Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Experimental production of carcinoma with cigarette tar. IV. Successful experiments with rabbits.

Summary 1.Cigarette tar is carcinogenic to rabbit epithelium. Five of 41 rabbits painted with cigarette tar on the inner ear developed cancer. Two out of ten rabbits receiving an additional painting with croton oil once a week developed cancer. Four of these cancers were shown histologically to be squamous-cell carcinomas, one a carcinosarcoma, and two sarcomas. 2.Removing the basic portions of the tar does not seem to interfere with the carcinogenic activity of cigarette tar on rabbits. 3.Additional application of croton oil seems to have no significant influence on the development of cancer among rabbits receiving cigarette tar.
A NOVEL WEIGHTING METHOD USING FUZZY SET THEORY FOR SPATIAL ADAPTIVE PATCH-BASED IMAGE DENOISING

Based on fuzzy set theory, this paper proposes a novel weighting method for spatial adaptive patch-based image denoising algorithm which can be considered as an extension of nonlocal means filtering. First, a fuzzy clustering algorithm for weighting data points is applied to reduce the estimate bias which arises from the unrelated points. The weighting function is determined by optimal fuzzy partitions of the similarity of image patches. Then, the control parameter of the weighting function for each iterative step is modified to make a more rational weight distribution. Finally, a fuzzy control idea is introduced to deal with residual noisy pixels which fail in fuzzy clustering because of lacking similar patches in their neighborhoods. Experiment results show that the proposed weighting method improves the performance of the original algorithm and preserves more details in images.
Biotransformation des déchets de l’industrie agroalimentaire et génération d’un fertilisant pour les cultures agricoles

Les procedes agro-industriels generent des quantites importantes de dechets, qui constituent une menace environnementale pour le milieu naturel recepteur, et aussi un gaspillage de matiere organique encore valorisable. Ce travail vise la valorisation de trois dechets de l’industrie agroalimentaire : les dechets de poissons, la melasse et les pelures de pomme de terre. Un melange ternaire equilibre a base de ces trois composantes a ete elabore, plusieurs proportions sont etudiees, et ont subi une biotransformation naturelle pendant 2 semaines en vue de produire un fertilisant de bonne qualite nutritionnelle et microbiologique. Les parametres de controle qualite (pH, temperature, conductivite, matiere seche, phosphore, azote, carbone total…) ont ete suivis durant la duree preconisee pour l’etude. Les resultats montrent que le fertilisant genere est mature a partir du 8e jour, il est de bonne qualite hygienique, de par l’absence des micro-organismes d’alteration, riche en azote, phosphore, et potassium. Des tests sur une culture d’orge ont confirme son effet. La modelisation mathematique, sous forme d’un diagramme ternaire, de la qualite du produit final en fonction de la composition du melange initial est etablie pour construire en pratique un modele operationnel predictif utilisable par les industriels de la gestion des dechets, afin d’identifier les formulations pertinentes aboutissant a un produit d’interet specifique.
Single nucleotide polymorphisms and haplotypes of TLR6 gene in Chinese Cantonese population

Sequence polymorphisms in the coding region of Toll‐like receptor 6 gene were investigated in Chinese Cantonese population. By amplifying and sequencing a 2787 bp segment containing the entire coding region of TLR6 gene of 191 individuals in Chinese Cantonese population, a total of seven single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) along with their frequencies were detected. Comparing these data with SNP published in dbSNP database of National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), two SNP (+176T/C and +1408G/T) were firstly reported, and five SNP caused amino‐acid substitution. Sixteen haplotypes and their distributions were reconstructed. Linkage disequilibrium analysis and neutrality test were also performed. Comparing with other ethnic populations, Chinese Cantonese displayed obvious differences in TLR6 polymorphism. It may in part reflect the ethnic diversity of pathogen susceptibility and facilitate to develop the disease‐association studies as well as population genetics and evolutionary research.
CXCR4-Related Increase of Circulating Human Lymphoid Progenitors after Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

