Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Genetically determined Amerindian ancestry correlates with increased frequency of risk alleles for systemic lupus erythematosus.

OBJECTIVE To assess whether genetically determined Amerindian ancestry predicts increased presence of risk alleles of known susceptibility genes for systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). METHODS Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within 16 confirmed genetic susceptibility loci for SLE were genotyped in a set of 804 Mestizo lupus patients and 667 Mestizo healthy controls. In addition, 347 admixture informative markers were genotyped. Individual ancestry proportions were determined using STRUCTURE. Association analysis was performed using PLINK, and correlation between ancestry and the presence of risk alleles was analyzed using linear regression. RESULTS A meta-analysis of the genetic association of the 16 SNPs across populations showed that TNFSF4, STAT4, ITGAM, and IRF5 were associated with lupus in a Hispanic Mestizo cohort enriched for European and Amerindian ancestry. In addition, 2 SNPs within the major histocompatibility complex region, previously shown to be associated in a genome-wide association study in Europeans, were also associated in Mestizos. Using linear regression, we predicted an average increase of 2.34 risk alleles when comparing an SLE patient with 100% Amerindian ancestry versus an SLE patient with 0% Amerindian ancestry (P < 0.0001). SLE patients with 43% more Amerindian ancestry were predicted to carry 1 additional risk allele. CONCLUSION Our results demonstrate that Amerindian ancestry is associated with an increased number of risk alleles for SLE.
Joint estimation of multiple undirected graphical models

Gaussian graphical models are of great interest in statistical learning. Since the conditional independence between the variables corresponds to zero entries in the inverse covariance matrix, one can learn the structure of the graph by estimating a sparse inverse covariance matrix from sample data. This is usually done by solving a convex maximum likelihood problem with a l1-regularization term applied on the inverse covariance matrix. In this study, we develop an estimator for such models appropriate for data coming from several datasets that share the same set of variables and a common network substructure. We assume that there exist a few different edges among the networks while the others (edges) are common. To this end, we form an optimization problem that exploits the problem's special structure and we propose an alternating direction method for its solution. We confirm the performance improvement of our method over existing methods in finding the dependence structure on a real dataset.
Hyperthermia worsens ischaemic brain injury through destruction of microvessels in an embolic model in rats

Purpose: Basal lamina is a major part of the microvascular wall and plays a critical role in the integrity of microvasculature. The aim of this study is to determine whether hyperthermia worsens the destruction of microvascular integrity in the ischaemic injured brain. Materials and methods: Focal cerebral ischaemia was induced by embolising a pre-formed clot into the middle cerebral artery (MCA). Rats received either normothermic or hyperthermic treatment. Neurological score and infarct size were evaluated at 24 h after the MCA occlusion. Microvascular collagen type IV and laminin were measured with fluorescence microscopy. The activities of matrix metalloproteinases (MMP-2 and MMP-9) and plasminogen activators (tPA and uPA) were determined by zymography. Results: Treatment with hyperthermia significantly increased infarct volume (p < 0.01), cortex swelling (p < 0.01), striatum swelling (p < 0.05) and neurologic score (p < 0.01) at 24 h after the MCA occlusion. Compared to the normothermic groups, hyperthermia significantly worsened the losses of microvascular basal lamina structure proteins, collagen type IV and laminin, at 6 h (p < 0.001) and 24 h (p < 0.01) after MCA occlusion. Hyperthermia increased the MMP-9 activity at 6 and 24 h after MCA occlusion compared with normothermia (p < 0.05), whereas increased the MMP-2 activity at 6 h only (p < 0.05). Hyperthermia also elevated uPA activity significantly at 6 and 24 h after MCA occlusion compared to normothermia (p < 0.05). Conclusions: These results demonstrate that hyperthermia exacerbates the destruction of microvascular integrity possibly by increasing the activities of MMP-2, MMP-9 and uPA in the ischaemic cerebral tissues.
A note on single crystals in polymers: Evidence for a folded chain configuration

Abstract The morphology and orientation of a number of polymers as crystallized from solution was studied with the electron microscope combined with selected area electron diffraction. In the course of this work single crystals could be prepared which were most striking in the case of straight chain polyethylenes. There is evidence among others, that the fibrillar (sheaf-type, spherulitic) crystallization, characteristic of polymers, develops through formation of flat single crystals. The single crystals contain screw dislocations and grow by spiral terraces. The observed orientation and the minimum thickness of the crystals leads to the inescapable conclusion that the molecules must bend sharply back on themselves forming a regular folded configuration. Accordingly the strength of the dislocation, consequently the height of growth step, would correspond to the distance between successive bends. Various other observations are consistent with this new concept.
Timing and Causes of Death After Injuries

