Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Cardiac Resynchronization The Influence of Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction on the Effectiveness of Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy MADIT-CRT ( Multicenter Automatic Defibrillator Implantation Trial With Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy )

Methods In the MADIT-CRT (Multicenter Automatic Defibrillator Implantation Trial With Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy) study, the echocardiography core laboratory assessed baseline LVEF independent of the enrolling centers and identified a range of LVEFs, including those 30% (i.e., beyond the eligibility criteria). Echocardiographic response with CRT, defined as percent change in left ventricular end-diastolic volume (LVEDV), was analyzed in 3 prespecified LVEF groups: 30%, 26% to 30%, and 25%. The primary endpoint was HF or death. Secondary endpoint included all-cause mortality.
Using a Square-Wave Signal for Fault Diagnosis of Analog Parts of Mixed-Signal Electronic Embedded Systems

This paper presents a new approach to the detection and localization of single hard and soft faults of analog parts in embedded mixed-signal electronic systems controlled with microcontrollers, DSPs, or systems-on-a-chip (SoCs) (generally control units). The approach consists of three stages: a pretesting stage of creation of the fault dictionary using identification curves, a measurement stage based on stimulating the tested circuit by a square-wave signal generated by the control unit, and measurements of voltage samples of the circuit response by the internal ADC of the control unit. In the final stage, fault detection and localization are performed by the control unit. The measurement microsystem [the built-in self test (BIST)] consists only of internal devices of the control unit already existing in the system. Hence, this approach simplifies the structure of BISTs, which allows reduction of test costs. The results of experimental verification of the approach are included in this paper.
Data Driven 3D Face Tracking Based on a Facial Deformation Model

We introduce a new markerless 3D face tracking approach for 2D video streams captured by a single consumer grade camera. Our approach is based on tracking 2D features in the video and matching them with the projection of the corresponding feature points of a deformable 3D model. By this we estimate the initial shape and pose of the face. To make the tracking and reconstruction more robust we add a smoothness prior for pose changes as well as for deformations of the faces. Our major contribution lies in the formulation of the smooth deformation prior which we derive from a large database of previously captured facial animations showing different (dynamic) facial expressions of a fairly large number of subjects. We split these animation sequences into snippets of ﬁxed length which we use to predict the facial motion based on previous frames. In order to keep the deformation model compact and independent from the individual physiognomy, we represent it by deformation gradients (instead of vertex positions) and apply a principal component analysis in deformation gradient space to extract the major modes of facial deformation. Since the facial deformation is optimized during tracking, it is particularly easy to apply them to other physiognomies and thereby re-target the facial expressions. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our technique on a number of examples.
Accelerated Active High-Temperature Cycling Test for Power MOSFETs

In this paper reliability test equipment is presented that allows accelerated failure tests of packaged power MOSFETs (e.g. TO220, TO263). The failure criterion used is an increase in thermal impedance which is observed in-situ during testing. The duration of the cycles depends on the shift of the junction temperature TJ: Testing with a temperature shift of TJ,min= 70 degC to TJ,max= 170 degC takes for 12 devices and 1 million cycles about 18 days. Thermo-mechanical finite element simulations and failure analysis accompany and support the experimental results. The paper gives an overview over the set-up and the measurement technique and discusses the outcome of simulation and test
Determination of a cAMP-dependent protein kinase phosphorylation site in the C-terminal region of human endothelial actin-binding protein.

Three different C-terminal regions of human endothelial actin-binding protein-280 (ABP-280 or ABP; nonmuscle filamin) were subcloned and efficiently expressed in the Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3) system as indicated by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. As predicted by the aminoacid sequence one of the fragments, a 109-kDa peptide (residues 1671-2647), contained a calpain cleavage site and two potential cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) phosphorylation sites (serine 2152 and threonine 2336). A second fragment, a 74-kDa peptide (residues 1671-2331), contained a calpain cleavage site and one of the three presumptive PKA phosphorylation sites (serine 2152). The third fragment, a 48-kDa peptide (residues 2223-2647), contained only one of the PKA sites (threonine 2336). Phosphorylation of these truncated peptides indicated that only the fragments containing serine 2152 incorporated phosphate after PKA treatment. Site-directed mutagenesis analysis confirmed that serine 2152 is the unique substrate for PKA in the C-terminal region of ABP. The functional significance of phosphorylation of this residue, which belongs to a serine-proline motif, is discussed.
Switching Processes in Customer Relationships

