Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The relationship of glycaemic control and triglycerides in patients with diabetes mellitus: a PreCIS Database Study

Aims: A common therapeutic approach in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus who have elevated triglycerides (TGs) is to treat the hyperglycaemia before specifically targeting high TG. The aims of the current study were (i) to determine whether there was a relationship between glycated haemoglobin (HgbA1c) and TG levels at the baseline visit and (ii) to analyse the relationship between ΔHgbA1c and ΔTG after treatment.
CD10 in the cytological diagnosis of endobronchial endometriosis

We read with interest the case report by Martire et al. which recently appeared in this journal. The authors presented the case of a 12-year-old femalewith catamenial hemoptysis. Endobronchial endometriosis was diagnosed on the basis of the cytologic brushing performed during bronchoscopy. We would like to bring to your attention some concerns that have arisen and may have caused significant bias in the diagnosis performed by the authors. It is well known that the diagnosis of endometriosis is based on the presence of ectopic endometrial glands and stroma outside the uterine cavity. The authors observed rare stromal cells and used theCD10marker to confirm the diagnosis of endometriosis. The expression of this marker has been proved to enhance the diagnosis of endometriosis in several studies and was used also by our group. However, in endometriotic lesions, CD10 staining is limited to stromal cells and no reactivity is observed in other cells (such as macrophages and endometrial cells). Although the authors reported that ‘‘rare stromal cells consistent with an endometrial origin’’ were observed, they did not provide evidence that these stromal cells had positive CD10 staining. On the contrary, the authors observed a ‘‘strong positivity of CD10 marker in macrophages along with bronchial epithelia’’. Unfortunately, CD10 is not specific for endometrial stromal cells and it can be expressed by a wide variety of normal or pathological cells and tissues. Previous studies proved that CD10 staining is expressed in epithelial cells, submucosal glands and endothelium of human bronchi. CD10 staining is also present in alveolar surface cells (possibly type I or type II epithelial cells) and limited reactivity can also be observed in macrophages. Furthermore, the authors observed ‘‘cluster of fibroepithelial endometrioid elements with scattered macrophages’’ and some cells with ‘‘a gland-like appearance’’ but, in our understanding, no typical endometrial gland was observed. We are aware that the diagnosis of endobronchial endometriosis is challenging and that it is particularly difficult to obtain a definitive diagnosis by cytology or biopsy. However, knowing whether the stromal cells identified by the authors (and not the macrophages) were positive for CD10 would allow confirming the diagnosis. In addition it would be interesting to know whether hemosiderin pigment deposits were observed within the macrophages. In conclusion, we believe that the observation of the authors that ‘‘the cytology and the immunocytochemical staining bymean of a specific endometrial stromal marker as CD10, confirmed the diagnosis’’ is not justified on the basis of the presented data. Although the presence of endobronchial endometriosis cannot be excluded in this young patient, additional investigation should be undertaken to exclude other potential causes of catamenial hemoptysis (such as pulmonary arteriovenous malformations).
Taxes and Multinational Enterprises in the EU

This work analyses how taxes determine the activities of multinational enterprises within the EU. Using disaggregated data, it is shown empirically, that different types of foreign direct investment react in different ways to alternative measures of the tax burden. It is shown theoretically, that this result is consistent with tax minimising income shifting activities. Moreover, in a setting of asymmetric capital tax competition, it is shown that income shifting alters the choice of optimal tax rates and that it will not inevitably increase competitive pressure on equilibrium tax rates.
Better bioinformatics through usability analysis

MOTIVATION Improving the usability of bioinformatics resources enables researchers to find, interact with, share, compare and manipulate important information more effectively and efficiently. It thus enables researchers to gain improved insights into biological processes with the potential, ultimately, of yielding new scientific results. Usability 'barriers' can pose significant obstacles to a satisfactory user experience and force researchers to spend unnecessary time and effort to complete their tasks. The number of online biological databases available is growing and there is an expanding community of diverse users. In this context there is an increasing need to ensure the highest standards of usability. RESULTS Using 'state-of-the-art' usability evaluation methods, we have identified and characterized a sample of usability issues potentially relevant to web bioinformatics resources, in general. These specifically concern the design of the navigation and search mechanisms available to the user. The usability issues we have discovered in our substantial case studies are undermining the ability of users to find the information they need in their daily research activities. In addition to characterizing these issues, specific recommendations for improvements are proposed leveraging proven practices from web and usability engineering. The methods and approach we exemplify can be readily adopted by the developers of bioinformatics resources.
Over-starvation aggravates intestinal injury and promotes bacterial and endotoxin translocation under high-altitude hypoxic environment.

