Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Diagnostic Criteria for Vascular Dementia

The term vascular dementia implies the presence of a clinical syndrome (dementia) caused by, or at least assumed to be caused by, a specific disorder (cerebrovascular disease). In this review, the various sets of criteria used to define vascular dementia are outlined. The various sets of criteria are judged whether they contain criteria for both dementia and vascular disease as well as for the relationship between the two. We conclude that only the criteria of the State of California Alzheimer’s Disease Diagnostic and Treatment Centers and of NINDS-AIREN provide sufficient operational criteria for dementia suitable for use in patients with vascular disease as well as for the diagnosis of cerebrovascular disease and for the establishment of a relationship between dementia and vascular disease. The latter criteria include also specific recommendations to the use of CT and MRI. However, the interpretation of the neuroimaging findings in the context of mixed vascular and degenerative dementia demands further study. Given the heterogeneous pathophysiology and pathology of vascular dementia and the modest reliability of the criteria, it seems plausible that the diagnosis of vascular dementia will become more reliable when specific diagnostic tests for the various degenerative diseases, from which vascular dementia has to be differentiated, become available.
Colon cancer and protein arginine methyltransferase 1 gene expression.

BACKGROUND In this study, the possible relation of the expression pattern of arginine methyltransferase 1 and colon cancer progression is investigated. MATERIALS AND METHODS Colon cancer samples as well as normal colon samples were used to define the arginine methyltransferase 1 expression by RT-PCR. The results were associated with clinical and histological parameters of the tissues. RESULTS In colon cancer tissue, only PRMT1 variants v1 and v2 were often expressed. Statistical significance for the clinicopathological parameters examined was found only for PRMT1 variant v2. PRMT1 v2 expression was associated with nodal status and tumour grade. PRMT1 v2 expression analysis in 25 pairs of cancerous/non-cancerous colon tissue showed higher or equal expression in cancer versus normal tissue. In 18 inflamed colon tissues examined for PRMT1 expression and compared with the expression of 90 colon cancer tissue samples, statistical significance was found only for variants v1 and v2. A higher percentage of PRMT1 v2 expression was observed in older patients. CONCLUSION From the present preliminary results, it can be said that PRMT1 variant v2 can probably be regarded as a marker of unfavourable prognosis in colon cancer patients.
Prevention of Colorectal Cancer in High-Risk Populations: The Increasing Role for Endoscopy and Chemoprevention in FAP and HNPCC

Familial colorectal cancer (CRC) is heterogeneous. Screening recommendations do exist for individuals with a mild to moderate family history of CRC, with or without early age at onset. However, most attention has properly focused on the identification of individuals in whom a defined susceptibility gene mutation can be found. The past 20 years has seen the discovery genes for familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP), its variant forms (attenuated FAP and the recessive MYH-associated polyposis or MAP), nonadenomatous polyposes, and hereditary nonpolyposis CRC (HNPCC). A few retrospective and prospective studies support current recommendations for endoscopic surveillance in FAP and HNPCC, the main subjects of this paper. Where firm data have been lacking, various professional organizations have been very willing to provide consensus clinical practice guidelines. General guidelines need to be tailored to the peculiarities of a patient’s circumstances, a task best accomplished in the hands of practitioners familiar with the natural history of the condition. Improvements in the technology of endoscopic treatment of adenomas now enable increasingly aggressive nonsurgical intervention. To this may be added opportunities for chemoprevention, currently consisting mainly of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Surveillance, chemoprevention, and imaginative hybrid surveillance/endoscopic therapy/chemoprevention trials may gradually decrease the present dependence on prophylactic colectomy/proctocolectomy.
Limitations and Applications of ICA for Surface Electromyogram

Surface electromyogram (SEMG) has numerous applications, but the presence of artefacts and noise, especially at low level of muscle activity make the recordings unreliable. Spectral and temporal overlap can make the removal of artefacts and noise, or separation of relevant signals from other bioelectric signals extremely difficult. Individual muscles may be considered as independent at the local level and this makes an argument for separating the signals using independent component analysis (ICA). In the recent past, due to the easy availability of ICA tools, numbers of researchers have attempted to use ICA for this application. This paper reports research conducted to evaluate the use of ICA for the separation of muscle activity and removal of the artefacts from SEMG. It discusses some of the conditions that could affect the reliability of the separation and evaluates issues related to the properties of the signals and number of sources. The paper also identifies the lack of suitable measure of quality of separation for bioelectric signals and it recommends and tests a more robust measure of separation. The paper also reports tests using Zibulevsky's technique of temporal plotting to identify number of independent sources in SEMG recordings. The theoretical analysis and experimental results demonstrate that ICA is suitable for SEMG signals. The results identify the unsuitability of ICA when the number of sources is greater than the number of recording channels. The results also demonstrate the limitations of such applications due to the inability of the system to identify the correct order and magnitude of the signals. The paper determines the suitability of the use of error measure using simulated mixing matrix and the estimated unmixing matrix as a means identifying the quality of separation of the output. The work demonstrates that even at extremely low level of muscle contraction, and with filtering using wavelets and band pass filters, it is not possible to get the data sparse enough to identify number of independent sources using Zibulevs.ky's technique.
Neuroprotective Secreted Amyloid Precursor Protein Acts by Disrupting Amyloid Precursor Protein Dimers*

