Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Transcriptional profile of rat extraocular muscle by serial analysis of gene expression.

PURPOSE Although extraocular muscle (EOM) is skeletal muscle, aspects of its biology are unlike other striated muscle. In this study, the broad molecular genetics profile underlying the novel EOM phenotype was examined. METHODS Serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE) was used to quantify adult rat EOM gene transcripts. SAGE isolates and sequences 10-bp tags from defined locations in mRNA-derived cDNA. Tag sequence-location was used to extract transcript identity from a curated SAGE database, and detection frequencies reflected abundance of corresponding mRNAs. RESULTS The 54,764 expressed sequence tags generated and sequenced from EOM included 17,602 unique tags. Of the unique tags, 7.8% were detected at high to intermediate levels (>or=5 copies), 19.3% at lower levels (2-4 copies), and 72.9% as single copies; 40% of the tags matched known expressed sequence tags (ESTs), most of which (85.7%) represented a unique EST. Tags without matches in the SAGE database and those expressed as single copies only were not considered further. SAGE tags expressed at more than 0.1% of total transcripts reflected several aspects of muscle biology, including sarcomeric structure, energy metabolism, and ribosomal protein expression. Genes highly expressed in EOM were compared with other existing muscle expression databases to identify conserved and novel patterns in EOM. CONCLUSIONS The data provide a normative gene expression database and a novel molecular signature that will facilitate study of EOM development and function and of the mechanisms behind its preferential targeting or sparing in neuromuscular disease.
Neuromotor Outcome at 2 Years of Very Preterm Infants Who Were Treated With High-Frequency Oscillatory Ventilation or Conventional Ventilation for Neonatal Respiratory Distress Syndrome

OBJECTIVE. In a previous multicenter, randomized trial, elective use of high-frequency oscillatory ventilation was compared with the use of conventional ventilation in the management of respiratory distress syndrome in preterm infants <30 weeks. No difference in terms of respiratory outcome was observed, but concerns were raised about an increased rate of severe intraventricular hemorrhage in the high-frequency ventilation group. To evaluate outcome, a follow-up study was conducted until a corrected age of 2 years. We report the results concerning neuromotor outcome. METHODS. Outcome was able to be evaluated in 192 of the 212 infants who survived until discharge from the neonatal unit: 97 of 105 infants of the high-frequency group and 95 of 104 infants of the conventional ventilation group. RESULTS. In the infants reviewed, mean birth weight and gestational age were similar in the 2 ventilation groups. As in the overall study population, the following differences were observed between the high-frequency ventilation group and the conventional ventilation group: lower 5-minute Apgar score, fewer surfactant instillations, and a higher incidence of severe intraventricular hemorrhage. At a corrected age of 2 years, 93 of the 97 infants of the high-frequency group and 79 of the 95 infants of the conventional ventilation group did not present any neuromotor disability, whereas 4 infants of the high-frequency group and 16 infants of the conventional ventilation group had cerebral palsy. CONCLUSIONS. Contrary to our initial concern about the increased rate of severe intraventricular hemorrhage in the high-frequency ventilation group, these data suggest that early use of high-frequency ventilation, compared with conventional ventilation, may be associated with a better neuromotor outcome. Because of the small number of patients studied and the absence of any explanation for this finding, we can conclude only that high-frequency oscillatory ventilation is not associated with a poorer neuromotor outcome.
Development of the adult-type Leydig cell population in the rat is affected by neonatal thyroid hormone levels.

