Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Association between Vancomycin Day 1 Exposure Profile and Outcomes among Patients with Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Infective Endocarditis

ABSTRACT Given the critical importance of early appropriate therapy, a retrospective cohort (2002 to 2013) was performed at the Detroit Medical Center to evaluate the association between the day 1 vancomycin exposure profile and outcomes among patients with MRSA infective endocarditis (IE). The day 1 vancomycin area under the concentration-time curve (AUC0–24) and the minimum concentration at 24 h (Cmin 24) was estimated for each patient using the Bayesian procedure in ADAPT 5, an approach shown to accurately predict the vancomycin exposure with low bias and high precision with limited pharmacokinetic sampling. Initial MRSA isolates were collected and vancomycin MIC was determined by broth microdilution (BMD) and Etest. The primary outcome was failure, defined as persistent bacteremia (≥7 days) or 30-day attributable mortality. Classification and regression tree analysis (CART) was used to determine the vancomycin exposure variables associated with an increased probability of failure. In total, 139 patients met study criteria; 76.3% had right-sided IE, 16.5% had left-sided IE, and 7.2% had both left and right-sided IE. A total of 89/139 (64%) experienced failure by composite definition. In the CART analysis, failure was more pronounced in patients with an AUC0–24/MIC as determined by BMD of ≤600 relative to those with AUC0–24/MIC as determined by BMD of >600 (69.8% versus 54.7%, respectively, P = 0.073). In the logistic regression analysis, an AUC/MIC as determined by BMD of ≤600 (adjusted odds ratio, 2.3; 95% confidence interval, 1.01 to 5.37; P = 0.047) was independently associated with failure. Given the retrospective nature of the present study, further prospective studies are required but these data suggest that patients with an AUC0–24/MIC as determined by BMD of ≤600 present an increased risk of failure.
Are commonly used paediatric reference intervals for water and electrolyte balance appropriate for clinical use?

Background: Paediatric reference intervals are less well characterized than in adults. An initiative for harmonization of pathology across the United Kingdom has recommended an interval for sodium of 133–146 mmol/L at all ages. Methods: To assess the validity of this, the laboratory database was interrogated for all renal profiles (sodium, potassium, urea and creatinine) for children presenting to primary care over a 13-year period. While the primary interest was in sodium results, sufficient current data were also available for potassium and creatinine and so these were included for study. The electrolyte results were filtered to include only normal renal function and the remaining data were analysed for age-related differences. Results: Sodium concentrations were observed to be lower for infants (1–5 years of age) with a mean of 138 mmol/L, increasing towards adult concentrations (mean 140 mmol/L) by teenage years. A similar pattern was seen for potassium results, and creatinine was seen to increase with age. At all ages, the distributions of sodium concentrations measured in this population were observably tighter than the interval of 133–146 mmol/L recommended by Pathology Harmony. Conclusions: We suggest that this interval is too wide, and more work is needed to establish more appropriate paediatric ranges.
Nanometre localization of single ReAsH molecules

ReAsH is a red‐emitting dye that binds to the unique sequence Cys‐Cys‐Xaa‐Xaa‐Cys‐Cys (where Xaa is a noncysteine amino acid) in the protein. We attached a single ReAsH to a calmodulin with an inserted tetracysteine motif and immobilized individual calmodulins to a glass surface at low density. Total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy was used to image individual ReAsH molecules. We determined the centre of the distribution of photons in the image of a single molecule in order to determine the position of the dye within 5 nm precision and with an image integration time of 0.5 s. The photostability of ReAsH was also characterized and observation times ranging from several seconds to over a minute were observed. We found that 2‐mercaptoethanesulphonic acid increased the number of collected photons from ReAsH molecules by a factor of two. Individual ReAsH molecules were then moved via a nanometric stage in 25 or 40 nm steps, either at a constant rate or at a Poisson‐distributed rate. Individual steps were clearly seen, indicating that the observation of translational motion on this scale, which is relevant for many biomolecular motors, is possible with ReAsH.
Total Ankle Arthroplasty With Combined Calcaneal and Metatarsal Osteotomies for Treatment of Ankle Osteoarthritis With Accompanying Cavovarus Deformities