The importance and difficulty of keeping customers constantly features in the marketing literature. However, customer studies have generally focused on loyal customers and loyalty rather than on reasons for switching service providers. The aim of this article is to present a model for studying customers’ switching behavior as processes by extending the Critical Incident Technique in a relationship direction. By using the new technique, an analytic framework was developed that identifies three different kinds of switching determinants: pushing determinants, pulling determinant, and swayers. The new technique captures the configurations of the underlying factors that lead to revocable or irrevocable switching decisions. The study shows that these configurations are signals of switching, which provide useful knowledge for management and staff for policy and training purposes.
VARIABILITE SPATIO-TEMPORELLE ET DYNAMIQUE DES PLUIES DE FORTE INTENSITE A L'ORIGINE DES « CRUES RAPIDES » DANS LE BASSIN PARISIEN (FRANCE)

Des « crues rapides » sont frequemment observees en periodes printaniere et estivale (mai-aout) dans les regions de grande culture du nord de la France : 269 evenements, provoques par 79 episodes pluvieux, ont ete recenses entre 1983 et 2005. A cause de leur nature torrentielle et de l'ampleur paroxysmique des degâts associes, ces phenomenes constituent aujourd'hui la forme la plus dangereuse des inondations rencontrees dans ces regions. Cette etude s'interesse plus specifiquement aux conditions hydro-climatiques necessaires a l'apparition de ces crises hydrologiques qui apparaissent dans des « vallons secs » depourvus d'ecoulement permanent en periode normale. La demarche retenue ici repose sur une approche complementaire : i) une etude descriptive de la distribution des pluies de fortes intensites a partir d'un reseau de 85 stations, en utilisant divers traitements statistiques, et ii) une analyse explicative par les types de circulations qui en sont a l'origine, en appliquant notamment la methode de classification europeenne de Hess-Brezowsky. Cette approche a deux niveaux d'observation doit permettre de mettre a jour l'influence des facteurs climatiques et le role de l'intensite des pluies dans la genese de ces « crues rapides ». Elle doit egalement apporter des elements de reponse sur la variabilite des pluies de forte intensite dans ces regions et fournir les premices necessaires au developpement d'un futur systeme d'alerte approprie a ce type de risque.
Adherence to human colonocytes of an Escherichia coli strain isolated from severe infantile enteritis: molecular and ultrastructural studies of a fibrillar adhesin

Escherichia coli 469-3 (O21:H-) was isolated from a child with severe enteritis. Ultrastructural analysis of the surface of the strain indicated the presence of very fine fimbriae which mediated mannose-resistant hemagglutination of human blood and caused the bacteria to adhere to human epithelial cell lines and to brush borders of isolated human colonic, but not duodenal, enterocytes. A cosmid library of total DNA of the strain, expressed in laboratory strains of E. coli, was screened by a rapid hemadsorption method, and a number of positive clones were identified. Restriction endonuclease fragments specifying mannose-resistant adherence were subcloned from the cosmid DNA of a strongly hemagglutinating clone in a plasmid vector. The identity of the adhesin was confirmed by biochemical, electron-microscopic, and immunological comparisons with the adhesin synthesized by the clinical isolate. It comprised a high-molecular-weight aggregate of a 14,000-dalton subunit protein which bound antiserum raised against the mannose-resistant adhesin of strain 469-3. The adhesin was synthesized by both the clone and the parental strain at growth temperatures above 18 degrees C but by only a fraction of the cells in a pure culture, although all the bacteria which adhered to human cells expressed the protein.
Lack of an association between a single nucleotide polymorphism in the bovine myogenic determination 1 (MyoD1) gene and meat quality traits in indigenous Chinese cattle breeds.

