Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Immunomodulatory Mediators from Pollen Enhance the Migratory Capacity of Dendritic Cells and License Them for Th2 Attraction1

The immune response of atopic individuals against allergens is characterized by increased levels of Th2 cytokines and chemokines. However, the way in which the cytokine/chemokine profile is matched to the type of invading allergen, and why these profiles sometimes derail and lead to disease, is not well understood. We recently demonstrated that pollen modulates dendritic cell (DC) function in a way that results in an enhanced capacity to initiate Th2 responses in vitro. Here, we examined the effects of aqueous birch pollen extracts (Bet.-APE) on chemokine receptor expression and chemokine production by human monocyte-derived DCs. Bet. -APE strongly induced expression and function of CXCR4 and reduced CCR1 and CCR5 expression on immature DCs. In addition, DC treatment with Bet. -APE significantly reduced LPS-induced production of CXCL10/IP-10, CCL5/RANTES; induced CCL22/macrophage-derived chemokine; and did not significantly change release of CCL17/thymus and activation-regulated chemokine. At a functional level, Bet. -APE increased the capacity of LPS-stimulated DCs to attract Th2 cells, whereas the capacity to recruit Th1 cells was reduced. Bet. -APE significantly and dose-dependently enhanced intracellular cAMP, suggesting that water-soluble factors from pollen grains bind a Gαs-protein-coupled receptor. E1-Phytoprostanes were identified to be one player in the Th2-polarizing potential of aqueous pollen extracts. In summary, our results demonstrate that pollen itself releases regulatory mediators which generate a Th2-promoting micromilieu with preferential recruitment of Th2 cells to the site of pollen exposure.
Asian Genotypes of JC Virus in Japanese-Americans Suggest Familial Transmission

ABSTRACT To examine the mode of JC virus (JCV) transmission, we collected urine samples from second- and third-generation Japanese-Americans in Los Angeles, Calif. , whose parents and grandparents were all Japanese. From the urine samples of these Japanese-Americans, we mainly detected two subtypes (CY and MY) of JCV that are predominantly found among native Japanese. This finding provides support for the hypothesis that JCV is transmitted mainly within the family through long-term cohabitation.
Consecutive Use of Two Multiplex PCR-Based Assays for Simultaneous Identification and Determination of Capsular Status of Nine Common Neisseria meningitidis Serogroups Associated with Invasive Disease

ABSTRACT We developed two Neisseria meningitidis multiplex PCR assays to be used consecutively that allow determination of the serogroup and capsular status of serogroup A, B, C, 29E, W135, X, and Y cnl-3/cnl-1-like-containing N. meningitidis isolates by direct analysis of the amplicon size. These assays offer a rapid and simple method of serogrouping N. meningitidis.
Medication Appropriateness Index: Putting a Number on an Old Problem in Older Patients

ELDERLY PATIENTS deserve the utmost attention to their prescribed regimens. They now receive more than 25% of all medications prescribed, and our best prediction is that this proportion will increase to almost 50% at the turn of the century. I Drugs are the most widely used intervention among the elderly and, when used carefully, offer hope of relief from a multitude of diseases as well as improved quality of life. Excessive drug therapy results in increased risk of noncompliance, adverse effects, drug interactions, and unnecessary costs. Inappropriate medication use is a common problem among elderly in the community.2-4 Some drugs clearly have no place in the treatment of elder­ ly patients. s However, inappropriate use is often not appar­ ent and requires added vigilance on behalf of prescribers and pharmacists. Even small indiscretions with medica­ tions can lead to additional suffering, especially for frail el­ derly persons. Investigators from the Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development at Duke University have devel­ oped and tested the medication appropriateness index (MAl) to systematically review the prescription regimens of elderly patients by using implicit criteria. This instru­ ment measures the magnitude of inappropriate prescribing to elderly patients for most of the dimensions of drug use
A Distributed Spectrum Sensing Scheme Based on Credibility and Evidence Theory in Cognitive Radio Context

