Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Shallow syntactic analysis of Chinese texts

The paper considers a problem of automatic processing of natural language Chinese texts. One of the pressing tasks in this area is automatic fact acquisition from text documents by a query because existing automatic translators are useless at this task. The goal of the work is direct extraction of facts from the text in the original language without its translation. The suggested approach consists of syntactic analysis of sentences with subsequent matching of parts of speech found with a formalized query in the form of subject-object-predicate. A distinctive feature of the proposed algorithm of syntactic analysis is the absence of phase of segmentation into words for the sequence of hieroglyphs that make up the sentences. The bottleneck at this task is a dictionary because the correct interpretation of a phrase can be impossible when a word is absent in the dictionary. To eliminate this problem, we propose to identify a sentence model by function words while limitedness of the dictionary could be compensated by an automatic building of a subject area thesaurus and a dictionary of common words using statistical processing of a document corpus. The suggested approach was approved on a small topic area with a limited dictionary where it demonstrates its robustness. The analysis of temporal characteristics of the developed algorithm was carried out as well. As the proposed algorithm uses a naive inference, the parsing speed at real tasks could be unacceptable low, and this should become a subject for further research.
Associations between neck and shoulder discomfort (Katakori) and job demand, job control, and worksite support

ObjectivesTo examine the association of neck and shoulder discomfort (Katakori) with somatization and work-related factors (job demand, job control, and worksite support) in Japanese workers.MethodsCross-sectional data from 2,022 Japanese workers were analyzed using a logistic regression model to examine the association between Katakori and somatization. A multiple logistic regression model was used to examine the association between Katakori and work-related factors (long working hours, job control, and support from colleagues and supervisors) after adjusting for possible confounding factors.ResultsThe odds of Katakori were higher among respondents with somatic symptoms than among those without (OR = 2.81 and 95 % CI 2.10–3.75 for 1 symptom vs. no symptoms; OR = 3.86 and 95 % CI 2.92–5.12 for 2+ symptoms vs. no symptoms). Lack of worksite support was significantly associated with Katakori (adjusted OR = 2.62; 95 % CI 1.79–3.83). Long working hours and a lack of job control were not significantly associated with Katakori.ConclusionsKatakori may be a form of somatization. A significant association was observed between Katakori and lack of worksite support from colleagues or supervisors. An increase in the social support provided at work may decrease the prevalence of this condition and improve workers’ well-being, but more research is needed to substantiate this hypothesis.
Epidemiology of Prostate and Testicular Cancer

Abstract Prostate and testicular cancers account for a large percentage of cancer morbidity in men in the United States and worldwide due to high prevalence rates that continue to grow. Patterns of incidence and mortality vary greatly in both cancers among men of different age groups, ethnicities, and geographic locations. This article summarizes the incidence, prognosis, and risk factors of both prostate and testicular cancers, globally and in the United States.
Development and validation of the Dutch version of the London Handicap Scale.

BACKGROUND The London Handicap Scale (LHS) was found to be a valid and reliable scale for measuring participation restrictions in adults. OBJECTIVE This paper describes the development and assesses the construct-related validity of a Dutch version of the London Handicap Scale (DLHS). METHODS The DLHS was tested in 798 adults (mean age: 50.7 years, SD=14.5, range 16 to 85) and validated with the 'Impact on Participation and Autonomy' (IPA) questionnaire, the Dutch version of the EQ-5D and questions concerning comorbidity and use of medical devices. The study population consisted of patients with rheumatoid arthritis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), epilepsy, laryngectomy and multiple sclerosis. RESULTS Feasibility was satisfactory. Large correlations (ρ > 0.6) for the DLHS sum score were found with the IPA subscales 'autonomy outdoors', 'perceiving problems', 'family role', autonomy indoors', 'work and education' and with the EQ-5D. The DLHS sum score differs significantly between subgroups based on the number of chronic diseases, number of medical devices and self-reported burden of disease or handicap (p< 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Based on this evaluation the questionnaire seems feasible and valid for assessing differences in level of participation between subgroups of chronically ill or disabled persons in the Netherlands.
Modification of the Secretion Pattern of Proteases, Inflammatory Mediators, and Extracellular Matrix Proteins by Human Aortic Valve is Key in Severe Aortic Stenosis*

