Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reliability of oscillometric central blood pressure responses to submaximal exercise

Background: Central blood pressure responses to exercise may provide clinicians with a superior diagnostic and prognostic tool. However, to be of value in a clinical setting these assessments must be simple to conduct and reliable. Objective: Using oscillometric pulse wave analysis (PWA), determine the upper limit for between-day reliability of central SBP (cSBP) and central pressure augmentation (AIx) responses to three progressive stages of submaximal exercise in a cohort of young, healthy participants. Methods: Fifteen healthy males [25.8 years (SD 5.7), 23.9 kg/m2 (SD 2.5)] were tested on three different mornings in a fasted state, separated by a maximum of 14 days. Central hemodynamic variables were assessed on the left upper arm. Participants underwent three progressive stages of submaximal cycling at 50 W (low), 100 W (moderate) and 150 W (moderate–hard). Results: During low and moderate-intensity exercise the intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) values for cSBP (0.79–0.80) and AIx (0.81–0.85) indicated excellent reliability (ICC > 0.75). For the moderate–hard intensity AIx could not be computed, and the ICC for cSBP was adequate (0.72). Conclusion: Findings from this study suggest that, at least in a young, healthy cohort, oscillometric PWA can be used to reliably assess central blood pressure measurements during exercise, up to a moderate intensity. Although further work is required to verify these findings in clinical cohorts, these measurements may potentially provide clinicians with a practical option for obtaining important hemodynamic information beyond that provided by resting peripheral blood pressure.
Effect of Aging on Cardiothoracic Ratio in Women: A Longitudinal Study

Background: The effect of aging on the components of the cardiothoracic ratio (CTR) in the chest roentgenogram in women remains obscure. There have been only a few reported studies that have investigated longitudinal changes of the CTR in women. Objective: To determine whether there is an effect of aging on the CTR in women. Methods: The study population consisted of 110 women who attended an annual health screening and underwent chest roentgenography both in 1981 and 1990 in a mountain village in Japan. We used the data obtained from an annual health screening in order to determine thoracic diameter (TD), cardiac diameter (CD), and lung height (LH) and then calculated the CTR. We analyzed CTR, TD, CD, and LH on the basis of the age of the participants. Results: In the cross-sectional analysis of the groups stratified by age in 1981, mean CD and CTR increased, and TD decreased in the advanced-age group. The percentage of radiographic cardiomegaly (CTR >50%) strikingly increased in the advanced-age group. In the longitudinal analysis between 1981 and 1990, the mean CD increased, and the mean TD decreased significantly. The mean CTR increased by 2.0% (95% CI 1.2–2.8%). The changes of the CTR in 9 years were positively correlated with those of CD and negatively correlated with those of TD and LH. The longitudinal data generally accorded with the cross-sectional data, except LH. Conclusions: The CTR in women increases with aging as a result of the increase in CD, except in the case of advanced old age, and the decrease in TD. LH could be another major factor that has an influence on CTR. Caution should be exercised to avoid overestimating CTR when LH changes. The classical upper limit of 50% for CTR in our adopted method should not be applied to elderly women because of the possibility that changes with normal aging are misclassified as abnormal findings.
Process Evaluation of Practice-based Diabetes Prevention Programs

Purpose The purpose of this report is to describe lessons learned about the feasibility of recruitment and implementation of low-income adults with prediabetes in primary care clinics into diabetes prevention programs. Methods Mixed methods process evaluation of a pragmatic 2-group pilot comparative effectiveness study of a community-developed Healthy Living Program (HLP) and a Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) with 58 adults. Results Of the total (n = 1215) assessed for eligibility, 7% (n = 92) were randomized, 58 completed the baseline assessment, and 31 completed the intervention. The process evaluation identified difficulty in systematically screening potentially eligible patients. There were several logistic and staffing challenges with program planning and initial start-up. Conclusions Addressing challenges to feasibility is required for successful translation of evidence-based programs to clinical settings.
Evaluation of resazurin microtiter plate assay and HPLC- photodiode array analysis of the roots of Asparagus adscendens