The amyloid precursor protein (APP) is implied both in cell growth and differentiation and in neurodegenerative processes in Alzheimer disease. Regulated proteolysis of APP generates biologically active fragments such as the neuroprotective secreted ectodomain sAPPα and the neurotoxic β-amyloid peptide. Furthermore, it has been suggested that the intact transmembrane APP plays a signaling role, which might be important for both normal synaptic plasticity and neuronal dysfunction in dementia. To understand APP signaling, we tracked single molecules of APP using quantum dots and quantitated APP homodimerization using fluorescence lifetime imaging microscopy for the detection of Förster resonance energy transfer in living neuroblastoma cells. Using selective labeling with synthetic fluorophores, we show that the dimerization of APP is considerably higher at the plasma membrane than in intracellular membranes. Heparan sulfate significantly contributes to the almost complete dimerization of APP at the plasma membrane. Importantly, this technique for the first time structurally defines the initiation of APP signaling by binding of a relevant physiological extracellular ligand; our results indicate APP as receptor for neuroprotective sAPPα, as sAPPα binding disrupts APP dimers, and this disruption of APP dimers by sAPPα is necessary for the protection of neuroblastoma cells against starvation-induced cell death. Only cells expressing reversibly dimerized wild-type, but not covalently dimerized mutant APP are protected by sAPPα. These findings suggest a potentially beneficial effect of increasing sAPPα production or disrupting APP dimers for neuronal survival.
Effect of Dietary Ribonucleotides on Infant Immune Status. Part 1: Humoral Responses

The objective of this study was to further explore previously identified effects of supplemental ribonucleotides on infant immune status as measured by antibody responses to routine infant immunizations. Infants were randomized to a milk-based formula with (FN, n = 138) or without (F, n = 147) 72 mg ribonucleotides/L. A cohort of human milk–fed (HMF, n = 192) infants was also followed. Subjects were given Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), diphtheria tetanus acellular pertussis, and oral poliovirus vaccinations at 2, 4, and 6 mo of age, and specific antibody responses were assessed at 2, 6, 7, and 12 mo. Growth and safety data were also monitored. Using a two-group repeated measures analysis (RMA), FN-fed infants had significantly higher poliovirus type 1 neutralizing antibody (PV-VN1) responses than F-fed infants (p = 0.045). Using three-group RMA, PV-VN1 responses in HMF infants were not different from FN-fed infants, while HMF-fed infant PV-VN1 responses were significantly higher than F-fed infants at 6 (p = 0.0004) and 12 mo (p = 0.0001). FN-fed infants had responses to Hib Farr, diphtheria, tetanus toxoid, oral poliovirus–specific IgA, and PV-VN3 not significantly different from those of F and HMF infants. Growth, gastrointestinal tolerance, and adverse events were equivalent among the three groups. The FN-associated increase in PV-VN1 response and nonstatistically significant trends toward increased Hib and diphtheria antibody responses were consistent with observations from earlier studies, indicating immune benefits of nucleotide supplementation of infant formula.
A Gain-of-Function Screen Identifying Genes Required for Vein Formation in the Drosophila melanogaster Wing

The formation of the Drosophila wing involves developmental processes such as cell proliferation, pattern formation, and cell differentiation that are common to all multicellular organisms. The genes controlling these cellular behaviors are conserved throughout the animal kingdom, and the genetic analysis of wing development has been instrumental in their identification and functional characterization. The wing is a postembryonic structure, and most loss-of-function mutations are lethal in homozygous flies before metamorphosis. In this manner, loss-of-function genetic screens aiming to identify genes affecting wing formation have not been systematically utilized. As an alternative, a number of genetic searches have utilized the phenotypic consequences of gene gain-of-expression, as a method more efficient to search for genes required during imaginal development. Here we present the results of a gain-of-function screen designed to identify genes involved in the formation of the wing veins. We generated 13,000 P-GS insertions of a P element containing UAS sequences (P-GS) and combined them with a Gal4 driver expressed mainly in the developing pupal veins. We selected 500 P-GSs that, in combination with the Gal4 driver, result in modifications of the veins, changes in the morphology of the wing, or defects in the differentiation of the trichomes. The P-element insertion sites were mapped to the genomic sequence, identifying 373 gene candidates to participate in wing morphogenesis and vein formation.
Effect of ginsenoside Rb1 on long-term potentiation in the dentate gyrus of anaesthetized rats

