Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Mortality of domestic sheep in free-ranging flocks in southeastern Norway.

Lamb mortality during three summer grazing seasons (1988 to 1990) among 1,399 lambs in three flocks of free-ranging domestic sheep in southeastern Norway was modeled using logistic regression. Ewe mortality during the same three seasons among the 295 ewes in one of the three flocks was also modeled. During the period, mortality among the 1,399 lambs and 295 ewes was 7.2% and 12.5%, respectively. Other work has shown predation by brown bears to be the single most important mortality factor in all three flocks, especially among ewes. Year, herd, sex, age of dam, and spring growth rate (i.e., from birth to release onto summer range) were statistically significant (P < or = .05) in explaining mortality among lambs. Lamb mortality was higher in 1989 and 1990, higher in HerdA (the most isolated herd that grazed adjacent to the Swedish border), higher among lambs of yearlings, among male lambs, and among lambs with low spring growth rate. Ewe mortality increased with age (P = .07). Adjustment of age for weight weakened the statistical association between age and mortality, however (P = .16). The negative association between lamb mortality and age of dam and the positive association between ewe mortality and ewe age may both be related to the quality of maternal care provided by ewes of different ages. Subsequently, attempts to compensate for losses, especially those due to predation by bears, lead to a younger herd that may increase the herd's overall vulnerability.
Multi-target human gait classification using LSTM recurrent neural networks applied to micro-Doppler

A Recurrent Neural Network (RNN) with a Long Short Term Memory (LSTM) implementation can be effectively utilized to classiiy the radar signature of zero to three human gaits, based on their micro-Doppler return. The LSTM-RNN outperforms the current state-of-the-art with an accuracy of 89.1%. The use of a sequence-to-sequence classification method like RNN additionally brings the benefit of being able to classify measurements with a variable observation time which, on average, is notably less than the state-of-the-art. Another advantage of the LSTM-RNN is that it can also be used with measurements that include transitions between classes over time.
A prospective study of early versus late craniectomy after traumatic brain injury

Background: Decompressive craniectomy is an important method for managing traumatic brain injury (TBI). At present, controversies about this procedure exist, especially about the optimum operative time for patients with TBI. Methods: A prospective study was performed at the First Affiliated Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University. From January 2008 to December 2009, 25 patients who underwent early decompressive craniectomy were included in the study group, and 19 patients who underwent “late” decompressive craniectomy as a second-tier therapy for intracranial hypertension were included as a comparison group. Results: The 30-day mortality after the operation was 16% in the study group. The overall mortality rate was 20% at the 6-month follow-up. A total of 52% of the patients (13 patients) had good outcomes, and 7 patients remained in a severely disabled or vegetative state. In the comparison group, 4 patients died, and 12 had good outcomes at the 6-month follow-up. The remaining 3 patients had poor outcomes. The study group was well matched with the comparison group. However, the outcomes in the study group were not better than those in the comparison group, as evaluated by the 6-month GOS score. Conclusion: Early decompressive craniectomy as a first-tier therapy for intracranial hypertension did not improve patient outcome when compared with “late” decompressive craniectomy for managing TBI.
Purification and Characterization of a Second Immunoreactive Mannoprotein from Cryptococcus neoformans That Stimulates T-Cell Responses

ABSTRACT Although T-cell responses are known to be critical for effective host defenses against the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans, the antigens that stimulate protective responses are poorly characterized but are thought to be comprised, at least in part, of mannoproteins. Recently, we created a panel of murine CD4+-T-cell hybridomas that react with C. neoformans antigens. A mannoprotein antigen, MP98, that stimulated one of the hybridomas was purified, and the gene encoding MP98 was cloned. In the present study, the cryptococcal antigen, MP88, that stimulated a second T-cell hybridoma, X5A3, to secrete interleukin-2 was characterized. MP88 was purified from supernatants of glass bead-disrupted C. neoformans by anion-exchange and hydrophobic interaction chromatography. A single band with an apparent molecular mass of 88 kDa was resolved by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and subjected to partial internal amino acid sequencing. The gene encoding MP88 was cloned and sequenced. MP88 features a C-terminal serine/threonine-rich region, which presumably serves as a site for extensive O glycosylation, followed by a putative glycosylphosphatidylinositol anchor site. A search of C. neoformans genomic databases revealed that MP88 shares this feature with at least 11 other genes, including MP98. The mannoprotein nature of MP88 was established based upon the capacity of (i) the mannoprotein fraction of C. neoformans supernatants to stimulate X5A3 and (ii) mannosylated ligands to competitively inhibit this stimulation. Thus, a second cryptococcal mannoprotein has been identified which stimulates T-cell responses and is a vaccine candidate.
The phototransduction machinery in the rod outer segment has a strong efficacy gradient

