Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio predicts functionally significant coronary artery stenosis in patients with stable coronary artery disease.

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the functional severity of coronary stenosis assessed according to the fractional flow reserve (FFR) in stable coronary artery disease (CAD). METHODS The clinical and laboratory data of 420 patients who underwent index coronary angiography for stable angina pectoris were analyzed retrospectively. The functional severity of an intermediate lesion was determined by FFR. An FFR value of >0.80 was considered non-significant (Group 1), whereas ≤0.80 was accepted as significant stenosis (Group 2). RESULTS A total of 137 (32.6%) patients had functionally significant coronary artery stenosis. The median NLR value was significantly greater in Group 2 compared with Group 1 [3.13 (0.93-9.75) vs 2.22 (0.75-6.02); p<0.001]. In multivariable logistic regression analysis, the Gensini score [odds ratio (OR): 1.04; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.02-1.06; p<0.001], diabetes mellitus (OR: 2.56; 95% CI: 1.38-4.75; p=0.003), smoking (OR: 2.09; 95% CI: 1.12-3.94; p=0.021), and NLR (OR: 1.62; 95% CI:1.26-2.09; p<0.001) were found to be independent predictors of the presence of functionally significant coronary stenosis using an FFR value of ≤0.80. The optimal cut-off value of NLR for predicting functionally significant coronary stenosis was 2.3. An NLR value greater than 2.3 had a sensitivity of 72% and a specificity of 61% to predict stenosis with an FFR value of ≤0.80. CONCLUSION The pre-angiographic NLR is a simple, noninvasive, and inexpensive biomarker that was significantly higher in patients with functionally significant coronary stenosis; it can be used to predict the hemodynamic severity of intermediate coronary stenosis in patients with stable CAD.
Conservation of Eelgrass (Zostera marina) Genetic Diversity in a Mesocosm-Based Restoration Experiment

Eelgrass (Zostera marina) forms the foundation of an important shallow coastal community in protected estuaries and bays. Widespread population declines have stimulated restoration efforts, but these have often overlooked the importance of maintaining the evolutionary potential of restored populations by minimizing the reduction in genetic diversity that typically accompanies restoration. In an experiment simulating a small-scale restoration, we tested the effectiveness of a buoy-deployed seeding technique to maintain genetic diversity comparable to the seed source populations. Seeds from three extant source populations in San Francisco Bay were introduced into eighteen flow-through baywater mesocosms. Following seedling establishment, we used seven polymorphic microsatellite loci to compare genetic diversity indices from 128 shoots to those found in the source populations. Importantly, allelic richness and expected heterozygosity were not significantly reduced in the mesocosms, which also preserved the strong population differentiation present among source populations. However, the inbreeding coefficient F IS was elevated in two of the three sets of mesocosms when they were grouped according to their source population. This is probably a Wahlund effect from confining all half-siblings within each spathe to a single mesocosm, elevating F IS when the mesocosms were considered together. The conservation of most alleles and preservation of expected heterozygosity suggests that this seeding technique is an improvement over whole-shoot transplantation in the conservation of genetic diversity in eelgrass restoration efforts.
Computational Phonology

Phonology, as it is practiced, is deeply computational. Phonological analysis is data-intensive and the resulting models are nothing other than specialized data structures and algorithms. In the past, phonological computation - managing data and developing analyses - was done manually with pencil and paper. Increasingly, with the proliferation of affordable computers, IPA fonts and drawing software, phonologists are seeking to move their computation work online. Computational Phonology provides the theoretical and technological framework for this migration, building on methodologies and tools from computational linguistics. This piece consists of an apology for computational phonology, a history, and an overview of current research.
CapProbe: a simple and accurate capacity estimation technique

