Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Stavudine in zidovudine (ZDV)-experienced compared with ZDV-naive patients.

OBJECTIVE To assess the effect of prior zidovudine (ZDV) use on subsequent response to stavudine (D4T)-containing regimens. DESIGN Analysis of data from prospective observational database. METHODS Patients were ZDV-experienced if they had previously received more than 90 days of ZDV and ZDV-naive if they had never received ZDV. HIV-1 RNA and CD4 cell counts were compared at 3, 6, and 12 months after initiation of D4T. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed, adjusting for baseline HIV-1 RNA and CD4 cell count, age, sex, race, HIV transmission category, time since enrollment, and protease inhibitor use. RESULTS No difference was found between ZDV-experienced (n = 130) and naive (n = 98) patients in age, sex, race, transmission category, use of a concurrent protease inhibitor, or baseline CD4 cell count and HIV-1 RNA. There was no difference in the median decline in HIV-1 RNA (-1.29 log10 copies/ml for experienced patients versus -1.19 log10 copies/ml for naive patients; P = 0.39), in achieving HIV-1 RNA < 400 copies/ml at 3 months (51% versus 49%; P = 0.79) or 6 months (48% versus 56%; P = 0.33). There was no difference in CD4 cell response (+73 x 10(6)/l versus + 87 x 10(6)/l; P = 0.51). By multivariate adjustment in a repeated measures analysis, there was no significant difference in achieving undetectable HIV-1 RNA or in CD4 cell response between experienced and naive patients. CONCLUSION No difference in response to a D4T-containing regimen between ZDV-experienced and naive patients was found over a 1-year period. In contrast to previous trials, most patients in this study also received a protease inhibitor. These findings may be more relevant in the current era of highly active antiretroviral therapy.
Acute Heart Failure Syndromes in the Pediatric Emergency Department

OBJECTIVE: The objectives of this study were to (1) describe the clinical presentation of acute heart failure syndromes (AHFS) in the pediatric emergency department (ED) and (2) determine the physician treatment regimens and outcomes in the same population. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study of patients who presented with AHFS to the ED at our institution from January 2003 to October 2006. We defined AHFS as “the gradual or rapid deterioration in heart failure signs and symptoms resulting in a need for urgent therapy. ” Patients were included when they had documented signs or symptoms of HF attributable to ventricular dysfunction. Patients were excluded when they were older than 21 years or had HF symptoms that were attributable to left-to-right intracardiac shunting or left-sided obstructive lesions. All eligible ED patient visits were adjudicated by a pediatric HF specialist. RESULTS: Fifty-seven patient visits to the ED met inclusion criteria. There was a significant difference in time from arrival to treatment with a diuretic when the therapy was started in the ED rather than in the inpatient units. Median time to initiation of a vasoactive agent was significantly less for patients whose infusions were started in the ED compared with the ICU. Two patients died in the ED, and overall mortality or need for mechanical circulatory support for hospitalized patients was 18% (n = 10). CONCLUSIONS: These data yield important insight into the clinical features and initial treatment of children who present with AHFS in the ED and may allow for improved recognition and treatment of this clinical syndrome.
Neural network for saturation prediction of solid state drives

State-of-the-art storage devices that have parallel capability have significantly reduced the performance gap between processor and storage I/O. However, the internal parallelism makes it difficult to measure utilization that can be used as a basis of load balancing, which is a critical feature of performance improvement of parallel systems. When utilization of storage reaches to one hundred percent, the I/O saturation occurs, and then some of I/O loads need to be redirected to the other storage to improve the whole storage performance. There is, to my best knowledge, no studies in I/O saturation prediction of the flash SSDs regarding the internal parallelism that the previous HDD based measure cannot reflect. In this paper, we propose I/O saturation prediction method based on ANN (Artificial Neural Network) using kernel I/O statistics and various performance measures. We extracted I/O statistics and performance measures by conducting I/O workload simulation especially on NVMe (Non-Volatile Memory Express) flash SSD so that we can get as many observations from various I/O characteristics as flash SSD possibly can show. We constructed ANN model and compared with SVM (Support Vector Machine) model. The evaluation shows that ANN performs well compared to the existing utilization measure which assumes that HDD can only perform single instruction at a time.
Differences in static and dynamic measures in evaluation of talonavicular mobility in gait.