Background: Our study evaluated the short-term clinical and radiographic results of total ankle arthroplasty (TAA) with combined bony reconstructions for treatment of end-stage ankle osteoarthritis with accompanying cavovarus/hindfoot varus deformities. Methods: This study included 8 patients (10 ankles) with ankle osteoarthritis (OA) who were treated by TAA with combined calcaneal and metatarsal osteotomies between September 2004 and June 2010 and were followed an average of 17.9 months (12-43 months). Visual analogue scale (VAS) score, American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) score, radiographic measurements, and patient satisfaction were evaluated. Results: The average patient age was 66.2 years (range, 55-76 years). Eighteen bony reconstruction procedures such as lateral sliding calcaneal osteotomy (n = 9) and first metatarsal dorsiflexion osteotomy (n = 4) were performed in addition to TAA. VAS pain score improved from an average of 8.8 (range, 6-10) preoperatively to an average of 2.4 (range, 0-7) (P < .05), and the AOFAS score improved from 36.9 (range, 14-71) preoperatively to 89.3 (range, 68-100) (P < .05). Ninety percent of the patients were satisfied with the results. Radiographically, the tibiocalcaneal angle (TCA) improved from a preoperative average of 19.0 degrees (range, 13-23 degrees) to 0.2 degrees (range, –5.4 to 2.8 degrees), the tibial axis–talar dome angle (TA-TDA) improved from a preoperative average of 15.6 degrees (range, 11.1-18.0 degrees) to 3.3 degrees (range, 1.7-5.6 degrees), and the talar dome–ground surface angle (TD-GSA) improved from a preoperative average of 21.2 degrees (range, 15.4-27.5 degrees) to 5.1 degrees (range, 1.8-10.2 degrees) (P < .05). Conclusion: We found that it was occasionally necessary to perform combined calcaneal and metatarsal osteotomies with TAA in order to successfully treat ankle OA with an accompanying cavovarus/varus deformity. The TD-GSA and TCA were also found to be important radiographic parameters in assessing varus ankles. Level of Evidence: IV, retrospective case series.
Sinapic Acid and Its Derivatives as Medicine in Oxidative Stress-Induced Diseases and Aging

Sinapic acid (3,5-dimethoxy-4-hydroxycinnamic acid) is an orally bioavailable phytochemical, extensively found in spices, citrus and berry fruits, vegetables, cereals, and oilseed crops and is known to exhibit antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anticancer, antimutagenic, antiglycemic, neuroprotective, and antibacterial activities. The literature reveals that sinapic acid is a bioactive phenolic acid and has the potential to attenuate various chemically induced toxicities. This minireview is an effort to summarize the available literature about pharmacokinetic, therapeutic, and protective potential of this versatile molecule in health related areas.
A distributed algorithm for maximizing utility of data collection in a crowd sensing system

Mobile crowd sensing harnesses the data sensing capability of individual smartphones, underpinning a variety of valuable knowledge discovery, environment monitoring, and decision-making applications. It is a central issue for a mobile crowd sensing system to maximize the utility of sensing data collection at a given cost of resource consumption at each smartphone. However, it is particularly challenging. On the one hand, the utility of sensing data from a smartphone is usually dependent on its context which is random and varies over time. On the other hand, because of the marginal effect, the sensing decision of a smartphone is also dependent on decisions of other smartphones. Little work has explored the utility maximization problem of sensing data collection. This article proposes a distributed algorithm for maximizing the utility of sensing data collection when the smartphone cost is constrained. The design of the algorithm is inspired by stochastic network optimization technique and distributed correlated scheduling. It does not require any prior knowledge of smartphone contexts in the future, and hence sensing decisions can be made by individual smartphone. Rigorous theoretical analysis shows that the proposed algorithm can achieve a time average utility that is within O(1/V) of the theoretical optimum.
Solution Structure of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis Complex Protein MPB70

