Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A randomized trial of 24‐ vs. 48‐week courses of PEG interferon α‐2b plus ribavirin for genotype‐1b‐infected chronic hepatitis C patients: a pilot study in Taiwan

Abstract: Background: To assess the efficacy of 24‐ or 48‐week peginterferon/ribavirin treatment of Taiwanese patients with chronic hepatitis C virus genotype‐1b (HCV‐1b) infection, and to identify subgroups of patients in whom the 48‐week treatment has benefits. Methods: We assigned 60 patients receiving peginterferon‐α‐2b (80–100 mcg/week) plus ribavirin (1000–1200 mg/day), depending on body weight, for 24 or 48 weeks, with a 3:1 randomization ratio. Results: The sustained virological response (SVR) rate was significantly higher in the 48‐week (80.0%, 12/15) than in the 24‐week group (48.9%, 22/45, P<0.05). The 60 patients were classified into two subgroups according to the presence of unfavorable baseline predictors: viral loads ≥400 000 IU/ml or a hepatic fibrosis score of 3–4. In 19 patients without an unfavorable predictor, the SVR rate was comparable in the 24‐week (78.6%) and 48‐week (75.0%) groups; in patients with either unfavorable predictors, the SVR rate was significantly higher in the 48‐week (81.1%, 9/11) than in the 24‐week group (36.7%, 11/30, P=0.015). The discontinuation rate was significantly higher in the 48‐week (20.0%, 3/15) than in the 24‐week group (2.2%, 1/45, P<0.05). Conclusion: A 48‐week course of peginterferon‐α‐2b/ribavirin was more effective than a 24‐week course in Taiwanese HCV‐1b patients, mainly in those with high viral loads and/or advanced hepatic fibrosis.
Chitosan-based hyaluronan hybrid polymer fibre scaffold for ligament and tendon tissue engineering

Abstract To establish medical use of tissue engineering technology for ligament and tendon injuries, a scaffold was developed which has sufficient ability for cell growth, cell differentiation, and mechanical properties. The scaffold made from chitosan and 0.1 per cent hyaluronic acid has adequate biodegradability and biocompatibility. An animal experiment showed that the scaffold has less toxicity and less inflammation induction. Furthermore, in-vivo animal experiments showed that the mechanical properties of the engineered ligament or tendon had the possibility to stabilize the joint. It was shown that newly developed hybrid-polymer fibre scaffold has feasibility for joint tissue engineering.
The Missing Link in the Diffusion of Protest: Asking Others1

Mobilization for protest is a process of diffusion in interpersonal networks. Extant work has found that being asked by people one knows is a key determinant of participation, but the flip side—asking others—has been neglected. The authors examine which prospective participants are most likely to ask others to participate and whom they ask. Drawing on a new and unusual data set including evidence on more than 7,000 participants in 48 demonstrations across Europe, the authors find that activists who are committed to the demonstration’s cause (willing to recruit others) and who are part of participation-friendly networks (able to recruit others) are the most active recruiters. Asking others is dependent on being asked: participants tend to recruit people similar to those who have recruited them and, most importantly, participants who are recruited via strong ties are less active recruiters themselves.
Comparison of synthesis techniques for SPE-OCDMA Encoders/decoders based on FBGs

This paper presents a comparison of synthesis techniques for SPE-OCDMA Encoders/decoders based on FBGs. The synthesis method studied relies on the Inverse Scattering method and Genetic Algorithm approach. The comparisons between approaches takes into considerations the accuracy of convergence, the algorithm complexity and the constraints imposed on the component behaviour and its fabrication method. We implement the algorithms of the two approaches numerically, leading to versatile tools of simulations. This study is illustrated by the design and simulations of several encoders/decoders.
Chemical Composition, DM and NDF Degradation Kinetics in Rumen of Eleven Different Date Pits

