Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Suitability of recommended limits for fasting glucose tests in women with polycystic ovary syndrome

Background: The Canadian and American Diabetes Associations recommend the use of an oral glucose tolerance test to screen for abnormal glucose tolerance among women with polycystic ovary syndrome when their fasting plasma glucose level is 5.7 mmol/L or more (Canadian guideline) and 5.6 mmol/L or more (American). Our objective was to determine the predictive value of 5.6 mmol/L as a fasting plasma glucose cutoff for detecting abnormal glucose tolerance in women with polycystic ovary syndrome, and then to define the optimal cutoff for this population. Methods: An oral glucose tolerance test was administered to 105 consecutive women with polycystic ovary syndrome referred to an academic reproductive endocrine clinic. We calculated sensitivity, specificity and likelihood ratios. Results: The sensitivity of a 5.6 mmol/L cutoff was 48% (95% confidence interval [CI] 30%–67%); its specificity, 98.7% (95% CI 96.1%–100%). With this cutoff, 52% of women with polycystic ovary syndrome whose glucose tolerance is abnormal would be missed. The prevalence of abnormal glucose tolerance was 28%, with a positive predictive value of 93% (95% CI 81%–100%) and a negative predictive value of 83% (95% CI 76%–91%). The likelihood ratio for a positive test was 36.7 (95% CI 5.0–267), and for a negative test, 0.5 (95% CI 0.4–0.7). The optimal fasting plasma glucose cutoff value was 5.0 mmol/L, with a 79% sensitivity (95% CI 65%–94%) and 66% specificity (95% CI 55%–77%). If this cutoff were used, 24% of women with abnormal glucose tolerance would still be missed. Interpretation: The Canadian and American recommendations — of screening for abnormal glucose tolerance with an oral glucose tolerance test only when the results of a fasting plasma glucose test are 5.7 mmol/L (or 5.6 mmol/L) or more — are inappropriate for women with polycystic ovary syndrome. We therefore recommend that all women with polycystic ovary syndrome have an oral glucose tolerance test.
Implementation of a DSP-controlled photovoltaic system with peak power tracking

Photovoltaic systems normally use a maximum power point tracking (MPPT) technique to continuously deliver the highest possible power to the load when variations in the insulation and temperature occur. It overcomes the problem of mismatch between the solar arrays and the given load. A simple method of tracking the maximum power points (MPPs) and forcing the system to operate close to these points is presented. The principle of energy conservation is used to derive the large- and small-signal model and transfer function. By using the proposed model, the drawbacks of the state-space-averaging method can be overcome. The TI320C25 digital signal processor (DSP) was used to implement the proposed MPPT controller, which controls the DC/DC converter in the photovoltaic system. Simulations and experimental results show excellent performance.
Information and Coordination Frictions in Experimental Posted Offer Markets

We experimentally investigate buyer and seller behavior in small markets with two kinds of frictions. First, a subset of buyers may have (severely) limited information about prices, and choose a seller at random. Second, sellers may not be able to serve all potential customers. Such capacity constraints can lead to coordination frictions where some sellers and buyers may not be able to trade. Theory predicts very different equilibrium outcomes when we vary the set-up along these two dimensions. In particular, it implies that a higher number of informed buyers will lead to lower prices when sellers do not face capacity constraints, while prices may actually increase if sellers are capacity constrained, as shown by Lester (2011). In the experiment, the differences between the constrained and non-constrained case are confirmed; prices fall when sellers are not capacity constrained but either do not fall by much or even increase when they are not. We find that prices are quite close to the predicted equilibrium values except in treatments where unconstrained sellers face a large fraction of informed buyers. However, introducing noise into the theoretical decision making process produces a pattern of deviations that fits well with the observed ones.
catena-Poly[[diaquacadmium(II)]-μ-(methyl morpholino dichloromethylenediphosphonato)-κ3 O,O′:O′′-[tetraaquacadmium(II)]-μ-(methyl morpholino dichloromethylenediphosphonato)-κ3 O:O′,O′′]

