Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Are symptoms of anxiety and depression risk factors for hypertension? Longitudinal evidence from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey I Epidemiologic Follow-up Study.

OBJECTIVE To test the hypothesis that symptoms of anxiety and depression increase the risk of experiencing hypertension, using the National Health and Nutrition Examination I Epidemiologic Follow-up Study. DESIGN A cohort of men and women without evidence of hypertension at baseline were followed up for 7 to 16 years. The association between 2 outcome measures (hypertension and treated hypertension) and baseline anxiety and depression was analyzed using Cox proportional hazards regression adjusting for hypertension risk factors (age; sex; education; cigarette smoking; body mass index; alcohol use; history of diabetes, stroke, or coronary heart disease; and baseline systolic blood pressure). Analyses were stratified by race and age (white persons aged 25-44 years and 45-64 years and black persons aged 25-64 years). SETTING General community. PARTICIPANTS A population-based sample of 2992 initially normotensive persons. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Incident hypertension was defined as blood pressure of 160/95 mm Hg or more, or prescription of antihypertensive medications. Treated hypertension was defined as prescription of antihypertensive medications. RESULTS In the multivariate models for whites aged 45 to 64 years, high anxiety (relative risk [RR], 1.82; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.30-2.53) and high depression (RR, 1.80; 95% CI, 1.16-2.78) remained independent predictors of incident hypertension. The risks associated with treated hypertension were also increased for high anxiety (RR, 2.36; 95% CI, 1.73-3.23) and high depression (RR, 1.89; 95% CI, 1.25-2.85). For blacks aged 25 to 64 years, high anxiety (RR, 2.74; 95% CI, 1.35-5.53) and high depression (RR, 2.99; 95% CI, 1.41-6.33) remained independent predictors of incident hypertension. The risks associated with treated hypertension were also increased for high anxiety (RR, 3.24; 95% CI, 1.59-6.61) and high depression (RR, 2.92; 95% CI, 1.37-6.22). For whites aged 25 to 44 years, intermediate anxiety (RR, 1.62; 95% CI, 1.18-2.22) and intermediate depression (RR, 1.60; 95% CI, 1.17-2.17) remained independent predictors of treated hypertension only. CONCLUSION Anxiety and depression are predictive of later incidence of hypertension and prescription treatment for hypertension.
The anterior ectosylvian visual area of the ferret: a homologue for an enigmatic visual cortical area of the cat?

The present paper describes the results of electrophysiological mapping experiments focused on the anterior limb of the ectosylvian gyrus of the ferret (Mustela putorius). The aim was to determine if the ferret possessed a homologous cortical area to the anterior ectosylvian visual area (AEV) of the domestic cat, but not clearly delineated in any other mammal studied to date. We were able to gather data on the visuotopic organization of a region that we consider to be a homologue of cat AEV. The visual map in this area showed a distinct visuotopic organization and covered a large extent of the visual field. Within the ferret AEV there were clusters of bimodal recording sites (somato‐visual and audio‐visual) that were located adjacent to surrounding unimodal cortical areas (such as the second somatosensory area and primary and secondary auditory areas). The ferret AEV, like that of the cat, was topographically isolated from other visual cortical areas by intervening auditory and somatosensory areas. Taken together these features suggest that the region described here as AEV in the ferret is indeed a direct homologue of the previously described cat AEV.
Social wasps desert the colony and aggregate outside if parasitized: parasite manipulation?

