Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Implications of the 2017 American College of Cardiology/ American Heart Association Hypertension Guidelines in a Modern Primary Prevention Multiethnic Prospective Cohort (MESA)

The American College of Physicians and the American Academy of Family Physician did not endorse the 2017 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association (ACC/AHA) hypertension guidelines citing multiple concerns. We assessed the increase in antihypertensive medication eligibility introduced by the 2017 hypertension guideline and the risk profile of those newly eligible for blood pressure medication using participants from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA). The antihypertensive medication eligibility criteria of the Joint National Commission (JNC) VII, JNC VIII and the 2017 ACC/AHA hypertension guidelines were applied to the cohort and the risk profile of those newly eligible was compared with those ineligible for antihypertensive medication under the 2017 ACC/AHA guidelines using Kaplan Meier and Cox proportional hazard analysis. 361/772 (46.8%) and 557/576 (96.7%) were newly eligible for antihypertensive medications when the JNC VII and JNC VIII were compared with the 2017 ACC/AHA respectively. The newly eligible group did not have increased risk of incident atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, heart failure or death compared with those ineligible [HR (95%CI): 1.26(0.96–1.65), p=0.10; 0.75(0.45–1.26), p=0.27; 1.06(−0.84–1.36), p=0.62 guidelines extend antihypertensive medication to a substantial number of individuals though their risk profile appears to be similar to those previously ineligible.
Mapping the surface properties of macromolecules

Methods are presented for the rapid computation of schematic projections of the surfaces of macromolecules, similar to the “roadmaps” used to illustrate the surfaces of viruses (Rossmann, M.G. & Palmenberg, A.C., 1988, Virology 164, 373-382). Several types of projections are described, extending the application of “roadmaps” to the external surfaces of all macromolecules and their interior binding pockets and pores. The surface projections, showing the positions of residues, can be colored, shaded, contoured, and annotated to show physical, sequence, or functional properties such as surface topology, hydrophobicity, or sequence conservation, for example. The automated procedures are useful for surveys of the surface features of proteins sharing similar functional properties,
Should patient set-up in lung cancer be based on the primary tumor? An analysis of tumor coverage and normal tissue dose using repeated PET/CT imaging

Purpose— Evaluation of the dose distribution for lung cancer patients using a patient set-up procedure based on the bony anatomy or the primary tumor. Methods and materials— For 39 (non-)small cell lung cancer patients the planning FDG-PET/CT scan was registered to a repeated FDG-PET/CT scan made in the second week of treatment. Two patient set-up methods were analyzed: bony anatomy or primary tumor set-up. The original treatment plan was copied to the repeated scan, and target and normal tissue structures were delineated. Dose distributions were analyzed using dose-volume histograms for the primary tumor, lymph nodes, lungs and spinal cord. Results— One patient showed decreased dose coverage of the primary tumor due to progressive disease and required re-planning to achieve adequate coverage. For the other patients, the minimum dose to the primary tumor did not significantly deviate from the planned dose: −0.2±1.7% (p=0.71) and −0.1±1.7% (p=0.85) for the bony anatomy and primary tumor set-up, respectively. For patients (N=31) with nodal involvement, 10% showed a decrease in minimum dose larger than 5% for the bony-anatomy set-up and 13% for the primary tumor based set-up. Mean lung dose exceeded the maximum allowed 20 Gy in 21% of the patients for the bony-anatomy and in 13% for the primary tumor set-up, whereas for the spinal cord this occurred in 10% and 13% of the patients, respectively. Conclusions— and 13% of patients with nodal involvement, set-up based on bony primary tumor, to important dose deviations nodal target volumes. Overdosage of critical structures occurred in 10-20% of the patients. In case of progressive disease, repeated imaging revealed underdosage of the primary tumor. Development of practical ways for set-up procedures based on repeated high-quality imaging of all tumor sites during radiotherapy should therefore be an important research focus. cause underdosage of the primary tumor if a baseline shift of the primary tumor occurs during treatment. PET/CT imaging with i.v. contrast as the most optimal image modality to detect nodal involvement was selected prior to and during treatment. The dose is recalculated inside the repeated CT imaging data set that has all target and normal structures delineated and an analysis is performed in terms of dose parameters and dose coverage of the primary tumor, involved mediastinal lymph nodes and normal tissue. Such an analysis combines the dose distribution based on different patient set-up strategies with possible changes in patient anatomy and tumor volume. The aim of this study was to investigate the accuracy of the treatment plan for set-up procedure based on the bony anatomy or the primary tumor for a large group of unselected patients.
In vivo imaging of VMAT2 in pancreas using a 18 F epoxide derivative of tetrabenazine