Reliable detection of available spectrum is the foundation of cognitive radio technology. To improve the detection probability under sustainable false alarm rate, a distributed spectrum sensing scheme has been proposed. In this paper, we propose a new decision combination scheme, in which the credibility of local spectrum sensing is taken into account in the final decision at central access point and Dempster-Shafer's evidence theory is adopted to combine different sensing decisions from each cognitive user. Simulation results show that significant improvement in detection probability as well as reduction in false alarm rate is achieved by our proposal
Qualitative research in literacy acquisition: A framework for investigating reading in children with language impairment

Although much has been published in the literature concerning literacy in children with language impairments, little is known concerning the process that the individual language‐impaired child must go through to become a proficient reader. One reason for this may lie within the focus and rigor dictated by the methodologies typically used in literacy‐related studies. This paper addresses some of the limitations of the available literacy literature among language‐impaired populations and discusses how recent advances in qualitative research hold potential for significant methodological and clinical contributions to our understanding of literacy, specifically reading. A case study is presented demonstrating the usefulness of this methodological approach to describing the process of reading acquisition in a language‐impaired child.
Streamflow Prediction using a Forecast Combining System

In this work, we describe a forecasts combining system for predicting the monthly streamflows of the Guadalupe river in Colombia; the forecast combining system is composed of four individual experts implementing the following models: autoregresive (AR), autoregresive integrated moving averages, artificial neural networks and singular spectral analysis. We test the methods simple average, weighted average, neural networks, and ANFIS for combining expert forecasts. The combining system is used for streamflow prediction with horizons of one, three and six months ahead. We found that the combination of forecasts using ANFIS outperforms the accuracy of each individual model and the composed forecasts obtained using the other combining techniques.
Power quality improvement for wave energy converters using a D-STATCOM with real energy storage

Wave energy converters promise to be an important source of low-carbon electrical energy, but produce output power which fluctuates at a low frequency. The usual solution is to use flywheel energy storage on the shaft output. This paper proposes a novel alternative which uses aggregation to smooth most of the power oscillation and a fast-response power electronics device, the D-STATCOM, to smooth out the residual change. Novel control schemes are examined to prolong the life of the D-STATCOM energy storage element.
Representing recompression HCCI dynamics with a switching linear model

Homogeneous charge compression ignition (HCCI) promises efficient combustion and less NOx emissions over conventional modes. However, the lack of direct ignition trigger and the cycle-to-cycle coupling in recompression HCCI makes the combustion phasing control problem difficult. To further complicate the matter, we show in this paper that the natural dynamics of HCCI can change drastically from one operating point to another. Our analyses show that the operating range of recompression HCCI can be partitioned into three linear regions such that a single linearized model can reasonably capture the system behavior within each region. As a result, a switching linear model that switches between three linearized systems shows better agreement with the physical testbed compared to using a single linear model. The switching linear model also gives insights on what the appropriate feedback control actions should be in each of the region and reveals that a controller that works well in one region may have a directional error when blindly applied to a different operating region.
Bakıcı İyilik Ölçeği'nin Uyarlama, Güvenirlik ve Geçerlik Çalışması

The aim of this study is to adapt the Caregiver Well-Being Scale (Berg-Weger, Rubio & Tebb, 2000), measuring the well-being of caregivers of a chronically ill family member, to Turkish culture and to test the reliability and validity of the Turkish version of the scale. The scale is made up of two subscales, namely, basic needs and activities of living, which try to measure the daily activity level of the caregivers. A total of 200 people who are the caregivers of a chronically family member and who are non-caregivers (control group) form the sample of the study. Besides Caregiver Well-Being Scale, Beck Depression Inventory and the Mental, Physical and Spiritual Well-Being Scale were administered to the participants to test the validity of the Turkish version of the scale. The results of the factor analysis were compatible with the results of Tebb’s study (1995). The analyses showed that the Turkish version of the Caregiver Well-Being Scale seems to be a reliable and valid scale.
Medical findings in an interdisciplinary geriatric outpatient clinic specialising in falls.

