Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Quantitative Systematic Review of Clinical Outcome Measure Use in Peripheral Nerve Injury of the Upper Limb

Abstract BACKGROUND Peripheral nerve injury (PNI) is common, leading to reduced function, pain, and psychological impact. Treatment has not progressed partly due to inability to compare outcomes between centers managing PNI. Numerous outcome measures exist but there is no consensus on which outcome measures to use nor when. OBJECTIVE To perform a systematic review in order to describe and classify outcome measures used in PNI. METHODS A search of Ovid Medline, Ovid Embase, Allied and Complementary Medicine Database (AMED), and CENTRAL (Cochrane Clinical Trials) was conducted. Randomized control trials (RCTs), cohort studies, and case-controlled and case series (≥5 participants) published from inception of the database until 2019 investigating adult patients with a traumatic upper limb PNI in which an outcome measurement was utilized were included. RESULTS A total of 96 studies were included (15 RCTs, 8 case-control studies, 18 cohort studies, 5 observational studies, and the remainder were case series or retrospective reviews). A total of 56 individual outcome measures were identified, utilized across 28 different countries and 7097 patients. Ten core domains were defined: sensory subjective, sensory objective, motor subjective, motor objective, sensorimotor function, psychology and well-being, disability, quality of life, pain and discomfort, and neurotrophic measures. CONCLUSION Lack of consensus on outcome measure use hinders comparison of outcomes between nerve injury centers and the development of novel treatments. Development of a core outcome set will help standardize outcome reporting, improve translation of novel treatments from lab to clinical practice, and ensure future research in PNI is more amenable to systematic review and meta-analysis.
"Click Chemistry" for Molecular Imaging

Click chemistry is a highly-selective and high-yield chemical approach which uses a wide scope of materials and does not call for purification. Molecular imaging is an in vivo characterization and measurement of biologic processes at the cellular and molecular level. Representative imaging modalities of molecular imaging are optical imaging, nuclear imaging, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Up to date, click chemistry has been widely employed by molecular imaging to trap imaging probes on site and trace the biological events with high efficiency and high sensitivity. It has played an important role in early detection of disease, real-time monitoring of drug delivery and investigating the func- tions of biomolecules in vivo. Herein, we introduce the concept of click chemistry and illustrate the design of probes for molecular imaging based on the strategies of click chemistry.
Pharmacology of apocynin: a natural acetophenone

Abstract Apocynin is a naturally occurring acetophenone, found in the roots of Apocynum cannabinum and Picrorhiza kurroa. Various chemical and pharmaceutical modifications have been carried out to enhance the absorption and duration of action of apocynin, like, formulation of chitosan-based apocynin-loaded solid lipid nanoparticles, chitosan-oligosaccharide based nanoparticles, and biodegradable polyanhydride nanoparticles. Apocynin has been subjected to a wide range of experimental screening and has proved to be useful for amelioration of a variety of disorders, like diabetic complications, neurodegeneration, cardiovascular disorders, lung cancer, hepatocellular cancer, pancreatic cancer, and pheochromocytoma. Apocynin has been primarily reported as an NADPH oxidase (NOX) inhibitor and prevents translocation of its p47phox subunit to the plasma membrane, observed in neurodegeneration and hypertension. However, recent studies highlight its off-target effects that it is able to function as a scavenger of non-radical oxidant species, which is relevant for its activity against NOX 4 mediated production of hydrogen peroxide. Additionally, apocynin has shown inhibition of eNOS-dependent superoxide production in diabetic cardiomyopathy, reduction of NLRP3 activation and TGFβ/Smad signaling in diabetic nephropathy, diminished VEGF expression and decreased retinal NF-κB activation in diabetic retinopathy, inhibition of P38/MAPK/Caspase3 pathway in pheochromocytoma, inhibition of AKT-GSK3β and ERK1/2 pathways in pancreatic cancer, and decreased FAK/PI3K/Akt signaling in hepatocellular cancer. This review aims to discuss the pharmacokinetics and mechanisms of the pharmacological actions of apocynin.
A global live cell barcoding approach for multiplexed mass cytometry profiling of mouse tumors

