Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Subclinical peripheral neuropathy in patients with multiple myeloma before chemotherapy is correlated with decreased fingertip innervation density.

PURPOSE The goal in this study was to determine the incidence of subclinical neuropathy in treatment-naive patients with multiple myeloma (MM) with no history of peripheral neuropathy using quantitative sensory tests (QSTs) and its correlation with innervation density of the extremities using noninvasive laser reflectance confocal microscopy. PATIENTS AND METHODS QST results were collected for 27 patients with a diagnosis of MM and compared with data collected from 30 age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers. Skin temperature, sensorimotor function (grooved pegboard test), and detection thresholds for temperature, sharpness, and low-threshold mechanical stimuli (von Frey monofilaments and bumps detection test) were measured. Meissner's corpuscle (MC) density in the fingertips was assessed using in vivo laser reflectance confocal microscopy. RESULTS Patients showed a high incidence (> 80%) of ≥ one subclinical QST deficit. These included increased von Frey, bumps, and warmth detection thresholds as compared with healthy volunteers. Patients also showed increases in cold pain, sensorimotor deficits (grooved pegboard test), and higher overall neuropathy scores. MC density was significantly lower in patients than controls and showed significant inverse correlation with bumps detection threshold. CONCLUSION Patients with MM commonly present with sensory and sensorimotor deficits before undergoing treatment, and these deficits seem to result from disease-related decreases in peripheral innervation density.
Nutritional uniformity of neutral detergent solubles in some tropical browse leaf and pod diets

An experiment was conducted to study the nutritional uniformity of neutral detergent solubles (NDS) in tropical browse species comprising Faidherbia albida, Acacia tortilis, Delonix elata and Mulberry (Morus alba) leaves and F. albida, A. tortilis, A. nilotica and Dichrostachys cinerea pods. The browse supplements were fed together with maize bran to individually caged goats at increasing levels in hay-based diets. Each diet had five levels of the browse feeds in duplicate which were randomly allocated to the goats in five periods of 14 days each. Chemical composition of the feeds consumed and faeces voided were determined. Nutritional uniformity (Lucas test) of NDS was determined for individual browse by regressing the digestible amount upon its content in the dry matter, in which the regression slope represents true digestibility and the y-intercept, endogenous excretions. A. nilotica pods and A. tortilis and D. elata leaves were not well accepted by the animals, due to the high levels of phenolic compounds and mould. There was no significant (p > 0.05) relationship between the estimated amount of digested NDS and content of phenolic compounds in the browses. True digestibilities of NDS were significantly (p < 0.05) different between the species. The yintercepts were not significantly (p > 0.05) different from zero for all species except F. albida leaves (ÿ7.89). The true digestibility ( SD) of NDS for all the species combined in the Lucas test was 91.9 0.03% and the metabolic matter was estimated at 3.38 1.13 g/100 g of dry matter intake. The variable true NDS digestibility among the species was an indication of non-uniformity of this fraction, implying that the digestibility of the NDS fraction of tropical browse species may not be predicted from its content. Further studies to include more species are necessary to determine if this is a general phenomenon with tropical browse species. # 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
The fast dynamics of benzene in the liquid phase. Part II. A molecular dynamics simulation

A molecular dynamics simulation is performed for liquid benzene in the rigid body approximation. The results concerning the structural and dynamical properties of the system provide the basis for the interpretation of recent experimental data. In particular, it is shown that the system is characterised by a well defined cage structure, and that the average dynamics of the cages describe the main dynamical features of the bulk liquid. The calculated mean lifetime of the cages is in good agreement with the value of the Kubo correlation time derived from the experiments. In the picture emerging both from experiments and calculations, the fast intermolecular dynamics of liquid benzene is characterised by an inhomogeneously broadened distribution of intermolecular vibrational frequencies, whose dephasing is primarily due to the relaxation of the local structures. In particular, this mechanism is responsible for the dephasing of the low frequency librations giving rise to the intermediate quasi-exponential relaxation observed in the optical Kerr effect experiments.
Association of 24 hour urinary sodium , potassium and ALDH 2 rs 671 , MTHFRrs 1801133 polymorphisms with blood pressure in isolated Zhangzi Island population