We present a new capacity estimation technique, called CapProbe. CapProbe combines delay as well as dispersion measurements of packet pairs to filter out samples distorted by cross-traffic. CapProbe algorithms include convergence tests and convergence speed-up techniques by varying probing parameters. Our study of CapProbe includes a probability analysis to determine the time it takes CapProbe to converge on the average. Through simulations and measurements, we found CapProbe to be quick and accurate across a wide range of traffic scenarios. We also compared CapProbe with two previous well-known techniques, pathchar and pathrate. We found CapProbe to be much more accurate than pathchar and similar in accuracy to pathrate, while providing faster estimation than both. Another advantage of CapProbe is its lower computation cost, since no statistical post processing of probing data is required.
Polystyrene‐coated alumina powder via dispersion polymerization for indirect selective laser sintering applications

A promising method for the manufacture of complex 3D ceramic parts is selective laser sintering (SLS). SLS of alumina components can be done either directly or indirectly. In this article, the indirect method is used by using polystyrene coated alumina particles. One of the methods to produce these alumina powders is dispersion polymerization. In this research, it is described how the alumina powder has been developed and tested. The powder has been characterized to define its processability within the SLS process. Used techniques include SEM (morphology), STA/TGA (overall mass loss), DSC (glass transition temperature Tg), and laser diffraction (particle size distribution). The investigated SLS process parameters were the preheating temperature, laser power, scan spacing, and scan speed. STA/TGA has proven that polystyrene-coated alumina powders are suitable for SLS process, while DSC results were judged to be a good source of complementary data on preheating temperature of alumina/polystyrene powders. SLS experiments showed that single layer green parts can be produced. By using the optimized SLS parameters, it was demonstrated that different 3D geometries can be produced with the polystyrene coated alumina powders. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013
In Vivo Pharmacodynamic Target Assessment of Eravacycline against Escherichia coli in a Murine Thigh Infection Model

ABSTRACT Eravacycline is a novel fluorocycline antibiotic with potent activity against a broad range of pathogens, including strains with tetracycline and other drug resistance phenotypes. The goal of the studies was to determine which pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) parameter and magnitude best correlated with efficacy in the murine thigh infection model. Six Escherichia coli isolates were utilized for the studies. MICs were determined using CLSI methods and ranged from 0.125 to 0.25 mg/liter. A neutropenic murine thigh infection model was utilized for all treatment studies. Single-dose plasma pharmacokinetics were determined in mice after administration of 2.5, 5, 10, 20, 40, and 80 mg/kg of body weight. Pharmacokinetic studies exhibited maximum plasma concentration (Cmax) values of 0.34 to 2.58 mg/liter, area under the concentration-time curve (AUC) from time zero to infinity (AUC0–∞) values of 2.44 to 57.6 mg · h/liter, and elimination half-lives of 3.9 to 17.6 h. Dose fractionation studies were performed using total drug doses of 6.25 mg/kg to 100 mg/kg fractionated into 6-, 8-, 12-, or 24-h regimens. Nonlinear regression analysis demonstrated that the 24-h free drug AUC/MIC (fAUC/MIC) was the PK/PD parameter that best correlated with efficacy (R2 = 0.80). In subsequent studies, we used the neutropenic murine thigh infection model to determine if the magnitude of the AUC/MIC needed for the efficacy of eravacycline varied among pathogens. Mice were treated with 2-fold increasing doses (range, 3.125 to 50 mg/kg) of eravacycline every 12 h. The mean fAUC/MIC magnitudes associated with the net stasis and the 1-log-kill endpoints were 27.97 ± 8.29 and 32.60 ± 10.85, respectively.
MIF allele-dependent regulation of the MIF coreceptor CD44 and role in rheumatoid arthritis

