Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Intrapleural Administration of 0.5% Plain Bupivacaine Compared to 0.5% Epinephrine: A Hemodynamic and Ventilatory Study

The ventilatory and hemodynamic effects of 20 ml 0.5% intrapleural bupivacaine with and without 5 μg/ml epinephrine were studied. Ten patients scheduled for intrapleural block in the treatment of chronic visceral pain had a left-sided intrapleural catheter inserted. In a double-blind, crossover design they received 20 ml 0.5% bupivacaine with and without 5 μg/ml epinephrine. Forced vital capacity, vital capacity, and forced expiratory volume in one second were measured before and 30 minutes after the injection. Mean blood pressure, heart rate, and cardiac output were recorded before the injection and at five-minute intervals for 30 minutes. Vital capacity, forced vital capacity, and forced expiratory volume in one second were unchanged in both groups. There were no differences in any of the pulmonary function tests between the groups. When data from both groups are pooled, vital capacity shows a decrease of 7% ( p < 0.05). No changes in heart rate or mean blood pressure were seen in either group. Bupivacaine without epinephrine did not affect the cardiac output, whereas bupivacaine with epinephrine resulted in a rise in cardiac output of 15% at 15 and 20 minutes after the injection. We did not find any major effects of intrapleural injection of 20 ml 0.5% bupivacaine with and without 5 μg/ml epinephrine on ventilatory capacity or cardiovascular function in patients treated for chronic visceral pain.
Time-frequency resource allocation optimization model for OFDMA systems

In this paper, we study the resource allocation problem in orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA) systems. An analytical approach based on an optimization problem formulation for the time-frequency spectrum allocation matter is proposed. The optimization problem takes into consideration heterogeneous constraints belonging to two different layers, leading to a cross-layer approach. The cross-layer concept approved in the optimization problem shows its ability to satisfy the heterogeneous users requirements, which ensures a high-level of quality-of-service (QoS) support. Simulation results demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed scheme in terms of rate satisfaction and resource use optimization.
THE ROLE OF INTROGRESSIVE HYBRIDIZATION IN THE EVOLUTION OF THE GILA ROBUSTA COMPLEX (TELEOSTEI: CYPRINIDAE)

Abstract The extent and impact of introgressive hybridization was examined in the Gila robusta complex of cyprinid fishes using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence variation. Lower Colorado River basin populations of G. robusta, G. elegans, and G. cypha exhibited distinct mtDNAs, with only limited introgression of G. elegans into G. cypha. The impact of hybridization was significant in upper Colorado River basin populations; most upper basin fishes sampled exhibited only G. cypha mtDNA haplotypes, with some individuals exhibiting mtDNA from G. elegans. The complete absence of G. robusta mtDNA, even in populations of morphologically pure G. robusta, indicates extensive introgression that predates human influence. Analysis of the geographic distribution of variation identified two distinctive G. elegans lineages; however, the small number of individuals and localities sampled precluded a comprehensive analysis. Analysis of haplotype and population networks for G. cypha mtDNAs from 15 localities revealed low divergence among haplotypes; however, significant frequency differences among populations within and among drainages were found, largely attributable to samples in the Little Colorado River region. This structure was not associated with G. cypha and G. robusta, as morphotypes from the same location are more similar than conspecific forms in other locations. This indicates that morphological and mtDNA variation are affected by different evolutionary forces in Colorado River Gila and illustrates how both hybridization and local adaptation can play important roles in evolution. Corresponding Editor: J. Neigel
Combining Cytotoxicity Assessment and Xenopus laevis Phenotypic Abnormality Assay as a Predictor of Nanomaterial Safety

The African clawed frog, Xenopus laevis, has been used as an efficient pre‐clinical screening tool to predict drug safety during the early stages of the drug discovery process. X. laevis is a relatively inexpensive model that can be used in whole organism high‐throughput assays whilst maintaining a high degree of homology to the higher vertebrate models often used in scientific research. Despite an ever‐increasing volume of biomedical nanoparticles (NPs) in development, their unique physico‐chemical properties challenge the use of standard toxicology assays. Here, we present a protocol that directly compares the sensitivity of X. laevis development as a tool to assess potential NP toxicity by observation of embryo phenotypic abnormalities/lethality after NP exposure, to in vitro cytotoxicity obtained using mammalian cell lines. In combination with conventional cytotoxicity assays, the X. laevis phenotypic assay provides accurate data to efficiently assess the safety of novel biomedical NPs. © 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
A Bioequivalence study of two Azithromycin tablet formulations in Indonesian healthy subjects