One of the major challenges in cardiovascular medicine is to identify candidate biomarker proteins. Secretome analysis is particularly relevant in this search as it focuses on a subset of proteins released by a cell or tissue under certain conditions. The sample can be considered as a plasma subproteome and it provides a more direct approximation to the in vivo situation. Degenerative aortic stenosis is the most common worldwide cause of valve replacement. Using a proteomic analysis of the secretome from aortic stenosis valves we could identify candidate markers related to this pathology, which may facilitate early diagnosis and treatment. For this purpose, we have designed a method to validate the origin of secreted proteins, demonstrating their synthesis and release by the tissue and ruling out blood origin. The nLC-MS/MS analysis showed the labeling of 61 proteins, 82% of which incorporated the label in only one group. Western blot and selective reaction monitoring differential analysis, revealed a notable role of the extracellular matrix. Variation in particular proteins such as PEDF, cystatin and clusterin emphasizes the link between aortic stenosis and atherosclerosis. In particular, certain proteins variation in secretome levels correlates well, not only with label incorporation trend (only labeled in aortic stenosis group) but, more importantly, with alterations found in plasma from an independent cohort of samples, pointing to specific candidate markers to follow up in diagnosis, prognosis, and therapeutic intervention.
Dietary Requirement of True Digestible Phosphorus and Total Calcium for Growing Pigs

Sixty healthy growing pigs (DurocxLandracexYorkshire with an average BW of 21.4 kg) were used to determine the true digestible phosphorus (TDP) requirement of growing pigs on the basis of growth performance and serum biochemical indices. Pigs were assigned randomly to one of five dietary treatments (12 pigs/diet), representing five levels of TDP (0.16%, 0.20%, 0.23%, 0.26% and 0.39%). There were three replications per treatment, with four pigs (2 barrows and 2 gilts) in each replication (2 pigs/pen) A randomized-block design was used, with pen as the experimental unit. Experimental diets were formulated to provide the 5 TDP levels with a total calcium (Ca) to TDP ratio of 2:1, and offered to pigs at 5% BW for 28 d. The total Ca contents of the five diets were 0.33, 0.38, 0.45, 0.51 and 0.79%, respectively. During the 28-d experimental period, the ADG of pigs was affected by dietary TDP levels as described by Equation 1: y = -809,532x4+788,079x3-276,250x 2 +42,114x-l,759; (R 2 = 0.99; p<0.01; y = ADG, g/d; x = dietary TDP, %). The feed:gain ratio for pigs was affected by dietary TDP levels as described by Equation 2: y = 3,651.1x 4 -3,480.4x 3 +1,183.8x 2 -172.5x+10.9 (R 2 = 0.99; p<0.01; y = feed:gain ratio; x = dietary TDP, %). Total P concentrations in serum were affected by dietary TDP levels as described by Equation 3: y = -3,311.7x 4 +3,342.7x 3 -l,224.6x2+195.6x-8.7 (R 2 = 0.99; p<0.01; y = total serum P concentration and x = dietary TDP, %). The highest ADG (782 g/d), the lowest feed:gain ratio (1.07), and the highest total serum P concentration (3.1 mmol/L) were obtained when dietary TDP level was 0.34%. Collectively, these results indicate that the optimal TDP requirement of growing pigs is 0.34% of the diet (e.g., 5.1 g/day for a 30-kg pig that consumed 1.5 kg feed daily) at a total Cato TDP ratio of 2:1.
Non-nearest-neighbor dependence of stability for group III RNA single nucleotide bulge loops

The thermodynamic parameters for single nucleotide bulge loops with ambiguity to the exact position and identity of the bulge, of the type AG/U or CU/G, were determined. In-line structure probing of such bulge loops embedded in a hairpin indicates that the bulged nucleotide is the one positioned further from the hairpin loop, irrespective of whether the resulting stem formed a Watson–Crick or wobble base pair.
Extrapolation of toxic indices among test objects

