Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Simultaneous detection of high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I and myoglobin by modified sandwich lateral flow immunoassay: proof of principle.

BACKGROUND Although numerous lateral flow immunoassays (LFIAs) have been developed and widely used, inadequate analytical sensitivity and the lack of multiple protein detection applications have limited their clinical utility. We developed a new LFIA device for the simultaneous detection of high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I (hs-cTnI) and myoglobin (Myo). METHODS We used a gold nanoparticle (AuNP) doubly labeled complex, in which biotinylated single-stranded DNA was used as a linkage to integrate 2 AuNPs and streptavidin-labeled AuNP, as an amplifier to magnify extremely low signals. RESULTS The detection limit of 1 ng/L achieved for hs-cTnI was 1000 times lower than that obtained in a conventional LFIA. The detection limit for simultaneously measured Myo was 1 μg/L. The linear measurement ranges for hs-cTnI and Myo were 1-10 000 ng/L and 1-10 000 μg/L, respectively. We observed concordant results between the LFIA and clinical assays in sera from 12 patients with acute myocardial infarction (hs-cTnI r = 0.96; Myo r = 0.98). Assay imprecision was <11% for both hs-TnI and myo. CONCLUSIONS The described proof-of-principle LFIA method could be used as a point-of-care device in multiple protein quantification and semiquantitative analysis.
Aprotinin May Increase Mortality in Low and Intermediate Risk but Not in High Risk Cardiac Surgical Patients Compared to Tranexamic Acid and ε-Aminocaproic Acid – A Meta-Analysis of Randomised and Observational Trials of over 30.000 Patients

Background To compare the effect of aprotinin with the effect of lysine analogues (tranexamic acid and ε-aminocaproic acid) on early mortality in three subgroups of patients: low, intermediate and high risk of cardiac surgery. Methods and Findings We performed a meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials and observational with the following data sources: Medline, Cochrane Library, and reference lists of identified articles. The primary outcome measure was early (in-hospital/30-day) mortality. The secondary outcome measures were any transfusion of packed red blood cells within 24 hours after surgery, any re-operation for bleeding or massive bleeding, and acute renal dysfunction or failure within the selected cited publications, respectively. Out of 328 search results, 31 studies (15 trials and 16 observational studies) included 33,501 patients. Early mortality was significantly increased after aprotinin vs. lysine analogues with a pooled risk ratio (95% CI) of 1.58 (1.13–2.21), p<0.001 in the low (n = 14,297) and in the intermediate risk subgroup (1.42 (1.09–1.84), p<0.001; n = 14,427), respectively. Contrarily, in the subgroup of high risk patients (n = 4,777), the risk for mortality did not differ significantly between aprotinin and lysine analogues (1.03 (0.67–1.58), p = 0.90). Conclusion Aprotinin may be associated with an increased risk of mortality in low and intermediate risk cardiac surgery, but presumably may has no effect on early mortality in a subgroup of high risk cardiac surgery compared to lysine analogues. Thus, decisions to re-license aprotinin in lower risk patients should critically be debated. In contrast, aprotinin might probably be beneficial in high risk cardiac surgery as it reduces risk of transfusion and bleeding complications.
Disabilities and quality of life in pure and comorbid generalized anxiety disorder and major depression in a national survey

&NA; Using a nationally representative sample, this study examines the disease‐specific impairments of DSM‐IV generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) by comparing them to the impairments associated with major depressive disorder (MDD). Results are based on 4181 respondents between the ages of 18‐65 years who were interviewed with the 12‐month version of the Munich‐Composite International Diagnostic Interview as part of the German National Health Interview and Examination Survey—Mental Health Supplement (GHS). After controlling for age, gender, and other psychopathology, ‘pure’ current GAD without MDD (n = 33), pure MDD (n = 344) and comorbid GAD and MDD (n = 40) were each associated with high impairment as defined by poor self‐perceived health, at least 3 days limited or impaired in the past month, and low quality of life scores [from the Short Form‐36 Health Survey (SF‐36)]. Quality of life scores on several of the SF‐36 scales were significantly lower for respondents with pure GAD as compared to respondents with pure MDD. Overall, the results show that DSM‐IV GAD is associated with high impairment even after controlling for other psychopathology. The impairment outcomes for GAD were comparable in size to those for MDD. These findings underline the significance of this disorder from a clinical and social perspective and provide support for the independent diagnostic status of GAD. Int Clin Psychopharmacol 15:319‐328 © 2000 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
Effects of global interconnect optimizations on performance estimation of deep submicron design