The asymmetric unit of the title compound, [Cd(C6H11Cl2NO6P2)(H2O)3]n, contains two octahedrally coordinated Cd atoms located in special positions, one on a twofold rotation axis and the other on a centre of symmetry. The metal atoms are connected by methyl morpholino dichloromethylenediphosphonate ligands into chains in the c-axis direction. These chains are further connected by O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds into a layer-like construction along (100).
Improved ZVS Three-Level DC–DC Converter With Reduced Circulating Loss

An improved three-level (TL) dc-dc converter is proposed in this paper. The converter contains two transformers. Like the conventional TL dc-dc converter, there are no additional switches on the primary side of the transformer. The rectifier stage is composed of four diodes in the center-tapped rectification. On the primary side of the transformer, the two transformers are connected in series. The middle node of the two transformers is connected to the neutral point of the split flying capacitors. Because it cooperates with the four-diode rectifier stage, the circulating current on the primary side of the transformer decays to zero during the freewheeling period. The zero-voltage switching (ZVS) of the leading switches is determined by energy stored in the output filter inductor, which is similar to the conventional TL converter. The ZVS of the lagging switches is determined by the energy stored in the magnetizing inductor of a transformer, rather than the energy stored in the leakage inductor. The proposed converter can reduce the output filter inductance. Because of the advantages given above, the efficiency of the proposed converter is far better than that of traditional methods. Finally, a 1-kW prototype was built to verify the performance of the proposed converter.
The Affinity Binding Sites of Pancreatic Bile Salt-Dependent Lipase in Pancreatic and Intestinal Tissues

In previous studies, we have shown that the bile salt-dependent lipase (BSDL) associates with the Grp94 molecular chaperone, an association that appears to play essential roles in the folding of BSDL. More recently, combined biochemical and immunocytochemical investigations were carried out to show that the transport of BSDL occurs via an association with the Grp94 all along the pancreatic secretory route (ER-Golgi-granules). The Grp94-BSDL complex is secreted with the pancreatic juice into the acinar lumen and reaches the duodenal lumen, where it is internalized by enterocytes. The dissociation of the complex could take place within the endosomal compartment because BSDL continues further on its way to the basolateral membrane of the enterocyte. To localize the affinity binding sites of pancreatic BSDL in pancreatic and duodenal tissues, we have used an affinity-gold ultrastructural technique. BSDL coupled to gold particles appears to interact with specific sites in tissue sections. This was confirmed by another indirect morphological approach using biotin-labeled BSDL and streptavidin-gold complexes on tissue sections. We have shown that BSDL associates with sites in the pancreatic secretory pathway compartments and in the microvilli, the endosomal compartment, and the basolateral membrane of enterocytes. By biochemical approaches, biotin-labeled BSDL displayed affinities with proteins of 180-190 kD in both pancreatic and duodenal tissues. We have also shown that the Grp94-BSDL complexes, which are insensitive to denaturing conditions, are present in pancreatic homogenate but not in duodenal lysate. Thus, BSDL is able to bind protein complexes formed by either BSDL-Grp94 or Grp94 dimers.
Cortical dysplasia

Human cortical dysplastic lesions are frequently associated with severe partial epilepsies. We report an immunocytochemical investigation on cortical tissue from three surgically treated patients, 20, 38, and 14 years old, with intractable epilepsy due to cortical dysplasia. The studies were performed using antibodies recognizing cytoskeletal proteins, calcium-binding proteins, and some subunits of glutamate receptors. The specimens from the three patients displayed common features: (1) focal cytoarchitectural abnormalities with an increased number of giant pyramidal neurons through all cortical layers except layer I; (2) large, round-shaped balloon cells mainly concentrated in the deepest part of the cortex and in the white matter;(3) a decrease of calcium binding protein immunopositive γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)ergic neurons; and (4) abnormal baskets of parvalbumin-positive terminals around the excitatory (pyramidal and large, round-shaped) neurons. These data provide evidence that the epileptogenicity in these types of cortical dysplasia is due to an increase in excitatory neurons coupled with a decrease in GABAergic interneurons.
The two-state cross-bridge model of muscle is an asymptotic limit of multi-state models.