The myogenic determination 1 (MyoD1) gene is a member of the MyoD gene family. It encodes for skeletal muscle-specific transcription factors containing highly conserved basic helix-loop-helix regions that perform important roles in the initiation, maintenance, and regulation of phenotypic traits. We investigated a new single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the MyoD1 gene to evaluate whether this polymorphism affects meat quality traits in five Chinese indigenous cattle breeds, namely Qinchuan (QC), Xia-Nan (XN), Nan-yang (NY), Luxi (LX), and Jia-xian red (JXR). A C→G transversion at position 624 was detected in exon 1 of the MyoD1 gene; it causes an amino acid substitution ((624)serine/(624)cysteine). Least squares analysis showed that this SNP is not significantly associated with back fat thickness, eye muscle area, intramuscular fat, or marbling. The A/B allelic frequencies in the five breeds were 0.810/0.189, 0.779/0.220, 0.768/0.231, 0.820/0.180, and 0.801/0.198, respectively. Based on the χ(2) test, the genotype distributions of four cattle breeds (LX, NY, QC, and XN) did not agree with Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (P < 0.05); one breed (JXR) did not deviate significantly from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (P > 0.05). The genotypic frequencies among all five cattle breeds showed moderate diversity (0.25 < polymorphism information content < 0.5). We concluded that the C624G SNP of the MyoD1 gene does not influence meat quality traits in indigenous Chinese cattle breeds; however, this SNP could be included in breed composition and population admixture analyses due to the marked differences in allelic frequencies among these five breeds.
Alcohol drinking and gastric cancer risk: an evaluation based on a systematic review of epidemiologic evidence among the Japanese population.

BACKGROUND We reviewed epidemiologic studies on the association between alcohol drinking and gastric cancer among the Japanese population. This report is one of a series of articles by our research group, which is evaluating the existing evidence concerning the association between health-related lifestyles and cancer. METHODS Original data were collected by searches of MEDLINE using PubMed, or searches of the Ichushi database, complemented with manual searches. Evaluation of associations was based on the strength of evidence and the magnitude of association, together with biological plausibility as evaluated previously by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. RESULTS Of the 11 cohort studies evaluated, nine showed no association between alcohol drinking and gastric cancer, and one study showed a strong positive association among men. All of 11 case-control studies found no association between alcohol drinking and gastric cancer. By anatomical subsites of gastric cancer, only three studies have evaluated the association between alcohol drinking and gastric cancer, and one cohort study found a positive association for cardia and upper-third gastric cancer in men. Few studies conducted among the Japanese population have made a detailed assessment of alcohol drinking, possible important confounding factors such as smoking and diet and anatomical subsites of gastric cancer. CONCLUSION We conclude that epidemiologic evidence for an association between alcohol drinking and gastric cancer risk remains insufficient due to the methodological quality of studies that have been conducted among the Japanese population.
On the morphosyntax and pragmatics of -in in Colloquial Jakartan Indonesian

ABSTRACT This paper presents a novel description and analysis of the suffix -in in colloquial Jakartan Indonesian (CJI), providing the first explicit account of the syntax-semantics-pragmatics interface of this suffix in Indonesian. It demonstrates that -in has its own place in Indonesian grammar, in which certain morphosyntactic functions overlap with its -i/-kan counterparts in Standard Indonesian. Like -i/-kan, -in is a polysemous suffix; its applicative and causative functions are the product of a complex process involving predicate composition of the root and suffix during affixation. This analysis addresses not only clear cases of functional correspondence between the suffixes, but also the deeper morphosyntactic, semantic and pragmatic constraints responsible for certain intriguing differences between -in and -i/-kan.
Seminal cyclooxygenase relationship with oxidative stress in infertile oligoasthenoteratozoospermic men with varicocele

