Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Chemotherapy for second-stage Human African trypanosomiasis.

BACKGROUND Human African trypanosomiasis, or sleeping sickness, is a painful and protracted disease affecting people in the poorest parts of Africa and is fatal without treatment. Few drugs are currently available for second-stage sleeping sickness, with considerable adverse events and variable efficacy. OBJECTIVES To evaluate the effectiveness and safety of drugs for treating second-stage human African trypanosomiasis. SEARCH STRATEGY We searched the Cochrane Infectious Diseases Group Specialized Register (May 2010), CENTRAL (The Cochrane Library Issue 3 2010) , MEDLINE (1966 to May 2010), EMBASE (1974 to May 2010), LILACS (1982 to May 2010 ), BIOSIS (1926-May 2010), mRCT (May 2010) and reference lists. We contacted researchers working in the field and organizations. SELECTION CRITERIA Randomized and quasi-randomized controlled trials. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS Two authors (VL and AK) extracted data and assessed methodological quality; a third author (JS) acted as an arbitrator. Included trials only reported dichotomous outcomes, and we present these as risk ratio (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). MAIN RESULTS Nine trials with 2577 participants, all with Trypansoma brucei gambiense HAT, were included. Seven trials tested currently available drugs: melarsoprol, eflornithine, nifurtimox, alone or in combination; one trial tested pentamidine, and one trial assessed the addition of prednisolone to melarsoprol. Fixed 10-day regimens of melarsoprol were found to be as effective as those of 26 days, with similar numbers of adverse events. Melarsoprol monotherapy gave fewer relapses than pentamidine or nifurtimox, but resulted in more adverse events.Later trials evaluate nifurtimox combined with eflornithine (NECT), showing this gives few relapses and is well tolerated. It also has practical advantages in reducing the burden on health personnel and patients, when compared to eflornithine monotherapy. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS Choice of therapy for second stage Gambiense HAT will continue to be determined by what is locally available, but eflornithine and NECT are likely to replace melarsoprol, with careful parasite resistance monitoring. We need research on reducing adverse effects of currently used drugs, testing different regimens, and experimental and clinical studies of new compounds, effective for both stages of the disease.
Multivariate patterns of brain–cognition associations relating to vulnerability and clinical outcome in the at‐risk mental states for psychosis

Background: Neuropsychological deficits are a core feature of established psychosis and have been previously linked to fronto‐temporo‐limbic brain alterations. Both neurocognitive and neuroanatomical abnormalities characterize clinical at‐risk mental states (ARMS) for psychosis. However, structure–cognition relationships in the ARMS have not been directly explored using multivariate neuroimaging techniques. Methods: Voxel‐based morphometry and partial least squares were employed to study system‐level covariance patterns between whole‐brain morphological data and processing speed, working memory, verbal learning/IQ, and executive functions in 40 ARMS subjects and 30 healthy controls (HC). The detected structure–cognition covariance patterns were tested for significance and reliability using non‐parametric permutation and bootstrap resampling. Results: We identified ARMS‐specific covariance patterns that described a generalized association of neurocognitive measures with predominantly prefronto‐temporo‐limbic and subcortical structures as well as the interconnecting white matter. In the conversion group, this generalized profile particularly involved working memory and verbal IQ and was positively correlated with limbic, insular and subcortical volumes as well as negatively related to prefrontal, temporal, parietal, and occipital cortices. Conversely, the neurocognitive profiles in the HC group were confined to working memory, learning and IQ, which were diffusely associated with cortical and subcortical brain regions. Conclusions: These findings suggest that the ARMS and prodromal phase of psychosis are characterized by a convergent mapping from multi‐domain neurocognitive measures to a set of prefronto‐temporo‐limbic and subcortical structures. Furthermore, a neuroanatomical separation between positive and negative brain–cognition correlations may not only point to a biological process determining the clinical risk for disease transition, but also to possible compensatory or dysmaturational neural processes. Hum Brain Mapp 33:2104–2124, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Cost-Effective Use of Echocardiography in Children With Kawasaki Disease

