Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
High immunohistochemical expression of p‐AKT predicts inferior survival in patients with diffuse large B‐cell lymphoma treated with immunochemotherapy

Chemotherapy and rituximab (R) is current standard therapy in diffuse large B‐cell lymphoma (DLBCL), but a substantial proportion of patients still fail to reach sustained remission. In vitro studies have indicated that rituximab resistance could be accompanied by dysregulated apoptotic pathways, such as the phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase (PI3K)/AKT signaling pathway, which can be constitutively activated in DLBCL. In this retrospective, immunohistochemical study on 106 patients treated with R‐CHO(E)P (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, prednisone, rituximab [+etoposide]), we investigated the prognostic role of proteins involved in different apoptotic pathways; phosphorylated AKT (p‐AKT), bcl‐2, MCL1, bcl‐xL, Bax and Bak. High p‐AKT expression (>108 cells/mm2, highest quartile, n = 27) predicted worse progression‐free (PFS) (P = 0·02) and overall (OS) (P = 0·01) survival, independent of International Prognostic Index and sex. Also bcl‐2+ (cut‐off 50%) predicted worse PFS (P = 0·005) and OS (P = 0·05) but after adjustment for clinical factors only the influence on PFS (P = 0·03) remained significant. The prognostic impact of p‐AKT overexpression was independent of bcl‐2 status. MCL1, bcl‐xL, Bax and Bak expression did not add any prognostic information. Our results suggest that high p‐AKT expression predicts worse outcome, possibly indicating that inhibition of the activated PI3K/AKT pathway could be of clinical interest in DLBCL patients. In addition, bcl‐2 status could have prognostic importance also in the era of immunochemotherapy.
How to optimise clopidogrel therapy? Reducing the low-response incidence by aggregometry-guided therapy modification

Summary The inhibitory platelet effect of clopidogrel is insufficient in approximately 5 to 30% of patients. These low responders (LR) face a significantly higher risk of cardiovascular complications. The therapeutic management of LR is still undefined. In the present study, we evaluate a novel therapeutic algorithm to reduce the incidence of clopidogrel resistance. One hundred sixty-one patients on 100 mg ofAspirin co-medication underwent elective coronary stenting and were given an initial dosage of 600 mg clopidogrel, followed by 75 mg clopidogrel daily. 48 h later, the platelet responsiveness was tested with ADP (5–20 μM) stimulation by impedance aggregometry (Chronolog 590). A significant rise in impedance (> 5 Ω after 6 minutes, aggregation index > 65%) was defined as LR. In this subgroup, platelets were stimulated with the selective P2Y12-ADP receptor antagonist 2-MeS AMP. One hundred twenty-three patients were clopidogrel-responders (76.4%) and 38 patients were LR (23.6%). A defect of the ADP-receptor P2Y12 was found in three out of 38 LR (7.9%). Inhibition of platelet aggregation indicating clopidogrel-responsiveness was achieved with either a clopidogrel high-dose regimen (22/38, 57.9%); a repeat loading dose, doubling the maintenance dose) or with an alternative therapy with ticlopidine (8/38 (21.1%); 250 mg twice daily). Thus the incidence of LR was reduced from 23.6% to 5.0%. Our aggregometer–guided therapeutic algorithm reduced the relative percentage of clopidogrel LR by 78.9%. This approach could prove to be helpful in achieving a further decrease in the incidence of clopidogrel resistance.
Study of the effect of the directness of the interaction on novice users when drawing straight lines

Pen-enabled devices are widely used in computer graphics. Some artists use direct devices (interactive pen displays) whereas others use indirect devices (graphics tablets) and this applies to both professionals and hobbyists. In this paper we studied how indirect pen-enabled devices affect drawing performance compared to their direct counter-parts for novice users. We also studied the influence of gain for indirect pen-enabled devices. We considered no gain (i.e. C/D=1), a homogenous gain (gain=2 on both the x and y axes) and a heterogeneous gain (gain=2 on the x axis and gain=1 on the y axis). Results indicate that drawing performance and quality decreased with indirectness and with both homogeneous and heterogeneous gains. In addition, we conducted a qualitative study showing that participants preferred direct devices.
Digenean metacercariae of fishes from the lagoon flats of Palmyra Atoll, Eastern Indo-Pacific