With the advent of cancer immunology, mass cytometry has been increasingly employed to characterize the responses to cancer therapies and the tumor microenvironment (TME). One of its most notable applications is efficient multiplexing of samples into batches by dedicating a number of metal isotope channels to barcodes, enabling robust data acquisition and analysis. Barcoding is most effective when markers are present in all cells of interest. While CD45 has been shown to be a reliable marker for barcoding all immune cells in a given sample, a strategy to reliably barcode mouse cancer cells has not been demonstrated. To this end, we identified CD29 and CD98 as markers widely expressed by commonly used mouse cancer cell lines. We conjugated anti-CD29 and anti-CD98 antibodies to cadmium or indium metals and validated their utility in 10-plex barcoding of live cells. Finally, we established a potentially novel barcoding system incorporating the combination of CD29, CD98, and CD45 to multiplex 10 tumors from s.c. MC38 and KPC tumor models, while successfully recapitulating the known contrast in the PD1-PDL1 axis between the 2 models. The ability to barcode tumor cells along with immune cells empowers the interrogation of the tumor-immune interactions in mouse TME studies.
Optimising predictive modelling of Ross River virus using meteorological variables

Background Statistical models are regularly used in the forecasting and surveillance of infectious diseases to guide public health. Variable selection assists in determining factors associated with disease transmission, however, often overlooked in this process is the evaluation and suitability of the statistical model used in forecasting disease transmission and outbreaks. Here we aim to evaluate several modelling methods to optimise predictive modelling of Ross River virus (RRV) disease notifications and outbreaks in epidemiological important regions of Victoria and Western Australia. Methodology/Principal findings We developed several statistical methods using meteorological and RRV surveillance data from July 2000 until June 2018 in Victoria and from July 1991 until June 2018 in Western Australia. Models were developed for 11 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in Victoria and seven LGAs in Western Australia. We found generalised additive models and generalised boosted regression models, and generalised additive models and negative binomial models to be the best fit models when predicting RRV outbreaks and notifications, respectively. No association was found with a model’s ability to predict RRV notifications in LGAs with greater RRV activity, or for outbreak predictions to have a higher accuracy in LGAs with greater RRV notifications. Moreover, we assessed the use of factor analysis to generate independent variables used in predictive modelling. In the majority of LGAs, this method did not result in better model predictive performance. Conclusions/Significance We demonstrate that models which are developed and used for predicting disease notifications may not be suitable for predicting disease outbreaks, or vice versa. Furthermore, poor predictive performance in modelling disease transmissions may be the result of inappropriate model selection methods. Our findings provide approaches and methods to facilitate the selection of the best fit statistical model for predicting mosquito-borne disease notifications and outbreaks used for disease surveillance.
Extremely low surface recombination velocities on low‐resistivity n‐type and p‐type crystalline silicon using dynamically deposited remote plasma silicon nitride films

Extremely low upper‐limit effective surface recombination velocities (Seff.max) of 5.6 and 7.4 cm/s, respectively, are obtained on ~1.5 Ω cm n‐type and p‐type silicon wafers, using silicon nitride (SiNx) films dynamically deposited in an industrial inline plasma‐enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PECVD) reactor. SiNx films with optimised antireflective properties in air provide an excellent Seff.max of 9.5 cm/s after high‐temperature (>800 °C) industrial firing. Such low Seff.max values were previously only attainable for SiNx films deposited statically in laboratory reactors or after optimised annealing; however, in our case, the SiNx films were dynamically deposited onto large‐area c‐Si wafers using a fully industrial reactor and provide excellent surface passivation results both in the as‐deposited condition and after industrial‐firing, which is a widely used process in the photovoltaic industry. Contactless corona‐voltage measurements reveal that these SiNx films contain a relatively high positive charge of (4–8) × 1012 cm−2 combined with a relatively low interface defect density of ~5 × 1011 eV−1 cm−2. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A VALIDATED HPTLC METHOD FOR THE DETERMINATION OF CLOPIDOGREL IN PHARMACEUTICAL DOSAGE FORMS