Objective. To determine whether a third echocardiogram, performed 6 months to 1 year after the onset of Kawasaki disease (KD), as recommended by current American Heart Association guidelines, identified any case of coronary artery abnormalities when previous echocardiograms were normal. Methods. Children diagnosed with KD were identified by searching our institution's database. Cases were included in the study if diagnosed between June 1988 and December 1996 and if at least two echocardiograms were documented, including at least one study between 2 weeks and 2 months from the onset of KD and another in follow-up. The patients' charts were reviewed and videotapes of the echocardiograms were reviewed if reports were unclear or contradictory. McNemar's test for discordant pairs was used for statistical analysis. Additionally, a complete review was performed in all other cases of KD in the database in which a coronary artery abnormality had been identified. Results. There were 203 patients diagnosed during the study period who had 2 or more echocardiograms performed, and 67 had the requisite studies in the subacute period and later follow-up. The median age at onset of KD was 3.0 years (range: 0.2–16), the median duration of follow-up was 12.5 months (range: 1.7–100), and the median number of echocardiograms performed was 3 (range: 2–8). Intravenous immunoglobulin was given in 62 cases, and high-dose aspirin was given in 63. There were 35 children with no echocardiographic abnormalities at any point, and 15 other children had early abnormalities (including coronary ectasia, perivascular brightness, pericardial effusion, and ventricular dysfunction) but had a normal echocardiogram between 2 weeks and 2 months. Of these 50 children, none were noted to have abnormalities on later studies. Three children had effusion and/or perivascular brightness after 2 weeks; follow-up studies were normal in each. Six children had coronary ectasia after 2 weeks; it persisted on follow-up in 1 child and had resolved in 5 children. Eight children had coronary aneurysms on studies after 2 weeks; in 3 children, the aneurysm resolved on later follow-up. No coronary abnormalities were demonstrated on a late follow-up echocardiogram in any child with normal coronaries between 2 weeks and 2 months. Conclusions. All children with KD should have an echocardiogram at the time of diagnosis with a follow-up study 4 to 6 weeks after the onset of fever. In the current environment of cost-containment, additional echocardiographic studies are justified only if abnormalities are present at 4 to 6 weeks. Kawasaki disease, coronary artery aneurysm, echocardiography, coronary ectasia.
Grand and Less Grand Challenges in Avian Physiology

A series of grand challenges in avian physiology aremade. These challenges include determining the following. How themetabolic demands of flight are met including during migration and the unique control mechanisms? What is the neural, endocrine and paracrine control of gastro-intestinal functioning? How is the reproductive system of the hen controlled including recruitment and hierarchy of follicles, circadian pattern of ovulation and oviposition, cross-talk between the ovary and oviduct and neural, endocrine and paracrine control of the functioning of the oviduct? What are the roles of avian cytokines in the control of immune functioning and if there are non-immune related actions? What are the physiological adaption mechanisms that allow unique life patterns in avian species such as living in very cold water or on ice for penguins? When a function such as flight is lost/gained multiple times, what are the impacts on physiological control mechanisms? How can the techniques such as proteomics, metabolomics and microbiomics be applied to understanding the physiology of birds? How can existing and novel avian models be applied in new ways to biomedical investigations? Once we have fuller understanding of the effects of stress in birds, the challenge will be to understand the physiology of an unstressed bird?
Deploying a virtual network function over a software defined network infrastructure : experiences deploying an access control VNF in the University of Basque Country ’ s OpenFlow enabled facility

Network Function Virtualisation is one of the last buzzwords in the networking scenario. Although this functionality is many times related with Software Defined Networks this is not compulsory. For some, NFV can be seen as a new name for an assembly of known technologies, but substituting hardware boxes by Virtual Machines in the dynamic scenario of the slice creation in SDN based infrastructure is quite novel. In this article we will present our experience deploying a Virtualised Network Function to offer access control services (as an output of an AuthN/AuthZ process) on our OpenFlow Enabled Facility (EHU-OEF).
The Interaction between the Bulking Water and Pipe Surface and Their Correlations in Water Distribution System

The pipelines corrosion can result discolor and particle increase in tap water and the complaints from the consumers. It also has the economic and hydraulic impacts for the replacement of broken pipes and fouling of corroded pipes. This paper aimed to investigate the effect of processed drinking water on metal pipe corrosion in water distribution system and the relations between the bulking water quality and pipe corrosion. It was found that there is a close relation between iron corrosion and water quality parameters in water distribution pipelines. It was shown that lower pH and alkalinity can increase the corrosion rate, while higher chlorides and sulfate may cause pitting corrosion. DOC in pipe water would be beneficial for microbial induced corrosion.
Cysteinyl Cathepsins: Multifunctional Enzymes in Cardiovascular Disease

Until recently, the role of lysosomal cysteine protease cathepsins in intracellular protein degradation was believed to be mainly restricted to scavenging. However, recent studies have revealed nontraditional roles for cysteine protease cathepsins in the extracellular space during the development and progression of cardiovascular disease. Although the precise mechanisms are unknown, data from animal studies suggest that members of the cathepsin family, like other extracellular proteases, contribute to extracellular matrix protein remodeling and interstitial matrix degradation, as well as to cell signaling and cell apoptosis in heart disease. Inflammatory cytokines and hormones regulate the expression and secretion of cathepsins in cultured cardiovascular cells and macrophages. Serum levels of cathepsins L, S, and K and their endogenous inhibitor cystatin C may be useful predictive biomarkers in patients with coronary artery disease and cardiac disease. Furthermore, in vivo pharmacological intervention with a synthetic cathepsin inhibitor and cardiovascular drugs (including statins and angiotensin II type 1 receptor antagonists) has the potential for pharmacologic targeting of cathepsins in cardiovascular disease. This review focuses on cathepsin biology (structure, synthesis, processing, activation, secretion, activity regulation, and function) and the involvement of cysteinyl cathepsins in the pathogenesis of several heart and vessel diseases, especially with respect to their potential application as diagnostic and prognostic markers and drug targets to prevent inappropriate proteolysis in cardiovascular disease.
HRV scaling exponent identifies postinfarction patients who might benefit from prophylactic treatment with amiodarone

