Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Segmental Contribution Toward Total Lumbar Range of Motion in Disc Replacement and Fusions: A Comparison of Operative and Adjacent Levels

Study Design. Radiographic results from a prospective, randomized, multicenter trial assessing patients who underwent lumbar total disc replacement (TDR) or circumferential arthrodesis for 1-level degenerative disc disease. Objective. To quantify the relative segmental contribution to total lumbar range of motion (ROM) at the operative level at each adjacent level in lumbar TDR and arthrodesis. Summary of Background Data. Although previous studies have evaluated ROM in TDR and fusion, no study has quantified or compared the relative segmental contribution to total lumbar ROM. Further, no study to the best of our knowledge has evaluated the kinematic profile of the more cranial adjacent segments (i.e., the second or third adjacent levels) following implantation of either TDR or fusion. Methods. Radiographic data collected from all randomized 1-level degenerative disc disease patients operated at L4/5 or L5/S1 that participated in the multicenter, prospective, randomized IDE study comparing ProDisc-L with circumferential lumbar arthrodesis were evaluated before surgery and at 24 months. Radiographic measurements were performed independently using custom digitized image stabilization software to generate ROM at the operative level, and at each cranial and caudal adjacent level. Results. There were 200 total patients included (155 ProDisc-L, average age 39 years; 45 arthrodesis, average age 40 years). At 24 months, the L4/5 TDR group experienced a significant improvement in total lumbar ROM from baseline (+6.3°), whereas there was no change seen with L5/S1 TDR or any fusion group. Between-group comparisons from baseline to 24 months postoperatively revealed: (1) significantly more contribution from the operative level towards total lumbar range in TDR at operative level L4/5 (TDR: −2.5%, fusion: −16.8%, P = 0.006), and operative level L5/S1 (TDR: −5.1%, fusion: −15.9%, P < 0.001), and (2) the relative contribution towards total lumbar range of motion from the first cranial adjacent segment to fusion at L5/S1 increased by 12.1%, compared with −1.2% seen in TDR (P = 0.03). There were elevated contributions from the more cranial adjacent levels to a fusion when compared with TDR, however, these differences were not statistically significant. At operative level L4/5, there was significantly increased ROM from the first caudal segment below TDR (6%, P = 0.03), but not below fusion (3.1%, P = 0.59). Conclusion. In conclusion, patients with TDR lost slight relative contribution to total lumbar motion from the operative level which was mostly compensated for by the caudal adjacent level (if operated at L4/5). In contrast, the significant loss of relative range of motion contribution from the operative level in fusions was redistributed among multiple cranial adjacent levels, most notably at the first cranial adjacent level.
Hybrid FDG PET/MRI vs. FDG PET and CT in patients with suspected dementia – A comparison of diagnostic yield and propagated influence on clinical diagnosis and patient management

Background Both 18F-fluoro-deoxy-glucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET), computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are routinely used in the evaluation of memory clinic patients. Hybrid PET/MR systems now allow simultaneous PET and MRI imaging within the duration of the PET emission scan. Purpose To compare the diagnostic yield of PET/MRI using an abbreviated MR protocol with that of separate PET and CT in a mixed memory clinic population, and the propagated influences on clinical diagnosis and patient management. Material and methods Consecutive memory clinic patients (n = 78) undergoing both CT and hybrid FDG PET/MRI scans were identified retrospectively. MRI and CT were separately evaluated for vascular and structural pathology. PET scans were classified according to the presence of neurodegenerative or vascular disease using CT or MRI, respectively, for anatomical guiding. A memory clinic expert assessed the clinical impact of the additional findings and/or change of PET classification achieved by MRI anatomical guiding as compared to CT guiding. Results MRI lead to significantly higher Fazekas scores, higher medial temporal and global cortical atrophy scores, and identified more patients with infarcts (28 vs 8, p<0.001) compared to CT. MRI changed PET classification in 13 (17%) patients. Addition of MRI to CT had minor clinical impact in 4/78 (5%) and major clinical impact in 13/78 (17%) of patients. Conclusion The study demonstrates the capabilities of PET/MRI systems for routine clinical imaging of memory clinic patients, and that even an abbreviated hybrid PET/MRI protocol provides significant additional information influencing clinical diagnosis and patient management in a substantial fraction of patients when compared to separate PET and CT.
Recent advances in antibacterial applications of metal nanoparticles (MNPs) and metal nanocomposites (MNCs) against multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria

ABSTRACT Introduction: In recent years, multidrug resistance (MDR) in bacteria has drastically increased and has posed a great threat to the human health. This problem has generated an urgent need to search alternatives for the treatment of MDR bacteria. It has been proved that metal nanoparticles (MNPs) and metal nanocomposites (MNCs) possess remarkable antimicrobial potential, and hence can be used in alternative therapy. Areas covered: This review is aimed to discuss recent reports on antibacterial activities of MNPs and MNCs against MDR bacteria. Expert opinion: Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter baumannii, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Serratia marcescens, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Staphylococcus epidermidis are important pathogenic bacteria which have shown MDR against a wide range of conventional antibiotics. In this context, effects of MNPs and MNCs on these pathogens have demonstrated considerable efficacy. Several mechanisms concerning activity of MNPs and MNCs against pathogenic bacteria which are mainly dependent on type of their precursors and treated bacterium have been investigated. In addition, many studies have been made on antibacterial activities of these nanomaterials with similar and different results.
Distributed tcp caching for wireless sensor networks

Previous research on transport layer protocols for wireless sensor networks (WSNs) has focused on designing protocols specifically targeted for sensor networks. Most sensor networks applications, however, are only useful when connected to an external network. The deployment of TCP/IP in WSNs would enable direct connection between the WSN and external TCP/IP networks. However, TCP performs badly in wireless environments both in terms of throughput and energy efficiency. To overcome these problems in WSNs we have designed Distributed TCP Caching. This mechanism greatly enhances TCP performance by caching TCP segments on the nodes in the sensor network and locally retransmitting lost segments. Our simulations demonstrate that with these enhancements TCP performs well enough to be useful in wireless sensor networks.
Fast stochastic neighbor embedding: a trust-region algorithm

Stochastic neighbor embedding (SNE) is a probabilistic method of embedding objects, described by high-dimensional vectors or by pair wise dissimilarities, into a lower dimensional space in a way that neighbor identities are preserved. Despite of the useful behavior of SNE, it suffers from its slow convergence due to a gradient-based implementation. In this paper we present a fast SNE algorithm which is approximately 4-6 times faster than the gradient-based SNE algorithm. Our fast SNE algorithm, named TR-SNE employs a trust-region (TR) method which finds a direction and a step size in an efficient and reliable manner with the help of a quadratic model of the objective function. We confirm the high performance and the fast convergence of our TR-SNR through numerical experiments.
Seeking and Ensuring Interdependence: Desiring Commitment and the Strategic Initiation and Maintenance of Close Relationships

The current research offers and examines the concept of commitment desirability, defined as the subjective desire to be involved in a committed romantic relationship at a given time. In pursuing their desire for a committed romance, how do individuals high in commitment desirability strategically ensure success? We suggest that high perceived partner commitment is sought by individuals who themselves desire to be involved in a committed relationship. In three studies involving individuals both currently involved and not involved in a relationship, we found support for the hypothesized interactive effect of commitment desirability and perceived partner commitment, such that greater commitment desirability was associated with more positive relationship outcomes, especially when partners were perceived to be high in commitment. The present research suggests that commitment desirability is a meaningful predictor of relationship attitudes and behaviors. Implications for understanding relationship commitment as well as future research directions are discussed.
Intrinsically aggregation-prone proteins form amyloid-like aggregates and contribute to tissue aging in Caenorhabditis elegans