Objectives— Development of imaging agents for pancreatic beta cell mass may provide tools for studying insulin-secreting beta cells and their relationship with diabetes mellitus. In this paper a new imaging agent, [ 18 F](+)-2-oxiranyl-3-isobutyl-9-(3-fluoropropoxy)-10-methoxy-2,3,4,6,7,11b-hexahydro-1H-pyrido[2,1-a]isoquinoline [ 18 F](+) 4 , which displays properties targeting vesicular monoamine transporter 2 (VMAT2) binding sites of beta cells in the pancreas, was evaluated as a PET (positron emission tomography) agent for estimating beta cell mass in vivo . The hydrolyzable epoxide group of (+) 4 may provide a mechanism for shifting biodistribution from liver to kidney thus, reducing the background signal. Methods— Both 18 F and 19 F labeled (+) and ( − ) isomers of 4 were synthesized and evaluated. Organ distribution was carried out in normal rats. Uptake of [ 18 F](+) 4 in pancreas of normal rats was measured and correlated with blocking studies using competing drugs, (+)dihydrotetrabenazine, (+)-DTBZ or 9-fluoropropyl-(+)dihydro tetrabenazine (FP-(+)-DTBZ, (+) 2 ). Results— In vitro binding study of VMAT2 using rat brain striatum showed a K i value of 0.08 and 0.15 nM for the (+) 4 and (±) 4 , respectively. The in vivo biodistribution of [ 18 F](+) 4 in rats showed the highest uptake in the pancreas (2.68 %ID/g at 60 min post-injection). In vivo competition experiments with cold FP-(+)-DTBZ, (+) 2 , (3.5 mg/kg, 5 min iv pretreatment) led to a significant reduction of pancreas uptake (85 % blockade at 60 min). The inactive isomer [ 18 F]( − ) 4 showed significantly lower pancreas uptake (0.22 %ID/g at 30 min post-injection). Animal PET imaging studies of [ 18 F](+) 4 in normal rats demonstrated an avid pancreatic uptake in rats. Conclusion— The preliminary results suggest that the epoxide, [ 18 F](+) 4 , is highly selective in binding to VMAT2 and it has an excellent uptake in the pancreas of rats. The liver uptake was significantly reduced through the use of the epoxide group. Therefore, it may be potentially useful for imaging beta cell mass in the pancreas.
Accounting for Nonspecific Enhancement in Neuronal Tract Tracing using Manganese Enhanced MRI

Manganese enhanced MRI (MEMRI) is an emerging technique for tracing neuronal pathways in vivo . However, manganese may leak into blood vessels or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) after local injection, and can be circulated to and taken up by brain regions that may not have connections to the targeted pathways. Comparing enhancement time-courses after intranasal injection with intravenous infusion of MnCl 2 in rats, the early enhancements in the pituitary gland (Pit) and hippocampus indicate the contrasts in those regions in the olfactory tract-tracing experiment were caused by such systemic effects. Since the Pit has easy access to manganese from the blood and its signal is proportional to other brain regions after intravenous infusion, it was used as an internal reference for the systemic effects. Applying intensity normalization by the Pit signal to tract-tracing data from the olfactory bulb led to reduced contrast in the hippocampus. These results demonstrate that nonspecific enhancements in MEMRI tract-tracing studies may have to be taken into account and that normalization by the Pit signal can compensate these effects.
Analysis on the magnetic shunt structure of large power transformer

