Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Sensitivity of contrast enhanced MRI in multiple sclerosis. Effects of gadolinium dose, magnetization transfer contrast and delayed imaging.

Although clinical end points remain the definitive measure of therapeutic efficacy in multiple sclerosis, more sensitive markers of disease activity are required to screen potential disease-modifying agents. The use of gadolinium contrast-media in MRI studies increases both the reliability and sensitivity of detecting active lesions in multiple sclerosis. We studied three potential methods for further improving sensitivity; the use of 0.3 mmol/kg (triple dose) gadolinium-diethylenetriaminepenta-acetic acid (Gd-DTPA), magnetization transfer (MT) contrast imaging and the introduction of a delay between contrast-medium injection and imaging. Fifty patients were studied (seven with benign, 14 with relapsing-remitting, 10 with secondary progressive, 16 with primary progressive and three with transitional multiple sclerosis). Imaging was performed on two occasions, 24-72 h apart, with triple- and single-dose Gd-DTPA. Pairs of contrast-enhanced T 1-weighted studies, with and without MT, were obtained at three different times, i.e. within early (0-20 min), short-delay (20-40 min) and long-delay (40-60 min) time-windows. Nineteen patients did not have the full complement of studies. Seven patients suffered minor self-limiting adverse events possibly related to triple-dose Gd-DTPA. Overall, triple-dose Gd-DTPA resulted in a 75% increase in the number of enhancing lesions detected compared with the single dose (P < 0.002). The use of MT or delay alone did not significantly increase the sensitivity of either single- or triple-dose studies. The combination of MT and short delay increased the number of enhancing lesions detected with single-dose Gd-DTPA by 47% (P < 0.05) and with triple-dose Gd-DTPA by 27% (P < 0.01). Detection was not significantly further improved by a long delay. The most sensitive modality was MT imaging with a long delay following triple-dose Gd-DTPA, resulting in the detection of 126% more enhancing lesions than in standard single-dose imaging (P < 0.05). This applies to all subgroups except for primary progressive multiple sclerosis, in which none of these methods alone or in combination improved the sensitivity. We conclude that for relapsing-remitting and secondary progressive multiple sclerosis, the combination of triple-dose Gd-DTPA and delayed MT imaging more than doubles the sensitivity to contrast-enhancing lesions.
The Sound of Silence in Online Feedback: Estimating Trading Risks in the Presence of Reporting Bias

Most online feedback mechanisms rely on voluntary reporting of privately observed outcomes. This introduces the potential for reporting bias, a situation where traders exhibit different propensities to report different outcome types to the system. Unless properly accounted for, reporting bias may severely distort the distribution of public feedback relative to the underlying distribution of private transaction outcomes and, thus, hamper the reliability of feedback mechanisms. This study offers a method that allows users of feedback mechanisms where both partners of a bilateral exchange are allowed to report their satisfaction to “see through” the distortions introduced by reporting bias and derive unbiased estimates of the underlying distribution of privately observed outcomes. A key aspect of our method lies in extracting information from the number of transactions where one or both trading partners choose to remain silent. We apply our method to a large data set of eBay feedback. Our results support the widespread belief that eBay traders are more likely to post feedback when satisfied than when dissatisfied and are consistent with the presence of positive and negative reciprocation among eBay traders. Most importantly, our analysis derives unbiased estimates of the risks that are associated with trading on eBay that, we believe, are more realistic than those suggested by a naive interpretation of the unusually high (>99%) levels of positive feedback currently found on that system.
Measuring Person-centered Care: A Critical Comparative Review of Published Tools.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY to present a critical comparative review of published tools measuring the person-centeredness of care for older people and people with dementia. DESIGN AND METHODS included tools were identified by searches of PubMed, Cinahl, the Bradford Dementia Group database, and authors' files. The terms "Person-centered," "Patient-centered" and "individualized" (US and UK spelling), were paired with "Alzheimer's disease," "older people," and "dementia" in various combinations. The tools were compared in terms of conceptual influences, perspectives studied and intended use, applicability, psychometric properties, and credibility. RESULTS twelve tools eligible for review were identified. Eight tools were developed for evaluating long-term aged care, three for hospital-based care, and one for home care. One tool, Dementia Care Mapping, was dementia specific. A common limitation of the tools reviewed is that they are yet to be used and validated beyond the development period; thus, their validity, reliability, and applicability needs further exploration. Also, the perspective of people with dementia remains absent. IMPLICATIONS the review demonstrates the availability of a multitude of tools for measurement of person-centered care in different settings and from different perspectives, even if further testing of the tools is needed. The conceptual underpinnings of the tools are rarely explicit, which makes it difficult to ascertain the conceptual comparability of the tools.
How the Linker Connecting the Two Kringles Influences Activation and Conformational Plasticity of Prothrombin*