The relationship between the two-state model of muscle contraction and multi-state models is examined from the perspective of matched asymptotic expansions, under the assumption that transition rates between attached states are fast compared to those between detached and attached states. A detailed formal analysis of a three-state model reveals that the classic Huxley (1957. Prog. Biophys. Biophys. Chem.7, 225-318) rate equation, as modified for thermodynamic self-consistency by Hill et al. (1975. Biophys. J.15, 335-372), governs the "outer" solution of the three-state equations. Thus, the two-state model remains a valid description of muscle dynamics on physiologically relevant time scales, which are slow compared to millisecond-scale transitions between attached states. But the asymptotic analysis reveals also that the cross-bridge force must be considered to be a nonlinear function of the cross-bridge strain, in contrast to the usual assumption of two-state models. This apparent, or effective, force is determined by both the intrinsic stiffness of the cross-bridge and the equilibrium distribution of cross-bridges among attached states. Further, the asymptotic analysis yields an expression for the energy liberation rate that implies a reduced rate in stretch vs. shortening. Some behaviors of multi-state models that are suggested by the three-state analysis are discussed in qualitative terms.
Experimental validation of a sliding mode controller for permanent-magnet synchronous motors

This paper focusses on the experimental testing of a sliding mode controller designed for a Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor (PMSM). A cascade control scheme is proposed which provides accurate speed and position tracking performance. The controller is experimentally tested on a commercial PMSM drive. Reported experimental evidence shows that the proposed controller produces good speed and position trajectory tracking performance and is robust in the presence of disturbances affecting the system.
Explorer Development of a high density 600 K SNP genotyping array for chicken

Background: High density (HD) SNP genotyping arrays are an important tool for genetic analyses of animals and plants. Although the chicken is one of the most important farm animals, no HD array is yet available for high resolution genetic analysis of this species. Results: We report here the development of a 600 K Affymetrix Axiom HD genotyping array designed using SNPs segregating in a wide variety of chicken populations. In order to generate a large catalogue of segregating SNPs, we re-sequenced 243 chickens from 24 chicken lines derived from diverse sources (experimental, commercial broiler and layer lines) by pooling 10–15 samples within each line. About 139 million (M) putative SNPs were detected by mapping sequence reads to the new reference genome (Gallus_gallus_4.0) of which ~78 M appeared to be segregating in different lines. Using criteria such as high SNP-quality score, acceptable design scores predicting high conversion performance in the final array and uniformity of distribution across the genome, we selected ~1.8 M SNPs for validation through genotyping on an independent set of samples (n = 282). About 64% of the SNPs were polymorphic with high call rates (>98%), good cluster separation and stable Mendelian inheritance. Polymorphic SNPs were further analysed for their population characteristics and genomic effects. SNPs with extreme breach of Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (P < 0.00001) were excluded from the panel. The final array, designed on the basis of these analyses, consists of 580,954 SNPs and includes 21,534 coding variants. SNPs were selected to achieve an essentially uniform distribution based on genetic map distance for both broiler and layer lines. Due to a lower extent of LD in broilers compared to layers, as reported in previous studies, the ratio of broiler and layer SNPs in the array was kept as 3:2. The final panel was shown to genotype a wide range of samples including broilers and layers with over 100 K to 450 K informative SNPs per line. A principal component analysis was used to demonstrate the ability of the array to detect the expected population structure which is an important pre-investigation step for many genome-wide analyses. Conclusions: This Affymetrix Axiom array is the first SNP genotyping array for chicken that has been made commercially available to the public as a product. This array is expected to find widespread usage both in research and commercial application such as in genomic selection, genome-wide association studies, selection signature analyses, fine mapping of QTLs and detection of copy number variants.
A 300-nW Sensitive, 50-nA DC-DC Converter for Energy Harvesting Applications