Installing magnetic shunts on the surfaces of tank and clamps of power transformer is able to reduce the eddy current losses and decrease the temperature rise effectively. Here, the three-dimensional transient finite element method and the magnetic thermal coupling method are used to calculate and analyse the effect of magnetic shunts with different structures. The non-linear magnetic property of both the transformer structural parts and the magnetic shunts are considered in the analysis. The lamination structure of the shunt is also considered, which is simulated by a thick plate with anisotropic magnetic property. A 334 MVA single-phase transformer is taken as an example in the analysis. The optimisation shunt structure is obtained. By comparing the L-shaped, the inverted L-shaped, and the U-shaped magnetic shunts for the clamps, it is proved that the U-shaped shunt is more effective in reducing the eddy current loss and temperature rise.
Performance Evaluation of a Time-Domain Microwave System for Medical Diagnostics

A time-domain microwave system for medical diagnostics was developed using off-the-shelf components. The system’s performance was evaluated for realistic measurement scenarios when two different measurement strategies: with and without variable gain controls (VGCs) were employed. The results showed that without the employment of the VGC strategy, the system was able to measure loss up to 80 dB in the frequency range of 500 MHz–3 GHz. A 20 dB higher dynamic range was obtained when the VGC strategy was used. This measurement accuracy was obtained with settings which results in the measurement speed of <inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$20~\mu \text{s}$ </tex-math></inline-formula> per trace.
Enhanced visualization of peripheral retinal vasculature with wavefront sensorless adaptive optics OCT angiography in diabetic patients

Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) is a promising technique for non-invasive visualization of vessel networks in the human eye. We debut a system capable of acquiring wide field-of-view (>70°) OCT angiograms without mosaicking. Additionally, we report on enhancing the visualization of peripheral microvasculature using wavefront sensorless adaptive optics (WSAO). We employed a fast WSAO algorithm that enabled wavefront correction in <2 seconds by iterating the mirror shape at the speed of OCT B-scans rather than volumes. Also, we contrasted ~7° field-of-view OCTA angiograms acquired in the periphery with and without WSAO correction. On average, WSAO improved the sharpness of microvasculature by 65% in healthy and 38% in diseased eyes. Preliminary observations demonstrated that the location of 7° images could be identified directly from the wide field-of-view angiogram. A pilot study on a normal subject and patients with diabetic retinopathy showed the impact of utilizing WSAO for OCTA when visualizing peripheral vasculature pathologies.
Resilient asynchronous H∞ control designed for discrete-time Markov jump systems: Static output feedback case

This article is concerned with the problem of resilient asynchronous H∞ static output feedback control for discrete-time Markov jump linear systems. By Finsler’s Lemma, and with the help of two sets of slack variables, the product terms of system matrices and Lyapunov matrices are decoupled. Resilient asynchronous controller is designed to improve the robustness of the controller and overcome the drawback that the controller cannot get the information of the system’s mode. The controller that makes sure the closed-loop system is stochastically stable and with prescribed H∞ performance is designed. The bilinear matrix inequalities are given as the sufficient conditions for the controller design, which can be solved using linear matrix inequalities along with line search. This control strategy can be used in many practical application fields, such as robot control, aircraft, and traffic control.
Optics outreach activities: measuring learning outcomes

The objective of this work is present diverse ways to measure the impact and quality of the informal optics education activities for its improvement in content, quality and didactic techniques; including a list of recom- mendations about how to measure the impact of the outreach events, including the target audience and the staff involved. Also, for measuring the outcomes, it is added a list of techniques about how to know the best activities for each audience, understands the perception of the activity for the public and the application of quizzes based in QR technology for a quick outcome.
Piezoelectric energy harvesting pedal integrated with a compliant load amplifier