We have investigated the effects of neonatal-prepubertal changes in thyroid hormone levels on the early phases of adult-type Leydig cell development in the rat testis. Hypothyroidism was induced by adding 6-propyl-2-thiouracil (PTU) to the drinking water, while hyperthyroidism was induced by daily injections with triiodothyronine (T3). The proliferative activity of the Leydig cells in PTU-treated animals was not different from that in age-matched controls through the age of 16 days. Nevertheless, the percentage of Leydig cells (i.e., the proportion of Leydig cells among the total interstitial cell population) was approximately 83% and 67% lower at the ages of 12 and 16 days, respectively. The proliferative activity of the Leydig cells in the T3-treated animals compared to the controls was increased approximately 3-fold at the ages of 12 and 16 days. The percentage of Leydig cells in T3-treated animals was also considerably increased at these two ages (400% and 725%, respectively). Concomitantly, the percentage of peritubular cells was decreased, suggesting that the increase in the percentage of Leydig cells may at least partially be the result of differentiation of peritubularly located precursor cells. Plasma testosterone levels fluctuated considerably at these ages. Hence, injection of T3 during the neonatal-prepubertal period not only affects Sertoli cell proliferation and differentiation but also directly or indirectly affects the onset of the formation of the adult-type Leydig cell population and its function.
Thiopurine Methyltransferase (TPMT) Activity and Adverse Effects of Azathioprine in Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Long-Term Follow-Up Study of 394 Patients

AIM:To prospectively evaluate whether a relationship between thiopurine methyltransferase (TPMT) activity and incidence of adverse effects (especially myelotoxicity) exists, in a long-term follow-up study of a large group of patients with inflammatory bowel disease treated with azathioprine.METHODS:TPMT activity in red blood cells (RBC) was measured by a radiochemical method in 394 consecutive patients with Crohn's disease (238) or ulcerative colitis (156) starting treatment with azathioprine. The relationship among several variables and TPMT values was assessed, and the correlation between such levels and the incidence of adverse effects was evaluated.RESULTS:Mean TPMT value was 18.6 ± 4 U/mL RBCs (range 9.4–33.7). No patient had low levels (<5), 7.1% had intermediate levels (5–13.7), and 92.9% had high levels (>13.8). Differences (P < 0.001) were demonstrated in TPMT activity depending on the type of inflammatory bowel disease, but not on the remaining variables (including treatment with 5-aminosalycilates). Adverse effects were reported in 74 patients (18.8%), the most frequent being gastrointestinal intolerance (9.1%) and myelotoxicity (4.3%). No patient having adverse effects had low TPMT levels. However, mean TPMT activity was lower in those with adverse effects (16.6 ± 3 vs 19.1 ± 4 U/mL, P < 0.001). Moreover, the probability of suffering myelotoxicity in the high TPMT group was only 3.5%, compared with 14.3% in the TPMT intermediate group (95% CI = 1.37–14.9; OR = 4.5). CONCLUSIONS:The strategy of determining TPMT activity in all patients prior to initiating treatment with azathioprine could help to minimize the risk of myelotoxicity, as patients with intermediate TPMT activity had fourfold more risk than high TPMT activity patients.
Developing New Measurement Capabilities with Nanochannel Liquid Phase TEM

1. Dept. of Microand Nanotechnology, Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Lyngby, Denmark. 2. Center for Electron Nanoscopy, Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Lyngby, Denmark. 3. Dept. of Chemistry, Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Lyngby, Denmark. 4. Physical Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, WA, USA 5. Laboratoire Matériaux et Phénomènes Quantiques, Université Paris Diderot, France
Importing, Exporting and Firm-Level Employment Volatility

In this paper, we use detailed trade and transactions data for the U.S. manufacturing sector to document a new set of stylized facts on the theoretically ambiguous relationship between the volatility of employment growth and the trade exposure of a firm. We find that, on average, firms that export are less volatile than non-traders, while importers are more volatile. The substantial variation we document across trading firms, in terms of the duration of time and the intensity with which they trade, the number and type of products they trade, and in terms of the number and characteristics of their trading partners, plays an integral role in explaining the robust association between trading and employment volatility. For trading firms, the frequency of trade is negatively associated with employment volatility. Importers with a higher share of imported inputs (especially manufactured imports) and those that source from more countries and from countries with lower per-capita income experience higher levels of volatility. A higher share of exports, fewer number of export destinations and, export destinations that are further away, and with lower average incomes are associated with higher levels of volatility for exporters.
Learning latent structure in complex networks