Extrapolation of toxic indices among test objects Oligochaeta Tubifex tubifex, fish fathead minnow (Pimephales promelas), hepatocytes isolated from rat liver and ciliated protozoan are absolutely different organisms and yet their acute toxicity indices correlate. Correlation equations for special effects were developed for a large heterogeneous series of compounds (QSAR, quantitative structure-activity relationships). Knowing those correlation equations and their statistic evaluation, one can extrapolate the toxic indices. The reason is that a common physicochemical property governs the biological effect, namely the partition coefficient between two unmissible phases, simulated generally by n-octanol and water. This may mean that the transport of chemicals towards a target is responsible for the magnitude of the effect, rather than reactivity, as one would assume suppose.
Lower Birth Weight and Visceral Fat Accumulation Are Related to Hyperinsulinemia and Insulin Resistance in Obese Japanese Children

This study aimed to reveal the relation of birth weight (or the birth weight standard deviation score [BWSDS]) and visceral fat accumulation to hyperinsulinemia and insulin resistance. We examined obese Japanese children (650 boys and 317 girls) with a mean age of 10.3 years (range, 6–15 years). The mean percentage of overweight to the standard body weight of Japanese children was 52.1% in boys and 51.4% in girls. Abdominal fat thickness (maximum preperitoneal fat thickness; Pmax) was measured using ultrasonography. The fasting serum insulin and plasma glucose levels were measured, and the homeostasis model assessment-insulin resistance (HOMA-R) and quantitative insulin sensitivity check index (QUICKI) were calculated. We divided the subjects into four groups according to their birth weight or BWSDS, and compared anthropometric measurements, Pmax, blood pressure, serum insulin levels, HOMA-R and QUICKI among the quartiles. The relationships of both birth weight (or BWSDS) and Pmax to serum insulin levels (or HOMA-R, QUICKI) were examined with multiple regression analyses. The fasting serum insulin level and HOMA-R were highest in the quartile with the lowest birth weight or BWSDS. The birth weight and BWSDS were inversely related to the serum insulin levels and HOMA-R, positively related to QUICKI, and independent of Pmax. Our findings suggest that both lower birth weight and visceral fat accumulation may be independently related to hyperinsulinemia and insulin resistance in obese Japanese children.
Thermal inactivation of Bacillus anthracis surrogate spores in a bench-scale enclosed landfill gas flare

A bench-scale landfill flare system was designed and built to test the potential for landfilled biological spores that migrate from the waste into the landfill gas to pass through the flare and exit into the environment as viable. The residence times and temperatures of the flare were characterized and compared to full-scale systems. Geobacillus stearothermophilus and Bacillus atrophaeus, nonpathogenic spores that may serve as surrogates for Bacillus anthracis, the causative agent for anthrax, were investigated to determine whether these organisms would be inactivated or remain viable after passing through a simulated landfill flare. High concentration spore solutions were aerosolized, dried, and sent through a bench-scale system to simulate the fate of biological weapon (BW)-grade spores in a landfill gas flare. Sampling was conducted downstream of the flare using a bioaerosol collection device containing sterile white mineral oil. The samples were cultured, incubated for seven days, and assessed for viability. Results showed that the bench-scale system exhibited good similarity to the real-world conditions of an enclosed standard combustor flare stack with a single orifice, forced-draft diffusion burner. All spores of G. stearothermophilus and B. atrophaeus were inactivated in the flare, indicating that spores that become re-entrained in landfill gas may not escape the landfill as viable, apparently becoming completely inactivated as they exit through a landfill flare. Implications Following the release of biological weapons and subsequent cleanup efforts, large quantities of potentially contaminated wastes may be generated and require disposal. Landfill disposal is an option. However, data demonstrating the fate of viable pathogenic spores in a landfill do not exist in the literature. These data may be of interest to emergency response authorities, state and local permitting agencies, and waste management industries in the event that biological weapons residues from building decontamination wastes are transported to a landfill for disposal. The methodology developed here and the subsequent results may also be relevant to other landfill migration and release concerns, such as the release of other toxic particulate-based contaminants. Disclaimer The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through its Office of Research and Development funded the research described here under Cooperative Training Agreement number CR83323601 to the Department of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. This paper has been subject to Agency review, but does not necessarily reflect the views of the Agency. No official endorsement should be inferred.
Prevalence and clinical correlates of police contact prior to a first diagnosis of schizophrenia

