Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Significance of endotoxaemia in chronic kidney disease.

the mean of all PTH, calcium and phosphorus measurements obtained during the whole period of 9 months, before (PTH 590.4 pg/ml) and 9 months after the treatment with cinacalcet (PTH 414.2 pg/ml). In the Table, the PTH, calcium and phosphorus at time 0 (just before starting cinacalcet) and after 9 months of treatment with cinacalcet are shown. Control of secondary hyperparathyroidism (SHPT) in CKD patients is frequently difficult [1,2] and it has important implications for patient morbidity and mortality [3,4]. Fortunately, in recent years, there have been important advances with the appearence of new drugs which represent a clear benefit in the treatment of this problem. The ability of cinacalcet to reduce PTH secretion, along with reductions in the serum calcium, phosphorus and calcium–phosphorus product, provides an alternative to the traditional treatment paradigm, and should be an addition to our therapeutic strategy in the management of SHPT. In addition to its effects on PTH and mineral metabolism, cinacalcet has demonstrated favourable effects on important clinical outcomes: combined results from four clinical trials (cinacalcet randomization) led to significant reductions in the risk of parathyroidectomy, fractures and cardiovascular hospitalization, along with improvements in self-reported physical function and diminished pain [5]. On the other hand, the pleiotropic effects of vitamin D have recently been highlighted; vitamin D regulates cell proliferation and differentiation, modulates the immune system, and is involved in several endocrine systems. Vitamin D metabolites therapy provides survival benefits and, certainly, paricalcitol has demonstrated good results in terms of PTH, calcium and phosphorus control, as well as a reduced mortality risk when comparing treated and untreated patients [6]. The optimal treatment for SHPT in HD patients is yet to be established. It is possible that the combined use of both drugs (cinacalcet and paricalcitol) might offer some therapeutical advantages: we should further investigate the use of these drugs (either alone or in combination) in different patient populations and see the outcomes in terms of mortality, morbidity and costs, in order to establish the most efficient treatment in each situation.
Factors Affecting Recurrent Carotid Stenosis

Recurrent carotid stenosis is an ongoing process that may develop at or near the site of an operational or interventional procedure to treat an atheromatous stenosis. Although such a restenosis is most often initially without symptoms, as the disease progresses it may become symptomatic, and thus endanger the patient's life. Such patients are therefore candidates for revisional surgery. Extensive research investigation and numerous studies have incriminated several risk factors as predisposing conditions for recurrent carotid stenosis. The definite role of each predisposing factor, however, is still widely debated. Clarifying the extent of involvement of each factor in the pathogenesis of carotid restenosis is indeed demanding, as it would contribute enormously to the identification of the group of high-risk patients, and, therefore, determine the therapeutic approach in these patients.
Pulmonary capillary pressure and filtration coefficient in the isolated perfused lung.

GAAR, KERMIT A. , JR.,* AUBREY E. TAYLOR, L. JENNINGS OWENS, AND ARTHUR C. GUYTON. Pulmonary capillary pressure and jltration coeficient in the isolated perfused lung. Am. J. Physiol. 213(4): 910-914. 1967. -An “isogravimetric” method was used to estimate the pulmonary capillary pressure, to determine the arterial and venous resistances in the isolated perfused lobe of a dog’s lung, and to determine its filtration coefficient. The average pulmonary capillary pressure found in 51 experiments was 7.0 zt 1.4 mm Hg SD. The average pulmonary arterial and venous resistances were 0.0 18 and 0.014 mm Hg/ml per min, respectively. The relative distribution of these resistances in relation to total resistance of the lobe was approximately 56% arterial and 44% venous. The filtration coefficient for the pulmonary capillary membrane was found to be 0.070 k 0.010 SD g/mm Hg per min per 100 g of tissue.
Selective GPU caches to eliminate CPU-GPU HW cache coherence

