Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prevalence of Non- Albicans Candida Infections in Women with Recurrent Vulvovaginal Symptomatology

Background: ”Candida” vulvovaginitis is one of the most frequently diagnosed conditions in women's care practices. Historically, 90% of cultured yeast species were C. ”albicans”. However, due to a variety of interventions, the proportion of non-”albicans Candida” (NAC) infections appears to be increasing. We sought to estimate the current prevalence of ”Candida” vulvovaginitis and the species-specific distribution of such infections in recurrent cases. Methods: Women with recurrent vulvovaginal symptomatology referred to an Obstetrics and Gynecology practice were tested by genital fungus culture, ”Candida”-specific polymerase chain reaction (PCR), or both between July 2010 and February 2013. Results: A total of 103 women were tested. Mean age was 45.6 years. Including only their most recent positive test result, 29.1% (30/103) of women tested positive for ”Candida” by any of the above testing measures. Of those, 50% (15/30) tested positive for C. ”albicans” and 50% (15/30) tested positive for a NAC species. Across all visits, 60% (18/30) tested positive for C. ”albicans”, 56.7% (17/30) tested positive for NAC, and 16.7% (5/30) tested positive for both a C. ”albicans” and a NAC species. Among all isolated NAC species, 28.6% (6/21) were determined to be C. ”glabrata”, 23.8% (5/21) C. ”krusei”, 23.8% (5/21) C. ”parapsilosis”, and 23.8% (5/21) other ”Candida” species. Conclusion: Approximately 30% of women with recurrent vulvovaginal symptomatology have detectable ”Candida” strains and it appears that NAC species may cause half of all these infections. This is imperative because NAC infections are usually more difficult to diagnose and are resistant to most treatments.
Transforming Petri Nets into Event Graph models

Stochastic Petri Nets and simulation Event Graph models both have attractive graphical representations and simple rules that govern their dynamic behavior. A mapping of Stochastic Petri Nets into Event Graph models is presented and discussed. This mapping can be used to develop simulations of Petri Nets that exploit the efficiencies of the event-scheduling paradigm. It also permits the application of some of the rich analytical methodologies in the Petri Net literature to the analysis of event-oriented simulation models. Indeed, these two graphical representations of discrete event dynamic systems work in a complementary manner. We first present the structural and behavioral properties of standard Stochastic Petri Nets and Event Graph models and then discuss their relationship.
Aggregation Algorithms for K-cycle Aggregation Multigrid for Markov Chains

Two different aggregation algorithms are proposed for a K-cycle multigrid method to efficiently solve for the stationary probability vector of an irreducible Markov chain. It is shown how the neighborhood aggregation algorithm and the double pairwise aggregation algorithm use a strength of connection measure derived from the scaled matrix problem to form aggregates. A recursively accelerated W-cycle is presented as the K-cycle multigrid method. Acceleration is performed at each level of the W-cycle. Improved iterates are produced by combining pairs of iterates that minimize the residual. A similar top-level acceleration method is also proposed to further improve convergence. Several representative test problems are used to compare the two aggregation algorithms and numerical results indicate that the neighborhood aggregation algorithm performs better and leads to nearly optimal multigrid efficiency.
Rheumatoid factor B cell tolerance via autonomous Fas/FasL-independent apoptosis.

Normal individuals do not express the high-affinity autoantibodies specific for self-IgG (rheumatoid factors, RF) that are commonly seen in rheumatoid arthritis patients. Studies of transgenic mice expressing a human IgM rheumatoid factor have shown that one mechanism by which higher affinity RF B cells are tolerized to IgG is through abortive RF B cell activation followed by deletion in the absence of T cell help. We show that RF B cell deletion occurs through an intrinsic apoptotic mechanism that is independent of the Fas/FasL pathway and does not involve active killing by T cells, as it occurs in RAG-1-deficient RF transgenic mice to the same extent as in the parental RF transgenic line.
Global Market Inefficiencies