Significance Phototransduction is now considered to be a quite thoroughly understood phenomenon. It is well known that new discs are continuously generated at the base of the outer segments (OSs) and old discs are shed at their tip, but the rod OSs are considered a well-stirred compartment with minor inhomogeneities. To verify this assumption and to better understand the machinery within the OS, we developed a new methodology to deliver highly localized lights. We found that, as the light stimulus is moved from the OS base toward its tip, the amplitude of saturating and single photon responses decreased by 5–10 times. This gradient of efficacy is attributed to a progressive loss of phosphodiesterase. Therefore, OSs are highly inhomogeneous compartments. Rod photoreceptors consist of an outer segment (OS) and an inner segment. Inside the OS a biochemical machinery transforms the rhodopsin photoisomerization into electrical signal. This machinery has been treated as and is thought to be homogenous with marginal inhomogeneities. To verify this assumption, we developed a methodology based on special tapered optical fibers (TOFs) to deliver highly localized light stimulations. By using these TOFs, specific regions of the rod OS could be stimulated with spots of light highly confined in space. As the TOF is moved from the OS base toward its tip, the amplitude of saturating and single photon responses decreases, demonstrating that the efficacy of the transduction machinery is not uniform and is 5–10 times higher at the base than at the tip. This gradient of efficacy of the transduction machinery is attributed to a progressive depletion of the phosphodiesterase along the rod OS. Moreover we demonstrate that, using restricted spots of light, the duration of the photoresponse along the OS does not increase linearly with the light intensity as with diffuse light.
The Coronary Artery Disease Paradox: The Role of Hyperinsulinemia and Insulin Resistance and Implications for Therapy

Hypertension is one of the primary risk factors for cardiovascular disease, especially coronary artery disease (CAD), cerebrovascular disease, and congestive heart failure. Recent analysis of the numerous prospective clinical trials of the efficacy of antihypertensive therapy performed during the past quarter century has shown that active treatment reduces mortality and cerebrovascular disease but has not prevented CAD. The reason for this paradox-that lowering blood pressure does not reduce CAD mortality or morbidity-is uncertain. During the past several years, it has become clear that hyperinsulinemia and peripheral insulin resistance constitute the link between hypertension, obesity, and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. three conditions in which the rate of CAD is very high. Other studies have shown that hyperinsulinemia is a potent cardiovascular risk factor. Epidemiologic surveys and retrospective reviews of clinical experience have pointed out the surprising fact that when hypertension and non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus occur in the same patient, hypertension is likely to be diag- nosed first and the risk of developing diabetes is much higher if antihypertensive drugs (thiazide diuretics or β-adrenoreceptor blockers) were given. Recently, careful studies have shown that both thiazide diuretics and β-adre-noreceptor blockers worsen insulin sensitivity, whereas angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (captopril) and peripheral α1-blockers (prazosin) improve it and also favorably affect the levels of other atherogenic risk factors. Although it is too early to be certain, this information suggests that, pending the results of long-term clinical trials that measure clinical events, treatment of hypertension might be better able to reduce CAD if it were directed at improving insulin sensitivity. Nonpharmacologic measures that reduce hyperinsulinemia. weight loss, and exercise should be vigorously recommended, and pharmacologic therapy should be aimed at avoiding drugs that worsen insulin sensitivity, as long as blood pressure is successfully reduced.
The effect of fasting, transit plus fasting, and administration of adrenocorticotropic hormone on the source and amount of weight lost by feeder steers of different ages.