Analysing the Holter recordings collected at baseline during the European Myocardial Infarction Amiodarone Trial (EMIAT), we evaluate the possibility of using /spl alpha/, the slope of the power spectrum of heart rate variability signals (HRV) in the vicinity of f=0, for postinfarction risk stratification. We found no relevant difference in the values of /spl alpha/ for the placebo population. On the contrary, in the amiodarone arm, the distinction in the survival rates of those with high or low /spl alpha/-values was highly significant. Moreover, high risk patients with respect to /spl alpha/ (higher values) did not seem to benefit from amiodarone. The results suggest that /spl alpha/ might convey physiologic information that is different than what is expressed by other HRV characteristics, such as the triangular index. When combining high risk patients in term of triangular index (<20) and low risk patients with respect to /spl alpha/ (<median), the difference in survival on placebo and amiodarone became very substantial (24.2% mortality on placebo, 8.7% on amiodarone, p=0.017). This might offer a possibility of selecting patients likely to benefit from a prophylactic antiarrhythmic treatment after acute myocardial infarction.
Design and analysis of axial flux permanent magnet BLDC motor for automotive applications

The selection and design of motor for electric and hybrid vehicle is very important as the motor in this application should posses high power density, higher efficiency, fit in to limited space, and supreme heat removal capacity. One of the better selection for this kind may be an axial flux brushless DC motor. In this paper, an axial flux brush less DC motor is chosen for the study. A preliminary design is arrived based on the magnetic circuit and power balance equations. Then the Finite Element Analysis of the preliminary design is carried out. It is found from the FEA that the preliminary design can be refined. The major refinement is on shape of the magnet, and minor on shape of the slot and slot width. The different magnets shapes are studied and optimal shape is proposed which reduces the cogging torque. The performance of the motor (refined design) found from FEA is compared with the specified values and found that designed motor meets the requirements.
Rhythmic and sustained oscillations in metabolism and gene expression of Cyanothece sp. ATCC 51142 under constant light

Cyanobacteria, a group of photosynthetic prokaryotes, oscillate between day and night time metabolisms with concomitant oscillations in gene expression in response to light/dark cycles (LD). The oscillations in gene expression have been shown to sustain in constant light (LL) with a free running period of 24 h in a model cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942. However, equivalent oscillations in metabolism are not reported under LL in this non-nitrogen fixing cyanobacterium. Here we focus on Cyanothece sp. ATCC 51142, a unicellular, nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium known to temporally separate the processes of oxygenic photosynthesis and oxygen-sensitive nitrogen fixation. In a recent report, metabolism of Cyanothece 51142 has been shown to oscillate between photosynthetic and respiratory phases under LL with free running periods that are temperature dependent but significantly shorter than the circadian period. Further, the oscillations shift to circadian pattern at moderate cell densities that are concomitant with slower growth rates. Here we take this understanding forward and demonstrate that the ultradian rhythm under LL sustains at much higher cell densities when grown under turbulent regimes that simulate flashing light effect. Our results suggest that the ultradian rhythm in metabolism may be needed to support higher carbon and nitrogen requirements of rapidly growing cells under LL. With a comprehensive Real time PCR based gene expression analysis we account for key regulatory interactions and demonstrate the interplay between clock genes and the genes of key metabolic pathways. Further, we observe that several genes that peak at dusk in Synechococcus peak at dawn in Cyanothece and vice versa. The circadian rhythm of this organism appears to be more robust with peaking of genes in anticipation of the ensuing photosynthetic and respiratory metabolic phases.
Medical outcome after immediate computed tomography or admission for observation in patients with mild head injury: randomised controlled trial