1Dalian University, Dalian 116622 2Clinical Lab, Affiliated Zhongshan Hospital of Dalian University, Dalian 116001 3Health center of Dalian Zhangzi Island, Dalian 116503 4Laboratory of Human Genetics, Beijing Hypertension League Institute, Beijing 100043 5Affiliated Zhongshan Hospital of Dalian University, Dalian 116001 6Department of Cardiology, Affiliated Zhongshan Hospital of Dalian University, Dalian 116001
Domestic processing effects on physicochemical , nutritional and anti-nutritional attributes in soybean ( Glycine max

Effects of soaking and cooking methods on physicochemical characteristics, nutrients and antinutrients in twenty soybean genotypes were studied. Batches of seeds were soaked for 18 h in distilled water, 1% citric acid and 2% sodium bicarbonate solutions at room temperature and then boiled in water. Raw soybean genotypes exhibited 36.5-43.2% protein, 20.7-22.2% oil, 2.58. 3% total soluble sugars, 1.1-10.4% sucrose, 11.1-18.8 mg/g tannins, 14-36.2 mg/g phenols, 5.1-24.5 mg/g phytate, 30-102.5 mg/g trypsin inhibitor activity and 9.3-27 mg/g saponins. Soaking in distilled water and/or different solutions followed by cooking resulted in significant reductions in the levels of protein, oil and antinutrients and enhanced the carbohydrates in soybean seeds. Cooking of soaked seeds resulted in higher losses of antinutrients in comparison to unsoaked seeds. Among the various treatments, soaking in 1% citric acid solution followed by cooking for 30 min resulted in maximum reduction in most of the antinutrients studied.
Männyn- ja kuusentaimikoiden kehitys erilaisia metsänuudistamisketjuja käytettäessä

Tutkimuksessa tarkasteltiin mäntyja kuusitaimikoiden tiheyttä ja pituuskehitystä. Tutkimus perustui käytännön uudistusaloilta koko maan alueelta kerättyyn kertamittausaineistoon, joka käsitti 68 männynja 19 kuusentaimikkoa. Mänty oli uudistettu luontaisesti, kylvetty tai istutettu tuoreelle ja kuivahkolle kankaalle ja kuusi oli istutettu lehtomaiselle ja tuoreelle kankaalle. Uudistusala oli joko muokkaamaton tai muokattu äestämällä, laikuttamalla, mätästämällä tai auraamalla. Joitakin uudistusaloja oli lisäksi kulotettu. Taimikot olivat mittaushetkellä 6–34 vuotta vanhoja ja valtapituudeltaan 2–11 m. Aineistoon sovitettiin lineaarisia malleja selittämään pääpuulajin osalta sekä yksittäisen taimen pituutta, että taimikon keskija valtapituutta sekä runkolukua. Lisäksi tarkasteltiin siemenja vesasyntyisen lehtipuuston määrää. Erityisen kiinnostavia selittäviä tekijöitä olivat erilaiset muokkausmenetelmät. Keskija valtapituutta selittivät taimikon ikä, lämpösumma, pääpuulaji, uudistamismenetelmä ja kasvupaikka. Keskipituuteen ja runkoluun vaikuttivat myös erilaiset muokkausmenetelmät, mutta niillä ei ollut vaikutusta valtapituuteen. Maanmuokkaus lisäsi lehtipuuston määrää, mutta muokkausmenetelmät eivät eronneet merkitsevästi toisistaan. Yksittäisen taimen pituutta selitti syntytapa, asema muokkausjäljessä ja terveydentila. Metsikkötason mallit selittivät 48–66 % runkoluvun ja 81–87 % pituustunnusten vaihtelusta. Maanpinnan käsittelyistä kulotus, auraus ja mätästys nopeuttivat keskipituuden kehitystä äestetyn uudistusalan perustasoon verrattuna. Vesakon tiheys ei vaikuttanut merkitsevästi kasvatettavien taimien pituuskehitykseen, mutta vesakon pituus suhteessa kasvatettavan havupuun taimen pituuteen oli merkitsevä selittäjä.
A Compact X-ray Generator Using a Nanostructured Field Emission Cathode and a Microstructured Transmission Anode