Abstract Asparagus adscendens Roxb. (Asparagaceae), is native to the Himalayas. The present study, for the first time, was undertaken to explore the antimicrobial potential, to determine the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values of the methanol extract of the roots of A. adscendens and its solid-phase extraction (SPE) fractions using resazurin microtitre assay against Gram-positive and negative bacterial-registered strains and to carry out HPLC-photodiode array analysis of the SPE fractions. The methanol extract and all SPE exhibited considerable level of antibacterial potential against Gram-positive bacteria (MIC: 2.5–0.009 mg/mL) than against Gram-negative bacteria (MIC: 1.25–2.5 mg/mL). The use of microtitre plates has the advantage of lower cost, fast and quantitative results. Like other Asparagus species, the presence of phenolic compounds in all SPE fractions was evident in the HPLC-PDA data.
Role of microbial iron reduction in the dissolution of iron hydroxysulfate minerals - article no. G01012

Reduction of structural sulfate in the iron-hydroxysulfate mineral jarosite by sulfate-reducing bacteria has previously been demonstrated. The primary objective of this work was to evaluate the potential for anaerobic dissolution of the iron-hydroxysulfate minerals jarosite and schwertmannite at neutral pH by iron-reducing bacteria. Mineral dissolution was tested using a long-term cultivar, Geobacter metallireducens strain GS-15, and a fresh isolate Geobacter sp. strain ENN1, previously undescribed. ENN1 was isolated from the discharge site of Shadle Mine, in the southern anthracite coalfield of Pennsylvania, where schwertmannite was the predominant iron-hydroxysulfate mineral. When jarosite from Elizabeth Mine (Vermont) was provided as the sole terminal electron acceptor, resting cells of both G. metallireducens and ENN1 were able to reduce structural Fe(III), releasing Fe{sup +2}, SO{sub 4}{sup -2}, and K{sup +} ions. A lithified jarosite sample from Utah was more resistant to microbial attack, but slow release of Fe{sup +2} was observed. Neither bacterium released Fe{sup +2} from poorly crystalline synthetic schwertmannite. Our results indicate that exposure of jarosite to iron-reducing conditions at neutral pH is likely to promote the mobility of hazardous constituents and should therefore be considered in evaluating waste disposal and/or reclamation options involving jarosite-bearing materials.
Pediatric Emergency Provider Sexually Transmitted Infection Screening Practices in Adolescents With Oropharyngeal or Anorectal Chief Complaints

Supplemental digital content is available in the text. Objectives Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) may present with oropharyngeal or anorectal symptoms. Little is known about the evaluation of adolescents with these complaints in the pediatric emergency department (PED). This study aimed to determine the frequency of and factors associated with STI consideration and testing in this population. Methods Retrospective chart review of patients aged 13 to 18 years who presented to an urban PED with oropharyngeal or anorectal chief complaints between June 2014 and May 2015. Sexually transmitted infection consideration was defined as sexual history documentation, documentation of STI in differential diagnosis, and/or diagnostic testing. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to identify factors associated with consideration. Results Of 767 visits for oropharyngeal (89.4%), anorectal (10.4%), or both complaints, 153 (19.9%) had STI consideration. Of the 35 visits (4.6%) that included gonorrhea and/or chlamydia testing, 12 (34.3%) included testing at the anatomic site of complaint. Of those 12 tests, 50.0% were the incorrect test. Patients with older age (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] = 1.5, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.3–1.7), female sex (aOR = 1.6, 95% CI = 1.03–2.5), or anorectal complaints (aOR = 2.4, 95% CI = 1.3–4.3) were more likely to have STI consideration. Conclusions In an urban PED, only 20% of visits for adolescents with oropharyngeal or anorectal symptoms included STI consideration. Testing was performed in only 5% of cases and often at an inappropriate anatomic site or with the incorrect test. Interventions to increase awareness of appropriate STI consideration and testing for individuals presenting with possible extragenital complaints may help reduce STIs among adolescents.
Diffusion of Innovations in Schools: A Study of Adoption and Implementation of School-Based Tobacco Prevention Curricula