Infection of the paper wasp, Polistes dominulus (Christ), by the strepsipteran parasite Xenos vesparum Rossi results in a dramatic behavioral change, which culminates in colony desertion and the formation of extranidal aggregations, in which up to 98% of occupants are parasitized females. Aggregations formed on prominent vegetation, traditional lek-sites of Polistes males, and on buildings, which were later adopted as hibernating sites by future queens. First discovered by W.D. Hamilton, these aberrant aggregations are an overlooked phenomenon of the behavioral ecology of this intensively studied wasp. For 3 months in the summer of 2000, during the peak of colony development, we sampled 91 extranidal aggregations from seven areas, numbering 1322 wasps. These wasps were parasitized by both sexes of X. vesparum, but males were more frequent from July until mid-August, during the mating season of the parasite. Aggregations were present for days at the same sites (in one case a leaf was occupied for 36 consecutive days) and were characterized by extreme inactivity. After artificial infection, parasitized ‘‘workers’’ deserted the nest 1 week after emergence from their cell and before the extrusion of the parasite through the host cuticle. Infected individuals did not work, were more inactive, and did not receive more aggression than did controls. We suggest that early nest desertion and subsequent aggregations by parasitized nominal workers and ‘‘future queens’’ is adaptive manipulation of host behavior by the parasite to promote the completion of its life cycle. Key words: aggregation, behavioral manipulation, nest desertion, Polistes, Strepsiptera. [Behav Ecol 15:1037–1043 (2004)]
Multi-variable control for an automotive traction PEM fuel cell system

This paper describes an approach for the control of pressurized PEM fuel cell systems used in automotive traction applications. This model-based controller design approach is based on a 13-states non-linear dynamic model. The focus of the paper is in controlling the excess air ratio while tracking an optimum variable pressurization for maximum system efficiency during load transients. The control approach combines a feed-forward approach based on the steady state plant inverse response, coupled to a multi-variable LQR feedback controller. The controller shows excellent performance over severe load transients with both actual states and state observers feedback
Value-Based Software Project Management - A Business Perspective on Software Projects

When an organisation decides to invest in a software project it expects to get some value in return. Thus, decisions in software project management should be based on this expected value by trying to understand and influence its driver factors. However, despite the significant progress software engineering and project management has experienced in recent years, both disciplines work in a ‘value neutral’ context, by which is meant focusing on technical correctness and adherence to plans. This paper intends to contribute to a view of software project management based on business value by identifying value determinant factors in a software project and proposing some tools for recording and monitoring them. The proposed approach will be tested in a real project, in order to evaluate its applicability and usefulness in decision-making.
Métodos bayesianos aplicados a restauración de imágenes en pirámides sobre-completas y a identificación de cámaras digitales

Entre ellas, las representaciones piramidales sobre-completas han supuesto un gran impulso en el rendimiento de los modelos y sus aplicaciones de restauracion, Por esta razon, una de las tendencias actuales es desarrollar modelos estadisticos en este dominio. Al comienzo de esta Tesis (Capitulo 2), se hace hincapie en la importancia que tienen dichos modelos en el rendimiento de las aplicaciones, describiendo una de las referencias actuales basada en una mezcla en escala de Gaussianas (GSM). Tomando como punto de partida la citad a referencia, presentamos dos nuevos modelos estadisticos que son aplicados a la eliminacion de ruido (Capitulos 3 y 4). Estos modelos, aun compartiendo una base comun (GSM), atacan el problema desde perspectivas muy diferentes: caracterizacion local v s. caracterizacion global. Otra interesante aplicacion de restauracion es la compensacion de emborronamiento en presencia de ruido aditivo Gaussiano, problema este, de mayor complejidad. E n este trabajo (Capitulo 5) hemos presentado una solucion basad a en un esquema de dos pasos: (a) compensacion lineal de emborronamiento (global), y (b) eliminacion no lineal de ruido (local De esta forma, el problema es descompuesto en un filtrado global y en una eliminacion de ruido Gaussiano no blanco, reduciendo considerablemente la dificultad del problema. Ademas, es ta estrategia nos permite aplicar y explotar los potentes metodos de eliminacion de ruido actuales (como por ejemplo, los pres entados en esta Tesis) . Las herramientas Bayesianas tambien son muy utilizada s para abordar problemas de clasificacion. En el Capitulo 6 de esta Tesis proponemos dos modelos estadisticos de un descriptor de camaras propuesto recientemente. Dichos modelos son utiliza dos, dentro del marco Bayesiano, para desarrollar un algoritmo de identificacion de camaras digitales.
VIM-1 Metallo-β-lactamase in Acinetobacter baumannii

