Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of Intrathecal Ketorolac on Human Experimental Pain

Background:Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs, the most commonly used analgesics, reduce pain not only by inhibiting cyclooxygenase at peripheral sites of inflammation but also by potentially inhibiting cyclooxygenase in the central nervous system, especially the spinal cord. Animal studies suggest that products of cyclooxygenase in the spinal cord do not alter pain responses to acute noxious stimuli but reduce pain and sensitization after peripheral inflammation. We used a spinal injection of small doses of the cyclooxygenase inhibitor ketorolac to survey the role of spinal cyclooxygenase in human experimental pain and hypersensitivity states. Methods:After regulatory agency approval and informed consent, we examined the effect of 2.0 mg intrathecal ketorolac in 41 healthy volunteers to acute noxious thermal stimuli in normal skin and to mechanical stimuli in skin sensitized by topical capsaicin or ultraviolet burn. We also examined the effect of intravenous ketorolac. Results:Intrathecal ketorolac reduced hypersensitivity when it was induced by a combination of ultraviolet burn plus intermittent heat and, according to one of the two analytical strategies, when it was induced by ultraviolet burn alone. Conclusions:These data suggest a more limited role for spinal cord cyclooxygenase in human pain states than predicted by studies in animals.
Altered paired associative stimulation‐induced plasticity in NMDAR encephalitis

To determine whether neurophysiological mechanisms indicating cortical excitability, long‐term potentiation (LTP)‐like plasticity, GABAergic and glutamatergic function are altered in patients with anti‐N‐methyl‐d‐aspartate receptor (NMDAR) encephalitis and whether they can be helpful as markers of diagnostic assessment, disease progression, and potentially therapy response.
Disparities in child abuse victimization in lesbian, bisexual, and heterosexual women in the Nurses' Health Study II.

BACKGROUND A growing body of research documents multiple health disparities by sexual orientation among women, yet little is known about the possible causes of these disparities. One underlying factor may be heightened risk for abuse victimization in childhood in lesbian and bisexual women. METHODS Using survey data from 63,028 women participating in the Nurses' Health Study II, we investigated sexual orientation group differences in emotional, physical, and sexual abuse in childhood and adolescence. Multivariable log-binomial and linear regression models were used to examine orientation group differences in prevalence and severity of abuse, with heterosexual as the referent and controlling for sociodemographics. RESULTS Results showed strong evidence of elevated frequency, severity, and persistence of abuse experienced by lesbian and bisexual women. Comparing physical abuse victimization occurring in both childhood and adolescence, lesbian (30%, prevalence ratio [PR] 1.61, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.40, 1.84) and bisexual (24%, PR 1.26, 95% CI 1.00, 1.60) women were more likely to report victimization than were heterosexual women (19%). Similarly, comparing sexual abuse victimization occurring in both age periods, lesbian (19%, PR 2.16, 95% CI 1.80, 2.60) and bisexual (20%, PR 2.29, 95% CI 1.76, 2.98) women were more likely to report victimization than were heterosexual women (9%). CONCLUSIONS This study documents prevalent and persistent abuse disproportionately experienced by lesbian and bisexual women.
Digitally controlled boost power-factor-correction converters operating in both continuous and discontinuous conduction mode

Whereas power-factor-correction (PFC) converters for low-power ranges (less than 250 W) are commonly designed for operation in the discontinuous conduction mode, converters for higher power levels are operated in the continuous conduction mode. Nevertheless, when these converters are operated at reduced power, discontinuous conduction mode will appear during parts of the line period, yielding input current distortion. This distortion can be eliminated by employing a dedicated control algorithm, consisting of sample correction and duty-ratio feedforward. The reduction of the harmonic distortion of the input current and the increase of the power factor are demonstrated by experiments on a 1-kW boost PFC converter.
Classification of EEG signal by WT-CNN model in emotion recognition system

With the continuous development of the computer, the brain computer interface system (BCI) has become an important part of computer research. Emotion recognition is an important task for computer to understand the human status in BCI. Affective computing (AC) aim to develop the model of emotions and advance the affective intelligence of computers. In this paper, we proposed a new method to better the classification of EEG signals in emotion recognition, in which, WT-CNN was used to extracting features and recognize two emotions (positive, negative) according to the output of wavelet transform on raw signal. The simulation shows that WT-CNN could obtain better results, and the best results could be reached to 88%.
Predictive accuracy of novel risk factors and markers: A simulation study of the sensitivity of different performance measures for the Cox proportional hazards regression model