Purpose. The purpose of this study was to determine the extent of implementation of school health education curricula, to identify factors which enhanced or impeded implementation, and to examine the link between the adoption and implementation phases of the diffusion process. Design. The study used an experimental design; 22 school districts were randomly assigned to intervention and control conditions. Setting. The study was conducted in North Carolina. Subjects. All teachers in the study districts identified by their schools as “eligible to teach health” were included in the sample. Intervention. An in-depth training was conducted on the use of the middle school tobacco prevention curriculum that had been adopted. Measures. Three measures were used to assess implementation of the curricula. Independent variables of interest included organizational size and climate, teacher training, how long it took to make the adoption decision, and attitudes toward tobacco use prevention curricula. Response rates for these measures ranged from 44% to 78%. Results. Nonparametric correlations and regression modeling indicated that larger organizational size and teacher training were the strongest predictors of curricula implementation. A favorable organizational climate within school districts also improved implementation. Conclusions. While interventions to increase adoption of school health education curricula should focus on larger school districts, the majority of efforts to improve implementation should focus on smaller districts.
Reliability and Agreement Between Metrics of Cone Spacing in Adaptive Optics Images of the Human Retinal Photoreceptor Mosaic.

Purpose To assess reliability and agreement among three metrics used to evaluate the distribution of cell distances in adaptive optics (AO) images of the cone mosaic. Methods Using an AO flood illumination retinal camera, we acquired images of the cone mosaic in 20 healthy subjects and 12 patients with retinal diseases. The three spacing metrics studied were the center-to-center spacing (Scc), the local cone spacing (LCS), and the density recovery profile distance (DRPD). Each metric was calculated in sampling areas of different sizes (64 × 64 μm and 204 × 204 μm) across the parafovea. Results Both Scc and LCS were able to discriminate between healthy subjects and patients with retinal diseases; DRPD did not reliably detect any abnormality in the distribution of cell distances in patients with retinal diseases. The agreement between Scc and LCS was high in healthy subjects (intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC] ≥ 0.79) and moderate in patients with retinal diseases (ICC ≤ 0.51). The DRPD had poor agreement with Scc (ICC ≤ 0.47) and LCS (ICC ≤ 0.37). The correlation between the spacing metrics of the two sampling areas was greater in healthy subjects than in patients with retinal diseases. Conclusions The Scc and LCS provided interchangeable estimates of cone distance in AO retinal images of healthy subjects but could not be used interchangeably when investigating retinal diseases with significant cell reflectivity loss (≥30%). The DRPD was unreliable for describing cell distance in a human retinal cone mosaic and did not correlate with Scc and LCS. Caution is needed when comparing spacing metrics evaluated in sampling areas of different sizes.
Surgeon, Hospital, and Geographic Variation in Minimally Invasive Colectomy.

OBJECTIVE To identify sources of variation in the use of minimally invasive surgery (MIS) for colectomy. BACKGROUND MIS is associated with decreased analgesic use, shorter length of stay, and faster postoperative recovery. This study identified factors explaining variation in MIS use for colectomy. METHODS The Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System was queried for scheduled admissions in which a colectomy was performed for neoplastic, diverticular, or inflammatory bowel disease between 2008 and 2015. Mixed-effects analyses were performed assessing surgeon, hospital, and geographic variation and factors associated with an MIS approach. RESULTS Among 45,714 colectomies, 68.1% were performed using an MIS approach. Wide variation in the rate of MIS was present across 1253 surgeons (median 50%, interquartile range 10.9%-84.2%, range 0.3%-99.7%). Calculating intraclass correlation coefficients after controlling for case-mix, 62.8% of the total variation in MIS usage was attributable to surgeon variation compared with 28.5% attributable to patient variation, 7% attributable to hospital variation, and 1.6% attributable to geographic variation. Surgeon-years in practice since residency/fellowship completion explained 19.2% of the surgeon variation, surgeon volume explained 5.2%, hospital factors explained 0.1%, and patient factors explained 0%. CONCLUSIONS Wide surgeon variation exists regarding an MIS approach for colectomy, and most of the total variation is attributable to individual surgeon practices-much of which is related to year of graduation. As increasing surgeon age is inversely proportional to the rate of MIS, patient referral and/or providing tailored training to older surgeons may be constructive targets in increasing the use of MIS and reducing healthcare utilization.
Regime de metas de inflação no Brasil: metodologia VAR e análise de funções impulso-resposta

