Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Rapid tests and urine sampling techniques for the diagnosis of urinary tract infection ( UTI ) in children under five years : a systematic review

Background: Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most common sources of infection in children under five. Prompt diagnosis and treatment is important to reduce the risk of renal scarring. Rapid, cost-effective, methods of UTI diagnosis are required as an alternative to culture. Methods: We conducted a systematic review to determine the diagnostic accuracy of rapid tests for detecting UTI in children under five years of age. Results: The evidence supports the use of dipstick positive for both leukocyte esterase and nitrite (pooled LR+ = 28.2, 95% CI: 17.3, 46.0) or microscopy positive for both pyuria and bacteriuria (pooled LR+ = 37.0, 95% CI: 11.0, 125.9) to rule in UTI. Similarly dipstick negative for both LE and nitrite (Pooled LR= 0.20, 95% CI: 0.16, 0.26) or microscopy negative for both pyuria and bacteriuria (Pooled LR= 0.11, 95% CI: 0.05, 0.23) can be used to rule out UTI. A test for glucose showed promise in potty-trained children. However, all studies were over 30 years old. Further evaluation of this test may be useful. Conclusion: Dipstick negative for both LE and nitrite or microscopic analysis negative for both pyuria and bacteriuria of a clean voided urine, bag, or nappy/pad specimen may reasonably be used to rule out UTI. These patients can then reasonably be excluded from further investigation, without the need for confirmatory culture. Similarly, combinations of positive tests could be used to rule in UTI, and trigger further investigation. Background Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most common sources of infection in children under 5. In a small proportion of children UTI may lead to renal scarring [1,2]. This outcome of infection is of concern as it is associated with significant future complications and ultimately with end stage renal disease[3]. Prompt diagnosis and treatment is therefore important to reduce the risk of future scarring. Published: 05 April 2005 BMC Pediatrics 2005, 5:4 doi:10.1186/1471-2431-5-4 Received: 05 October 2004 Accepted: 05 April 2005 This article is available from: http://www.biomedcentral. com/1471-2431/5/4 © 2005 Whiting et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. BMC Pediatrics 2005, 5:4 http://www.biomedcentral. com/1471-2431/5/4
Signal transduction in erythropoiesis

The polypeptide hormone erythropoietin (Ep) is a growth factor whose actions on the erythroid progenitor cell induce proliferation and differentiation. The signal transduction system activated by Ep to mediate these cellular processes remains largely uncharacterized despite many years of research devoted to its elucidation. It is clear that an Ep receptor‐mediated activation of adenylate cyclase or guanylate cyclase does not occur, although cAMP and cGMP may play modulatory roles. The role of calcium in the action of Ep is less clear. Although the presence of extracellular calcium seems to be an absolute requirement for Ep‐induced proliferation, the positive changes induced by Ep in intracellular calcium occur with a time course suggestive of influx through ion channels opening within the cell membrane rather than release of intracellular stores by inositol trisphosphate. There is good evidence for the involvement of phospholipases A2 and C in the actions of Ep, including an early rise in lipoxygenase metabolites of arachidonic acid. Activation of phospholipase C can also result in the activation of protein kinase C in response to Ep. We present a model for the signal transduction pathway of Ep that is consistent with current knowledge and provides a framework for the coordinate actions of several intracellular mechanisms in the mediation of Ep‐induced proliferation. —Mason‐Garcia, M. ; Beckman, B. S. Signal transduction in erythropoiesis. FASEB J. 5: 2958‐2964; 1991.
Is the 10 m incremental shuttle walk test a useful test of exercise capacity for patients referred to cardiac rehabilitation?

Background: Field exercise tests are a feasible alternative to the symptom-limited exercise test for measuring exercise capacity in patients attending cardiac rehabilitation. Aims: To evaluate the criterion validity of the 10 m incremental shuttle walk test (ISWT) as a useful tool for measurement of exercise capacity for patients eligible for cardiac rehabilitation. Methods: Fifteen patients eligible for cardiac rehabilitation completed a treadmill symptom-limited exercise test and two ISWTs with the order of testing randomised. Associations between the symptom-limited exercise test and the ISWT were explored and the ability of the ISWT to predict symptom-limited exercise test duration estimated. Results: There was a moderate to high association (r2 ⩾0.72) between ISWT duration and distance, and symptom-limited exercise test duration; and a moderate association between ISWT peak heart rate and end of test oxygen saturation and these outcomes on the symptom-limited exercise test (0.47⩽ r2 ⩽0.67). However, prediction of symptom-limited exercise test duration based on the ISWT produced wide 95% confidence intervals, for example, ranging from 9.1 to 16.3 minutes for an individual who completes the ISWT. Order of testing did not affect the results and the association between the ISWT and symptom-limited exercise test was similar for both the first (ISWT 1) and second test (ISWT 2) ISWT. Conclusions: The results provide support for the ISWT as a convenient field test of exercise capacity in a cardiac rehabilitation population, but not as a surrogate to predict symptom-limited exercise test duration for individuals. A single ISWT may provide as good an estimate of exercise capacity as repeating the test.
HIL and RCP tools for embedded controller development in hybrid vehicles

