Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Patient perspectives on informed decision-making surrounding dialysis initiation.

BACKGROUND Careful patient-clinician shared decision-making about dialysis initiation has been promoted, but few studies have addressed patient perspectives on the extent of information provided and how decisions to start dialysis are made. METHODS Ninety-nine maintenance dialysis patients recruited from 15 outpatient dialysis centers in North Carolina completed semistructured interviews on information provision and communication about the initiation of dialysis. These data were examined with content analysis. In addition, informed decision-making (IDM) scores were created by summing patient responses (yes/no) to 10 questions about the decision-making. RESULTS The mean IDM score was 4.4 (of 10; SD = 2.0); 67% scored 5 or lower. Age at the time of decision-making (r = -0.27, P = 0.006), years of education (r = 0.24, P = 0.02) and presence of a warning about progressing to end-stage kidney disease (t = 2.9, P = 0.005) were significantly associated with IDM scores. Nearly 70% said that the risks and burdens of dialysis were not mentioned at all, and only one patient recalled that the doctor offered the option of not starting dialysis. While a majority (67%) said that they felt they had no choice about starting dialysis (because the alternative would be death) or about dialysis modality, only 21.2% said that they had felt rushed to make a decision. About one-third of the patients perceived that the decision to start dialysis and modality was already made by the doctor. CONCLUSIONS A majority of patients felt unprepared and ill-informed about the initiation of dialysis. Improving the extent of IDM about dialysis may optimize patient preparation prior to starting treatment and their perceptions about the decision-making process.
Leukocyte fluid shear response in the presence of glucocorticoid

Leukocytes respond to physiological fluid shear stress (∼1.5 dyn/cm2) by cytoplasmic reorganization. The cytoplasm is also influenced, however, by glucocorticoids. In this study, we explore how glucocorticoids may affect the leukocyte fluid shear response. Normal leukocytes, exposed to fluid shear in vitro during active migration, retract pseudopods accompanied by modestly decreasing intracellular calcium ions. In contrast, dexamethasone (DX)‐treated leukocytes project pseudopods after shear exposure with a significant rise in intracellular calcium ions, an effect that can be blocked by voltage‐dependent calcium channel blockers. Although a cyclic adenine monophosphate analog blocks calcium influx and pseudopod projection by DX, inhibition of A‐kinase induces reversal of the shear response, as seen with DX treatment. DX also reverses the leukocyte shear response in vivo in the rat circulation. Leukocytes that adhere to the endothelium in postcapillary venules of control rats return into the circulation only after pseudopod retraction, and in DX‐treated rats, adherent leukocytes return into the circulation still with projecting pseudopods. The fraction of circulating leukocytes with pseudopods in DX‐treated rats is higher than in controls. Thus, the reversal of leukocyte shear response by glucocorticoids may contribute to an enhanced incidence of circulating leukocytes with pseudopods, a process that affects the kinetics of these cells in the microcirculation.
Regulation of Mesodermal Differentiation of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells by Basement Membranes*

Basement membranes (BMs) have been implicated in cell fate determination during development. Embryoid bodies (EBs) derived from mouse embryonic stem cells deficient in the laminin γ1 chain are incapable of depositing a BM, resulting in failure of primitive ectoderm epithelialization. To elucidate the mechanisms involved in this phenomenon, we compared the gene expression profiles of EBs with or without a BM to identify the genes showing BM-dependent expression. We found that the expressions of marker genes for the epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), including the transcription factor Snai2, were up-regulated in LAMC1-/- EBs, whereas restoration of a BM to LAMC1-/- EBs suppressed the up-regulation of these genes. Overexpression of Snai2 induced the EMT in control EBs by molecular and morphological criteria, suggesting that suppression of the EMT regulatory genes is involved in BM-dependent epithelialization of primitive ectoderm. Despite the failure of primitive ectoderm epithelialization in BM-deficient EBs, mesodermal differentiation was not compromised, but rather accelerated. Furthermore, at later stages of control EB differentiation, the BM was disrupted at the gastrulation site where mesodermal markers were strongly expressed only in cells that had lost contact with the BM. Taken together, these results indicate that the BM prevents the EMT and precocious differentiation of primitive ectoderm toward mesoderm in EBs, implying that BMs are important for the control of mammalian gastrulation.
Ökologisches Handeln als sozialer Prozess=Ecological action as a social process