Abstract Although many studies on the taxonomy of digenean trematodes of marine fishes have been completed in the Eastern Indo-Pacific (EIP) marine ecoregion, only a few have considered metacercarial stages. Here, the results are presented of a taxonomic survey of the digenean metacercariae of fishes from Palmyra Atoll, a remote and relatively pristine US National Wildlife Refuge located 1680 km SSW of Hawaii. Up to 425 individual fish were collected, comprising 42 fish species, from the sand flats bordering the lagoon of the atoll. Quantitative parasitological examinations of each fish were performed. Morphological descriptions of the encountered digenean metacercariae are provided, together with their prevalence, mean intensities, host and tissue-use. Up to 33,964 individuals were recovered representing 19 digenean metacercaria species from eight families. The species composition of digeneans in lagoon fishes at Palmyra Atoll is a subset of what has previously been reported for the EIP. Further, the large diversity and abundance of metacercariae reported in this study highlight the utility of including this group in future ecological research in the EIP marine ecoregion.
Role of multi-mode ultrasound in the diagnosis of level 4 BI-RADS breast lesions and Logistic regression model.

OBJECTIVE This study is to investigate the diagnostic role of multi-mode ultrasound in level 4 BI-RADS breast lesions and to establish a Logistic regression model. METHODS Totally 179 patients with 182 sites of breast lesions were enrolled in this study. Preoperatively, the examinations of routine ultrasonography, elastography, contrast-enhanced ultrasonography and three-dimensional color Doppler were performed. Postoperatively, the breast lesions were diagnosed as benign and malignant lesions according to pathological results. Diagnostic indicators of each ultrasound analysis were determined and compared. The relationship between these diagnostic indicators and the benign and malignant features of breast lesions was analyzed by single factor analysis. Logistic regression model was established. RESULTS The diagnostic indicators with high sensitivity and specificity were tumor edge, enhanced range and score of elastography. Four factors of tumor edge, enhanced order, contrast mode and score of elastography were related with the benign and malignant features of breast lesions. The prediction model was Logit (P) = 0.636 + 4.471X1 + 4.337X2 + 3.753X3 + 3.014X4 + 2.525X5 + 2.105X6. Likelihood ratio test showed that the model was statistically significant (χ(2) = 161.876, P < 0.0001). This model could effectively distinguish between benign and malignant tumors (R(2) = 0.813, prediction accuracy 92.3%). The differences in sensitivity and specificity between multi-mode ultrasound diagnosis and routine ultrasound diagnosis were statistically significant (P < 0.001). However, there was no significant difference between Logistic regression model and multi-mode ultrasound diagnosis. CONCLUSION Multi-mode ultrasound and Logistic regression model are more effective in diagnosing level 4 BI-RADS breast lesions.
Nonintrusive appliance load monitoring based on integer programming

This paper presents a new nonintrusive appliance load monitoring technique based on the integer programming. Nonintrusive appliance load monitoring is a problem to identify the operating conditions of the electric appliances in a house only by observing the overall load current and voltage. Since the overall load current is expressed as a superposition of each current of the operating appliance, the monitoring problem can be formulated as an integer quadratic programming problem by expressing the operating conditions as integer variables. This problem is solvable with sufficiently small computational burden thanks to the recent development of the commercial software. The proposed method does not require the relearning even when a new appliance is installed in the house. Furthermore, the proposed formulation is applicable to cases that some appliance has multiple modes, and cases that some same-type appliances operate simultaneously. Usefulness of the proposed technique is verified through some experimental results.
Augmented Reality as a Telemedicine Platform for Remote Procedural Training

