Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Surgery with disc prosthesis versus rehabilitation in patients with low back pain and degenerative disc: two year follow-up of randomised study

Objective To compare the efficacy of surgery with disc prosthesis versus non-surgical treatment for patients with chronic low back pain. Design A prospective randomised multicentre study. Setting Five university hospitals in Norway. Participants 173 patients with a history of low back pain for at least one year, Oswestry disability index of at least 30 points, and degenerative changes in one or two lower lumbar spine levels (86 patients randomised to surgery). Patients were treated from April 2004 to September 2007. Interventions Surgery with disc prosthesis or outpatient multidisciplinary rehabilitation for 12-15 days. Main outcome measures The primary outcome measure was the score on the Oswestry disability index after two years. Secondary outcome measures were low back pain, satisfaction with life (SF-36 and EuroQol EQ-5D), Hopkins symptom check list (HSCL-25), fear avoidance beliefs (FABQ), self efficacy beliefs for pain, work status, and patients’ satisfaction and drug use. A blinded independent observer evaluated scores on the back performance scale and Prolo scale at two year follow-up. Results The study was powered to detect a difference of 10 points on the Oswestry disability index between the groups at two years. At two years there was a mean difference of −8.4 points (95% confidence interval −13.2 to −3.6) in favour of surgery. In the analysis of prespecified secondary outcomes, there were significant differences in favour of surgery for low back pain (mean difference −12.2, −21.3 to −3.1), patients’ satisfaction (63% (n=46) v 39% (n=26)), SF-36 physical component score (mean difference 5.8, 2.5 to 9.1), self efficacy for pain (mean difference 1.0, 0.2 to 1.9), and the Prolo scale (mean difference 0.9, 0.1 to 1.6). There were no significant differences in return to work, SF-36 mental component score, EQ-5D, fear avoidance beliefs, Hopkins symptom check list, drug use, and the back performance scale. One serious complication of leg amputation occurred during surgical revision of a polyethylene dislodgement. The drop-out rate was 20% (34) and the crossover rate was 6% (5). Conclusions Surgical intervention with disc prosthesis for chronic low back pain resulted in a significantly greater improvement in the Oswestry score compared with rehabilitation, but this improvement did not clearly exceed the prespecified minimally important clinical difference between groups of 10 points, and the data are consistent with a wide range of differences between the groups, including values well below 10 points. The potential risks of surgery and the substantial amount of improvement experienced by a sizeable proportion of the rehabilitation group also have to be incorporated into overall decision making. Trial registration NCT 00394732.
Spoken Language Technology for Under-resourced Languages , SLTU 2016 , 9-12 May 2016 , Yogyakarta , Indonesia Code-switched English Pronunciation Modeling for Swahili Spoken Term Detection

We investigate modeling strategies for English code-switched words as found in a Swahili spoken term detection system. Code switching, where speakers switch language in a conversation, occurs frequently in multilingual environments, and typically deteriorates STD performance. Analysis is performed in the context of the IARPA Babel program which focuses on rapid STD system development for under-resourced languages. Our results show that approaches that specifically target the modeling of code-switched words, significantly improve the detection performance of these words. c © 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. Peer-review under responsibility of the Organizing Committee of SLTU 2016.
HETEROGENEITY OF HISTAMINE Hi‐RECEPTORS: SPECIES VARIATIONS IN [3H]MEPYRAMINE BINDING OF BRAIN MEMBRANES

[3H]Mepyramine binds with high affinity to membranes from brain of human, rat, guinea‐pig, rabbit and mouse with drug specificity indicating an association with histamine H1receptors. Considerable species differences occur in the affinity of [3H]mepyramine, with guinea‐pig and human having 34 times greater affinity than rat, mouse or rabbit. The greater affinity of [3H]mepyramine in guinea‐pig than in rat is attributable both to faster association and slower dissociation rates in guinea‐pig. Species differences in affinity for H1 receptor sites occur for some antihistamines but not for others. Some tricyclic antidepressant and neuroleptic drugs are extremely potent inhibitors of [3H]mepyramine binding, exceeding in potency any H1 antihistamines examined. The tricyclic antidepressant doxepin and the neuroleptic clozapine are the most potent of all drugs examined in competing for [3H]mepyramine binding. The regional distribution of specific [3H]mepyramine binding differs considerably in the various species examined.
Expression of bovine Mx 1 protein inhibits the replication of foot-and-mouth disease virus in BHK-21 cells