Aim: To compare the bioavailability of two Azithromycin tablet formulations 500 mg Azivol® tablets as test formulation and 500 mg Zithromax® tablets as reference formulation Methods: A single-dosed, open-label randomized two-way crossover design under fasting period with two weeks wash-out period was evaluated in 24 subjects. For the analysis of pharmacokinetic properties, the blood samples were drawn taken up to 120 hours after dosing. Plasma concentration of Azithromycin was determined using liquid chromatography – tandem mass spectrometry method with TurboIon Spray mode. Pharmacokinetic parameters AUC0-t, AUC0-∞ and Cmax were tested for bioequivalence after log-transformation of data and ratios of tmax were evaluated non-parametrically. Results: The point estimates and 90% confidence intervals (CI) for AUC0-t, AUC0-∞, and Cmax for Azithromycin were 94.63% (86.27-103.81%), 95.35% (87.15-104.31%), 94.16% (80.31-110.41%) respectively. Conclusion: These results indicated that the two formulations of Azithromycin were bioequivalent and thus may be prescribed interchangeably.
A decision-making method for business process outsourcing to the cloud based on business motivation model and AHP

Outsourcing business processes to the cloud is among the proposed solutions to help SME to emerge in the market and enhance their added value. However, the benefits of such solution highly depend on several factors specific to the enterprise context. Hence, an enterprise needs a decision-making method to assist it in deciding whether its business plan calls for cloud computing adoption, which parts of its business process are the most profitable from outsourcing, which cloud computing model is the most suitable, . This paper highlights the need and proposes a context-aware decision method for cloud adoption to enable enterprises to understand, self-assess, and select an appropriate cloud computing model aligned to their business context. Besides proposing an appropriate enterprise context, this paper shows how the business motivation model of an enterprise also enhances the outsourcing decision-making by taking into account the business plan and vision of the enterprise.
Semi-Contiguous Memory Allocation for Efficient Sequential-Access

Many algorithms have been devised and studied for dynamic contiguous memory allocation. In the absence of enough contiguous memory to satisfy a particular request, one approach is to allocate memory in blocks that are as close as possible to each other, by minimizing interfering blocks – blocks that belong to previously allocated requests. We devise an algorithm for such an allocation strategy and discuss its efficiency. This allocation strategy would improve access time for sequential files like audio and video files.
Measurement of antenna S-parameters and their application to the analysis of resonance loop system for the ICRF heating of fusion plasmas

It is important to accurately measure the ICRF antenna parameters for the estimation of RF power transmission to KSTAR fusion plasmas. Due to the complexity of a 4-loop antenna with mutual couplings, it is not easy to measure those parameters directly. In this presentation, a method to determine those antenna parameters more precisely by applying measured S-parameters to a coupled transmission line model is introduced, and the characteristics of the resonance loop of the KSTAR ICRF system for the heating of KSTAR fusion plasmas are analyzed by using the determined parameters.
Decreased hypotensive responsiveness to nitric oxide donor S-nitroso N-acetyl-DL-penicillamine (SNAP) in spontaneously hypertensive (SHR) rats.

