Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Maternal hypoxia during pregnancy induces fetal neurodevelopmental brain damage: Partial protection by magnesium sulfate

Fetal low brain oxygenation may be an outcome of maternal complications during pregnancy and is associated with increased risk of cerebral palsy and periventricular leukomalacia in newborns. One treatment used for prevention of fetal brain damage is maternal treatment with MgSO4. Although this treatment is indicated to reduce the risk of cerebral palsy in newborns, its use remains controversial. We have shown previously that pretreatment with MgSO4 in a mouse model of maternal hypoxia prevented a delay in the development of motor reflexes induced by hypoxia. We demonstrate here that pretreatment with MgSO4 reduces hypoxia‐induced motor disabilities in adult offspring. This effect is associated with histologic protection of the Purkinje cells in the cerebellum and stabilization of brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels in the cerebellum. MgSO4 did not prevent the reduction in cerebral cortex cell density and cell size induced by maternal hypoxia, however, nor did it interfere with the modulation of BDNF and nerve growth factor (NGF) expression in the cerebral cortex. MgSO4 pretreatment also prevented the impairment of short‐term memory (30 min, P < 0.05) but not long‐term memory (7 days). Nevertheless, maternal pretreatment with MgSO4 reduced CA1 cell layer width and induced alterations in both NGF and BDNF in the hippocampus. These results support the prophylactic effect of MgSO4 against motor disabilities; however, they may also indicate possible harmful effects on the cerebral cortex and hippocampus. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Коэволюция социальных сетей и академических достижений студентов

Докука София Владимировна - кандидат социологических наук, младший научный сотрудник Института институциональных исследований НИУ ВШЭ. E-mail: dokuka@hse.ruВалеева Диляра Рашитовна - младший научный сотрудник Института институциональных исследований НИУ ВШЭ. E-mail: dvaleeva@hse.ru Юдкевич Мария Марковна - кандидат экономических наук, проректор, директор Института институциональных исследований НИУ ВШЭ. E-mail: yudkevich@hse.ruАдрес: Москва, 101000, ул. Мясницкая, 24. При изучении эффектов сообучения оценивается влияние, которое социальное окружение оказывает на индивидуальные достижения учащихся. Как правило, в качестве социального окружения рассматривается случайным образом сформированная группа. Однако социальное окружение складывается в результате осознанного выбора, который совершает индивид, причем этот выбор является не статичным, а динамическим. Студенты могут изначально отбирать себе в друзья учащихся с таким же ровнем достижений, как у них самих, а со временем может проявиться влияние, которое студенты, поддерживающие тесные отношения, оказывают на достижения друг друга. В данной работе авторы с помощью стохастического акторно-ориентированного моделирования разделили процессы социальной селекции и социального влияния, оцениваемого на основании академических достижений. Анализ динамики дружеских связей и академических достижений студентов в течение первого года обучения позволил установить, что уровень достижений однокурсников не является для студентов критерием выбора друзей, но со временем проявляется влияние академических достижений друзей на индивидуальные достижения студента. Авторы объясняют полученные результаты социальной сегрегацией студентов по уровню успеваемости. DOI: 10.17323/1814-9545-2015-3-44-65
Compensated Transfer Entropy as a Tool for Reliably Estimating Information Transfer in Physiological Time Series

We present a framework for the estimation of transfer entropy (TE) under the conditions typical of physiological system analysis, featuring short multivariate time series and the presence of instantaneous causality (IC). The framework is based on recognizing that TE can be interpreted as the difference between two conditional entropy (CE) terms, and builds on an efficient CE estimator that compensates for the bias occurring for high dimensional conditioning vectors and follows a sequential embedding procedure whereby the conditioning vectors are formed progressively according to a criterion for CE minimization. The issue of IC is faced accounting for zero-lag interactions according to two alternative empirical strategies: if IC is deemed as physiologically meaningful, zero-lag effects are assimilated to lagged effects to make them causally relevant; if not, zero-lag effects are incorporated in both CE terms to obtain a compensation. The resulting compensated TE (cTE) estimator is tested on simulated time series, showing that its utilization improves sensitivity (from 61% to 96%) and specificity (from 5/6 to 0/6 false positives) in the detection of information transfer respectively when instantaneous effect are causally meaningful and non-meaningful. Then, it is evaluated on examples of cardiovascular and neurological time series, supporting the feasibility of the proposed framework for the investigation of physiological mechanisms.
Tumor-Related Methylated Cell-Free DNA and Circulating Tumor Cells in Melanoma