Latent structure in complex networks, e.g., in the form of community structure, can help understand network dynamics, identify heterogeneities in network properties, and predict ‘missing’ links. While most community detection algorithms are based on optimizing heuristic clustering objectives such as the Modularity, it has recently been shown that latent structure in complex networks is learnable by Bayesian generative link distribution models (Airoldi et al., 2008, Hofman and Wiggins, 2008). In this paper we propose a new generative model that allows representation of latent community structure as in the previous Bayesian approaches and in addition allows learning of node speciﬁc link properties similar to that in the modularity objective. We employ a new relaxation method for efﬁcient inference in these generative models that allows us to learn the behavior of very large networks. We compare the link prediction performance of the learning based approaches and other widely used link prediction approaches in 14 networks ranging from medium size to large networks with more than a million nodes. While link prediction is typically well above chance for all networks, we ﬁnd that the learning based mixed membership stochastic block model of Airoldi et al., performs well and often best in our experiments. The added complexity of the LD model improves link predictions for four of the 14 networks.
On the integration of time-frequency masking speech separation and recognition in underdetermined environments

The successful application of automatic speech recognition systems in the real world is conditional on its ability to handle realistic environments with unfavorable conditions such as reverberation and multiple sources of inteference. Previous research has identified time-frequency masking based approaches to blind source separation as a viable approach for multisource reverberant source separation. It is proposed the use of such separation techniques as a front-end to speech recognition will encourage greater recognition accuracy. Experimental evaluations confirmed the hypothesis with an improvement in recognition accuracy of over 20% at a reverberation time of RT60 = 300ms; this is indicative of the potential for future research in this field.
CONSERVING GENETIC RESOURCES FOR AGRICULTURE : COUNTING THE COST

Bonwoo Koo is a research fellow in the Environment and Production Technology Division of IFPRI. Philip G. Pardey is a professor in the Department of Applied Economics at the University of Minnesota. At the time of this research, he was a senior research fellow at IFPRI. Brian D. Wright is a professor in the Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics at the University of California, Berkeley. Brief 6, January 2003
High gain high dense dielectric patch antenna with a holey superstrate for 5G applications

High gain low profile of a square dense dielectric patch antenna using a perforated superstrate is presented. The proposed patch antenna is excited by the aperture coupled feeding technique. A dielectric superstrate is used to enhance the gain of the proposed antenna. By drilling a set of identical holes in the superstrate layer, the relative permittivity of the dielectric superstrate is reduced, the antenna impedance matching is improved, and the side lobe level is decreased. The implemented antenna achieved a gain of 14.2 dBi at 28.5 GHz with radiation efficiency of 91 %. Furthermore, the proposed antenna has a good radiation pattern. Simulated results using CST software are presented and discussed. For some attractive advantages such as low profile, low cost, light weight, small size, and ease of implementation, the proposed antenna is a good candidate for millimeter-wave wireless communications.
Generality of leaf trait relationships: a test across six biomes: Ecology