Predicting outcomes that occur over time is important in clinical, population health, and health services research. We compared changes in different measures of performance when a novel risk factor or marker was added to an existing Cox proportional hazards regression model. We performed Monte Carlo simulations for common measures of performance: concordance indices (c, including various extensions to survival outcomes), Royston’s D index, R2-type measures, and Chambless’ adaptation of the integrated discrimination improvement to survival outcomes. We found that the increase in performance due to the inclusion of a risk factor tended to decrease as the performance of the reference model increased. Moreover, the increase in performance increased as the hazard ratio or the prevalence of a binary risk factor increased. Finally, for the concordance indices and R2-type measures, the absolute increase in predictive accuracy due to the inclusion of a risk factor was greater when the observed event rate was higher (low censoring). Amongst the different concordance indices, Chambless and Diao’s c-statistic exhibited the greatest increase in predictive accuracy when a novel risk factor was added to an existing model. Amongst the different R2-type measures, O’Quigley et al.’s modification of Nagelkerke’s R2 index and Kent and O’Quigley’s ρ w , a 2 displayed the greatest sensitivity to the addition of a novel risk factor or marker. These methods were then applied to a cohort of 8635 patients hospitalized with heart failure to examine the added benefit of a point-based scoring system for predicting mortality after initial adjustment with patient age alone.
Evaluation of the Airborne CASI/TASI Ts-VI Space Method for Estimating Near-Surface Soil Moisture

High spatial resolution airborne data with little sub-pixel heterogeneity were used to evaluate the suitability of the temperature/vegetation (Ts/VI) space method developed from satellite observations, and were explored to improve the performance of the Ts/VI space method for estimating soil moisture (SM). An evaluation of the airborne ΔTs/Fr space (incorporated with air temperature) revealed that normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) saturation and disturbed pixels were hindering the appropriate construction of the space. The non-disturbed ΔTs/Fr space, which was modified by adjusting the NDVI saturation and eliminating the disturbed pixels, was clearly correlated with the measured SM. The SM estimations of the non-disturbed ΔTs/Fr space using the evaporative fraction (EF) and temperature vegetation dryness index (TVDI) were validated by using the SM measured at a depth of 4 cm, which was determined according to the land surface types. The validation results show that the EF approach provides superior estimates with a lower RMSE (0.023 m3·m−3) value and a higher correlation coefficient (0.68) than the TVDI. The application of the airborne ΔTs/Fr space shows that the two modifications proposed in this study strengthen the link between the ΔTs/Fr space and SM, which is important for improving the precision of the remote sensing Ts/VI space method for monitoring SM.
Dopaminergic polymorphisms in Tourette syndrome: Association with the DAT gene (SLC6A3)

Tourette syndrome (TS) is a chronic neuropsychiatric disorder characterized by involuntary motor and phonic tics. The pattern of inheritance and associated genetic abnormality has yet to be fully characterized. A dopaminergic abnormality in this disorder is supported by response to specific therapies, nuclear imaging, and postmortem studies. In this protocol, dopaminergic polymorphisms were examined for associations with TS and attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Polymorphisms investigated included the dopamine transporter (DAT1 DdeI and DAT1 VNTR), dopamine receptor (D4 Upstream Repeat and D4 VNTR), dopamine converting enzyme (dopamine β‐hydroxylase), and the acid phosphatase locus 1 (ACP1) gene. DNA was obtained from 266 TS individuals ± ADHD and 236 controls that were ethnicity‐matched. A significant association, using a genotype‐based association analysis, was identified for the TS‐total and TS‐only versus control groups for the DAT1 DdeI polymorphism (AG vs. AA, P = 0.004 and P = 0.01, respectively). Population structure, estimated by the genotyping of 27 informative SNP markers, identified 3 subgroups. A statistical re‐evaluation of the DAT1 DdeI polymorphism following population stratification confirmed the association for the TS‐total and TS‐only groups, but the degree of significance was reduced (P = 0.017 and P = 0.016, respectively). This study has identified a significant association between the presence of TS and a DAT polymorphism. Since abnormalities of the dopamine transporter have been hypothesized in the pathophysiology of TS, it is possible that this could be a functional allele associated with clinical expression. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Stock Market Fragility for Macroprudential Policies in Eastern European Countries

The financial crisis of 2008 demonstrated the powerful relations that exist among financial institutions and the way in which these connections catalyse the shocks that flog the financial system. This interdependency was translated into a wave of academic attention towards the measurement and mitigation of systemic risk. The purpose of this paper is to propose a measure of the contribution of each country in our sample to the fragility of the entire Eastern European capital market. Our results indicate that this measure is strongly dependent on the perceptions of economic policies as measured by the European Commission through the Economic SentiMent indices.
Development and evaluation of a mixed gender, multi-talker matrix sentence test in Australian English