Immune recovery after profound lymphopenia is a major challenge in many clinical situations, such as allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). Recovery depends, in a first step, on hematopoietic lymphoid progenitors production in the bone marrow (BM). In this study, we characterized CD34+Lin−CD10+ lymphoid progenitors in the peripheral blood of allo-HSCT patients. Our data demonstrate a strong recovery of this population 3 months after transplantation. This rebound was abolished in patients who developed acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD). A similar recovery profile was found for both CD24+ and CD24− progenitor subpopulations. CD34+lin−CD10+CD24− lymphoid progenitors sorted from allo-HSCT patients preserved their T cell potentiel according to in vitro T-cell differentiation assay and the expression profile of 22 genes involved in T-cell differentiation and homing. CD34+lin−CD10+CD24− cells from patients without aGVHD had reduced CXCR4 gene expression, consistent with an enhanced egress from the BM. CCR7 gene expression was reduced in patients after allo-HSCT, as were its ligands CCL21 and CCL19. This reduction was particularly marked in patients with aGVHD, suggesting a possible impact on thymic homing. Thus, the data presented here identify this population as an important early step in T cell reconstitution in humans and so, an important target when seeking to enhance immune reconstitution.
A multigrid framework for variational approaches in medical image processing and computer vision

Variational approaches for modeling are very common in medical image processing and computer vision, e.g., for motion detection by optical flow, image registration, image segmentation, image denoising, or image inpainting. One drawback of variational approaches is that the optimization process typically involves the solution of one or more partial differential equations (PDEs). This is very time and memory consuming, since the amount of data that has to be processed in imaging increases more and more. In addition to that, optimization often involves computation of image derivatives which are non-smooth at image discontinuities like edges. This is also reflected in the local coefficients of the corresponding PDEs. Therefore, the development of robust and efficient numerical schemes is required. The multigrid method is known as one of the most efficient solvers for sparse, linear systems. Furthermore, the multigrid idea, to use information not only from one scale, but from a hierarchy of resolutions, is not limited to solving simple linear problems, but can be extended to solving more complex linear and nonlinear problems, too. Unfortunately, a concrete multigrid method highly depends on the actual problem. Therefore, no general black-box, flexible, and efficient multigrid solver is available that supports development and extension of variational approaches. In this thesis we try to address this point by implementing a software package based on a multigrid solver for different variational approaches in 2D and 3D. Furthermore, we investigate several advanced multigrid techniques and show in which situations they are useful. We apply our framework to a number of medical image processing and computer vision problems, where in some cases state-of-the-art models are used, in some cases common models are extended, and in some cases new fields of applications for variational approaches are considered.
Efficacy of physiotherapy interventions late after stroke: a meta-analysis

Objective Physiotherapy is usually provided only in the first few months after stroke, while its effectiveness and appropriateness in the chronic phase are uncertain. The authors conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised clinical trials (RCT) to evaluate the efficacy of physiotherapy interventions on motor and functional outcomes late after stroke. Methods The authors searched published studies where participants were randomised to an active physiotherapy intervention, compared with placebo or no intervention, at least 6 months after stroke. The outcome was a change in mobility and activities of daily living (ADL) independence. The quality of the trials was evaluated using the PEDro scale. Findings were summarised across studies as effect size (ES) or, whenever possible, weighted mean difference (WMD) with 95% CI in random effects models. Results Fifteen RCT were included, enrolling 700 participants with follow-up data. The meta-analysis of primary outcomes from the original studies showed a significant effect of the intervention (ES 0.29, 95% CI 0.14 to 0.45). The efficacy of the intervention was particularly evident when short- and long-distance walking were considered as separate outcomes, with WMD of 0.05 m/s (95% CI 0.008 to 0.088) and 20 m (95% CI 3.6 to 36.0), respectively. Also, ADL improvement was greater, though non-significantly, in the intervention group. No significant heterogeneity was found. Interpretation A variety of physiotherapy interventions improve functional outcomes, even when applied late after stroke. These findings challenge the concept of a plateau in functional recovery of patients who had experienced stroke and should be valued in planning community rehabilitation services.
A Survey on Various Approaches for Taxonomy Construction

