Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Penetration of mitomycin C in human bladder.

The penetration of mitomycin C (MMC) in bladder tissue was studied in patients who received intravesical chemotherapy at the time of radical cystectomy. An intravesical dose of MMC (20 mg/40 ml) was instilled and maintained in the bladder for 60 to 120 min at which time the solution was drained. Within 10 to 60 min after draining the drug solution, the bladder vasculature was ligated, and the bladder was removed. Tissues were sectioned serially in layers parallel to the urothelium and analyzed for MMC concentration. Of the 24 patients evaluated, 17 patients had a low final MMC concentration in urine (< 66 micrograms/ml) or had the MMC solution drained more than 30 min before ligation of the blood vessels. Among these 17 patients, the concentration in the urothelium was measurable in only 4 patients, while the concentrations in deeper tissues were not measurable. In the remaining 7 patients where the urine concentration was > 120 micrograms/ml and where the vasculature was ligated within 30 min after the MMC solution was drained, the bladder wall contained significant MMC concentrations. The drug penetration was studied in the latter 7 patients, using sections of bladder wall that were grossly normal and non-tumor bearing. Concentrations in the bladder wall declined semilogarithmically with tissue depth from the urothelium to the deep muscle and reached a plateau at about 2000 microns depth. The median MMC concentrations were 5.6 micrograms/g in the urothelium and lamina propria interface, 2.7 micrograms/g in the lamina propria, and 0.9 microgram/g in the muscularis. The distance over which the MMC concentration decreased by one-half was about 500 microns. The concentration ratio between the urine and urothelium/lamina propria interface was about 35-fold. The mean plasma concentrations were 0.003, 0.1, and 0.4% of the mean concentration in urine, urothelium, and the averaged bladder tissue concentrations, respectively. Paired superficial tumor and normal tissues were obtained from 5 bladders. In 4 of 5 cases, the concentration in tumors was higher than in normal tissues, while the reverse was seen in the remaining tumor. In one sessile bladder tumor a complete concentration-depth profile could be obtained. While the concentrations in the tumor tissue were 2-3-fold higher than that in the adjacent normal tissue, the rate of concentration declined with respect to tissue depth and hence the distance over which the MMC concentration decreased by one-half was similar in both tumors. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Effect of Major Ions on Induction Time of Struvite Precipitation

Struvite precipitation from wastewaters has gained importance as a means of nitrogen and phosphorus treatment and recovery. While the aspects of process modeling and application have been widely studied, little attention was paid to process kinetics. This study attempted to evaluate the induction time of struvite precipitation for low ammonia concentrations and in the presence of ions commonly found in natural waters. Determination of induction time was based on absorbance measurements while conductivity and pH of the solutions were also monitored during the process. Results of the experimental study indicate that the presence of foreign ions is important in determining the induction time along with the degree of supersaturation. The presence of over 50 x 10 -3 mol dm -3 sodium ions retarded induction time significantly. Calcium ions at 2.5 x 10 -4 mol dm -3 concentration caused no marked change in the induction time. While carbonate ions had a slight effect, sulfate ions increased the induction time. Crystal morphology was also observed to be affected by supersaturation and the presence of foreign ions.
Ontology-based Information Extraction from Technical Documents

This paper presents a novel system for extracting user relevant tabular information from documents. The presented system is generic and can be applied to any documents irrespective of their domain and the information they contain. In addition to the generic nature of the presented approach, it is robust and can deal with different document layouts followed while creating those documents. The presented system has two main modules; table detection and ontological information extraction. The table detection module extracts all tables from a given technical document while, the ontological information extraction module extracts only relevant tables from all of the detected tables. The generalization in this system is achieved by using ontologies, thus enabling the system to adapt itself, to a new set of documents from any other domain, according to any provided ontology. Furthermore, the presented system also provides a confidence score and explanation of the score for each of the extracted tables in terms of its relevancy. The system was evaluated on 80 real technical documents of hardware parts containing 2033 tables from 20 different brands of Industrial Boilers domain. The evaluation results show that the presented system extracted all of the relevant tables and achieves an overall precision, recall, and F-measure of 0.88, 1 and 0.93 respectively.
Data fusion techniques and positioning estimation for land vehicle navigation systems : an overview