Traditionally, rural areas in many countries are limited by a lack of access to health care due to the inherent challenges associated with recruitment and retention of healthcare professionals. Telemedicine, which uses communication technology to deliver medical services over distance, is an economical and potentially effective way to address this problem. In this research, we develop a new telepresence application using an Augmented Reality (AR) system. We explore the use of the Microsoft HoloLens to facilitate and enhance remote medical training. Intrinsic advantages of AR systems enable remote learners to perform complex medical procedures such as Point of Care Ultrasound (PoCUS) without visual interference. This research uses the HoloLens to capture the first-person view of a simulated rural emergency room (ER) through mixed reality capture (MRC) and serves as a novel telemedicine platform with remote pointing capabilities. The mentor’s hand gestures are captured using a Leap Motion and virtually displayed in the AR space of the HoloLens. To explore the feasibility of the developed platform, twelve novice medical trainees were guided by a mentor through a simulated ultrasound exploration in a trauma scenario, as part of a pilot user study. The study explores the utility of the system from the trainees, mentor, and objective observers’ perspectives and compares the findings to that of a more traditional multi-camera telemedicine solution. The results obtained provide valuable insight and guidance for the development of an AR-supported telemedicine platform.
SSR-based tool for identification and certification of commercial Populus clones in Spain

In order to protect the legitimate interests of the poplar breeders, growers and industries, we have developed a reliable and affordable certification tool for commercial poplars in Spain. We have carried out a genetic description of the 28 commercial clones of the current Spanish National Catalogue using 10 microsatellite molecular markers (SSR). The results clearly show that in the Spanish National Catalogue there are labelling mistakes including synonymies, supported by a combined probability of identity (PI) of 1.18 × 10−9. We have also demonstrate that it is possible to identify all the different clones (genotypes) with only three microsatellites, that show a combined probability of identity of 2.4 × 10−4, and we have optimised the protocols to reduce the time and the economical costs of the analysis. This SSR-based tool could be incorporated in the current certification protocols, to avoid duplication of accessions and identification mistakes. RésuméDans le but de protéger les intérêts légitimes des cultivateurs, des sélectionneurs et des industriels de la populiculture, nous avons mis au point un outil de certification fiable et accessible pour les clones de peupliers commerciaux en Espagne. Nous avons fait une description génétique des 28 clones commerciaux de l’actuel catalogue national espagnol en utilisant 10 marqueurs moléculaires microsatellites (SSR). Les résultats obtenus indiquent clairement que ce catalogue contient des erreurs d’identification, dont des clones synonymes, soutenues par une probabilité combinée d’identité (PI) de 1.18 × 10. Nous avons également démontré qu’il est possible d’identifier tous les génotypes différents avec 3 microsatellites, qui montrent une probabilité combinée d’identité de 2.4 × 10−4, et nous avons optimisé les protocoles afin de réduire le temps et le coût de l’analyse. Cet outil fondé sur les SSR pourrait être intégré dans les protocoles actuels de certification afin d’éviter la duplication des matériaux et les erreurs d’identification.
Developing an ICF core set for sub-acute stages of spinal cord injury in Taiwan: a preliminary study

Abstract Purpose: The objective of this study was to develop an ICF core set describing sub-acute spinal cord injury (SCI) specifically for Taiwanese patients. Methods: A consensus process using three rounds of Delphi technique was conducted. Twenty multidisciplinary participants from various institutions were recruited. The questionnaire used in this study comprised 118 ICF second-level categories relevant to the sub-acute stage of SCI. A five-point Likert scale was used, and participants were asked to assign weights to the effect of each category on activities of daily life after SCI. The consensus among ratings was assessed using Spearman’s rho and semi-interquartile range (SIQR) indices. The core set for post-acute SCI was developed from categories that attained a mean score of ≥3.8 in the third round of the Delphi exercise. Results: The core set for sub-acute SCI contained 58 categories. Of these, 24 comprised the component of body functions (b), 5 comprised body structures (s), 21 comprised activities and participation (d), and 8 comprised environmental factors (e). Conclusion: The preliminary core set for sub-acute SCI offers a comprehensive system of disability assessment and verification after people have sustained an SCI. Further validation is required. Implication for Rehabilitation The preliminary core set for sub-acute SCI offers a comprehensive system for disability assessment related to SCI among Taiwanese patients. This core set reflected problems commonly encountered by patients with SCI. This core set reflects appropriate cultural and geographic perspectives in adjustment to SCI.
Improved Change Detection with Trajectory-Based Approach: Application to Quantify Cropland Expansion in South Dakota

