Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Long-term treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia with alfuzosin: a 24–30 month survey

Objective To address the long-term results of alfuzosin. an α1-antagonist, in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). Patients and methods A 6-month, placebo-controlled study involving 518 patients was followed by two successive one-year, open extensions. Only centres who wished to continue the trial participated in the extensions: 131 patients entered the first extension, with 50 continuing into the second year extension. The results of the second year follow-up are presented here. Results Depending on their initial randomization to either the placebo or alfuzosin arm, patients were treated with alfuzosin for 24 (n=50) or 30 months (n=22). The data collected on those 50 patients in comparison to baseline confirmed that the clinical efficacy observed in short/medium-term studies was maintained. A clinically significant improvement in urinary symptoms was observed: the Boyarsky score decreased from 8.7 (± 0.3) at baseline to 5.2 (±0.3) at 24 months, with no deterioration in the objective parameters. In patients treated for 30 months (n=22). symptomatic assessment and urodynamic parameters remained stable, indicating the sustained effectiveness of therapy. No serious or unexpected sideeffect related to long-term exposure to alfuzosin was observed. No complications associated with BPH occurred. Two patients (4%) reported dizziness, neither of whom withdrew from the study. In this population, where 40% of patients were receiving concomitant cardiovascular therapy, no clinically significant change in standing systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure or heart rate was apparent between baseline data and those at 24 months. Conclusion These data demonstrate the usefulness of long-term treatment with alfuzosin in patients with uncomplicated, moderate BPH.
Surface trap mediated electronic transport in biofunctionalized silicon nanowires

Silicon nanowires (SiNWs), fabricated via a top-down approach and then functionalized with biological probes, are used for electrically-based sensing of breast tumor markers. The SiNWs, featuring memristive-like behavior in bare conditions, show, in the presence of biomarkers, modified hysteresis and, more importantly, a voltage memory component, namely a voltage gap. The voltage gap is demonstrated to be a novel and powerful parameter of detection thanks to its high-resolution dependence on charges in proximity of the wire. This unique approach of sensing has never been studied and adopted before. Here, we propose a physical model of the surface electronic transport in Schottky barrier SiNW biosensors, aiming at reproducing and understanding the voltage gap based behavior. The implemented model describes well the experimental I–V characteristics of the device. It also links the modification of the voltage gap to the changing concentration of antigens by showing the decrease of this parameter in response to increasing concentrations of the molecules that are detected with femtomolar resolution in real human samples. Both experiments and simulations highlight the predominant role of the dynamic recombination of the nanowire surface states, with the incoming external charges from bio-species, in the appearance and modification of the voltage gap. Finally, thanks to its compactness, and strict correlation with the physics of the nanodevice, this model can be used to describe and predict the I–V characteristics in other nanostructured devices, for different than antibody-based sensing as well as electronic applications.
All-memristive neuromorphic computing with level-tuned neurons

In the new era of cognitive computing, systems will be able to learn and interact with the environment in ways that will drastically enhance the capabilities of current processors, especially in extracting knowledge from vast amount of data obtained from many sources. Brain-inspired neuromorphic computing systems increasingly attract research interest as an alternative to the classical von Neumann processor architecture, mainly because of the coexistence of memory and processing units. In these systems, the basic components are neurons interconnected by synapses. The neurons, based on their nonlinear dynamics, generate spikes that provide the main communication mechanism. The computational tasks are distributed across the neural network, where synapses implement both the memory and the computational units, by means of learning mechanisms such as spike-timing-dependent plasticity. In this work, we present an all-memristive neuromorphic architecture comprising neurons and synapses realized by using the physical properties and state dynamics of phase-change memristors. The architecture employs a novel concept of interconnecting the neurons in the same layer, resulting in level-tuned neuronal characteristics that preferentially process input information. We demonstrate the proposed architecture in the tasks of unsupervised learning and detection of multiple temporal correlations in parallel input streams. The efficiency of the neuromorphic architecture along with the homogenous neuro-synaptic dynamics implemented with nanoscale phase-change memristors represent a significant step towards the development of ultrahigh-density neuromorphic co-processors.
On the magnetic properties of iron nanostructures fabricated via focused electron beam induced deposition and autocatalytic growth processes