– Mx proteins belonging to the dynamin superfamily of large GTPases inhibit replication of a wide range of RNA viruses. In this study, we examined whether bovine Mx1 protein could interfere with the replication of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV). For this purpose we established cloned BHK-21 cells expressing bovine Mx1 protein (BM1 cells) and infected them with FMDV serotype O. Cloned BHK-21 cells expressing neomycin resistance instead of Mx1 protein (BH1 cells) and original BHK-21 cells served as negative controls. The results showed that the expression of bovine Mx1 protein reduced viral yields by 90% and levels of viral VP1 mRNA by 60%. These findings correlated with a significant reduction of viral antigen detectable in infected cells by immunofluorescent assay. These results demonstrate that bovine Mx1 protein interferes with the replication of FMDV.
Inter‐ and intramolecular potential for the N‐formylglycinamide‐water system. A comparison between theoretical modeling and empirical force fields

An intramolecular NEMO potential is presented for the N‐formylglycinamide molecule together with an intermolecular potential for the N‐formylglycinamide‐water system. The intramolecular N‐formylglycinamide potential can be used as a building block for the backbone of polypeptides and proteins. Two intramolecular minima have been obtained. One, denoted as C5, is stabilized by a hydrogen bonded five member ring, and the other, denoted as C7, corresponds to a seven membered ring. The interaction between one water molecule and the N‐formylglycinamide system is also studied and compared with Hartree‐Fock SCF calculations and with the results obtained for some of the more commonly used force fields. The agreement between the NEMO and SCF energies for the complexes is in general superior to that of the other force fields. In the C7 region the surfaces obtained from the intramolecular part of the commonly used force fields are too flat compared to the NEMO potential and the ab initio calculations. We further analyze the possibility of using a charge distribution obtained from one conformation to describe the charge distribution of other conformations. We have found that the use of polarizabilities and generic dipoles can model most of the changes in charge density due to the different geometry of the new conformations, but that one can expect additional errors in the interaction energies that are of the order of 1 kcal/mol. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem 24: 161–176, 2003
Meningoencephalocele of the Temporal Bone-A Case Report

This paper reviews the diagnosis and treatment of temporal bone meningoencephalocele , defined as the herniation of meninges or brain tissue into empty spaces within the temporal i.e tympanic or mastoid cavity , through the tegmen tympani or antri respectively. Imaging is the mainstay of the diagnostic process. Management of the condition is surgical , special emphasis on the transmastoid approach. The tegmen was repaired with a multi-layered technique using cartilage , temporalis fascia and tympanomeatal flap.
Ten year follow up of laser in situ keratomileusis for all levels of myopia

and 3, respectively, at the initial tonometry session, with all cases exceeding the cut-off of 1.6 mmHg determined by Golnik and Miller, although the suitability of this cut-off value has not been tested in DCT. In cases with a CSDAVF, intrasinus thrombi and thickening of the sinus wall caused by abnormal arteriovenous flow could occlude the existing venous drainage routes. In case 2 with a relatively longstanding left CSDAVF was accompanied by blood reflux to the opposite SOV through the ICS. Accordingly, gradual development of an ICS channel toward the contralateral CS because of a continuous hemostatic pressure increase in the ipsilateral CS of the fistula, which is augmented by subsequent occlusion of physiologic drainage routes of CS, may explain the gradual decrease in OPA OS and reciprocal increase of the OPA OD after the initial tonometry session in case 1. In addition, drainage of the postcanalitic venous system, i.e. the episcleral veins, and the choroidal venous system, i.e. the vortex veins, the status of which mostly reflect the IOP and OPA (Bynke & Schéle 1967), respectively, into the SOV could be affected to varying degrees in each subject. Thus, the discrepancy in the kinetics between the preoperative IOP and OPA in case 1 may be explained by the difference in blood reflux between the postcanalitic and choroidal venous systems. Accordingly, the OPA may be an independent indicator from the IOP for assessing the hemodynamic status of CSDAVFs.
3D User Interfaces Using Tracked Multi-touch Mobile Devices