A flexible linker (Lnk2) composed of 26 amino acids connects kringle-1 to kringle-2 in the coagulation factor prothrombin. Recent studies point to Lnk2 as a key determinant of the structure and function of this zymogen. Using a combination of mutagenesis, structural biology, and single molecule spectroscopy, we show how Lnk2 influences activation and conformational plasticity of prothrombin. Scrambling the sequence of Lnk2 is inconsequential on activation, and so is extension by as many as 22 residues. On the other hand, below a critical length of 15 residues, the rate of prothrombin activation increases (10-fold) in the absence of cofactor Va and decreases (3-fold) in the presence of cofactor. Furthermore, activation by prothrombinase takes place without preference along the prethrombin-2 (cleavage at Arg271 first) or meizothrombin (cleavage at Arg320 first) pathways. Notably, these transitions in the rate and pathway of activation require the presence of phospholipids, pointing to an important physiological role for Lnk2 when prothrombin is anchored to the membrane. Two new crystal structures of prothrombin lacking 22 (ProTΔ146–167) or 14 (ProTΔ154–167) residues of Lnk2 document striking conformational rearrangements of domains located across this linker. FRET measurements of freely diffusing single molecules prove that these structural transitions are genuine properties of the zymogen in solution. These findings support a molecular model of prothrombin activation where Lnk2 presents the sites of cleavage at Arg271 and Arg320 to factor Xa in different orientations by pivoting the C-terminal kringle-2/protease domain pair on the N-terminal Gla domain/kringle-1 pair anchored to the membrane.
Applying and Comparing Hidden Markov Model and Fuzzy Clustering Algorithms to Web Usage Data for Recommender Systems

In this study, we apply and compare some of the methods of usage pattern discovery, like simple k-means clustering algorithm, fuzzy relational subtractive clustering algorithm, fuzzy mean field annealing (MFA) clustering and Hidden Markov Model (HMM), for recommender systems. We use metrics like prediction strength, hit ratio, precision, prediction ability and F-Score to compare the applied methods on the Web usage data. Fuzzy MFA and HMM acted better than other methods due to fuzzy nation of human behavior in navigation and extra information utilized in sequence analysis.
Removing shadows from a single real-world color image