Energy generation technologies that use piezoelectric materials as uninterrupted power supplies are one of the most practical solutions of low-power wireless sensor network. The piezoelectric generator collects mechanical energy from the environment and transforms it into electricity to supply to microelectronic devices. Thus, these alternative energy sources can reduce the consumption of batteries, thereby reducing environmental pollution. Piezoelectric materials can work in the bending, compression, and shear modes, which are named as d31, d33, and d15 modes, respectively. In this study, a piezo stack which worked in d31 mode has been designed and integrated into an energy harvesting pedal. A novel compliant amplifying mechanism has to be designed to amplify the input load so that the high-stiffness piezoelectric stack can achieve a large energy output at a lower input force. This compliant mechanism has been designed by the pseudo-rigid-body and topology optimization methods. The amplification ratios of different sized flexible amplification mechanisms are calculated through the finite element analysis and validated by experiments. Finally, a pedal generator has been made and the test results show that the collected electricity can effectively drive a low-power microcontroller, sensor, and other devices of these kinds.
A mutant viral RNA promoter with an altered conformation retains efficient recognition by a viral RNA replicase through a solution-exposed adenine

Brome mosaic virus (BMV) genomic minus-strand RNA synthesis requires an RNA motif named stem-loop C (SLC). An NMR-derived solution structure of SLC was reported by Kim et al. (NatureStrucBiol, 2000, 7:415–423) to contain three replicase-recognition elements, the most important of which is a stable stem with a terminal trinucleotide loop, 5 9 AUA3 9 . The 5 9 -most adenine of the triloop is rigidly fixed to the stem helix by interactions that require the 3 9 -most adenine, which is called a clamped adenine motif. However, a change of the 3 9 adenine to guanine (5 9 AUG3 9 ) un-expectedly directed RNA synthesis at 130% of wild type (Kim et al., NatureStrucBiol, 2000, 7:415–423). To understand how RNA with the AUG mutation maintains interaction with the BMV replicase, we used NMR and other biophysical techniques to elucidate the solution conformation of a 13-nt RNA containing the AUG triloop, called S-AUG. We found that S-AUG has a drastically different loop conformation in comparison to the wild type, as evidenced by an unusual C•G loop-closing base pair. Despite the conformational change, S-AUG maintains a solution-exposed adenine similar to the clamped adenine motif found in the wild type. Biochemical studies of the 5 9 AUG3 9 loop with various substi-tutions in the context of the whole SLC construct confirm that the clamped adenine motif exists in S-AUG remains a primary structural feature required for RNA synthesis by the BMV replicase.
Can a Gender Equity and Family Planning Intervention for Men change men’s gender ideology?: Results from the CHARM cluster randomized controlled trial in rural India

In this paper, we aim to assess the effect of the CHARM, a gender equity and family planning counseling intervention for husbands in rural India, on men’s gender ideology. We used a two-armed cluster randomized control trial design and collected survey data from husbands (n=1081) at baseline, 9-months, and 18-months. We used a continuous measure of support for gender equity (i.e. Gender Equitable Men Scale) and a dichotomous measure of equitable attitudes towards women’s role in household decision-making. To assess differences on these outcomes, we used generalized linear mixed models. After controlling for socio-demographic factors, men who received the CHARM intervention were significantly more likely than men in the control condition to have equitable attitudes towards household decision-making ideology on women’s contraceptive use, the CHARM intervention represents a promising approach for tackling root causes of women’s unmet contraceptive needs.
APPLICATION OF THE AGGREGATED DMAIC-PDCA METHOD – CASE STUDY

The turbulent environment in which production companies operate today forces them to constantly improve processes. Among the methods supporting the improvement of the efficiency of production processes, we can distinguish PDCA method derived from Japanese experience (Toyota Production System) and DMAIC related to the Six Sigma concept. Implementation of changes with the use of both methods has a positive effect. Literature can identify the factors determining the choice of one of them for implementation under specific production conditions. The authors of the article make considerations regarding the use of aggregated DMAIC and PDCA methods to create a sustainable environment of continuous improvement in a short time. Based on the company's study, the authors distinguish key elements that determine the effective combination of these methods. This connection is presented on the basis of the practical implementation of the production process efficiency improvement project at a workstation.
Progression of Amygdala Volumetric Abnormalities in Adolescents Following their First Manic Episode

