Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Adult echocardiographic nomograms: overview, critical review and creation of a software for automatic, fast and easy calculation of normal values.

There is a crescent interest on normal adult echocardiographic values and the introduction of new deformation imaging and 3D parameters pose the issue of normative data. A multitude of nomograms has been recently published, however data are often fragmentary, difficult to find, and their strengths/limitations have been never evaluated. AIMS (I) to provide a review of current echocardiographic nomograms; (II) to generate a tool for easy and fast access to these data. A literature search was conducted accessing the National Library of Medicine using the keywords: 2D/3D echocardiography, strain, left/right ventricle, atrial, mitral/tricuspid valve, aorta, reference values/nomograms/normal values. Adding the following keywords, the results were further refined: range/intervals, myocardial velocity, strain rate and speckle tracking. Forty one published studies were included. Our study reveals that for several of 2D/3D parameters sufficient normative data exist, however, a few limitations still persist. For some basic parameters (i.e., mitral/tricuspid/pulmonary valves, great vessels) and for 3D valves data are scarce. There is a lack of studies evaluating ethnic differences. Data have been generally expressed as mean values normalised for gender and age instead of computing models incorporating different variables (age/gender/body sizes) to calculate z scores. To summarize results a software (Echocardio-Normal Values) who automatically calculate range of normality for a broad range of echocardiographic measurements according to age/gender/weight/height, has been generated. We provide an up-to-date and critical review of strengths/limitation of current adult echocardiographic nomograms. Furthermore we generated a software for automatic, easy and fast access to multiple echocardiographic normative data.
Sound, complete, and tractable linearizability monitoring for concurrent collections

While many program properties like the validity of assertions and in-bounds array accesses admit nearly-trivial monitoring algorithms, the standard correctness criterion for concurrent data structures does not. Given an implementation of an arbitrary abstract data type, checking whether the operations invoked in one single concurrent execution are linearizable, i.e., indistinguishable from an execution where the same operations are invoked atomically, requires exponential time in the number of operations. In this work we identify a class of collection abstract data types which admit polynomial-time linearizability monitors. Collections capture the majority of concurrent data structures available in practice, including stacks, queues, sets, and maps. Although monitoring executions of arbitrary abstract data types requires enumerating exponentially-many possible linearizations, collections enjoy combinatorial properties which avoid the enumeration. We leverage these properties to reduce linearizability to Horn satisfiability. As far as we know, ours is the first sound, complete, and tractable algorithm for monitoring linearizability for types beyond single-value registers.
PGC-1β promotes enterocyte lifespan and tumorigenesis in the intestine

Significance The mucosa of the small intestine is renewed completely every 3–5 d during the entire lifetime through the continuous steps of proliferation, migration, and differentiation of the cells of the mucosa from the crypt site on the bottom to the villus site on the top of the mucosa. The factors that regulate enterocyte lifespan and aging are of special interest as related to colon cancer susceptibility. Here, using genetically modified gain- and loss-of-function models, we present the importance of the mitochondrial respiration chain and reactive oxygen species homeostasis in the gut and identify the protein peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ coactivator-1β as a gene-expression modulator of enterocyte lifespan in both normal and tumoral conditions. The mucosa of the small intestine is renewed completely every 3–5 d throughout the entire lifetime by small populations of adult stem cells that are believed to reside in the bottom of the crypts and to migrate and differentiate into all the different populations of intestinal cells. When the cells reach the apex of the villi and are fully differentiated, they undergo cell death and are shed into the lumen. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) production is proportional to the electron transfer activity of the mitochondrial respiration chain. ROS homeostasis is maintained to control cell death and is finely tuned by an inducible antioxidant program. Here we show that peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ coactivator-1β (PGC-1β) is highly expressed in the intestinal epithelium and possesses dual activity, stimulating mitochondrial biogenesis and oxygen consumption while inducing antioxidant enzymes. To study the role of PGC-1β gain and loss of function in the gut, we generated both intestinal-specific PGC-1β transgenic and PGC-1β knockout mice. Mice overexpressing PGC-1β present a peculiar intestinal morphology with very long villi resulting from increased enterocyte lifespan and also demonstrate greater tumor susceptibility, with increased tumor number and size when exposed to carcinogens. PGC-1β knockout mice are protected from carcinogenesis. We show that PGC-1β triggers mitochondrial respiration while protecting enterocytes from ROS-driven macromolecule damage and consequent apoptosis in both normal and dysplastic mucosa. Therefore, PGC-1β in the gut acts as an adaptive self-point regulator, capable of providing a balance between enhanced mitochondrial activity and protection from increased ROS production.
The Political Arrangement of Pay-as-You-Go Pension Systems in the Presence of Financial and Demographic Shocks