In this paper, we quantify the impact of global interconnect optimization techniques that address such design objectives as delay, peak noise, delay uncertainty due to noise, power, and cost. In doing so, we develop a new system-performance simulation model as a set of studies within the MARCO GSRC Technology Extrapolation (GTX) system. We model a typical point-to-point global interconnect and focus on accurate assessment of both circuit and design technology with respect to such issues as inductance, signal line shielding, dynamic delay, buffer placement uncertainty and repeater staggering. We demonstrate, for example, that optimal wire sizing models need to consider inductive effects-and that use of more accurate (-1,3) worst-case capacitive coupling noise switch factors substantially increases peak noise estimates compared to traditional (0,2) bounds. We also find that optimal repeater sizes are significantly smaller than conventional models would suggest, especially when considering energy-delay issues.
Tri-band microstrip BPF design using tri-section SIRs

In this paper, a new second-order tri-band BPF is proposed and designed using open-stub-embedded TSSIRs. The three operating bands are chosen to be commercially practical, with their center frequencies being 1.57 GHz (GPS LI), 2.45 GHz (ISM), and 3.5 GHz (WiMAX), respectively. The 0deg feed and the embedded open stubs are implemented in the designed tri-band BPF to produce transmission zeros at appropriate frequencies for improving passband selectivity and stopband rejection. In addition, the TSSIRs are bent into rectangular shape to reduce the circuit size; their end sections are designed in an anti-parallel fashion to produce an extra zero. The proposed tri-band BPF will first be simulated by using HFSS (a full-wave electromagnetic simulator) and then verified by measured data. The filter design and the obtained results are presented.
Personalization of social media

This article describes a framework that captures collaborative tagging systems, and derives from it an overview of user tasks that qualify for personalization in such a system. Major research areas have focused on some of these tasks, but we identify many more opportunities. We propose a collaborative model that combines collaborative filtering and information retrieval techniques in order to assists the user to achieve these tasks. Based only on the user's tags, this personalization model assumes that a user's tags identify this user's taste. Because many users do not only tag the content that matches their taste, we propose an evaluating experiment that shows if rating information can be used to adjust the users' taste profiles. This experiment is one of the steps to advance to a completely personalized model, integrating user preference, content annotations and people relations.
SenseShapes: using statistical geometry for object selection in a multimodal augmented reality

We introduce a set of statistical geometric tools designed to identify the objects being manipulated through speech and gesture in a multimodal augmented reality system. SenseShapes are volumetric regions of interest that can be attached to parts of the user's body to provide valuable information about the user's interaction with objects. To assist in object selection, we generate a rich set of statistical data and dynamically choose which data to consider based on the current situation.
A new method based on RBFNN in SOC estimation of HEV battery

In order to mend the prediction of battery's SOC in hybrid electric vehicles, by analyzing varying rule of electromotive force, residual capacity and equivalent inner resistance of battery during discharge, it has been put forward that neural network model should take time based characteristics into consideration. So the model could reflect the dynamic characteristics of battery more exactly. The battery model based on Radial Basis Function Neural Network is set up and trained with the curve altering with time. The pertinent experiments show that improved ability of the established model to estimate SOC of battery has been achieved.
An optimal adaptive transmitting and waiting durations based on detected energy values in cognitive radio networks

In cognitive radio networks, to take advantage of idle spectrum of a primary user opportunistically, a cognitive radio user should detect the licensed channel frame-by-frame. In this paper, the cognitive radio user performs spectrum sensing firstly in each frame. If the primary user is found to be absent/ present, the cognitive radio user will transmit/wait for a while accordingly. We optimize a different transmitting/waiting duration when a detected energy value is within a different interval. Then an adaptive transmitting/waiting duration varying with the detected energy value is formulated. Numerical results show that our scheme has a better performance compared with the conventional scheme.
Towards Improved Data Dissemination of Publish-Subscribe Systems