In this paper, we propose a new algorithm to remove shadow from a single color image. We first project log-log chromaticity coordinates onto an angle of illumination-invariant direction to obtain an illumination independent grayscale image. Then color information is added back by comparing intensities in the original and illumination-invariant grayscale images, and taking both global tonality and pixel-wise color into account. Finally, the result color image without shadow is recovered. The proposed method simplifies the color restoration procedure and therefore requires much less computation. Experimental results show that the new method can produce shadow-free images with same quality as those shown in previous work.
Risk of cardiovascular events and celecoxib: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVES To examine whether the increased risk of cardiovascular events with rofecoxib represents a class effect of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) specific inhibitors. DESIGN Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized double-blind clinical trials of celecoxib of at least 6 weeks' duration and presented data on serious cardiovascular thromboembolic events. Data sources included six bibliographic databases, the relevant files of the United States Food and Drug Administration, and pharmaceutical company websites. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Pooled fixed effects estimates of the odds ratios for risk of cardiovascular events with celecoxib compared with comparator treatment were calculated using the inverse variance weight method. The main outcome measure was myocardial infarction. RESULTS Four placebo-controlled trials with 4422 patients were included in the primary meta-analysis comparing celecoxib with placebo. The odds ratio of myocardial infarction with celecoxib compared to placebo was 2.26 (95%confidence interval 1.0 to 5.1). For composite cardiovascular events [odd ratio 1.38 (95% CI 0.91 to 2.10)], cardiovascular deaths [OR 1.06 (95% CI 0.38 to 2.95)] and stroke [OR 1.0(95% CI 0.51 to 1.84)] there was no significant increase in risk with celecoxib. The secondary meta-analysis which included a total of six studies (with placebo, diclofenac, ibuprofen, and paracetamol as comparators) of 12 780 patients, showed similar findings with a significant increased risk with celecoxib for myocardial infarction [OR 1.88 (95% CI 1.15 to 3.08)] but not other outcome measures. CONCLUSION The available data indicate an increased risk of myocardial infarction with celecoxib therapy, consistent with a class effect for COX-2 specific inhibitors.
Gender differences in financial literacy among college students

The paper aims to examine gender differences in financial literacy among college students. Using the stratified sampling method, 2,340 college students from six public and five private colleges were studied. The findings indicate gender differences in different dimensions of financial literacy, in which males were more knowledgeable in financial matters than female students. The results revealed that among the six dimensions of financial literacy, male students have more knowledge concerning credit and risk management, while females are more knowledgeable in respect of general financial literacy. (Leila Falahati, Gender Differences in Financial Literacy among College Students. Journal of American Science 2011;7(6):1180-1183). (ISSN: 1545-1003). http://www.americanscience. org.
Plasma Alkylresorcinols Reflect Gluten Intake and Distinguish between Gluten-Rich and Gluten-Poor Diets in a Population at Risk of Metabolic Syndrome.

BACKGROUND Many patients with celiac disease experience difficulties in adherence to a gluten-free diet. Methods for testing compliance to a gluten-free diet are costly and cumbersome. Thus, a simple biomarker of gluten intake is needed in a clinical setting and will be useful for epidemiologic studies investigating wider effects of gluten intake. OBJECTIVE The aim was to evaluate plasma total alkylresorcinol concentrations as a measure of gluten intake. METHODS In this randomized, controlled, crossover intervention study in 52 Danish adults with features of the metabolic syndrome, we compared 8 wk of a gluten-rich and gluten-poor diet separated by a washout period of ≥6 wk. We measured fasting plasma concentrations of alkylresorcinols to determine if they reflected differences in gluten intake as a secondary outcome of the original study. In addition, we investigated in 118 Danish adults the cross-sectional association between self-reported gluten intake and plasma alkylresorcinols in the same and a similar study at baseline. We used mixed-model ANCOVA for examining treatment effects, a classification tree to determine compliance to the gluten-poor diet, and linear regression models for examining baseline correlation between plasma alkylresorcinol concentrations and gluten intake. RESULTS Plasma total alkylresorcinols decreased more during the gluten-poor period (geometric mean: -124.8 nmol/L; 95% CI: -156.5, -93.0 nmol/L) than in the gluten-rich period (geometric mean: -31.8 nmol/L; 95% CI: -63.1, -0.4 nmol/L) (P < 0.001). On the basis of the plasma alkylresorcinol profile, we built a classification tree to objectively determine compliance and found an overall participant misclassification error of 3.9%. In the cross-sectional study we found a 5.6% (95% CI: 2.4%, 8.9%) increase in plasma total alkylresorcinols per 1-g increase in reported gluten intake (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION We propose the use of plasma alkylresorcinols to monitor compliance to a gluten-free diet as well as to help investigations into the possible effects of gluten in the wider population. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials. gov as NCT017119913 and NCT01731366.
Sugar- and Intense-Sweetened Drinks in Australia: A Systematic Review on Cardiometabolic Risk

Sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) are consumed globally, and have been associated with adverse health outcomes, including weight gain, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes (T2D), and cardiovascular disease (CVD). There is global variation in beverage formulation in terms of glucose and fructose concentration, which may pose unique health risks linked to glycemic control for Australian consumers. However, previous systematic reviews have overlooked Australian-based literature. A systematic review was performed to synthesise evidence for the associations between consumption of SSBs and intense-sweetened beverages with clinical cardiometabolic risk factors in the Australian population. Articles were sourced from Global Health, Health Source: Nursing/Academic Edition, Medline, and Culmative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature. To be eligible for review, studies had to report on the consumption of sugar-sweetened (including fruit juice and fruit drinks) and/or intense-sweetened beverages, and at least one clinical cardiometabolic risk factor. Eighteen studies were included in this review. Research has mostly focused on the relationship between SSB consumption and adiposity-related outcomes. No studies have examined indices of glycaemic control (glucose/insulin), and the evidence for the health impact of intense-sweetened drinks is limited. In addition, studies have primarily been of cross-sectional design, and have examined children and adolescents, as opposed to adult populations. In the Australian population, there is modest but consistent evidence that SSB consumption has adverse associations with weight, but there is insufficient data to assess relationships with cardiometabolic outcomes.
Differential Diffusions of Indinavir and Lopinavir in Genital Secretions of Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Infected Women

ABSTRACT Plasma and cervicovaginal secretion (CVS) samples were collected from 19 human immunodeficiency virus type 1-infected women on lopinavir- or indinavir-containing regimens. Lopinavir and indinavir were detectable in 29 and 93% of CVS samples, respectively, a finding that may be ascribed to these drugs' differences in protein binding and pKa. The relationship between lopinavir and indinavir pharmacodynamics and viral evolution in the female genital tract should be assessed over time.
Asymptotic analysis of random partitions ∗

In this paper we aim to review some works on the asymptotic behaviors of random partitions. The focus is upon two basic probability models— uniform partitions and Plancherel partitions. One of fundamental results is the existence of limit shapes, which corresponds to the classic law of large numbers. The fluctuations around the limit shape are also considered; the well-known Gumbel distribution, Tracy-Widom distribution and normal distribution will be used to describe the asymptotic fluctuations at the edge and in the bulk of the spectrum of random partitions. The technique used in asymptotic analysis is the so-called poissonization and depoissonization method, a peculiar conditioning argument. We are content with describing some basic facts and remarkable results; no complete proof is given.
The pgp1 Mutant Locus of Arabidopsis Encodes a Phosphatidylglycerolphosphate Synthase with Impaired Activity1

Phosphatidylglycerol is a ubiquitous phospholipid that is also present in the photosynthetic membranes of plants. Multiple independent lines of evidence suggest that this lipid plays a critical role for the proper function of photosynthetic membranes and cold acclimation. In eukaryotes, different subcellular compartments are competent for the biosynthesis of phosphatidylglycerol. Details on the plant-specific pathways in different organelles are scarce. Here, we describe a phosphatidylglycerol biosynthesis-deficient mutant of Arabidopsis, pgp1. The overall content of phosphatidylglycerol is reduced by 30%. This mutant carries a point mutation in the CDP-alcohol phosphotransferase motif of the phosphatidylglycerolphosphate synthase (EC 2.7.8.5) isoform encoded by a gene on chromosome 2. The mutant shows an 80% reduction in plastidic phosphatidylglycerolphosphate synthase activity consistent with the plastidic location of this particular isoform. Mutant plants are pale green, and their photosynthesis is impaired. This mutant provides a promising new tool to elucidate the biosynthesis and function of plastidic phosphatidylglycerol in seed plants.
Stability Analysis for LTI Control Systems With Controller Failures and Its Application in Failure Tolerant Control

In this technical note, the stability and failure tolerant control are investigated for linear time-invariant (LTI) control systems with occasional controller failures. At first, a collection of non-convex sufficient conditions ensuring the closed loop to be globally asymptotically stable is presented, which are simple to use but difficult to consider for control purpose. To overcome this, a time-scheduled Lyapunov function approach is considered and alternative convex conditions are obtained. Based on this result, a time-dependent failure-tolerant controller is designed. The approach is finally illustrated on a networked control system.
Protecting Privacy and Security of Genomic Data in i2b2 with Homomorphic Encryption and Differential Privacy