Solid tumor release into the circulation cell-free DNA (cfDNA) and circulating tumor cells (CTCs) which represent promising biomarkers for cancer diagnosis. Circulating tumor DNA may be studied in plasma from cancer patients by detecting tumor specific alterations, such as genetic or epigenetic modifications. Ras association domain family 1 isoform A (RASSF1A) is a tumor suppressor gene silenced by promoter hypermethylation in a variety of human cancers including melanoma. The aim of the present study was to assess the diagnostic performance of a tumor-related methylated cfDNA marker in melanoma patients and to compare this parameter with the presence of CTCs. RASSF1A promoter methylation was quantified in cfDNA by qPCR in a consecutive series of 84 melanoma patients and 68 healthy controls. In a subset of 68 cases, the presence of CTCs was assessed by a filtration method (Isolation by Size of Epithelial Tumor Cells, ISET) as well as by an indirect method based on the detection of tyrosinase mRNA by RT-qPCR. The distribution of RASSF1A methylated cfDNA was investigated in cases and controls and the predictive capability of this parameter was assessed by means of the area under the ROC curve (AUC). The percentage of cases with methylated RASSF1A promoter in cfDNA was significantly higher in each class of melanoma patients (in situ, invasive and metastatic) than in healthy subjects (Pearson chi-squared test, p < 0.001). The concentration of RASSF1A methylated cfDNA in the subjects with a detectable quantity of methylated alleles was significantly higher in melanoma patients than in controls. The biomarker showed a good predictive capability (in terms of AUC) in discriminating between melanoma patients and healthy controls. This epigenetic marker associated to cfDNA did not show a significant correlation with the presence of CTCs, but, when the two parameters are jointly considered, we obtain a higher sensitivity of the detection of positive cases in invasive and metastatic melanomas. Our data suggest that cell-free tumor DNA and CTCs represent two complementary aspects of the liquid biopsy which may improve the diagnosis and the clinical management of melanoma patients.
A Sideways Look at Configural Encoding: Two Different Effects of Face Rotation

Inversion has a disproportionate disruptive effect on the recognition of faces. This may be due to the disruption of holistic or configural encoding employed to recognise upright faces. The paradigm developed by Tanaka and Farah (1993 Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, Section A 46 225–246) was used to investigate the effect of 90° (or orthogonal) rotation on configural encoding. Faces learnt in the orthogonal condition were not recognised as well as upright faces, but a whole-face advantage was found in both cases. This whole-face advantage did not occur for inverted faces. It appears that 90° rotation affects recognition but not specifically configural encoding. It is concluded that rotating a face can have at least two different effects on face processing depending on the range of rotation. Implications for the nature of facial dimensions and the expertise account of the inversion effect are considered.
Osmotic Shock Induces G1 Arrest through p53 Phosphorylation at Ser33 by Activated p38MAPK without Phosphorylation at Ser15 and Ser20 *