The aim of the study was to compare hemodynamic effects of intravenously (i.v.) applied nitric oxide (NO) donor S-nitroso N-acetyl-DL-Penicillamine (SNAP) in conscious spontaneously hypertensive (SHR) to those observed in normotensive Wistar Kyoto (WKY) rats. The study was performed on 7 SHR and 8 WKY instrumented with polyethylene catheters inserted to the abdominal aorta and vena cava for blood pressure (MAP) and heart rate period (HRp) monitoring, and for i.v. administration of SNAP (0.05, 0.1, 0.2, 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, 5.0, 10.0, 20.0, 40.0 and 75.0 microM/kg of body weight). The following differences were found between SHR and WKY rats: 1) the threshold dose of SNAP, eliciting significant decrease of MAP was markedly higher in SHR (1.0 microM/kg b.w.) than in WKY (0.2 microM/kg b.w.), 2) SHR responded with significantly smaller maximum decreases of MAP to administration of 1.0, 2.0, 5.0 and 10.0 microM/kg b.w. of SNAP and with smaller heart rate acceleration to administration of 10.0, 40.0 and 75.0 microM/kg b.w. of SNAP, 3) in SHR MAP decreased progressively, the greatest decline being observed after administration of the highest dose (75 microM/kg b.w.) of SNAP while in WKY the log dose/delta MAP response curve reached plateau beginning with 2 microM/kg b.w. of SNAP, 4) the slopes and intercepts of the regression lines describing relationship between MAP and HRp after administration of SNAP were significantly different in SHR and WKY rats (P < 0.01). The results indicate that SHR are significantly less sensitive to hypotensive effects of NO generated from moderate doses of SNAP.
Surviving social assistance: 12-month prevalence of depression in sole-support parents receiving social assistance.

BACKGROUND Although it is generally recognized that poverty and depression can coexist among single parents receiving social assistance, there is insufficient research on this topic. The goals of this study therefore were to investigate the prevalence, correlates and health care expenditures associated with depression among sole-support parents receiving social assistance. METHODS Sole-support parents who had applied for social assistance in 2 regions of southwestern Ontario were included in the study. Depression was diagnosed with the 1994 University of Michigan Composite International Diagnostic Interview short forms. RESULTS The 12-month prevalence rate of depressive disorder among the parents interviewed was 45.4% (345/760). A total of 247 (32.5%) had major depressive disorder alone, 19 (2.5%) had dysthymia, and 79 (10.4%) had both major depressive disorder and dysthymia ("double depression"). Those with major depressive disorder, particularly double depression, had significantly higher rates of coexisting psychiatric disorder than those without depressive disorders. Parents with depression reported higher rates of developmental delay and behaviour problems in their children than parents without depression. Expenditures for health care services were higher for parents with depression and for their children than for parents without depressive disorder and their children. INTERPRETATION Single parents receiving social assistance have high rates of depression. Such parents with depression also have higher rates of other psychiatric disorders and higher expenditures for health care services, and their children have higher rates of developmental delay and behaviour problems.
Estimating a Polya Frequency Function

The problem of estimating a unimodal density and its mode has attracted a wide interest in the literature, beginning with the work of Barlow [1], Prakasa Rao, [7], Robertson, [8], and Wegman [13], [14] and continuing through [9], [2], [3], [5], and [4], who can be consulted for further references. Asymptotic properties of the maximum likelihood estimators have been developed but may be messy and suffer from some inconsistency in the region near the mode. Kernel estimation can avoid the inconsistency, but must confront the choice of a bandwidth. Here we investigate a smaller, easier version of the problem, estimating a Polya frequency function. By a Polya frequency function, we mean a density f whose logarithm is concave over the support of f . Equivalently, a function f whose logarithm is concave in the sense of Rockafellar [10]. Such functions are automatically unimodal. Moreover, an estimated Polya frequency function supplies its own estimate of the mode. There is no need to estimate the mode seperately. The non-parametric maximum likelihood estimator [hereafter, NPMLE] for this problem is derived in Section 2 and shown to be consistent in Section 3. Simulations are reported in Section 4. ∗Supported by Horace Rackham Graduate School and National Science Foundation †Supported by National Science Foundation AMS 2000 subject classifications: Primary 60K35, 60K35; secondary 60K35
Influence of Laminated Textile Structures on Mechanical Performance of NF-Epoxy Composites