Re-use of patients’ health records can provide tremendous benefits for clinical research. Yet, when researchers need to access sensitive/identifying data, such as genomic data, in order to compile cohorts of well-characterized patients for specific studies, privacy and security concerns represent major obstacles that make such a procedure extremely difficult if not impossible. In this paper, we address the challenge of designing and deploying in a real operational setting an efficient privacy-preserving explorer for genetic cohorts. Our solution is built on top of the i2b2 (Informatics for Integrating Biology and the Bedside) framework and leverages cutting-edge privacy-enhancing technologies such as homomorphic encryption and differential privacy. Solutions involving homomorphic encryption are often believed to be costly and immature for use in operational environments. Here, we show that, for specific applications, homomorphic encryption is actually a very efficient enabler. Indeed, our solution outperforms prior work by enabling a researcher to securely compute simple statistics on more than 3,000 encrypted genetic variants simultaneously for a cohort of 5,000 individuals in less than 5 seconds with commodity hardware. To the best of our knowledge, our privacy-preserving solution is the first to also be successfully deployed and tested in a operation setting (Lausanne University Hospital).
Convolutional Tanner structures for non-ergodic wireless channels

We propose an original technique for the design of convolutional Tanner structures that are full diversity under iterative decoding. The code design is based on the analysis of the local trellis neighborhood and is suitable for transmission over wireless non-ergodic channels. This new technique enables us to split the giant convolutional checknode into multiple smaller checknodes which is a means to mimic the standard analysis of LDPC codes under iterative message passing decoding.
Adiposity and cardiovascular risk factors in a large contemporary population of pre-pubertal children.

AIMS to examine the associations of several markers of adiposity and a wide range of cardiovascular risk factors and biomarkers in pre-pubertal children. METHODS AND RESULTS four measures of adiposity,body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA)-determined fat mass, and leptin concentration, were available in up to 7589 children aged 8.8-11.7 (9.9 mean) years from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC). Thirteen per cent of boys and 18.8% of girls were overweight, and 5.3% of boys and 5% of girls were obese. Body mass index was highly correlated with waist circumference (r = 0.91), DXA fat mass (r = 0.87), and leptin concentration (r = 0.75), and all had similar associations with cardiovascular risk factors. A 1 kg/m(2) greater BMI was associated with 1.4 mmHg (95% CI 1.25-1.44) higher systolic blood pressure (BP). In 5002 children, a 1 kg/m(2) greater BMI was associated with a 0.05 mmol/L (95% CI 0.036-0.055) higher non-high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and 0.03 mmol/L (95% CI -0.034 to -0.025) lower HDL cholesterol. There were also graded associations with apolipoproteins A1 and B, interleukin-6, and C-reactive protein. Comparing children who were obese with those who were normal weight, the odds ratio for hypertension was 10.7 (95% CI 7.2-15.9) for boys and 13.5 (95% CI 9.4-19.5) for girls. CONCLUSION in pre-pubertal UK children, overweight/obesity is common and has broadly similar associations with BP, HDL cholesterol, and non-HDL cholesterol to those observed in adults. Future research should evaluate whether effective interventions to maintain healthy weight in childhood could have important benefits for adult cardiovascular risk.
Metallic High-Pressure Microfluidic Pump with Active Valves

We present for microfluidics the strongest yet mechanical micropump in sub-cm3 size, using simple processes and materials such as Parylene coated stainless steel stencils, paraffin, and copper clad polyimide. The pump consists of two active valves and one pumping chamber, each operated by a paraffin actuator. Each actuator is driven by a square pulse waveform with an amplitude of 1.8 V. The pump sequence has a period time of 14.4 s, resulting in the pumping of water up to 50 bar (5 MPa) back pressure without leakage and a flow rate of 0.75 muL/min.