In 2004 and 2005, 5 metallo-β-lactamase (MBL)-positive Acinetobacter baumannii isolates were found in 2 Greek hospitals. Isolates were unrelated and carried blaVIM-1 in a class 1 integron; blaOXA-51- and blaOXA-58-like carbapenemase genes were also detected. VIM-1 MBL in Acinetobacter spp. causes concern, given the increasing resistance of this species.
The Gelfand-Pinsker wiretap channel: Higher secrecy rates via a novel superposition code

We study the state-dependent (SD) wiretap channel (WTC) with non-causal channel state information (CSI) at the encoder. This model subsumes all other instances of CSI availability as special cases, and calls for an efficient utilization of the state sequence both for reliability and security purposes. A lower bound on the secrecy-capacity, that improves upon the previously best known result by Chen and Han Vinck, is derived based on a novel superposition coding scheme. The improvement over the Chen and Han Vinck result is strict for some SD-WTCs. Specializing the lower bound to the case where CSI is also available to the decoder reveals that it is at least as good as the achievable formula by Chia and El-Gamal, which is already known to outperform the adaptation of the Chen and Han Vinck code to the encoder and decoder CSI scenario. The results are derived under the strict semantic-security metric that requires negligible information leakage for all message distributions. The proof of achievability relies on a stronger version of the soft-covering lemma for superposition codes.
Modélisation géométrique et mécanique des muscles du tronc : relation entre musculature, troubles posturaux et surcharges vertébrales

L'objectif de ce travail est d'elaborer un modele d'evaluation musculaire adapte a l'etude de patients, afin de determiner les relations existantes entre la musculature du tronc, un trouble postural et les surcharges rachidiennes. Dans cet objectif, un premier chapitre s'attache a presenter le probleme (anatomie fonctionnelle et formulation mecanique), puis une revue de litterature est proposee afin d'identifier les differents modeles et protocoles d'acquisition des donnees proposes par differents chercheurs. Dans le chapitre III, un modele de regulation musculaire est propose, fonde sur l'hypothese que le systeme musculaire est un systeme de regulation permettant de maintenir les efforts rachidiens en deca de seuils mecaniquement admissibles. Ce modele, par plan de coupe au niveau de la liaison intervertebrale consideree, est compare a d'autres de la litterature et se revele pertinent, notamment du fait de sa capacite a proposer des configurations musculaires regulant en particulier les efforts de cisaillement. Une exploitation preliminaire permet d'apprecier les potentialites de cette approche. Le chapitre IV aborde l'acquisition clinique tridimensionnelle des donnees d'entree personnalisees des sujets pour ce modele de regulation musculaire. Nous proposons un protocole adapte au contexte clinique (rapide et peu invasif), qui permet d'obtenir, sur la base d'une stereoradiographie (couplee a une mesure des pressions plantaires et a des photos des membres inferieurs) le torseur des efforts de la partie haute sur la partie basse, les geometries musculaires volumiques personnalisees (a partir de 9 coupes IRM), ainsi que les contraintes admissibles maximum des muscle.
Epicatechin ameliorates ionising radiation-induced oxidative stress in mouse liver

Abstract The current study was intended to evaluate the hepatoprotective effect of Epicatechin (EC) against radiation-induced oxidative stress, in terms of inflammation and lipid peroxidation. Swiss albino mice were administered with EC (15 mg/kg body weight) for three consecutive days before exposing them to a single dose of 5-Gy 60Co gamma (γ) irradiation. Mice were necropsied and livers were taken for immunohistochemistry, western blot analysis and biochemical tests for the detection of markers of hepatic oxidative stress. Nuclear translocation of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) and lipid peroxidation were increased whereas the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT), reduced glutathione (GSH) content and ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP) were diminished upon radiation exposure compared to control. Translocation of NF-κB from cytoplasm to nucleus and lipid peroxidation were found to be inhibited whereas an increase in SOD, CAT, GSH and FRAP was observed in the mice treated with EC prior to irradiation. Thus, pre-treatment with EC offers protection against γ-radiation induced hepatic alterations.
Effect of Kernel Function in Support Vector Machine for the Fault Diagnosis of Pump