In this paper, we will review the problem of estimating in real-time the position of a vehicle for use in land navigation systems. After describing the application context and giving a definition of the problem, we will look at the mathematical framework and technologies involved to design positioning systems. We will compare the performance of some of the most popular data fusion approaches and provide some insights on their limitations and capabilities. We will then look at the case of robustness of the positioning system when one or some of the sensors are faulty. We will describe how the positioning system can be made more robust and adaptive in order to take account the occurrence of faulty sensors. Finally, we will go one step further and explore possible architectures for collaborative positioning systems whereas many vehicles are interacting and exchanging data to improve their own location estimate. We close the paper with some concluding remarks on the future evolution of the field.
Epidemiology and Molecular Pathology of Gallbladder Cancer

Gallbladder cancer is usually associated with gallstone disease, late diagnosis, unsatisfactory treatment, and poor prognosis. We report here the worldwide geographical distribution of gallbladder cancer, review the main etiologic hypotheses, and provide some comments on perspectives for prevention. The highest incidence rate of gallbladder cancer is found among populations of the Andean area, North American Indians, and Mexican Americans. Gallbladder cancer is up to three times higher among women than men in all populations. The highest incidence rates in Europe are found in Poland, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia. Incidence rates in other regions of the world are relatively low. The highest mortality rates are also reported from South America, 3.5–15.5 per 100,000 among Chilean Mapuche Indians, Bolivians, and Chilean Hispanics. Intermediate rates, 3.7 to 9.1 per 100,000, are reported from Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, and Brazil. Mortality rates are low in North America, with the exception of high rates among American Indians in New Mexico (11.3 per 100,000) and among Mexican Americans.
The rate of recovery from stroke - and its measurement.

A battery of tests to measure improvement over time in physical recovery of stroke patients - and to compare this with varying levels of disability at onset, is described. Recovery in a series of 135 patients with fresh stroke treated by traditional methods of rehabilitation is principally in the first 3 months - but also continues in the second 3 months, except for muscle power. Recovery after 6 months is least in muscle power and is limited mainly to walking and mobility (e.g. getting out of the house) which in some cases may be due to altered environmental factors. At onset only 62 per cent showed moderate or severe impairment of muscle power compared to 88 per cent with similar impairment in mobility and dependency. By 1 year 30 per cent of survivors remained dependent.
Hyaluronic acid injections protect patellar tendon from detraining-associated damage.

INTRODUCTION Having previously demonstrated that detraining affects patellar tendon (PT) proteoglycan content and collagen fiber organization, we undertook the present study with two aims: to improve knowledge on the adaptation of PT and its enthesis to detraining from a histological and histomorphometric point of view, and to investigate the hypothesis that repeated peri-patellar injections of hyaluronic acid (HA) on detrained PT may reduce and limit detrained associated-damage. METHODS Twenty-four male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into 3 groups: Untrained (n=6), Trained (n=6) (10 wks-treadmill) and Detrained (n=12). In the detrained rats, the left tendon was untreated while the right tendon received repeated peri-patellar injections of either HA or saline (NaCl). Structure and morphology of PTs (modified Movin score, tear density, collagen type I and III) and enthesis (cell morphology, chondrocyte cluster formation, tidemark integrity, matrix staining and vascularization) were evaluated. RESULTS The left PT and enthesis of the Detrained groups showed altered structure and morphology with the highest Movin score values, the highest percentage of collagen III and the lowest of collagen I; the lowest score values were observed in the Trained and Detrained-HA groups. Detrained-NaCl PTs showed the highest collagen III and the lowest collagen I values with respect to Detrained-HA PTs. CONCLUSION This study strengthens previously published data showing the alteration in tendon and enthesis morphology due to discontinuation of training, and provides new data showing that treatment with HA is effective in the maintenance of the structural properties of PT and enthesis in Detrained rats. Such beneficial effects could play a significant role in the management of conservative and rehabilitation strategies in athletes that change type, intensity and duration of training.
COX-2 Expression in Renal Cell Carcinoma and Correlations with Tumor Grade, Stage and Patient Prognosis.