Cache coherence is ubiquitous in shared memory multiprocessors because it provides a simple, high performance memory abstraction to programmers. Recent work suggests extending hardware cache coherence between CPUs and GPUs to help support programming models with tightly coordinated sharing between CPU and GPU threads. However, implementing hardware cache coherence is particularly challenging in systems with discrete CPUs and GPUs that may not be produced by a single vendor. Instead, we propose, selective caching, wherein we disallow GPU caching of any memory that would require coherence updates to propagate between the CPU and GPU, thereby decoupling the GPU from vendor-specific CPU coherence protocols. We propose several architectural improvements to offset the performance penalty of selective caching: aggressive request coalescing, CPU-side coherent caching for GPU-uncacheable requests, and a CPU-GPU interconnect optimization to support variable-size transfers. Moreover, current GPU workloads access many read-only memory pages; we exploit this property to allow promiscuous GPU caching of these pages, relying on page-level protection, rather than hardware cache coherence, to ensure correctness. These optimizations bring a selective caching GPU implementation to within 93% of a hardware cache-coherent implementation without the need to integrate CPUs and GPUs under a single hardware coherence protocol.
Human Factors Influencing Decision Making

Abstract : This report supplies references and comments on literature that identifies human factors influencing decision making, particularly military decision making. The literature has been classified as follows (the classes are not mutually exclusive): features of human information processing; decision making models which are not mathematical models but rather are descriptive; non-personality factors influencing decision making; national characteristics influencing decision making; personality factors influencing decision making; decision making in a military organization. The decision maker is influenced by many factors both internal to the decision maker and external to him/her. The environmental context in which a decision is made makes it difficult to associate personality traits with specific decision making behavior. Internal factors that influence decision making include limited information processing and memory capabilities. These limitations can result in biases in processing information such as anchoring (undue weight for evidence supporting(the initial hypothesis) or recency (undue weight on more recent evidence). The limitations can also result in decision making heuristics. Training and experience can lessen the effects of limited information processing and memory capabilities. The first part of the report is a summary of the findings of the literature survey. This is followed by detailed endnotes concerning the references.
Multilayer mounting enables long-term imaging of zebrafish development in a light sheet microscope

Light sheet microscopy techniques, such as selective plane illumination microscopy (SPIM), are ideally suited for time-lapse imaging of developmental processes lasting several hours to a few days. The success of this promising technology has mainly been limited by the lack of suitable techniques for mounting fragile samples. Embedding zebrafish embryos in agarose, which is common in conventional confocal microscopy, has resulted in severe growth defects and unreliable results. In this study, we systematically quantified the viability and mobility of zebrafish embryos mounted under more suitable conditions. We found that tubes made of fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP) filled with low concentrations of agarose or methylcellulose provided an optimal balance between sufficient confinement of the living embryo in a physiological environment over 3 days and optical clarity suitable for fluorescence imaging. We also compared the effect of different concentrations of Tricaine on the development of zebrafish and provide guidelines for its optimal use depending on the application. Our results will make light sheet microscopy techniques applicable to more fields of developmental biology, in particular the multiview long-term imaging of zebrafish embryos and other small organisms. Furthermore, the refinement of sample preparation for in toto and in vivo imaging will promote other emerging optical imaging techniques, such as optical projection tomography (OPT).
Metabolic Effects of Aerobic Training and Resistance Training in Type 2 Diabetic Subjects