We report the design, fabrication, and preliminary characterization of a compact X-ray generator for improved X-ray absorption imaging that uses a nanostructured field emission cathode (FEC) as the electron source and a microstructured transmission anode as the X-ray generating element. FECs consume less power, respond faster, and tolerate lower vacuum than thermionic cathodes used in conventional X-ray generators. The use of a transmission anode, instead of a conventional reflection anode, allows filtering of the background radiation (brems strahlung) while allowing efficient generation of X-rays at lower voltages by exciting atomic shell transitions, resulting in emission of X-rays with narrow spectral linewidth for sharper imaging of biological tissue. The fabricated FEC contains arrays of self-aligned, gated field emitters that turn on at bias voltages under 30 V and transmit 99.5% of the electrons to the anode. The FEC emits a maximum current of 1.2 μA per field emitter (588 μA total array current) at a bias voltage of 85 V. A facility is built and tested to generate X-rays with an FEC and a transmission anode. Using the facility, we obtained an X-ray absorption image of an ex-vivos ample that clearly shows softtissue and fine bone structures.
Immunity to infections on secretory surfaces.

The field of immunology developed as attempts were made to understand the observed phenomenon that, in many cases, individuals become immune (often permanently) to an infectious disease after having had that disease. As a natural corollary of this fact, attempts were made to induce this immune state without causing illness, or at least to reduce acceptably the severity of illness. During the past 200 years, the corollary aim has probably proven more successful than the attempts to understand the phenomenon, and the development of the several immunization practices now widely used has been the most successful aspect of the disciplines of immunology and infectious disease (with the possible exception of the role of the latter in the generally improved state of public hygiene). In addition, we feel that this contribution from the combined efforts of those in the fields of infectious diseases and immunology will continue to be great, e.g., in the development of vaccines against caries, herpesvirus, and streptococcal infections, the hepatitides, gonorrhea, and syphilis, and in improved vaccines against cholera and influenza.
Evaluation of infiltration models in contaminated landscape

The infiltration models of Kostiakov, Green-Ampt, and Philip (two and three terms equations) were used, calibrated, and evaluated to simulate in-situ infiltration in nine different soil types. The Osborne-Moré modified version of the Levenberg-Marquardt optimization algorithm was coupled with the experimental data obtained by the double ring infiltrometers and the infiltration equations, to estimate the model parameters. Comparison of the model outputs with the experimental data indicates that the models can successfully describe cumulative infiltration in different soil types. However, since Kostiakov's equation fails to accurately simulate the infiltration rate as time approaches infinity, Philip's two-term equation, in some cases, produces negative values for the saturated hydraulic conductivity of soils, and the Green-Ampt model uses piston flow assumptions, we suggest using Philip's three-term equation to simulate infiltration and to estimate the saturated hydraulic conductivity of soils.
Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibition in chronic allograft nephropathy

Background. Although angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibition has been shown to slow progression of chronic allograft nephropathy in animal models, no studies have examined its efficacy in humans. Methods. We retrospectively analyzed 63 patients with biopsy-proven chronic allograft nephropathy who had ≥6 months dialysis-free follow-up at our institution. A total of 32 patients treated for ≥6 consecutive months with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibition and/or angiotensin-receptor blocker (ARB) therapy (group 1) were compared with 31 patients not on these agents (group 2). Results. Except for a higher incidence of hypertension (100 vs. 78%, P =0.005) in group 1, there were no significant differences in baseline clinical characteristics at time of biopsy. With a mean follow-up time of 27 months in both groups, 6 of 32 (19%) group 1 patients vs. 12 of 31 (39%) group 2 reached the primary endpoint of ≥50% increase in serum creatinine (P =0.10). Mean time to primary endpoint was 46.6 months in group 1 vs. 32.7 months in group 2 (P =0.07). Three of 32 (9%) of group 1 patients vs. 8 of 31 (26%) of group 2 returned to dialysis during this time (P =0.11). Significantly fewer patients in group 1 reached the combined secondary endpoint of allograft failure or death (9.4 vs. 35.5%, P =0.01); in addition, group 1 had a longer mean time to this endpoint (51.2 vs. 37.6 months, P =0.03). On multivariate analysis, the only predictor of progression to primary endpoint was a high baseline serum creatinine (P =0.02). No significant differences in hyperkalemia or anemia were found between the two groups. Conclusions. Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibition/angiotensin-receptor blocker therapy is well tolerated in renal allograft recipients with chronic allograft nephropathy. It is associated with a trend of slowing renal insufficiency as well as a significant survival benefit in the combined endpoint of allograft failure or death.
Classification of high resolution remote sensing image based on geo-ontology and conditional random fields