AIM To study whether over-starvation aggravates intestinal mucosal injury and promotes bacterial and endotoxin translocation in a high-altitude hypoxic environment. METHODS Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to hypobaric hypoxia at a simulated altitude of 7000 m for 72 h. Lanthanum nitrate was used as a tracer to detect intestinal injury. Epithelial apoptosis was observed with terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labeling staining. Serum levels of diamino oxidase (DAO), malondialdehyde (MDA), glutamine (Gln), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and endotoxin were measured in intestinal mucosa. Bacterial translocation was detected in blood culture and intestinal homogenates. In addition, rats were given Gln intragastrically to observe its protective effect on intestinal injury. RESULTS Apoptotic epithelial cells, exfoliated villi and inflammatory cells in intestine were increased with edema in the lamina propria accompanying effusion of red blood cells. Lanthanum particles were found in the intercellular space and intracellular compartment. Bacterial translocation to mesenteric lymph nodes (MLN) and spleen was evident. The serum endotoxin, DAO and MDA levels were significantly higher while the serum SOD, DAO and Gln levels were lower in intestine (P < 0.05). The bacterial translocation number was lower in the high altitude hypoxic group than in the high altitude starvation group (0.47 ± 0.83 vs 2.38 ± 1.45, P < 0.05). The bacterial translocation was found in each organ, especially in MLN and spleen but not in peripheral blood. The bacterial and endotoxin translocations were both markedly improved in rats after treatment with Gln. CONCLUSION High-altitude hypoxia and starvation cause severe intestinal mucosal injury and increase bacterial and endotoxin translocation, which can be treated with Gln.
Size-dependent filtration and trapping of microparticle in a microfluidic chip using centrifugal force and a graduated mechanical gap

We proposed size-dependent microparticle filtration and particle trap by centrifugal force and mechanical restriction using three-dimensional magnetically driven microtool (3D-MMT) in a microfluidic chip. Novelties of this paper are summarized as follows. (1) Filtration of particles is robust against pressure fluctuation in microchannels rather than using only hydrodynamic force because particles are separated mechanically, (2) Clogging of the microparticles could be avoided by rotation of the 3D-MMT in a mcirochamber, (3) Size-classified microparticles can be trapped along the gaps in microchannels by flow control. Microparticles having different sizes flow in spiral microchannels and filtered according to their sizes by gaps between gaps and substrate by centrifugal force. Microparticles larger than the gap cannot pass through the gap and are kept flowing in the inner microchannel. Rotation of the 3D-MMT by magnetic force from an external magnetic circuit generates swirling flow in the microchamber. Size-classified microparticles can be trapped in microchannel by closing the drain port of the target particle. Trapped particles can be measured by direct observation and treated by reagent. After the experiment, trapped particles are extracted by open the drain ports. We successfully demonstrated microparticle filtration and microparticle trap of filtered particles in the developed microfluidic chip.
Texture discrimination using wavelets

A new approach to the characterization of texture properties at multiple scales using an overcomplete wavelet transform is described. It is shown that this representation constitutes a tight frame of l/sub 2/, and that it has a fast iterative algorithm. A texture is characterized by a set of channel variances estimated at the output of the corresponding filter-bank. Classification experiments with 12 Brodatz textures indicate that the discrete wavelet frame (DWF) approach is superior to a standard (critically sampled) wavelet transform feature extraction. This result also suggests that this approach should perform better than most traditional single resolution techniques (co-occurrences, local linear transform, etc. . .). A detailed comparison of the classification performance of various orthogonal and biorthogonal wavelet transforms is provided. The DWF feature extraction technique is incorporated into a simple multiple-component texture segmentation algorithm. Some examples are presented. <<ETX>>
Adolescent Aggression and Differentiation of Self: Guided Mindfulness Meditation in the Service of Individuation

This paper presents adolescent aggression as mediated by the level of differentiation of self. No research has directly addressed Bowen's notion that level of differentiation impacts child functioning including aggression. Level of differentiation is discussed in conjunction with social, gender and cultural norms as manifested in aggressive behavior. Female adolescent aggression is described as mainly relationship focused and expressed via verbal threats, intimidation and manipulation, while male aggression is described mainly as overt physical violence involving dominance and competitiveness. Research on differentiation focuses mainly on Western cultures that tend to be individualistic. Jewish-Israeli society is in transition from collectivistic to individualistic cultural values in the midst of ongoing hostilities. These processes create conflict regarding togetherness and individuality needs among adolescents, who are exposed to contradictory messages regarding separating and staying close. External as well as internal expressions of aggression (depression, suicide) are presented as coping strategies in the service of a wounded self-negotiating with the world. Guided mindfulness meditation is a powerful technique for facilitating healing and growth toward autonomy by helping adolescents connect to their inner voice. This technique may be especially useful in the adolescent search for self-awareness, meaning and life purpose. Bodily, cognitive and emotional experiences are treated as informative regarding the “self” and facilitate expansion of self-perception and individuality.
Object State Recognition for Automatic AR-Based Maintenance Guidance