Aims: Study was undertaken to measure chemical composition and degradation kinetics of dry matter and neutral detergent fiber in the rumen for eleven different date pits that where cultivated in different parts of Iran. Study design: Ruminal degradation kinetics of the pit samples were determined using 3 Holstein steers (450-500kg body weight), fitted with permanent rumen fistulas. Data were fitted using an exponential equation of P=W+D (1−e −kd×(t-T) ), where P is the potential of degradability, W is the quickly degradable fraction, D is the slowly degradable fraction; kd is the fractional degradation rate, t is the incubation time (h) and T is the lag time (h). Place and Duration of Study: The study took place at the Ruminant Nutrition Research Center of Agriculture Faculty of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad which placed at Mashhad urban zone. This study lasted 3 months. Methodology: Chemical composition, in situ DM and in situ NDF degradation kinetics in rumen of eleven different date pits (Barahi, Kabkab, Kharak, Khasi, Mazafati, mordabsang, Piarom, Rabbi, Estamaran, Shahani and Zahedi) were evaluated. Results: CP ranged from 5.00 to 6.90% DM and Mazafati pit had highest NDF content Original Research Article Annual Research & Review in Biology, 4(23): 3524-3531, 2014 3525 (78.23% DM) and Mordasang had highest ADF content (59.73% of DM) while Estamaran had lowest NDF and ADF content (68.90 and 50.50% of DM respectively). Mordabsang had the lowest W-fractionDM (0.104h) and Estamaran had the highest D-fractionDM (0.485). In contrast, Estamaran, Khasi, Mazafati and Zahedi had the highest (0.300, 0.301, 0.304 and 0.301 respectively) W-fractionDM and Piarom had lowest (0.323) D-fractionDM. The kdDM varied from 0.021/h (Mordasang) to 0.119/h (Estamaran). Piarom had the lowest WfractionNDF (0.011) and Estamaran had the highest W-fractionNDF (0.046). In contrast, Mazafati had the highest (0.603) and Piarom had lowest (0.394)) D-fractionNDF. Among the samples kdNDF varied from 0.021/h (Kharak) to 0.038/h (Estamaran). Conclusion: In conclusion our results show that pits of these date varieties can be used as fiber source for ruminants and their relatively high EE content may be useful as an energy source.
Social Circles Discovery Based on Structural and Attribute Similarities

Due to huge amount of information which is generated on online social networks every day, how to organize their personal social networks to cope with the overwhelming information effectively has become a difficult problem. In this paper, a new modified method based on Clique Percolation Method (CPM) algorithm is proposed to be used to discover users' social circles automatically, in which, there are two improvements by integrating the structural and attribute similarities into a unified framework. Experiments on several real datasets demonstrate that the result of social circles identification used by the modified method proposed in this paper is better compared with CPM method.
Engaging adolescent drug abusers and their families in treatment: a strategic structural systems approach.

This article presents evidence for the effectiveness of a strategy for engaging adolescent drug users and their families in therapy. The intervention method is based on strategic, structural, and systems concepts. To overcome resistance, the identified pattern of interactions that interferes with entry into treatment is restructured. Subjects were 108 Hispanic families in which an adolescent was suspected of. or was observed, using drugs. Subjects were randomly assigned to a strategic structuralsystems engagement (experimental) condition or to an engagement-as -usual (control) condition. Subjects in the experimental condition were engaged at a rate of 93% compared with subjects in the control condition, who were engaged at a rate of 42%. Seventy-seven percent of subjects in the experimental condition completed treatment compared wiih 25"! of subjects in the control
Design and Implementation of a Broadband Substrate Integrated Waveguide Magic-T

In this letter, a novel broadband magic-T using a stripline embedded hybrid substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) structure is proposed. A tapered transition is used to transform the TEM mode of the stripline to the waveguide modes of the vertically stacked SIWs. Due to the vertical symmetry of the structure, the input signal of the stripline can be naturally split into two equal and in-phase signals at the output ports on the top and bottom layers. An E-plane SIW power divider is utilized to realize the E-plane input/output port of the magic-T. Due to the wide bandwidth of the stripline-to-SIW transition, a significant bandwidth improvement with respect to conventional SIW magic-Ts is achieved. Measured results show that, the proposed magic-T has a fractional bandwidth of 49.1% (8.28–13.68 GHz) with return loss better than 15 dB, and the amplitude and phase imbalances are less than 0.24 dB and 3$^{\circ}$, respectively.
Passive wireless temperature sensing with BST-based chipless transponder