We analyze the outcome of voting over the contribution to a pay-as-you-go (PAYG) pension system in the presence of financial and demographic shocks. The impact of shocks on pension contributions and benefits replicates major developments of pension systems around the world. A decrease in the return on capital increases contributions and benefits, while a decrease in the population growth rate increases contributions but it lowers benefits. The first and second moments of the demographic shock matter: in the case of a lower mean or a higher variance, a smaller average contribution results from the vote. In contrast to this, the Ramsey planner sets a higher average contribution when the population growth rate has a lower mean or a higher variance.
Intermittent Hypoxic Training Protects Canine Myocardium from Infarction

This investigation examined cardiac protective effects of normobaric intermittent hypoxia training. Six dogs underwent intermittent hypoxic training for 20 consecutive days in a normobaric chamber ventilated intermittently with N2 to reduce fraction of inspired oxygen (Fio2) to 9.5%–10%. Hypoxic periods, initially 5 mins and increasing to 10 mins, were followed by 4-min normoxic periods. This hypoxia-normoxia protocol was repeated, initially 5 times and increasing to 8 times. The dogs showed no discomfort during intermittent hypoxic training. After 20 days of hypoxic training, the resistance of ventricular myocardium to infarction was assessed in an acute experiment. The left anterior descending (LAD) coronary artery was occluded for 60 mins and then reperfused for 5 hrs. At 30 mins of LAD occlusion, radioactive microspheres were injected through a left atrial catheter to assess coronary collateral blood flow into the ischemic region. After 5 hrs reperfusion, the heart was dyed to delineate the area at risk (AAR) of infarction and stained with triphenyl tetrazolium chloride to identify infarcted myocardium. During LAD occlusion and reperfusion, systemic hemodynamics and global left ventricular function were stable. Infarction was not detected in 4 hearts and was 1.6% of AAR in the other 2 hearts. In contrast, 6 dogs sham-trained in a chamber ventilated with compressed air and 5 untrained dogs subjected to the same LAD occlusion/reperfusion protocol had infarcts of 36.8% ± 5.8% and 35.2% ± 9.5% of the AAR, respectively. The reduction in infarct size of four of the six hypoxia-trained dogs could not be explained by enhanced collateral blood flow to the AAR. Hypoxia-trained dogs had no ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation. Three sham-trained dogs had ventricular tachycardia and two had ventricular fibrillation. Three untrained dogs had ventricular fibrillation. In conclusion, intermittent hypoxic training protects canine myocardium from infarction and life-threatening arrhythmias during coronary artery occlusion and reperfusion. The mechanism responsible for this potent cardioprotection merits further study.
A small deletion distant from a splice or polyadenylation site dramatically alters pre-mRNA processing in region E3 of adenovirus