Electronic Control Units (ECUs) that control the energy flow through a Hybrid powertrain have played a major role in the success of this technology. Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) simulation is a testing process that has proven to be an industry standard for ECU testing and validation. This paper briefly reviews the state-of-the-art technology in HIL testing of Hybrid Electric Vehicles (HEVs). The lessons learned from real-world challenges faced during ECU testing and proven solutions to such problems are also discussed. In addition Rapid Control Prototyping (RCP) related to motor control and controls development, on a hybrid ECU, is discussed.
A modularized charge equalizer using the magnetizing energy of the multi-winding transformer

The modularized equalizers use additional components among the modules in the long series-connected lithium-ion battery string. In these approaches, the overall systems are heavy, bulky, and high-priced. Furthermore, the losses related to additional components decrease the system efficiency. To avoid these problems, a modularized equalizer, which has no additional components among the modules, is required. This paper proposes a novel control scheme using the magnetizing energy of the multi-winding transformer for the module equalization. In this scheme, the high duty cycle is applied to the module where the voltage is higher than the reference voltage and the low duty cycle is applied to the module where the voltage is lower than the reference voltage. Due to the different duty cycle, more electric charges are transferred from high voltage module to the low voltage module during the turn-off switching interval. Using the proposed control scheme, the equalizer system does not suffer from the size, cost, and loss related to the modularization. The experimental results are provided to verify the effectiveness of the proposed modularized equalizer.
Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization Race, diversity and pro-social behavior in a segmented society (cid:2)

This paper examines the impact of racial identity on behavior in trust games played by public high school students in South Africa. There is a systematic pattern of distrust towards Black partners, even by Black proposers, partially attributable to mistaken expectations. Non-Black proposers are signiﬁcantly less likely to engage in a strategic interaction at all when paired with a Black partner, while Black proposers engage in exchange but at lower levels than when paired with non-Blacks. However, greater racial diversity in public schools promotes pro-social behavior towards Black partners. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Phosphotyrosyl phosphatase activator facilitates localization of Miranda through dephosphorylation in dividing neuroblasts

The mechanism for the basal targeting of the Miranda (Mira) complex during the asymmetric division of Drosophila neuroblasts (NBs) is yet to be fully understood. We have identified conserved Phosphotyrosyl phosphatase activator (PTPA) as a novel mediator for the basal localization of the Mira complex in larval brain NBs. In mutant Ptpa NBs, Mira remains cytoplasmic during early mitosis and its basal localization is delayed until anaphase. Detailed analyses indicate that PTPA acts independent of and before aPKC to localize Mira. Mechanistically, our data show that the phosphorylation status of the T591 residue determines the subcellular localization of Mira and that PTPA facilitates the dephosphorylation of T591. Furthermore, PTPA associates with the Protein phosphatase 4 complex to mediate localization of Mira. On the basis of these results, a two-step process for the basal localization of Mira during NB division is revealed: cortical association of Mira mediated by the PTPA-PP4 complex is followed by apical aPKC-mediated basal restriction. Summary: Basal localisation of Miranda, essential for asymmetric neuroblast division in Drosophila, is regulated during mitosis via a two-step process involving PTPA/PP4 and aPKC.
Executive Functioning in Children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders: Profiles and Age-Related Differences

The goal of this project was to examine the profile of executive function (EF) deficits and age-related differences among children with FASD. Twenty-nine children with FASD (8 to 16 years of age) completed 8 tests from the Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System (D-KEFS). They had difficulty on many components of EF including cognitive flexibility, inhibition, some measures of verbal fluency, abstract thinking, deductive reasoning, hypothesis testing, problem solving, and concept formation. A distinctive profile emerged with performance being poorest on the card sorting test and relatively high on category fluency, design fluency, and the tower test, indicating relative strengths on some visual-spatial EF tasks. Older children with FASD showed more difficulty (relative to the norm) on some verbal tests of EF than younger children with FASD, suggesting that difficulty on some verbal EF tasks appears to become more pronounced with increasing age.
Commentary to the Maastricht Principles on Extraterritorial Obligations of States in the Area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

On 28 September 2011, at a gathering convened by Maastricht University and the International Commission of Jurists, a group of experts in international law and human rights adopted the Maastricht Principles on Extraterritorial Obligations of States in the area of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The experts came from universities and organizations located in all regions of the world and included current and former members of international human rights treaty bodies, regional human rights bodies, and former and current Special Rapporteurs of the United Nations Human Rights Council.
Simplifying Neural Nets by Discovering Flat Minima