A passive wireless temperature sensor with identification capabilities based on a phase modulation scheme is discussed in this paper. The approach presented utilizes a pulse backscatter technique based on metamaterial transmission lines. The focus of the work is the material engineering for the temperature-sensitive element and its integration into a passive phase modulation circuit. The approach makes use of temperature-sensitive barium-strontium-titanate thick film capacitances. The discussed principle has been experimentally verified with a prototype.
The effect of borderline examples on language learning

Imbalanced training sets, where one or more classes are heavily underrepresented in the training data compared to the others, prove to be problematic when trying to classify new instances that belong to a rare class. In the present article, class imbalance occurs in the datasets of three language learning applications: automatic identification of verb complements, automatic recognition of semantic entities and learning taxonomic relations. All three applications are tested on Modern Greek text corpora; verb complement identification is applied to English corpora also, and comparative results are presented. The difference in statistical behaviour between the classes may be attributed to the low pre-processing level of the corpora, and/or the automatic nature of the pre-processing phase, and/or the exceptional occurrence of the linguistic information of interest in the data. Two different approaches are experimented with in order to deal with the problem: one-sided sampling (OSS) of the dataset and classification using support vector machines (SVMs). OSS removes redundant, noisy and misleading instances of the majority class, reducing thereby the training set size, while SVMs, without removing any instances, take into account only examples that appear close to the borderline region between the classes. The better results achieved by OSS in all test cases lead to some very interesting observations regarding the impact of the various training instances on classification, depending on their position in the feature-vector space.
Pig Fetal Septal Neurons Implanted into the Hippocampus of Aged or Cholinergic Deafferented Rats Grow Axons and Form Cross-Species Synapses in Appropriate Target Regions

The anatomical specificity of axon growth from fetal pig septal xenografts was studied by transplanting septal cells from E30–35 pig fetuses into cholinergic deafferented (192-IgG-saporin-infused) rats or into aged rats (> 18 months). Cell suspensions (100,000 cells/μl) were injected bilaterally into the dorsal and ventral hippocampus of immunosuppresed rats (10 mg/kg/day cyclosporine A). To assess axonal growth and synapse formation, acetylcholinesterase histochemistry, an antibody to choline acetyltransferase (ChAT), and three pig-positive/rat-negative antibodies: bovine 70kD neurofilament (NF70), human low-affinity NGF receptor (hNGFr), and human synaptobrevin (hSB) were used. In rats with surviving grafts at 6 months, NF70 axonal labeling was more extensive than either ChAT or hNGFr labeling. All three markers demonstrated graft axons extending selectively through the hippocampal CA fields and the molecular layer of the dentate gyrus. Graft axons did not extend into adjacent entorhinal cortex or neocortex. The distribution of pig hSB-positive synapses correlated with AChE-positive fiber outgrowth in to the host. Electron microscopic analysis of hSB-immunostained hippocampal sections revealed pig presynaptic terminals in contact with normal rat postsynaptic structures in the CA fields and the dentate gyrus. These data demonstrate target-appropriate growth of pig cholinergic axons and the formation of cross-species synapses in the deafferented or aged rat hippocampus.
The quality of healing: Articular cartilage

Articular cartilage lacks an intrinsic capacity for self‐repair, and once damaged, it never heals. This creates an opportunity for surgical intervention, whether to stimulate a healing response that results in the formation of a lower‐quality fibrocartilaginous scar or formal cartilage repair in the form of cartilage transplants. This article will review the nature of cartilage injury and discuss indications and techniques for repair.
The microbial degradation of azimsulfuron and its effect on the soil bacterial community

Aims: Azimsulfuron is a recently introduced sulfonylurea herbicide useful in controlling weeds in paddy fields. To date very little information is available on the biodegradation of this pesticide and on its effect on the soil microbial community. The aim of this work was to study its biodegradation both in slurry soil microcosms and in batch tests with mixed and pure cultures.
Tuberculosis of the Breast OPEN ACCESS

Tuberculosis of the breast is an extremely uncommon presentation of an otherwise common disease especially in developing countries. Clinical presentation is usually of a solitary, ill-defined, unilateral hard lump situated in the upper outer quadrant of the breast and may mimic breast carcinoma or breast abscess. Appropriate diagnosis precludes surgery as medical management suffices. We present two cases of this rare presentation that highlight the peculiarities of tuberculosis of the breast as well as a review of the literature.
Regulation of TNF-alpha by 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 in human macrophages from CAPD patients.