Ginsenosides are the major principles of Panax ginseng and have various pharmacological actions on the central nervous system. In this report, we investigated whether ginsenoside Rb1 (10, 100 nmol l−1, icv) could increase the population spike (PS) amplitude in a dose-dependent manner, and accelerate the maintenance phase of long-term potentiation (LTP) induced by high frequency stimulation (HFS) in the dentate gyrus of anaesthetized rats. However, it had no effect on basic synaptic responses evoked by test stimulation. Comparatively, ginsenoside Rb1 (10, 100 nmol l−1, icv) inhibited the induction phase of LTP induced by HFS in a dose-dependent manner. This may be one of the mechanisms of action of ginsenoside Rb1 on synaptic transmission. The details of the mechanism need further investigation.
Existence conditions for stabilizing and antistabilizing solutions to the nonautonomous matrix Riccati differential equation

In this paper several necessary and sufficient conditions for existence of stabilizing and antistabilizing solutions to the nonautonomous matrix Riccati differential equation (RDE) are presented. The conditions are reduced to existence of a solution to the corresponding Riccati type matrix inequality, or to existence of exponential dichotomy for the associated Hamiltonian linear differential system, or to convergence of the Newton type iterative algorithm for construction of the stabilizing or antistabilizing solution. Existence of extremal solutions to the nonautonoms RDE is a well-known fact (history of the problem and a list of references may be found in fundamental papers [1], [2]). In the present paper it is shown that, in the class of all bounded solutions to the nonautonomous RDE, the stabilizing solution is the maximal solution and the antistabilizing solution is the minimal one (for the autonomous RDE these properties of extremal solutions were reported in [3], [4]). Asymptotic properties of the extremal solutions to the nonautonomous RDE are investigated in the paper and the sets of the associated attracting solutions are indicated. The stabilizing or antistabilizing solution to the RDE turns out to be very useful in many optimal control design and identification problems [5 — 10]. We shall apply the obtained results to the linear nonstationary control system optimal stabilization problem under a quadratic performance criterion of arbitrary form. This problem is of a great interest in the theory of optimization and invariance of linear control systems
Sex-Determining Mechanisms in Insects Based on Imprinting and Elimination of Chromosomes

As a rule, the sex of an individual is fixed at fertilization, and the chromosomal constitution of the zygote is a direct consequence of the chromosomal constitution of the gametes. However, there are cases in which the chromosomal differences determining sex are brought about by elimination or inactivation of chromosomes in the embryo. In Sciaridae insects, all zygotes start with the XXX constitution; the loss of either 1 or 2 X chromosomes determines whether the zygote becomes XX (female) or X0 (male). In Cecydomyiidae and Collembola insects, all zygotes start with the XXXX constitution. If the embryo does not eliminate any X chromosome, this remains XXXX and develops as female, whereas if 2 X chromosomes are eliminated, the embryo becomes XX0 and develops as a male. In the coccids (scale insects), the chromosomal differences between the sexes result from either the elimination or the heterochromatinization (inactivation) of half of the chromosomes giving rise to haploid males and diploid females. The chromosomes that are eliminated or inactivated are those inherited from the father. Therefore, in the formation of the sex-determining chromosomal signal in those insects, a marking (‘imprinting') process must occur in one of the parents, which determines that the chromosomes to be eliminated or inactivated are of paternal origin. In this article, the sex determination mechanism of these insects and the associated imprinting process are reviewed.
Multi-Factorial Analysis of Class Prediction Error: Estimating Optimal Number of Biomarkers for Various Classification Rules

Machine learning and statistical model based classifiers have increasingly been used with more complex and high dimensional biological data obtained from high-throughput technologies. Understanding the impact of various factors associated with large and complex microarray datasets on the predictive performance of classifiers is computationally intensive, under investigated, yet vital in determining the optimal number of biomarkers for various classification purposes aimed towards improved detection, diagnosis, and therapeutic monitoring of diseases. We investigate the impact of microarray based data characteristics on the predictive performance for various classification rules using simulation studies. Our investigation using Random Forest, Support Vector Machines, Linear Discriminant Analysis and k-Nearest Neighbour shows that the predictive performance of classifiers is strongly influenced by training set size, biological and technical variability, replication, fold change and correlation between biomarkers. Optimal number of biomarkers for a classification problem should therefore be estimated taking account of the impact of all these factors. A database of average generalization errors is built for various combinations of these factors. The database of generalization errors can be used for estimating the optimal number of biomarkers for given levels of predictive accuracy as a function of these factors. Examples show that curves from actual biological data resemble that of simulated data with corresponding levels of data characteristics. An R package optBiomarker implementing the method is freely available for academic use from the Comprehensive R Archive Network (http://www.cran.r-project.org/web/packages/optBiomarker/).
Value Change and Political Action