STUDY DESIGN Controlled laboratory study using a cross-sectional design. OBJECTIVES To compare the measurements of navicular drop during walking and running to those made clinically during a static position in a group of healthy young adults. BACKGROUND The navicular drop test is a common clinical measure of foot structure and, more specifically, of talonavicular joint function. Previous work has focused on static measurement to establish the relationship between navicular drop and various overuse injuries. However, loads on foot structure are dramatically increased during gait. Examining navicular drop dynamically is more reflective of the functional demands of the foot when walking and running. METHODS The navicular drop of 72 healthy runners was evaluated using 2 static methods. Results were used to classify individuals into groups and compared to dynamic measures of navicular drop made during walking and running. Three-dimensional motion capture and an instrumented treadmill were used to assess dynamic navicular mobility. A repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to examine differences between measurement conditions. Between-group differences were assessed with independent-samples t test (P<.05). RESULTS Static measures of navicular drop were not found to be uniformly predictive of dynamic function during walking or running. Functional navicular drop measurements underestimated the dynamic measures in all foot types, while subtalar neutral drop overestimated dynamic measures for individuals with neutral and hypermobile foot types. No differences in navicular drop were found between foot types during walking, and small differences were found in running only between the hypomobile and hypermobile foot types. Maximum foot deformation during gait occurs at the time of maximum ground reaction force. Significant differences in navicular drop between foot type groups measured statically become muted when looking at group differences while walking and running. CONCLUSIONS Differences in navicular mobility between foot type groups during walking and running indicate that factors other than static alignment affect dynamic foot mobility. Dynamic assessment of navicular mobility may be an effective tool to examine the interplay of how the extrinsic force demands of gait and intrinsic structure and neuromuscular control affect foot function in walking and running.
Perceptions of the worker role among people with psychiatric disabilities: description and investigation of associated factors.

OBJECTIVE To investigate how subjective perceptions of everyday occupations, activity level, day centre attendance, social interaction, self-mastery and clinical factors were related to how unemployed people with psychiatric disabilities (PD) envision a future worker role, also controlling for socio-demographic variables. PARTICIPANTS 175 people with PD; 93 attended a day centre and 82 did not. Of the 93 day centre attendees 39 visited meeting place-oriented day centres and 54 attended work-oriented ones. METHODS Self-ratings and interview-based instruments were used to assess the view of the worker role, social interaction, subjective perceptions of everyday occupations, activity level, self-mastery, and socio-demographic and clinical factors. Non-parametric statistics were used when analysing the data. RESULTS A few aspects of the worker role seemed positively influenced by attending a day centre, in particular a work-oriented one. High levels of activity (p=0.009) and self-mastery (p=0.024), being younger (p=0.004) and having less depression (p=0.008) were also associated with a more positive view of the worker role. CONCLUSION In order to enhance a future worker role the individual's feeling of control in the rehabilitation process should be highlighted and possibilities for general activity engagement be offered. Since the findings indicate that most aspects of the worker role were not enhanced by day centre attendance community-based care should further concentrate on promoting this future role for people with PD.
Development of antibodies to protective antigen and lethal factor components of anthrax toxin in humans and guinea pigs and their relevance to protective immunity

A competitive inhibition enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was developed to detect antibodies in serum to the protective antigen (PA) and lethal factor (LF) components of anthrax toxin. Current human vaccination schedules with an acellular vaccine induce predictable and lasting antibody titers to PA and, when present in the vaccine, to LF. Live spore vaccine administered to guinea pigs in a single dose conferred significantly better protection than the human vaccines (P less than 0.001), although they elicited significantly lower (P less than 0.0005) anti-PA and anti-LF titers at time of challenge with virulent Bacillus anthracis. Substantial anti-PA and anti-LF titers may not, therefore, indicate solid protective immunity against anthrax infection. The ELISA system was also shown to be capable of detecting anti-PA and anti-LF antibodies in the sera of individuals with histories of clinical anthrax. The advantage of ELISA over the Ouchterlony gel diffusion test and indirect microhemagglutination assay are demonstrated. There was a highly significant degree of correlation between ELISA and the indirect microhemagglutination assay (P less than 0.0005); but ELISA was markedly superior in terms of reproducibility, reliability, specificity, and simplicity in performance and stability of the bound antigen.
Renoprotective effect of a combination of garlic and telmisartan against ischemia/reperfusion-induced kidney injury in obese rats

Abstract Obesity enhances the frequency and severity of acute kidney injury (AKI). Telmisartan pre-treatment was used experimentally in the amelioration of ischemia/reperfusion (IR)-induced AKI. However, there is a lack of evidence regarding its beneficial effects on AKI in obese animals. The present study, therefore, aimed to explore the protective effects of garlic and/or telmisartan against renal damage induced by unilateral IR in obese rats. Meloxicam was used as a standard anti-inflammatory agent. Prophylactic oral administration of meloxicam (3 mg kg−1), garlic (500 mg kg−1) and/or telmisartan (5 and 10 mg kg−1) for 4 wk protected against renal function deterioration induced by IR in obese rats. Both doses of telmisartan significantly reduced serum total cholesterol and triacyglycerol levels as well as peri-renal adipocytes size and renal fibrosis. Renal nuclear factor-kappa B immunoreactivity, tumor necrosis factor-alpha content as well as interleukin-10, adiponectin receptor 1 and macrophages (M1, M2) polarization markers (CD11c, CD206) mRNA expressions were down-regulated in ischemic kidney tissues and white adipose tissues around them by all treatments. Moreover, garlic, telmisartan and their combinations significantly suppressed oxidative stress in renal ischemic tissues. Histological picture was also improved by these treatments. Interestingly, the combinations provided a greater protection than their monotherapy in a dose-dependent manner. We suppose that this combination may be a promising prophylactic regimen for managing AKI in case of obesity. Thus, future experimental and clinical large-scale studies are necessary.
Human evidence of a supra‐spinal modulating role of dopamine on pain perception