Using point-in-time accounting data, we estimate monthly fair values of 25,000 stocks from 36 countries. A trading strategy based on deviations from fair value earns significant risk-adjusted returns (“alpha”) in most regions, especially the Asia Pacific, that are unrelated to known anomalies. The strategy’s 40-70 basis point per month alpha difference between emerging and developed markets contrast with prior research findings. A country’s pre-transaction-cost alpha is positively related to its trading costs, but exceeds country-specific institutional trading costs. Thus, global equity markets are inefficient, particularly in countries with quantifiable market frictions, like trading costs, that deter arbitrageurs.
Characterizing Web Sessions Of E-Customers Interested In Traditional And Innovative Products

Web traffic characterization and modeling is currently a hot research issue. Low-level analysis of HTTP traffic on the server allows one to build adequate traffic models to be used in server benchmarking. High-level analysis of Web user behavior allows one to optimize website structure and develop personalized service strategies. In this paper, analysis of customer sessions in an online store is performed using Web server log data. The goal is to explore possible differences between sessions of customers viewing and purchasing innovative products, and customers only interested in traditional products.
Effect of resonant cavity in wafer-bonded Green InGaN LED with dielectric and silver mirrors

The green InGaN-based resonant cavity light-emitting diodes (RCLEDs) on Si substrates were fabricated using laser liftoff and wafer bonding techniques. Five-pair TiO2--SiO2 distributed Bragg reflectors (reflectivity: 85%) and an Ag metal layer (reflectivity: 99%) were employed as the top and bottom mirrors, respectively. The light output power of the RCLED at room temperature is 1.5 times the magnitude of a similar structure without a resonant cavity at an injecting current density of 600A/cm2. The mode spectrum exhibits a line width of approximately 5.5 nm at the dominant peak wavelength of 525 nm, which indicates a quality factor of 100. Under various injection current densities, a low thermally induced red shift in the 525-nm emission peak was observed. This indicates that the resonant microcavity effect contributes to the stability of electroluminescence emission wavelength
Practice Patterns in Evaluation of Living Kidney Donors in United Network for Organ Sharing-Approved Kidney Transplant Centers

Introduction: The current pattern of evaluation for living kidney donors was investigated. Methods: We designed a 37-question electronic survey to collect information about living kidney donor evaluation. Of the 181 United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS)-approved centers, 72 responded. Survey responses were coded and downloaded into SPSS. Data was expressed as means and standard deviations or the percentage of centers with specific responses. Results: 66% of the centers used a cut-off of <80 ml/min for exclusion of living kidney donors. 24-hour urine measuring creatinine clearance (CrCl) was the most common screening method for glomerular filtration rate (GFR) assessment in potential living donors. 56% of the centers excluded donors with blood pressure (BP) >140/90, whereas 22.7 and 7.1% excluded patients with pre-hypertension with a cut-off BP of 130/85 and 120/80, respectively. 66% of the centers used 24-hour urine creatinine to assess for proteinuria. 20% of the centers accepted living kidney donors with microalbuminuria and 84% accepted patients with a history of nephrolithiasis. 24% of the centers reported use of formal cognitive testing of potential living donors. Discussion: There were significant variations in exclusion criteria based on GFR, history of kidney stones, body mass index, BP and donors with urinary abnormalities. The definitions for hematuria and proteinuria were variable. There is a need for uniformity in selection and for a living donor registry. We also recommend raising the cut-off for estimated GFR to 90 ml/min to account for 10–15% overestimation when CrCl is used.
Secure Key Distribution Using Fragmentation and Assimilation in Wireless Sensor and Actor Networks

Secure key distribution is one of the most important building blocks to ensure confidentiality in wireless sensor and actor networks (WSANs). However, the key distribution becomes a challenging task when keys have to be relayed by compromised nodes in order to establish secure communication between distant nodes. To deal with this issue, we propose in this paper a key distribution scheme, named key distribution using fragmentation and assimilation (KDFA). In this scheme, the sender node splits the actual key into fragments and sends them through intermediate actor nodes towards the receiver node. The latter assimilates these key fragments using XOR operation to reconstruct the actual key. In this case, attacker cannot retrieve the actual key and only gets the key fragment. KDFA is composed of two parts: (a) key distribution protocol (KDP) to distribute the key using intra-actor and interactor communication scenarios and (b) key fragmentation algorithm (KFA) to slice the key using binary calculations. KDFA execution has been specified and formally verified using Rubin logic. Moreover, the performance and the resilience of the proposed protocol are further analyzed through extensive simulations using ns-2.35. Results show that KDFA is resilient against actor node compromise and key exposure.
ELiRF-UPV at IberEval 2017: Stance and Gender Detection in Tweets