Abstract Objective: To develop, in Australian English, the first mixed-gender, multi-talker matrix sentence test. Design: Speech material consisted of a 50-word base matrix whose elements can be combined to form sentences of identical syntax but unpredictable content. Ten voices (five female and five male) were recorded for editing and preliminary level equalization. Elements were presented as single-talker sentences-in-noise during two perceptual tests: an optimization phase that provided the basis for further level correction, and an evaluation phase that perceptually validated those changes. Study sample: Ten listeners participated in the optimization phase; these and an additional 32 naïve listeners completed the evaluation test. All were fluent in English and all but one had lived in Australia for >2 years. Results: Optimization reduced the standard deviation (SD) and speech reception threshold (SRT) range across all speech material (grand mean SRT = −10.6 dB signal-to-noise ratio, median = −10.8, SD =1.4, range =13.7, slope =19.3%/dB), yielding data consistent with cross-validated matrix tests in other languages. Intelligibility differences between experienced and naïve listeners were minimal. Conclusions: The Australian matrix corpus provides a robust set of test materials suitable for both clinical assessment and research into the dynamics of active listening in multi-talker environments.
An exploration of the school nutrition programme's potential to catalyse community-based environmental learning : a case study of a rural Eastern Cape school

I ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . II DEDICATION . III FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.III TABLE OF CONTENTS . IV LIST OF FIGURES . IX LIST OF TABLES . XI LIST OF APPENDICES.XII LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS . XIII CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY.1 1.
A fast and hardware mimicking analytic CT simulator

Different algorithms have been utilized for x-ray computed tomography (CT) simulation based on Monte Carlo technique, analytic calculation, or combination of them. Software packages based on Monte Carlo algorithm provide sophisticated calculations but the time consuming nature of them limits its applicability. Analytic calculation for CT simulation has been also evaluated in recent years. Due to ignoring basic physical processes, analytic methods have limited applications. In this study, a hardware mimicking algorithm has been developed to accurately model the CT imaging chain using analytic calculation. The model includes x-ray spectrum generation according to the pre-defined scanning protocol. The detector is designed to acquire the data either in integral or spectral modes. CT geometry can be used as parallel or fan beam with different sizes. Poisson noise model was applied to the acquired projection data. Varieties of projection-based computerized phantoms have been designed and implemented in the simulator. CT number and background noise of the simulated images have been compared with experimental data. On average, the relative difference between simulated and experimental HUs are 8.3%, 7.5%, and 8.0% for bone; 12.1%, 10.3%, and 7.8% for contrast agent; and 16.6%, 3.6%, and 5.2% for the background at 80 kVp/500 mAs, 120 kVp/250 mAs, and 140 kVp/125 mAs, respectively. The relative difference between simulated and experimental noise values vary between 2% to slightly less than 26%. For scanning and image generation with a computer equipped with Intel Core2 Quad CPU and 2.0 GB of RAM, the simulator takes about 32 seconds for generating a 512×512 single slice image when it is adjusted to acquire 900 projection angles with 20 mm slice thickness and 140kVp/200 mAs scanning protocol. The simulation time is independent of photon intensity.
Maternal provision of non‐sex‐specific transformer messenger RNA in sex determination of the wasp Asobara tabida

In many insect species maternal provision of sex‐specifically spliced messenger RNA (mRNA) of sex determination genes is an essential component of the sex determination mechanism. In haplodiploid Hymenoptera, maternal provision in combination with genomic imprinting has been shown for the parasitoid Nasonia vitripennis, known as maternal effect genomic imprinting sex determination (MEGISD). Here, we characterize the sex determination cascade of Asobara tabida, another hymenopteran parasitoid. We show the presence of the conserved sex determination genes doublesex (dsx), transformer (tra) and transformer‐2 (tra2) orthologues in As. tabida. Of these, At‐dsx and At‐tra are sex‐specifically spliced, indicating a conserved function in sex determination. At‐tra and At‐tra2 mRNA is maternally provided to embryos but, in contrast to most studied insects, As. tabida females transmit a non‐sex‐specific splice form of At‐tra mRNA to the eggs. In this respect, As. tabida sex determination differs from the MEGISD mechanism. How the paternal genome can induce female development in the absence of maternal provision of sex‐specifically spliced mRNA remains an open question. Our study reports a hitherto unknown variant of maternal effect sex determination and accentuates the diversity of insect sex determination mechanisms.
Do anticorruption efforts affect banking system stability?