We employ Electron beam induced deposition (EBID) in combination with autocatalytic growth (AG) processes to fabricate magnetic nanostructures with controllable shapes and thicknesses. Following this route, different Fe deposits were prepared on silicon nitride membranes under ultra-high vacuum conditions and studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and scanning transmission x-ray microspectroscopy (STXM). The originally deposited Fe nanostructures are composed of pure iron, especially when fabricated via autocatalytic growth processes. Quantitative near-edge x-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectroscopy was employed to derive information on the thickness dependent composition. X-ray magnetic circular dichroism (XMCD) in STXM was used to derive the magnetic properties of the EBID prepared structures. STXM and XMCD analysis evinces the existence of a thin iron oxide layer at the deposit–vacuum interface, which is formed during exposure to ambient conditions. We were able to extract magnetic hysteresis loops for individual deposits from XMCD micrographs with varying external magnetic field. Within the investigated thickness range (2–16 nm), the magnetic coercivity, as evaluated from the width of the hysteresis loops, increases with deposit thickness and reaches a maximum value of ∼160 Oe at around 10 nm. In summary, we present a viable technique to fabricate ferromagnetic nanostructures in a controllable way and gain detailed insight into their chemical and magnetic properties.
Primary diffuse large B-cell lymphoma of the oral cavity

Lymphomas arising within the oral cavity account for only 3.5% of all oral malignancies. Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma is a non-Hodgkin lymphoma subtype characterized by diffuse proliferation of large neoplastic B lymphoid cells. This paper reports a case of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma affecting the oral cavity of a Brazilian woman, along with its clinical, microscopical, immunohistochemical, and molecular features.
Nanoindentation of hcp metals: a comparative simulation study of the evolution of dislocation networks

Using molecular dynamics simulation, we study the nanoindentation of three hcp metals: Mg, Ti, and Zr. Both the basal and two prismatic surface planes are considered. We focus on the characterization of the plasticity generated in the crystal. The similarities to, and the differences from, the behavior of the more commonly investigated fcc and bcc metals are highlighted. We find that hcp metals show a larger variety than the fcc and bcc metals studied up until now. The prolific emission of prismatic loops can lead to extended plastic zones. The size of the plastic zone is quantified by the ratio f of the plastic zone radius to the radius of the contact area. We find values of between 1.6 (an almost collapsed zone) and >5; in the latter case, complex dislocation networks build up which are extended in the direction of easy glide.
Novel tumour‐specific promoters for transcriptional targeting of hepatocellular carcinoma by herpes simplex virus vectors

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is a cancer of poor prognosis, with limited success in patient treatment, which it makes an excellent target for gene therapy and viral oncolysis. Accordingly, herpes virus simplex type‐1 (HSV‐1) is one of the most promising viral platforms for transferring therapeutic genes and the development of oncolytic vectors that can target, multiply in, and eradicate hepatoma cells via their lytic cycle. Enhanced efficacy and specificity of HSV‐1‐based vectors towards HCC may be achieved by using HCC‐specific gene promoters to drive selective viral gene expression and accomplish conditional replication and/or to control the expression of therapeutic genes. However, careful verification of promoter function in the context of the replication‐competent HSV‐1 vectors is required. The present study aimed to identify novel HCC‐specific promoters that could efficiently direct transgene expression to HCC cells and maintain their activity during active viral replication.
Lower extremity cellulitis and bacteremia with Herbaspirillum seropedicae associated with aquatic exposure in a patient with cirrhosis

We report the first documented case of pathogenic human infection caused by Herbaspirillum spp, a class of gram-negative organisms related to Burkholderia spp, presenting as bacteremia and cellulitis in a patient with aquatic exposure. Herbaspirillum spp may be an under recognized human pathogen associated with freshwater exposure. Routine biochemical testing may be insufficient to rapidly distinguish the organism from more virulent aquaphilic organisms causing cellulitis. However, Herbaspirillum spp cellulitis responds well to common antimicrobial agents.
Abstract PD02-06: Concordance between immunohistochemistry and FISH(fluorescence in sity hybridization) & SISH(silver in situ hybridization) for assessment of the HER2