We present a new algorithm for finding low complexity networks with high generalization capability. The algorithm searches for large connected regions of so-called "flat" minima of the error function. In the weight-space environment of a "flat" minimum, the error remains approximately constant. Using an MDL-based argument, flat minima can be shown to correspond to low expected overfitting. Although our algorithm requires the computation of second order derivatives, it has backprop's order of complexity. Experiments with feedforward and recurrent nets are described. In an application to stock market prediction, the method outperforms conventional backprop, weight decay, and "optimal brain surgeon".
Co-Teaching at the Pre-Service Level: Special Education Majors Collaborate with English Education Majors

General education and special education teacher candidates lack experience in collaborating with each other as colleagues; however, upon graduating and entering their own classrooms, most are expected to know how to provide services to students with disabilities in the general classroom. This study describes the efforts of two professors, one in special education and the other in English education, to have their students participate in a collaborative and consultative relationship with each other at the pre-service level. Data are comprised of pre- and post-surveys, as well as weekly written reflections by the teacher candidates. Significant differences were found across programs and within the English education program. Reflections reveal differing participant perceptions of the co-teaching experience. Findings indicate exposure to co-teaching at the pre-service level provides an opportunity to address the roles and responsibilities of general and special educators in working together to ensure academic success for all learners.
Putting a New Intelligent Virtual Face on a Medical Treatment Advice System to Improve Adherence

The eHealth website, eADVICE (electronic Advice and Diagnosis Via the Internet following Computerised Evaluation), is part of a research project that provides treatment advice to sufferers of paediatric incontinence problems who are on a medical specialist's waiting list. eHealth systems including eADVICE have problems getting patients to adhere to their advice, particularly over long treatment periods. This costs the health system and is detrimental to their health. This paper reports a project to design an agent-based (virtual character) prototype alternative of the existing test website that seeks to generate a stronger bond with the patient, similar to the relationship that exists between doctors and patients. It is hoped that this can improve and sustain the patient's motivation and adherence to their treatment as well as to usage of the website.
A Survey on Connection Admission Control in ATM Networks

As an important part of ATM Congestion Control, Call Admission Control (CAC) has been the focus of a subst number of CAC algorithms. Among them, CAC schemes based on user-specified parameters, network traffi surement, bandwidth & buffer characterization, dynamic, neural-net, priority support and effective bandwidth e
Enabling a teleoperated humanoid robot to pass through debris-filled terrain using manipulation

This paper describes the methodology followed to enable a semi-autonomous humanoid robot to pass through a narrow lane filled with debris, a task that was originally inspired by the DARPA Robotics Challenge Trials. During this competition, each team had 30 minutes to complete the task, a time limit that was not suitable if 8 tasks had to be completed within one hour, as in the Finals. It was then our objective to speed up the performance of this task, and try to complete it as fast as we could. The resulting strategy is described here, as well as an analysis of the outcome and a comparison of performance with the teams that participated in the Trials.
Innervation of the gastric mucosa

A plethora of neuronal messengers (“classical” transmitters, gaseous messengers, amino acid transmitters, and neuropeptides) are capable of mediating or modulating gastric functions. Accordingly, the stomach is richly innervated. Gastric nerves are either intrinsic to the gastric wall, i.e., they have their cell bodies in the intramural ganglia and thus belong to the enteric nervous system, or they reach the stomach from outside, originating in the brainstem, in sympathetic ganglia, or in sensory ganglia. Topographically, the nerve fibers in the stomach reach all layers from the most superficial portions of the gastric glands to the outer smooth muscle layer. This wide distribution implies that virtually all different cell types may be reached by neuronal messengers. Within the gastric mucosa endocrine and paracrine cells (e.g., gastrin cells, ECL cells, somatostatin cells), exocrine cells (parietal cells, chief cells, mucous cells), smooth muscle cells, and stromal cells are regulated by neuronal messengers. The sensory innervation, responding to capsaicin, plays an important role in mucosal protection, and in ulcer healing. Presumably also other nerves are involved and a plasticity in the neuropeptide expression has been demonstrated at the margin of gastric ulcers. Taken together, available data indicate a complex interplay between hormones, paracrine messengers and neuronal messengers, growth factors and cytokines in the regulation of gastric mucosal activities such as secretion, local blood flow, growth, and restitution after damage. Microsc. Res. Tech. 48:241–257, 2000 © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
T4 Phage deoxyribonucleoside triphosphate synthetase: Purification of an enzyme complex and identification of gene products required for integrity