The growing demand for biofuel production increased agricultural activities in South Dakota, leading to the conversion of grassland to cropland. Although a few land change studies have been conducted in this area, they lacked spatial details and were based on the traditional bi-temporal change detection that may return incorrect rates of conversion. This study aimed to provide a more complete view of land conversion in South Dakota using a trajectory-based analysis that considers the entire satellite-based land cover/land use time series to improve change detection. We estimated cropland expansion of 5447 km2 (equivalent to 14% of the existing cropland area) between 2007 and 2015, which matches much more closely the reports from the National Agriculture Statistics Service—NASS (5921 km2)—and the National Resources Inventory—NRI (5034 km2)—than an estimation from the bi-temporal approach (8018 km2). Cropland gains were mostly concentrated in 10 counties in northern and central South Dakota. Urbanizing Lincoln County, part of the Sioux Falls metropolitan area, is the only county with a net loss in cropland area over the study period. An evaluation of land suitability for crops using the Soil Survey Geographic Database (SSURGO) indicated a scarcity in high-quality arable land available for cropland expansion.
Dense RGB-D Semantic Mapping with Pixel-Voxel Neural Network

In this paper, a novel Pixel-Voxel network is proposed for dense 3D semantic mapping, which can perform dense 3D mapping while simultaneously recognizing and labelling the semantic category each point in the 3D map. In our approach, we fully leverage the advantages of different modalities. That is, the PixelNet can learn the high-level contextual information from 2D RGB images, and the VoxelNet can learn 3D geometrical shapes from the 3D point cloud. Unlike the existing architecture that fuses score maps from different modalities with equal weights, we propose a softmax weighted fusion stack that adaptively learns the varying contributions of PixelNet and VoxelNet and fuses the score maps according to their respective confidence levels. Our approach achieved competitive results on both the SUN RGB-D and NYU V2 benchmarks, while the runtime of the proposed system is boosted to around 13 Hz, enabling near-real-time performance using an i7 eight-cores PC with a single Titan X GPU.
Management of aggressive midface and orbital fibrous dysplasia.

OBJECTIVE To discuss cosmetic and functional implications in the evaluation and treatment planning of large, aggressive midfacial fibrous dysplasias. PATIENTS AND METHODS Eight patients (aged 2-38 years) with large fibrous dysplasias of the maxilla, zygomatic, and ethmoid bones requiring varying degrees of intervention and reconstruction were retrospectively reviewed. Patients with smaller lesions of these regions not requiring resection and reconstruction, as well those requiring sinus surgery alone were excluded from this review. RESULTS All fibrous dysplasias in this review were monostotic, 6 originating in the maxilla, 1 in the zygoma, and 1 in the ethmoid. Five lesions (4 maxillary, 1 zygomatic) caused cosmetic deformity without functional deficits and required resection and/or contouring only with minimal reconstruction. The remaining lesions were invasive such that function of the eye and/or dentition was affected. These lesions were treated by aggressive resection and various degrees of reconstruction to optimize function. CONCLUSIONS While fibrous dyplasia is classified as a benign process, local expansion can cause significant functional and aesthetic deformities. Each lesion should be thoroughly evaluated and, when vital structures are involved or threatened, total or subtotal resection should be considered. A variety of options should be available to the surgeon for definitive primary reconstruction.
The vancomycin resistance VanRS two‐component signal transduction system of Streptomyces coelicolor

We took advantage of the vancomycin‐dependent phenotype of Streptomyces coelicolor femX null mutants to isolate a collection of spontaneous, drug‐independent femX suppressor mutants that expressed the vancomycin‐resistance (van) genes constitutively. All of the suppressor mutations were in vanS but, unexpectedly, many were predicted to be loss‐of‐function mutations. Confirming this interpretation, a constructed vanS deletion mutation also resulted in constitutive expression of the van genes, suggesting that VanS negatively regulated VanR function in the absence of drug. In contrast, a vanS pta ackA triple mutant, which should not be able synthesize acetyl phosphate, failed to express the van genes, whereas a pta ackA double mutant showed wild‐type, regulated induction of the van genes. These results suggest that in the absence of vancomycin, acetyl phosphate phosphorylates VanR, and VanS acts as a phosphatase to suppress the levels of VanR∼P. On exposure to vancomycin, VanS activity switches from a phosphatase to a kinase and vancomycin resistance is induced. In S. coelicolor, the van genes are induced by both vancomycin and the glycopeptide A47934, whereas in Streptomyces toyocaensis (the A47934 producer) resistance is induced by A47934 but not by vancomycin. We exploited this distinction to replace the S. coelicolor vanRS genes with the vanRS genes from S. toyocaensis. The resulting strain acquired the inducer profile of S. toyocaensis, providing circumstantial evidence that the VanS effector ligand is the drug itself, and not an intermediate in cell wall biosynthesis that accumulates as result of drug action. Consistent with this suggestion, we found that non‐glycopeptide inhibitors of the late steps in cell wall biosynthesis such as moenomycin A, bacitracin and ramoplanin were not inducers of the S. coelicolor VanRS system, in contrast to results obtained in enterococcal VanRS systems.
Cholesterol-dependent Localization of NAP-22 on a Neuronal Membrane Microdomain (Raft)*