Reduced protein homeostasis leading to increased protein instability is a common molecular feature of aging, but it remains unclear whether this is a cause or consequence of the aging process. In neurodegenerative diseases and other amyloidoses, specific proteins self-assemble into amyloid fibrils and accumulate as pathological aggregates in different tissues. More recently, widespread protein aggregation has been described during normal aging. Until now, an extensive characterization of the nature of age-dependent protein aggregation has been lacking. Here, we show that age-dependent aggregates are rapidly formed by newly synthesized proteins and have an amyloid-like structure resembling that of protein aggregates observed in disease. We then demonstrate that age-dependent protein aggregation accelerates the functional decline of different tissues in C. elegans. Together, these findings imply that amyloid-like aggregates contribute to the aging process and therefore could be important targets for strategies designed to maintain physiological functions in the late stages of life.
Automatic question generation for decision tree based state tying

Decision tree based state tying uses so-called phonetic questions to assign triphone states to reasonable acoustic models. These phonetic questions are in fact phonetic categories such as vowels, plosives or fricatives. The assumption behind this is that context phonemes which belong to the same phonetic class have a similar influence on the pronunciation of a phoneme. For a new phoneme set, which has to be used, for example, when switching to a different corpus, a phonetic expert is needed to define proper phonetic questions. In this paper a new method is presented which automatically defines good phonetic questions for a phoneme set. This method uses the intermediate clusters from a phoneme clustering algorithm which are reduced to an appropriate number afterwards. Recognition results on the Wall Street Journal data for within-word and across-word phoneme models show competitive performance of the automatically generated questions with our best handcrafted question set.
Antibody Fab‐Fc properties outperform titer in predictive models of SIV vaccine‐induced protection

Characterizing the antigen‐binding and innate immune‐recruiting properties of the humoral response offers the chance to obtain deeper insights into mechanisms of protection than revealed by measuring only overall antibody titer. Here, a high‐throughput, multiplexed Fab‐Fc Array was employed to profile rhesus macaques vaccinated with a gp120‐CD4 fusion protein in combination with different genetically encoded adjuvants, and subsequently subjected to multiple heterologous simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) challenges. Systems analyses modeling protection and adjuvant differences using Fab‐Fc Array measurements revealed a set of correlates yielding strong and robust predictive performance, while models based on measurements of response magnitude alone exhibited significantly inferior performance. At the same time, rendering Fab‐Fc measurements mathematically independent of titer had relatively little impact on predictive performance. Similar analyses for a distinct SIV vaccine study also showed that Fab‐Fc measurements performed significantly better than titer. These results suggest that predictive modeling with measurements of antibody properties can provide detailed correlates with robust predictive power, suggest directions for vaccine improvement, and potentially enable discovery of mechanistic associations.
Interaction between active and passive knee stabilizers during level walking

The gait of normal subjects and patients with varus deformities at the knee was studied by analyzing the interaction between the dynamic (muscular) and passive (ligamentous) restraints affecting lateral stability of the knee. A statically determinant model predicted that the midstance‐phase adducting moment during normal gait would cause lateral knee joint opening if either antagonistic muscle force and/or pretension in the lateral soft tissues were not present at the knee. The patient group tended to compensate for a high midstance‐phase adducting moment by walking with a style of gait that demanded more muscle force (greater flexion‐extension moments). This walking style reduced the chance of lateral joint opening. It can be speculated that this style of gait would help to maintain equilibrium at the knee. The higher muscle force would aid in resisting the adducting moment, keeping the joint closed laterally and thus increasing the stability of the knee.
Single-Organelle Quantification Reveals Stoichiometric and Structural Variability of Carboxysomes Dependent on the Environment

