Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Growth factor delivery methods in the management of sports injuries: the state of play

In recent years there have been rapid developments in the use of growth factors for accelerated healing of injury. Growth factors have been used in maxillo-facial and plastic surgery with success and the technology is now being developed for orthopaedics and sports medicine applications. Growth factors mediate the biological processes necessary for repair of soft tissues such as muscle, tendon and ligament following acute traumatic or overuse injury, and animal studies have demonstrated clear benefits in terms of accelerated healing. There are various ways of delivering higher doses of growth factors to injured tissue, but each has in common a reliance on release of growth factors from blood platelets. Platelets contain growth factors in their α-granules (insulin-like growth factor-1, basic fibroblast growth factor, platelet-derived growth factor, epidermal growth factor, vascular endothelial growth factor, transforming growth factor-β1) and these are released upon injection at the site of an injury. Three commonly utilised techniques are known as platelet-rich plasma, autologous blood injections and autologous conditioned serum. Each of these techniques has been studied clinically in humans to a very limited degree so far, but results are promising in terms of earlier return to play following muscle and particularly tendon injury. The use of growth factors in sports medicine is restricted under the terms of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) anti-doping code, particularly because of concerns regarding the insulin-like growth factor-1 content of such preparations, and the potential for abuse as performance-enhancing agents. The basic science and clinical trials related to the technology are reviewed, and the use of such agents in relation to the WADA code is discussed.
Optimization of Liver Iron Load Assessment by Pixel-Based T2* MRI in Thalassemic Patients

Purpose: To improve liver iron load assessment by investigating the precision of different approaches of T2* Measurement. Background: Iron overload is a major problem in the treatment of thalassemic patients. Liver iron concentration (LIC) is an important index toward the management of body iron load. The accuracy of iron load estimation may suffer from the methodology of T2* measurement and there is no complete agreement upon the best approach of T2* calculation. Methods: 32 β-thallasemic patients (18 male) with the mean age of 20.0 ± 6.5 years were involved in this study. A multi-echo fast gradient-echo technique on a 1.5 T MRI system was used to measure liver iron overload and the T2* map of liver was reconstructed on a pixel-by-pixel basis. The T2* map and MRI images were utilized to deter- mine accurate location of ROI (region of interest). The mean of T2* were computed from the ROIs. The reproducibility of calculated T2* values in two methods were obtained. Moreover, the mean of the pixel’s T2* was calculated in the entire liver parenchyma of one slice. The T2* value of the entire slice was compared with the ROI approach. Results: In the ROI based method, the CoV for the intra-observer reproducibility was 8.5% and for the inter-observer was 9.78%. In the pixel based method, the CoVs for intra-observer and inter-observer reproducibility were 2.79% and 3.91%. There was an acceptable correlation (r = 0.96) between the T2* values calculated by the ROI and the entire slice. Conclusions: The pixel-based approach is more precise to determine the appropriate placement of the ROI. The assessment of T2* in the entire slice reduces the user-based errors significantly.
Effect of Quail Egg Pretreatment on the Lipid Profile and Histomorphology of the Liver of Acetaminophen-Induced Hepatotoxicity in Rats -

Quail eggs contain lots of vitamins and minerals that help fight some diseases in the body. Overdose of paracetamolÂ® (acetaminophen) is considered one of the major causes of damages to liver cells. This study was conducted to assess the effect of graded doses of quail egg pretreatment on lipid profile and liver histomorphology of acetaminophen-induced hepatotoxicity in rats. Thirty (30) albino rats were assigned into 5 groups of 6 rats per group. Rats in groups 2-4 were pretreated with 30 mg/kg, 15 mg/kg, 7.5 mg/kg respectively of quail egg solution for 7 days before intoxication with 2000 mg/kg paracetamolÂ® orally. Rats in group 5 were intoxicated but pretreated with distilled water (DW) at 10 ml/kg to serve as negative control while rats in group 1 were not intoxicated but pretreated with DW (10 ml/kg) (positive control). Fourty eight (48 h) hours post intoxication, blood was collected for lipid profile analysis. Thereafter, 2 rats per group were humanely sacrificed and the liver collected for histomorphological examination. The results obtained showed that 30 mg/kg quail egg-pretreated rats (Group 2 rats) had significantly (P
Identification of the Docking Site between a Type III Secretion System ATPase and a Chaperone for Effector Cargo*