Goals: Accurate assessment of the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) of invasive breast cancer with Immunohistochemistry (IHC) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) & Silver in situ hybridization(SISH) is very important to decide treatment of targeted therapy with the humanized monoclonal antibody trastuzumab and the dual tyrosine kinase inhibitor lapatinib. The accuracy of these three testing methods can be adversely affected by various factors. We performed a retrospective analysis of the concordance of IHC and FISH & SISH analysis for HER2/neu at Donga-A Medical Center and reviewed possible causes of disparity between these two methods. Methods: We performed retrospective review of a total of 416 invasive ductal carcinomas evaluated for HER2/neu at the Department of Surgery in Dong-A Medical Center between 2005 and 2011. We reviewed this data retrospectively and evaluated the concordance between IHC and FISH & SISH. Results: Comparison of the routinely assessed immunohistochemical HER2 status and FISH & SISH revealed that ten invasive carcinomas diagnosed immunohistochemically as highly overexpressed (score 3+) did not show amplification of the HER2 gene by FISH n that these are false positives (SISH: false positive: 7 cases). Eight invasive carcinomas diagnosed immunohistochemically as Negatively expressed (score 0) showed amplification of the HER2 gene by SISH on that these are false negative. Fourteen tumor, which scored as 2+ by IHC, was proven to be amplified on initial testing with FISH (SISH: 6 cases). Concordance between IHC and FISH analysis was good (171/181= 94.5%) (false positive: 5.5%) (SISH: 228/235=97.0%, false positive 3.4%, false negative 2.9%) and within the published range. Conclusion: IHC as first-line testing for HER2 may result in false positive and false negative results. The novel ASCO/CAP criteria for the immunohistochemical evaluation of the HER2 status may prevent some false positive results. The discordant cases between IHC and FISH & SISH represent a well-recognized subset of genetic heterogeneity in HER2/neu, which is known to contribute to positive IHC and negative FISH & SISH tests. The most powerful method for studying HER2 status is ISH. However, in heterogeneous carcinomas even FISH may not succeed in a correct evaluation of HER2. Citation Information: Cancer Res 2012;72(24 Suppl):Abstract nr PD02-06.
Fabrication of free-standing lithium niobate nanowaveguides down to 50 nm in width

Nonlinear optical nanoscale waveguides are a compact and powerful platform for efficient wavelength conversion. The free-standing waveguide geometry opens a range of applications in microscopy for local delivery of light, where in situ wavelength conversion helps to overcome various wavelength-dependent issues, such as biological tissue damage. In this paper, we present an original patterning method for high-precision fabrication of free-standing nanoscale waveguides based on lithium niobate, a material with a strong second-order nonlinearity and a broad transparency window covering the visible and mid-infrared wavelength ranges. The fabrication process combines electron-beam lithography with ion-beam enhanced etching and produces nanowaveguides with lengths from 5 to 50 μm, widths from 50 to 1000 nm and heights from 50 to 500 nm, each with a precision of few nanometers. The fabricated nanowaveguides are tested in an optical characterization experiment showing efficient second-harmonic generation.
Patient monitoring and follow‐up in lentiviral clinical trials

Lentiviral vectors are being used with increasing frequency in human clinical trials. We were the first to use lentiviral vectors in clinical trials in 2003. Our lentiviral vector encoded a long RNA antisense sequence to the HIV‐1 envelope and was used in an ex vivo autologous setting to provide viral load control in HIV‐1 positive subjects failing anti‐HIV therapy. A total of 65 subjects have been treated in Phase 1 and Phase 2 trials in six institutions.
Oscillators based on double-walled armchair@zigzag carbon nanotubes containing inner tubes with different helical rises