Convergence in interspecific leaf trait relationships across diverse taxonomic groups and biomes would have important evolutionary and ecological implications. Such convergence has been hypothesized to result from trade-offs that limit the combination of plant traits for any species. Here we address this issue by testing for biome differences in the slope and intercept of interspecific relationships among leaf traits: longevity, net pho- tosynthetic capacity (Amax), leaf diffusive conductance (Gs), specific leaf area (SLA), and nitrogen (N) status, for more than 100 species in six distinct biomes of the Americas. The six biomes were: alpine tundra-subalpine forest ecotone, cold temperate forest-prairie ecotone, montane cool temperate forest, desert shrubland, subtropical forest, and tropical rain forest. Despite large differences in climate and evolutionary history, in all biomes mass-based leaf N (Nmass), SLA, Gs, and Amax were positively related to one another and decreased with increasing leaf life span. The relationships between pairs of leaf traits exhibited similar slopes among biomes, suggesting a predictable set of scaling relationships among key leaf morphological, chemical, and metabolic traits that are replicated globally among terrestrial ecosystems regardless of biome or vegetation type. However, the intercept (i.e., the overall elevation of regression lines) of relationships between pairs of leaf traits usually differed among biomes. With increasing aridity across sites, species had greater Amax for a given level of Gs and lower SLA for any given leaf life span. Using principal components analysis, most variation among species was explained by an axis related to mass-based leaf traits (Amax, N, and SLA) while a second axis reflected climate, Gs, and other area-based leaf traits.
Cerebral Oxygenation Is Highly Sensitive to Blood Pressure Variability in Sick Preterm Infants

Objectives The significance of blood pressure variability (BPV) for cerebral oxygenation in extremely preterm infants has not been explored, though BPV may well be associated with end organ injury. We hypothesized that increased BPV in sick preterm infants, by exceeding the cerebral autoregulatory capacity, is associated with cerebral oxygenation changes which closely follow the blood pressure fluctuations. We assessed the autoregulatory capacity in the early postnatal period, by determining the correlation between BPV (mmHg2) and coherence of mean arterial blood pressure (MABP mmHg) and cerebral oxygenation (tissue oxygenation index, TOI %). Study Design Thirty-two preterm infants of mean gestational age of 26.3 (±1.5) weeks were studied on the first 3 postnatal days. Spectral analysis (Coherence and transfer-function gain analysis) was used to calculate coherence of MABP and TOI; BPV was quantified using power spectral density of MABP. Results Overall, maximum Coherence showed a trend for positive correlation with BPV (n = 32, p = 0.06). Infants identified as clinically unstable with documented brain injury (n = 7) had high Coherence values at low BPV. Separate analysis of stable infants (excluding the 7 critically ill infants) revealed a significant association between maximum Coherence and BPV (n = 25, p = 0.006). Conclusions Fluctuation in cerebral oxygenation is closely associated with increased BPV in preterm infants undergoing intensive care. Moreover, in the critically sick preterm infant, blood pressure-dependent variations in cerebral oxygenation occur even with relatively lower BPV, suggesting they have severely impaired autoregulation, and placing them at greater vulnerability to cerebral injury arising from blood pressure fluctuations.
A 0.13- $\mu $ m CMOS Current-Mode All-Pass Filter for Multi-GHz Operation

A CMOS wide-bandwidth first-order current-mode all-pass filter (APF) is discussed. The circuit consists of one transistor, a resistor, a grounded inductor, and a load. When used with a current mirror as the load, the current-mode filter exhibits a high output impedance, which is advantageous from an integration point of view and enables this configuration to be cascaded with current-mode circuits. The operation of the proposed circuit is experimentally validated. The APF implemented in IBM 0.13-μm CMOS was measured to have the pole-zero pair located at 8.32 GHz and to achieve a 55 ps group delay while consuming 19 mW from a 1.5-V supply. This paper experimentally demonstrates a CMOS APF that operates at multi-GHz frequencies and achieves the highest delay-bandwidth products of the published CMOS first-order APFs known to the authors.
Cardiovascular Risk Factors and Disease Characteristics Are Consistently Associated with Arterial Function in Rheumatoid Arthritis