OBJECTIVE To assess differences between the effects of aerobic and resistance training on HbA1c (primary outcome) and several metabolic risk factors in subjects with type 2 diabetes, and to identify predictors of exercise-induced metabolic improvement. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS Type 2 diabetic patients (n = 40) were randomly assigned to aerobic training or resistance training. Before and after 4 months of intervention, metabolic phenotypes (including HbA1c, glucose clamp–measured insulin sensitivity, and oral glucose tolerance test–assessed β-cell function), body composition by dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, visceral (VAT) and subcutaneous (SAT) adipose tissue by magnetic resonance imaging, cardiorespiratory fitness, and muscular strength were measured. RESULTS After training, increase in peak oxygen consumption (VO2peak) was greater in the aerobic group (time-by-group interaction P = 0.045), whereas increase in strength was greater in the resistance group (time-by-group interaction P < 0.0001). HbA1c was similarly reduced in both groups (−0.40% [95% CI −0.61 to −0.18] vs. −0.35% [−0.59 to −0.10], respectively). Total and truncal fat, VAT, and SAT were also similarly reduced in both groups, whereas insulin sensitivity and lean limb mass were similarly increased. β-Cell function showed no significant changes. In multivariate analyses, improvement in HbA1c after training was independently predicted by baseline HbA1c and by changes in VO2peak and truncal fat. CONCLUSIONS Resistance training, similarly to aerobic training, improves metabolic features and insulin sensitivity and reduces abdominal fat in type 2 diabetic patients. Changes after training in VO2peak and truncal fat may be primary determinants of exercise-induced metabolic improvement.
Biais attentionnels envers des parties spécifiques du corps : rôle de l'insatisfaction corporelle

Les donnees de la litterature demontrent que les femmes plus ou moins insatisfaites de leur apparence physique ont tendance a focaliser leur attention sur certaines parties de leur corps. Parallelement, un certain nombre d’etudes met en evidence qu’un stimulus pertinent et/ou emotionnel favorise la capture attentionnelle. Ainsi, ces femmes alloueraient leur attention preferentiellement envers des parties de corps jugees pertinentes pour l’image corporelle, creant ainsi des biais. La presente etude a pour but d’investiguer le lien entre ces biais attentionnels et les parties de corps impliquees dans l’insatisfaction corporelle chez 90 femmes. Ce lien sera egalement explore en prenant en compte l’importance que ces femmes accordent aux differentes facettes de l’image corporelle. Pour ce faire, les participantes ont effectue une tâche de detection de cible et ont rempli plusieurs questionnaires.
HOW DID LIFE BECOME SO DIVERSE? THE DYNAMICS OF DIVERSIFICATION ACCORDING TO THE FOSSIL RECORD AND MOLECULAR PHYLOGENETICS

Abstract: The long‐term diversification of life probably cannot be modelled as a simple equilibrial process: the time scales are too long, the potential for exploring new ecospace is too large and it is unlikely that ecological controls can act at global scales. The sum of many clade expansions and reductions, each of which happens according to its own dynamic, probably approximates more a damped exponential curve when translated into a global‐scale species diversification curve. Unfortunately, it is not possible to plot such a meaningful global‐scale species diversification curve through time, but curves at higher taxonomic levels have been produced. These curves are subject to the vagaries of the fossil record, but it is unlikely that the sources of error entirely overwhelm the biological signal. Clades radiate when the external and internal conditions are right: a new territory or ecospace becomes available, and the lineage has acquired a number of characters that open up a new diet or mode of life. Modern high levels of diversity in certain speciose clades may depend on such ancient opportunities taken. Dramatic climatic changes through the Quaternary must have driven extinctions and originations, but many species responded simply by moving to more favourable locations. Ecological communities appear to be no more than merely chance associations of species, but there may be real interactions among species. Ironically, high species diversity may lead to more speciation, not, as had been assumed, less: more species create more opportunities and selective pressures for other species to respond to, rather than capping diversity at a fixed equilibrium level. Studies from the scale of modern ecosystems to global long‐term patterns in the fossil record support a model for the exponential diversification of life, and one explanation for a pattern of exponential diversification is that as diversity increases, new forms become ever more refinements of existing forms. In a sense the world becomes increasingly divided into finer niche space. Organisms have a propensity to speciate freely, species richness within ecosystems appears to generate opportunities for more speciation, clades show all kinds of patterns from sluggish speciation rates and constant diversity through time to apparently explosive speciation, and there is no evidence that rapidly speciating clades have reached a limit, nor that they are driving other clades to extinction. A corollary of this view is that current biodiversity must be higher than it has ever been. Limits to infinite growth are clearly local, regional, and global turnover and extinction events, when climate change and physical catastrophes knock out species and whole clades, and push the rising exponential curve down a notch or two.
Inference of Graphical Causal Models: Representing the Meaningful Information of Probability Distributions