Background: Chaperones engage type III secretion system (T3SS) ATPases to facilitate effector secretion. Results: The molecular basis of the chaperone-T3SS ATPase interaction interface was elucidated. Conclusion: The C-terminal region of T3SS ATPases mediates binding with multiple contact points along the chaperone. Significance: The chaperone-T3SS ATPase interaction is important for Salmonella pathogenesis and may be a target for anti-virulence drugs. A number of Gram-negative pathogens utilize type III secretion systems (T3SSs) to inject bacterial effector proteins into the host. An important component of T3SSs is a conserved ATPase that captures chaperone-effector complexes and energizes their dissociation to facilitate effector translocation. To date, there has been limited work characterizing the chaperone-T3SS ATPase interaction despite it being a fundamental aspect of T3SS function. In this study, we present the 2.1 Å resolution crystal structure of the Salmonella enterica SPI-2-encoded ATPase, SsaN. Our structure revealed a local and functionally important novel feature in helix 10 that we used to define the interaction domain relevant to chaperone binding. We modeled the interaction between the multicargo chaperone, SrcA, and SsaN and validated this model using mutagenesis to identify the residues on both the chaperone and ATPase that mediate the interaction. Finally, we quantified the benefit of this molecular interaction on bacterial fitness in vivo using chromosomal exchange of wild-type ssaN with mutants that retain ATPase activity but no longer capture the chaperone. Our findings provide insight into chaperone recognition by T3SS ATPases and demonstrate the importance of the chaperone-T3SS ATPase interaction for the pathogenesis of Salmonella.
Coupled Oscillatory Systems with 픻4 Symmetry and Application to van der Pol Oscillators

In this paper, we study the dynamics of autonomous ODE systems with 𝔻4 symmetry. First, we consider eight weakly-coupled oscillators and establish the condition for the existence of stable heteroclinic cycles in most generic 𝔻4-equivariant systems. Then, we analyze the action of 𝔻4 on ℂ2 and study the pattern of periodic solutions arising from Hopf bifurcation. We identify the type of periodic solutions associated with the pairs (H,K) of spatiotemporal or spatial symmetries, and prove their existence by using the HmodK Theorem due to Hopf bifurcation and the 𝔻4 symmetry. In particular, we give a rigorous proof for the existence of a fourth branch of periodic solutions in 𝔻4-equivariant systems. Further, we apply our theory to study a concrete case: two coupled van der Pol oscillators with 𝔻4 symmetry. We use normal form theory to analyze the periodic solutions arising from Hopf bifurcation. Among the families of the periodic solutions, we pay particular attention to the phase-locked oscillations, each of them being embedded in one of the invariant manifolds, and identify the in-phase, completely synchronized motions. We derive their explicit expressions and analyze their stability in terms of the parameters.
Studies on Kidney Function: The Rate of Filtration and Reabsorption in the Human Kidney.

Two rival theories of kidney function have for many years been under discussion: the secretion theory and the filtration-reabsorption theory. The easiest standpoint to take is that the urine is secreted. If one supposes every single detail of the kidney function to be the result of vital activity governed by unknown laws, one may of course look upon any new fact brought to light with equanimity. It is, as Cushny says, an impregnable defensive position. The theory has varied somewhat but the variations do not in any essential differ from the original theory. In all its forms it is maintained that during moderate diuresis the water is secreted by the capsule of Bowman and that the more specific constituents of the urine are then added by secretion through the tubule cells. A serious objection against this theory and its modifications is that it is impossible to investigate them quantitatively. For this reason all quantitative work by their supporters has been done as critical attacks against the other theories with immediate retreat to the safe ground. The other theory which has in later years been the basis of practically all experimental work on this question is the " modern theory " of Cushny [1917]. As it came out that Ludvig's view, that filtration in the capsules and mere diffusion processes in the tubules could explain the formation of urine, was untenable, the supporters of the theory had to admit that active vital work must be performed by the kidney cells. The work was supposed to be exerted by the tubules in reabsorption of water and that series of substances, the threshold substances, which are to a certain extent retained by the body because they are of some value for the organism. This theory was later simplified by Cushny's "modern theory," the main points of which are that fluid is filtered out in the glomeruli and that in the different cases different quantities of a fluid of a constant composition are reabsorbed by the tubules. The substances present in the reabsorbed fluid are the threshold substances and were supposed to be rather few in number, the rest being the no-threshold substances. This theory is excellently fitted for experimental study and has been used as basis for a number of experiments by the adherents of both
Intact Polar and Core Glycerol Dibiphytanyl Glycerol Tetraether Lipids of Group I.1a and I.1b Thaumarchaeota in Soil