Abstract Objective To compare immediate computed tomography during triage for admission with observation in hospital in patients with mild head injury. Design Multicentre, pragmatic, non-inferiority randomised trial. Setting 39 acute hospitals in Sweden. Participants 2602 patients (aged ≥ 6) with mild head injury. Interventions Immediate computed tomography or admission for observation. Main outcome measure Dichotomised extended Glasgow outcome scale (1-7 v 8). The non-inferiority margin was 5 percentage points. Results At three months, 275 patients (21.4%) in the computed tomography group had not recovered completely compared with 300 (24.2%) admitted for observation. The difference was - 2.8 percentage points, non-significantly in favour of computed tomography (95% confidence interval - 6.1% to 0.6%). The worst outcomes (mortality and more severe loss of function) were similar between the groups. In the patients admitted for observation, there was a considerable delay in time to treatment in those who required surgery. None of the patients with normal findings on immediate computed tomography had complications later. Patients' satisfaction with the two strategies was similar. Conclusions The use of computed tomography in the management of patients with mild head injury is feasible and leads to similar clinical outcomes compared with observation in hospital. Trial registration ISRCTN81464462 [controlled-trials.com].
Dynamic Adaptation of Distributed Java Applications in a Next Generation Internet Environment

With increasing number of high powered mobile devices, and the pervasiveness of high powered desktop machines, improvements in the design of client server systems may be possible. In a next generation Internet environment, client server systems should be able to take advantage of wasted resources on client devices. The heterogeneous nature of clients means that for an application to take full advantage of all available resources, it must adapt dynamically to suit its environment. This paper proposes a framework allowing applications to adapt dynamically using mobile code, thus allowing developers to have a high level of control over this adaptation.
S-Adenosylmethionine-dependent Protein Methylation Is Required for Expression of Selenoprotein P and Gluconeogenic Enzymes in HepG2 Human Hepatocytes

Background: Protein methylation is required for gluconeogenic enzyme expression. Selenoprotein P is transcriptionally controlled similarly to gluconeogenenic enzymes. S-adenosylhomocysteine is an inhibitor of methylation. Results: S-Adenosylhomocysteine decreases selenoprotein P and gluconeogenic enzyme expression. Conclusion: Hepatocellular methylation is a nexus of control over selenoprotein P and gluconeogenic enzyme expression. Significance: Determination of how methylation affects proteins involved in type II diabetes may aid in development of therapeutics. Cellular methylation processes enable expression of gluconeogenic enzymes and metabolism of the nutrient selenium. Selenium status has been proposed to relate to type II diabetes risk, and plasma levels of selenoprotein P (SEPP1) have been positively correlated with insulin resistance. Increased expression of gluconeogenic enzymes glucose-6-phosphatase (G6PC) and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase 1 (PCK1) has negative consequences for blood glucose management in type II diabetics. Transcriptional regulation of SEPP1 is directed by the same transcription factors that control the expression of G6PC and PCK1, and these factors are activated by methylation of arginine residues. We sought to determine whether expression of SEPP1 and the aforementioned glucoconeogenic enzymes are regulated by protein methylation, the levels of which are reliant upon adequate S-adenosylmethionine (SAM) and inhibited by S-adenosylhomocysteine (SAH). We treated a human hepatocyte cell line, HepG2, with inhibitors of adenosylhomocysteine hydrolase (AHCY) known to increase concentration of SAH before analysis of G6PC, PCK1, and SEPP1 expression. Increasing SAH decreased 1) the SAM/SAH ratio, 2) protein-arginine methylation, and 3) expression of SEPP1, G6PC, and PCK1 transcripts. Furthermore, hormone-dependent induction of gluconeogenic enzymes was reduced by inhibition of protein methylation. When protein-arginine methyltransferase 1 expression was reduced by siRNA treatment, G6PC expression was inhibited. These findings demonstrate that hepatocellular SAM-dependent protein methylation is required for both SEPP1 and gluconeogenic enzyme expression and that inhibition of protein arginine methylation might provide a route to therapeutic interventions in type II diabetes.
The tale beyond the tail: histone core domain modifications and the regulation of chromatin structure

Histone post-translational modifications occur, not only in the N-terminal tail domains, but also in the core domains. While modifications in the N-terminal tail function largely through the regulation of the binding of non-histone proteins to chromatin, based on their location in the nucleosome, core domain modifications may also function through distinct mechanisms involving structural alterations to the nucleosome. This article reviews the recent developments in regards to these novel histone modifications and discusses their important role in the regulation of chromatin structure.
A div-curl regularization model for fingerprint orientation extraction

Extracting reliable fingerprint orientation over low quality fingerprints is still a challenging problem. In this paper, we analyze the distribution of divergence and curl of fingerprint orientation vector field. Then a div-curl regularization model is proposed to minimize the combination of weighted divergence, curl and data fidelity term. This model yields a new nonlinear partial differential equation (PDE) for orientation regularization. The equation has an adaptive diffusivity depending on the position relative to the reference point, providing orientation vector fields which have desired distribution of divergence and curl. The proposed approach has been evaluated on a web-based automated evaluation system FVC-onGoing, and it ranks the first in published six algorithms.