A maximum-power-point-tracking DC-DC boost converter to harvest energy from sub- μW power sources is presented. For available input-power levels below 1 μW, voltage boosting is achieved by operating all circuits in the sub-threshold region, and by switching the DC-DC converter at tens of Hz, thereby reducing switching losses. The paper further explores the possibility of energizing the DC-DC inductor for an optimum duration, such that switching and resistive losses are minimized. The sub- μW energy harvesting circuit uses an area of 0.2 mm2 on a standard 180 nm CMOS process, and utilizes an auxiliary voltage source for start-up. The designed and fabricated system is more than 50% efficient when the available power is greater than 2 μW. The circuit can harvest energy whenever the available power is more than 0.3 μW. Efficiency at 0.3 μW is 25%, at 0.5 μW is 37% and at 1 μW is 48%. The complete IC consumes 50 nA for internal operations and the input voltage can be as low as 70 mV.
Transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis among health care workers infected with human immunodeficiency virus.

The resurgence of tuberculosis in the United States has been accompanied by an increased risk of nosocomial transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis and by reports of outbreaks in health care facilities [I]. Nosocomial acquisition of tuberculosis has usually been by patient-to-patient or patient-to-health care worker (HCW) transmission, although there have been at least two reports of HCW-to-HCW transmission [2, 3]. When HCWs have developed tuberculosis infection or active disease in nonoutbreak settings, it has usually been assumed to be due to occupational exposure. However, the overall risk of occupational acquisition vs. community acquisition of tuberculosis is incompletely understood. We describe community transmission of tuberculosis from one HIV-infected HCW to another HIV-infected HCW, both of whom worked at the same institution; the chain of transmission was confirmed by molecular epidemiological studies. A 41-year-old HIV-infected HCW (HCW I) was admitted to the hospital in December 1992 for evaluation of an 8-week history of cough and intermittent fevers. A chest roentgenogram revealed hilar and mediastinal adenopathy; two sputum samples obtained from the patient were smear positive (4+) for acid-fast bacilli (AFB) and culture positive for M tuberculosis. The isolate recovered from HCW I was susceptible to the standard antituberculous drugs. A tuberculin skin test conversion was documented 5 years earlier for this HCW, but he had declined to receive preventive therapy. A 38-year-old HIV-infected HCW (HCW 2) with a CD4 lymphocyte count of 74/mm was admitted to the hospital for evaluation of fever (temperature, 39.10c), chills, and myalgias of I week's duration 2 days after HCW I was admitted. A chest roentgenogram revealed a new left upper lobe infiltrate that was not present on a previous chest roentgenogram obtained 8 months earlier. Because HCW 2 was not coughing and was unable to produce sputum, bronchoscopy was performed. A bronchoalveolar lavage specimen was smear positive (I + ) for AFB; culture yielded a drug-susceptible M. tuberculosis isolate. HCW 2 had undergone routine tuberculin skin testing for 15 years; the most recent test was performed 10 months before his tuberculosis was diagnosed and was negative. HCW 2 indicated that he was a friend of HCW I and that they spent prolonged periods of time (e.g., overnight) at each other's residences, and he noted that HCW I had been coughing when they were together on several occasions. These two HCWs worked in different areas of the institution and usually worked different shifts. They indicated that they saw each other only in the community, usually in each other's residence. 1 2 3 4
Efficient constraint-based Sequential Pattern Mining (SPM) algorithm to understand customers’ buying behaviour from time stamp-based sequence dataset