Pumps are widely used in a variety of applications. Defects and breakdown of these pumps will result in significant economic loss. Therefore, these must be under continuous observation. In various applications, the role of pump is decisive and condition monitoring is crucial. A completely automated on-line pump condition monitoring system which can automatically inform the operator of any faults, promising reduction in maintenance cost with a greater productivity saving both time and money.This paper presents the application of support vector machine for classification using statistical features extracted from vibration signals under good and faulty conditions of a pump. Effectiveness of various kernel functions of C-SVC and -SVC models are compared. The study gives some empirical guidelines for selecting an appropriate kernel in a classification problem.
Management of Facial Space Infection in a 9-Year-Old Child - A Case Report

Background: Fascial space infections of the head and neck region are usually odontogenic in origin. An untreated or rapidly spreading odontogenic infections can be potentially life threatening. The present case report describes a patient with orofacial infections who required emergent incision and drainage in the oral and maxillofacial surgery OPD at our hospital. Conclusion: Fascial space infections of the head and neck region, though potentially life threatening, can be prevented by regular dental visits. Early recognition and treatment of the infections are necessary to prevent considerable morbidity and mortality, especially in younger patients where more care should be given for oral health. Successful results can be achieved for pediatric patients who can be treated with Incision and Drainage, removal of etiologic factor followed by a combo of three antibiotics.
A Transparent Dielectric-Loaded Reconfigurable Antenna With a Wide Tuning Range

In this letter, a compact, frequency-reconfigurable antenna with a wide tuning range is proposed. It consists of a folded monopole structure, a transparent dielectric loading, and a varactor diode. The use of a water layer and a holder as the transparent dielectric loading can effectively reduce the antenna size, while keeping the antenna with a reasonable bandwidth and high efficiency. This new antenna occupies a compact volume of 17 × 14 × 4 mm3 (0.0237λ × 0.0196λ × 0.006λ at 419 MHz). By controlling the dc voltage over the varactor diode, the operating frequency of the antenna can be continuously tuned from 419 to 883 MHz, which is a very wide tuning band for an electrically small antenna. Both the computer simulation and measurement are conducted. The results demonstrate that it is a very promising candidate for hand-portable devices.
Multivariate Discrimination of Emotion-Specific Autonomic Nervous System Activity

The present study investigated autonomic nervous system (ANS) patterning during experimentally manipulated emotion. Film clips previously shown to induce amusement, anger, contentment, disgust, fear, and sadness, in addition to a neutral control, were presented to 34 college-aged subjects while electrodermal activity, blood pressure and electrocardiogram (ECG) were recorded as was self-reported affect. Mean and mean successive difference of inter-beat interval were derived from the ECG. Pattern classification analysis revealed emotion-specific patterning for all emotion conditions except disgust. Discriminant function analysis was used to describe the location of discrete emotions within a dimensional affective state space, for both self-report and ANS activity. Findings suggest traditional dimensional emotion models accurately describe the state space for self-reported emotion, but may require modification in order to accurately describe the state space for ANS activity during discrete emotions. Proposed modifications are consistent with the adoption of a discrete -dimensional hybrid model as well as current trends in emotion theory.
A comparison between feeding systems (pasture and TMR) and the effect of vitamin E supplementation on plasma and milk fatty acid profiles in dairy cows