A simple, selective and precise high performance thin layer chromatographic method was developed and validated for the determination of Clopidogrel in bulk drug and in formulation. The method uses aluminium plates pre-coated with silica gel 60F-254 as the stationary phase and hexane: methanol: chloroform: ammonia (16:2:1.5:0.5, v/v/v/v) as solvent system. This system gave compact spot for Clopidogrel (Rf: 0.65 ± 0.02). Densitometric analysis of Clopidogrel was performed in the absorbance mode at 254nm.The linear regression analysis data for the calibration plot showed good linear relationship over a concentration range of 1 – 10 µg spot -1 . The values of correlation coefficient, slope and intercept were 0.998, 661.6 and -4.333 respectively. The method was validated for precision, robustness and recovery. The limit of detection and limit of quantification were 0.0786 and 0.785 µg spot -1 , respectively.
Practicing the Novolac deep‐UV portable conformable masking technique

Deep‐UV portable conformable masking, a double‐layer resist patterning technique, combines the advantages of a noncontact submicron printing technique such as refractive projection imaging or scanning electron‐beam patterning with those of deep‐UV conformable printing. Feasibility studies were reported earlier.1,2 Here, the processes leading to fabrication of 1‐μm MOSFET devices by e‐beam and step‐and‐repeat optical projection printing will be presented. These include processing steps to retain or remove the top resist layer, to obtain resist image profiles suitable for liftoff or for reactive ion etching (RIE), to improve adhesion, to treat the interfacial layer between the two resists, to prevent cracking, and to monitor the development of the two resist layers. Electrical testing results on pin hole density are given, followed by uncapped and capped resist images of 1‐μm double‐poly‐Si MOSFET test sites as well as 0.8‐μm thick Al lifted‐off images.
Genome-wide analysis of nearly all the victims of a 6200 year old massacre

Paleogenomic and bioanthropological studies of ancient massacres have highlighted sites where the victims were male and plausibly died all in battle, or were executed members of the same family as might be expected from a killing intentionally directed at subsets of a community, or where the massacred individuals were plausibly members of a migrant community in conflict with previously established groups, or where there was evidence that the killing was part of a religious ritual. Here we provide evidence of killing on a massive scale in prehistory that was not directed to a specific family, based on genome-wide ancient DNA for 38 of the 41 documented victims of a 6,200 year old massacre in Potočani, Croatia and combining our results with bioanthropological data. We highlight three results: (i) the majority of individuals were unrelated and instead were a sample of what was clearly a large farming population, (ii) the ancestry of the individuals was homogenous which makes it unlikely that the massacre was linked to the arrival of new genetic ancestry, and (iii) there were approximately equal numbers of males and females. Combined with the bioanthropological evidence that the victims were of a wide range of ages, these results show that large-scale indiscriminate killing is a horror that is not just a feature of the modern and historic periods, but was also a significant process in pre-state societies.
Fecal Dipeptidyl Peptidase-4: An Emergent Biomarker in Inflammatory Bowel Disease

INTRODUCTION: Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) is a membrane-bound glycoprotein that acts as a receptor but also exists in a soluble form. It has been recognized as a mediator of inflammation and considered a biomarker in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). METHODS: We evaluated a prospectively recruited cohort, consisting of 101 patients with IBD, using validated clinical indexes; 22 patients with ulcerative colitis (UC) underwent endoscopic evaluation. Fecal DPP-4 (fDPP-4) levels were analyzed and correlated with clinical scores, Mayo endoscopic score (in UC patients), serum DPP-4, C-reactive protein, and fecal calprotectin. Immunohistochemical staining for DPP-4 in intestinal biopsies was also performed. RESULTS: When compared with remitters, median fDPP-4 levels were higher in patients with ileal Crohn's disease (CD) (7,584 [1,464–7,816] vs 2,104 [630–2,676] ng/mL, P = 0.015) and lower in patients with UC exhibiting clinical activity (1,213 [559–1,682] vs 7,814 [2,555–7,985] ng/mL, P < 0.001). Patients with UC presenting endoscopic activity also had lower levels than remitters (939 [559–1,420] vs 7,544 [4,531–7,940] ng/mL, P = 0.006). Fecal DPP-4 discriminated clinical activity from remission with areas under the curve of 0.76 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.58–0.94, P = 0.015) and 0.80 (95% CI 0.68–0.93, P < 0.001) in CD and UC, respectively; it allowed to differentiate endoscopic activity in patients with UC, with areas under the curve of 0.84 (95% CI 0.63–1.00, P = 0.009). Immunohistochemical analysis revealed higher DPP-4 apical expression in UC remitters, but no statistically significant differences were revealed between patients with ileal CD. DISCUSSION: Our results suggest that fDPP-4 can be used as a biomarker of IBD activity, particularly in UC. The expression profiles in intestinal tissue might represent a functional compartmentalization of DPP-4 expression.
ANGPTL3 Inhibition With Evinacumab Results in Faster Clearance of IDL and LDL apoB in Patients With Homozygous Familial Hypercholesterolemia—Brief Report