BACKGROUND We have previously reported that 1alpha,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1alpha,25(OH)2D3] accumulates in the dialysis fluid of uremic patients treated by continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD). It has been reported that this metabolite regulates the production of cytokines by monocytes/macrophages. Since tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) initiates an inflammatory cascade during peritonitis, the aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of 1alpha, 25(OH)2D3 on the production of TNF-alpha by human peritoneal macrophages (HPMs). METHODS HPMs were obtained from patients on CAPD. Cells were incubated with various concentrations of 1alpha, 25(OH)2D3, 1alpha,24(S) dihydroxyvitamin D2 [1alpha,24(S)(OH)2D2] or 25-hydroxyvitamin D3 (25-OH-D3) for 16 hours. This was followed by lipopolysaccharide (LPS; 1 microg/mL) incubation for 2.5 to 6 hours. TNF-alpha protein production was determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. TNF-alpha mRNA was assayed by the reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction procedure, using internal synthetic mRNA standards for quantitative results. RESULTS Incubation of HPMs with 1alpha,25(OH)2D3 prior to stimulation with LPS dose dependently inhibited the expression of TNF-alpha on both mRNA and protein levels. Similar results were obtained with the less calcemic vitamin D2 analogue 1alpha,24(S)(OH)2D2. Incubation of HPMs with 25-OH-D3 also revealed a down-regulation of TNF-alpha expression. Since this down-regulatory effect was blocked by ketoconazole, it is likely that this effect was caused by the conversion of 25-OH-D3 into 1alpha,25(OH)2D3 by HPMs. CONCLUSIONS 1alpha,25(OH)2D3 has a potent inhibitory effect on the production of TNF-alpha by LPS-activated HPMs. We hypothesize that 1alpha, 25(OH)2D3 may constitute a regulatory mechanism that, by controlling the intensity of the inflammatory response of the peritoneum, will moderate tissue damage during peritonitis.
Serum lipid expression correlates with function and regeneration following living donor liver transplantation

Following living donor liver transplantation (LDLT; and unlike deceased donor liver transplantation [DDLT]), the liver must rapidly regenerate, and sometimes segmental graft dysfunction (SGD) is observed. Hepatic regeneration requires substantial de novo lipid synthesis, and we previously reported that expression of lipid‐related genes is dysregulated in LDLT. Here, we compare serum lipid measurements in 41 LDLT recipients and 43 DDLT recipients at baseline and at serial posttransplant time points. In addition, we examined whether serum lipid/apolipoprotein (apo) levels correlate with the degree of liver regeneration (measured using percent volume increase [%VI] at 3 months) or SGD in LDLT recipients. In contrast to DDLT, lipid levels declined early after LDLT but returned to baseline by 30 days. The odds ratio (OR) for achieving robust regeneration (>90 %VI) was 2.53 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.15‐5.52) for every 1 mg/dL increase in serum apoE at 30 days. The OR of SGD for every year increase in donor age was 1.19 (95% CI, 1.02‐1.39), and 0.61 for every 1 mg/dL increase in serum high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol at 7 days (95% CI, 0.34‐1.11). No associations were detected between preoperative serum lipids/apos in LDLT donors and SGD or %VI in recipients. In conclusion, we suggest that initiation of regeneration prevents the liver from participating fully in lipid transport and metabolism. Inability to meet systemic metabolic needs may result in compromised liver function and SGD. Certain serum lipid concentrations correlate with extent of liver regeneration and function. Liver Transpl 22:103‐110, 2016. © 2015 AASLD.
AR3 messenger ribonucleic acid expression and its functional implication in human primary testicular failure