This paper describes a component of an Augmented Reality (AR) based system focused on supporting workers in manufacturing and maintenance industry. Particularly, it describes a component responsible for verification of performed steps. Correct handling is crucial in both manufacturing and maintenance industries and deviations may cause problems in later stages of the production and assembly. The primary aim of such support systems is making the training of new employees faster and more efficient and reducing the error rate. We present a method for automatically recognizing an object's state with the objective of verifying a set of tasks performed by a user. The novelty of our approach is that the system can automatically recognize the state of the object and provide immediate feedback to the operator using an AR visualization enabling fully automatic step-by-step instructions.
Strategy types of exporting firms: a view on the basis of competitive advantage

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to empirically examine types of exporting firms featuring strategy orientations and profitability of differential emphasis.Design/methodology/approach – To answer the questions the paper raises, data of 82 exporting firms established in Greece are analysed with the help of factor analysis, cluster analysis and cross‐tabulation.Findings – The findings reveal three types of firms pursuing different strategy orientations for dealing with competition in export markets (i.e. the marketing‐based strategists, the hybridists and the non‐strategists). Furthermore, they suggest that export profitability is dependent on these strategy types.Research limitations/implications – Generalisation of the research results should be made with caution. A fruitful direction of further research is to replicate the principal features of the study with other samples of firms in Greece or in comparable national contexts, especially within the European Union.Practical implications – The empiri.
Cost analyses approaches in medical education: there are no simple solutions

Medical education is expensive. Although we have made progress in working out ‘what works’ in medical education, there are few data on whether medical education offers value relative to cost. Research into cost and value in medical education is beset by problems. One of the major problems is the lack of clear definitions for many of the terms commonly used. Phrases such as cost‐effectiveness analysis, cost‐benefit analysis, cost‐utility analysis and cost‐feasibility analysis are used without authors explaining to readers what they mean (and sometimes without authors themselves understanding what they mean). Sometimes such terms are used interchangeably and sometimes they are used as rhetorical devices without any real evidence that backs up such rhetoric as to the cost‐effectiveness or otherwise of educational interventions. The frequent misuse of these terms is surprising considering the importance of the topics under consideration and the need for precision in many aspects of medical education.
Understanding the Climate Mitigation Benefits of Product Systems: Comment on “Using Attributional Life Cycle Assessment to Estimate Climate‐Change Mitigation…”

Anthropogenic climate change can only be limited to safe levels, an aspiration expressed in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, if humans stop releasing carbon dioxide from the combustion of fossil fuels (FFs) long before economically available fossil resources are exhausted. Climate-change mitigation can hence only be achieved through implementation of policies that prevent the extraction and combustion of FFs or that achieve a universal implementation of emissions controls through effective CO2 capture and storage, or through geoengineering. Different policy approaches either make the unmitigated utilization of FFs so expensive that it becomes unattractive—carbon taxes and tradable permits—or outlaw it outright through command-and-control approaches. Such policy instruments can be complemented by measures such as urban planning, energy efficiency, and technology development and deployment. In a recent Forum article, Plevin and colleagues (2014) assert that consequential life cycle assessment (CLCA) can inform policy makers about climate-change mitigation benefits, generally, and, in particular, of biofuels. At the same time, they claim that attributional life cycle assessment (ALCA) can easily mislead policy makers and may generally do so. Plevin and colleagues mix the concepts and terms associated with attributed emissions and those associated with consequences, which leads to flawed conclusions. ALCA is a method to trace the pollution and resource use associated with a product system (i.e., the production, delivery, operation, and disposal of a product). The key idea is to identify the share of total pollution caused by a specific product (Heijungs 1997). CLCA aims to model the consequences of a decision, but its scope is less clearly defined (Zamagni et al. 2012). It commonly focuses on the production (upstream) consequences by taking into account marginal production technologies and, sometimes, changes in the prices of resources as a result of changes in demand. The downstream consequences of introducing a product on the user through changes in production recipes (for intermediate products) and consumption behavior (for final products) are rarely addressed, but would be required for a fully consequential analysis, as suggested by Plevin and colleagues.1 Plevin and colleagues claim that CLCA, through taking into account indirect land-use change and the degree to which
A Transport Layer Approach to Host Mobility

Support for host mobility is traditionally implemented in the link or network layer. In comparison, the transport layer has access to end-to-end information not available at lower layers. Coupled with inverse multiplexing techniques and error classification algorithms, such information can be used to achieve a significant improvement in data throughput to mobile hosts. This research centers on the design of a transport layer host mobility architecture. The main components of this architecture are a link layer manager, to mediate access to the communication infrastructure; a multiplexing transport protocol framework that allows the construction of multiplexing transport protocols suited to different classes of traffic; and finally, a location service that tracks the current address of the mobile host. We validate the design of our architecture through implementation of a suite of link-layer aware, multiplexing transport protocols, and use simulation to investigate aspects of congestion control and loss discrimination.
The effect of authenticity on visitors’ expenditure at cultural events

