Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Decrease in Oxidative Stress Parameters after Post‐Ischaemic Recombinant Human Erythropoietin Administration in the Hippocampus of Rats Exposed to Focal Cerebral Ischaemia

Recombinant human erythropoietin (rhEpo) is a multi‐functional drug with antioxidant potential. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms of its action are still unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of rhEpo on the brain infarct volume as well as on the levels of the neuronal damage, oxidative stress parameters and active caspase‐3, nuclear factor erythroid 2‐related factor 2 (Nrf2) and haemeoxygenase‐1 (HO‐1) expressions in the hippocampi of rats exposed to the right middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) for 1 hr. Ischaemic animals received either vehicle or rhEpo (5000 IU/kg, i.p.) immediately or 3 hr after the induction of ischaemia. Sham‐operated, vehicle‐treated animals served as the control group. Rats were killed 24 hr after the onset of the ischaemic or sham experimental procedure. MCAO caused ipsilateral brain infarction within the striatum and cortex. In the CA1 region of the hippocampi, we did not find significant neuronal loss, but a statistically significant rise in the active caspase‐3 and Nrf2 protein expressions was registered. We detected also significant increases in the hippocampal levels of oxidative stress parameters (thiobarbituric acid‐reactive substances, superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase). Post‐ischaemic administration of rhEpo significantly reduced the brain infarct volume, decreased levels of all tested oxidative stress parameters and increased the Nrf2 expression level. These findings suggest that decrease in oxidative stress parameters in the hippocampus could be an early indicator of post‐ischaemic neuroprotective effect of rhEpo in rats exposed to focal cerebral ischaemia and that this effect could be attributable to additional post‐ischaemic activation of Nrf2 endogenous antioxidant system.
The relationship between services and outcomes for a prison reentry population of those with severe mental illness

It is approximated that 14% of prison inmates have severe mental illness (SMI; Fazel, S., & Danesh, J. (2002). Serious mental disorder in 23000 prisoners: A systematic review of 62 surveys. The Lancet, 359, 545–550) and 78% of mentally ill state prison inmates recidivate during their lifetime (James, D.J., & Glaze, L.E. (2006). Mental health problems of prison and jail inmates. Washington, DC: Bureau of Justice Statistics, US Department of Justice. Retrieved from http://www.ojp. usdoj.gov/bjs/). One factor that is thought to be particularly associated with recidivism among people with SMI is the lack of community services available upon release (Barr, H. (2003). Transinstitutionalization in the courts: Brad H. v. City of New York, and the fight for discharge planning for people with psychiatric disabilities leaving Rikers Island. Crime & Delinquency, 49, 97–123; Casper, E.S. , & Clark, D. (2004). Service utilization, incidents, and hospitalizations among people with mental illnesses and incarceration histor.
Rho Kinase Inhibitor, Fasudil, Attenuates Contrast‐induced Acute Kidney Injury

In this study, we tested the hypothesis that fasudil, a Rho kinase inhibitor, would protect against contrast‐induced acute kidney injury (CI‐AKI) in a mouse model and attempted to elucidate the mechanism involved. Mice subjected to unilateral ligation of the left anterior renal pedicle were divided into four groups: (1) control group, (2) CI‐AKI induced by contrast media (CM group), (3) CI‐AKI plus low‐dose fasudil (LD group) and (4) CI‐AKI plus high‐dose fasudil (HD group). Animals from groups 2–4 received iodixanol (4.0 g iodine/kg), and the control group received saline. At 12, 2 hr before iodixanol injection and 4 hr after iodixanol administration, the animals in groups 3–4 received 3 or 10 mg/kg fasudil, respectively. Renal blood flow, renal function parameters, kidney histology and the expression of proteins that regulates apoptosis and inflammation were determined 24 hr later. Fasudil treatment notably ameliorated contrast medium‐induced medullary damage, restored renal function, suppressed renal tubular apoptosis, ameliorated redox imbalance and DNA damage. Fasudil had a nephroprotective effect that was partially attributed to its anti‐inflammatory, anti‐apoptotic and antioxidant effects of inhibiting the Rho/ROCK pathway.
Uncertainty Quantification in MD Simulations. Part I: Forward Propagation