This paper describes the participation of ELiRF-UPV team at the two Spanish subtasks of the Stance and Gender Detection in Tweets on Catalan Independence track of the IberEval workshop. We tested several approaches based on different models and tweet representations. Our best approaches are based on neural networks with one-hot vector representation and Support Vector Machines using bag-of-ngrams of chars. We achieved the first place on the gender detection subtask and the fourth place on the stance detection subtask.
Genetic manipulation of Salmonella serotype Bovismorbificans to aromatic-dependence and evaluation of its vaccine potential in mice.

The generation of smooth aromatic-dependent Salmonella serotype Bovismorbificans (Group C2, O6, 8) from a smooth wild-type parent strain by transduction with phage P1, and conjugation with Salmonella serotype Typhimurium carrying F'-8gal is described. The smooth aromatic-dependent S. serotype Bovismorbificans was non-lethal for mice at an oral challenge dose of 2 x 10(9) cfu (equivalent to 200 LD50 of the parent, wild-type strain). The safety of the auxotrophic mutant was further substantiated by comparing its multiplication kinetics in vivo with that of its virulent parent organisms. Mice immunised with live, smooth aromatic-dependent S. serotype Bovismorbificans by either the oral or intraperitoneal (i.p.) route were protected against oral challenge with virulent S. serotype Bovismorbificans; the degree of protection was significantly better (p less than 0.05) at a challenge dose of 100 or 200 LD50 in mice receiving two rather than one vaccination. In contrast, mice immunised with three doses of the formalin-killed virulent, parent organisms by the i.p. route were not protected, in spite of high antibody titres. Only those mice immunised with the live, smooth aromatic-dependent S. serotype Bovismorbificans i.p. developed significant (p less than 0.01-0.05) delayed-type hypersensitivity.
Nursing diagnosis of activity intolerance: clinical validation in patients with refractory angina.

PURPOSE The study aims to clinically validate the defining characteristics (DCs) of the nursing diagnosis (ND) of Activity Intolerance for patients with ischemic heart disease and refractory angina. METHODS Cross-sectional study was used, involving 22 patients with ND of Activity Intolerance. The Fehring method was used to validate the ND. FINDINGS Most DCs presented reliability indexes between 0.5 and 0.79. Three DCs presented reliability indexes ≥ 0.8. CONCLUSION All DCs were validated, and electrocardiographic changes indicating ischemia, verbal report of fatigue, and abnormal rate response to activity were considered as DC major. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE This study is relevant in daily nursing practice for guidance in establishing the care plan and describing the assistance for this group of patients.
Finger Spelling Recognition Using Kernel Descriptors and Depth Images

Deaf people use systems of communication based on sign language and finger spelling. Finger spelling is a system where each letter of the alphabet is represented by a unique and discrete movement of the hand. RGB and depth images can be used to characterize hand shapes corresponding to letters of the alphabet. There exists an advantage of depth sensors, as Kinect, over color cameras for finger spelling recognition: depth images provide 3D information of the hand. In this paper, we propose a model for finger spelling recognition based on depth information using kernel descriptors, consisting of four stages. The performance of this approach is evaluated on a dataset of real images of the American Sign Language finger spelling. Different experiments were performed using a combination of both descriptors over depth information. Our approach obtains 92.92% of mean accuracy with 50% of samples for training, outperforming other state-of-the-art methods.
Learning Sets of Musical Rules