BACKGROUND Falls are common among elderly people, leading to increased morbidity and reduced quality of life. A broad-based interdisciplinary study, for example in an outpatient clinic specialising in falls, has been recommended in light of the multiple and complex causes that tend to be involved. At present there are few outpatient clinics in Norway specialising in falls, and no data from such studies have yet been published. MATERIAL AND METHOD The information stems from 111 patients at the Fallpoliklinikken, Oslo University Hospital, from its establishment in 2008 until 2011. An interdisciplinary study was undertaken by a nurse, a doctor and a physiotherapist. Further investigations and measures were proposed on the basis of individual risk factors. RESULTS The patient group had a number of known risk factors for falls. The most frequently identified risk factors included orthostatism (26 of 110 patients, 24%), vitamin D deficiency (14 of 79 patients, 18%) and carotid sinus hypersensitivity (6 of 55 patients examined, 11%). Rare, but significant findings included colon cancer, subdural haematoma (one case of each) and normal pressure hydrocephalus (two cases). The most frequent measures for preventing new falls included exercise/physiotherapy (close to all patients), adjustment of medications (25 patients, 23%) and implantation of a pacemaker (six patients, 5%). INTERPRETATION Falls among elderly people have varying and complex causes and a serious underlying pathology may manifest itself as a tendency to fall. This testifies to the importance of a thorough interdisciplinary study of falls.
Evaluation of new technology for intraoperative evoked compound action potential threshold measurements

Abstract Objective: To determine whether new technology for intraoperative evoked compound action potential (ECAP) threshold measurements—the CR120 Intraoperative Remote Assistant device—is comparable to the existing Custom Sound® clinical system, as well as assess test-retest accuracy of the systems. Design: Within subject, repeated measures comparative design. Study sample: ECAP data were collected from 81 pediatric subjects (41 females and 40 males). Results: The average ECAP threshold measurement time for the Custom Sound system was 6.2 minutes (SD = 1.0) versus 4.8 minutes (SD = 0.7) for the CR120 device. ECAP thresholds measured with Custom Sound and the CR120 device had an average Pearson product-moment correlation coefficient for all electrodes (N = 1724) of 0.92, p < 0.01; an average mean absolute difference of 6 CLs (SD = 6); and a 95% confidence interval of − 1 to 1 CLs. The test-retest results for Custom Sound and the CR120 device are also included. Conclusion: A significant reduction in the measurement time for ECAP thresholds was noted with the CR120 device. Furthermore, ECAP thresholds measured with the CR120 device are equivalent to Custom Sound within a clinically acceptable range.
Port regionalization: towards a new phase in port development

Logistics integration and network orientation in the port and maritime industry have redefined the functional role of ports in value chains and have generated new patterns of freight distribution and new approaches to port hierarchy. Existing models on the spatial and functional evolution of ports and port systems only partially fit into the new freight distribution paradigm. This paper aims to add to existing literature by introducing a port regionalization phase in port and port system development. It is demonstrated that the regionalization phase and associated hinterland concepts demand new approaches to port governance and a functional focus that goes beyond the traditional port perimeter.
Contamination of peripheral blood by monoclonal B cells following treatment of multiple myeloma by high‐dose chemotherapy