Over the last decades, remarkable progresses have been accomplished regarding the understanding of the neurophysiologic and neuropharmacological bases of pain. A growing preclinical literature supports a role for substance P, endogenous opioids, glutamate, serotonin, and norepinephrine in pain perception. Recently, a series of studies explored the function of dopamine in pain perception, which we review here, while focusing on human studies.
Determination of merger premium — Interralationship between corporate, target average and market

Growth through mergers and acquisitions offers the greatest possibilities to grow quickly compared with organic growth and growth through innovation. But acquirers usually overpay for the target. Some blame it as reasons for long-run underperformance; some even take it as a bad decision. This paper first uses the average target characteristics around M&A announcement date as explanatory variables and premium one week before announcement date as the dependent variable, then the study use the monthly average P/E ratio of targets acquired and market P/E ratio as independent variables, the monthly average premium of targets received as dependent variables and regress on the time series data. The result shows that the monthly average premium of targets received has a negative significantly effect on the monthly average premium received by the targets involved
Identification of phenotypic markers of B cells from patients with Chagas disease

Chagas disease was discovered more than a hundred years ago, but its pathogenesis is still not completely understood. Autoimmunity is one of the mechanisms shown to contribute to its pathogenesis, which may indicate an important participation of B lymphocytes. Patients with Chagas disease have shown increased percentage of B cells producing IL‐10. However, there are no reports of the phenotypic markers of B cells producing IL‐10 in patients with Chagas disease. For the first time in the literature, we evaluated the phenotypic profile of distinct markers of B cells from peripheral blood of noninfected individuals and patients with Chagas disease. Our results showed that patients with Chagas disease had a higher expression of CD21 and CD24 on the surface of CD19+ B cells, while CD43 and CD23 were expressed equally in all groups. Moreover, the expression of MHC‐II (HLA‐DR), CD80, CD86, caspase‐3, granzyme B and intracellular IL‐10 and TGF‐β by CD19+ B cells was higher in patients with Chagas disease. The results of IL‐10 production within CD19+CD5+CD1d+ B cells showed a higher percentage of this cytokine in patients with Chagas disease. Thus, our data bring a new knowledge about distinct markers of B cells in immune responses of Chagas disease.
Litter chemistry and chemical diversity drive ecosystem processes in forest ponds.

Research suggests that a positive relationship exists between diversity and ecological function, yet the multi-trophic effects of biodiversity remain poorly understood. The resource complementarity hypothesis suggests that increasing the trait diversity of resources provides a more complete diet for consumers, elevating consumer feeding rates. Whereas previous tests of this mechanism have measured trait diversity as the variation of single traits or the richness of functional groups, we employed a multivariate trait index to manipulate the chemical diversity of temperate tree litter species in outdoor pond mesocosms. We inoculated outdoor mesocosms with diverse and multi-trophic communities of microbial and macro-consumer species that rely on leaf litter for energy and nutrients. Litter was provided at three levels of chemical trait diversity, a constant level of species richness, and an equal representation of all litter species. Over three months, we measured more than 65 responses, and assessed the effects of litter chemical diversity and chemical trait means (i.e., community-weighted means). We found that litter chemical diversity positively correlated with decomposition rate of leaf litter, but had no effect on biomass or density of producers and consumers. However, the pond communities often responded to chemical trait means, particularly those related to nutrients, structure, and defense. Our results suggest that resource complementarity does have some effect on the release of energy and nutrients from decomposing substrates in forest ponds, but does not have multi-trophic effects. Our results further suggest that loss of tree biodiversity could affect forest ecosystem functionality, and particularly the processes occurring in and around ponds and wetlands.
Biochemical and Molecular Characterization of a Ring Fission Dioxygenase with the Ability to Oxidize (Substituted) Salicylate(s) from Pseudaminobacter salicylatoxidans*