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text. Objective: The mechanism by which evinacumab, a fully human monoclonal antibody directed against ANGPTL3 (angiopoietin-like 3 protein) lowers plasma LDL (low-density lipoprotein) cholesterol levels in patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia is unknown. We investigated apoB (apolipoprotein B) containing lipoprotein kinetic parameters in patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia, before and after treatment with evinacumab. Approach and Results: Four patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia underwent apoB kinetic analyses in 2 centers as part of a substudy of a trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of evinacumab in patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia. The enrichment of apoB with the stable isotope (5,5,5-2H3)-Leucine was measured in VLDL (very LDL), IDL (intermediate-density lipoprotein), and LDL at different time points before and after intravenous administration of 15 mg/kg evinacumab. Evinacumab lowered LDL-cholesterol by 59±2% and increased IDL apoB and LDL apoB fractional catabolic rate in all 4 homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia subjects, by 616±504% and 113±14%, respectively. VLDL-apoB production rate decreased in 2 of the 4 subjects. Conclusions: In this small study, ANGPTL3 inhibition with evinacumab is associated with an increase in the fractional catabolic rate of IDL apoB and LDL apoB, suggesting that evinacumab lowers LDL-cholesterol predominantly by increasing apoB-containing lipoprotein clearance from the circulation. Additional studies are needed to unravel which factors are determinants in this biological pathway. Registration: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials. gov; Unique identifier: NCT04722068.
Distribution and Community Composition of Anammox Bacteria in Shallow Groundwater of the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal

The abundance and diversity of anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) bacteria were assessed in 152 groundwater samples in the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. Anammox bacterial 16S rRNA genes were detected in 54% (37/68) of samples collected in the dry season at 1.6×105–8.8×106 copies L–1, and in 60% (50/84) of samples collected in the wet season at 4.3×104–1.2×107 copies L–1. The 16S rRNA genes of “Candidatus Brocadia”, “Candidatus Anammoxoglobus”, and five new deduced anammox bacterial phylotypes were detected in the shallow groundwater samples. Diverse anammox bacteria were broadly distributed in the shallow groundwater aquifer of the Kathmandu Valley.
Legal

The authors reanalyzed data from 2 influential studies—A. R. McConnell and J. M. Leibold (2001) and J. C. Ziegert and P. J. Hanges (2005)—that explore links between implicit bias and discriminatory behavior and that have been invoked to support strong claims about the predictive validity of the Implicit Association Test. In both of these studies, the inclusion of race Implicit Association Test scores in regression models reduced prediction errors by only tiny amounts, and Implicit Association Test scores did not permit prediction of individual-level behaviors. Furthermore, the results were not robust when the impact of rater reliability, statistical specifications, and/or outliers were taken into account, and reanalysis of A. R. McConnell & J. M. Leibold (2001) revealed a pattern of behavior consistent with a pro-Black behavioral bias, rather than the anti-Black bias suggested in the original study.
Augmenting Tendon‐to‐Bone Repair with Functionally Graded Scaffolds