Two trials (winter and summer) were conducted to determine effects of fasting and transportation and adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) administration on the amount and source of weight lost by feeder steers. Sixteen steers, in each of two experiments, were adapted to metabolism stalls for 10 d, were fed medium-quality hay at 2.1% of BW for 3 d, and then were subjected to either fasting alone or fasting plus transit for 48 h. In Exp. 1 steers were randomly assigned to treatments. In Exp. 2 steers were blocked by age (OLD or YOUNG) and assigned to treatments. Fecal and urinary excretions accounted for 65 and 38% of the total weight lost in Exp. 1 and 2, respectively. Fasting plus transit did not consistently increase the amount of weight lost compared with fasting alone but increased (P less than .01) plasma glucose concentrations. Injection of ACTH before either fasting alone or fasting plus transit increased (P less than .05) the amount of weight lost as feces. Steers in the OLD group lost more weight during transit and fasting but regained the lost weight faster (P less than .01) during the recovery period than did steers in the YOUNG group. Injecting YOUNG steers with ACTH before fasting alone or fasting plus transit increased plasma fibrinogen (P less than .10) and serum glucose (P less than .05) concentrations more than ACTH injections in OLD steers. Although fasting and transit elicit mobilization of body nutrients and resulted in a loss of BW, these effects were quickly reversed during the poststress period.
Increased aortic root diameters in patients with acromegaly.

OBJECTIVE The clinical manifestations of acromegalic cardiomyopathy include arrhythmias, valvular regurgitation, concentric left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy, and LV systolic and diastolic dysfunction. At present, it is unknown whether acromegaly also affects the aortic root. DESIGN Aortic root diameters were prospectively assessed in 37 acromegalic patients (18 patients with active disease and 19 with controlled disease) by conventional two-dimensional and Doppler echocardiography before, and after, an observation period of 1.9 years (range 1.5-3.0 years). Baseline parameters were compared with healthy controls. RESULTS The diameters of the aortic root at the sino-tubular junction and the ascending aorta were increased in patients with acromegaly: 30+/-4 vs 26+/-3 mm (P=0.0001) and 33+/-5 vs 30+/-4 mm (P=0.006) respectively. The diameter of the aortic root at the aortic annulus and aortic sinus were not different from controls. During follow-up, the aortic root diameters increased at the levels of the annulus and the sinotubular junction (P=0.025 and P=0.024 respectively), whereas there was no change in the diameters at the levels of the sinus and the ascending aorta during follow-up. Baseline aortic root diameters were not influenced by disease duration, current disease activity, or blood pressure. When patients with active and inactive disease were analyzed separately, only the diameter of the sinotubular junction increased in patients with inactive acromegaly during follow-up (P=0.031). CONCLUSION Aortic root diameters are increased in patients with acromegaly compared with healthy controls.
Relational Inequalities

Relational Inequalities focuses on the organizational production of categorical inequalities, in the context of the intersectional complexity and institutional fluidity that characterize social life. Three generic inequality-generating mechanisms—exploitation, social closure, and claims-making—distribute organizational resources, rewards, and respect. The actual levels and contours of the inequalities produced by these three mechanisms are, however, profoundly contingent on the historical moments and institutional fields in which organizations operate. Organizational inequality regimes are comprised of the resources available for distribution; the task-, class-, and status-based social relations within organizations; formal and informal practices used to accomplish goals and tasks; and internal cultural models of people, work, and inequality, often adapted from the society at large to fit local social relationships. Legal and cultural institutions as they are filtered through workplace inequality regimes steer which groups are exploited and excluded, blocking or facilitating the conditions that lead to exploitation and closure. Sometimes exploitative and closure claims-making are naked and open for all to see; more often, they are institutionalized, taken for granted, and legitimated, sometimes even by those being exploited and excluded. The implications of RIT for social science and equality agendas are discussed in the conclusion. Case studies examine historical and contemporary workplace inequality regime variation in multiple countries. The role of intersectionality in producing regime variation is explored repeatedly across the book. Many occupations and industries are examined in depth, with particular attention given to engineers, CEOs, financial service, airlines, and information technology industries.
Olfactory dysfunction in patients with idiopathic intracranial hypertension