With the proliferation of internet technologies, publish/subscribe systems have gained wide usage as a middleware. However for this model, catering large number of publishers and subscribers while retaining acceptable performance is still a challenge. Therefore, this paper presents two parallelization strategies to improve message delivery of such systems. Furthermore, we discuss other techniques which can be adopted to increase the performance of the middleware. Finally, we conclude with an empirical study, which establishes the comparative merit of those two parallelization strategies in contrast to serial implementations.
The effect of temperature on swimming performance and oxygen consumption in adult sockeye (Oncorhynchus nerka) and coho (O. kisutch) salmon stocks

SUMMARY Our knowledge of the swimming capabilities and metabolic rates of adult salmon, and particularly the influence of temperature on them, is extremely limited, and yet this information is critical to understanding the remarkable upstream migrations that these fish can make. To remedy this situation, we examined the effects of temperature on swimming performance and metabolic rates of 107 adult fish taken from three stocks of sockeye salmon Oncorhynchus nerka and one stock of coho salmon O. kisutch at various field and laboratory locations, using large, portable, swim tunnels. The salmon stocks were selected because of differences in their ambient water temperature (ranging from 5°C to 20°C) and the total distance of their in-river migrations (ranging from ∼100 km for coastal stocks to ∼1100 km for interior stocks). As anticipated, differences in routine metabolic rate observed among salmon stocks were largely explained by an exponential dependence on ambient water temperature. However, the relationship between water temperature and maximum oxygen consumption (ṀO2max), i.e. the ṀO2 measured at the critical swimming speed (Ucrit), revealed temperature optima for ṀO2max that were stock-specific. These temperature optima were very similar to the average ambient water temperatures for the natal stream of a given stock. Furthermore, at a comparable water temperature, the salmon stocks that experienced a long and energetically costly in-river migration were characterized by a higher ṀO2max, a higher scope for activity, a higher Ucrit and, in some cases, a higher cost of transport, relative to the coastal salmon stocks that experience a short in-river migration. We conclude that high-caliber respirometry can be performed in a field setting and that stock-specific differences in swimming performance of adult salmon may be important for understanding upstream migration energetics and abilities.
A pilot study on the optimal speeds for passive wrist movements by a rehabilitation robot of stroke patients: A functional NIRS study

The optimal conditions inducing proper brain activation during performance of rehabilitation robots should be examined to enhance the efficiency of robot rehabilitation based on the concept of brain plasticity. In this study, we attempted to investigate differences in cortical activation according to the speeds of passive wrist movements performed by a rehabilitation robot for stroke patients. 9 stroke patients with right hemiparesis participated in this study. Passive movements of the affected wrist were performed by the rehabilitation robot at three different speeds: 0.25 Hz; slow, 0.5Hz; moderate and 0.75 Hz; fast. We used functional near-infrared spectroscopy to measure the brain activity during the passive movements performed by a robot. Group-average activation map and the relative changes in oxy-hemoglobin (ΔOxyHb) in two regions of interest: the primary sensory-motor cortex (SM1); premotor area (PMA) and region of all channels were measured. In the result of group-averaged activation map, the contralateral SM1, PMA and somatosensory association cortex (SAC) showed the greatest significant activation according to the movements at 0.75 Hz, while there is no significantly activated area at 0.5 Hz. Regarding ΔOxyHb, no significant diiference was observed among three speeds regardless of region. In conclusion, the contralateral SM1, PMA and SAC showed the greatest activation by a fast speed (0.75 Hz) rather than slow (0.25 Hz) and moderate (0. 5 Hz) speed. Our results suggest an optimal speed for execution of the wrist rehabilitation robot. Therefore, we believe that our findings might point to several promising applications for future research regarding useful and empirically-based robot rehabilitation therapy.
15-Prostaglandin Dehydrogenase Expression Alone or in Combination with ACSM1 Defines a Subgroup of the Apocrine Molecular Subtype of Breast Carcinoma*S