BACKGROUND Cyclooxygenase 2 (COX-2) is important as an enzyme in the pathway leading to the production of prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) and arachidonic acid. This pathway is known to play a role in inflammation, tumor growth, invasiveness and metastasis, inhibition of apoptosis and angiogenesis. Inhibition of COX-2 has been shown to be a promising antitumor and antiangiogenic strategy in several tumor types, including renal cell carcinoma (RCC). Therefore, we decided to evaluate the immunohistochemical expression of this marker and its association with several clinicopathological characteristics in a series of cases. MATERIALS AND METHODS COX-2 expression was examined immunohistochemically in tumor tissues obtained from 96 patients who underwent radical (94 cases) or partial (2 cases) nephrectomy. Correlations between COX-2 expression and clinicopathologic findings including pathologic stage, nuclear grade and other indicator of prognosis were examined. RESULTS Of 96 tumors, 20.9% were positive for COX-2 expression. A correlation was found between COX-2 expression and tumor histological subtype (P=0.03). The papillary subtype showed maximum expression of this marker (43.8%) and the clear subtype minimum (14.7%). There were also possible links between COX-2 expression and pathologic stage, nuclear grade and nodal involvement but the results were not statistically significant (P=0.8, P= 0.14 and P=0.06, respectively). No correlation was found between COX2 expression and patient age, gender, tumor size, metastasis or survival. CONCLUSIONS In our study, COX-2 expression was correlated with the histological subtype of RCC. Additional research is required to determine the link between COX-2 expression and prognosis and also evaluation of probable effectiveness of COX-2 inhibitor drugs in treatment of RCC patients.
Efficacy of group psychotherapy for posttraumatic stress disorder: Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials

Abstract Objective: The present meta-analysis evaluates the efficacy of group psychotherapy for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in adults directly compared to no treatment or active treatments examined in randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Method: Electronic databases were searched for eligible studies. Effects on PTSD symptoms, depression, and anxiety were extracted. Between- and within-group effect sizes (Hedges’ g) were calculated using a random-effects model. Data were adjusted to account for dependencies among observations in groups. Results: Twenty RCTs were included comprising 2244 individuals. Results showed significant effects of group psychotherapy in reducing symptoms of PTSD compared to no-treatment control groups (k = 13; g = 0.70; 95% CI: 0.41; 0.99). No significant differences in efficacy were found between group psychotherapy and other active treatments (k = 8; g = 0.13; 95% CI: −0.16; 0.42). Moderator analyses confirmed gender and trauma type as important moderators of within-treatment effects for PTSD. Conclusions: Group treatments are associated with improvements in symptoms of PTSD. Particularly, the efficacy of exposure-based cognitive-behavioral group therapy (group CBT) is empirically well demonstrated. Still little is known about the effects of group treatment approaches other than CBT and the comparative efficacy to alternative treatments such as individual therapy or pharmacotherapy. Clinical or Methodological Significance of this Article: This review provides an empirical base for group therapy as a viable treatment alternative for future PTSD practice guidelines. Although less is known about its comparative efficacy to alternative PTSD treatments such as individual therapy or pharmacotherapy, sufficient evidence exists to recommend group therapy (particularly exposure-based group CBT) for those who might not be able to access alternative treatments. Trauma type and gender proved to be important moderators of group treatment outcome. The results further indicate that the evidence base of recommendations for group therapy in current international treatment guidelines needs to be updated.
Effects of menopause on hepatic 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 activity and adrenal sensitivity to adrenocorticotropin in healthy non-obese women