The main aim of this study is to analyse the influence of the perceived authenticity of cultural events and their products on shopping expenditure. The quantitative analysis is based on 1275 self-administered questionnaires collected among event attendees in three different Northern Italian Christmas Markets in 2008. In order to estimate separately the determinants of the propensity of respondents to shop and how much money they are willing to spend for each kind of purchase, we have adopted a double-hurdle model. The results show that tourists are more likely to spend and that they do spend more if they consider the event and the products sold to be authentic. This study also reveals that socio-demographic factors and visit motives are interrelated with authenticity perception and together affect the amount of personal expenditures during the event. Finally, some implications of the study are discussed.
Phase I study of peptide receptor radionuclide therapy with [In-DTPA]octreotide: the Rotterdam experience.

Fifty patients with somatostatin receptor-positive tumors were treated with multiple doses of [(111)In-diethylenetriamine pentaacetic acid(0)]octreotide. Forty patients were evaluable after cumulative doses of at least 20 GBq up to 160 GBq. Therapeutic effects were seen in 21 patients: partial remission in 1 patient, minor remissions in 6 patients, and stabilization of previously progressive tumors in 14 patients. Our results thus underscore the therapeutic potential of Auger-emitting radiolabelled peptides. The toxicity was generally mild bone marrow toxicity, but 3 of the 6 patients who received more than 100 GBq developed a myelodysplastic syndrome or leukemia. Therefore, we consider 100 GBq as the maximal tolerable dose. With a renal radiation dose of 0.45 mGy/MBq (based on previous studies) a cumulative dose of 100 GBq [(111)In-DTPA(0)]octreotide will lead to 45Gy on the kidneys, twice the accepted limit for external beam radiation. However, no development of hypertension, proteinuria, or significant changes in serum creatinine or creatinine clearance were observed in our patients including 2 patients who received 106 and 113 GBq [(111)In-DTPA(0)]octreotide without protection with amino acids, over a follow-up period of respectively 3 and 2 years. These findings show that the radiation of the short-range (maximal 10 microns) Auger electrons originating from the cells of the proximal tubules is not harmful for the renal function. The decrease in serum inhibin B and concomitant increase of serum FSH levels in men indicate that the spermatogenesis was impaired.
Extending the Reach of an Evidence-Based Theatrical Intervention

Background/Study Context: In Experiment 1, the authors investigated whether they could train retirement home activity directors with no previous experience in theatre to successfully execute an evidence-based 4-week theatre-arts intervention. In Experiment 2, they investigated whether an outside professional acting teacher who received only minimal training via e-mail and telephone could successfully execute the same intervention heretofore only carried out by the actor/director/professor who devised it. Methods: A total of 115 participants (ages 68–94) in four different retirement homes were taught theatre arts either by their in-house activity director who had no formal training in theatre or a professional acting teacher recruited through a local community college. The intervention consisted of twice-weekly 70-min lessons for 4 weeks. After random assignment to experimental or waiting-list control groups, participants were given pre- and posttests on both functional and cognitive measures. Results: Experiment 1 showed that activity directors were able to run this intervention and achieve significant results on the 28-item functional measure (Observed Tasks of Daily Living, Revised [OTDL-R]) as measured by a mixed-design analysis of variance (ANOVA) and paired-sample t tests (p < .001), and on one cognitive measure, Means-End Problem-Solving (MEPS), as measured by a multivariate ANOVA (MANCOVA) and follow-up univariate ANOVAs. Experiment 2 (outside acting teacher) used the identical measures and revealed significant results on the OTDL-R (p = .002), word recall, MEPS, and verbal fluency ( ranging from .28 to .59). Conclusions: This study addressed the feasibility of training multiple instructors of varying experience to administer this theatre-arts intervention. Previous iterations had all been administered by the professional actor/director/theatre professor who devised the program. These current results demonstrate that widespread administration of this short-term (4-week) evidence-based intervention is feasible.
A simulation approach to optimize the electrical parameters of a vertical tunnel FET

Using two-dimensional device simulations, the electrical parameters of gated tunnel field-effect transistor (FET) are optimized with a SiGe delta doped layer in the source region. In order to prove the validity of the simulation models we compare simulation results with the experimentally realized tunnel FET on silicon and show that it gives a good match. It is shown that the incorporation of pseudomorphic strained-Si/sub 1-x/Ge/sub x/ layers leads to a significant performance increase. Furthermore, it becomes evident that the improvements are not a direct consequence of bandgap lowering but rather an indirect consequence of tunnel barrier width lowering. This leads to an asymmetry in the n- and the p-channel performance.