The E3 complex transcription unit of adenovirus encodes overlapping mRNAs (a to i) with different exon structures. The major mRNAs are a (approximately 40% of the total) and c (approximately 15%), which are spliced once, and f (approximately 15%) and h (approximately 25%), which are spliced twice. mRNA a uses the upstream E3A polyadenylation site, and the other mRNAs use the downstream E3B polyadenylation site. We analyzed virus deletion mutants to identify sequences important in alternative pre-mRNA processing in region E3. Our main finding is that a 64-base-pair deletion in dl742 causes mainly mRNAs f and h to be formed. mRNAs a and c are barely made. dl742 does not delete either a splice site or a polyadenylation site. Thus, the sequences deleted must function in alternative pre-mRNA processing independently of the signals at the actual splice and polyadenylation sites. The lack of synthesis of mRNA a by dl742 does not appear to result from a defect in the E3A polyadenylation signal but rather from an increase in splicing activity which results in the synthesis of doubly spliced mRNAs f and h at the expense of singly spliced mRNAs a and c. This suggests, in the wild-type situation, that the frequency of use of the E3A versus the E3B polyadenylation site may be determined by the rate of splicing, as well as, presumably, the rate of cleavage-polyadenylation at the E3A site.
Enhanced preattentive central nervous system reactivity in irritable bowel syndrome

OBJECTIVE:Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a common functional disorder characterized by enhanced perceptual sensitivity and hypervigilance toward afferent signals from the viscera. We hypothesize that the increased responsiveness of IBS patients is a generalized phenomenon applying to stimuli other than visceral and attempt to demonstrate increased responsiveness to sounds as measured by the P1 scalp potential.METHODS:Event-related potentials were recorded from IBS patients and control subjects in an auditory task requiring detection of rare pitch targets in a designated ear. Visual words served as targets in an additional block.RESULTS:Compared to control subjects, IBS patients displayed a robust increase in the amplitude of the P1 scalp potential elicited by both attended and unattended sounds.RESULTS:Enhanced P1 indicates preattentive central nervous system dishabituation in response to repeated sounds. A generalized preattentive increase in central nervous system reactivity may be a feature that IBS shares with several anxiety disorders that frequently co-occur in these patients.
ZVS Resonant Converter With Series-Connected Transformers

This paper presents a new series-resonant converter with series-connected transformers in order to realize zero voltage switching (ZVS) for power switches, zero current switching (ZCS) for rectifier diodes at full load, less transformer secondary winding with a full-wave rectifier, and load current sharing. Two series-resonant converters using the same switches are operated with interleaved half switching cycle. The secondary windings of transformers are connected in series in order to ensure that the primary side currents are balanced to share load current. Thus, the sizes of the transformer core and bobbin are reduced. The full-wave diode rectifier is adopted on the output side such that the voltage stress of the rectifier diodes is equal to the output voltage, rather than being two times the output voltage as in a conventional center-tapped rectifier topology. Based on the resonant behavior, all switches are turned on at ZVS, and rectifier diodes are turned off at ZCS if the switching frequency is less than the series resonant frequency. The proposed converter can be applied for the power supply unit of all-in-one PCs, liquid crystal display (LCD) TVs and servers, and dc-dc converters for fuel-cell power system. Laboratory experiments with a 1000-W prototype, verifying the effectiveness of the proposed converter, are described.
Design and Performance Evaluation of a 10-kW Interleaved Boost Converter for a Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle

A step-up converter is described to interface the low, poorly regulated fuel cell output voltage (70-120 V) with the higher voltage supercapacitor bank and traction drive system on a small fuel cell powered electric vehicle. The paper focuses on the design of an interleaved boost converter, in particular comparing a two inductor circuit with an alternative topology comprising a single inductor plus interphase transformer (IPT). Whilst the two circuits have identical inductive stored energies, the lower AC excitation of the inductor in the IPT topology offers performance benefits
Expression of cysteine protease genes in pea nodule development and senescence.