Objective. Arterial properties influence cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. We identified potential determinants of arterial function in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods. Relationships of traditional cardiovascular risk factors and RA characteristics with arterial stiffness (pulse wave velocity), wave reflection (augmentation index, reflected wave pressure, and reflection magnitude), and pressure pulsatility (central systolic and pulse pressure, peripheral pulse pressure, pulse pressure amplification, and forward wave pressure) were identified in multivariable backward regression models among 177 patients without established CVD (118 white, 32 Asian, 22 black, 5 mixed ancestry). Results. Recorded characteristics explained 37% (pulse wave velocity) to 71% (reflected wave pressure) of the variability in arterial function. These factors were particularly associated with wave reflection and pressure pulsatility: RA duration (p = 0.04), rheumatoid factor status (p = 0.01 to 0.03), leukocyte counts (p = 0.02 to 0.05), and total cholesterol (p < 0.01 to 0.03). Body mass index (p < 0.01 to 0.02) and insulin resistance (p < 0.01 to 0.01) were related to reduced wave reflection and peripheral pulse pressure. Exercise (p = 0.02) and alcohol consumption (p < 0.01) were associated with increased pulse pressure amplification and decreased peripheral pulse pressure, respectively. Tumor necrosis factor-α inhibition (p < 0.01) was related to reduced pulse wave velocity, and tetracycline use (p = 0.02) to decreased peripheral pulse pressure. Conclusion. Traditional cardiovascular risk factors and disease characteristics are consistently associated with vascular hemodynamic alterations in RA. The relative effect of arterial stiffness, wave reflection, and pressure pulsatility on CVD risk in RA needs further study.
Fabrication of superhydrophobic surfaces for corrosion protection: a review

ABSTRACT Steel, aluminium and magnesium are important engineering materials owing to their excellent mechanical properties. However, their applications are limited due to inadequate corrosion resistance. Various coatings and improvement technologies are used to enhance the corrosion resistance in industry and consumer products. Fabrication of hydrophobic surfaces is a very interesting approach to anticorrosion in that it is derived from the superhydrophobicity found in nature. This paper is a general review of the methods to construct a superhydrophobic surface, i.e. a thin coating layer, on various metallic materials surfaces to enhance their anticorrosion property, providing an introduction of the superhydrophobicity, including theory, properties and fabricating methods. Different methods including spray technique, laser ablation, electrochemical deposition, micro-arc oxidation and etching routes were discussed.
Outcome of home parenteral nutrition in 251 children over a 14-y period: report of a single center.

BACKGROUND Parenteral nutrition (PN) is the main treatment for intestinal failure. OBJECTIVE We aimed to review the indications for home parenteral nutrition (HPN) in children and describe the outcome over a 14-y period from a single center. DESIGN We conducted a retrospective study that included all children who were referred to our institution and discharged while receiving HPN between 1 January 2000 and 31 December 2013. The indications for HPN were divided into primary digestive diseases (PDDs) and primary nondigestive diseases (PNDDs). We compared our results to a previous study that was performed in our unit from 1980 to 2000 and included 302 patients. RESULTS A total of 251 patients were included: 217 (86%) had a PDD. The mean ± SD age at HPN onset was 0.7 ± 0.3 y, with a mean duration of 1.9 ± 0.4 y. The indications for HPN were short bowel syndrome (SBS) (59%), PNDD (14%), congenital enteropathies (10%), chronic intestinal pseudo-obstruction syndromes (9%), inflammatory bowel diseases (5%), and other digestive diseases (3%). By 31 December 2013, 52% of children were weaned off of HPN, 9% of the PDD subgroup had intestinal transplantation, and 10% died mostly because of immune deficiency. The major complications of HPN were catheter-related bloodstream infections (CRBSIs) (1.7/1000 d of PN) and intestinal failure-associated liver disease (IFALD) (51 children; 20% of cohort). An increased rate of CRBSIs was observed compared with our previous study, but we saw a decreasing trend since 2012. No noteworthy deceleration of growth was observed in SBS children 6 mo after weaning off HPN. CONCLUSIONS SBS was the major indication for HPN in our cohort. IFALD and CRBSIs were potentially life-threatening problems. Nevertheless, complication rates were low, and deaths resulted mostly from the underlying disease.