Currently, long-term outcomes are significant because health care system changes will likely lead to a single payment for each occurrence of care, including readmissions—the “bundled payment” system. Therefore, it is essential to understand the outcomes of trauma patients discharged alive from trauma centers. This article reviews the current knowledge base on the timing and causes of deaths after trauma. The trimodal mortality model (immediate deaths, early deaths, and late deaths) is utilized as the early research describing trimodal distribution is discussed. Also covered is the successive work as trauma systems matured, showing a shift toward a bimodal distribution with a decline in late deaths. Finally, studies of long-term outcomes are highlighted. Deaths occurring within minutes or a few hours of injury are largely unchanged, which underscores the enormity of injuries to the central nervous and cardiovascular systems. Late deaths caused by multiple organ failure and sepsis have declined considerably, however. Also, the causes of death in this patient population remain constant. Lastly, a considerable number of deaths after discharge may be due to nontraumatic causes.
Efficacy of brain-computer interface-driven neuromuscular electrical stimulation for chronic paresis after stroke.

OBJECTIVE Brain computer interface technology is of great interest to researchers as a potential therapeutic measure for people with severe neurological disorders. The aim of this study was to examine the efficacy of brain computer interface, by comparing conventional neuromuscular electrical stimulation and brain computer interface-driven neuromuscular electrical stimulation, using an A-B-A-B withdrawal single-subject design. METHODS A 38-year-old male with severe hemiplegia due to a putaminal haemorrhage participated in this study. The design involved 2 epochs. In epoch A, the patient attempted to open his fingers during the application of neuromuscular electrical stimulation, irrespective of his actual brain activity. In epoch B, neuromuscular electrical stimulation was applied only when a significant motor-related cortical potential was observed in the electroencephalogram. RESULTS The subject initially showed diffuse functional magnetic resonance imaging activation and small electro-encephalogram responses while attempting finger movement. Epoch A was associated with few neurological or clinical signs of improvement. Epoch B, with a brain computer interface, was associated with marked lateralization of electroencephalogram (EEG) and blood oxygenation level dependent responses. Voluntary electromyogram (EMG) activity, with significant EEG-EMG coherence, was also prompted. Clinical improvement in upper-extremity function and muscle tone was observed. CONCLUSION These results indicate that self-directed training with a brain computer interface may induce activity- dependent cortical plasticity and promote functional recovery. This preliminary clinical investigation encourages further research using a controlled design.
CHLORIDE REMOVAL FROM A REINFORCED CONCRETE QUAY WALL - LABORATORY TESTS

A laboratory investigation was executed of electrochemical chloride removal (desalination) from cores taken from the splash zone of an eight-year-old reinforced concrete quay wall on the North Sea coast. The concrete was made with Blast Furnace Slag Cement according to Rijkswaterstaat specifications. The reinforcement in eight cores was cathodically polarized with saturated lime or sodium carbonate electrolyte and activated titanium mesh anodes at current densities of 0.6 to 4 A/square meters of steel surface for 3 to 6 weeks. During the treatment the electrical resistance was measured. The results show that significant but different amounts of chloride had been removed from the cores, depending on the electrolyte type and the total amount of charge that was passed. Using saturated lime, more chloride was extracted than using sodium carbonate. The electrical resistance was found to decrease strongly when sodium carbonate was used as electrolyte. Major pore solution composition changes due to the electrolysis were found.
Building better cognitive-behavioral therapy: is broad-spectrum treatment more effective than motivational-enhancement therapy for alcohol-dependent patients treated with naltrexone?

OBJECTIVE The current study investigated the treatment effectiveness, during treatment, of a second-generation cognitive-behavioral therapy for alcoholism--broad-spectrum treatment (BST)--compared with motivational-enhancement therapy (MET), when both were offered in conjunction with a therapeutic dose of naltrexone (Revia). METHOD One hundred forty-nine alcohol-dependent patients completed a 3-month randomized, controlled trial of BST and naltrexone versus MET and naltrexone. RESULTS Patients receiving BST had a significantly higher percentage of days abstinent than patients receiving MET. The superior effect of BST is particularly strong in interaction with support for drinking, suggesting that the advantage of BST is worth the additional cost for patients whose psychosocial networks are supportive of continued drinking. This effect remains significant when controlling for pretreatment percentage of days abstinent. CONCLUSIONS In aggregate, these findings suggest that it is either the combination of naltrexone and BST or the unique properties of BST that account for BST's superiority to MET and naltrexone. The results of this initial phase of the trial suggest that a second-generation cognitive-behavioral therapy such as BST may have a meaningful clinical advantage over brief interventions such as MET, at least when combined with naltrexone.
Effects of isolation rooms on the prevalence of hospital acquired pneumonia in a respiratory ICU.

