-paradigm that is chosen, will do the same. We concern ourselves with DEDS systems that are modeled using general Petri nets (PNs), and we review key results on the synthesis of the maximally permissive LESP for DEDS systems modeled by PNs using a series of illustrative examples and a software package designed explicitly for this purpose. The paper concludes with an incomplete list of future research topics.
Quadruple tacrolimus-based induction therapy including azathioprine and ALG does not significantly improve outcome after liver transplantation when compared with standard induction with tacrolimus and steroids: results of a prospective, randomized trial.

BACKGROUND Tacrolimus in combination with prednisolone has been proven to be a safe and effective immunosuppressive induction therapy in solid organ transplantation. However, it remains unclear whether a tacrolimus-based quadruple induction regimen with azathioprine and an antilymphocytic preparation could further improve the results after orthotopic liver transplantation. Therefore, we designed a prospective, randomized study to compare the immunosuppressive efficacy of dual (tacrolimus and prednisolone) and quadruple (tacrolimus, azathioprine, ALG Merieux and prednisolone) induction after liver transplantation. METHODS After randomization, 120 consecutive patients of primary liver transplants were divided into the dual group (n=59) and the quadruple group (n=61) and followed for a minimum of 3 years. RESULTS Patient survival at 3 years was 88.2% in the dual versus 94.9% in the quadruple group. Overall 25 patients in each group (41 and 42%, respectively) developed acute rejection. There was no difference in the number and severity of rejections. In each group only four patients required OKT3-therapy, however, although three of four patients in the quadruple group responded to OKT3 and cleared rejection, none of the four patients in the dual group were treated successfully with OKT3 (P<0.02). Rejection in these patients resolved only after additional treatment with mycophenolate mofetil. Adverse events and infections were equally distributed in both groups. Asymptomatic Cytomegalovirus infections were more common in the quadruple group (P<0.02). As of today, only one patient developed posttransplant lymphoproliferative disease (dual group). CONCLUSIONS The data from our single-center study indicate that both tacrolimus-based dual and quadruple immunosuppressive induction regimens yield similar safety and effectiveness after liver transplantation.
Revision of penile prosthesis surgery after use of penile traction therapy to increase erect penile length: case report and review of the literature.

INTRODUCTION Erectile dysfunction, a common consequence of radical prostatectomy (RP), can be managed with placement of a penile prosthesis. Patient satisfaction and functional outcomes have been related to penile length after prosthesis placement. AIM We report a case demonstrating the impact of daily penile traction therapy in a patient with a previously placed penile prosthesis with the goal of enabling revision with a longer device. METHODS A post-RP patient who underwent inflatable penile prosthesis placement 6 years ago complained of inability to maintain partner penetration with his device. The patient underwent vacuum erection device therapy twice daily for 10 minutes per session for approximately 1 year as well as 8 hours of penile traction therapy daily for 8 months. A revision implant surgery was subsequently attempted. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE Patient reported functional outcome. RESULTS Stretched penile length increased 2.3 cm after 6 months of traction therapy. A revision surgery enabled the placement of a prosthesis that was 20% longer in length (15 cm to 18 cm), and erect penile length increased by 4.4 cm. The patient reported that the new prosthesis enabled satisfactory maintenance of partner penetration. CONCLUSIONS This case suggests that the use of a penile traction device increases penile corporal length, and thus the length of a penile prosthesis that can be implanted in a patient with an unsatisfactory prosthesis already in place. Importantly, this patient experienced a substantial improvement in erect penile length after surgery. It is unknown whether these results are generalizable, either to all patients with a previously placed prosthesis or pre-prosthesis patients, representing an opportunity for further investigation.
Inspiratory and expiratory muscle perfusion in maximally exercised ponies.

The present study was carried out on seven healthy ponies to examine the extent of blood flow in various inspiratory and expiratory muscles at rest and during maximal exertion as well as to determine the proportion of cardiac output needed to perfuse respiratory muscles during these conditions. Tissue blood flow was studied with 15 micron-diameter radionuclide-labeled microspheres injected into the left ventricle during steady conditions. The inspiratory and expiratory muscles comprised 2.41 and 3.05% of body weight, respectively, and received 6.17 and 3.75% of the cardiac output at rest. With maximal exercise, heart rate (from 55 +/- 3 to 218 +/- 4 beats/min), mean aortic pressure (from 125 +/- 5 to 170 +/- 6 mmHg), and cardiac output (from 96 +/- 11 to 730 +/- 78 ml.min-1.kg-1) increased markedly. During exercise blood flow increased significantly in all respiratory muscles (P less than 0.0001) as vascular resistance decreased precipitously. Marked heterogeneity of perfusion existed among various inspiratory as well as expiratory muscles during exercise. Among the inspiratory muscles, the highest perfusion occurred in the diaphragm followed by serratus ventralis, and among the expiratory muscles, the highest perfusion occurred in the internal oblique abdominis and the transverse thoracis (triangularis sterni). Collectively, the inspiratory (8.44%) and expiratory (6.35%) muscle blood flow comprised 14.8 +/- 1.2% of the cardiac output during maximal exercise, a significant increase above resting value, whereas renal fraction of cardiac output decreased from 21% (at rest) to 0.72%.
Localization of a dipolar source in a skull phantom: realistic versus spherical model