This study aimed to assess the relation of seminal cyclooxygenase COX‐1, COX‐2 with oxidative stress in infertile oligoasthenoteratozoospermic (OAT) men with varicocele (Vx). In all, 128 men were allocated into fertile men, fertile men with Vx, infertile OAT men without Vx and infertile OAT men with Vx. They were subjected to history taking, clinical examination and semen analysis. Also, seminal COX‐1, COX‐2, malondialdehyde (MDA) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) were estimated. Mean levels of seminal COX‐1, COX‐2 were over‐expressed, the mean level of seminal MDA was significantly increased, and the mean level of seminal GPx was significantly decreased in infertile OAT men with Vx compared with other groups. Seminal COX‐1 and COX‐2 were over‐expressed in cases with Vx grade III compared with Vx grades I, II cases and in cases with bilateral Vx compared with unilateral Vx. There was significant negative correlation between seminal COX‐1 and COX‐2 with sperm concentration, sperm motility, sperm normal morphology, seminal GPx and significant positive correlation with seminal MDA. It is concluded that seminal COX‐1 and COX‐2 are over‐expressed in infertile OAT men with Vx compared with fertile men with/without and infertile OAT men without Vx being associated with oxidative stress, Vx grade and Vx laterality.
Miltefosine, an oral agent, for the treatment of Indian visceral leishmaniasis.

BACKGROUND There is no effective orally administered medication for any leishmania infection. We investigated miltefosine, which can be taken orally, for the treatment of Indian visceral leishmaniasis. Miltefosine is a phosphocholine analogue that affects cell-signaling pathways and membrane synthesis. METHODS The study was an open-label, multicenter, phase 2 trial in which four 30-person cohorts received 50, 100, or 150 mg of miltefosine per day for four or six weeks. The 120 patients, who ranged in age from 12 to 50 years, had anorexia, fever, and splenomegaly with at least moderate (2+) leishmania in a splenic aspirate. A parasitologic cure was defined by the absence of parasites in a splenic aspirate obtained two weeks after completion of treatment. The clinical response was assessed at six months. RESULTS In all 120 patients there was an initial parasitologic cure. Six patients had clinical and parasitologic relapses; the remaining 114 patients had not relapsed by six months after treatment, for a cure rate of 95 percent (95 percent confidence interval, 89 to 98 percent). With the regimen of 100 mg of miltefosine per day (approximately 2.5 mg per kilogram of body weight per day) for four weeks, 29 of 30 patients (97 percent) were cured. Gastrointestinal side effects were frequent (occurring in 62 percent of patients) but mild to moderate in severity, and no patient discontinued therapy because of gastrointestinal side effects. In two patients, treatment was discontinued because of elevated levels of aspartate aminotransferase or creatinine; in both patients the levels rapidly returned to normal. In 12 other patients, the level of aspartate aminotransferase increased to 100 to 150 U per liter during treatment. CONCLUSIONS Orally administered miltefosine appears to be an effective treatment for Indian visceral leishmaniasis.
The USP1-UAF1 complex interacts with RAD51AP1 to promote homologous recombination repair

ABSTRACT USP1 deubiquitinating enzyme and its stoichiometric binding partner UAF1 play an essential role in promoting DNA homologous recombination (HR) repair in response to various types of DNA damaging agents. Deubiquitination of FANCD2 may be attributed to the key role of USP1-UAF1 complex in regulating HR repair, however whether USP1-UAF1 promotes HR repair independently of FANCD2 deubiquitination is not known. Here we show evidence that the USP1-UAF1 complex has a FANCD2-independent function in promoting HR repair. Proteomic search of UAF1-interacting proteins revealed that UAF1 associates with RAD51AP1, a RAD51-interacting protein implicated in HR repair. We show that UAF1 mediates the interaction between USP1 and RAD51AP1, and that depletion of USP1 or UAF1 led to a decreased stability of RAD51AP1. Protein interaction mapping analysis identified some key residues within RAD51AP1 required for interacting with the USP1-UAF1 complex. Cells expressing the UAF1 interaction-deficient mutant of RAD51AP1 show increased chromosomal aberrations in response to Mitomycin C treatment. Moreover, similar to the RAD51AP1 depleted cells, the cells expressing UAF1-interaction deficient RAD51AP1 display persistent RAD51 foci following DNA damage exposure, indicating that these factors regulate a later step during the HR repair. These data altogether suggest that the USP1-UAF1 complex promotes HR repair via multiple mechanisms: through FANCD2 deubiquitination, as well as by interacting with RAD51AP1.
Compensation mechanism in liquid encapsulated Czochralski GaAs: Importance of melt stoichiometry