BACKGROUND The incidence of hospital acquired pneumonia (HAP) varies according to the type of intensive care units (ICUs). AIM The aims of this study were to determine the frequency of hospital acquired pneumonia (HAP) and the effect of isolation rooms on the frequency of pneumonia in the ICU. MATERIALS AND METHODS The present investigation was carried out between January 2004 and July 2008. The ICU, which was 4-bed ward-type between January 2004 and February 2006 (1st period), was reconfigured as isolated rooms with only 2 beds each after March 2006 (2nd period). 153 and 379 patients were followed up in the ICU in the 1st and 2nd periods, respectively. Blood, sputum, and deep tracheal aspiration cultures were used for the isolation of the causative agents. RESULTS No significant difference was detected between the general characteristics of patients. HAP developed in 101 patients (19%). The prevalence of HAP was 22.9% in the 1st period and 17.4% in the 2nd period. During the 1st and 2nd periods, the HAP infection densities were 22.2 and 16.1/1000 patient-days and the ventilator-associated pneumonia densities were 48.1 and 37.6/1000 ventilator-days, respectively. Eighty-six percent of HAP was ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP). CONCLUSIONS Isolation rooms in the ICU may be an effective strategy to control and decrease the rate of pneumonia in the ICU in addition to other preventive strategies.
Chapter 2 The Construction of Wavelet Sets

Sets Ω in d-dimensional Euclidean space are constructed with the property that the inverse Fourier transform of the characteristic function 1Ω of the set Ω is a single dyadic orthonormal wavelet. The iterative construction is characterized by its generality, its computational implementation, and its simplicity. The construction is transported to the case of locally compact abelian groups G with compact open subgroups H. The best known example of such a group is G = Qp, the field of p-adic rational numbers (as a group under addition), which has the compact open subgroup H = Zp, the ring of p-adic integers. Fascinating intricacies arise. Classical wavelet theories, which require a non-trivial discrete subgroup for translations, do not apply to G, which may not have such a subgroup. However, our wavelet theory is formulated on G with new group theoretic operators, which can be thought of as analogues of Euclidean translations. As such, our theory for G is structurally cohesive and of significant generality. For perspective, the Haar and Shannon wavelets are naturally antipodal in the Euclidean setting, whereas their analogues for G are equivalent.
Using Cluster Analysis to Improve the Design of Component Interfaces

For large software systems, interface structure has an important impact on their maintainability and build performance. For example, for complex systems written in C, recompilation due to a change in one central header file can run into hours. In this paper, we explore how automated cluster analysis can be used to refactor interfaces, in order to reduce the number of dependencies and to improve encapsulation, thus improving build performance and maintainability. We implemented our approach in a tool called "Interface Regroup Wizard", which we applied to several interfaces of a large industrial embedded system. From this, we not only learned that automated cluster analysis works surprisingly well to improve the design of interfaces, but also which of the refactoring steps are best done manually by an architect.
Contributions au problème d'hétérogénéité sémantique dans les systèmes pair-à-pair : application à la recherche d'information. (Contributions to the problem of semantic heterogeneity in peer-to-peer systems: application to information retrieval)

Nous considerons des systemes pair-a-pair (P2P) pour le partage de donnees dans lesquels chaque pair est libre de choisir l’ontologie qui correspond le mieux a ses besoins pour representer ses donnees. Nous parlons alors d’heterogeneite semantique. Cette situation est un frein important a l’interoperabilite car les requetes emises par les pairs peuvent etre incomprises par d’autres. Dans un premier temps nous nous focalisons sur la notion d’heterogeneite semantique. Nous definissons un ensemble de mesures permettant de caracteriser finement l’heterogeneite d’un systeme suivant differentes facettes. Dans un deuxieme temps nous definissons deux protocoles. Le premier, appele CorDis, permet de reduire l’heterogeneite semantique liee aux disparites entre pairs. Il dissemine des correspondances dans le systeme afin que les pairs apprennent de nouvelles correspondances. Le second protocole, appele GoOD-TA, permet de reduire l’heterogeneite semantique d’un systeme liee a son organisation. L’objectif est d’organiser le systeme de sorte que les pairs proches semantiquement soient proches dans le systeme. Ainsi deux pairs deviennent voisins s’ils utilisent la meme ontologie ou s’il existe de nombreuses correspondances entre leurs ontologies respectives. Enfin, dans un trois temps, nous proposons l’algorithme DiQuESH pour le routage et le traitement de requetes top-k dans les systemes P2P semantiquement heterogenes. Cet algorithme permet a un pair d’obtenir les k documents les plus pertinents de son voisinage. Nous montrons experimentalement que les protocoles CorDis et GoOD-TA ameliorent les resultats obtenus par DiQuESH.
Revision Sequences and Nested Conditionals