Determination of absolute protein stoichiometry reveals the organizational variability of carboxysomes in response to microenvironmental changes. The carboxysome is a complex, proteinaceous organelle that plays essential roles in carbon assimilation in cyanobacteria and chemoautotrophs. It comprises hundreds of protein homologs that self-assemble in space to form an icosahedral structure. Despite its significance in enhancing CO2 fixation and potentials in bioengineering applications, the formation of carboxysomes and their structural composition, stoichiometry, and adaptation to cope with environmental changes remain unclear. Here we use live-cell single-molecule fluorescence microscopy, coupled with confocal and electron microscopy, to decipher the absolute protein stoichiometry and organizational variability of single β-carboxysomes in the model cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus PCC7942. We determine the physiological abundance of individual building blocks within the icosahedral carboxysome. We further find that the protein stoichiometry, diameter, localization, and mobility patterns of carboxysomes in cells depend sensitively on the microenvironmental levels of CO2 and light intensity during cell growth, revealing cellular strategies of dynamic regulation. These findings, also applicable to other bacterial microcompartments and macromolecular self-assembling systems, advance our knowledge of the principles that mediate carboxysome formation and structural modulation. It will empower rational design and construction of entire functional metabolic factories in heterologous organisms, for example crop plants, to boost photosynthesis and agricultural productivity.
Selenomethionine Inhibits Growth and Suppresses Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) Protein Expression in Human Colon Cancer Cell Lines

Currently, selenium (in the form of high selenium containing yeast or selenomethionine) is being evaluated for anticancer effects against both human colon polyp recurrence and human prostate cancer, respectively. Chemical speciation analysis of the high selenium containing yeast indicates that selenomethionine (SeMet) is a major constituent of selenized yeast. We tested the hypothesis that SeMet might affect colon cancer cell growth by mechanisms involving cyclooxygenases (COX). The growth of all four-colon cancer cell lines tested was inhibited by selenomethionine. Furthermore, selenomethionine decreased COX-2 protein and PGE2 levels in HCA-7 cells. Selenomethionine suppressed COX-2 RNA levels in HCA-7 cells which could account for decreased COX-2 protein levels. Finally, the addition of PGE2 protected cells from the antiproliferative effects of selenomethionine in a concentration dependent manner. Selenomethionine might regulate COX-2 at the transcriptional level. These data suggests that Se-Met-induced cell growth inhibition may be, in part, mediated by COX-2 dependent mechanisms. The results of this study support the use of selenium agents in colon cancer chemoprevention trials.
Infertility-related stress and depressive symptoms – the role of experiential avoidance: a cross-sectional study

ABSTRACT Objective: The current study aimed to explore the mediating role of experiential avoidance in the relationship between infertility-related stress (impact of infertility in women’s life and representations about the importance of parenthood) and depressive symptoms. Background: Infertility is a stress inducing condition presenting many challenges to individuals facing this diagnosis, particularly to the ones who decide to pursue medical treatment. One of its consequences may be the experience of depressive symptoms which have also been associated with increased infertility-related stress. Moreover, experiential avoidance, conceptualised as an emotion regulation process, has also been connected to psychopathological symptoms, particularly depressive symptoms. Methods: The sample consisted of 124 women presenting an infertility diagnosis who were pursuing medical treatment for fertility problems. Participants were recruited through the national patients’ association website and completed the following self-report instruments: a sociodemographic and clinical questionnaire, the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire–II (AAQ-II), the Fertility Problem Inventory (FPI) and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scales 21 (DASS-21). Results: Results showed that representations about the importance of parenthood were associated with depressive symptoms indirectly, throughout the association with the impact of infertility in women’s life and use of experiential avoidance. Conclusions: Experiential avoidance can be considered a relevant emotion regulation process to be targeted in psychological intervention programs for women facing infertility.
Mitochondrial fission and cristae disruption increase the response of cell models of Huntington's disease to apoptotic stimuli

Huntington's disease (HD), a genetic neurodegenerative disease caused by a polyglutamine expansion in the Huntingtin (Htt) protein, is accompanied by multiple mitochondrial alterations. Here, we show that mitochondrial fragmentation and cristae alterations characterize cellular models of HD and participate in their increased susceptibility to apoptosis. In HD cells, the increased basal activity of the phosphatase calcineurin dephosphorylates the pro‐fission dynamin related protein 1 (Drp1), increasing its mitochondrial translocation and activation, and ultimately leading to fragmentation of the organelle. The fragmented HD mitochondria are characterized by cristae alterations that are aggravated by apoptotic stimulation. A genetic analysis indicates that correction of mitochondrial elongation is not sufficient to rescue the increased cytochrome c release and cell death observed in HD cells. Conversely, the increased apoptosis can be corrected by manoeuvres that prevent fission and cristae remodelling. In conclusion, the cristae remodelling of the fragmented HD mitochondria contributes to their hypersensitivity to apoptosis.
Downregulation of microRNA‐205 inhibits cell invasion and angiogenesis of cervical cancer through TSLC1‐mediated Akt signaling pathway