A membrane microdomain called raft has been under extensive study since the assembly of various signal-transducing molecules into this region has been envisaged. This domain is isolated as a low buoyant membrane fraction after the extraction with a nonionic detergent such as Triton X-100. The characteristic low density of this fraction is ascribed to the enrichment of several lipids including cholesterol. To clear the molecular mechanism of raft formation, several extraction methods were applied to solubilize raft components. Cholesterol extraction using methyl-β-cyclodextrin was found to be effective to solubilize NAP-22, a neuron-enriched Ca2+-dependent calmodulin-binding protein as well as one of the main protein components of brain raft. Purified NAP-22 bound to the liposomes that were made from phosphatidylcholine and cholesterol. This binding was dependent on the amount of cholesterol in liposomes. Calmodulin inhibited this binding in a dose-dependent manner. These results suggest that the presence of a calcium-dependent regulatory mechanism works on the assembly of raft within the neuron.
Pharmacodynamic evaluation of tigecycline against Acinetobacter baumannii in a murine pneumonia model.

OBJECTIVES Tigecycline is an extended-spectrum antibiotic with activity against Acinetobacter spp. (ACB), an increasingly common cause of nosocomial pneumonia. Although this compound is under investigation for this indication, supportive pharmacodynamic data are not yet available at this infection site. The objective of this study was to characterize the exposure-response relationship of tigecycline with ACB in an established murine pneumonia model. METHODS The pharmacokinetic profile of tigecycline was evaluated in infected neutropenic mice. Tigecycline 6.25, 12.5, 25, 50, 100, 200, 300 and 400 mg/kg, in single or two to six divided subcutaneous doses, were tested against all ACB isolates. Efficacy, defined as the log(10) change in bacterial cfu/mL, was assessed after a 24 h course of therapy. Tigecycline exposures in serum were corrected for dose-specific protein binding. The relationship between the area under the free concentration-time curve to MIC (fAUC/MIC) and change in bacterial density was determined using the sigmoid E(max) model. RESULTS Tigecycline displayed linear pharmacokinetics with a mean half-life of 11.3 +/- 1.4 h. Efficacy correlated well with fAUC/MIC (R(2) = 0.96). The mean 80%, 50% effective and stasis exposures (fAUC/MIC) were 17, 8 and 6, respectively. Maximal efficacy for the five Acinetobacter baumannii studied was 3.4 log kill. CONCLUSIONS Tigecycline efficacy in this murine ACB pneumonia model was well predicted by fAUC/MIC. Requisite tigecycline exposures for efficacy appear to be higher for ACB pneumonia than for other pathogens reported of non-respiratory infections.
Passionflower in the treatment of opiates withdrawal: a double‐blind randomized controlled trial

Objective: Clonidine‐based therapies have been utilized as the main protocol for opiate detoxification for several years. However, detoxification with clonidine has its limitations, including lack of efficacy for mental symptoms. Accumulating evidence shows the efficacy of Passiflora incarnata extract in the management of anxiety. In our continuing study of traditional medicines, which have neurotropic effects, this plant had an anxiolytic effect, which may be used as an adjuvant agent in the detoxification of opiates by clonidine. We present the results of a double‐blind randomized controlled trial of clonidine plus passiflora extract vs. clonidine plus placebo in the outpatient detoxification of 65 opiates addicts.