BACKGROUND Little is known about the reasons why people with schizophrenia have contact with police, especially prior to the first episode of illness. AIM To investigate the prevalence and correlates of police contact in first-episode schizophrenia. METHODS The prevalence and type of police contact was established among all 110 patients presenting to psychiatric services in one catchment area during a first episode of schizophrenia and among 65 non-mentally ill controls, by participant and collateral interview and from records. Socio-demographic and clinical characteristics were also recorded and the two groups compared. RESULTS The first episode of schizophrenia patients had more contact with police than controls, despite the higher prevalence of conduct disorder symptoms among the controls. The patients were not, however, more likely to be incarcerated or arrested. Among the patients, over half of the police call-outs occurred during the period of untreated psychosis. Positive psychotic symptoms were independently associated with police contact, after allowing for socio-demographics. CONCLUSIONS As over a third of people in a first episode of schizophrenia had been in contact with the police - more than twice the proportion among non-psychotic controls - and contact was associated with untreated positive psychotic symptoms, better early detection and treatment of psychosis seems indicated. In the meantime, police services may be playing an important role in reducing the duration of untreated psychosis. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Treatment of chronic respiratory failure in kyphoscoliosis: oxygen or ventilation?

Patients with kyphoscoliosis and chronic respiratory insufficiency are treated either with home oxygen therapy or ventilation. Kyphoscoliotic patients demonstrate impaired ventilatory mechanics, consequently ventilation seems to be the treatment of choice. Yet, no randomised controlled trials (CRT) exist to prove it. Most investigators find it difficult to ethically justify a CRT. Therefore, the current authors performed the following retrospective study: survival and pulmonary function were analysed in all consecutive kyphoscoliotic patients who started long-term oxygen therapy (LTO group; n=15, aged 62±11 yrs (mean±sd)) or LTO plus nocturnal nasal intermittent positive pressure ventilation (nNIPPV group; n=18, aged 61±7 yrs) in the Dept of Pulmonology (University Hospital Gasthuisberg, Leuven) between 1990–2002. Prior to treatment partial pressure of oxygen (PO2) was lower, partial pressure of carbon dioxide (PCO2) tended to be higher and vital capacity (VC) tended to be lower in the nNIPPV group than in the LTO group (PO2 5.9±1 versus 6.7±0.9 kPa (44±8 versus 50±7 mmHg), PCO2 8±1 versus 7.3±0.9 kPa (60±8 versus 55±7 mmHg), VC 32±12 versus 40±16% predicted, or 645±244 versus 970±387 mL). In the nNIPPV group the 1‐yr survival was higher (100% versus 66%). nNIPPV patients demonstrated an improvement in PO2 (breathing air) +54%, PCO2 (breathing air) −21%, VC +47% and maximal static inspiratory mouth pressure +33%; these improvements were absent in the LTO group. In conclusion, nocturnal nasal intermittent positive pressure ventilation, plus long-term oxygen therapy results in more favourable survival and changes in blood gases and respiratory function than long-term oxygen therapy alone.
Mini-Mental State Examination in Elderly Chinese: A Population-Based Normative Study.