The truth conditions for conditional sentences have been well-studied, but few compelling attempts have been made to define means of evaluating iterated or nested conditionals. In particular, most approaches impose very few constraints on the set of conditionals an agent can hold after revision of its belief set. In this paper we describe the method of natural revision that ensures the preservation of conditional beliefs after revision by an objective belief. Our model, based on a simple modal logic for beliefs and conditionals, extends the AGM theory of belief revision to account for sentences of objective revisions of a belief set. This model of revision ensures that an agent makes as few changes as possible to the conditional component of its belief set. Adopting the Ramsey test, natural revision provides truth conditions for arbitrary right-nested conditionals. We show that the problem of determining acceptance of any such nested conditional can be reduced to acceptance tests for unnested conditionals, indicating that iterated revision can be simulated by virtual updates. We also briefly describe certain reductions to (sometimes tractable) propositional inference, and other informational properties.
Macroautophagy Regulation during HIV-1 Infection of CD4+ T Cells and Macrophages

Autophagy is an intracellular mechanism whereby pathogens, particularly viruses, are destroyed in autolysosomes after their entry into targets cells. Therefore, to survive and replicate in host cells, viruses have developed multiple strategies to either counteract or exploit this process. The aim of this review is to outline the known relationships between HIV-1 and autophagy in CD4+ T lymphocytes and macrophages, two main HIV-1 cell targets. The differential regulation of autophagy in these two cell-types is highlighted and its potential consequences in terms of viral replication and physiopathology discussed.
Design and Application of TS-PID Controller in Fire Furnace

In modern control system fields, the conventional proportion integral differentia l(PID)parameters of controller is usually adopted to apply to the engineering control with other techniques, achieve and realize perfect control effect, because of its self-disadvantages. The Takagi-Sugeno (TS) fuzzy control system is used in this paper to complete or accomplish the PID parameters turning, and the TS-PID controller can be designed and applied to the temperature control of fire furnace. The Stability of TS-PID controller can be analyzed by the passivity theorem. A new simple and convenient method can be proposed for the stability and system design of TS-PID controller. The proposed TS-PID controller can be accomplished perfect control effect in the temperature control of fire furnace.
Prospective Evaluation of Criteria for Microbiological Diagnosis of Prosthetic-Joint Infection at Revision Arthroplasty

ABSTRACT A prospective study was performed to establish criteria for the microbiological diagnosis of prosthetic joint infection at elective revision arthroplasty. Patients were treated in a multidisciplinary unit dedicated to the management and study of musculoskeletal infection. Standard multiple samples of periprosthetic tissue were obtained at surgery, Gram stained, and cultured by direct and enrichment methods. With reference to histology as the criterion standard, sensitivities, specificities, and likelihood ratios (LRs) were calculated by using different cutoffs for the diagnosis of infection. We performed revisions on 334 patients over a 17-month period, of whom 297 were evaluable. The remaining 37 were excluded because histology results were unavailable or could not be interpreted due to underlying inflammatory joint disease. There were 41 infections, with only 65% of all samples sent from infected patients being culture positive, suggesting low numbers of bacteria in the samples taken. The isolation of an indistinguishable microorganism from three or more independent specimens was highly predictive of infection (sensitivity, 65%; specificity, 99.6%; LR, 168.6), while Gram staining was less useful (sensitivity, 12%; specificity, 98%; LR, 10). A simple mathematical model was developed to predict the performance of the diagnostic test. We recommend that five or six specimens be sent, that the cutoff for a definite diagnosis of infection be three or more operative specimens that yield an indistinguishable organism, and that because of its low level of sensitivity, Gram staining should be abandoned as a diagnostic tool at elective revision arthroplasty.
Decomposition of memory consumption footprints to identify problematic threads

Software as a Service(SaaS) solutions are state-of-the-art advancement of the cloud computing technologies that bring on new challenges in terms of cloud system management. It is the usual case where user jobs(macros, scripts, programs, etc.) are executed as threads inside platform processes making the distinction between user jobs very hard to perform. In case of a problematic thread(such as a thread with memory leakage) system administrator needs to manually detect the problematic thread or even kill the entire process harming the rest of the user jobs in the process. In this paper, we propose a novel approach based on processing the memory footprint of the problematic process. We use Fourier analysis to calculate the energy spectral densities of the memory footprints where threads with different characteristics produce different densities in case of a memory leakage. We represent a thread's memory usage characteristic as a periodic signal with a memory consumption frequency and a unit memory consumption amount. Our results show that for a process involving two threads, it is possible to distinguish the problematic thread by observing the memory footprint's energy density after the anomaly begins. We further investigate our results to relate the thread parameters with the difference between energy densities and derive guidelines on identifying the specific thread causing the problem. As a result we found out that certain thresholds exist for unit memory consumption to be able to identify the problematic thread and also the decomposability of the memory footprint has an exponential relation with the rate of memory consumption frequencies of process' threads.