ABSTRACT Ecological studies of thaumarchaeota often apply glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraether (GDGT)-based intact membrane lipids. However, these components have only been characterized for thaumarchaeota from aquatic environments. Thaumarchaeota have been shown to play an important role in the nitrogen cycle in soil as ammonium oxidizers, and GDGTs are common lipids encountered in soil. We report the core and intact polar lipid (IPL) GDGTs produced by three newly available thaumarchaeota isolated from grassland soil in Austria (“Nitrososphaera viennensis,” group I.1b) and enriched from agricultural soils in South Korea (“Candidatus Nitrosoarchaeum koreensis” MY1, group I.1a; and “Candidatus Nitrososphaera” strain JG1, group I.1b). The soil thaumarchaeota all synthesize crenarchaeol as their major core GDGT, in agreement with the fact that crenarchaeol has also been detected in thaumarchaeota from aquatic environments. The crenarchaeol regioisomer apparently is produced in significant quantities only by soil thaumarchaeota of the I.1b subgroup. In addition, GDGTs with 0 to 4 cyclopentane moieties and GDGTs containing an additional hydroxyl group were detected. The IPL head groups of their membrane lipids comprised mainly monohexose, dihexose, trihexose, phosphohexose, and hexose-phosphohexose moieties. The hexose-phosphohexose head group bound to crenarchaeol occurred in all soil thaumarchaeota, and this IPL is at present the only lipid that is detected in all thaumarchaeota analyzed so far. This specificity and its lability indicate that it is the most suitable biomarker lipid to trace living thaumarchaeota. This study, in combination with previous studies, also suggests that hydroxylated GDGTs occur in the I.1a, but not in the I.1b, subgroup of the thaumarchaeota.
Childhood Abuse in First-Episode Psychosis

Of 38 adult patients admitted for first-episode psychosis, 20 reported childhood abuse, with equal prevalence in men and women. Patients with histories of childhood abuse had significantly more dissociative symptoms, but not more severe psychiatric symptoms. Childhood abuse was not related to rate of recovery and was only marginally related to longer stays in hospital. Although childhood abuse did not affect recovery during first-episode psychosis, it may contribute to a chronic course in some patients.
Small form factor PIFA antenna design at 28 GHz for 5G applications

This paper presents the design and analysis of lowest form factor planar inverted-F Antenna at 28GHz for 5G Mobile applications. Feeding and shorting of the antenna is done using metallic strips. The Important properties of this antenna are its small footprint (0.25λg), good gain of 4.5dBi, 10dB impedance bandwidth of 1.55 GHz and radiation efficiency of 94%. The total size of the PIFA antenna is 0. 25λg. PIFA antenna is one of the antennas whose performance greatly depends on ground plane size and its position on the ground plane. It shows good radiation pattern when placed at the corner or edge.
Real‐time multiplex PCR for direct detection of methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in clinical samples enriched by broth culture

Söderquist B, Neander M, Dienus O, Zimmermann J, Berglund C, Matussek A, Mölling P. Real‐time multiplex PCR for direct detection of methicillin‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in clinical samples enriched by broth culture. APMIS 2012; 120: 427–32.
The value of rotation thromboelastometry to monitor disturbed perioperative haemostasis and bleeding risk in patients with cardiopulmonary bypass