This work focuses on quantifying the effect of intrinsic (thermal) noise and parametric uncertainty in molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. We consider isothermal, isobaric MD simulations of TIP4P (or four-site) water at ambient conditions, $T=298$ K and $P=1$ atm. Parametric uncertainty is assumed to originate from three force-field parameters that are parametrized in terms of standard uniform random variables. The thermal fluctuations inherent in MD simulations combine with parametric uncertainty to yield nondeterministic, noisy MD predictions of bulk water properties. Relying on polynomial chaos (PC) expansions, we develop a framework that enables us to isolate the impact of parametric uncertainty on the MD predictions and control the effect of the intrinsic noise. We construct the PC representations of quantities of interest (QoIs) using two different approaches: nonintrusive spectral projection (NISP) and Bayesian inference. We verify a priori the legitimacy of the NISP approach by verifying that the.
Efficient Implementation of Finite Element Methods on Nonmatching and Overlapping Meshes in Three Dimensions

In recent years, a number of finite element methods have been formulated for the solution of partial differential equations on complex geometries based on nonmatching or overlapping meshes. Examples of such methods are the fictitious domain method, the extended finite element method, and Nitsche's method. In all these methods, integrals must be computed over cut cells or subsimplices, which is challenging to implement, especially in three space dimensions. In this note, we address the main challenges of such an implementation and demonstrate good performance of a fully general code for automatic detection of mesh intersections and integration over cut cells and subsimplices. As a canonical example of an overlapping mesh method, we consider Nitsche's method, which we apply to Poisson's equation and a linear elastic problem.
Global Asymptotic Regulation via Time-Varying Output Feedback for a Class of Uncertain Nonlinear Systems

This paper is concerned with the global regulation by time-varying output feedback for a class of uncertain nonlinear systems with unmeasurable states dependent time-varying growth and unknown control coefficients. Remarkably, in this paper, the systems allow the heavily time-varying nonlinearities (see Assumption 1), and are considerably different from those in the existing closely related literature. Moreover, the unknown system control coefficients don't necessarily belong to any known finite interval (see Assumption 2), and substantially relax the restrictions on the control coefficients in the existing closely related works. These two aspects make the adaptive method technically more difficult to implement, and consequently a time-varying approach is developed in this paper. Motivated by the recent works, a new time-varying high-gain observer is first designed to rebuild the unmeasurable system states, and in addition to compensate the serious uncertainties/unknowns and time variations in control coe.
Sparse Representation Prior and Total Variation-Based Image Deblurring under Impulse Noise

In this paper, we study the image recovery problem where the observed image is simultaneously corrupted by blur and impulse noise. Our proposed patch-based model contains three terms: the sparse representation prior, the total variation regularization, and the data-fidelity term. We are interested in the two-phase approach. The first phase is to identify the possible impulse noise positions; the second phase is to recover the image via the patch-based model using noise position information. An alternating minimization method is then applied to solve the model. This approach works extremely well for image deblurring under salt-and-pepper noise. However, as the detection for random-valued noise is usually unreliable, extra work is then needed. Indeed, to get better recovery results for the latter case, we combine the two separate phases to simultaneously detect the random-valued noise positions and to recover the image. The numerical experiments clearly demonstrate the super performance of the proposed methods.
On the Optimal Control of Impulsive Hybrid Systems on Riemannian Manifolds