If-then rules are one of the most expressive and intuitive knowledge representations and their application to musical knowledge raises particularly interesting questions. This paper briefly introduces several approaches to learning sets of rules and provides a representative sample of the issues involved in applying such techniques in a musical context. We then proceed to describe our approach to learning rules for the harmonization of popular music melodies.
EVALUATION OF AN ARTHROPOD SAMPLING TECHNIQUE FOR MEASURING FOOD AVAILABILITY FOR FOREST INSECTIVOROUS BIRDS

Abstract I provide a detailed description of an arthropod sampling technique, “branch clipping,” and evaluate its efficacy in measuring food availability for three foliage-gleaning migratory warbler species wintering in Jamaica. I incorporated foraging observations into the sampling protocol to facilitate a match between the distribution of branch-clip samples and the distribution of warbler foraging attacks over available microhabitats. Where the match was imprecise, I weighted branch clip samples accordingly. Foraging observations indicated that most foraging maneuvers used by the warblers were directed at prey located on foliage, which are likely to be well sampled by branch clipping. Published diet analyses permitted the elimination of prey taxa and sizes that were not eaten by the warblers, and suggested that nearly all of the items eaten were captured by branch clipping. Habitat-specific warbler attack rates, which can be used as independent evaluations of food availability measurements, closely matched prey density as estimated by branch clips across three habitat types (citrus orchard, coffee plantation, and dry limestone forest). These data suggest that branch clipping effectively measured food availability for foliage-gleaning warblers in Jamaica. The method is probably also well suited for other foliage-gleaning species, particularly in habitats and seasons in which birds feed largely on prey residing on or flying near leaf surfaces. Branch clipping is probably ill suited for species that feed heavily on either large, fast flying insects (e.g., Odonata), or on large masses of flies (e.g., Chironomidae) that seldom land on forest foliage.
fMRI evidence of degeneration‐induced neuropathic pain in diabetes: Enhanced limbic and striatal activations

Persistent neuropathic pain due to peripheral nerve degeneration in diabetes is a stressful symptom; however, the underlying neural substrates remain elusive. This study attempted to explore neuroanatomical substrates of thermal hyperalgesia and burning pain in a diabetic cohort due to pathologically proven cutaneous nerve degeneration (the painful group). By applying noxious 44°C heat stimuli to the right foot to provoke neuropathic pain symptoms, brain activation patterns were compared with those of healthy control subjects and patients with a similar degree of cutaneous nerve degeneration but without pain (the painless group). Psychophysical results showed enhanced affective pain ratings in the painful group. After eliminating the influence of different pain intensity ratings on cerebral responses, the painful group displayed augmented responses in the limbic and striatal structures, including the perigenual anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), superior frontal gyrus, medial thalamus, anterior insular cortex, lentiform nucleus (LN), and premotor area. Among these regions, blood oxygen level‐dependent (BOLD) signals in the ACC and LN were correlated with pain ratings to thermal stimulations in the painful group. Furthermore, activation maps of a simple regression analysis as well as a region of interest analysis revealed that responses in these limbic and striatal circuits paralleled the duration of neuropathic pain. However, in the painless group, BOLD signals in the primary somatosensory cortex and ACC were reduced. These results suggest that enhanced limbic and striatal activations underlie maladaptive responses after cutaneous nerve degeneration, which contributed to the development and maintenance of burning pain and thermal hyperalgesia in diabetes. Hum Brain Mapp 34:2733–2746, 2013. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Endogenous Activated Protein C Predicts Hemorrhagic Transformation and Mortality after Tissue Plasminogen Activator Treatment in Stroke Patients