Objectives : To analysis different approaches for taxonomy construction to improve the knowledge classification, information retrieval and other data mining process. Findings : Taxonomies learning keep getting more important process for knowledge sharing about a domain. It is also used for application development such as knowledge searching, information retrieval. The taxonomy can be build manually but it is a complex process when the data are so large and it also produce some errors while taxonomy construction. There is various automatic taxonomy construction techniques are used to learn taxonomy based on keyword phrases, text corpus and from domain specific concepts etc. So it is required to build taxonomy with less human effort and with less error rate. This paper provides detailed information about those techniques. Methods : The methods such as lexico-syntatic pattern, semi supervised methods, graph based methods, ontoplus, TaxoLearn, Bayesian approach, two-step method, ontolearn and Automatic Taxonomy Construction from Text are analyzed in this paper. Application/Improvements : The findings of this work prove that the TaxoFinder approach provides better result than other approaches.
Protonation state of glutamate 73 regulates the formation of a specific dimeric association of mVDAC1

Significance Cellular acidification occurs in response to many cellular events, including ischemia and apoptosis. The voltage-dependent anion channel (VDAC) is the most abundant protein in the outer mitochondrial membrane and has been implicated in mitochondrial regulation, cell death, and assembling protein complexes with Bcl2 family of apoptotic regulating proteins. During apoptosis, VDAC has demonstrated rapid oligomerization followed by cytochrome c release into the cytoplasm. We report a new dimeric model of VDAC induced by minor acidification with a pKa of 7.4, which is regulated by the protonation state of transmembrane residue E73. This study links a specific dimer formation with cellular acidification, which may be a salient feature of the molecular mechanism(s) involved in mitochondrial regulation. The voltage-dependent anion channel (VDAC) is the most abundant protein in the outer mitochondrial membrane and constitutes the primary pathway for the exchange of ions and metabolites between the cytosol and the mitochondria. There is accumulating evidence supporting VDAC’s role in mitochondrial metabolic regulation and apoptosis, where VDAC oligomerization has been implicated with these processes. Herein, we report a specific pH-dependent dimerization of murine VDAC1 (mVDAC1) identified by double electron–electron resonance and native mass spectrometry. Intermolecular distances on four singly spin-labeled mVDAC1 mutants were used to generate a model of the low-pH dimer, establishing the presence of residue E73 at the interface. This dimer arrangement is different from any oligomeric state previously described, and it forms as a steep function of pH with an apparent pKa of 7.4. Moreover, the monomer–dimer equilibrium affinity constant was determined using native MS, revealing a nearly eightfold enhancement in dimerization affinity at low pH. Mutation of E73 to either alanine or glutamine severely reduces oligomerization, demonstrating the role of protonated E73 in enhancing dimer formation. Based on these results, and the known importance of E73 in VDAC physiology, VDAC dimerization likely plays a significant role in mitochondrial metabolic regulation and apoptosis in response to cytosolic acidification during cellular stress.
Chemical meaning of octane number analyzed by topological indices

Correlation of the octane number (ON) of heptane and octane isomers with various topological indices, Z, w, p, and B, was studied. For single parameter correlation the index B by Balaban and w by Wiener show good results, whereas for two-parameter correlation almost any combination among the above four indices was found to give relatively high r value. Further, by adding the third parameter the correlation is a little improved. One of the best results of regression analysis is: ON = 76.389 + 8.179 (0.3B + 1.1p – 0.6Z) with r = 0.982 and S = 6.56 for octane isomers. From these analyses one can conclude that in order for a gasoline isomer to have high ON, or to be burnt without knocking, it should be highly branched (small Z or low boiling point), its statistically averaged shape should be spherical (large B), and it should have a compact structure (large p or high liquid density). The weight of the contributions of these factors decreases in this order. From these results several candidates of nonane isomers whose ON is expected to be higher than 100 are suggested.
A Two-Step-Recess Process Based on Atomic-Layer Etching for High-Performance $\hbox{In}_{0.52}\hbox{Al}_{0.48}\hbox{As}\hbox{/}\hbox{In}_{0.53} \hbox{Ga}_{0.47}\hbox{As}$ p-HEMTs