This paper provides a geometrical derivation of the hybrid minimum principle (HMP) for autonomous impulsive hybrid systems on Riemannian manifolds, i.e., systems where the manifold valued component of the hybrid state trajectory may have a jump discontinuity when the discrete component changes value. The analysis is expressed in terms of extremal trajectories on the cotangent bundle of the manifold state space. In the case of autonomous hybrid systems, switching manifolds are defined as smooth embedded submanifolds of the state manifold and the jump function is defined as a smooth map on the switching manifold. The HMP results are obtained in the case of time invariant switching manifolds and state jumps on Riemannian manifolds.
Eigendecomposition of the Discrete Double-Curl Operator with Application to Fast Eigensolver for Three-Dimensional Photonic Crystals

This article focuses on the discrete double-curl operator arising in the Maxwell equation that models three-dimensional photonic crystals with face-centered cubic lattice. The discrete double-curl operator is the degenerate coefficient matrix of the generalized eigenvalue problems (GEVP) due to the Maxwell equation. We derive an eigendecomposition of the degenerate coefficient matrix and explore an explicit form of orthogonal basis for the range and null spaces of this matrix. To solve the GEVP, we apply these theoretical results to project the GEVP to a standard eigenvalue problem (SEVP), which involves only the eigenspace associated with the nonzero eigenvalues of the GEVP, and therefore the zero eigenvalues are excluded and will not degrade the computational efficiency. This projected SEVP can be solved efficiently by the inverse Lanczos method. The linear systems within the inverse Lanczos method are well-conditioned and can be solved efficiently by the conjugate gradient method without using a precon.
Parametric modulation of neural activity during face emotion processing in unaffected youth at familial risk for bipolar disorder.

OBJECTIVES Both patients with pediatric bipolar disorder (BD) and unaffected youth at familial risk (AR) for the illness show impairments in face emotion labeling. Few studies, however, have examined brain regions engaged in AR youth when processing emotional faces. Moreover, studies have yet to explore neural responsiveness to subtle changes in face emotion in AR youth. METHODS Sixty-four unrelated youth, including 20 patients with BD, 15 unaffected AR youth, and 29 healthy comparisons (HC), completed functional magnetic resonance imaging. Neutral faces were morphed with angry or happy faces in 25% intervals. In specific phases of the task, youth alternatively made explicit (hostility) or implicit (nose width) ratings of the faces. The slope of blood oxygenated level-dependent activity was calculated across neutral to angry and neutral to happy face stimuli. RESULTS Behaviorally, both subjects with BD (p ≤ 0.001) and AR youth (p ≤ 0.05) rated faces as less hostile relative to HC. Consistent with this, in response to increasing anger on the face, patients with BD and AR youth showed decreased modulation in the amygdala and inferior frontal gyrus (IFG; BA 46) compared to HC (all p ≤ 0.05). Amygdala dysfunction was present across both implicit and explicit rating conditions, but IFG modulation deficits were specific to the explicit condition. With increasing happiness, AR youth showed aberrant modulation in the IFG, which was also sensitive to task demands (all p ≤ 0.05). CONCLUSIONS Decreased amygdala and IFG modulation in patients with BD and AR youth may be pathophysiological risk markers for BD, and may underlie the social cognition and face emotion labeling deficits observed in BD and AR youth.
The Statistical Analysis of Event Histories in Longitudinal Studies of Aging

RÉSUMÉ Les données tirées d'études longitudinales possèdent un certain nombre d'avantages pour les recherches en gérontologie; toutefois, les effets de l'attrition et la complexité accrue des structures de données avec de multiples observations peuvent poser certains problèmes pour les analyses statistiques. Les modèles de risques proportionnels permettent un examen de l'histoire d'un événement par l'utilisation de toutes les observations d'une variable dépendante. Ces modèles peuvent comprendre des covariables afin d'accroître leur capacité d'explication. Des hypothèses et des applications de l'analyse de l'histoire d'un événement utilisant des risques proportionnels sont décrits. L'analyse des données sur la mortalité tirées de l'étude longitudinale du vieillissement menée en Ontario en constitue un exemple pertinent. Les extensions du modèle de risques proportionnels et les logiciels disponibles sur le marché sont également traités. ABSTRACT Data from longitudinal studies have a number of advantages for gerontological research, but the effects of attrition and the increased complexity of data structures with multiple observations may pose some problems for statistical analysis. Proportional hazards models allow for the examination of event histories using all observations of a dependent variable, and these models can incorporate time-dependent covariates to increase their explanatory power. The assumptions and applications of event history analysis using proportional hazards models are described, and the analysis of mortality data from the Ontario Longitudinal Study of Aging provides a relevant example. Extensions of proportional hazards models and commercially available software are also discussed.
Soft Heaps Simplified