Tendon‐to‐bone repair often fails because the functionally graded attachment is not regenerated during the healing process. Biomimetic scaffolds that recapitulate the unique features of the native tendon‐to‐bone attachment hold great promise for enhancing the healing process. Among various types of scaffolds that are developed and evaluated for tendon‐to‐bone repair, those with gradations (in either a stratified or a continuous fashion) in composition, structure, mechanical properties, and cell phenotype have gained the most attention. In this progress report, the recent efforts in the rational design and fabrication of functionally graded scaffolds based upon electrospun nanofiber mats and inverse opal structures, as well as the evaluation of their applications in augmenting tendon‐to‐bone repair, are reviewed. This report concludes with perspectives on the necessary future steps for clinical translation of the scaffolds.
Combinatorial Study of Tin-Transition Metal Alloys as Negative Electrodes for Lithium-Ion Batteries

A survey of the structural and electrochemical properties of combinatorially sputter deposited Sn-transition metal alloys [Sn 1-x M x (0 0.48 to at least x = 0.65 for M = Ti, x > 0.39 to at least x = 0.60 for M = V, 0.47 < x < 0.73 for M = Cr, and 0.28 < x < 0.43 for M = Co. Electrochemical tests using a 64 channel Li/Sn 1-x M x combinatorial electrochemical cell show that the specific capacity of the alloys drops with transition metal content, as expected. The Sn 1-x Co x system shows an amorphous phase with the largest specific capacity, primarily because the amorphous phase is reached at the lowest transition metal content for Sn 1-x Co x . Capacity retention vs cycle number is generally best for those compositions that are amorphous or highly nanostructured. Arguments are presented to suggest that amorphous Sn 1-x V x alloys are the best choice among Sn 1-x M x alloys. Comparison with literature results for samples prepared by mechanical alloying, electrodeposition, vacuum deposition, etc. is made.
Process, Power, and Impact of the Institutional Review Board in Criminology and Criminal Justice Research

While research on Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) has been conducted on issues ranging from quality, process, and effectiveness, gaps remain. Social science researchers have raised issues regarding decisions by IRBs applied to the social sciences based on biomedical research. To date, little is known about the experience of social scientists in criminology and criminal justice with IRBs and this research seeks to fill this gap. An online survey, including open- and closed-ended questions drawn from the validated IRB-Researcher Assessment Tool, was administered to members of the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences and the American Society of Criminology about their experiences with IRBs. Results revealed that researchers report experiencing challenges with their IRBs including timeline delays of their research, bias against their research, and decisions that protect legal liability rather than human subjects ethics. Recommendations for improving IRB reviews of protocols and challenges unique to criminology and criminal justice are discussed.
Ga/Au alloy catalyst for single crystal silicon-nanowire epitaxy

Epitaxial growth of single crystalline silicon nanowires along the ⟨111⟩ directions was obtained on Si (100) and Si (111) substrates by gold-gallium-nanoparticle-catalyzed chemical vapor deposition with a SiH4 precursor. In comparison to the pure gold catalyst, the proportion of the nanowires growing perpendicular to the substrate is much higher and the wires show almost no kinks. The average diameter is smaller, and the diameter and length distributions are narrowly dispersed. By making a particular choice of growth conditions, it is possible to realize either rodlike or tapered silicon nanowires, which may be desirable for applications as field emitters.
Development and Validation of Oseltamivir Phosphate API by UV-Spectrophotometer

A simple and rapid UV-spectrophotometer estimation method for the evaluation of Oseltamivir Phosphate is used in the treatment and prophylaxis of both influenza A and influenza B viruses has been developed and assessed. The proposed methods were successfully applied for the estimation of Oseltamivir Phosphate in commercial pharmaceutical preparation with UV detection at 217 nm. A Shimadzu 1700 UV-visible spectrophotometer with 1cm matched quartz cells and distilled water solvent were employed in this method. Developed methods obeyed Beer's law in the concentration range of 10 to 70ig/ml having correlation coefficient of 0.999. Method was validated statistically. Percentage recovery of the drug for the proposed method ranged from (99.85%) indicating no interference of the excipients. The developed method was validated with respect to linearity, precision, accuracy (recovery), limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantitation (LOQ).