Significance High-expression alleles of the cytokine macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) are associated with severe joint destruction in autoimmune arthritis, but the mechanism for this effect is unknown. High-genotypic MIF-expressing joint fibroblasts produce high levels of MIF under inflammatory stimulation to up-regulate the surface expression of the MIF signaling coreceptor CD44 and promote its alternative splicing into invasive, tumor-associated isoforms, which contribute to the invasive and tissue-destructive character of the rheumatoid joint synovium. These findings support a precision medicine approach to the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis by pharmacologically targeting the MIF pathway in high-genotypic MIF-expressing patients. Fibroblast-like synoviocytes mediate joint destruction in rheumatoid arthritis and exhibit sustained proinflammatory and invasive properties. CD44 is a polymorphic transmembrane protein with defined roles in matrix interaction and tumor invasion that is also a signaling coreceptor for macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF), which engages cell surface CD74. High-expression MIF alleles (rs5844572) are associated with rheumatoid joint erosion, but whether MIF signaling through the CD74/CD44 receptor complex promotes upstream autoimmune responses or contributes directly to synovial joint destruction is unknown. We report here the functional regulation of CD44 by an autocrine pathway in synovial fibroblasts that is driven by high-expression MIF alleles to up-regulate an inflammatory and invasive phenotype. MIF increases CD44 expression, promotes its recruitment into a functional signal transduction complex, and stimulates alternative exon splicing, leading to expression of the CD44v3–v6 isoforms associated with oncogenic invasion. CD44 recruitment into the MIF receptor complex, downstream MAPK and RhoA signaling, and invasive phenotype require MIF and CD74 and are reduced by MIF pathway antagonists. These data support a functional role for high-MIF expression alleles and the two-component CD74/CD44 MIF receptor in rheumatoid arthritis and suggest that pharmacologic inhibition of this pathway may offer a specific means to interfere with progressive joint destruction.
Genetic risk factors for pediatric-onset multiple sclerosis

Background: Strong evidence supports the role of both genetic and environmental factors in pediatric-onset multiple sclerosis (POMS) etiology. Objective: We comprehensively investigated the association between established major histocompatibility complex (MHC) and non-MHC adult multiple sclerosis (MS)-associated variants and susceptibility to POMS. Methods: Cases with onset <18 years (n = 569) and controls (n = 16,251) were included from the United States and Sweden. Adjusted logistic regression and meta-analyses were performed for individual risk variants and a weighted genetic risk score (wGRS) for non-MHC variants. Results were compared to adult MS cases (n = 7588). Results: HLA–DRB1*15:01 was strongly associated with POMS (odds ratio (OR)meta = 2.95, p < 2.0 × 10−16). Furthermore, 28 of 104 non-MHC variants studied (23%) were associated (p < 0.05); POMS cases carried, on average, a higher burden of these 28 variants compared to adults (ORavg = 1.24 vs 1.13, respectively), though the difference was not significant. The wGRS was strongly associated with POMS (ORmeta = 2.77, 95% confidence interval: 2.33, 3.32, p < 2.0 × 10−16) and higher, on average, when compared to adult cases. Additional class III risk variants in the MHC region associated with POMS were revealed after accounting for HLA–DRB1*15:01 and HLA–A*02. Conclusion: Pediatric and adult MS share many genetic variants suggesting similar biological processes are present. MHC variants beyond HLA–DRB1*15:01 and HLA–A*02 are also associated with POMS.
Moderate-Intensity Rotating Magnetic Fields Do Not Affect Bone Quality and Bone Remodeling in Hindlimb Suspended Rats

Abundant evidence has substantiated the positive effects of pulsed electromagnetic fields (PEMF) and static magnetic fields (SMF) on inhibiting osteopenia and promoting fracture healing. However, the osteogenic potential of rotating magnetic fields (RMF), another common electromagnetic application modality, remains poorly characterized thus far, although numerous commercial RMF treatment devices have been available on the market. Herein the impacts of RMF on osteoporotic bone microarchitecture, bone strength and bone metabolism were systematically investigated in hindlimb-unloaded (HU) rats. Thirty two 3-month-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to the Control (n = 10), HU (n = 10) and HU with RMF exposure (HU+RMF, n = 12) groups. Rats in the HU+RMF group were subjected to daily 2-hour exposure to moderate-intensity RMF (ranging from 0.60 T to 0.38 T) at 7 Hz for 4 weeks. HU caused significant decreases in body mass and soleus muscle mass of rats, which were not obviously altered by RMF. Three-point bending test showed that the mechanical properties of femurs in HU rats, including maximum load, stiffness, energy absorption and elastic modulus were not markedly affected by RMF. µCT analysis demonstrated that 4-week RMF did not significantly prevent HU-induced deterioration of femoral trabecular and cortical bone microarchitecture. Serum biochemical analysis showed that RMF did not significantly change HU-induced decrease in serum bone formation markers and increase in bone resorption markers. Bone histomorphometric analysis further confirmed that RMF showed no impacts on bone remodeling in HU rats, as evidenced by unchanged mineral apposition rate, bone formation rate, osteoblast numbers and osteoclast numbers in cancellous bone. Together, our findings reveal that RMF do not significantly affect bone microstructure, bone mechanical strength and bone remodeling in HU-induced disuse osteoporotic rats. Our study indicates potentially obvious waveform-dependent effects of electromagnetic fields-stimulated osteogenesis, suggesting that RMF, at least in the present form, might not be an optimal modality for inhibiting disuse osteopenia/osteoporosis.
Low Back Pain and Internet: Infopollution.