Textile structures are engineered and fabricated to meet worldwide structural applications. Nevertheless, research varying textile structure on natural fibre as composite reinforcement was found to be very limited. Most of the research is focusing on short fibre and random discontinuous orientation of the reinforcement structure. Realizing that natural fibre (NF) composite had been widely developed to be used as synthetic fibre composite replacement, this research attempted to examine the influence of woven and cross-ply laminated structure towards its mechanical performances. Laminated natural fibre composites were developed using hand lay-up and vacuum bagging technique. Impact and flexural strength were investigated as a function of fibre type (coir and kenaf) and reinforcement structure (imbalanced plain woven, 0°/90° cross-ply and +45°/-45° cross-ply). Multi-level full factorial design of experiment (DOE) and analysis of variance (ANOVA) was employed to impart data as to how fibre type and reinforcement structure parameters affect the mechanical properties of the composites. This systematic experimentation has led to determination of significant factors that predominant influences the impact and flexural properties of the textile composites. It was proven that both fibre type and reinforcement structure demonstrated significant difference results. Overall results indicated that coir composite and woven structure exhibited better impact and flexural strength. Yet, cross-ply composite structure demonstrated better fracture resistance. Keywords—cross-ply composite, flexural strength, impact strength, textile natural fibre composite, woven composite
Enhancing 3D Mapping via Real-Time Superpixel-based Segmentation

In this work we address the problem of 3D mapping of environments with large textureless regions, which generates sparse 3D maps that may not represent well the mapped scene. To deal with this problem, we propose to enhance sparse 3D maps by using a superpixel-based segmentation with the aim of generating denser 3D maps of the scene in real time. This can be exploited in virtual reality applications where rapid generation of 3D maps may be required. Superpixels are middle-level features, which represent a homogeneous regions in an image, that can be connected in order to segment untextured areas. Based on this, we propose a GPU architecture for: i) superpixel extraction considering chromatic information, ii) superpixel-based segmentation, generation of connectivity matrix to compute the connected components algorithm and iii) mapping of segmented regions to 3D points. We use the ORBSLAM system [11] to generate a sparse 3D map and to project the untextured segments onto it at 25 fps. We assessed our approach in terms of the segmentation and map quality. Regarding the latter, covered area by the generated map, depth accuracy and computational performance are reported.
Does Cancer Reduce Labor Market Entry? Evidence for Prime-Age Females

Existing studies of the labor market status of cancer survivors have focused on the extent to which cancer disrupts the employment of individuals who were working when diagnosed with cancer. We examine how surviving cancer affects labor market entry and usual hours of work among females aged 28 to 54 years who were not working when first diagnosed. We find that prime-age females have employment rates 2 to 6 years after diagnosis that are 12 percentage points lower than otherwise similar women who were initially out of the labor force, full-time employment rates that are 10 percentage points lower, and usual hours of work that are 5 hours per week lower. These estimates are somewhat larger than estimates for prime-age women employed at the time of diagnosis and highlight the importance of considering nonworking females when assessing the economic and psychosocial burden of cancer.
Isolation and Characterization of Two Complete Ara h 2 Isoforms cDNA

Background: Ara h 2 is a major peanut allergen recognized by IgE in more than 90% of patients. After electrophoretic separation the purified protein exists as a doublet, and sequences of one incomplete cDNA and one genomic clone for this allergen have been reported. Methods: Ara h 2 isoforms were purified and analyzed by mass spectroscopy, and PCR amplification products of Ara h 2 were cloned and sequenced. Results: Mass spectroscopy of purified Ara h 2 clearly identified a molecular doublet of 16,670 and 18,050 Daltons. Amplification of a peanut cDNA library using PCR primer pairs located at the amino- and carboxy-terminus revealed 2 bands separated by 50 base pairs, which we cloned and sequenced. Two types of complete cDNA clones were obtained, Ara h 2.01 and Ara h 2.02. Compared to Ara h 2.01 and the previously reported cDNA sequences, Ara h 2.02 is characterized by a 12 amino acid insertion starting at position 75 that contains a third repeat of the major IgE binding epitope DPYSPS. Conclusion: We demonstrated the molecular and genetic characteristics of two Ara h 2 isoforms, revealing that one, Ara h 2.02, might be the more potent allergen.
The association of antinuclear antibodies with organ involvement and survival in systemic sclerosis.