We have isolated a highly enriched preparation of the multienzyme complex which synthesize Deocyribonuleoside triphosphates (dNTPs) from bacteriophage T4‐infected bacteria. By a combination of SDS polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and assays for specific enzyme activities, we have been able to identify in our final preparation ten different gene products which were previously identified as constituents of this complex, based upon studies with crude preparation. The complex dissociates at high concentrations of NaCl and MgCl2 but is stable under ionic conditions thought to exits in vivo. The purified complex catalyzes the efficient five‐step conversion of dCTP to dTTP. Experiments with several T4 mutants have demonstrated that gene product encoded by cd, regA, nrdA, and nrdB are necessary to retain physical integrity of the complex throughout the preparative procedure, while gp44, gp55, and gppseT are not required. We conclude from this evidence that the T4 early gene products which function in dNTP biosynthesis are, in fact, physically linked as a multienzyme complex, and that regA contributes to the integrity of this complex. However, the dNTP‐synthesizing complex as we isolate it contains no detectable DNA polymerase, nor have other known replication proteins been detected.
Roles of uroplakins in plaque formation, umbrella cell enlargement, and urinary tract diseases

The apical surface of mouse urothelium is covered by two-dimensional crystals (plaques) of uroplakin (UP) particles. To study uroplakin function, we ablated the mouse UPII gene. A comparison of the phenotypes of UPII- and UPIII-deficient mice yielded new insights into the mechanism of plaque formation and some fundamental features of urothelial differentiation. Although UPIII knockout yielded small plaques, UPII knockout abolished plaque formation, indicating that both uroplakin heterodimers (UPIa/II and UPIb/III or IIIb) are required for plaque assembly. Both knockouts had elevated UPIb gene expression, suggesting that this is a general response to defective plaque assembly. Both knockouts also had small superficial cells, suggesting that continued fusion of uroplakin-delivering vesicles with the apical surface may contribute to umbrella cell enlargement. Both knockouts experienced vesicoureteral reflux, hydronephrosis, renal dysfunction, and, in the offspring of some breeding pairs, renal failure and neonatal death. These results highlight the functional importance of uroplakins and establish uroplakin defects as a possible cause of major urinary tract anomalies and death.
Rab7 Associates with Early Endosomes to Mediate Sorting and Transport of Semliki Forest Virus to Late Endosomes

Semliki forest virus (SFV) is internalized by clathrin-mediated endocytosis, and transported via early endosomes to late endosomes and lysosomes. The intracellular pathway taken by individual fluorescently labeled SFV particles was followed using immunofluorescence in untransfected cells, and by video-enhanced, triple-color fluorescence microscopy in live cells transfected with GFP- and RFP-tagged Rab5, Rab7, Rab4, and Arf1. The viruses progressed from Rab5-positive early endosomes to a population of early endosomes (about 10% of total) that contained both Rab5 and Rab7. SFV were sequestered in the Rab7 domains, and they were sorted away from the early endosomes when these domains detached as separate transport carriers devoid of Rab5, Rab4, EEA1, Arf1, and transferrin. The process was independent of Arf1 and the acidic pH in early endosomes. Nocodazole treatment showed that the release of transport carriers was assisted by microtubules. Expression of constitutively inactive Rab7T22N resulted in accumulation of SFV in early endosomes. We concluded that Rab7 is recruited to early endosomes, where it forms distinct domains that mediate cargo sorting as well as the formation of late-endosome-targeted transport vesicles.
Scrapping your inefficient engine: using partial evaluation to improve domain-specific language implementation

Partial evaluation aims to improve the efficiency of a program by specialising it with respect to some known inputs. In this paper, we show that partial evaluation can be an effective and, unusually, easy to use technique for the efficient implementation of embedded domain-specific languages. We achieve this by exploiting dependent types and by following some simple rules in the definition of the interpreter for the domain-specific language. We present experimental evidence that partial evaluation of programs in domain-specific languages can yield efficient residual programs whose performance is competitive with their Java and C equivalents and which are also, through the use of dependent types, verifiably resource-safe. Using our technique, it follows that a verifiably correct and resource-safe program can also be an efficient program
Chip-level modeling and analysis of electrical masking of soft errors

With continuous downscaling of VLSI technologies, logic cells are becoming more susceptible to radiation-induced soft error. To accurately model this at chip-level, the impact of electrical masking should be accurately considered. Moreover, increasing complexity of VLSI chips at nanoscale results in voltage fluctuation across the chip which impacts the electrical masking. In this paper, we present a chip-level electrical masking analysis which accurately considers the impact of voltage fluctuation across the chip. Our analysis shows that neglecting voltage fluctuation in electrical masking can lead up to 152% inaccuracy in the overall soft error rate. We also present a technique based on backward pulse propagation to reduce the runtime of this analysis.