Understanding how people engage in politics, and what motivates them to do so, has been an ongoing concern in the social science literature. Over the past decade, scholarly interest in boycotts and buycotts, which collectively comprise political consumerism—the deliberate purchase or avoidance of products for political or ethical reasons—has increased. However, these activities not been well conceptualized, and it is not clear what motivates people to engage in political consumerism. In this paper, I theorize that postmaterialist values increase the likelihood of engaging in political consumerism in the United States. To test this expectation, I use original, nationally representative U.S. survey data, and I find that postmaterialist values significantly increase the likelihood of engaging in political consumerism, while materialist values not, with controls in place for partisanship, ideology, and other democratic norms.
First Clinical Experience of Intra-Operative High Intensity Focused Ultrasound in Patients with Colorectal Liver Metastases: A Phase I-IIa Study

Background Surgery is the only curative treatment in patients with colorectal liver metastases (CLM), but only 10–20% of patients are eligible. High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) technology is of proven value in several indications, notably prostate cancer. Its intra-operative use in patients with CLM has not previously been studied. Preclinical work suggested the safety and feasibility of a new HIFU device capable of ablating volumes of up to 2cm x 2cm in a few seconds. Methods We conducted a prospective, single-centre phase I-IIa trial. HIFU was delivered immediately before scheduled hepatectomy. To demonstrate the safety and efficacy of rapidly ablating liver parenchyma, ablations were performed on healthy tissue within the areas scheduled for resection. Results In total, 30 ablations were carried out in 15 patients. These ablations were all generated within 40 seconds and on average measured 27.5mm x 21.0mm. The phase I study (n = 6) showed that use of the HIFU device was feasible and safe and did not damage neighbouring tissue. The phase IIa study (n = 9) showed both that the area of ablation could be precisely targeted on a previously implanted metallic mark (used to represent a major anatomical structure) and that ablations could be undertaken deliberately to avoid such a mark. Ablations were achieved with a precision of 1–2 mm. Conclusion HIFU was feasible, safe and effective in ablating areas of liver scheduled for resection. The next stage is a phase IIb study which will attempt ablation of small metastases with a 5 mm margin, again prior to planned resection. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.govNCT01489787
Pruebas sobre eficiencia débil y transacción bursátil basada en reglas técnicas simples y modelos arima: evidencia en el Ecuador

The principal purpose of financial markets is to transfer funds from surplus agents to borrowers. This transference occurs if the investment opportunities offer to the investors a rate of return that compensate their opportunity cost adjusted by risk. In that sense, the analysis and valuation of the securities is primordial for detecting the investment opportunities that satisfy the expected return of the investors. In the financial literature it is well known the efficient markets hypothesis, wich indicates that the prices of the assets adjust inmediatly to the available information. Fama (1970, 1976) defines three levels of efficiency for capital markets, in function of the type the information involved; those are: weak form efficiency, semi strong and strong form. This research pretends to test the hypothesis about the weak form efficiency in the ecuadorian stock market, applying statistical methods to the principal ecuadorian stock indexes, and technical analysis rules. Those methods have as principal purpose, to determine if there are patrons in the historical prices that would permit to predict the future movements. 1. Mercado bursátil: Aspectos generales 1.1. Definición del mercado bursátil Según la Ley de Mercado de Valores, Mercado Bursátil es el segmento del Mercado de Valores conformado por ofertas, demandas y negociaciones de valores inscritos tanto en el Registro del Mercado de Valores a cargo de la Superintendencia de Compañías, como en las Bolsas de Valores; negociaciones realizadas en dichas Bolsas por los intermediarios de valores autorizados, de acuerdo con lo establecido en la mencionada Ley. 1.2. Antecedentes del mercado bursátil
Instability in the Dividend Policy of the Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE) Corporations: Evidence from an Emerging Market

Dividend policy behaviour of corporations operating in emerging markets is significantly different from the widely accepted dividend policy behaviour of corporations operating in developed markets. This study provides evidence from the Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE), an emerging European stock market, and analyses empirically whether the ISE corporations follow stable cash dividend policies in a regulatory environment that imposed mandatory dividend policies. Unlike the empirical results supporting the stable dividend policy behaviour of corporations operating in developed markets, the empirical results show that the ISE corporations follow unstable cash dividend policies and the main factor that determines the amount of cash dividends is the earnings of the corporation in that year.