Unidentified constituents in fresh pasture increase milk fat cis-9, trans-11 conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) concentration, and prevent milk fat depression, even though ruminal conditions conducive to reducing milk fat synthesis exist. One possible explanation is vitamin E (α-tocopherol), a constituent high in fresh pasture, but naturally low in conserved/dried forages and cereal grains. Twenty late-lactating dairy cows previously consuming a total mixed ration (TMR) were randomly allocated to one of two dietary treatments for 21 d: TMR (control; n=10); and TMR plus an additional 10000 i.u. α-tocopherol/d (VIT E; n=10). These cows were simultaneously compared with 13 late-lactation dairy cows previously grazing fresh pasture (PAS) balanced for age, parity and genetic merit. Average daily α-tocopherol intakes were approximately 468, 10520 and 1590 i.u. /cow for the control, VIT E and PAS treatments, respectively. Dietary α-tocopherol supplementation (VIT E v. control) slightly increased milk fat content by 0·23 percentage units, but did not significantly alter milk fatty acid composition. Plasma trans-11 18[ratio ]1 (VA) content tended to increase and trans-10 18[ratio ]1 levels numerically declined following α-tocopherol supplementation suggesting possible changes in rumen biohydrogenation products. In addition, increased α-tocopherol intake in TMR-fed cows decreased serum urea levels and tended to alter milk fat 15[ratio ]0 suggesting changes in rumen microbial populations. However, when compared with cows grazing pasture, TMR-fed cows supplemented with α-tocopherol, still produced milk with lower cis-9, trans-11 CLA and VA, and higher trans-10 18[ratio ]1 concentrations suggesting α-tocopherol is not a primary reason for milk fatty acid profile differences between pasture and TMR-fed cows. Therefore, additional unknown pasture constituents favour production of fatty acids originating from the cis-9, trans-11 instead of the trans-10, cis-12 CLA biohydrogenation pathways.
Monoterpene phenolic compound thymol prevents high fat diet induced obesity in murine model

Abstract Context: Obesity has become a worldwide health problem. Most of the synthetic anti-obesity drugs have failed to manage the obesity due to either ineffectiveness or adverse effect. The research of prominent chemical constituents from herbal for the management of obesity has greatly increased. Objective: The main objective of the present study was intended to examine the effects of thymol in high-fat diet (HFD)-induced obesity in murine model. Methods: Male Wistar rats were fed HFD for 6 weeks to induce obesity. Thymol (14 mg/kg) administered orally twice a day to HFD-fed rats for 4 weeks. Alteration in body weight gain, visceral fat-pads weight and serum biochemical markers were assessed. Results: At the end of study, rats fed with HFD exhibited significantly (p < 0.001) enhanced body weight gain, visceral pad weight, lipids, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransaminase (AST), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), glucose, insulin and leptin levels compared with rats fed with normal diets. Thymol treatment showed significantly (p < 0.001) decreased body weight gain, visceral fat-pad weights, lipids, ALT, AST, LDH, BUN, glucose, insulin, and leptin levels in HFD-induced obese rats. Furthermore, thymol treatment showed significantly decreased serum lipid peroxidation and increased antioxidant levels in HFD-induced obese rats. Discussion and conclusions: Thymol prevents HFD-induced obesity in murine model through several mechanisms including attenuation of visceral fat accumulation, lipid lowering action, improvement of insulin and leptin sensitivity and enhanced antioxidant potential.
Posttranscriptional Modification of the Central Loop of Domain V in Escherichia coli 23 S Ribosomal RNA (*)

Knowledge of the sites, structures, and functional roles of posttranscriptional modification in rRNAs is limited, despite steadily accumulating evidence that rRNA plays a direct role in the peptidyl transferase reaction and that modified nucleotides are concentrated at the functional center of the ribosome. Using methods based on mass spectrometry, modifications have been mapped in Escherichia coli 23 S rRNA in the central loop of domain V, a region of established interaction between 23 S RNA and tRNA. Two segments of RNA were isolated following protection with oligodeoxynucleotides and nuclease digestion: residues 2423-2473 (51-mer) and 2481-2519 (39-mer). Dihydrouridine was located at position 2449, within the RNase T1 hydrolysis product 2448-ADAACAGp-2454, as evidenced by a molecular mass 2 daltons higher than the gene sequence-predicted mass. This nucleoside, which is nearly ubiquitous in tRNA (where it is involved in maintenance of loop structure), is two bases from A-2551, a previously determined site of interaction between 23 S RNA and the CCA-aminoacyl terminus of tRNA at the ribosomal P-site. The oligonucleotide 2496-CACmCUCGp-2502 was isolated and accurately mass measured, and its nucleoside constituents were characterized by high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry; there was no evidence of modification at position 2501 as implied by earlier work. Using similar techniques, the modified adenosine at position 2503 was unambiguously determined to be 2-methyladenosine in the fragment 2503-m2AGp-2505.