A novel approach is presented to improve the oscillatory behavior of oscillators based on double-walled carbon nanotubes containing rotating inner tubes applied with different helical rises. The influence of the helical rise on the oscillatory amplitude, frequency, and stability of inner tubes with different helical rises in armchair@zigzag bitubes is investigated using the molecular dynamics method. Our simulated results show that the oscillatory behavior is very sensitive to the applied helical rise. The inner tube with h = 10 Å has the most ideal hexagon after the energy minimization and NVT process in the armchair@zigzag bitubes, superior even to the inner tube without a helical rise, and thus it exhibits better oscillatory behavior compared with other modes. Therefore, we can apply an appropriate helical rise on the inner tube to produce a stable and smooth oscillator based on double-walled carbon nanotubes.
Bi‐arc graphs and the complexity of list homomorphisms

Given graphs G, H, and lists L(v) ⊆ V(H), v ε V(G), a list homomorphism of G to H with respect to the lists L is a mapping f : V(G) → V(H) such that uv ε E(G) implies f(u)f(v) ε E(H), and f(v) ε L(v) for all v ε V(G). The list homomorphism problem for a fixed graph H asks whether or not an input graph G, together with lists L(v) ⊆ V(H), v ε V(G), admits a list homomorphism with respect to L. In two earlier papers, we classified the complexity of the list homomorphism problem in two important special cases: When H is a reflexive graph (every vertex has a loop), the problem is polynomial time solvable if H is an interval graph, and is NP‐complete otherwise. When H is an irreflexive graph (no vertex has a loop), the problem is polynomial time solvable if H is bipartite and H is a circular arc graph, and is NP‐complete otherwise. In this paper, we extend these classifications to arbitrary graphs H (each vertex may or may not have a loop). We introduce a new class of graphs, called bi‐arc graphs, which contains both reflexive interval graphs (and no other reflexive graphs), and bipartite graphs with circular arc complements (and no other irreflexive graphs). We show that the problem is polynomial time solvable when H is a bi‐arc graph, and is NP‐complete otherwise. In the case when H is a tree (with loops allowed), we give a simpler algorithm based on a structural characterization. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory 42: 61–80, 2003
Gastric motility measurement and evaluation of functional dyspepsia by a bio-impedance method

In order to investigate the complex course of the electrical and mechanical processes of functional dyspepsia (FD), it is necessary to extract gastric motility information on both electricity and mechanism. According to the clinical standardization, 36 volunteers with functional dyspepsia were selected. The signal processing device has been designed by Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications. Multi-resolution analysis (MRA) decomposed the two signals of impedance gastric motility (IGM) and electrogastrogram (EGG) collected from the body surface. The wavelet transform is addressed to separate the IGM and EGG signals from impedance signals due to breathing and blood flow. By means of the energy and frequency spectrum analysis technique, the signals can be classified according to the dominant power and dominant frequency. Some indices, such as frequencies of EGG and IGM, signal power spectrum and dynamic spectrum, the rates of rhythm and power for the normal EGG and IGM and so on, can also be calculated. The primary experiments of gastric motility measurement and evaluation are executed by including healthy humans (control group: CG) and patients with FD (pathologic group: PG). There are significant differences in the temporal-domain and frequency-domain properties between the two groups. The main frequency of the CG belongs to 2–4 CPM and is clear and very regular, while the main frequency of the PG is much disordered. The peak of the maximal power of the CG belongs to 2–4 CPM and 1–2 CPM for the PG. The percentage of normal frequency (PNF) for the CG is 0.704 ± 0.255 and 0.402 ± 1.145 for the PG. The frequency instability coefficient (FIC) for the CG is 0.182 ± 0.059 and 0.374 ± 0.086 for the PG. The percentage of normal power (PNP) for the CG is 0.592 ± 0.044 and 0.468 ± 0.142 for the PG. The power instability coefficient (PIC) for the CG is 1.576 ± 0.481 and 4.006 ± 0.711 for the PG. The results of the experiments show that the proposed method of impedance can be a potential tool for the noninvasive assessment of gastric motility under gastrointestinal physiology and pathology conditions.
Administration of Cyclosporine by Inhalation: A Feasibility Study in Beagle Dogs