Multi-touch mobile devices are becoming ubiquitous due to the proliferation of smart phone platforms such as the iPhone and Android. Recent research has explored the use of multi-touch input for 3D user interfaces on displays including large touch screens, tablets, and mobile devices. This research explores the beneﬁts of adding six-degree-of-freedom tracking to a multi-touch mobile device for 3D interaction. We analyze and propose beneﬁts of using tracked multi-touch mobile devices (TMMDs) with the goal of developing effective interaction techniques to handle a variety of tasks within immersive 3D user interfaces. We developed several techniques using TMMDs for virtual object manipulation, and compared our techniques to existing best-practice techniques in a series of user studies. We did not, however, ﬁnd performance advantages for TMMD-based techniques. We discuss our observations and propose alternate interaction techniques and tasks that may beneﬁt from TMMDs. Categories and Subject Descriptors (according to ACM CCS) : H.5. 1 [Information Interfaces and Presentation]: Multimedia Information Systems—Artiﬁcial, augmented, and virtual realities
Effect of cyclosporin A on immunity to Listeria monocytogenes

The effect of the immunosuppressive drug cyclosporin A (CS-A) on immunity to the facultative intracellular bacterium Listeria monocytogenes was investigated in unprimed and primed mice. Different treatment protocols were followed to evaluate the time dependence of CS-A-mediated immune suppression and the effect of CS-A on immunological memory to L. monocytogenes. The effect of CS-A was observed only during and after activation of T cell-mediated immunity, whereas early resistance exerted by macrophages assessed 6 and 70 min after challenge remained unaffected. CS-A suppressed efficient elimination of L. monocytogenes even when given after day 3 of a primary infection. This contrasts with findings in other models, including viral infections, where CS-A must be administered very early in an immune response to suppress it. CS-A suppressed antibacterial resistance in mice primed at various times before challenge; suppression of protection was time dependent and was virtually complete in livers, whereas CS-A-resistant memory persisted in spleens for up to 10 months.
Opportunistic protected login : Next step in traditional password based user authentication

Password based authentication faces security related threats from phishing, server compromise and man-inthe-middle attack. Despite the poor security, it has been the primary method of user authentication on web since a decade now. This paper is a systematic review of a proposal, by Czeskis et al., which aims to provide opportunistic protected login for user authentication, for web services without changing user experience. This proposal involves using a personal device, other then the machine on which user is accessing the service, as a second factor authentication device. In addition, this solution involves using public key cryptography to provide secure channel, between client and server, to which authentication tokens can be attached. The solution aims not only to make first login secure but also prevent user from phishing and certain variants of man-in-the-middle attack. In addition to discussing the proposal, this paper is an effort at evaluating the assumptions, threat model and assembling open problems related to proposal. Keywords-Communication system security; Information security; Authentication;
Pyrogenic Carbon Lacks Long-Term Persistence in Temperate Arable Soils

Pyrogenic organic carbon (PyOC) derived from incomplete burning of biomass is considered the most persistent fraction of soil organic carbon (SOC), being expected to remain in soil for centuries. However, PyOC persistence has seldom been evaluated under field conditions. Based on a unique set of soils from five European long-term bare fallows, i.e. vegetation-free field experiments, we provide the first direct comparison between PyOC and SOC persistence in temperate arable soils. We found that soil PyOC contents decreased more rapidly than expected from current concepts, the mean residence time of native PyOC being just 1.6 times longer than that of SOC. At the oldest experimental site, 55% of the initial PyOC remained after 80 years of bare fallow. Our results suggest that while the potential for long-term C storage exists, the persistence of PyOC in soil may currently be overestimated.
Dual Transcriptional Regulation of theEscherichia coli Phosphate-Starvation-InduciblepsiE Gene of the Phosphate Regulon by PhoB and the Cyclic AMP (cAMP)-cAMP Receptor Protein Complex