Cervical cancer (CC) is a common gynecological cancer and a leading cause of cancer‐related deaths in women globally. Therefore, this study explores the action of microRNA‐205 (miR‐205) in the invasion, migration, and angiogenesis of CC through binding to tumor suppressor lung cancer 1 (TSLC1). Initially, the microarray analysis was used to select the candidate gene and the regulatory microRNA. Then, the target relationship between miR‐205 and TSLC1 as well as the expression of miR‐205, TSLC1, and p‐Akt/total Akt in CC cells were determined. Afterwards, CC cell invasion and migration were detected after the treatment of miR‐205 mimics/inhibitors and short hairpin RNA against TSLC1. After coculture of cancer cells and vascular endothelial cells, cell proliferation, tube formation, and microvessel density (MVD) were detected to determine the roles of miR‐205 in angiogenesis. Finally, tumor growth in nude mice was measured in vivo. TSLC1 was determined as the candidate gene, which was found to be targeted and negatively regulated by miR‐205. Then, downregulated miR‐205 or forced TSLC1 expression inhibited invasion, migration, and angiogenesis in CC, corresponding to suppressed cell proliferation, tube formation, and expression of IL‐8, VEGF, and bFGF, as well as the inhibited activation of the Akt signaling pathway. Furthermore, downregulation of miR‐205 was found to exert an inhibitory role in tumor formation and MVD by elevating TSLC1 in CC in vivo. This study demonstrated that downregulated miR‐205 inhibited cell invasion, migration, and angiogenesis in CC by inactivating the Akt signaling pathway via TSLC1 upregulation.
Indigenous compared with non-Indigenous Australian patients at entry to specialist palliative care: Cross-sectional findings from a multi-jurisdictional dataset

Background There are few quantitative studies on palliative care provision to Indigenous Australians, a population known to experience distinctive barriers to quality healthcare and to have poorer health outcomes than other Australians. Objectives To investigate equity of specialist palliative care service provision through characterising and comparing Indigenous and non-Indigenous patients at entry to care. Methods Using data (01/01/2010–30/06/2015) from all services participating in the multi-jurisdictional Palliative Care Outcomes Collaboration, Indigenous and non-Indigenous patients entering palliative care were compared on proportions vis-à-vis those expected from national statutory datasets, demographic characteristics, and entry-to-care status across fourteen ‘problem’ domains (e.g., pain, functional impairment) after matching by age, sex, and specific diagnosis. Results Of 140,267 patients, 1,465 (1.0%, much lower than expected from statutory data) were Indigenous, 133,987 (95.5%) non-Indigenous, and 4,905 (3.5%) had a missing identifier. The proportion of patients with a missing identifier diminished markedly over the study period, without a corresponding increase in the proportion identified as Indigenous. Indigenous compared with non-Indigenous patients were younger (mean 62.8 versus 73.0 years, p<0.001), a higher proportion were female (51.5% versus 46.3%; p<0.001) or resided outside major cities (44.2% versus 21.5%, p<0.001). Across all domains, Indigenous compared with matched non-Indigenous patients had lower or equal risk of status requiring prompt intervention. Conclusions Indigenous patients (especially those residing outside major cities) are substantially under-represented in care by services participating in the nationwide specialist palliative care Collaboration, likely reflecting widespread access barriers. However, the similarity of status indicators among Indigenous and non-Indigenous patients at entry to care suggests that Indigenous patients who are able to access these services do not disproportionately experience clinically important impediments to care initiation.