AIM An increasing number of patients engage in health information seeking via the internet. We aimed to determine the quality of information on the internet for treatment of three common neurosurgical conditions associated with low back pain using the DISCERN® instrument. MATERIAL AND METHODS The search phrases "lumbar disc herniation (LDH) treatment", "lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) treatment" and "lumbar spondylolisthesis (LSL) treatment" were searched in the Google® search engine using the simple searching method. The first 30 websites were evaluated for website authors (healthcare, news, personal, physician, and unidentified), and DISCERN® scores using 15 key questions representing a separate quality criterion plus an overall quality rating. Each site was scored independently by two observers. RESULTS Of 90 links retrieved, a total of 83 websites were used for analysis. The physician authors were ranked first (39.3%) in the search results. Only 3.6% of the websites had clear aims, and the information was relevant in 6%. Seventy-two (86.7%) websites had no sources of evidence for the information mentioned. The information was completely balanced and unbiased in only 8 (9.6%) websites. Fifty-one (61.5%) websites had no described benefits for any of the treatments and only 2 (2.4%) websites described a risk for each treatment. Only 6 (7.2%) websites were found to be useful and appropriate sources of information about treatment choices. The DISCERN® scores were not significantly different between all author groups (p=0.713). CONCLUSION The information on the treatment options of LDH, LSS and LSL on the internet is not useful or appropriate regarding treatment choices. Neurosurgeons should be aware of this inconsistency.
What Are Fair Study Benefits in International Health Research? Consulting Community Members in Kenya

Background Planning study benefits and payments for participants in international health research in low- income settings can be a difficult and controversial process, with particular challenges in balancing risks of undue inducement and exploitation and understanding how researchers should take account of background inequities. At an international health research programme in Kenya, this study aimed to map local residents' informed and reasoned views on the effects of different levels of study benefits and payments to inform local policy and wider debates in international research. Methods and Findings Using a relatively novel two-stage process community consultation approach, five participatory workshops involving 90 local residents from diverse constituencies were followed by 15 small group discussions, with components of information-sharing, deliberation and reflection to situate normative reasoning within debates. Framework Analysis drew inductively and deductively on voice- recorded discussions and field notes supported by Nvivo 10 software, and the international research ethics literature. Community members' views on study benefits and payments were diverse, with complex contextual influences and interplay between risks of giving ‘too many’ and ‘too few’ benefits, including the role of cash. While recognising important risks for free choice, research relationships and community values in giving ‘too many’, the greatest concerns were risks of unfairness in giving ‘too few’ benefits, given difficulties in assessing indirect costs of participation and the serious consequences for families of underestimation, related to perceptions of researchers' responsibilities. Conclusions Providing benefits and payments to participants in international research in low-income settings is an essential means by which researchers meet individual-level and structural forms of ethical responsibilities, but understanding how this can be achieved requires a careful account of social realities and local judgment. Concerns about undue inducement in low-income communities may often be misplaced; we argue that greater attention should be placed on avoiding unfairness, particularly for the most-poor.
Efficacy of calcium hypochlorite and ultraviolet irradiation against Mycobacterium fortuitum and Mycobacterium marinum