Coding sequences for two cysteine proteases were amplified from cDNA derived from pea nodule mRNA using primers based on conserved regions of plant cysteine proteases. One of the amplified cDNA sequences corresponded to a previously described cysteine protease gene, Cyp15a, expressed in pea shoots in response to dehydration (J.T. Jones and J.E. Mullet, Plant Mol. Biol. 28:1055-1065, 1995). Inside the pea root nodule, in situ hybridization revealed that this gene is expressed strongly in the apical region and more weakly in the uninfected cortex and in the central infected tissue where nitrogen fixation takes place. The complete sequence of the cDNA corresponding to the other gene, PsCyp1, was obtained. Expression of this gene, which was studied both on RNA blots and in situ, showed good correlation with the onset of nodule senescence. In situ hybridization studies revealed that PsCyp1 was expressed in senescent infected tissue at the base of the nodule. This signal was just detectable in normal symbiotically wild-type nodules but was much stronger in the early senescing nodules formed by a symbiotically defective mutant of Rhizobium leguminosarum.
Anticoagulation Therapy during Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenator Support in Pediatric Patients

Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is a salvage therapy for critically ill patients. Although ECMO is becoming more common, hemorrhagic and thromboembolic complications remain the major causes of death in patients undergoing ECMO treatments. These complications commence upon blood contact with artificial surfaces of the circuit, blood pump, and oxygenator system. Therefore, anticoagulation therapy is required in most cases to prevent these problems. Anticoagulation is more complicated in pediatric patients than in adults, and the foreign surface of ECMO only increases the complexity of systemic anticoagulation. In this review, we discuss the pathophysiology of coagulation, anticoagulants, and monitoring tools in pediatric patients receiving ECMO.
Something in the Air: HRM Legitimation Strategies in a global airline

Research on organisational legitimation strategies has shown that organisational actors employ agent-centred strategies such as impression management and justification, and also draw on institutional features such as normative and cognitive structures in order to attain and maintain legitimacy. An important question remains; What happens when the nature and balance of underlying structural schema and resources change? What is the interplay between emergent organisational logics of action, enacted organisational contexts and legitimacy? These questions are examined with reference to the Corporate HR function of a large global airline. The HRM function in organisations can be seen as a microcosm of broader structural tensions between economic and social logics of action. In contemporary global organisations, HR professionals often see themselves as the organisation’s ‘corporate conscience’. The degree to which they can function in this role, and bring employee considerations to the fore, depends on their legitimacy within an organisation. If their strategies are not seen as legitimate components of ‘business’, the scope for agency on the part of HR professionals is limited. In this longitudinal study, ethnographic methods were used to examine the processes through which a corporate HR sub-unit sought to legitimate one of their key strategies, during a year of significant contextual change.
Use of remote sensing and geographic information systems in the determination of high-risk areas regarding marine traffic in the Istanbul Strait

Istanbul Strait, Bosphorus, is one of the important waterways of the world due to its combination of natural beauty, human resources, and the high number of oil-carrying tankers passing through it. A considerable increase in the number of vessels over the past decade has indicated the high potential for oil spillage and fire hazards. This study aims to determine the coastal areas that are under an oil spill/fire/explosion risk in the Istanbul Strait by using geoinformatics. Remote sensing technology, providing relatively quick and low-cost analysis of large areas, is used for classifying the shoreline and land-use activities in the fore-scene and back-scene zones followed by assigning risk scores to various GIS data layers and suitability evaluation based on the weight of each score. The risk components are prioritized and layers are allocated according to their risk scores. Major components that classify risk-posing areas are accident likelihood, number of historical assets, human-use resources, population, and lack of critical facilities. Segment-wise risk levels that resulted in comparatively higher scores indicate the vulnerable areas along the Strait to draw the attention of the society and the decision-makers who are responsible for the policy implications. The study acts as a guideline for developing coastal management strategies and implementing corresponding human policies.
Chemotherapy with or without irinotecan in patients with advanced or recurrent gastric cancer: a meta‐analysis of randomized controlled trials