The availability of high spatial resolution remote sensing data provides new opportunities for urban land-cover classification. More geometric details can be observed in the high resolution remote sensing image, Also Ground objects in the high resolution remote sensing image have displayed rich texture, structure, shape and hierarchical semantic characters. More landscape elements are represented by a small group of pixels. Recently years, the an object-based remote sensing analysis methodology is widely accepted and applied in high resolution remote sensing image processing. The classification method based on Geo-ontology and conditional random fields is presented in this paper. The proposed method is made up of four blocks: (1) the hierarchical ground objects semantic framework is constructed based on geoontology; (2) segmentation by mean-shift algorithm, which image objects are generated. And the mean-shift method is to get boundary preserved and spectrally homogeneous over-segmentation regions ;(3) the relations between the hierarchical ground objects semantic and over-segmentation regions are defined based on conditional random fields framework ;(4) the hierarchical classification results are obtained based on geo-ontology and conditional random fields. Finally, high-resolution remote sensed image data -GeoEye, is used to testify the performance of the presented method. And the experimental results have shown the superiority of this method to the eCognition method both on the effectively and accuracy, which implies it is suitable for the classification of high resolution remote sensing image.
Pyrotechnic current limiting devices — From design to operation

The trend towards electrical drivers rather than mechanical drivers for offshore installation has led to implementation of large electrical systems and power generation. Due to the offshore environment constraints such as weight and footprint limitations, most of the installation remains operated at voltage of 13, 8 kV and lower which leads to specific constraints on the electrical network design. This paper provides an overview of the implementation of pyrotechnic current limiting devices from the design stage through precommissioning, commissioning and up to operation. A case study will also be developed based on fault event which occurred on a FPSO (Floating Production Storage and Offloading) leading to severe damage and its consequences on operation conditions. The pyrotechnic current limiting devices operated correctly when the fault occurred. The damage and production losses were due to other causes which will be highlighted.
Aesthetics‐based Graph Layout for Human Consumption

Automatic graph layout is an important and long‐studied problem. The basic straight‐edge graph layout problem is to find spatial positions for the nodes of an input graph that maximize some measure of desirability. When graph layout is intended for human consumption, we call this measure of desirability an aesthetic. We seek an algorithm that produces graph layouts of high aesthetic quality not only for general graphs, but also for specific classes of graphs, such as trees and directed acyclic graphs.
Towards a test of the weak equivalence principle of gravity using anti-hydrogen at CERN

The aim of the GBAR (Gravitational Behavior of Antimatter at Rest) experiment is to measure the free fall acceleration of an antihydrogen atom, in the terrestrial gravitational field at CERN and therefore test the Weak Equivalence Principle with antimatter. The aim is to measure the local gravity with a 1% uncertainty which can be reduced to few parts of 10-3.
Stroke History and Chagas Disease Are Independent Predictors of Silent Cerebral Microembolism in Patients with Congestive Heart Failure