Osmotic shock induced transient stabilization of p53, possibly due to increased degradation of Mdm2. Stabilized p53 was activated by p38MAPK, resulting in G1arrest through induction of p21WAF1. Among the postulated phosphorylation sites involved in p53 stabilization or activation (Ser15, Ser20, Ser33, and Ser46), only Ser33 was phosphorylated. Furthermore, interaction of p53 with the transcriptional coactivator p300 was induced, and Lys382 of p53 was acetylated. Although inhibition of p38MAPK did not prevent nuclear accumulation of p53, phosphorylation of Ser33 was markedly suppressed by SB203580, a specific inhibitor of p38MAPK. Under these conditions, acetylation of Lys382 and induction of p21WAF1 were also inhibited, and cells with elevated levels of p53 showed normal cell cycle progression. Activated p38MAPK phosphorylated endogenous p53 at Ser33in living cells. In stable transformants expressing dominant negative MKK6, an upstream protein kinase of p38MAPK, p53 stabilization was induced normally following osmotic shock, but phosphorylation of Ser33, acetylation of Lys382, and induction of p21WAF1 were almost completely inhibited. These results suggest that phosphorylation at Ser33 by p38MAPK is critical for activation of p53 following osmotic shock. Phosphorylation of neither Ser15 nor Ser20 was needed in this activation.
Replica placement using genetic algorithm

Replica placement is one of the classic issues, which enjoys applicability in finding the optimal location to deploy servers in different fields, particularly, industry in addition to computer network fields. Several methods have been proposed for selecting such locations optimally. The two noteworthy parameters such methods try to optimize are: selection of the best-fit location and the time of executing the algorithm. Consequently, the efficient method will be the one that selects locations as close to the optimal status as possible and enjoys a rather acceptable speed. This is considered an NP-Complete problem, and thus, heuristic methods will be used in its solution. Among the proposed methods to solve the problem of replica placement of server location, the best algorithm in terms of time complexity is the O (N. max(logN, K)). The method which has been introduced in this study is the designation and implementation of an algorithm using the genetic algorithm. The execution time of such an algorithm is much less than the algorithms whose location is close to optimal.
OCCURRENCE OF AFLATOXIN M 1 IN PARMESAN CHEESE CONSUMED IN MINAS GERAIS , BRAZIL

Aflatoxin M 1 (AFM 1 ) may occur in milk and milk products, resulting from the ingestion of aflatoxin B 1 in feedstuffs by dairy cow. A total of 88 samples of Parmesan cheese marketed in Minas Gerais state, Brazil, from March 2004 to December 2004, were analyzed for AFM 1 by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with a fluorescence detector following sample clean-up using immunoaffinity columns. AFM 1 was detected in 40 of the 88 samples (46.4%). However, only two samples among these were contaminated at a level above the maximum permissible limit (250 ng kg) accepted by European Union for AFM 1. No AFM 1 maximum tolerance limit in cheese has been established in Brazil.
Low-power high-speed dual-modulus prescaler for Gb/s applications

This paper present a low-power 10-GHz divide-by-3/4 prescaler for 60-GHz high data rate short range wireless communication systems. Design techniques utilized to optimize the power consumption are addressed. The critical circuit, current-mode-logic (CML) blocks, are optimized to achieve high speed and low power consumption simultaneously. The prescaler is implemented in a low-cost commercial 0.18-μm SiGe BiCMOS technology. The maximum operating frequency is up to 10 GHz, with 8.6 mW power consumption in 1.8 V supply. The core area is 190 μm×120 μm.
Long-Term Response and Possible Cure of Patients With B-Cell Malignancies With Dose-Escalated Rituximab

Rituximab (R), a chimeric monoclonal antibody targeting CD20 antigen on B-cells, has become a standard of care in the treatment of B-cell malignancies, most often in conjunction with cytotoxic chemotherapy. Activity has been demonstrated in many subtypes of B-cell lymphoma, including diffuse large cell lymphoma, follicular lymphoma (FL), mantle cell lymphoma (MCL), chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin lymphoma, and Waldenström macroglobulinemia (WM). Additionally, dose escalation of R as a single agent has demonstrated improved activity in previously treated/poor prognosis CLL. We present 4 cases of B-cell malignancy (2 CLL variants/MCL, 1 FL, 1 WM) who received dose-escalated R as a single agent and achieved complete response (3 patients) and stable disease/partial response (1 patient) of 6.5+ to 15+ years duration. They have been off treatment for 6.5+ to 15+ years. Toxicity was minimal, with initial infusion reactions similar to those observed with standard dose infusions. There were no serious treatment-related adverse events or infections. Dose escalated R as a single agent may possibly be curative for some patients with B-cell malignancies, unlike the standard empiric dose of 375 mg/m2, and deserves further study.
Epidemiologic overview of malignant lymphoma