The dependence of the neuromagnetic source localization accuracy on the volume conductor model was studied by the analysis of measured magnetic fields generated by tangentially oriented dipoles in a realistically shaped skull phantom. When using a homogeneous sphere model in the localization procedure, the errors were found to increase from about 3 mm to about 9 mm when the distance between the dipoles and the inner surface of the skull increased from 1 cm to 3 cm, whereas when using a true, realistic model in the inverse procedure the localization errors were only about 2-3 mm, independent of dipole depth. To account for the realistic geometry of the inner surface of the skull, the Boundary Element Method, based on a surface discretization in terms of about 300 triangles, proved to be sufficient. In addition to these analyses of experimental data, simulations were carried out to study the localization errors in the case of the spherical approximation for a dipole orientation changing from tangential to radial. For the latter orientation, errors of up to a few centimeters were found. <<ETX>>
Critical Current Characterization Under Pure Bending Strains of Prebent Cu-Nb/Nb3Sn Strands for Practical React-and-Wind Process

Nb-rod-method Cu-Nb reinforced Nb3Sn (Cu-Nb/ Nb3Sn) wires have been successfully developed for commercialization of the react-and-wind (R&W) processed Nb3Sn coils. Superconducting performance of the Cu-Nb/Nb3Sn wires is improved by applying the prebending treatment at room temperature, because of releasing the residual stress of Nb3Sn filaments (prebending strain effects). The purpose of this study is to confirm the efficient use of the prebending strain effects for optimizing critical current (Ic) characteristics under pure bending strain on the R&W coil design. The Cu-Nb/Nb3Sn strands of 0.8-mm diameter were heat treated at 670°C for 96 h on stainless steel grooved cylindrical holders of different radii of 10.1-32.1 mm. After half of the reacted strands were applied repeating prebending strain of ±0.5%, each of the prebent strands and the as-reacted (without prebending) strands was transferred to a Ti-6Al-4ν alloy grooved cylindrical holder of 15.6-mm radius. Then, those Ic, measurements were carried out under applied pure bending strains ranging from -0.9% to +0.84% at 11-17 T, 4.2 K. As a result, the prebent strand showed no deterioration of Ic, in the applied pure bending strain ranging from -0.5% to +0.5% and had larger Ic, than that of the as-reacted strand at no pure bending strain. In this paper, the Ic, enhancements of the prebent Cu-Nb/Nb3Sn strands under pure bending strains are analyzed by using the Ic, characteristics under axial strains.
Alzheimer's disease: Genetic aspects and associated clinical disorders

Genetic aspects and associated clinical disorders were studied in a consecutive series of 68 men and women in whom Alzheimer's disease appeared at or before age 70. Secondary cases of dementia were found in 17 (25%) of the families, affecting 22 of the probands' siblings and parents. The cumulative incidence of Alzheimer's disease in these relatives was approximately 14% at age 75. An increased frequency of Down's syndrome was observed among relatives of the probands: a rate of 3.6 per 1, 000, as compared with an expected rate of 1.3 per 1, 000. A history of thyroid disease was established in 9 (19.6%) of the 46 female probands, a frequency greater than that reported in the general population. There was no excess of hematological malignancies among the blood relatives, and parental age at the time of birth of the probands did not differ from the norm. The results of this study indicate that early‐onset Alzheimer's disease is associated with a genetic factor manifested in a substantial familial aggregation of dementia, a probable excess of Down's syndrome in the probands' relatives, and a possible association with thyroid dysfunction in women with this form of dementia.
The Parental Bond and Alcohol Use Among Adolescents: The Mediating Role of Drinking Motives