ABSTRACT We have shown that the Escherichia coliphosphate-starvation-inducible psiE gene is regulated by both phosphate and the carbon source by using both lacZ and chloramphenicol acetyltransferase gene (cat) fusions. Yet, under all conditions tested, a single transcriptional start site lying 7 bp downstream of a predicted −10 region was revealed by primer extension analysis. DNase I footprinting showed that the PhoB transcriptional-activator protein protects two predictedpho boxes lying upstream of and near the −35 promoter region. Similar analysis showed that the cyclic AMP (cAMP)-cAMP receptor protein (cAMP-CRP) complex binds a region that overlaps with the downstream pho box. These results, together with measurements of the in vivo psiE promoter activity under various conditions, show that expression of the psiE gene is under direct positive and negative control by PhoB and cAMP-CRP, respectively.
The effect of irrigation on peak temperatures in nerve root, dura, and intervertebral disc during laser‐assisted foraminoplasty

The Holmium: YAG (Ho: YAG) laser has been used for the ablation of prolapsed discs but alternative techniques are available, and this application remains controversial. It also has potential for the decompression of nerve roots within narrowed foraminae with the technique of endoscopic laser foraminoplasty. Traditional methods of decompression necessitate a major surgical procedure with potential destabilisation of the lumbar spinal segment. Nevertheless, minimally invasive techniques are attractive only if serious complications can be avoided. This study reports the peak temperatures reached in surrounding tissues with and without saline irrigation.
Amyrins from Protium heptaphyllum Reduce High-Fat Diet-Induced Obesity in Mice via Modulation of Enzymatic, Hormonal And Inflammatory Responses

Abstract Obesity remains a global problem. In search of phytochemicals that have antiobesity potential, this study evaluated α,β-amyrin, a triterpenoid mixture from Protium heptaphyllum, on high-fat diet-induced obesity in mice. Groups of mice (n = 8) were fed a normal diet or a high-fat diet, and were orally treated or not treated with either α,β-amyrin (10 or 20 mg/kg) or sibutramine (10 mg/kg) for 15 weeks. Variables measured at termination were body weight, visceral fat accumulation, adipocyte surface area, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma, and lipoprotein lipase expressions in adipose tissue, the levels of plasma glucose and insulin, the satiety hormones ghrelin and leptin, the digestive enzymes amylase and lipase, and the inflammatory mediators TNF-α, interleukin-6, and MCP-1. Results showed that α,β-amyrin treatment resulted in lower high-fat diet-induced increases in body weight, visceral fat content, adipocyte surface area, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma, and lipoprotein lipase expressions, and blood glucose and insulin levels. Additionally, the markedly elevated leptin and decreased ghrelin levels seen in the high-fat diet-fed control mice were significantly modulated by α,β-amyrin treatment. Furthermore, α,β-amyrin decreased serum TNF-α and MCP-1. These results suggest that α,β-amyrin could be beneficial in reducing high-fat diet-induced obesity and associated disorders via modulation of enzymatic, hormonal, and inflammatory responses.
Long‐term expansion and maintenance of cord blood haematopoietic stem cells using thrombopoietin, Flt3‐ligand, interleukin (IL)‐6 and IL‐11 in a serum‐free and stroma‐free culture system

Although cord blood (CB) compares favourably with other haematopoietic stem cell (HSCs) sources, its use in large patients is limited by the low number of cells available. Ex vivo expansion of CB HSCs has been used to overcome this limitation. In this study, we investigated the effect of different cytokine cocktails, including interleukin (IL)‐6, IL‐11, Flt3‐ligand (FL) and thrombopoietin (TPO) combined with serum or serum‐free medium on the ex vivo expansion of CD34+ cells from CB. Initial experiments showed that expansion could be slightly improved using serum, but we chose to use serum‐free medium in the subsequent investigations to apply good medical practice (GMP) conditions suitable for clinical use. The highest expansion of CD34+ cells was obtained with a cocktail containing FL + TPO + IL‐6 + IL‐11. The median (range) fold expansions of CD34+ cells at 5 and 10 weeks with serum‐free medium were 235·6 (131·3–340) and 5205·6 (4736·6–5674·7) respectively. The absence of IL‐11 was associated with a similar fold expansion after 5 weeks (median 215·6, range 149·8–281·5), but after 10 weeks expansion was slightly lower (median 1314·7, range 645–1984·4). Our data support the possibility of maintaining long‐term expansion of CB HSCs in a simple stroma‐ and serum‐free system.
Maximizing Energy Efficiency in Heterogeneous Cellular Network with Massive MIMO and Small Cells