Menopause is associated with central obesity, dyslipidemia, hypertension and insulin resistance, which are also shown in the patients with excess of glucocorticoids. However, the interaction of hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal (HPA) axis activity and menopause has not been fully understood. In this study, 55 healthy non-obese women were recruited, and then divided into two groups, premenopausal group (n = 24) and postmenopausal group (n = 31). HPA axis function was evaluated by using dexamethasone suppression test (DST; 0.25 mg), and adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH)-stimulation test. Moreover, 25 mg cortisone acetate test was applied to evaluate the hepatic 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 (11β-HSD1) activity. We found that hepatic 11β-HSD1 activity and adrenal response to ACTH were increased in the postmenopausal group compared with the premenopausal group, whereas the negative feedback effect of dexamethasone did not show significant difference between pre- and postmenopausal women. These findings suggest that the adrenal sensitivity to ACTH and hepatic 11β-HSD1 activity are increased. The increased cortisol conversion and/or synthesis may be contributed to the dysmetabolic features in the postmenopausal women.
Panic and Suicidal Behaviour

Several outcome studies of neurosis have reported mortality to be high (e.g. Sims, 1973) and one cause appears to be suicide (Noyes, 1991). Nevertheless, the report by Weissman et a! (1989) that a neurotic syndrome, panic disorder, and even panic attacks in the absence of definite disorder, were more closely linked to self-harm than other psychiatric conditions, appears to challenge accepted wisdom. As a result papers have appeared disputing, affirming or explaining the risks associated with panic. The conclusions are of importance to clinical practice.
Cell Surface CD4 Interferes with the Infectivity of HIV-1 Particles Released from T Cells*

The CD4 protein is required for the entry of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) into target cells. Upon expression of the viral genome, three HIV-1 gene products participate in the removal of the primary viral receptor from the cell surface. To investigate the role of surface-CD4 in HIV replication, we have created a set of Jurkat cell lines which constitutively express surface levels of CD4 comparable to those found in peripheral blood lymphocytes and monocytes. Expression of low levels of CD4 on the surface of producer cells exerted an inhibitory effect on the infectivity of HIV-1 particles, whereas no differences in the amount of cell-free p24 antigen were observed. Higher levels of cell surface CD4 exerted a stronger inhibitory effect on infectivity, and also affected the release of free virus in experiments where the viral genomes were delivered by electrotransfection. The CD4-mediated inhibition of HIV-1 infectivity was not observed in experiments where the vesicular stomatitis virus G protein was used to pseudotype viruses, suggesting that an interaction between CD4 and gp120 is required for interference. In contrast, inhibition of particle release by high levels of cell-surface CD4 was not overcome by pseudotyping HIV-1 with foreign envelope proteins. Protein analysis of viral particles released from HIV-infected Jurkat-T cells revealed a CD4-dependent reduction in the incorporation of gp120. These results demonstrate that physiological levels of cell-surface CD4 interfere with HIV-1 replication in T cells by a mechanism that inhibits envelope incorporation into viral membranes, and therefore provide an explanation for the need to down-modulate the viral receptor in infected cells. Our findings have important implications for the spread of HIV in vivo and suggest that the CD4 down-modulation function may be an alternative target for therapeutic intervention.
Stock Prices, Earnings and Expected Dividends

Long historical averages of real earnings help forecast present values of future real dividends. With aggregate U.S. stock market data (1871-1986), a vector-autoregressive forecast of the present value of future dividends is, for each year, roughly a weighted average of moving-average earnings and current real price, with between two thirds and three fourths of the weight on the earnings measure. We develop the implications of this for the present-value model of stock prices and for recent results that long-horizon stock returns are highly forecastable.
Mechanisms of Nicotinamide and Thymidine Protection From Alloxan and Streptozocin Toxicity