Background: Chagas disease is endemic in South and Central America, where 18 million individuals are infected by Trypanosoma cruzi, causing congestive heart failure (CHF) and cardioembolic stroke. Transcranial Doppler (TCD) is able to detect real-time microembolic signals (MES) to the brain vessels and may represent a surrogate marker of stroke risk. We aimed to determine predictors of MES in a population of patients with CHF. Methods: Consecutive CHF patients from a university-based cardiomyopathy clinic underwent TCD recording of the middle cerebral artery for 60 min by a single investigator who was blinded to all clinical data including cardiomyopathy etiology. Predictors of MES were sought by multivariable logistic regression analysis. Results: From April 2004 to February 2009, 144 patients were studied, including 62 (44.6%) patients with Chagas disease. MES were detected in 9 (6.2%) patients and were more frequent in patients with Chagas disease than in patients with other causes of CHF (12.9 vs. 1.2%, p = 0.005). In multivariate analysis corrected for age and left-ventricular ejection fraction, predictors of MES were Chagas disease (odds ratio = 1.15, 95% confidence interval = 1.05–1.26, p = 0.004) and stroke history (odds ratio = 1.27, 95% confidence interval = 1.08–1.50, p = 0.005). Conclusions: Chagas disease and stroke history are risk factors for MES independent of cardiac disease severity. Other mechanisms besides structural cardiac disease may be operative, increasing embolic risk in Chagas disease.
Tobacco prevention in children and cessation in family members

Purpose: To examine the effects of a theory‐driven tobacco prevention program in sixth‐grade children with a family tobacco cessation component implemented by school nurses in conjunction with the initiation of a statewide toll‐free Quit Line. Data sources: Self‐report questionnaires completed by the sixth‐grade children and their parents/guardians (N= 1024) representing largely rural southern school systems from disparate areas with high prevalence rates of tobacco use and lung cancer diagnoses. Pre‐ and posttest measures that evaluated the impact of both student and parent/guardian interventions were obtained over a 10‐week period. Paired t‐tests were used to examine differences between pre‐ and posttest scores for all student and parent/guardian variables. Repeated‐measures analysis of variance was used to examine the effect of parent/guardian smoking on student pre‐ and posttest scores. Conclusions: The student program resulted in significant improvements in drug knowledge, refusal skills, attitudes, normative expectations, assertiveness, and anxiety reduction techniques. In addition, the effectiveness of several components of the tobacco prevention program for the children was impacted by the smoking status of their parents/guardians. Drug‐use intentions and behaviors were lower at posttest for children from homes of nonsmokers versus children from homes of smokers. Parents/guardians consistently reported that smoking was detrimental to themselves, the public, and their children. Of those parents/guardians who identified themselves as smokers (26%) and received cessation materials, 46.4% indicated that the information motivated them to want to quit. Implications for practice: Tobacco use continues to be the leading cause of preventable death in the United States, with greater than 2000 new youth becoming regular smokers each day. School nurses and nurse practitioners are in various pivotal positions to address tobacco and its related health concerns through delivery of effective family interventions that target children for tobacco prevention and parent/guardian smokers for cessation.
A compact monopole antenna for WWAN/LTE applications

The directed-fed and coupled-fed monopoles for portable device applications have been proposed and verified. By adding a distributed inductor in the coupled-fed monopole, the 0.73 GHz mode is excited and combines with the 0.96 GHz mode operated by the directed-fed monopole to form wide low frequency band. The higher modes of the proposed monopole create wide high frequency band. The operating bands based on -6 dB of S11 are 0.69-0.96 and 1.71-2.69 GHz for LTE and WWAN applications. The compact dimensions of 75 × 10 × 0.8 mm3 can be easily applied in top edge of tablet computer or laptop computer.
Using Coloured Petri Nets for Evaluating the Power Consumption of Wireless Sensor Networks

Several strategies to evaluate the power consumption of of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) have been proposed. The limited amount of energy and the difficulty of recharging them have demanded the emerging of these strategies. However, to evaluate the lifetime of a WSN is not a trivial task due to the complexity of reproducing the environment, inherent dynamism, and complexity and size of WSNs. In this context, we present an approach for evaluating the WSN lifetime by simulating its power consumption using models. This approach consists of a fully automated process for evaluating the WSN lifetime, a set of reusable Coloured Petri Net (CPN) models that express the power consumption of WSN communication protocols, and a strategy for composing CPN models of WSN applications and protocols. In order to assess our power consumption models, we carried out an experimental evaluation that compares the results obtained by simulation against ones existing in the literature.