It is shown that the key to reproducible growth of undoped semi-insulating GaAs by the liquid encapsulated Czochralski (LEC) technique is the control over the melt stoichiometry. Twelve crystals were grown from stoichiometric and nonstoichiometric melts. The material was characterized by secondary ion mass spectrometry, localized vibrational mode far infrared spectroscopy, Hall-effect measurements, optical absorption, and photoluminescence. A quantitative model for the Compensation mechanism in the semi-insulating material was developed based on these measurements. The free carrier concentration is controlled by the balance between EL2 deep donors and carbon acceptors; furthermore, the incorporation of EL2 is controlled by the melt stoichiometry, increasing as the As atom fraction in the melt increases. As a result, semi-insulating material can be grown only from melts above a critical As composition. The practical significance of these results is discussed in terms of achieving high yield and reproduciblity in the crystal growth process.
Donor‐specific HLA antibodies: evaluating the risk for graft loss in renal transplant recipients with isotype switch from complement fixing IgG1/IgG3 to noncomplement fixing IgG2/IgG4 anti‐HLA alloantibodies

Human leukocyte antigen alloantibodies have a multitude of damaging effects on the allograft, both complement (C′) activation and Fc‐independent ones. To date, the clinical significance of non‐C′ fixing (NCF) HLA donor‐specific antibodies (DSA) is still unclear. In this study, we investigated whether renal transplant recipients with NCF‐DSA subclasses (IgG2/IgG4, IgA1/IgA2) are at higher risk of graft loss compared to patients with exclusively C′ fixing (IgG1/IgG3). Blood samples from 274 patients were analyzed for HLA IgG and IgA subclasses using a modified single‐antigen bead assay. We identified 50 (18.2%) patients with circulating NCF antibodies either DSA (n = 17) or against third‐party HLA (n = 33). NCF‐DSAs were preferentially of IgG2/IgG4 isotype (11/17) and were mainly directed against HLA class II (13/17). NCF DSA were present as a mixture with strong C′ fixing IgG1/IgG3. Graft survival was similar between patients with exclusively C′ fixing antibodies and those with a mixture panel (log rang test P = 0.162), and also among patients with different immunoglobulin isotype and subclasses (long‐rank test, P = 0.732). We conclude that expansion of DSA to NCF subclasses postrenal transplantation does not seem to be associated with worse graft survival as compared to the presence of exclusive C′ fixing subclasses.
Ear Involvement in Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis

Objective: This study evaluates the degree of hearing impairment in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and examines the correlation between hearing impairment and the clinical data or chemical mediators. Background: Both sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) and conductive hearing loss (CHL) have been reported in patients with RA, but the results of most studies are not in agreement, and the pathophysiology of hearing impairment in RA is not well known. Methods: Hearing in patients with RA and controls was examined using pure-tone audiometry and tympanometry. Also, the amounts of pro-inflammatory cytokines and matrix metalloproteinases in addition to antibodies against type II collagen in plasma of the patients with RA were determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Results: The frequency of SNHL in the patients with RA was higher than in normal controls (36.1% versus 13.9%), and bone conduction at 2,000 Hz differed significantly between the patients with RA and the controls (p < 0.01). Moreover, the presence of SNHL was related to ESR (p < 0.05), plasma interleukin-6 (p < 0.05), and plasma matrix metalloproteinase-3 (p < 0.001). On the other hand, CHL was not observed, whereas As-type tympanograms increased in the patients with RA (p < 0.01). Abnormal tympanograms were not related to any clinical findings or any chemical mediators tested. Conclusion: We demonstrated that there is increased SNHL in patients with RA, which may result from systemic inflammation and tissue injury, and increased latent-type CHL caused by stiffness of the middle ear system whose mechanisms are not yet clear.