Malignant lymphoma encompasses a wide variety of distinct disease entities. It is generally more common in developed countries and less common in developing countries. The East Asia region has one of the lowest incidence rates of malignant lymphoma. The incidence of malignant lymphoma around the world has been increasing at a rate of 3-4% over the last 4 decades, while some stabilization has been observed in developed countries in recent years. The reasons behind this lymphoma epidemic are poorly understood, although improving diagnostic accuracy, the recent AIDS epidemic, an aging world population and the increasing adoption of cancer-causing behaviors are suggested as contributing factors. Etiologies of malignant lymphoma include infectious agents, immunodeficiency, autoimmune disease, exposure to certain organic chemicals, and pharmaceuticals. The distribution of many subtypes exhibit marked geographic variations. Compared to the West, T/natural killer (NK) cell lymphomas (T/NK-cell lymphoma) and extranodal marginal zone lymphoma of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT lymphoma) are relatively more common, whereas other B-cell lymphomas, particularly follicular lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma, are less common in Asia. Some subtypes of T/NK-cell lymphomas defined by Epstein-Barr virus association are predominantly Asian diseases, if not exclusively so. Both ethnic and environmental factors play roles in such diversity. In this review, we discuss the geographic distribution and etiology of malignant lymphoma, as well as the trend.
Coding-Based Informed Source Separation: Nonnegative Tensor Factorization Approach

Informed source separation (ISS) aims at reliably recovering sources from a mixture. To this purpose, it relies on the assumption that the original sources are available during an encoding stage. Given both sources and mixture, a side-information may be computed and transmitted along with the mixture, whereas the original sources are not available any longer. During a decoding stage, both mixture and side-information are processed to recover the sources. ISS is motivated by a number of specific applications including active listening and remixing of music, karaoke, audio gaming, etc. Most ISS techniques proposed so far rely on a source separation strategy and cannot achieve better results than oracle estimators. In this study, we introduce Coding-based ISS (CISS) and draw the connection between ISS and source coding. CISS amounts to encode the sources using not only a model as in source coding but also the observation of the mixture. This strategy has several advantages over conventional ISS methods. First, it can reach any quality, provided sufficient bandwidth is available as in source coding. Second, it makes use of the mixture in order to reduce the bitrate required to transmit the sources, as in classical ISS. Furthermore, we introduce Nonnegative Tensor Factorization as a very efficient model for CISS and report rate-distortion results that strongly outperform the state of the art.
‘Care left undone’ during nursing shifts: associations with workload and perceived quality of care

Background There is strong evidence to show that lower nurse staffing levels in hospitals are associated with worse patient outcomes. One hypothesised mechanism is the omission of necessary nursing care caused by time pressure—‘missed care’. Aim To examine the nature and prevalence of care left undone by nurses in English National Health Service hospitals and to assess whether the number of missed care episodes is associated with nurse staffing levels and nurse ratings of the quality of nursing care and patient safety environment. Methods Cross-sectional survey of 2917 registered nurses working in 401 general medical/surgical wards in 46 general acute National Health Service hospitals in England. Results Most nurses (86%) reported that one or more care activity had been left undone due to lack of time on their last shift. Most frequently left undone were: comforting or talking with patients (66%), educating patients (52%) and developing/updating nursing care plans (47%). The number of patients per registered nurse was significantly associated with the incidence of ‘missed care’ (p<0.001). A mean of 7.8 activities per shift were left undone on wards that are rated as ‘failing’ on patient safety, compared with 2.4 where patient safety was rated as ‘excellent’ (p <0. 001). Conclusions Nurses working in English hospitals report that care is frequently left undone. Care not being delivered may be the reason low nurse staffing levels adversely affects quality and safety. Hospitals could use a nurse-rated assessment of ‘missed care’ as an early warning measure to identify wards with inadequate nurse staffing.
An algorithm for real-time stereo vision implementation of head pose and gaze direction measurement