The gene coding for a dioxygenase with the ability to cleave salicylate by a direct ring fission mechanism to 2-oxohepta-3,5-dienedioic acid was cloned from Pseudaminobacter salicylatoxidans strain BN12. The deduced amino acid sequence encoded a protein with a molecular mass of 41,176 Da, which showed 28 and 31% sequence identity, respectively, to a gentisate 1,2-dioxygenase from Pseudomonas alcaligenes NCIMB 9867 and a 1-hydroxy-2-naphthoate 1,2-dioxygenase from Nocardioides sp. KP7. The highest degree of sequence identity (58%) was found to a presumed gentisate 1,2-dioxygenase from Corynebacterium glutamicum. The enzyme from P. salicylatoxidans BN12 was heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli and purified as a His-tagged enzyme variant. The purified enzyme oxidized in addition to salicylate, gentisate, 5-aminosalicylate, and 1-hydroxy-2-naphthoate also 3-amino- and 3- and 4-hydroxysalicylate, 5-fluorosalicylate, 3-, 4-, and 5-chlorosalicylate, 3-, 4-, and 5-bromosalicylate, 3-, 4-, and 5-methylsalicylate, and 3,5-dichlorosalicylate. The reactions were analyzed by high pressure liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry, and the reaction products were tentatively identified. For comparison, the putative gentisate 1,2-dioxygenase from C. glutamicum was functionally expressed in E. coli and shown to convert gentisate but not salicylate or 1-hydroxy-2-naphthoate.
bioSync: A Paired Wearable Device for Blending Kinesthetic Experience

We present a novel, paired, wearable system for combining the kinesthetic experiences of two persons. These devices allow users to sense and combine muscle contraction and joint rigidity bi-directionally. This is achieved through kinesthetic channels based on electromyogram (EMG) measurement and electrical muscle stimulation (EMS). We developed a pair of wearable kinesthetic input-output (I/O) devices called bioSync that uses specially designed electrodes to perform biosignal measurement and stimulation simultaneously on the same electrodes. In a user study, participants successfully evaluated the strength of their partners' muscle contractions while exerting their own muscles. We confirmed that the pair of devices could help participants synchronize their hand movements through tapping, without visual and auditory feedback. The proposed interpersonal kinesthetic communication system can be used to enhance interactions such as clinical gait rehabilitation and sports training, and facilitate sharing of physical experiences with Parkinson's patients, thereby enhancing understanding of the physical challenges they face in daily life.
Relationship Stability Through Lenses of Complexity

Research on relationship stability usually considers the effect of couple outcomes and individual differences on relationship stability in isolation from each other. These separate bodies of research often lead to inconsistent results. In order to better understand relationship stability and explain inconsistencies in the literature, it is important to investigate more complex models that integrate couple outcomes and behaviors with individual differences. Motivated by these considerations, we examined the complex interplay between personal characteristics, couple interactions, and relationship stability. In particular, we investigated the relationships among investment model, big five personality traits, attachment dimensions, relationship factors, and relationship stability. Participants of this study included 162 individuals (Female N = 117) who are currently in a relationship from a large Midwestern university campus. Analyses were conducted using Structural Equation Modeling. Examination of the structural path parameters indicated that attachment had significant direct effect on personality, relationship factors, and relationship stability. Personality also had a significant direct effect on relationship stability. Finally personality had no direct effect on relationship factors and relationship factors had no direct effect on relationship stability. These results suggest that the effect of personality on relationship stability is direct, rather than being mediated by relationship factors.
In vitro activity and time‐kill curve analysis of sitafloxacin against a global panel of antimicrobial‐resistant and multidrug‐resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates

Treatment of gonorrhoea is a challenge worldwide because of emergence of resistance in N. gonorrhoeae to all therapeutic antimicrobials available and novel antimicrobials are imperative. The newer‐generation fluoroquinolone sitafloxacin, mostly used for respiratory tract infections in Japan, can have a high in vitro activity against gonococci. However, only a limited number of recent antimicrobial‐resistant isolates from Japan have been examined. We investigated the sitafloxacin activity against a global gonococcal panel (250 isolates cultured in 1991–2013), including multidrug‐resistant geographically, temporally and genetically diverse isolates, and performed time‐kill curve analysis for sitafloxacin. The susceptibility to sitafloxacin (agar dilution) and seven additional therapeutic antimicrobials (Etest) was determined. Sitafloxacin was rapidly bactericidal, and the MIC range, MIC50 and MIC90 was ≤0.001–1, 0.125 and 0.25 mg/L, respectively. There was a high correlation between the MICs of sitafloxacin and ciprofloxacin; however, the MIC50 and MIC90 of sitafloxacin were 6‐fold and >6‐fold lower, respectively. Sitafloxacin might be an option for particularly dual antimicrobial therapy of gonorrhoea and for cases with ceftriaxone resistance or allergy. However, further in vitro and particularly in vivo evaluations of potential resistance, pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics and ideal dosing for gonorrhoea, as well as performance of randomized controlled clinical, trials are crucial.