Rotation thromboelastometry (ROTEM) performed on whole-blood samples provides information on the contribution of fibrinogen and platelets to clot formation. Such measurements are believed superior to classical plasma coagulation measurements as a means of monitoring disturbed haemostasis. On-pump cardiac surgery is associated with high bleeding risk. The study objective was to obtain information on the frequency of abnormal values of ROTEM variables and to assess their value in estimating bleeding risk in such patients. We studied 150 patients undergoing elective on-pump cardiac surgery. We found a significant surgery-induced decrease in haemostatic potential, with more abnormal ROTEM values in intrinsically activated coagulation (up to 50%) than in extrinsically activated coagulation (up to 27%) or the maximum clot firmness in FIBTEM (10%), a test measuring the contribution of fibrinogen. All ROTEM variables tend to normalize within 14–18 h postoperatively. Best positive predictive values and specificity for a postoperative blood loss above 600 ml were found for the clot formation time in extrinsically activated coagulation (71%/94%) and the maximum clot firmness in FIBTEM (73%/95%); these values were superior to the activated partial thromboplastin time or prothrombin time (56%/72% and 43%/5%, respectively). There was no relation between preoperative or early postoperative ROTEM values and intraoperative bleeding. ROTEM recorded a benefit of administration of platelet concentrates or fresh-frozen plasma, particularly when given postoperatively, on haemostasis. In contrast, intraoperative administration of red blood cells impaired haemostasis. ROTEM can provide a more detailed diagnostic basis enabling a focused therapy to cardiac surgery patients with high bleeding risk.
The choice of controls in a case-control study on WBC-DNA adducts and metabolic polymorphisms

The choice of the control group is a key issue in case-control studies, particularly in studies of molecular epidemiology. We discuss the potential bias introduced by different options. To exemplify the consequences of different choices, we have analysed two sets of controls in the context of a case-control study on bladder cancer: 55 were patients with urological conditions (cystitis, prostate hypertrophy), while 49 had a miscellany of medical or surgical conditions. We measured DNA adducts in white blood cells (WBC) by 32P-postlabelling and a series of metabolic polymorphisms (GSTM1, GSTT1, GSTP1, NAT2, NQO1). While no statistically significant differences were found for metabolic polymorphisms, the two series of controls showed different concentrations of DNA adducts, suggesting that conditions related to bladder cancer or intermediate steps leading to bladder cancer, such as chronic cystitis, may be associated with higher adduct levels. An association between DNA adduct levels and infection has been noted before in experimental animals: both in lung and in the skin, an inflammatory response increased the biologically effective doses of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. An alternative explanation is confounding; in fact, after adjustment for the level of consumption of fruit and vegetables (but not for smoking) the difference between the two control groups was no longer statistically significant. In conclusion, the choice of controls in studies of molecular epidemiology has subtle methodological implications, including confounding of metabolic/molecular measurements by complex exposures such as diet.
KSU Team's QA System for World History Exams at the NTCIR-13 QA Lab-3 Task

This paper describes the systems and results of the team KSU for QA Lab-3 task in NTCIR-13. We have been developing question answering systems for the world history multiple-choice questions in the National Center Test for University Admissions. We newly developed automatic answering systems for the world history questions in the secondstage exams of Japanese entrance examinations consisting of the term questions and the essay questions. In the multiplechoice question subtask, we improved on automatic answering systems in QA Lab-2 by implementing query generation methods in accordance with the answer types. In the term question subtask, we designed systems that focus on the category prediction using word prediction models and the evaluation score based on the graph of dependency relations. In the essay question subtask, we proposed automatic answering methods that combines the document retrieval depending on the instructions of how the essay should be summarized, and the knowledge sources constructed from various simple sentences.
The bcl-3 proto-oncogene encodes a nuclear I kappa B-like molecule that preferentially interacts with NF-kappa B p50 and p52 in a phosphorylation-dependent manner