O regime monetario de metas de inflacao adotado pelo Brasil em meados de 1999 apos uma crise cambial que forcou o abandono da chamada âncora cambial, tem o objetivo, resumidamente, de fazer um anuncio previo de uma meta numerica para a inflacao buscando com isso coordenar a formacao de expectativas inflacionarias dos agentes e a fixacao de salarios e precos. Muitos trabalhos empiricos relacionados a avaliacao do regime de metas de inflacao no Brasil ou adotando modelos empiricos e simulacoes matematicas para estudar a compatibilidade entre o regime de metas de inflacao e politicas economicas de diversos matizes. O presente trabalho apresenta um modelo com o objetivo de analisar a inter-relacao dinâmica entre variaveis macroeconomicas no contexto do regime de metas de inflacao fazendo uma estimacao empirica de um modelo VAR para o periodo 1999-2013.
What #theDress reveals about the role of illumination priors in color perception and color constancy

The disagreement between people who named #theDress (the Internet phenomenon of 2015) “blue and black” versus “white and gold” is thought to be caused by individual differences in color constancy. It is hypothesized that observers infer different incident illuminations, relying on illumination “priors” to overcome the ambiguity of the image. Different experiences may drive the formation of different illumination priors, and these may be indicated by differences in chronotype. We assess this hypothesis, asking whether matches to perceived illumination in the image and/or perceived dress colors relate to scores on the morningness-eveningness questionnaire (a measure of chronotype). We find moderate correlations between chronotype and illumination matches (morning types giving bluer illumination matches than evening types) and chronotype and dress body matches, but these are significant only at the 10% level. Further, although inferred illumination chromaticity in the image explains variation in the color matches to the dress (confirming the color constancy hypothesis), color constancy thresholds obtained using an established illumination discrimination task are not related to dress color perception. We also find achromatic settings depend on luminance, suggesting that subjective white point differences may explain the variation in dress color perception only if settings are made at individually tailored luminance levels. The results of such achromatic settings are inconsistent with their assumed correspondence to perceived illumination. Finally, our results suggest that perception and naming are disconnected, with observers reporting different color names for the dress photograph and their isolated color matches, the latter best capturing the variation in the matches.
A case study on dynamic control of complex operational amplifier performance using back gate biasing

This paper presents a case study on back gate or body bias variation on the performance of a two stage Class AB Folded Cascode operational amplifier in 22nm FD-SOI (fully depleted silicon on insulator) technology. The back gate bias is varied on each of the op-amp (operational amplifier) building block and its impact on the overall op-amp performance is observed. Finally the performance of the op-amp with back gate bias and without back gate bias are compared. The primary output parameters measured are open loop gain, unity gain bandwidth, settling time (12 bit), output range, phase margin and power consumption. While most of the parameters remain nearly constant, or do not change much, there is a tuning range of 6dB for open loop gain, the input range of 325mV can be shifted by around 110mV and settling time can be varied by 15%.
Neurobiologic Features of Fibromyalgia Are Also Present Among Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients

Many patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) report pain despite excellent control of inflammation with immunotherapies. Variable degrees of coexisting fibromyalgia (FM) may explain this disparity. FM has been characterized by aberrant brain functional connectivity, especially between the default mode network (DMN) and insula. We undertook this study to test the hypothesis that RA patients with the highest 2011 American College of Rheumatology FM survey criteria scores—a continuous measure of the degree of FM also known as “fibromyalgianess” (FMness)—would demonstrate functional connectivity abnormalities similar to those in FM.
Distorted Performance Measures and Dynamic Incentives

Incentive contracts must typically be based on performance measures that do not exactly match agents’ true contribution to principals’ objectives. Such misalignment may impose difficulties for effective incentive design. We analyze to what extent implicit dynamic incentives such as career concerns and ratchet effects alleviate or aggravate these problems. Our analysis demonstrates that the interplay between distorted performance measures and implicit incentives implies that career and ratchet effects have real effects, that stronger ratchet effects or more distortion may increase optimal monetary incentives, and that bureaucratic promotion rules may be optimal.
Monoclonal Antibody Targeting of Ovarian Carcinoma