ABSTRACT This paper examines whether the level of anticorruption efforts in a country affects the stability of its banking system. After analyzing banking system stability in a large international sample of 26,865 of bank-year observations across 40 countries during 1987–2013, we argue that the following factors are involved: (1) anticorruption efforts, (2) inflation rate, (3) transparency, and (4) adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards. Our results support the idea that having a high anticorruption rating is related to high banking system stability. We also find that this relationship depends on a country’s inflation rate and level of country-level investor protection, supporting the notion that anticorruption is relatively more important in poorer information environments. In addition, given that anticorruption has a stronger effect on financial stability when banks are within a corrupt environment, we posit that corruption may have insider marginal effects.
Iron and copper as virulence modulators in human fungal pathogens

Fungal pathogens have evolved sophisticated machinery to precisely balance the fine line between acquiring essential metals and defending against metal toxicity. Iron and copper are essential metals for many processes in both fungal pathogens and their mammalian hosts, but reduce viability when present in excess. However, during infection, the host uses these two metals differently. Fe has a long‐standing history of influencing virulence in pathogenic fungi, mostly in regards to Fe acquisition. Numerous studies demonstrate the requirement of the Fe acquisition pathway of Candida, Cryptococcus and Aspergillus for successful systemic infection. Fe is not free in the host, but is associated with Fe‐binding proteins, leading fungi to develop mechanisms to interact with and to acquire Fe from these Fe‐bound proteins. Cu is also essential for cell growth and development. Essential Cu‐binding proteins include Fe transporters, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and cytochrome c oxidase. Although Cu acquisition plays critical roles in fungal survival in the host, recent work has revealed that Cu detoxification is extremely important. Here, we review fungal responses to altered metal conditions presented by the host, contrast the roles of Fe and Cu during infection, and outline the critical roles of fungal metal homeostasis machinery at the host–pathogen axis.
Optimal solution of finite dimensional filtering problems via solution of linear ODEs

The work of Yau and collaborators on finite dimensional filters is a major advance in the solution of the general nonlinear filtering problem. In this paper, the solution of Yau and Lai for a large class of finite dimensional Yau filters (that includes the linear filter) is further simplified. The complete solution of the finite dimensional filtering problem is given in terms of a system of linear ordinary differential equations, which are easy to implement. A natural and numerically stable numerical techniques, suggested by group theoretical techniques, is also presented.
Examining Technical Efficiency in Indian Agricultural Production Using Production Frontier Model

The study estimates the technical efficiency (TE) of agricultural production in India using production frontier model for both cross-section and panel data for the years 1999 and 2007. Given the persistent low productivity of agriculture in India, there is a serious need to identify the determining factors for technological lock-in for agricultural production in order to accelerate sustainable productivity and technical efficiency. The model claims that farmer’s education, household’s production process, proportion of irrigated area covered by canals, availability of wells, yielding variety of lands, government services, agricultural expenditure by local government and women reservations in local government significantly contribute to efficiency in resource utilization in farm production. Traditional techniques such as ‘learning by doing’ is, generally, preferred than the adoption of new technologies for agricultural production. It makes a constraint of technological lock-in. JEL: C23, C33, D20, O13
Stability-indicating high-performance thin-layer chromatographic method for analysis of itraconazole in bulk drug and in pharmaceutical dosage form

Background: A new, simple, selective, precise, and stability-indicating high-performance thin-layer chromatographic method has been established for analysis of itraconazole (ITZ) in the bulk drug and in pharmaceutical formulations. Separation was achieved on aluminium plate precoated with silica gel 60F254 using Toluene : Chloroform : Methanol [5 : 5 : 1.5 (v/v)] as mobile phase. Densitometric analysis was performed at 260 nm. Result: Compact bands of ITZ were obtained at Rf 0.52 ± 0.02. Linearity (R2 = 0.9978), limit of detection (180.29 ng/band), limit of quantification (546.34 ng/band), recovery (98–102%), and precision (≤0.51%) were satisfactory. Drug was not degraded under neutral and alkaline hydrolysis, UV and photolytic degradation, under-elevated temperature, and humidity. ITZ is degraded under acidic hydrolysis and oxidative condition; the degraded products were well resolved from individual bulk drug response. Developed method can effectively resolve drug from its excipients in capsule dosage form. The specificity of the method was confirmed by peak purity of resolved peak. Conclusion: The method can be applicable for routine analysis of ITZ in pharmaceutical formulation as stability-indicating. Because the method can effectively separate the drug from its degradation products as well as excipients, it can be used as a stability-indicating method.
A 4.3 mm2 ASIC for a 300 °/s 2-axis capacitive micro-gyroscope

The interface for a capacitive 2-axis micro-gyroscope is implemented in a 0.35-μm HVCMOS technology with a total area of 4.3 mm2. The ASIC comprises the complete interface electronics for the gyroscope, while the focus of the design is in maintaining low supply current and in reducing the chip area. The core of the interface is the pseudo-continuous-time sense readout with an analog output, together with a continuous-time drive loop. The biasing and high-voltage generation will also be introduced in the paper. For the sensor that was implemented, the noise floors are 0.012 °/s/vHz for x-axis and 0.062 °/s/vHz for y-axis. The supply current of the chip is 2.2 mA from a 3 V-supply.