In 1998, Chazelle [J. ACM, 47 (2000), pp. 1012--1027] introduced a new kind of meldable heap (priority queue) called the soft heap. Soft heaps trade accuracy for speed: the heap operations are allowed to increase the keys of certain items, thereby making these items bad, as long as the number of bad items in the data structure is at most $\varepsilon m$, where $m$ is the total number of insertions performed so far, and $\varepsilon$ is an error parameter. The amortized time per heap operation is $O(\lg \frac{1}{\varepsilon})$, reduced from $O(\lg n)$, where $n$ is the number of items in the heap. Chazelle used soft heaps in several applications, including a faster deterministic minimum-spanning-tree algorithm and a new deterministic linear-time selection algorithm. We give a simplified implementation of soft heaps that uses less space and avoids Chazelle's dismantling operations. We also give a simpler, improved analysis that yields an amortized time bound of $O(\lg \frac{1}{\varepsilon})$ for each deleti.
Electrohydrodynamic Drop Deformation by Strong Electric Fields: Slender-Body Analysis

Slender-body approximations are utilized to analyze drop elongation by a uniformly applied electric field. The Taylor--Melcher model of leaky-dielectric liquids is employed, with electrohydrodynamic flow animation by electrical shear stresses at the free surface. Using the drop slenderness as the small asymptotic parameter, separate asymptotic expansions of the pertinent fields are presented in “inner” and “outer” regions, respectively, corresponding to the drop cross-sectional and longitudinal scales, as well as an additional expansion in the drop phase. For a given shape, both the electric potential and flow field are calculated. Asymptotic matching is possible only for low drop viscosity. The normal-stress condition on the free surface provides a scaling relation between the slenderness parameter and the dimensionless electric field, expressed as a capillary number. The predicted slenderness scaling, inversely with the $6/7$-power of the electric field, is the same as that appropriate for dielectric li.
Input-to-State Stability of Nonlinear Impulsive Systems

We prove that impulsive systems, which possess an input-to-state stable (ISS) Lyapunov function, are ISS for time sequences satisfying the fixed dwell-time condition. If an ISS Lyapunov function is the exponential one, we provide a stronger result, which guarantees uniform ISS of the whole system over sequences satisfying the generalized average dwell-time condition. Then we prove two small-gain theorems that provide a construction of an ISS Lyapunov function for an interconnection of impulsive systems if the ISS Lyapunov functions for subsystems are known. The construction of local ISS Lyapunov functions via the linearization method is provided. Relations between small-gain and dwell-time conditions as well as between different types of dwell-time conditions are also investigated. Although our results are novel already in the context of finite-dimensional systems, we prove them for systems based on differential equations in Banach spaces that makes obtained results considerably more general.
The brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) Val66Met polymorphism is associated with increased body mass index and insulin resistance measures in bipolar disorder and schizophrenia

We tested the hypothesis that a common functional variant in brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), Val66Met, which has been shown to be associated with increased body mass index (BMI) in schizophrenia (SCZ) and schizoaffective disorder (SAD), is also associated with antipsychotic‐induced weight gain in bipolar disorder (BPD). Association of Val66Met with other metabolic measures, including high‐ and low‐density cholesterol, triglycerides, total cholesterol, fasting blood glucose, and hemoglobin A1c, was also tested.
Reducing the Number of Function Evaluations in Mesh Adaptive Direct Search Algorithms