The ability to effectively define disease status in ovarian cancer after initial therapy or to selectively screen high-risk populations remains a major challenge for in vivo monoclonal antibody (mAb)-targeted approaches. Antitumour murine mAbs (HMFG1, HMFG2, H317, and H17E2) and the reshaped human antibody Hu2PLAP (against placental alkaline phosphatase; PLAP), labelled with indium-111 and iodine-123, were evaluated for their ability to localise ovarian tumours in sequential studies of our group. Thirty patients with ovarian cancer, aged 40–78 years (median 60 years) were studied with HMFG1/G2: 11, and H317/H17E2: 19 murine mAbs. Six patients with ovarian cancer aged between 36 and 65 years (median 49 years) were studied with the reshaped human Hu2PLAP mAb (5 patients) or the murine H17E2 mAb (2 patients) labelled with 111In via a new macrocyclic chelating agent (DOTA). One of these was imaged twice, with H17E2- and Hu2PLAP-DOTA-111In, respectively. In 20 out of 22 patients with radiologically measurable ovarian cancer, the presence of tumour was confirmed by the murine mAb scan and correlated well with the findings of conventional radiology diagnostic methods. One of these patients with a negative H17E2 scan and a large abdominal mass at laparotomy was found to have a PLAP-negative tumour on immunohistochemistry. Additionally, the antibody scan revealed the presence of active disease, confirmed at laparotomy/laparoscopy, in 6 out of 8 patients considered to be in clinical complete remission. Best images were obtained at 24 and 48 h after the 123I and 111In mAbs, respectively. Successful imaging with the reshaped human antibody, Hu2PLAP, was seen in 2 patients with PLAP-positive tumours. Antibodies to DOTA developed in 2 patients. In conclusion, immunolocalisation of ovarian tumours is feasible with both murine and reshaped human mAbs. The sensitivity and specificity of the method appear very high in this pilot study, and in view of the absence of toxicity, the diagnostic contribution of this approach should be evaluated prospectively. Given the low number of patients without surgically detectable disease in the present study, future investigations should include more patients with no evidence of disease in order to provide more meaningful estimates of specificity.
Mouse spinal cord neurons in serum-free culture media: suitability for patch clamp studies on chemical and electrical excitability.

Methods were devised for the serum-free culture of spinal cord neurons derived from 12- to 13-day mouse embryos. Neurons exhibited good attachment if plated for 24 h on poly-d-lysine-coated dishes in the presence of serum. Cultures were subsequently fed with a serum-free medium consisting of minimum essential medium, Earle's salts and the N1 supplement, i.e. insulin, putrescine, transferrin, progesterone and selenium. After 3 weeks in vitro, growth and survival of neurons in this medium were comparable to results obtained using serum-supplemented medium. The presence of putrescine was not essential for the beneficial effects of N1, while insulin was required for long-term survival in serum-free media. Neurons maintained in serum-free media for 3 weeks retained aspects of electrical and chemical excitability characteristic of serum-grown cells.
Microwave-Assisted Thermal Remediation of Diesel Contaminated Soil

Leakage of petroleum products, gasoline and diesel, at gas station had become one of major soil contamination sources in Taiwan. Total number of 154 petroleum contaminated gas stations was successively ascertained since the implementation of Soil and Groundwater Remediation Act in 2002. One of the contaminated gas stations, mainly diesel polluted, was studied for the feasibility of microwave-assisted thermal remediation. The average of total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHt) in hotspot of this site was 2,845 mg/kg exceeding regulatory limit (1,000 mg/kg). According to the groundwater condition in the site, soil samples treated by microwave radiation with and without water as saturation and vadose zones were respectively tested in laboratory. The results show that a 12-min microwave energy can heat soil with water to reach 235 °C and degrade its TPHt to 934 mg/kg; additionally, a 5-min microwave energy can heat soil without water to reach 220 °C and degrade its TPHt to 520 mg/kg. Both soil samples passed TPHt regulatory limit and microwave remediation with fast and effective advantages for petroleum products contaminated soil was also verified.