Einfuhrung. - Environmental problems as a challenge for the social sciences: Issues, approaches, studies. - Deutung von Umweltproblemen durch soziale Kommunikation. - Die Kluft zwischen Wollen und Konnen. - Individual and social perception of risk. - Wissenschaftskommunikation und Umweltprobleme. - From social representations to environmental concern: The influence of face-to-face versus mediated communication. - Umweltprobleme: Eine sozialwissenschaftliche Perspektive mit naturwissenschaflichem Bezug. - Okologisches Handeln mit sozialen Systemen. - Understanding and changing environmentally destructive behavior S. - De l'homo economicus a l'homo ecologicus: L'information au service d'une politique des transports favorable a l'environnement? - Okologie und Kulturwandel: Wort, Bild, Wert und Glaube als Vermittler zwischen Individuen und Gesellschaft. - Umweltethik zwischen systemtheoretischer Ohnmachtserklarung und demokratischem Handlungsauftrag. - Anschriften der Autorinnen und Autoren.
microRNA-301a regulation of a T-helper 17 immune response controls autoimmune demyelination

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are an emerging group of short, noncoding RNAs that play an important role in regulating expression of classical genes. Thus far little is known about their role in autoimmune demyelination. In this study, we analyzed changes in the miRNA profile in CD4+ T cells that occurred during the recognition of the myelin autoantigen, MOG35–55. We found that, both in vivo and in vitro, myelin antigen stimulation resulted in significant up-regulation of miR-301a, miR-21, and miR-155. Furthermore, these three miRNAs were overexpressed in T cells infiltrating the CNS in animals with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis. Use of specific miRNA antagonists, antagomirs, revealed that miR-301a contributed to the development of the T-helper type 17 subset via targeting the IL-6/23–STAT3 pathway. This contribution appeared to be mediated by the miR-301a effect on the expression of the PIAS3, a potent inhibitor of the STAT3 pathway. Manipulation of miR-301a levels or PIAS3 expression in myelin-specific CD4+ T cells led to significant changes in the severity of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis. Thus, we have identified a role of miR-301a in regulating the function of myelin-reactive T-helper type 17 cells, supporting a role for miR-301a and PIAS3 as candidates for therapeutic targets for controlling of autoimmune demyelination.
The genetics of tobacco use: methods, findings and policy implications

Research on the genetics of smoking has increased our understanding of nicotine dependence, and it is likely to illuminate the mechanisms by which cigarette smoking adversely effects the health of smokers. Given recent advances in molecular biology, including the completion of the draft sequence of the human genome, interest has now turned to identifying gene markers that predict a heightened risk of using tobacco and developing nicotine dependence
Panic disorder : exploration of attachment, heterogeneity and the regulation of anger

The impact of a panic attack on the individual can be physically and emotionally disabling. Panic disorder -the chronic fear associated with recurrent attacks, is estimated to have a lifetime prevalence of 3% within the adult population. To date, the treatment panic disorder is restricted to focusing on removal of the manifest symptoms. However, research indicates that this focus is limited in its effectiveness. Recent studies have proposed that this may be due to the assumption in diagnosis, that panic disorder is a homogenous syndrome. Rather, they propose that panic disorder may arise out of a multiplicity of pathways incorporating biological, developmental and/or environmental factors. This study investigated the proposition that panic disorder is not homogenous. It was proposed that a proportion of sufferers of panic disorder acquire this via a developmental pathway involving childhood separation anxiety and perceptions of aberrant parenting styles. These two variables, which arise out of insecure attachment infancy, have been reported to be present in the histories of a large number of panic disorder patients. Furthermore, it was proposed that emotional issues, in particular anger suppression, which has been found to be a significant factor arising from insecure attachment and vulnerability in relationships, would also be implicated in the onset of panic attacks.
Fas and Fas Ligand Gene Mutations in Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis

To clarify whether Fas and Fas ligand (FasL) mutations are involved in the pathogenesis of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis (HT), we examined the open reading frame of Fas and FasL in 21 cases. Mutations of Fas and FasL genes were detected in 8 (38.1%) and 1 (4.8%) of 21 cases, respectively. All but one of the Fas mutations were frameshift mutations, which affect the cytoplasmic region (death domain) known to be involved in apoptotic signal transduction and thus could be loss-of-function mutations. FasL mutation in one case was a 46-bp deletion from nucleotide 349 to 394, which corresponded to exon 2. Lack of exon 2 results in a frameshift, which generates a stop codon at residue 128. This mutant encodes the protein that contains only a part of the intracellular domain, thus the abnormal protein might not be expressed on the cell surface. The cells with Fas mutations were confined to the mantle zone and the germinal center, as determined by microdissection methods. These findings suggest that the cells with Fas mutations might accumulate in those areas and might be involved in the pathogenesis of Hashimoto’s thyroiditis.
The Delicate Tradeoffs in BitTorrent-like File Sharing Protocol Design