AR3, a major one of androgen receptor (AR) splice variants, has been shown to play a pivotal role in concert with AR signalling in prostate cancer. The present study was undertaken to characterise the expression pattern of AR3 in normal and impaired spermatogenesis. Expression of AR3 mRNA showed significantly lower level in testicular tissues with impaired spermatogenesis when compared to normal tissues. This aberrant expression profile of AR3 in human pathological testes was further confirmed by immunoblotting analysis. Moreover, in situ hybridisation studies revealed that the transcripts of the gene were dominantly localised in the pachytene spermatocytes and round spermatids, suggesting a potential involvement of this transcriptional regulator in the auto‐/paracrine regulation of meiotic and post‐meiotic differentiation. This hypothesis was strengthened by the observation that AR3 mRNA expression was positively correlated to average seminiferous tubule score and was negatively correlated to serum FSH level. To the best of our knowledge, such a distinct expression profile of AR3 has not been reported previously in human testis. Overall, our data are suggestive of a novel site of action of AR3 during human spermatogenesis and should shed light on the complicated circuit composed of AR and its splice variants.
HOSPITAL SITE SELECTION USING A BDI AGENT MODEL

This paper presents a newly developed Belief-Desire-Intention (BDI) Agent-based model for estimating suitable hospital sites. Our model makes use of existing geospatial functions and a novel BDI architecture of agent techniques. More specifically, the fundamental concepts of practical reasoning architecture such as belief, desire, intention, along with commitment, and interaction have been combined with analyses and applications of Geographical Information System (GIS). The proposed model can be customized for a wide range of decision making problems in GIS, one of which is site selection. In this model, minimal travel time, air pollution and land cost are considered as the goals of agents, and then the agents observe, and believe in the environment. The agent then determines the intention to implement on the environment for achieving their desires. The desires are generated from agents’ goals. The interactions among agents are considered as a part of process for achieving contemporarily goals. In this paper, the fundamental components of agent such as observation, belief, desire, intention, commitment, and interaction are introduced spatially, and a BDI-GIS model is defined based on these components. The Desktop GIAgent software, introduced in this paper, has the advantage of using agents for spatial analysis. The interface helps guiding decision makers through the sequential steps for site selection, namely; importing data, defining goals, determining actions and identifying the agent’s characteristics. For demonstrating the robustness of our new model, a case study was planned and executed in Tehran, Iran. The efficiency of the BDI-GIS model in the decision making process for selecting suitable hospital sites was also demonstrated based on the characteristics of the agents and the types of their interactions.
PDCI damping control analysis for the western North American power system

Transmission capacity in the western North American power system (termed the wNAPS) is often limited by poorly-damped electromechanical oscillations. To date, the primary damping controllers applied in the wNAPS are via generator controls using localized feedback signals. Such controls have limited effectiveness for inter-area modes. Recent development of reliable real-time wide-area measurement systems (WAMS) has enabled the potential for large-scale damping control approaches. One such approach is feedback modulation of the Pacific DC Intertie (PDCI). This paper summarizes simulation results from a study to evaluate PDCI damping control in the wNAPS. This includes developing a safe and effective control strategy, quantifying potential improved damping, and conducting open-loop actual-system probing tests.
Reflex effects of slow bladder filling on the blood pressure in cats.

The effect of slow bladder distension on mean arterial blood pressure has been studied in the cat anawsthetized with chloralose. In fifteen cats out of eighteen, slow bladder filling was associated with a steady rise in blood pressure of not more than 30 mm.Hg. ; this rise was slowly adapting or compensated, and was unaffected by baroreceptor denervation. In eleven out of fourteen cats, spontaneous isometric bladder contractions were associated with a rise in blood pressure of more than 20 mm. Hg which was rapidly compensated, and was accentuated after baroreceptor denervation. In fifteen cats out of eighteen, bladder emptying was associated with a fall in blood pressure, the blood pressure returning to the basal level after an initial overshoot. No changes in blood pressure were observed in response to direct pressure on the bladder or to bladder ischaemia. Three cats out of a total of twenty-nine showed depressor or biphasic blood pressure responses to slow bladder filling and to spontaneous isometric bladder contractions. Possible afferent receptors for these bladder viscero-vascular reflexes are discussed; and consideration is given to the role of the cardiovascular stabilizing reflexes in partially compensating the spinal viscerovascular reflexes in the intact animal.
16S rRNA Gene Sequencing in Routine Identification of Anaerobic Bacteria Isolated from Blood Cultures

ABSTRACT A comparison between conventional identification and 16S rRNA gene sequencing of anaerobic bacteria isolated from blood cultures in a routine setting was performed (n = 127). With sequencing, 89% were identified to the species level, versus 52% with conventional identification. The times for identification were 1.5 days and 2.8 days, respectively.