The closely related mycobacteria responsible for tuberculosis produce an unusually high number of secreted proteins, many of which are clearly implicated in pathogenesis and protective immunity. Falling within this category are the closely related proteins MPB70 and MPB83. The structure of MPB70 reveals a complex and novel bacterial fold, which has clear structural homology to the two C-terminal FAS1 domains of the cell adhesion protein fasciclin I, whose structures were reported very recently. Assessment of the surface features of MPB70, the sequence divergence between MPB70 and MPB83, the conservation of residues across a group of FAS1 domains, and the locations of disease-inducing mutations in βig-h3 strongly suggests that MPB70 and MPB83 contain two functional surfaces on opposite faces, which are probably involved in binding to host cell proteins. This analysis also suggests that these functional surfaces are retained in the FAS1 proteins associated with mediating interactions between cells and the extracellular matrix (fasciclin I, periostin, and βig-h3) and furthermore that some of the human corneal disease-inducing substitutions identified in βig-h3 will perturb interactions at these sites.
Genetic polymorphism of growth hormone releasing hormonegene in exotic and crossbred pigs

Growth hormone releasing hormone (GHRH) plays a central role in growth and production through its influence on important metabolic activities in mammals which prompted its wide commercial use including use as a candidate marker. In present experiment, polymorphism at exon 2 and 3 of Growth Hormone Releasing Hormone gene (GHRH) was studied using PCR–RFLP in crossbred and exotic pigs, commonly found in north east India. Restriction enzyme digestion of 467 bp PCR amplicon with AluI revealed 1 genotype. Comparison of obtained sequences revealed large scale nucleotide and residue substitutions. Observed polymorphism may be associated with wide variability in growth (rate) of different breeds of pig.
On Teleprocessing System Design Part IV: An Analysis of Auxiliary Storage Activity

To provide estimates of device utilizations, queue lengths, and response times, a queuing model for a hypothetical auxiliary-storage system is formulated and analyzed. The limitations of the model are emphasized, as they are important in application of the model. On the other hand, useful ways of extending the utility of the model are also discussed.
Six-minute walking test but not ejection fraction predicts mortality in elderly patients undergoing cardiac rehabilitation following coronary artery bypass grafting

Background: Age-related effects on the ability of 6-min walking test (6MWT) and ejection fraction (EF) to predict mortality in coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) patients undergoing cardiac rehabilitation (CR) is still debated. Design and methods: In order to verify the role of 6MWT and EF on all-cause mortality in patients undergoing CR following CABG, 882 CABG patients undergoing CR stratified in adults (<65 years) and elderly (≥65 years) were studied. Results: At the admission, EF was 52.6 ± 9.1% in adults and 51.3 ± 8.9% in elderly (p = 0.234, NS) while 6MWT was 343.8 ± 93.5 m in adults and 258.9 ± 95.7 m in elderly (p < 0.001). After 42.9 ± 14.1 months follow up, mortality was 8.2% in adults and 10.9% in elderly (p = 0.176, NS). Cox regression analysis shows that EF ≥ 50% and 6MWT ≥300 m are protective on mortality in all CABG patients before CR. However, EF ≥50% in adults (HR 0.18, 95% CI 0.06–0.49, p < 0.005) but not in elderly (HR 1.16, 95% CI 0.45–3.42, p = 0.354, NS) and 6MWT ≥300 m in elderly (HR 0.34, 95% CI 0.10–0.79, p = 0.033) but not in adults (HR 0.76, 95% CI 0.31–2.12, p = 0.654, NS) exert a protective role on mortality. Conclusions: Our results indicate that both EF ≥ 50% and 6MWT ≥ 300 m independently protect against mortality in CABG patients before CR. However, their protective role is age dependent. In fact, EF ≥ 50% is protective in adults but not in elderly while 6MWT ≥ 300 m is protective in elderly but not in adult patients.
Two-dimensional Simulation of Current Self-Distribution in Oxide-Confined Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Lasers

We present a two-dimensional static model of vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers. The model is based on the self-consistent solution of the semiconductor and photon rate equations throughout the entire epitaxial structure in the vertical and lateral directions. A typical top-emitting index-guided structure is simulated and the current self-distribution effect is analyze by plotting the lateral carrier and current density profiles along the active region.
Is the PASAT Past It? Testing Attention and Concentration Without Numbers