The BitTorrent (BT) file sharing protocol is popular due to its scalability property and the incentive mechanism to reduce free-riding. However, in designing such P2P file sharing protocols, there is a fundamental "tussle" between keeping peers, specially the more resourceful ones, in the system for as long as possible to help the system achieve better performance and allowing peers finish their download as quickly as possible. The current BT protocol represents only "one" possible implementation in this whole design spectrum. In this paper, we characterize the "complete" design space of BT-like protocols. We use fairness index to measure the fairness that incorporates the contribution peers make. We show that there is a wide range of design choices, ranging from optimizing the performance of file download, to optimizing the fairness measure. More importantly, we show that there is a simple and easily implementable design knob which can be used to choose a particular operating point in the design space. We then discuss different algorithms (centralized versus distributed) in realizing the design knob. We also carry out performance evaluation to quantify the merits and properties of the BT-like file sharing protocols.
Query Planning in DHT Based RDF Stores

Implementing scalable RDF triple stores that can store many triples and process many queries concurrently is challenging. Several projects have investigated the use of distributed hash tables for this task but query planning has received little attention in this context so far. Given the distributed nature of DHTs, latencies of messages and limited network bandwidth are crucial factors to consider. Also due to a lack of global knowledge in DHTs, query planning is different from centralized databases. This paper discusses a set of heuristics and evaluates their performance on the Lehigh University Benchmark with emphasis on the network traffic. The results show the importance of query planning in DHT based RDF triple stores.
Joint Optimization of Detection and Power Allocation for OFDM-Based Cognitive Radios

Efficient spectrum sensing ensures cognitive radio users opportunistically use the under-utilized frequency band without causing harmful interference to primary users. However, in practice, owing to the non-zero probability of the missed detection and false alarm of active primary transmission, a certain degree of performance degradation of the primary user is unavoidable. In this paper, we consider OFDM-based communication systems and present efficient algorithms to maximize the total throughput of the cognitive radio by optimizing jointly both the detection operation and the power allocation, taking into account the influence of the probabilities of missed detection and false alarm.The optimization problem can be formulated as a two-variable non-convex problem, which can be solved approximately by using an alternating direction optimization method. A novel criterion is introduced to ensure that the performance degradation of the primary user is bounded properly. First, we analyze the case of only one cognitive radio and then we generalize to the case of a two cognitive radio non-cooperative power allocation game, showing that a Nash equilibrium can be achieved in few iterations by using an iterative alternating direction optimization method. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed solution can considerably improve system performance.
Bayesian detection of moving object based on graph cut

Segmenting moving objects from the background is an important step in intelligent video applications, such as intelligent video surveillance. Many approaches use optimal threshold for the separation of moving object from a background. However they suffer from two limitations: It is not only difficult to compute an optimal threshold, but also ignore the correlation that exists between the intensity of neighboring pixels. To address these issues, we investigate in the present paper the use of Kernel Density Estimation to calculate the background probability model, and the MAP-MRF (the maximum a posteriori in the Markov Random Field) to obtain the function energy which will be minimized using the graph cut.
The Sub-Classification of Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment Using MRI-Based Cortical Thickness Measures

Background: Amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) is considered to be the transitional stage between healthy aging and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Moreover, aMCI individuals with additional impairment in one or more non-memory cognitive domains are at higher risk of conversion to AD. Hence accurate identification of the sub-types of aMCI would enable earlier detection of individuals progressing to AD. Methods: We examine the group differences in cortical thickness between single-domain and multiple-domain sub-types of aMCI, and as well as with respect to age-matched controls in a well-balanced cohort from the Sydney Memory and Aging Study. In addition, the diagnostic value of cortical thickness in the sub-classification of aMCI as well as from normal controls using support vector machine (SVM) classifier is evaluated, using a novel cross-validation technique that can handle class-imbalance. Results: This study revealed an increased, as well as a wider spread, of cortical thinning in multiple-domain aMCI compared to single-domain aMCI. The best performances of the classifier for the pairs (1) single-domain aMCI and normal controls, (2) multiple-domain aMCI and normal controls, and (3) single and multiple-domain aMCI were AUC = 0.52, 0.66, and 0.54, respectively. The accuracy of the classifier for the three pairs was just over 50% exhibiting low specificity (44–60%) and similar sensitivity (53–68%). Conclusion: Analysis of group differences added evidence to the hypothesis that multiple-domain aMCI is a later stage of AD compared to single-domain aMCI. The classification results show that discrimination among single, multiple-domain sub-types of aMCI and normal controls is limited using baseline cortical thickness measures.
Assessing the Relationship between Quality of Care and the Characteristics of Health Care Organizations

In the past two decades, relationships among health plans, medical groups, and providers have grown more complex and the number of clinical management strategies has increased. In this context, determining the independent effect of a particular organizational strategy on quality of care has become more difficult. The authors review some of the issues a researcher must address when studying the relationship between organizational characteristics and quality of care. They offer criteria for selecting a research question, list organizational characteristics that may influence quality, and suggest sampling and study design techniques to reduce confounding. Since this type of research often requires a health care organization as collaborator, the authors discuss strategies for developing research partnerships and collecting data from the partner organization. Finally, they offer suggestions for translating research into policy.
Surface Reconstruction and Display from Range and Color Data