This paper studies the feasibility and interpretation of learning the causal structure from observational data with the principles behind the Kolmogorov Minimal Sufficient Statistic (KMSS). The KMSS provides a generic solution to inductive inference. It states that we should seek for the minimal model that captures all regularities of the data. The conditional independencies following from the system's causal structure are the regularities incorporated in a graphical causal model. The meaningful information provided by a Bayesian network corresponds to the decomposition of the description of the system into Conditional Probability Distributions (CPDs). The decomposition is described by the Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG). For a causal interpretation of the DAG, the decomposition should imply modularity of the CPDs. The CPDs should match up with independent parts of reality that can be changed independently. We argue that if the shortest description of the joint distribution is given by separate descriptions of the conditional distributions for each variable given its effects, the decomposition given by the DAG should be considered as the top-ranked causal hypothesis. Even when the causal interpretation is faulty, it serves as a reference model. Modularity becomes, however, implausible if the concatenation of the description of some CPDs is compressible. Then there might be a kind of meta-mechanism governing some of the mechanisms or either a single mechanism responsible for setting the state of multiple variables.
Identification of a celE-binding protein and its potential role in induction of the celE gene in Thermomonospora fusca

Thermomonospora fusca cellulase E5 is encoded by the celE gene. This gene appears to be regulated at the transcriptional level by both induction and repression, and three putative closely linked promoters have been located by S1 mapping. To study its regulatory mechanism, a gel retardation assay was used to identify a protein in T. fusca cell extracts that interacted specifically with the DNA fragment containing the celE promoters. It was found that the binding activity appeared only when cellulase synthesis was induced, and it therefore resembled an activator protein involved in cellulase induction. DNase I footprinting identified the target sequence for this protein as a 21-base-pair sequence downstream from the putative celE promoters. The level of this protein was measured in two cellulase constitutive mutants, and the results suggest a complex control for celE induction.
Repurposing Video Game Software for Musical Expression: A Perceptual Approach

The text exposes a perceptual approach to instrument design and composition, and introduces an instrument that combines acoustic sound, digital sound, and digital image. We explore disparities between human perception and digital analysis as creative material. Because the instrument repurposes software intended to create video games, we establish a distinction between the notion of “flow” in music and gaming, questioning how it may substantiate in interaction design. Furthermore, we describe how the projected image creates a reactive stage scene without deviating attention from the music.
Iron absorption from maize (Zea mays) and sorghum (Sorghum vulgare) beer

1. Iron absorption from maize (Zea mays) and sorghum (Sorghum vulgore) beer was more than twelvefold greater than from a gruel made from the constituents used to prepare the beer. 2. The effect of changes occurring during brewing were investigated. These changes include a decrease in the solid content, and the formation of 30 ml ethanol/l and 5 ml lactic acid/]. 3. The presence of solid material was found to inhibit Fe absorption markedly, especially when the solid content was 100 g/l or more. 4. The presence of ethanol potentiated Fe absorption but the effect was only modest in gruels with a high solid content. 5 Fe absorption from a 2 ml lactic acid/] solution was four-fold greater than from a hydrochloric acid solution of the same pH. When lactic acid was added to a gruel containing 200 8 solids/l the mean absorbtion rose from 0.4 to 1.2%. 6. In a direct comparison, Fe absorption from beer was significantly better than from a gruel of similar pH containing lactic acid. 7. The results suggest that at least three factors are responsible for the enhanced Fe absorption from maize and sorghum beer. These include the removal of solids during fermentation and the presence of ethanol and of lactic acid in the final brew. 8. In order to reproduce the way in which beer is brewed domestically in Fe containers, a study was done in which beer was prepared in the presence of Fe wire. Under such circumstances Fe was rapidly dissolved and the final Fe concentration of the brew was 89 mg/l. However, the nature of the Fecontaining compound or compounds was not elucidated.
Distributed Spatial Data Warehouse Indexed with Virtual Memory Aggregation Tree