The Paced Auditory Serial Addition Task (PASAT) is a test of attention and concentration in which participants add each number from a taped list to the one preceding it (Gronwall & Wrightson, 1974). As it requires mental addition at an externally determined pace the task often causes anxiety (Roman, Edwall, Buchanan, & Patton, 1991). We devised the Paced Auditory Serial Opposites Task (PASOT) as a nonnumerical replacement (Deary, 2001). PASOT and PASAT were administered to 40 participants, and the correlation between them was 0.71. The correlations of the PASOT and other cognitive measures did not differ significantly from those of the PASAT (with the exception of Digit Span Backward). Performing the PASOT was significantly less aversive; the PASAT induced more negative feelings of Tense Arousal (t (38) = −4.52, p<. 001).
A Rapid Solution to Align the Severely Malpositioned Premaxilla in Bilateral Cleft Lip and Palate Patients

Objective: To describe a laboratory modification of the maxillary cast to make an improved nasoalveolar molding plate used in presurgical orthopedics for infants with bilateral cleft lip and palate. Conclusions: Modifying the nasoalveolar molding plate may reduce the presurgical treatment time for the bilateral cleft lip and palate patient.
SINAI on CLEF 2002: Experimenting with Merging Strategies

For our ﬁrst participation in CLEF multilingual task, We present a new approach to obtain a single list of relevant documents for CLIR systems based on query translation. This new approach, which we call two-step RSV, is based on the re-indexing of the retrieval documents according to the query vocabulary, and it performs noticeably better than traditional methods
Modeling of Doubly-Fed Induction Generator with strong slot harmonic

This paper presents a general model of the Doubly-Fed Induction Generator (DFIG). The model includes the influence of slotting on the harmonics of stator- and rotor currents. Most squirrel-cage induction machines can be described well based on a fundamental-wave model of winding distribution. In case of DFIG the slotting and the non-ideal structure of the windings in stator and rotor cause considerable harmonics of stator currents and rotor currents. These harmonics strongly depend on the speed of the machine and present a challenge to model-based control of DFIG. Including the slotting into the model improves accuracy considerably. The model is verified by measurements at a 200-kW DFIG.
Evaluation of the Serum Total Antioxidant Level and Hematological Indices in Healthy Workers Exposed to Low Radiation Doses : A Significant Increase in Platelet Indices

The critical role of the free radicals and the reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been well proved in the etiology of over hundred diseases. Radiation is one of the most important sources of free radicals production in human and it can destroy macromolecules, specially DNA, lipid, proteins and carbohydrate. The aim of the study was to evaluate the serum total antioxidant level (TAL) and hematological indices in healthy workers of Radiology Department of a University hospital of Mashhad, Iran. The study was performed on 70 subjects including 40 persons working with X-ray machines as the case group and 30 unexposed individuals as the controls. Radiation dose of radiology staff participating in the study was less than the maximum permissible annual level, 50 millisievert. The mean serum TALs of radiology staff (833 ± 30.4 μmol/L) was lower than control subjects (875 ± 46.8μmol/L). Nevertheless, there was no significant difference between the mean serum TALs of exposed workers and the corresponding control group (P=0.546). On the other hand, a significant increase in the percentage of case group PDW (platelet distribution width, 18.00 ± 0.54) and PLCR (platelet large cell ratio, 38.20 ± 1.47) was observed (P<0.05). This result indicates that long term low dose ionizing radiation may have side effects on thrombocytosis and coagulation function. Due to high application of fluoroscopy for interventional radiology, we suggest continuing of the research projects on radiation protection and hazards to prevent irreversible damages.
A long-term in vivo investigation on the effects of xenogenous based, electrospun, collagen implants on the healing of experimentally-induced large tendon defects.