Summary Peripheral blood samples obtained from five patients with multiple myeloma, after high‐dose chemotherapy, were studied for monoclonal B plasma cell contamination. We used the technique of immunoglobulin heavy chain gene ‘fingerprinting’ at the time of diagnosis and during apheresis. The level of sensitivity of this technique is between 041% and 0.001% in two patients in whom a monoclonal population was detected in peripheral blood.
Is vascular flow a predictor of malignant thyroid nodules? A meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND Several reports have proposed that increased vascular flow on color Doppler sonography may be associated with malignancy in thyroid nodules. Others have described no correlation between the presence of flow and risk of malignancy. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the vascularity of a thyroid nodule can aid in the prediction of malignancy by performing a meta-analysis of the current literature. METHODS Independent reviewers conducted a systematic review of publications from PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Review using the following keyword searches: "vascular thyroid nodule", and "vascular malignant thyroid nodule". Outcomes included vascular flow pattern, nodule size, calcifications, echogenicity, margins, and shape. Data were extracted following review of appropriate studies, and outcome differences were calculated using analysis of variance and the Bonferroni method. RESULTS Eighty-nine publications were identified and 14 prospective studies met inclusion criteria totaling 4,154 thyroid nodules, 1,419 (34%) of which were malignant. Thirty-three percent of malignant thyroid nodules had no vascular flow, while 17% had peripheral and 50% had internal vascular flow. There was no significant difference in vascular flow (95% CI: -14.329, 4.257), or peripheral vascular flow rate between malignant and benign thyroid nodules (95% CI: -29.254, 4.313). Also, there was no significant difference in internal vascularity between malignant and benign thyroid nodules (95% CI: -72.067, 2.824). CONCLUSIONS It appears that utilization of vascular flow on color Doppler sonography may not accurately predict malignancy in thyroid nodules. Further studies are warranted to investigate the predictive role of increased vascularity in diagnosing suspicious thyroid nodules.
Automatic analysis and characterization of the hummingbird wings motion using dense optical flow features

A new method for automatic analysis and characterization of recorded hummingbird wing motion is proposed. The method starts by computing a multiscale dense optical flow field, which is used to segment the wings, i.e., pixels with larger velocities. Then, the kinematic and deformation of the wings were characterized as a temporal set of global and local measures: a global angular acceleration as a time function of each wing and a local acceleration profile that approximates the dynamics of the different wing segments. Additionally, the variance of the apparent velocity orientation estimates those wing foci with larger deformation. Finally a local measure of the orientation highlights those regions with maximal deformation. The approach was evaluated in a total of 91 flight cycles, captured using three different setups. The proposed measures follow the yaw turn hummingbird flight dynamics, with a strong correlation of all computed paths, reporting a standard deviation of 0.31 rad / frame 2 ? > and 1.9 ( rad / frame ) 2 ? > for the global angular acceleration and the global wing deformation respectively.
EVALUATION OF THE NITROPRUSSIDE TEST FOR THE DIAGNOSIS OF CYSTINURIA

Because of the wide acceptability of the nitroprusside test for the diagnosis of cystinuria, an analysis of 525 consecutive urine tests performed at this laboratory was undertaken, the nitroprusside test result being correlated with the urinary cystine excretion as determined by paper chromatography, high‐voltage electrophoresis and chemical tests. It was found that the nitroprusside test clearly separated urine samples into categories of cystine excretion within the normal, heterozygote and homozygote range (P<0·001). However, 7 (1·33%) urine specimens from homozygous cystinurics gave a negative nitroprusside result. If properly performed on a concentrated urine specimen, tins test is a very accurate means of diagnosing cystinuria (expected error approximately 1%), but it is not infallible.
Network utility maximisation: A DC programming approach for Sigmoidal utility function

Network Utility Maximisation for nonconcave utility functions is a challenging problem in Communication Systems. We propose an innovative approach in nonconvex programming framework for the Network Sigmoidal Utility Maximisation which has many applications, in particular in Multimedia and Internet congestion control. Our method is based on DC (Difference of Convex functions) programming and DCA (DC Algorithms) which have been successfully applied to many large-scale (smooth or nonsmooth) nonconvex programs in various areas. A simple DC formulation is proposed that leads to a fast and scalable DCA based algorithm. A distributed version of DCA is developed and some numerical examples are considered. Our algorithm given a global optimal solution in all cases.
Mothers Who Were Neglected in Childhood Show Differences in Neural Response to Their Infant’s Cry