Background: Alcohol use and alcohol-related problems represent a significant health concern. Few empirical researches focused on understanding the interrelationships and links between the parental bond, drinking motives, and alcohol use during adolescence. Objectives: The present study examined the relationships between a supportive parental bond, drinking motives, and alcohol use, with a focus on the role of mediation. Methods: The sample comprised 298 adolescents, aged from 16 to 20 years. The technique of structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to assess the direct and indirect effects of the parental bond on alcohol use among adolescents through motives for drinking. Results: The relationship between the parental bond and frequency of alcohol use by adolescents was not mediated by any motives for drinking, neither for males nor females. Regarding the relationships between the parental bond and quantity of adolescent alcohol consumption, findings for females showed significant indirect effects of maternal bond on alcohol quantity, when coping, enhancement, and social drinking motives were entered as mediator variables. Rather, paternal bond did not predict drinking quantity, not even indirectly. On the contrary, results for males indicated that the parental bond was neither directly nor indirectly associated with adolescent alcohol use. Conclusions/Importance: Mothers are the relational fulcrum of the family, while fathers seem to maintain a more peripheral position. Gender differences are discussed on the basis of the different cultural and parental socialisation processes that operate for male and female adolescents.
Case–control study of breast cancer and exposure to synthetic environmental chemicals among Alaska Native women

Background Exposure to environmental chemicals may impair endocrine system function. Alaska Native (AN) women may be at higher risk of exposure to these endocrine disrupting chemicals, which may contribute to breast cancer in this population. Objective To measure the association between exposure to select environmental chemicals and breast cancer among AN women. Design A case–control study of 170 women (75 cases, 95 controls) recruited from the AN Medical Center from 1999 to 2002. Participants provided urine and serum samples. Serum was analyzed for 9 persistent pesticides, 34 polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) congeners, and 8 polybrominated diethyl ether (PBDE) congeners. Urine was analyzed for 10 phthalate metabolites. We calculated geometric means (GM) and compared cases and controls using logistic regression. Results Serum concentrations of most pesticides and 3 indicator PCB congeners (PCB-138/158; PCB-153, PCB-180) were lower in case women than controls. BDE-47 was significantly higher in case women (GM=38.8 ng/g lipid) than controls (GM=25.1 ng/g lipid) (p=0.04). Persistent pesticides, PCBs, and most phthalate metabolites were not associated with case status in univariate logistic regression. The odds of being a case were higher for those with urinary mono-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (MEHP) concentrations that were above the median; this relationship was seen in both univariate (OR 2.16, 95% CI 1.16–4.05, p=0.02) and multivariable (OR 2.43, 95% CI 1.13–5.25, p=0.02) logistic regression. Women with oestrogen receptor (ER)–/progesterone receptor (PR)-tumour types tended to have higher concentrations of persistent pesticides than did ER+/PR+ women, although these differences were not statistically significant. Conclusions Exposure to the parent compound of the phthalate metabolite MEHP may be associated with breast cancer. However, our study is limited by small sample size and an inability to control for the confounding effects of body mass index. The association between BDE-47 and breast cancer warrants further investigation.
Treatment of Superficial Infantile Hemangiomas of the Eyelid Using the 595‐nm Pulsed Dye Laser

BACKGROUND Despite the proven effectiveness of the 595‐nm pulsed dye laser (PDL) in treating superficial infantile hemangiomas, many physicians are reluctant to treat such lesions involving the eyelid. OBJECTIVE To examine the safety and efficacy of the 595‐nm PDL for the treatment of superficial infantile hemangiomas of the eyelid. MATERIALS & METHODS Records were reviewed for patients with superficial infantile hemangiomas of the eyelid treated with 595‐nm PDL. Pre‐ and post‐treatment photographs were compared. Reviewers rated the degree of improvement of the hemangioma as excellent (76–100%), good (51–75%), moderate (26–50%), or poor (0–25%) and indicated whether the hemangioma was 100% clear. Side effects of scarring, atrophy, hyperpigmentation, and hypopigmentation were assessed. RESULTS Twenty‐two patients met the study criteria. Eight (36.4%) demonstrated complete clearance of their hemangioma, 17 (77.3%) received an improvement rating of excellent, and five (22.7%) received a rating of good. No scarring, atrophy, or hypopigmentation was noted. Two patients (9.1%) were noted to have hyperpigmentation in the treated area. CONCLUSION Early treatment with the 595‐nm PDL can safely and effectively diminish proliferative growth and hasten resolution of superficial infantile hemangiomas of the eyelid.
Economic and environmental impact of using hydrogen enriched natural gas and renewable natural gas for residential heating