Abstract Business Strategies are formulated based on an understanding of customer needs. This requires development of a strategy to understand customer behaviour and buying patterns, both current and future. This involves understanding, first how an organization currently understands customer needs and second predicting future trends to drive growth. This article focuses on purchase trend of customer, where timing of purchase is more important than association of item to be purchased, and which can be found out with Sequential Pattern Mining (SPM) methods. Conventional SPM algorithms worked purely on frequency identifying patterns that were more frequent but suffering from challenges like generation of huge number of uninteresting patterns, lack of user’s interested patterns, rare item problem, etc. Article attempts a solution through development of a SPM algorithm based on various constraints like Gap, Compactness, Item, Recency, Profitability and Length along with Frequency constraint. Incorporation of six additional constraints is as well to ensure that all patterns are recently active (Recency), active for certain time span (Compactness), profitable and indicative of next timeline for purchase (Length―Item―Gap). The article also attempts to throw light on how proposed Constraint-based Prefix Span algorithm is helpful to understand buying behaviour of customer which is in formative stage.
ANT COLONY OPTIMIZATION FOR CAPACITY PROBLEMS

This paper deals with the optimization of the capacity of a terminal railway station using the Ant Colony Optimization algorithm. The capacity of the terminal station is defined as the number of trains that depart from the station in unit interval of time. The railway capacity optimization problem is framed as a typical symmetrical Travelling Salesman Problem (TSP), with the TSP nodes representing the train arrival /departure events and the TSP total cost representing the total time-interval of the schedule. The application problem is then optimized using the ACO algorithm. The simulation experiments validate the formulation of the railway capacity problem as a TSP and the ACO algorithm produces optimal solutions superior to those produced by the domain experts.
Comparison of A and B‐type lamin expression in reactive lymph nodes and nodular sclerosing Hodgkin's disease

In order to clarify the differentiation and proliferation status of the Reed–Sternberg and Hodgkin cells we studied A and B‐type lamin expression with specific monoclonal antibodies in nodular sclerosing Hodgkin's disease. Its normal counterpart, the reactive lymph node, was also examined for lamin subtype expression.
Feature Selection Methods for Zero-Shot Learning of Neural Activity

Dimensionality poses a serious challenge when making predictions from human neuroimaging data. Across imaging modalities, large pools of potential neural features (e.g., responses from particular voxels, electrodes, and temporal windows) have to be related to typically limited sets of stimuli and samples. In recent years, zero-shot prediction models have been introduced for mapping between neural signals and semantic attributes, which allows for classification of stimulus classes not explicitly included in the training set. While choices about feature selection can have a substantial impact when closed-set accuracy, open-set robustness, and runtime are competing design objectives, no systematic study of feature selection for these models has been reported. Instead, a relatively straightforward feature stability approach has been adopted and successfully applied across models and imaging modalities. To characterize the tradeoffs in feature selection for zero-shot learning, we compared correlation-based stability to several other feature selection techniques on comparable data sets from two distinct imaging modalities: functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Electrocorticography. While most of the feature selection methods resulted in similar zero-shot prediction accuracies and spatial/spectral patterns of selected features, there was one exception; A novel feature/attribute correlation approach was able to achieve those accuracies with far fewer features, suggesting the potential for simpler prediction models that yield high zero-shot classification accuracy.
Determinants of Export Propensity and Intensity of Manufacturing Firms in Cameroon: An Empirical Assessment

Many Developing Countries in the process of economic transition have engaged themselves with outward-looking export oriented policies, aimed at making their manufacturing sector very competitive. In this regard, this study aimed at examining the factors that can influence both the level of exports and the likelihood to export of manufacturing firms. The data for the study was obtained from the World Bank Investment Climate Survey (ICS). The findings from this survey showed that the turnaround time for cargo clearance at the port is faster for exporters than for importers (15.1 to 23.9 days), while transportation and energy supply were cited by more than half of the firms as key obstacles to production. The key empirical findings on the one hand showed that human capital; years of experience, turnover, and modernization have positive effect on both the likelihood to export and on the export intensity. On the other hand, insecurity and power outage have a detrimental effect on export performance. The results also pointed to the fact that many of the firms were labour intensive firms, taking advantage of the abundant cheap labour in the country. These results put together, provide insights into some policies needed to promote the performance of export manufacturing firms in Cameroon, among which include an improvement in human capital, turnover, electricity supply, security and use of technological modernized equipment. JEL Classification Number: L2, L6