The mesh adaptive direct search (Mads) class of algorithms is designed for nonsmooth optimization, where the objective function and constraints are typically computed by launching a time-consuming computer simulation. Each iteration of a Mads algorithm attempts to improve the current best-known solution by launching the simulation at a finite number of trial points. Common implementations of Mads generate 2n trial points at each iteration, where $n$ is the number of variables in the optimization problem. The objective of the present work is to dynamically reduce that number. We present an algorithmic framework that reduces the number of simulations to exactly $n+1$, without impacting the theoretical guarantees from the convergence analysis. Numerical experiments are conducted for several different contexts; the results suggest that these strategies allow the new algorithms to reach a better solution with fewer function evaluations.
The Case against Stress Ulcer Prophylaxis in 2007

This feature examines the impact of pharmacologic interventions on the treatment of the critically ill patient — an area of health care that has become increasingly complex. Recent advances in drug therapy (including evolving and controversial data) for adult intensive care unit patients will be reviewed and assessed in terms of clinical, humanistic, and economic outcomes. Direct questions or comments to Zachariah Thomas, PharmD at zachariah.thomas@gmail.com or Sandra Kane-Gill, PharmD, MSc, at kanesl@upmc.edu.
Pharmacokinetic/Pharmacodynamic Considerations in Community-Acquired Lower Respiratory Tract Infections

To accomplish the goal of both clinical and microbiological cure in the treatment of lower respiratory tract infections, microbiological data along with pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic data should be used. Recent studies have determined 2important antibacterial pharmacokinetic/ pharmacodynamic parameters that differ among classes of antimicrobial agents. The 2major groups include the antibiotics that exhibit concentration-dependent killing with a postantibiotic effect and time-dependent killing with minimal to moderate postantibiotic effects. For drugs that are concentration dependent (aminoglycosides, fluoroquinolones), the area under the concentration-time curve (AUC/MIC) is the most important predictor of bacteriological eradication. Alternatively, for antibiotics that exhibit time-dependent killing (-lactams, macrolides), time above the MIC ( T>MIC) is probably the major parameter that determines efficacy. Using these parameters provides the tools needed for appropriate antibiotic dosing.
Pulsatile Viscous Flows in Elliptical Vessels and Annuli: Solution to the Inverse Problem, with Application to Blood and Cerebrospinal Fluid Flow

We consider the fully developed flow of an incompressible Newtonian fluid in a cylindrical vessel with elliptical cross section, and in the annulus between two confocal ellipses. Since flow rate can actually be derived from measurements, we address the inverse problem, namely computing the velocity field associated with a given time-periodic flow rate. We propose a novel numerical strategy, which is nonetheless grounded on several analytical relations and which leads to the solution of systems of ordinary differential equations. We also report numerical results based on measured data for human blood flow in the internal carotid artery, and cerebrospinal fluid flow in the upper cervical region of the human spine. Our method holds promise to be more amenable to implementation than previous ones, based on challenging computation of Mathieu functions, especially for strongly elliptical cross sections. The main goal of this study is to provide an improved source of initial/boundary data, as well as a benchmark.
Vehicular Traffic Flow Dynamics on a Bus Route

We propose a new model in the analysis of car traffic flow phenomena which in particular refers to a bus route, namely, a closed path embedded in the urban network of roads. The model consists in a scalar balance law for the (macroscopic) density of cars, with source terms representing incoming and outgoing roads (with respect to the bus route), and a coupled system of ODEs describing the dynamics of (microscopic) buses along the route. The coupling takes into account both the buses as moving bottlenecks in the car flow and the effect of the car flow on the buses' ODEs as microscopic vehicles. The resulting fully coupled micro--macro model promises to give an appropriate description for the car flow as well as for the buses. Finally, we study the model numerically.