The present study used functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate how a mother’s experience of neglect in her own childhood is associated with her neural response to her infant’s distress cues. During scanning, 22 high-risk primiparous mothers were exposed to both their own 18-month-old infant’s cry sound and a control sound. Mothers’ continuous Neglect subscale scores from the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire were examined as a predictor of their neural response to own infant cry > control sound. Mothers who reported high levels of neglect from childhood showed regions of hyperactivation to their infant’s cry (relative to control sound) in the anterior and posterior cingulate cortices and insula as well as specific prefrontal (precentral gyrus) and parietal (posterior supramarginal gyrus) areas. These results may suggest how important early life experiences are for future parenting responses and behaviors.
Can continuous infusion be a better choice than patient‐controlled sedation for colonoscopy during monitored anaesthesia care?

Sir, We read with interest the article by Akcaboy et al. (1) entitled, ‘Can remifentanil be a better choice than propofol for colonoscopy during monitored anesthesia care? ’. We have previously compared the use of self-administered remifentanil or propofol during digestive endoscopic procedures, and reported similar results (2). We thought it was of interest to assess the feasibility of patient-controlled sedation (PCS) during colonoscopy. Indeed, it has been shown that the assessment of discomfort caused by this procedure by the patient and physician differs significantly (3); hence PCS, which allows patients to titrate the drug dose on an individual basis, decreases patient anxiety and reduces overall anaesthetic requirements in comparison with continuous infusion and nurse-administered sedation (4). Remifentanil and propofol have similar pharmacokinetic profiles, making them themost suitable drugs for use in a PCS system. PCSwithout background infusion has been assessed to be successful using propofol alone or mixed with alfentanil during colonoscopy and cataract surgery (5–7). Blair et al. (8) demonstrated that auto-administered boluses of remifentanil without background infusionmay safely provideworthwhile labour analgesia, and that adding a continuous infusion to the auto-administered boluses did not result in any further significant reduction in pain scores. In our study, we showed that the self-administration of remifentanil for sedation during gastrointestinal endoscopic procedures was as effective as the self-administration of propofol (2). However, we reported two cases of desaturation and higher incidence of nausea when remifentanilwas administered in comparisonwithpropofol; therefore, we suggested the reduction or removal of the background infusion of remifentanil. Hence, we were surprised that the authors chose to compare remifentanil and propofol using continuous infusion combined
Alcohol outlet density and university student drinking: a national study.

AIMS To examine the geographic density of alcohol outlets and associations with drinking levels and related problems among university students. DESIGN Cross-sectional survey study using geospatial data, with campus-level and individual-level analyses. PARTICIPANTS A total of 2550 students (mean age 20.2, 60% women) at six university campuses in New Zealand (63% response). MEASUREMENTS Counts of alcohol outlets within 3 km of each campus were tested for their non-parametric correlation with aggregated campus drinking levels and related problems. Generalized estimating equations were used to model the relation between outlet counts within 1 km and 3 km of student residences and individual drinking levels/problems, with control for gender, age, ethnicity and high school binge drinking frequency, and adjustment for campus-level clustering. FINDINGS Correlations for campus-level data were 0.77 (P = 0.07) for drinking and personal problems, and 0.31 (P = 0.54) for second-hand effects. There were consistent significant associations of both on- and off-licence outlet densities with all outcomes in student-level adjusted models. Effects were largest for 1 km densities and off-licence outlets. CONCLUSIONS There are positive associations between alcohol outlet density and individual drinking and related problems. Associations remain after controlling for demographic variables and pre-university drinking, i.e. the associations are unlikely to be due to self-selection effects. Increasing alcohol outlet density, and particularly off-licences, may increase alcohol-related harm among university students.