In this paper we present a distributed spatial data warehouse system designed for storing and analyzing a wide range of spatial data. The data is generated by media meters working in a radio based measurement system. The distributed system is based on a new model called the cascaded star model. In order to provide satisfactory interactivity for our system, we used distributed computing supported by a special indexing structure called an aggregation tree. We provide a detailed description of distributed system components and their co-operation. The indexing structure operation is tightly integrated with the spatial character of the data and the data model. Thanks to a memory managing mechanism the system is very flexible in the field of aggregates accuracy. A final selective materialization of indexing structure fragments strongly increases the system’s efficiency. Basing on the tests results, we compare the efficiencies of the distributed and a singlemachine systems, and demonstrate the importance of indexing structure materialization.
Electricity load pattern hedging with static forward strategies

We consider the partial hedging of stochastic electricity load pattern with static forward strategies. We assume that the company under consideration maximizes the risk adjusted expected value of its electricity cash flows. First, we calculate an optimal hedge ratio and after that we use this hedge ratio to solve the optimal hedging time. Our results indicate, for instance that agents with high load volatility hedge later than agents that have low load volatility. Moreover, negative correlation between forwards and electricity load pattern postpones the hedging timing.
A compact UWB passive balun solution for cryogenic 2-13 GHz Eleven feed for future wideband radio telescopes

The decade bandwidth Eleven antenna can be considered to have either 4 differential ports or eight single-ended ports, and different ways of combining the eight ports are needed for different purposes and applications. This paper presents a new passive balun for the Eleven antenna and a way to integrate four of these baluns together with the antenna in such a way that the 4 differential ports reduce to 4 single-ended ports. The baluns are realized on printed-circuit-boards (PCB) that are located vertically to the ground plane on the rear side of it.
Thiopurine Effectiveness in Patients with Crohn's Disease: A Study of Genetic and Clinical Predictive Factors

Background: Thiopurines are efficacious in the treatment of Crohn's disease and were recently shown to induce T-cell apoptosis by modulation of Rac1 activation. To assess whether polymorphisms in Rac1 and other apoptosis-related genes, combined with clinical parameters, can predict response to thiopurines. Methods: A retrospective cohort of 156 thiopurine-treated patients with Crohn's disease was genotyped for 11 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs): 9 SNPs in Rac1, 1 SNP in the Fas ligand −843 T>C, and 1 SNP in the Caspase-9 93 C>T. Clinical data were extracted from the medical charts. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) of the association between demographic, clinical, and genetic variables and thiopurine response rates were calculated. Results: The overall response rate to thiopurines was 74% (115/156). The Rac1 SNP rs34932801 heterozygote genotype GC was associated with a lower response rate compared with the wild-type GG genotype (46% versus 76%; OR = 0.26; 95% CI, 0.08–0.91; P = 0.036). Only wild-type homozygotes were found for 5 Rac1 SNPs. None of the other 3 Rac1 SNPs were associated with response to thiopurines. Patients with Montreal B3 behavior pattern responded worse than those with a B1 behavior pattern (59%, versus 80%; OR = 0.37; 95% CI, 0.17–0.83; P = 0.016). Sephardic Jews had a lower response rate to thiopurines compared with Jews of Ashkenazi or mixed ancestry (60% versus 82%; OR = 0.32; 95% CI, 0.15–0.69, P = 0.003). Conclusions: Rac1 SNP rs34932801carriage, Montreal B3 disease behavior, and a Sephardic Jewish origin were associated with unfavorable response to thiopurines. Corroboration of these associations in larger cohorts is warranted.