BACKGROUND Chinese nationwide norms of the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) have not been established despite its wide use. OBJECTIVE To obtain norms for the MMSE based on age, gender, education, and rural or urban residences and to determine the optimal cut-off points of the MMSE in elderly Chinese. METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted in Chinese community residents aged 65 years or over selected by cluster random sampling. The MMSE was administered to 9,629 subjects (7,110 cognitively normal, 2,024 with mild cognitive impairment, and 495 with dementia). The demographic influences on MMSE scores were investigated and the norms were established considering those factors. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was used to determine the optimal cut-off points. RESULTS Years of education (standardized β= 0.399), rural residence (standardized β= -0.261), age (standardized β= -0.198), and being female (standardized β= -0.101) had significant effects on MMSE scores (p < 0.001). Accordingly, we presented the demographic-stratified normative data for the MMSE. The optimal cut-off points for dementia screening were 16/17 for illiterate (sensitivity 87.6% and specificity 80.8%), 19/20 for individuals with 1-6 years of education (sensitivity 93.6% and specificity 92.7%), and 23/24 for individuals with 7 or more years of education (sensitivity 94.3% and specificity 94.3%). CONCLUSION We provide the age-, gender-, education-, and residence-specific reference norms for the MMSE derived from an investigation of a large-scale, multicenter, nationwide representative Chinese elderly population. It could be of great improvement for the use of the MMSE in dementia screening in Chinese elderly population.
Dendritic Cell-Mediated Cross-Presentation of Antigens Derived from Colon Carcinoma Cells Exposed to a Highly Cytotoxic Multidrug Regimen with Gemcitabine, Oxaliplatin, 5-Fluorouracil, and Leucovorin, Elicits a Powerful Human Antigen-Specific CTL Response with Antitumor Activity in Vitro1

Gemcitabine, oxaliplatin, leucovorin, and 5-fluorouracil (GOLF) is a novel multidrug regimen inducing high levels of necrosis and apoptosis in colon carcinoma cells. This regimen is also able to promote a process of Ag remodeling including up-regulation of immunotherapy targets like carcinoembryonic Ag (CEA), thymidylate synthase (TS). We have conducted a preclinical study aimed to investigate whether these drug-induced modifications would also enhance colon cancer cell immunogenicity. Several CTL lines were thus generated by in vitro stimulating human HLA-A(*)02.01+ PBMCs, from normal donors and colon cancer patients, with autologous dendritic cells cross-primed with cell lysates of colon cancer cells untreated, irradiated, or previously exposed to different drug treatments including the GOLF regimen. Class I HLA-restricted cytolytic activity of these CTL lines was tested against colon cancer cells and CEA and TS gene transfected target cells. These experiments revealed that CTLs sensitized with GOLF-treated cancer cells were much more effective than those sensitized with the untreated colon carcinoma cells or those exposed to the other treatments. CTL lines sensitized against the GOLF-treated colon cancer cells, also expressed a greater percentage of T-lymphocyte precursors able to recognize TS- and CEA-derived peptides. These results suggest that GOLF regimen is a powerful antitumor and immunomodulating regimen that can make the tumor cells a suitable means to induce an Ag-specific CTL response. These results suggest that a rationale combination of GOLF chemotherapy with cytokine-based immunotherapy could generate a chemotherapy-modulated Ag-specific T-lymphocyte response in cancer patients able to destroy the residual disease survived to the cytotoxic drugs.
Cellular retinol binding protein 1 could be a tumor suppressor gene in cervical cancer.

AIMS Cervical Cancer (CC) is one of the most important health problems in women. It frequently presents genetic changes at chromosome region 3q21. This region contains the Cellular Retinol Binding Protein 1 gene (CRBP1) which has been implicated as an important element in the development of other types of cancer. The main goal of the present work was to determine the molecular alterations of CRBP1 and its relationship to CC. METHODS To determine the molecular alterations of CRBP1 gene in CC; twenty-six CC and twenty-six healthy cervix samples were evaluated for: 1) Copy number gain by real-time PCR analysis, 2) expression levels by an immunohistochemistry assay on tissue microarray, and 3) the methylation status of the CRBP1 promoter region. RESULTS The increase in CRBP1 copy number was observed in 10 out of the 26 CC samples analyzed, while healthy cervices samples showed no changes in the copy number. In addition, there was a lack of expression of the CRBP1 gene in an important number of the CC samples (17/26), and the CRBP1 gene promoter was methylated in 15/26 of the CC samples. Interestingly, there was a significant association between the lack of expression of the CRBP1 gene and its methylation status. CONCLUSIONS The data indicates that, both activating and inactivating changes in the CRBP1 gene could be significant events in the development and progression of CC, and the lack of expression of the CRBP1 protein could be related with to the development of CC. We believe that there is enough evidence to consider to CRBP1 gene as a tumor suppressor gene for CC.