ABSTRACT Acute rejection with perivascular and interstitial reaction and chronic rejection with obliterative bronchiolitis are problems in some patients with transplanted lungs who are being administered cyclosporine orally. Levels of orally administered cyclosporine required to provide adequate immunosuppression to prevent rejection of lung allografts sometimes also elicit nephrotoxic responses. Since the lung is the target organ for immunosuppression, delivery of cyclosporine directly to the lung may enhance the effectiveness of a given dose of cyclosporine in prevention of chronic lung rejection without increasing the risk of renal damage. Five dogs were each treated with inhaled, oral, and intravenous cyclosporine, aerosol vehicle (ethyl alcohol), and no treatment, over a five-week period. One treatment per week was given to each dog. A radiolabel, 99mTc was included in the cyclosporine aerosol to allow scintigraphy of lung distribution of the aerosol and to determine the amount of aerosol deposited.
The Increased Costs of Donation After Cardiac Death Liver Transplantation: Caveat Emptor

Objective:To determine the effect of donation after cardiac death (DCD) livers on post-transplantation costs. Background:DCD livers are increasingly being used to expand the donor pool despite higher complication rates. Although complications after liver transplantation have profound financial implications, the effect of DCD livers on post-transplantation costs has not been studied. Methods:We estimated direct medical care costs based on inpatient and outpatient hospital costs for 28 DCD and 198 donation after brain death (DBD) liver recipients. Organ acquisition and physician costs were excluded. Results:Donor and recipient demographics were comparable for DCD and DBD transplants. One-year, post-transplantation costs were higher for DCD recipients (124.9% of DBD costs, P = 0.04). DCD costs remained higher (125.2% of DBD costs, P = 0.009) after adjusting for recipient characteristics. Furthermore, DCD post-transplantation costs were 30% higher than DBD costs after adjusting for pre-transplantation costs (P = 0.02). Biliary complications (DCD 58% vs. DBD 21%; P < 0.001) and, specifically, ischemic cholangiopathy (DCD 44% vs. DBD 1.6%; P < 0.001) occurred more frequently after DCD transplantation. Moreover, DCD recipients underwent retransplantation more often (DCD 21% vs. DBD 7.1%, P = 0.02). One-year costs were increased for recipients with ischemic cholangiopathy or retransplantation by 53% (P = 0.01) and 107% (P < 0.001), respectively. However, DCD costs continued to be higher when retransplanted patients were excluded (120% of DBD costs, P = 0.02). Conclusions:Higher rates of graft failure and biliary complications translate into markedly increased direct medical care costs for DCD recipients. These important financial implications should be considered in decisions regarding the use of DCD livers.
The reliability of lung crackle characteristics in cystic fibrosis and bronchiectasis patients in a clinical setting

Lung sounds provide useful information for assessing and monitoring respiratory patients, but standard auscultation is subjective. Computer aided lung sound analysis (CALSA) enables the quantification and characterisation of added lung sounds (e.g. crackles). At present, little is known about the reliability of these sound characteristics. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore the reliability of crackle initial deflection width (IDW) and two-cycle deflection (2CD) in a clinical population. Fifty-four subjects (37 bronchiectasis, 17 cystic fibrosis) were recruited from out-patient clinics. Three repeated lung sound recordings were taken at seven anatomical sites with a digital stethoscope connected to a laptop computer. The intra-subject reliability of crackle IDW and 2CD was found to be ‘good’ to ‘excellent’, estimated by the analysis of variance, intraclass correlation coefficient (IDW 0.76;0.85, 2CD 0.83;0.94), Bland and Altman 95% limits of agreement (IDW −0.50;0.47 ms, 2CD −2.12;1.87 ms) and smallest real difference (IDW 0.30;0.66 ms, 2CD 1.57;2.42 ms). Crackle 2CD was found to be more reliable than IDW. It is concluded that crackle IDW and 2CD characterized by CALSA have good test–retest reliability. This technique requires further evaluation since CALSA has potential to diagnose or monitor respiratory conditions, and provide an objective physiological measure for respiratory interventions.