Background: Activated protein C (APC) is a plasma serine protease with systemic anticoagulant and a wide spectrum of cytoprotective activities that has been proposed as a promising therapy for acute stroke. Therefore, we sought to investigate the role of endogenous APC in human ischemic stroke. Methods: Our target were 119 consecutive patients with an ischemic stroke involving the middle cerebral artery territory who received tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA) within 3 h of symptom onset. APC was measured before, as well as 1 and 2 h after t-PA administration, and again at 12 and 24 h after stroke onset. Cranial tomography scan was obtained at admission and repeated at 24–48 h or when a neurological worsening occurred to rule out the presence of hemorrhagic complications. The functional outcome was evaluated by 3-month modified Rankin Scale. Results: A total of 117 t-PA-treated patients were finally included in the analyses. APC peaked at 1 h after t-PA administration (pretreatment APC = 132.44 ± 36.39%, 1-hour APC = 184.20 ± 34.28%, 2-hour APC = 145.50 ± 35.23%; p < 0.0001). Interestingly, a high 2-hour APC level was associated with parenchymal hemorrhages (OR = 25.19; 95% CI = 4.76–133.19; p = 0.0001) and mortality (OR = 13.8; 95% CI = 2.58–73.63; p = 0.001), in a logistic regression model. Our results remained significant after Bonferroni correction for multiple testing. Conclusions: A high endogenous APC level 2 h after t-PA administration is independently associated with hemorrhagic transformation and mortality in our cohort of stroke patients. Establishing any causal link for these relationships needs further research.
Efficient optimization of multi-objective redundancy allocation problems in series-parallel systems

Article history: Received October 3, 2016 Received in revised format: October 22, 2016 Accepted November 25, 2016 Available online November 28 2016 Reliability issues are most important types of optimization problems and they are used in communication, transportation and electrical systems. This paper presents two mathematical models to solve the k-out-of-n redundancy problem where there are two objectives: maximization of reliability and minimization of cost subject to two constraints. Constraints are associated with weight and volume. In addition, strategy of redundancy is intended and ready to go cold and the components of the systems are also identical, because the model is to solve the complex models of the genetic algorithm (GA) and simulated annealing (SA). The proposed study uses NSGAII and MOPSO to solve the proposed studies and compare them using TOPSIS method. Growing Science Ltd. All rights reserved. 7 © 201
Towards Setting up of Software Experimental Laboratory for Image Processing Applications

The laboratory setup for image processing applications is typical in educational institutions. Image processing is the signal processing where the input is an image. Biometric is the field which involves an extreme use of image processing. Face Recognition is one of the biometric applications that use the principle of image processing. To demonstrate the image processing laboratory setup for java language based environment to work seamlessly for a series of mathematical computations in milliseconds of time, we are implementing eigenfaces algorithm in face recognition. The approach of using Eigenfaces was developed by Sirovich and Kirby and used by Matthew Turk and Alex Pentland in face classification. A set of eigenfaces is generated using mathematical tool Principal Component Analysis (PCA). The java development kit, Netbeans, jar libraries, java media framework comprises the efficient environment for image processing. [1,2]
Ship ISAR Image Classification with Probabilistic Neural Network

Ship detection and classification plays a significant role in naval warfare. Inverse Synthetic Aperture Radar (ISAR) images are being used extensively for feature extraction in ship detection and classification. The classification problem is solved in two steps. The first step is the extraction of features that characterize the target. The second step is to feed the computed feature values to a classifier to assign the target to one of the known classes stored in the database. In this paper, digital image processing techniques are used to extract target features from ship ISAR images for identification and classification. The feature vectors are computed from three different techniques. They are statistical moments, Zernike moments and polar transforms. These feature vectors obtained from the techniques mentioned are given as input to neural network based classifier. Here the Probabilistic neural network is implemented to classify the ship ISAR images. From the results obtained, the classification accuracy was found to be satisfactory with all the feature vectors.
Development of an in vitro-based potency assay for anthrax vaccine

The potency assay currently used to evaluate consistency of manufacture for the anthrax vaccine is contingent upon meeting specified parameters after statistical analysis of the percent survival and time to death of vaccinated guinea pigs after challenge with spores of a virulent strain ofBacillus anthracis. During the development of a new anthrax vaccine based upon recombinant protective antigen (rPA) adsorbed to aluminum hydroxide gel (Alhydrogel), we found that the serological response of female A/J mice, as measured by a quantitative anti-rPA IgG ELISA, may be an effective method to monitor a manufacturer’s consistency for rPA-based vaccines. An advantage of the proposed in vitro-based potency assay is that it will not need stringent biosafety containment measures as required by the current guinea pig potency assay. Published by Elsevier Ltd.