OBJECTIVES To study the frequency and specificity of antinuclear antibodies (ANA) and their association with internal organ involvement and survival in systemic sclerosis (SSc). METHODS Sera from 276 SSc patients were analysed by an indirect immunofluorescence (IIF) technique with HEp-2 cells as a substrate to categorize centromeric (ACA), nucleolar, speckled and homogeneous nuclear IIF patterns. Specific ANA were determined as follows: anti-DNA topoisomerase I (anti-topo I) by double immunodiffusion, anti-U1 RNP by passive haemagglutination, anti-RNA polymerase I, II and III (anti-RNAP) and anti-histone (AHA) antibodies by enzyme immunoassays. During the follow-up of 7.0+/-4.5 (mean+/-S.D.) yr the occurrence of clinical manifestations and internal organ involvement was registered. RESULTS ANA were present in 84% of the patients. The most common patterns of the IIF were speckled (41%), homogeneous (25%), nucleolar (24%) and centromeric (18%). A nucleolar pattern was associated with pulmonary fibrosis (P < 0.01) and cardiomegaly (P < 0.05). ACA were related to organic vasculopathy (P < 0.05) and renal involvement (P < 0.01), but not to pulmonary fibrosis (P < 0.01). Anti-topo I were present in 9.4%, anti-U1 RNP in 21%, anti-RNAP in 22% and AHA in 16% of the patients. Pulmonary involvement was more common in patients with anti-topo I (P < 0.05), whereas AHA-positive patients were characterized by cardiac (P < 0.05), pulmonary (P < 0.05) and renal (P < 0.05) involvement. A nucleolar IIF pattern and AHA were both associated with a decreased survival [relative risk of death 1.71 (P < 0.05) and 2.36 (P < 0.01), respectively]. CONCLUSIONS AHA and a nucleolar HEp-2 cell pattern may indicate critical organ involvement and predict a reduced survival in SSc patients.
Selective REM sleep deprivation in narcolepsy

Narcolepsy is characterized by excessive daytime sleepiness and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep abnormalities, including cataplexy. The aim of this study was to assess REM sleep pressure and homeostasis in narcolepsy. Six patients with narcolepsy and six healthy controls underwent a REM sleep deprivation protocol, including one habituation, one baseline, two deprivation nights (D1, D2) and one recovery night. Multiple sleep latency tests (MSLTs) were performed during the day after baseline and after D2. During D1 and D2 REM sleep was prevented by awakening the subjects at the first polysomnographic signs of REM sleep for 2 min. Mean sleep latency and number of sleep‐onset REM periods (SOREMs) were determined on all MSLT. More interventions were required to prevent REM sleep in narcoleptics compared with control subjects during D1 (57 ± 16 versus 24 ± 10) and D2 (87 ± 22 versus 35 ± 8, P = 0.004). Interventions increased from D1 to D2 by 46% in controls and by 53% in narcoleptics (P < 0.03). Selective REM sleep deprivation was successful in both controls (mean reduction of REM to 6% of baseline) and narcoleptics (11%). Both groups had a reduction of total sleep time during the deprivation nights (P = 0.03). Neither group had REM sleep rebound in the recovery night. Narcoleptics had, however, an increase in the number of SOREMs on MSLT (P = 0.005). There was no increase in the number of cataplexies after selective REM sleep deprivation. We conclude that: (i) REM sleep pressure is higher in narcoleptics; (ii) REM sleep homeostasis is similar in narcoleptics and controls; (iii) in narcoleptics selective REM sleep deprivation may have an effect on sleep propensity but not on cataplexy.
Research on fault diagnosis of FMS based on SFPN

The threshold and confidence of fuzzy production rules are difficult to determined while fault diagnosis of FMS is conducted with fuzzy Petri Nets. A new fault diagnosis method of Self-Learning Fuzzy Petri nets(SFPN) is proposed in this paper. Through slicing processing the model of knowledge, the parameters of weight, threshold and confidence are trained by learning ability of neural network. The process of FMS fault diagnosis based on SFPN is given and system simulation experiments are carried out. Simulation results show the model has self learning abilities of neural network. It can study new expert experience knowledge continuously which breaks the limitations of weight preestablishing in traditional fuzzy Petri Nets. It has certain intelligence.