A common mechanism has been proposed for the β-cell toxins alloxan (ALX) and streptozocin (STZ) involving the formation of single-strand breaks in DNA that lead to the overactivation of the enzyme poly(ADP-ribose) synthetase and the critical depletion of its substrate NAD. If the toxins act via this common mechanism, the poly(ADP-ribose) synthetase inhibitors nicotinamide and thymidine would be expected to affect the formation of DNA single-strand breaks in a similar fashion. To test the effects of these inhibitors, the formation of single-strand breaks in the DNA of insulin-secreting RINr cells was monitored by assessing changes in the supercoiling of nucleoids after exposure to STZ, ALX, or methylnitrosourea (MNU). With the inclusion of nicotinamide or thymidine and STZ or MNU, more single-strand breaks in RINr cell DNA were detected. These results would be expected if nicotinamide and thymidine acted through inhibition of poly(ADP-ribose) synthetase. However, when the inhibitors were used in combination with ALX, fewer single-strand breaks were present. This suggests a reduction in ALX-induced hydroxyl radicals available to interact with DNA. Because nicotinamide has been demonstrated to be a hydroxyl-radical scavenger, the ability of thymidine to scavenge hydroxyl radicals was investigated. Thymidine, like nicotinamide, was found to be a potent scavenger of hydroxyl radicals. Thus, the mechanisms by which nicotinamide and thymidine protect against the toxic effects of STZ or ALX appear different. These findings suggest that the actions of β-cell toxins are more complex than simply the overactivation of a single enzyme.
Benefits and risks of immediately sequential bilateral cataract surgery: a literature review

Immediately sequential bilateral cataract surgery (ISBCS) is a highly contended issue in ophthalmology, mainly due to the risk of bilateral endophthalmitis and financial penalties that many ophthalmologists face when performing simultaneous cataract surgeries. The purpose of this review is to understand the current status of the knowledge of ISBCS, mainly its benefits and risks and how they compare with the standard of care, delayed sequential bilateral cataract surgery. Evidence, although limited, increasingly supports ISBCS for providing faster rehabilitation, improved visual outcomes, and cost and time savings. Evidence does not support the fear of bilateral endophthalmitis resulting from the simultaneous procedure. However, stronger and greater evidence is needed before ISBCSs can be considered the standard of care. Where ISBCS can potentially create the most beneficial impact is in public eye health programmes in developing countries, but this has not yet been explored.
A Taxonomy of Energy Management Protocols for Ad Hoc Wireless Networks

Energy management is one of the key considerations in the design of ad hoc wireless networks. Several schemes, which can be adopted at different layers of the protocol stack in order to accommodate energy awareness in AWNs, have been proposed in the recent past. This article provides a taxonomy of various energy management schemes for AWNs and a comprehensive summary of a scheme under each classification. It also points out the future research perspectives in energy management for these networks
Production of antifungal compounds in cowpea (Vigna sinensis) and pea (Pisum sativum) after virus infection.

SUMMARY: Tissues of cowpea and pea underwent cellular browning following infection by tobacco necrosis virus and pea early browning virus respectively. In both species antifungal isoflavanoids accumulated in the brown tissues. The phytoalexins, phaseollidine, kievitone and phaseollin were isolated from virus-infected cowpea; pisatin from virus-infected pea. These results agree with previous indications that the destruction of host cells promotes the formation and accumulation of antifungal compounds within the tissues.
Alterations in human enamel surface morphology following the use of an office bleaching agent and consecutive application of 37% phosphoric acid in vivo.

OBJECTIVE The aim of this in vivo study was to evaluate the effects of a visible light-activated in-office bleaching agent, Opalescence Xtra (35% hydrogen peroxide) on the external enamel surface of human teeth by using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). METHODS The labial surfaces of nine upper incisors from nine different patients were divided into four parts, and a bleaching agent was applied to the mesial halves of the teeth. Three weeks following this treatment, the teeth were extracted and divided into four quadrants. Each quadrant was treated with a different procedure and the samples were examined under SEM. The SEM photographs were blindly evaluated by a jury of four experts. RESULTS Although there were no statistical differences in the rating of surface morphology of bleached and control groups, the 37% phosphoric acid etched and acid etched + bleached enamel samples demonstrated a statistically significant dissimilar surface morphology (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION The bleached + etched enamel treatment showed an uneven etched surface compared to the acid etched control.