With the rapid development of wireless cellular network, massive multiple input and multiple output (MIMO) and Small Cells (SCs) are both suitable candidates for the future fifth generation (5G) networks. Energy Efficiency (EE) has become increasingly concerned along with the two powerhungry candidates. This paper herein analyzed the energy efficiency of heterogeneous cellular network with massive MIMO and SCs. We maximized the EE by assigning the antennas of macro base station and SCs. We studied the relationship among the macro base station antennas, SCs and users by simulation and curve-fitting. Due to the fact that the Minimum Mean Square Error (MMSE) algorithm has better performance than the convex operation for total power minimization, we chose the MMSE algorithm to acquire the maximum energy efficiency with different amount of macro base station antennas, SCs and users. From the numerous simulation results, it can be seen that the number of antennas in the macro base station, the number of SCs and the user numbers have linear relationship when EE reaches the maximum value.
Hybrid wavelet based LPC features for Hindi speech recognition

Hybrid features are presented for speech recognition that uses linear prediction in combination with multi-resolution capabilities of wavelet transform. Wavelet-Based Linear Prediction Coefficients (WBLPC) are obtained by applying 3 and 4-level wavelet decomposition and then having linear prediction of each sub-bands to get total 13 features. These features have been tested using a linear discriminant function and Hidden Markov Model (HMM) based classifier for speaker dependent and independent isolated Hindi digits recognition. 3-level WBLPC features gave higher percentage recognition than LPC features while 4-level WBLPC features using HMM gave the highest percentage recognition for both speaker dependent and independent cases.
ras gene activation and aberrant expression of keratin K13 in ultraviolet B radiation—induced epidermal neoplasias of mouse skin

Both papillomas and squamous cell carcinomas (SCC) induced in mouse epidermis by initiation with 7,12‐dimethylbenz[a]anthracene (DMBA) and promotion with 12‐O‐tetradecanoylphorbol‐13‐acetate (TPA) exhibit aberrant expression of a type I keratin, K13, that is normally characteristic of terminal differentiation of internal stratified epithelia. There is evidence that the aberrant expression of K13 depends on the presence of an activated ras gene in mouse epidermal keratinocytes (Sutter et al., Mol Carcinog 4:467–476, 1991). To assess the general validity of this hypothesis, we investigated both aberrant K13 expression and activation of each of the three members of the ras gene family in epidermal tumors induced in four different mouse strains (SKH‐1hr, SENCAR, BALB/c, and C3H/He) by chronic irradiation with ultraviolet (UV) B. The tumor collection comprised nine papillomas and 30 well or poorly differentiated SCC. Aberrant K13 expression occurred in only five of 39 tumors and was restricted to SCC of both types. This indicates that aberrant K13 expression in UV‐induced epidermal tumors was intrinsically different from that in chemically induced tumors. Polymerase chain reaction analysis of the tumors for different point mutations in codons 12, 13, and 61 of the Ha‐ras and Ki‐ras genes and in codon 61 of the N‐ras gene revealed that only one of the well differentiated tumors from a SKH‐1hr mouse exhibited a GGA → GAA mutation in codon 12 of the Ha‐ras gene. Although this tumor was also positive for aberrant K13 expression, such a correlation could not be made for the remaining K13‐expressing tumors. This indicates that the activation of one of the members of the ras gene family is not a general prerequisite for the aberrant expression of K13 in mouse epidermal keratinocytes. © 1993 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.