Established histopathological criteria divide invasive breast carcinomas into defined groups. Ductal of no specific type and lobular are the two major subtypes accounting for around 75 and 15% of all cases, respectively. The remaining 10% include rarer types such as tubular, cribriform, mucinous, papillary, medullary, metaplastic, and apocrine breast carcinomas. Molecular profiling technologies, on the other hand, subdivide breast tumors into five subtypes, basal-like, luminal A, luminal B, normal breast tissue-like, and ERBB2-positive, that have different prognostic characteristics. An additional subclass termed “molecular apocrine” has recently been described, but these lesions did not exhibit all the histopathological features of classical invasive apocrine carcinomas (IACs). IACs make up 0.5–3% of the invasive ductal carcinomas, and despite the fact that they are morphologically distinct from other breast lesions, there are presently no standard molecular criteria available for their diagnosis and as a result no precise information as to their prognosis. Toward this goal our laboratories have embarked in a systematic proteomics endeavor aimed at identifying biomarkers that may characterize and subtype these lesions as well as targets that may lead to the development of novel targeted therapies and chemoprevention strategies. By comparing the protein expression profiles of apocrine macrocysts and non-malignant breast epithelial tissue we have previously reported the identification of a few proteins that are specifically expressed by benign apocrine lesions as well as by the few IACs that were available to us at the time. Here we reiterate our strategy to reveal apocrine cell markers and present novel data, based on the analysis of a considerably larger number of samples, establishing that IACs correspond to a distinct molecular subtype of breast carcinomas characterized by the expression of 15-prostaglandin dehydrogenase alone or in combination with a novel form of acyl-CoA synthetase medium-chain family member 1 (ACSM1). Moreover we show that 15-prostaglandin dehydrogenase is not expressed by other breast cancer types as determined by gel-based proteomics and immunohistochemistry analysis and that antibodies against this protein can identify IACs in an unbiased manner in a large breast cancer tissue microarray making them potentially useful as a diagnostic aid.
Mutagenesis-Induced, Large Fitness Variations with an Invariant Arenavirus Consensus Genomic Nucleotide Sequence

ABSTRACT Enhanced mutagenesis may result in RNA virus extinction, but the molecular events underlying this process are not well understood. Here we show that 5-fluorouracil (FU)-induced mutagenesis of the arenavirus lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV) resulted in preextinction populations whose consensus genomic nucleotide sequence remained unaltered. Furthermore, fitness recovery passages in the absence of FU, or alternate virus passages in the presence and absence of FU, led to profound differences in the capacity of LCMV to produce progeny, without modification of the consensus genomic sequence. Molecular genetic analysis failed to produce evidence of hypermutated LCMV genomes. The results suggest that low-level mutagenesis to enrich the viral population with defector, interfering genomes harboring limited numbers of mutations may mediate the loss of infectivity that accompanies viral extinction.
PRICE COMPETITION UNDER LIMITED COMPARABILITY 99 framing decisions ?

This article studies market competition when firms can influence consumers’ ability to compare market alternatives through their choice of price “formats. ” In our model, the ability of a consumer to make a comparison depends on the firms’ format choices. Our main results concern the interaction between firms’ equilibrium price and format decisions and its implications for industry profits and consumer switching rates. In particular, market forces drive down the firms’ profits to a “constrained competitive” benchmark if and only if the comparability structure satisfies a property that we interpret as a form of “frame neutrality. ” The same property is necessary for equilibrium behavior to display statistical independence between price and format decisions. We also show that narrow regulatory interventions that aim to facilitate comparisons may have an anticompetitive effect. JEL Codes: C79, D03, D43.
Wild-Type Human TDP-43 Expression Causes TDP-43 Phosphorylation, Mitochondrial Aggregation, Motor Deficits, and Early Mortality in Transgenic Mice