This interesting pilot study1 provides new evidence that patients with idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) may have olfactory dysfunction. This feature is added to more conventional symptoms like headache, nausea, vomiting, and double vision. This is helpful as the Sniffin' Sticks procedure is less invasive than lumbar puncture and …
The Effect of Mental Practice on Performance in a Sequential Reaction Time Task

Abstract The effect of mental practice on performance in a dot-location RT task was investigated. Participants (N = 40) were required either to mentally practice, physically practice, or do no practice on an RT task in which the signals appeared in a repeating sequence. Correct mental practice, as opposed to incorrect mental practice and no practice, was predicted to have a positive (enhancing) effect on performance of the RT task. Despite previous evidence that mental rehearsal does enhance performance in many perceptual-motor tasks, neither correct nor incorrect mental rehearsal affected subsequent sequence learning; that is, no mental practice effect was observed. That surprising result is discussed in terms of motivational, psychoneuromuscular, separate memory systems, and transfer-appropriate processing explanations of mental practice.
Cross-reactive and serotype-specific neutralization epitopes on VP7 of human rotavirus: nucleotide sequence analysis of antigenic mutants selected with monoclonal antibodies

The neutralization epitopes of human and simian rotavirus protein VP7 were studied by producing six neutralizing monoclonal antibodies (N-MAbs) and using these N-MAbs to select antigenic mutants that resisted neutralization by the N-MAbs used for their selection. Cross-neutralization tests between the N-MAbs and the antibody-selected antigenic mutants identified one cross-reactive and five distinct serotype-specific neutralization epitopes which operationally overlapped one another and constituted a single antigenic site. In addition, the amino acid substitutions in human rotavirus VP7 that are responsible for the antigenic alterations in the mutants selected with anti-VP7 cross-reactive or serotype-specific N-MAbs were identified. All the amino acid substitutions in the antigenic mutants occurred in one of two variable regions: amino acids 87 to 101 and 208 to 221.
Mechanism of Erythropoietin Regulation by Angiotensin II

Erythropoietin (EPO) is the primary regulator of red blood cell development. Although hypoxic regulation of EPO has been extensively studied, the mechanism(s) for basal regulation of EPO are not well understood. In vivo studies in healthy human volunteers and animal models indicated that angiotensin II (Ang II) and angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors regulated blood EPO levels. In the current study, we found that Ang II induced EPO expression in situ in murine kidney slices and in 786-O kidney cells in culture as determined by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. We further investigated the signaling mechanism of Ang II regulation of EPO in 786-O cells. Pharmacological inhibitors of Ang II type 1 receptor (AT1R) and extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2) suppressed Ang II transcriptional activation of EPO. Inhibitors of AT2R or Src homology 2 domain–containing tyrosine phosphatase had no effect. Coimmunoprecipiation experiments demonstrated that p21Ras was constitutively bound to the AT1R; this association was increased by Ang II but was reduced by the AT1R inhibitor telmisartan. Transmembrane domain (TM) 2 of AT1R is important for G protein–dependent ERK1/2 activation, and mutant D74E in TM2 blocked Ang II activation of ERK1/2. Ang II signaling induced the nuclear translocation of the Egr-1 transcription factor, and overexpression of dominant-negative Egr-1 blocked EPO promoter activation by Ang II. These data identify a novel pathway for basal regulation of EPO via AT1R-mediated Egr-1 activation by p21Ras-mitogen-activated protein kinase/ERK kinase-ERK1/2. Our current data suggest that Ang II, in addition to regulating blood volume and pressure, may be a master regulator of erythropoiesis.
Surgical Management of Double-Head Pterygium Using a Modified Split-Conjunctival Autograft Technique