The product of the putative proto-oncogene bcl-3 is an I kappa B-like molecule with novel binding properties specific for a subset of the rel family of transcriptional regulators. In vitro, Bcl-3 protein specifically inhibited the DNA binding of both the homodimeric NF-kappa B p50 subunit and a closely related homolog, p52 (previously p49), to immunoglobulin kappa NF-kappa B DNA motifs. Bcl-3 could catalyze the removal of these proteins from DNA. At concentrations that significantly inhibited DNA binding by homodimeric p50, Bcl-3 did not inhibit binding of reconstituted heterodimeric NF-kappa B (p50:p65), a DNA-binding homodimeric form of p65, or homodimers of c-Rel. Phosphatase treatment of Bcl-3 partially inactivated its inhibitory properties, implicating a role for phosphorylation in the regulation of Bcl-3 activity. Bcl-3, like p50, localizes to the cell nucleus. In cells cotransduced with Bcl-3 and p50, both molecules could be found in the nucleus of the same cells. Interestingly, coexpression of Bcl-3 with a p50 mutant deleted for its nuclear-localizing signal resulted in the relocalization of Bcl-3 to the cytoplasm, showing that the proteins interact in the cell. These properties contrast Bcl-3 to classically defined I kappa B, which maintains heterodimeric NF-kappa B p50:p65 in the cytoplasm through specific interactions with the p65 subunit. Bcl-3 appears to be a nuclear, I kappa B-related molecule that regulates the activity of homodimeric nuclear p50 and its homolog p52.
Is fertility reduced among men exposed to radiofrequency fields in the Norwegian Navy?

The effects of radiofrequency fields on human health are not well understood, and public concern about negative health effects has been rising. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between workers exposed to electromagnetic fields and their reproductive health. We obtained data using a questionnaire in a cross‐sectional study of naval military men, response rate 63% (n = 1487). We asked the respondents about exposure, lifestyle, reproductive health, previous diseases, work and education. An expert group categorized the work categories related to electromagnetic field exposure. We categorized the work categories “tele/communication,” “electronics” and “radar/sonar” as being exposed to electromagnetic fields. Logistic regression adjusted for age, ever smoked, military education, and physical exercise at work showed increased risk of infertility among tele/communication odds ratio (OR = 1.72, 95% confidence interval 1.04–2.85), and radar/sonar odds ratio (OR = 2.28, 95% confidence interval 1.27–4.09). The electronics group had no increased risk. This study shows a possible relationship between exposure to radiofrequency fields during work with radiofrequency equipment and radar and reduced fertility. However, the results must be interpreted with caution. Bioelectromagnetics 29:345–352, 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Enhanced Decision Support Systems in Intensive Care Unit Based on Intuitionistic Fuzzy Sets

In areas of medical diagnosis and decision-making, several uncertainty and ambiguity shrouded situations are most often imposed. In this regard, one may well assume that intuitionistic fuzzy sets (IFS) should stand as a potent technique useful for demystifying associated with the real healthcare decision-making situations. To this end, we are developing a prototype model helpful for detecting the patients risk degree in Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Based on the intuitionistic fuzzy sets, dubbed Medical Intuitionistic Fuzzy Expert Decision Support System (MIFEDSS), the shown work has its origins in the Modified Early Warning Score (MEWS) standard. It is worth noting that the proposed prototype effectiveness validation is associated through a real case study test at the Polyclinic ESSALEMA cited in Sfax, Tunisia. This paper does actually provide some practical initial results concerning the system as carried out in real life situations. Indeed, the proposed system turns out to prove that the MIFEDSS does actually display an imposing capability for an established handily ICU related uncertainty issues. The performance of the prototypes is compared with the MEWS standard which exposed that the IFS application appears to perform highly better in deferring accuracy than the expert MEWS score with higher degrees of sensitivity and specificity being recorded.
What if merging connection and switch boxes - an experimental revisit on FPGA architectures

We propose a new FPGA architecture using the connection-switch box (CS-box). It is based on the symmetric-array FPGA architecture and combines the connection box and the switch box. Two algorithms are designed to build the switches inside CS-boxes, one for logic pins and the other for pad pins. After a theoretical analysis and comparison, we conducted extensive experiments on MCNC benchmark circuits and made comparison between symmetric-array FPGAs and the proposed FPGA architecture on channel widths, circuit delays and switch numbers. By using the CS-box structure, the switch number of the connection boxes can be reduced by up to 11.81% with small penalty of increasing the channel width and the circuit delay by 0.38% and 2.34% on average respectively.