We investigated 60-nm In<sub>0.52</sub>Al<sub>0.48</sub>As/In<sub>0.53</sub>Ga<sub>0.47</sub>As pseudomorphic high-electron mobility transistors (p-HEMTs) fabricated by using a Ne-based atomic-layer-etching (ALET) technology. The ALET process produced a reproducible etch rate of 1.47 Aring/cycle for an InP etch stop layer, an excellent InP etch selectivity of 70 against an In<sub>0.52</sub>Al<sub>0.48</sub>As barrier layer, and an rms surface-roughness value of 1.37 Aring for the exposed In<sub>0.52</sub>Al<sub>0.48</sub>As barrier after removing the InP etch stop layer. The application of the ALET technology for the gate recess of 60-nm In<sub>0.52</sub>Al<sub>0.48</sub>As/In<sub>0.53</sub>Ga<sub>0.47</sub>As p-HEMTs produced improved device parameters, including transconductance (G<sub>M</sub>), cutoff frequencies (f<sub>T</sub>)> and electron saturation velocity (vsat) in the channel layer, which is mainly due to the high etch selectivity and low plasma-induced damage to the gate area. The 60-nm In<sub>0.52</sub>Al<sub>0.48</sub>As/In<sub>0.53</sub>Ga<sub>0.47</sub>As p-HEMTs fabricated by using the ALET technology exhibited G<sub>M</sub>,<sub>Max</sub> = 1-17 S/mm, f<sub>T</sub> = 398 GHz, and v<sub>sat</sub> = 2.5 X 10<sup>7</sup> cm/s.
Novel p . C 620 L RET Mutation Detected in a Patient with Medullary Thyroid Carcinoma

A patient with an apparent sporadic medullary thyroid carcinoma was tested for RET germline mutations by Sanger sequencing of RET exons 10, 11, and 13 16. The patient was heterozygous for two known mutations causative of Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia type 2 disorder, and both mutations were within codon 620 of RET exon 10, c.1859G > T (p.C620F) and c.1860C > G (p.C620W). In order to determine if these adjacent mutations were in cis or in trans, an unlabeled probe method and high-resolution melting analysis were utilized. The mutations were confirmed to occur in cis, representing a novel mutation, c. 1859_1860delinsTG (p.C620L). Sanger sequencing of parental samples did not identify any changes at codon 620, so the p.C620L mutation is also de novo. The early age of onset for medullary thyroid carcinoma and the presence of lymph node metastasis in this patient suggests individuals with the p.C620L mutation should be treated and screened (for pheochromocytomas and parathyroid hyperplasia) as Multiple Endocrine Neoplasia type 2 patients with other RET codon 620 mutations (American Thyroid Association risk level B).
Evaluation of the total oxidant and antioxidant status of the plasma of dogs anaesthetised with isoflurane

Oxidative stress is an imbalance between free radical production and antioxidant defence. It causes the cellular and extracellular redox state to be shifted to the oxidative side by the disruption of balance between the generation of reactive oxygen species and their elimination (Sies 1997). A previous study in pigs has suggested that exposure to volatile anaesthetics can induce oxidative stress (Allaouchiche and others 2001). Oxidative stress resulting from an imbalance between radical generating and radical scavenging systems is one of the harmful effects related to volatile anaesthesia (Sinclair and others 1990). Moreover, the inhalation of volatile anaesthetics during mechanical ventilation can augment gene expression of proinflammatory cytokines in alveolar macrophages (Kotani and others 1999). Isoflurane is a volatile anaesthetic that is widely used in veterinary practice, and isoflurane-induced liver damage is much rarer than hepatotoxicity after exposure to other inhaled anaesthetics, such as halothane (Kenna and Jones 1995). However, there are a few reports about the effect of isoflurane on oxidative stress, and the oxidant and antioxidant status of isoflurane in dogs has not been evaluated. Therefore, our purpose was to evaluate the effects of isoflurane on the oxidant and antioxidant status in dogs. Twelve beagle dogs (ten males and two females), between four and six years of age, weighing between 7 and 12 kg were used All dogs were determined to be healthy on the basis of clinical examinations. Complete blood count, the serum biochemistry and urinalysis profiles were within reference ranges. The experimental and housing protocols were approved by the Animal Care and Use Committee of Chungnam National University (Approval No. CNU- 00043). Food was withheld for 6–10 hours prior to anaesthesia, but access to water was allowed. Anaesthesia …
Discovering the knowledge creation process of an expert group in women-friendly policy: The policy case of Seoul City