Transactivation response DNA-binding protein 43 (TDP-43) is a principal component of ubiquitinated inclusions in frontotemporal lobar degeneration with ubiquitin-positive inclusions and in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Mutations in TARDBP, the gene encoding TDP-43, are associated with sporadic and familial ALS, yet multiple neurodegenerative diseases exhibit TDP-43 pathology without known TARDBP mutations. While TDP-43 has been ascribed a number of roles in normal biology, including mRNA splicing and transcription regulation, elucidating disease mechanisms associated with this protein is hindered by the lack of models to dissect such functions. We have generated transgenic (TDP-43PrP) mice expressing full-length human TDP-43 (hTDP-43) driven by the mouse prion promoter to provide a tool to analyze the role of wild-type hTDP-43 in the brain and spinal cord. Expression of hTDP-43 caused a dose-dependent downregulation of mouse TDP-43 RNA and protein. Moderate overexpression of hTDP-43 resulted in TDP-43 truncation, increased cytoplasmic and nuclear ubiquitin levels, and intranuclear and cytoplasmic aggregates that were immunopositive for phosphorylated TDP-43. Of note, abnormal juxtanuclear aggregates of mitochondria were observed, accompanied by enhanced levels of Fis1 and phosphorylated DLP1, key components of the mitochondrial fission machinery. Conversely, a marked reduction in mitofusin 1 expression, which plays an essential role in mitochondrial fusion, was observed in TDP-43PrP mice. Finally, TDP-43PrP mice showed reactive gliosis, axonal and myelin degeneration, gait abnormalities, and early lethality. This TDP-43 transgenic line provides a valuable tool for identifying potential roles of wild-type TDP-43 within the CNS and for studying TDP-43-associated neurotoxicity.
Pilot study of topotecan and high-dose cyclophosphamide for resistant pediatric solid tumors.

BACKGROUND The recommended dosages of topotecan and cyclophosphamide in combination for prior-treated patients-3.75 mg/m(2) and 1,250 mg/m(2) in children, 5 mg/m(2) and 600 mg/m(2) in adults, respectively-are well below those of each agent when used singly. We tested the hypothesis that much higher dosing would meet critical goals of salvage therapy: antitumor effect and a lack of toxicity to key organs, so as not to preclude subsequent consolidative treatments needed for cure. PROCEDURE Patients with resistant pediatric solid tumors received cyclophosphamide 4,200 mg/m(2) by 48 hr infusion, and topotecan 6 mg/m(2) by 72 hr infusion (HD-Cy/Topo). Mesna and granulocyte colony-stimulating factor were used. Cycles were repeated when neutrophil counts were >1,000/uL and platelet counts were >75,000/uL. RESULTS Twenty-eight patients, aged 2 to 33 years (median, 14), received one (n = 4), two (n = 15), or > or =3 (n = 9) cycles of HD-Cy/Topo. All patients had previously received > or =6 cycles of other therapy, high-dose alkylator-based chemotherapy, and/or etoposide- and doxorubicin-containing regimens. HD-Cy/Topo was given in an outpatient setting. Profound myelosuppression was the major toxicity, but retreatment was possible by day 28, and preliminary results with peripheral blood stem cell collections showed a sparing effect on hemopoietic stem cells. Mucositis was uncommon. After HD-Cy/Topo, cardiac, renal, hepatic, and pulmonary function remained within the normal range. Partial or minor responses were noted in neuroblastoma, desmoplastic small round-cell tumor, Ewing sarcoma, rhabdomyosarcoma, and osteosarcoma. CONCLUSIONS Its antitumor potential and limited toxicity make HD-Cy/Topo an attractive choice for inclusion in aggressive salvage programs aimed at achieving cures of resistant tumors. It may also merit incorporation into frontline treatment protocols.
'Promoter trapping' in Caenorhabditis elegans.

A screen of gene expression patterns has been developed for the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Promoter-reporter gene fusions were constructed in vitro by ligating C. elegans genomic DNA fragments upstream of a lacZ gene. Patterns of beta-galactosidase expression were examined by histochemical staining of C. elegans lines transformed with the constructs. beta-galactosidase expression depended on translational fusion, so constructs were assayed in large pools to expedite detection of the low proportion that were active. Expression in a variety of cell types and temporal patterns was observed with different construct pools. The most striking expression patterns were obtained when the beta-galactosidase activity was localized to subcellular structures by the C. elegans portion of the fusion protein. The active constructs of three selected pools were identified subsequently by an efficient combinatorial procedure. The genomic locations of the DNA fragments from the active constructs were determined and appear to define previously uncharacterized genetic loci.