This paper addresses the problem of scanning both the color and geometry of real objects and displaying realistic images of the scanned objects from arbitrary viewpoints. We describe a complete system that uses a stereo camera setup with active lighting to scan the object surface geometry and color. Scans expressed in sensor coordinates are registered into a single object-centered coordinate system by aligning both the color and geometry where the scans overlap. The range data are integrated into a surface model using a robust hierarchical space carving method. The fit of the resulting approximate mesh to data is improved and the mesh structure is simplified using mesh optimization methods. In addition, a method for view-dependent texturing of the reconstructed surfaces is described. The method projects the color data from the input images onto the surface model and blends the various images depending on the location of the viewpoint and other factors such as surface orientation.
Developing a psychology undergraduate research community in a new university

Psychology is a science–based discipline in which research is inextricablyembedded in teaching and learning activities. Educators use different methodsto help students in their learning of the nature of research and the practical skills required to conduct research, with students playing either a passiveor more active role in the learning process. This paper details the steps taken at a post–1992 university in the UK to involve finalyear psychology undergraduate students as researchers in a staff–led neuropsychology project. The theoretical frameworks underpinning this study were the teaching–research nexus and learning communities. The aims of the project were to engage students in active learning and to foster the development of higher order skills – evaluation, synthesis and reflection – through the development of a learning community. A thematic analysis of student questionnaires identified three overarching themes: Bringing theory alive, critical thinking and problem solving skills, and working in research communities. Staff reflections of working on the project are discussed together with future directions.
The Arabidopsis Phosphatidylinositol Phosphate 5-Kinase PIP5K3 Is a Key Regulator of Root Hair Tip Growth[W][OA]

Phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate [PtdIns(4,5)P2] functions as a site-specific signal on membranes to promote cytoskeletal reorganization and membrane trafficking. Localization of PtdIns(4,5)P2 to apices of growing root hairs and pollen tubes suggests that it plays an important role in tip growth. However, its regulation and mode of action remain unclear. We found that Arabidopsis thaliana PIP5K3 (for Phosphatidylinositol Phosphate 5-Kinase 3) encodes a phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate 5-kinase, a key enzyme producing PtdIns(4,5)P2, that is preferentially expressed in growing root hairs. T-DNA insertion mutations that substantially reduced the expression of PIP5K3 caused significantly shorter root hairs than in the wild type. By contrast, overexpression caused longer root hairs and multiple protruding sites on a single trichoblast. A yellow fluorescent protein (YFP) fusion of PIP5K3, driven by the PIP5K3 promoter, complemented the short-root-hair phenotype. PIP5K3-YFP localized to the plasma membrane and cytoplasmic space of elongating root hair apices, to growing root hair bulges, and, notably, to sites about to form root hair bulges. The signal was greatest in rapidly growing root hairs and quickly disappeared when elongation ceased. These results provide evidence that PIP5K3 is involved in localizing PtdIns(4,5)P2 to the elongating root hair apex and is a key regulator of the machinery that initiates and promotes root hair tip growth.
Proteomic analysis of the tear film in patients with keratoconus

Purpose To identify proteins differentially expressed between the tear film of keratoconus (KC) patients and control subjects using two dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) and mass spectrometry-based techniques. Methods Twenty two patients (44 eyes) diagnosed with bilateral KC and 22 control subjects (44 eyes) were studied in a prospective case-control study. Keratoconus screening programs and Orbscan II topographies were performed on all participants. Tear samples were collected by the Schirmer I method using filter paper. Proteins were extracted from the Schirmer strips and separated by 2-DE. Comparison of protein patterns was performed using PDQuest Software and protein differences were identified by mass spectrometry. Finally, results were validated by western-blot. Results Four spots were identified to be differentially expressed between KC patients and control subjects. Three of them were more expressed in healthy subjects and they were identified as zinc-α2-glycoprotein (ZAG), lactoferrin, and IGKC (immunoglobulin kappa chain). The other spot was more expressed in KC patients and it was identified as ZAG. Differences in ZAG seem controversial in two different spots because different posttranslational modifications, however, analysis of both spots revealed that globally, ZAG is overexpressed in healthy subjects. Founded differences in ZAG, lactoferrin, and IGKC expression were subsequently validated by western blot. Conclusions IGKC protein, ZAG, and lactoferrin are under-expressed in the tears of patients diagnosed with bilateral KC compared with healthy subjects. These differences could contribute to the knowledge of the pathophysiology of this disease.