Abstract Aim: To describe a modified split–conjuctival autograft technique for double–head pterygium and evaluate the postoperative outcomes. Methods: A retrospective analysis of all patients who underwent split-conjunctival autograft surgery for double–head pterygium from November 2012 to March 2014. Conjunctival autograft was split vertically, in order to obtain limbal sides of cojunctival autograft for both sides. No adjunctive agent was used. Records of included patients were reviewed and outcomes and recurrence rates were noted. Results: Eight cases of double–head pterygia were noted in 158 total cases of pterygia evaluated (5%). The baseline characteristics included 2 female and 6 male with an age between 26 and 71 (average 42.63) years. All eyes had 12–month follow–ups in average (6–21 months). No intraoperative or postoperative complications were noted. No recurrence was observed. Conclusion: A modified, vertical–split conjunctival autograft without any adjunctive agents is a successful and safe technique in management of double–head pterygium.
The regional cortical basis of achromatopsia: a study on macaque monkeys and an achromatopsic patient

Previous experiments have revealed total loss of colour vision following removal of all inferior temporal cortex, a condition akin to complete cerebral achromatopsia in humans. Whether less extensive ablation genuinely impairs colour perception without abolishing it or retards learning involving coloured stimuli is contested. We therefore tested macaque monkeys, with total removal of temporal areas TEO and TE but sparing rostral and perirhinal temporal cortex and the upper bank of the superior temporal sulcus. Compared with three monkeys with lateral parietal ablations, the monkeys with TEO/TE lesions were impaired at learning and retention of simultaneous two‐choice colour discriminations and with a nine‐choice oddity discrimination whether the coloured target was embedded among grey distracters of the same luminance or among isoluminant coloured distracters. However, their performance was superior to that of an achromatopsic human subject and to that previously measured in monkeys with much larger temporal lobe ablation. They were only mildly impaired at nine‐choice oddity discrimination for grey stimuli where the grey target was brighter than the grey distracters. The impairment could be exacerbated or alleviated by altering the colour of the background of the displays and by static and dynamic luminance masking of the entire display in a manner that indicates that the colour deficit reflects a change in perception rather than a disorder of learning and memory. It resembles central dyschromatopsia in human subjects but falls short of achromatopsia.
Median‐modified Wiener filter provides efficient denoising, preserving spot edge and morphology in 2‐DE image processing

Denoising is a fundamental early stage in 2‐DE image analysis strongly influencing spot detection or pixel‐based methods. A novel nonlinear adaptive spatial filter (median‐modified Wiener filter, MMWF), is here compared with five well‐established denoising techniques (Median, Wiener, Gaussian, and Polynomial‐Savitzky–Golay filters; wavelet denoising) to suggest, by means of fuzzy sets evaluation, the best denoising approach to use in practice. Although median filter and wavelet achieved the best performance in spike and Gaussian denoising respectively, they are unsuitable for contemporary removal of different types of noise, because their best setting is noise‐dependent. Vice versa, MMWF that arrived second in each single denoising category, was evaluated as the best filter for global denoising, being its best setting invariant of the type of noise. In addition, median filter eroded the edge of isolated spots and filled the space between close‐set spots, whereas MMWF because of a novel filter effect (drop‐off‐effect) does not suffer from erosion problem, preserves the morphology of close‐set spots, and avoids spot and spike fuzzyfication, an aberration encountered for Wiener filter. In our tests, MMWF was assessed as the best choice when the goal is to minimize spot edge aberrations while removing spike and Gaussian noise.
Comparison of Microcapillary Cytometry Technology and Flow Cytometry for CD4+ and CD8+ T-Cell Estimation

ABSTRACT An alternative technology for the estimation of T cells based on a microcapillary technique (Guava Technologies, Hayward, CA) was compared to FACSCount (Becton Dickinson, San Jose, CA). Samples from 51 human immunodeficiency virus-infected and 21 healthy individuals were tested. The correlation (r) of the two systems for CD4+ T cells was 0.994, and the coefficient of variation was 6.5%, establishing equable performance between the two technologies.