AIM This study was designed to investigate the effect of novel 3-dimensional (3-D) collagen implants on the healing of large, experimentally-induced, tendon-defects in rabbits. METHODS Forty mature male white New Zealand rabbits were divided randomly into treated and control groups. Two cm of the left Achilles tendon was excised and the gap was spanned by Kessler suture. In the treated group, a novel 3-D collagen implant was inserted between the cut ends of the tendon. No implant was used in the control group. During the course of the experiment the bioelectrical characteristics of the healing and normal tendons of both groups were investigated weekly. At 120 days post injury (DPI), the tendons were dissected and inspected for gross pathology, examined by transmission and scanning electron microscopy, and their biomechanical properties, percentage dry matter and hydroxyproline concentration assessed. RESULTS The collagen implant significantly improved the bioelectrical characteristics, gross appearance and tissue alignment of the healed, treated tendons, compared to the healed, control scars. It also significantly increased fibrillogenesis, diameter and density of the collagen fibrils, dry matter content, hydroxyproline concentration, maximum load, stiffness, stress and modulus of elasticity of the treated tendons, as compared to the control tendons. Treatment also significantly decreased peri-tendinous adhesions, and improved the hierarchical organization of the tendon from the collagen fibril to fibre-bundle level. 3-D xenogeneic-based collagen implants induced newly regenerated tissue that was ultrastructurally and biomechanically superior to tissue that was regenerated by natural unassisted healing. CONCLUSION This type of bioimplant was biocompatible, biodegradable and appeared suitable for clinical use.
Comparing three different methods to detect selective loci using dominant markers

We carried out a simulation study to compare the efficiency of three alternative programs (dfdist, detseld and bayescan) to detect loci under directional selection from genome‐wide scans using dominant markers. We also evaluated the efficiency of correcting for multiple testing those methods that use a classical probability approach. Under a wide range of scenarios, we conclude that bayescan appears to be more efficient than the other methods, detecting a usually high percentage of true selective loci as well as less than 1% of outliers (false positives) under a fully neutral model. In addition, the percentage of outliers detected by this software is always correlated with the true percentage of selective loci in the genome. Our results show, nevertheless, that false positives are common even with a combination of methods and multitest correction, suggesting that conclusions obtained from this approach should be taken with extreme caution.
Modification of decision rules “ball Apolonia” the problem of classification

This article is devoted to the study of one of the main tasks of data mining, pattern recognition problem. The problem of classification by the modified decision rules “ball Apollonia”. Also, in this paper, an algorithm for solving the modified rule “ball Apollonia”, based on the algorithm developed by the software in the language C#. The result is applied to the recognition problem for several well-known set of data.
Association of testosterone, insulin-like growth factor-I, and C-reactive protein with metabolic syndrome in Chinese middle-aged men with a family history of type 2 diabetes.

CONTEXT Age-related declines in testosterone and IGF-I are associated with deposition of visceral fat, a component of the metabolic syndrome (MES). OBJECTIVE Testosterone and IGF-I may interact with familial disposition to diabetes mellitus to increase the association with MES. DESIGN We conducted a cross-sectional cohort study. SETTING The study was conducted in a university teaching hospital. SUBJECTS Study subjects included 179 middle-aged men with a family history of diabetes (FH) (aged 39.1 +/- 8.1 yr) and 128 men without FH (aged 43.8 +/- 8.5 yr). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Clinical characteristics, frequency of MES using the World Health Organization criteria with Asian definitions of obesity (body mass index > or = 25 kg/m2), and serum levels of total testosterone, IGF-I, and high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) were measured. RESULTS Men with FH had higher frequency of MES than those without FH [39.1 vs. 23.4% (P = 0.004)]. On multivariate analysis, smoking (former and current smokers), low total testosterone, and IGF-I but elevated hs-CRP levels explained 35% of the MES variance in men with FH. The frequency of MES increased with declining tertiles of total testosterone and IGF-I but increasing tertiles of hs-CRP. After adjustment for age and smoking history, subjects with all three risk factors had a 13-fold increase in risk association with MES compared with those without hormonal and inflammatory risk factors. These risk associations were not found in men without FH in whom only smoking (ex and current) and low total testosterone level were independent predictors for MES, which explained 14% of the variance. CONCLUSIONS Clustering of FH, hormonal abnormalities, and high hs-CRP is associated with MES in Chinese middle-aged men.