Background: Nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) cause opportunistic infections with increasing frequency in immunocompromised humans. Water is one of the natural sources for transmission of NTM and plays a major role in the epidemiology of NTM infections. This study evaluated the efficacy of calcium hypochlorite and ultraviolet irradiation (UV) to eliminate potentially zoonotic NTM species such as M. marinum and M. fortuitum. Materials and Methods: Bacterial suspensions containing1-4 × 105 CFU/ml were exposed to 5, 50, 100, 1,000 and 10,000 mg/L of Ca (OCl)2for 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30 and 60 minutes, and 6,000 μW/cm2 UV dose for 5, 10, 20, 30, 60 and 120 seconds. Results: Of the two methods tested, UV irradiation was more effective than chlorine in achieving three log reduction in viable bacterial count (UV dose 6,000 μW/cm2, exposure time 60 S) as well as in eliminating the organisms (UV dose 17,000 μW/cm2, exposure time: 30 S). When 10,000 mg/L of chlorine was used, 10 and 20 min contact times were required to achieve three log inactivation and complete elimination of M. fortuitum respectively. Conclusion: Our study suggest that initial disinfection of water by chlorine at the water treatment plant followed by UV irradiation at the household level would minimise the spread of NTM to the susceptible population via drinking water.
Improving foot-mounted inertial navigation through real-time motion classification

We present a method to improve the accuracy of a foot-mounted, zero-velocity-aided inertial navigation system (INS) by varying estimator parameters based on a real-time classification of motion type. We train a support vector machine (SVM) classifier using inertial data recorded by a single foot-mounted sensor to differentiate between six motion types (walking, jogging, running, sprinting, crouch-walking, and ladder-climbing) and report mean test classification accuracy of over 90% on a dataset with five different subjects. From these motion types, we select two of the most common (walking and running), and describe a method to compute optimal zero-velocity detection parameters tailored to both a specific user and motion type by maximizing the detector F-score. By combining the motion classifier with a set of optimal detection parameters, we show how we can reduce INS position error during mixed walking and running motion. We evaluate our adaptive system on a total of 5.9 km of indoor pedestrian navigation performed by five different subjects moving along a 130 m path with surveyed ground truth markers.
Determinants of Noninvasive Ventilation Success or Failure in Morbidly Obese Patients in Acute Respiratory Failure

Purpose Acute respiratory failure (ARF) is a common life-threatening complication in morbidly obese patients with obesity hypoventilation syndrome (OHS). We aimed to identify the determinants of noninvasive ventilation (NIV) success or failure for this indication. Methods We prospectively included 76 consecutive patients with BMI>40 kg/m2 diagnosed with OHS and treated by NIV for ARF in a 15-bed ICU of a tertiary hospital. Results NIV failed to reverse ARF in only 13 patients. Factors associated with NIV failure included pneumonia (n = 12/13, 92% vs n = 9/63, 14%; p<0.0001), high SOFA (10 vs 5; p<0.0001) and SAPS2 score (63 vs 39; p<0.0001) at admission. These patients often experienced poor outcome despite early resort to endotracheal intubation (in-hospital mortality, 92.3% vs 17.5%; p<0.001). The only factor significantly associated with successful response to NIV was idiopathic decompensation of OHS (n = 30, 48% vs n = 0, 0%; p = 0.001). In the NIV success group (n = 63), 33 patients (53%) experienced a delayed response to NIV (with persistent hypercapnic acidosis during the first 6 hours). Conclusions Multiple organ failure and pneumonia were the main factors associated with NIV failure and death in morbidly obese patients in hypoxemic ARF. On the opposite, NIV was constantly successful and could be safely pushed further in case of severe hypercapnic acute respiratory decompensation of OHS.
The relative contributions of function, perceived psychological burden and partner support to cognitive distress in bladder cancer

Bladder cancer is a genitourinary disease of increasing incidence. Despite improvements in treatment, outcomes remain equivocal with high recurrence rates. It is associated with poor psychosocial outcomes due to reduced functioning of the genitourinary system. The objective of these analyses was to query whether reported loss of function or the perception of psychological burden caused by this functional impedance was the key to understanding psychosocial outcomes.