ABSTRACT This research explores how expert knowledge is created in the process of women-friendly policy making, based on actor network theory (ANT). To address this purpose, this study uses the “Women’s Happiness in the City of Seoul” policy initiated by the local government of Seoul as one example of policy development. Research findings demonstrate that knowledge creation in expert groups followed the four stages suggested by ANT. In addition, this study found that various types of knowledge emerged from individual experts. This research elucidates the process of knowledge creation and its meanings for women-friendly policy.
A regulatory element in the beta 2-microglobulin promoter identified by in vivo footprinting

Expression of the beta 2-microglobulin (beta 2-m) and major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I genes is coordinately regulated. By ligation-mediated polymerase chain reaction, we have analyzed in vivo factor binding to the promoter region of the murine beta 2-m gene. In adult spleen, in which beta 2-m is expressed, strong protection was found in three elements. Two of these elements, the beta 2-m NF-kappa B binding site and the interferon consensus sequence, are homologous to the regulatory elements of the MHC class I genes and were also found to be protected in spleen. A third protected element, PAM, identified in this work, is unique to the beta 2-m gene. None of the elements showed protection in brain tissue, in which neither the beta 2-m nor the MHC class I gene is expressed. In vivo footprinting was also performed with F9 embryonal carcinoma cells, in which expression of the beta 2-m and MHC class I genes is induced at a low level only upon stimulation with retinoic acid (RA). No in vivo protection was detected before and after RA treatment of F9 cells, indicating that RA induction of beta 2-m (and MHC class I) expression occurs without detectable in vivo factor occupancy, whereas EL4 T lymphocytes expressing beta 2-m at a high level exhibited strong protection similar to that in spleen. Despite the lack of in vivo occupancy, the nuclear factors specific for each of the three elements were present in brain tissue and F9 cells as well as in spleen tissue and EL4 cells. We show that PAM, an element identified by its in vivo protection, binds nuclear factors ranging from 40 to 50 kDa in size and is capable of enhancing transcription of a reporter in F9 and other cells. Taken together, these results indicate that in vivo factor occupancy for the beta 2-m and MHC class I promoters is coordinated and occurs through a mechanism other than mere expression of relevant factors.
Effective Strategies to Increase Reporting of Medication Errors in Hospitals

A major concern for patient safety in hospitals is accurate medication administration. To improve the medication administration process, nurses and pharmacists must report system problems. Although staff supported the concept of medication error reporting, they did not report errors. Inherent fear of retribution, punitive actions, and professional humiliation prevented self-reporting of medication errors. Our hospital's quality improvement department developed, implemented, and evaluated a program called LifeSavers. Its purpose was to build a nonpunitive culture and to increase medication error reporting by staff. In one year, the LifeSavers program increased medication error disclosures from 14 to 72 reports per month. The successful development of a nonblame culture of medication error reporting led to identified sources of problems and improvement of the medication administration system.
High power active harmonic load-pull system for characterization of high power 100-watt transistors

This paper presents, for the first time, a waveform/time-domain measurement system with active harmonic load pull that is capable of characterising 100W LDMOS devices. In order to achieve the required high-power capability the measurement system employs a new bias-tee design (Benedikt and Tasker, 2002) coupled with broadband impedance transformers (Aboush et al., 2004). The unique characteristics of the high-power bias-tee increases the performance of the measurement system up to 12GHz, 100W CW for the RF channel, and 100V, 10A for the DC channel. The broadband impedance transformers are embedded within the time-domain measurement system and dramatically reduce the power levels required from the active load-pull system for device characterization. This system is demonstrated through the successful characterisation of a 100W LDMOS device, where only 120W of active load-pull power is required to emulate the low impedance optimum load. This represents a remarkable reduction in required power from the impractically high 688W needed in a conventional system with no impedance transformation.