Objective— Although previous neuroimaging studies suggest that adolescents with bipolar disorder exhibit smaller amygdala volumes compared with healthy adolescents, whether these abnormalities are present at illness onset or instead develop over time remains unclear. The aim of this study was to conduct a prospective longitudinal investigation comparing amygdala neurodevelopment among adolescents following their first manic episode, adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and healthy adolescents. Method— Thirty adolescents hospitalized for their first manic/mixed episode associated with bipolar disorder, twenty-nine adolescents with ADHD, and twenty-four demographically matched healthy teens underwent magnetic resonance imaging scans at index assessment and approximately 12 months later. Adolescents with bipolar disorder were prospectively evaluated using diagnostic interviews and symptom rating scales. Results— Mixed models examining group-by-time effects for both left (p=0.005) and right (p=0.002) amygdala volumes were statistically significant. Change in left (p=0.01) and right (p=0.0008) amygdala volumes from baseline to 12 months were significantly different among groups. Specifically, left amygdala volumes increased over time in healthy adolescents (p=0.008) and adolescents with ADHD (p=0.0009), but not in adolescents with bipolar disorder (p=0.3). Right amygdala volume increased over time in adolescents with ADHD (p<0.001), but not in healthy adolescents nor in adolescents with bipolar disorder (p=0.1 and p=0.3, respectively). In adolescents with bipolar disorder, baseline total amygdala volume was significantly greater in those who subsequently achieved symptomatic recovery as compared to those who did not achieve recovery (p=0.02). Conclusions— Adolescents with mania fail to exhibit normal increases in amygdala volume that occur during healthy adolescent neurodevelopment.
Exploring weak, transient protein-protein interactions in crowded in vivo environments by in-cell NMR spectroscopy†

Biology relies on functional interplay of proteins in the crowded and heterogeneous environment inside cells, and functional protein interactions are often weak and transient. Thus, methods are needed that preserve these interactions and provide information about them. In-cell NMR spectroscopy is an attractive method to study a protein’s behavior in cells because it may provide residue-level structural and dynamic information. Yet several factors limit the feasibility of protein NMR spectroscopy in cells, and among them slow rotational diffusion has emerged as the most important. In this paper, we seek to elucidate the causes of the dramatically slow protein tumbling in cells and in so doing to gain insight into how the intracellular viscosity and weak, transient interactions modulate protein mobility. To address these questions, we characterized the rotational diffusion of three model globular proteins in E. coli cells using 2D heteronuclear NMR spectroscopy. These proteins have a similar molecular size and globular fold, but very different surface properties, and indeed, they show very different rotational diffusion in the E. coli intracellular environment. Our data are consistent with an intracellular viscosity approximately eight times that of water—too low to be a limiting factor to observing small globular proteins by in-cell NMR spectroscopy. Thus, we conclude that transient interactions with cytoplasmic components significantly and differentially affect the mobility of proteins and therefore their NMR detectability. Moreover, we suggest that an intricate interplay of total protein charge and hydrophobic interactions plays a key role in regulating these weak intermolecular interactions in cells. BSA titration of the GB1/NmerA lysate sample— To mimic intracellular molecular crowding with a protein crowding agent, 1 H N linewidths for individual residues in GB1 and NmerA were obtained from HSQC spectra for the GB1/NmerA mixture lysate in the
Blockchain technology and its relationships to sustainable supply chain management

Globalisation of supply chains makes their management and control more difficult. Blockchain technology, as a distributed digital ledger technology which ensures transparency, traceability, and security, is showing promise for easing some global supply chain management problems. In this paper, blockchain technology and smart contracts are critically examined with potential application to supply chain management. Local and global government, community, and consumer pressures to meet sustainability goals prompt us to further investigate how blockchain can address and aid supply chain sustainability. Part of this critical examination is how blockchains, a potentially disruptive technology that is early in its evolution, can overcome many potential barriers. Four blockchain technology adoption barriers categories are introduced; inter-organisational, intra-organisational, technical, and external barriers. True blockchain-led transformation of business and supply chain is still in progress and in its early stages; we propose future research propositions and directions that can provide insights into overcoming barriers and adoption of blockchain technology for supply chain management.