Background Studies have shown that irinotecan can improve survival in patients with advanced or recurrent gastric cancer, but the overall benefit of irinotecan in the treatment of advanced or recurrent gastric cancer remains controversial. The aim of this study was to evaluate the benefits and risks of irinotecan for survival in patients with advanced or recurrent gastric cancer. Method We searched PubMed, EmBase, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, reference lists of articles, and proceedings of major conferences for relevant clinical trials. We included randomized controlled trials that reported on the efficacy and safety of irinotecan in patients with advanced or recurrent gastric cancer. Outcomes were analyzed by survival rate, objective response rate (ORR), and toxicity. Furthermore, the analysis was further stratified by factors that could affect the treatment effects. Results Eight trials recruiting 1 546 patients with advanced or recurrent gastric cancer were included in the analysis. Overall, irinotecan therapy was associated with a 6% improvement in survival rate, but this difference was not statistically significant (odds ratio (OR) 0.94; 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 0.70‐1.27; P=0.69). However, irinotecan therapy had more frequent ORR than irinotecan‐free arm (OR 1.70; 95% CI 1.34‐2.17; P<0.001). Furthermore, irinotecan therapy was associated with a clinically and statistically significant increase in the risk for declined hemoglobin, hyponatremia, and diarrhea, but it also protected against thrombocytopenia risk when compared with irinotecan‐free therapy. Conclusions There is no evidence to support the use of irinotecan therapy in patients with advanced or recurrent gastric cancer; however, given the significant advantage in ORR irinotecan therapy using combination regimens may be considered for further evaluation in subsets of patients who may benefit from this treatment.
Power control for a spread spectrum system with multi-user receivers

The power control problem has received a lot of attention in CDMA systems employing single-user receivers because of the 'near-far ' effect under certain conditions. Multi-user receivers suffer less from this problem, but adaptive power control is still necessary for the following reasons: (i) to compensate for the motion of the mobile, (ii) the actual amount of power needed to achieve the required performance is also a function of the code correlations, (iii) it is necessary to conserve the battery power and (iv) if we assume that multiuser detection is employed only for users with known codes with the other interfering users being treated as noise, the amount of interference caused by these users is in terms of their powers, just as with single-user receivers. This case could occur, for example, if multi-user detection were used in the uplink for the users in the given cell with the interference from adjacent cells treated as stationary noise. In this paper, we consider Multi-user receivers based on the Minimum Mean Squared Error (MMSE) approach for a synchronous CDMA system where external cell interference is treated as stationary noise. We consider the convergence of the algorithm and show sufficient conditions for convergence to a unique optimal power vector that minimizes the total transmitted power.
Angiotensin II infusion increases plasma erythropoietin levels via an angiotensin II type 1 receptor-dependent pathway.

BACKGROUND Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) have been shown to lower hematocrit and erythropoietin (EPO), but a direct link between angiotensin II (Ang II) and EPO in humans has not been shown. METHODS Placebo or Ang II was infused for six hours in nine healthy male volunteers with and without blockade of the Ang II subtype 1 receptor (AT1R). EPO concentrations were measured 3, 6, 12, and 24 hours after the start of the infusion. RESULTS Ang II raised the mean arterial pressure by about 20 mm Hg. Consistent with the known diurnal variation, EPO levels rose significantly (P < or = 0.02) during the day in all groups. During Ang II infusion, EPO levels rose to significantly higher levels after 6 and 12 hours compared with placebo [9.9 +/- 3.5 vs. 7.2 +/- 3.1 mU/mL (3 h, P = NS); 16.9 +/- 4.5 vs. 8.8 +/- 3.7 mU/mL (6 h, P = 0.01); 17.0 +/- 8.6 vs. 11.1 +/- 4.7 mU/mL (12 h, P = 0.01)] and returned to baseline after 24 hours (7.9 +/- 3.8 vs. 10.6 +/- 8.6 mU/mL, P = NS). With AT1R blockade, blood pressure remained normal during Ang II infusion, and EPO levels were never significantly different from placebo [6.8 +/- 4.8, 10.5 +/- 5.6, 13.1 +/- 9.0, and 12.4 +/- 10.1 mU/mL at 3, 6, 12, and 24 h after infusion, respectively, P = NS]. CONCLUSIONS Ang II increases EPO levels in humans. This increase requires the participation of AT1R.