To build smart human interfaces, it is necessary for a system to know a user's intention and point of attention. Since the motion of a person's head pose and gaze direction are deeply related with his/her intention and attention, detection of such information can be utilized to build natural and intuitive interfaces. We describe our real-time stereo face tracking and gaze detection system to measure head pose and gaze direction simultaneously. The key aspect of our system is the use of real-time stereo vision together with a simple algorithm which is suitable for real-time processing. Since the 3D coordinates of the features on a face can be directly measured in our system, we can significantly simplify the algorithm for 3D model fitting to obtain the full 3D pose of the head compared with conventional systems that use monocular camera. Consequently we achieved a non-contact, passive, real-time, robust, accurate and compact measurement system for head pose and gaze direction.
Benchmarking evolutionary multiobjective optimization algorithms

Choosing and tuning an optimization procedure for a given class of nonlinear optimization problems is not an easy task. One way to proceed is to consider this as a tournament, where each procedure will compete in different ‘disciplines’. Here, disciplines could either be different functions, which we want to optimize, or specific performance measures of the optimization procedure. We would then be interested in the algorithm that performs best in a majority of cases or whose average performance is maximal. We will focus on evolutionary multiobjective optimization algorithms (EMOA), and will present a novel approach to the design and analysis of evolutionary multiobjective benchmark experiments based on similar work from the context of machine learning. We focus on deriving a consensus among several benchmarks over different test problems and illustrate the methodology by reanalyzing the results of the CEC 2007 EMOA competition.
A Phenomenological Study of Inclusive Environments from the Perspective of Rural Middle School General Education Teachers of Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

This phenomenological study explored the shared experience of rural middle school general education teachers of students diagnosed with emotional and behavioral disorders (EBD) in inclusive classrooms. The study began by examining related issues associated with inclusive environments. Data analysis was structured around phenomenological organizational methods: that there exists within the phenomenon a descriptive experience, and within that experience there are voids of possible explanation and interpretation. The research incorporated observations, interviews, and documents as forms of data collection. This inquiry sought to uncover the ways in which general education teachers who serve students diagnosed with emotional and behavioral disabilities find meaning. It utilized essential themes that characterize the phenomenon through the use of rich and descriptive writing. Moreover, it employed systematic data analysis procedures and established guidelines for assembling the textual and structural descriptions. Data analysis was conducted through coding, peer review, triangulation, and enriched description. Finally, I provided suggestions for areas of future study framed around issues of educational practices. Descriptors: Emotional/Behavioral Disorders, Inclusion, Middle School, General Education Teachers Perspectives
An Approach to an Inhibition Electronic Tongue to Detect On-Line Organophosphorus Insecticides Using a Computer Controlled Multi-Commuted Flow System

An approach to an inhibition bioelectronic tongue is presented. The work is focused on development of an automated flow system to carry out experimental assays, a custom potentiostat to measure the response from an enzymatic biosensor, and an inhibition protocol which allows on-line detections. A Multi-commuted Flow Analysis system (MCFA) was selected and developed to carry out assays with an improved inhibition method to detect the insecticides chlorpyrifos oxon (CPO), chlorfenvinfos (CFV) and azinphos methyl-oxon (AZMO). The system manifold comprised a peristaltic pump, a set of seven electronic valves controlled by a personal computer electronic interface and software based on LabView® to control the sample dilutions into the cell. The inhibition method consists in the injection of the insecticide when the enzyme activity has reached the plateau of the current; with this method the incubation time is avoided. A potentiostat was developed to measure the response from the enzymatic biosensor. Low limits of detection of 10 nM for CPO, CFV, and AZMO were achieved.