Natural gas, a fuel source that provides power generation and heating application, offers significant emissions and efficiency improvements over coal. The majority of natural gas is obtained through non-renewable deposits; however, it is possible to generate methane through the creation of Renewable Natural Gas (RNG). RNG is generated when biogas composed of CO2 and CH4 is methanated through the addition of hydrogen. An alternative sustainable pathway, however, is the creation of Hydrogen Enriched Natural Gas (HENG). HENG is created from the addition of hydrogen, in low volume percentages, to create a blend that emits less greenhouse gasses per unit of energy. The hydrogen used to create RNG and HENG can be generated from electrolysis using surplus electricity. Using surplus electricity, during off-peak hours, helps a jurisdiction effectively manage the power grid. As demonstrated through this case study the use of RNG and HENG to be utilized within the natural gas network can create an overall positive impact in any jurisdiction.
Drug-Dependent Boys Are More Depressed Compared to Girls: A Comorbidity Study of Substance Dependence and Mental Disorders

The present study investigated the comorbidity of alcohol and drug dependence with psychiatric disorders by gender in a clinical sample of 300 girls and 208 boys (age 12–17) admitted to psychiatric inpatient hospitalization between April 2001 and March 2006. Information on alcohol and drug dependence, psychiatric diagnoses and age at onset of these disorders was obtained from the Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia for School Aged Children – Present and Lifetime. The results of logistic regression models revealed that behavioral disorders were associated with alcohol dependence among girls (odds ratio [OR] 7.1) and boys (OR 4.6). In addition, behavioral disorders were associated with drug dependence, the ORs being 18.4 in girls and 9.1 in boys. Although depressive disorders were associated with both alcohol (OR 3.1) and drug dependence (OR 3.8) among boys, no corresponding association was seen in girls. Our results suggest that physicians treating substance-dependent adolescents should focus not only on behavioral disorders, but also on the screening and treatment of underlying depressive disorders, especially among substance-dependent boys.
Timing accuracy in human throwing.

This study examines the precision required in the timing of muscle activations and projectile release to hit a target of 20 cm in diameter oriented horizontally either 6 or 8 m away. Over-arm throws, constrained to the sagittal plane, were simulated using a muscle-actuated, two-segment model representing the forearm and hand plus projectile. The parameters defining the modeled muscles and the anthropometry were specific to two male subjects. An objective function specified that throws must be both fast and accurate. Once an optimal solution had been found, the sensitivity of these timings was investigated. The times of activation or release were changed and the simulation model re-run with the new timings, and it was determined whether the projectile would still have struck the target. For one set of simulations, to hit the target at 8 m, the optimal throw was achieved with a time delay between the onset of wrist activation and elbow extensor activation [Proximal-distal (PD) delay] of 49 ms and a release time of 83.4 ms. At this optimal point in the solution space, the launch window was 1.2 ms (assuming the original PD delay). The launch window was the time available within which the projectile must be released and still strike the target. The window during which the wrist flexors could be activated was 10. 41 ms (assuming the projectile was released at the pre-planned optimal time). The control scheme which required the least timing precision had a PD delay of 56 ms and a release time of 89.4 ms. Errors in timing could occur in activation and release simultaneously under this scheme, the timing windows were 4 ms in PD delay and 2.4 ms in release. Similar results were found for a second set of simulations. These simulations revealed the precise timings required in muscle activations and release required for fast accurate throws.
Comparison of four decontamination methods for recovery of Mycobacterium avium complex from stools

The presence of Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) in stool specimens may be a predictor of disseminated MAC infection, yet the methods for decontaminating stools have not been evaluated for their usefulness in recovering MAC organisms. In the present study, four decontamination methods commonly used to recover acid-fast bacteria from respiratory specimens were compared for their utility in recovering MAC from stool specimens. Ten strains of MAC were used at a level of 10(4) to 10(6) CFU to seed the stool specimens. Specimens were divided into four portions and were decontaminated by using the following treatments: (i) N-acetyl-L-cysteine-sodium hydroxide (NALC-NaOH), (ii) cetylpyridinium chloride-sodium chloride (CPC-NaCl), (iii) oxalic acid, or (iv) benzalkonium chloride-trisodium phosphate (BC-TSP). The specimens were then plated onto a total of five pieces of selective and nonselective egg- and agar-based media. The oxalic acid method yielded the greatest number of MAC CFU from seeded stool samples; this was followed by NALC-NaOH, BC-TSP, and CPC-NaCl. The difference between the oxalic acid method and each of the other methods was statistically significant (analysis of variance at the 95% significance level). Although more MAC CFU was recovered from seeded stool samples by using oxalic acid than NALC-NaOH, no difference in culture positivity rates was observed when the two methods were used to test 368 clinical stool specimens processed with either oxalic acid (164 specimens) or NALC-NaOH (204 specimens) (P = 0.07) or 67 specimens processed by both methods (P = 0.77). The oxalic acid and NALC-NaOH decontamination methods both appear to be useful for the recovery of MAC organisms from stool specimens.