Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Characterization of small (≤3 cm) hepatic lesions with atypical enhancement feature and hypointensity in hepatobiliary phase of gadoxetic acid-enhanced MRI in cirrhosis

Abstract It is difficult to characterize the nodular lesions in cirrhotic liver if typical enhancement pattern is not present on dynamic contrast-enhanced imagings. Although the signal intensity of the hepatobiliary phase in gadoxetic acid-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is helpful for characterization of the lesions, some dysplastic nodules may also exhibit low signal intensity in the hepatobiliary phase. We aimed to assess the usefulness of gadoxetic acid (Gd-EOB-DTPA)-enhanced MRI including diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) for differentiation between atypical small hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) and dysplastic nodules showing low signal intensity (SI) in the hepatobiliary phase, and to evaluate the MRI findings in determining the histological grade of atypical HCCs in patients with cirrhosis. A total of 43 cirrhotic patients with a small (⩽3 cm) liver nodule (n = 25, HCC; n = 18, dysplastic nodule) who underwent Gd-EOB-DTPA-enhanced MRI and pathologic confirmation were retrospectively reviewed. Atypical HCC was defined as not showing arterial hyperenhancement and delayed washout on dynamic MRI. High SI on both T2WI and DWI (sensitivity 80.0%, specificity 100%, positive predictive value 100%, negative predictive value 78.3%) was the most specific feature to differentiate atypical HCCs from dysplastic nodules. High SI on both T2WI and DWI (100% vs 61.5%, P = .039) or low SI on pre-enhanced T1WI (83.3% vs 30.8%, P = .021) was more frequent observed in Edmonson grade II–III HCCs compared with those in grade I HCCs. The combination of DWI and T2WI is most useful for the differentiation of atypical small HCCs from dysplastic nodules showing low SI in the hepatobiliary phase. Combination of DWI and T2WI or pre-enhanced T1WI seems to be useful for predicting the histological grade of atypical HCCs.
Retinoic acid nuclear receptor β inhibits breast carcinoma anchorage independent growth

Retinoids modulate cellular proliferation and mediate gene function through a series of nuclear receptors. The retinoic acid nuclear receptor β (RARβ) plays an important role in the differentiation of a number of cell types. We now demonstrate that RARβ expresion is confined to normal mammary tissue and is not expressed in either immortalized normal or malignant cell lines. Treatment of RARβ‐transfected MDA‐MB‐231 cells with 1 μM all‐trans‐retinoic acid (RA) significantly inhibited monolayer growth of the cells which express recombinant RARβ. RARβ‐expressing MDA‐MB‐231 cells formed significantly smaller and fewer colonies soft agar than the mock‐transfected cells. Addition of 1 μM RA stimulated colony size and number in the RARβ‐transfected MDA‐MB‐231 cells. In contast to the RARβ‐expressing cells, colony formation by the RARβ‐expressing cells was similar to the mock‐transfected controls and the addition of 1 μM RA to the RARα‐transfected cells inhibited colony formation. While demonstrating decreased colony formation in agar, RARβ‐expressing MDA‐MB‐231 cells failed to exhibit decreased growth in SCID mice. Our results show that RARβ functions as a negative regulator of growth in breast epithelial cells. In addition, the growth of these cells is differentially regulated by RARα and RARβ which is most likely the result to the modulation of different genes. © 1995 Wiley‐Liss Inc.
Contrast Dynamics During CT Pulmonary Angiogram: Analysis of an Inspiration Associated Artifact

Objective Several artifacts have been observed during contrast-enhanced CT of the pulmonary arteries. We describe a physiological artifact caused by a transient interruption of the contrast column in the pulmonary arteries associated with inspiration immediately prior to imaging. This results from a variable inflow of unopacified blood from the inferior vena cava (IVC). Materials and Methods From 327 consecutive pulmonary CT-angiograms, all performed on a single detector scanner at 3mm collimation (1.5mm incremental reconstruction), 50 positive studies, 46 indeterminate studies, and 33 negative studies (129 exams) were retrospectively reviewed by a blinded observer to determine the frequency of the described contrast interruption, its severity (mild, moderate, or severe), and its possible contribution to misinterpretation of studies. The numerical change in Hounsfield units was assigned within the right ventricular chamber for each examination to correlate with the subjective evaluation of severity. Statistical significance was determined with P = 0.05%. Results The artifact was present in 48 (37.2%) of the 129 evaluated studies. It was greater in frequency (50.0%) with the negative studies. The presence was 25% with positive studies and 36.7% with indeterminate exams. The interruption was more often mild (<100 HU change) in severity (45.8%). Three (6.6%) definite false positives were detected where the misinterpretation was directly attributed to the artifact. Three (6.6%) other examinations called positive were also directly related to the interrupted contrast column. However, since no further pulmonary vascular evaluation was performed, these examinations can only be considered indeterminate. Two of the latter 3 studies demonstrated a severe (>150 HU change) and the other study demonstrated a moderate (100–150 HU) interruption of contrast opacification. Conclusions During inspiration, there is a variable increase in unopacified venous blood from the IVC, briefly diluting the contrast column entering from the SVC. This interruption is common, though usually mild in severity. However, a short severe interruption of vascular opacification can lead to misinterpretation as a pulmonary embolus or contribute to an indeterminate examination.
Effect of a reminder system using an automated short message service on medication adherence following acute coronary syndrome

Background: Medication non-adherence leads to a vast range of negative outcomes in patients with coronary artery disease. An automated web-based system managing short message service (SMS) reminders is a telemedicine approach to optimise adherence among patients who frequently forget to take their medications or miss the timing. Aim: This paper sought to investigate the effect of automated SMS-based reminders on medication adherence in patients after hospital discharge following acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Methods: An interventional study was conducted at a tertiary teaching hospital in Malaysia. A total of 62 patients with ACS were equally randomised to receive either automated SMS reminders before every intake of cardiac medications or only usual care within eight weeks after discharge. The primary outcome was adherence to cardiac medications. Secondary outcomes were the heart functional status, and ACS-related hospital readmission and death rates. Results: There was a higher medication adherence level in the intervention group rather than the usual care group, (χ2 (2)=18.614, p<0.001). The risk of being low adherent among the control group was 4.09 times greater than the intervention group (relative risk =4.09, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.82–9.18). A meaningful difference was found in heart functional status between the two study groups with better results among patients who received SMS reminders, (χ2 (1) = 16.957, p<0.001). Conclusion: An automated SMS-based reminder system can potentially enhance medication adherence in ACS patients during the early post-discharge period.
Culture in the Classroom: Recommendations for the Writing Teacher

As a Peace Corps English teacher in Kenya, I was introduced to the issue of cultural differences between teacher and student in a rather unique way. My initial placement in Northern Kenya brought me to an allboys high school to teach English to students from a variety of different tribes in Kenya, Somalia and Sudan. It was then that I began recognizing the impact of cultural differences on education. I began questioning my "western" methods as a teacher and how these methods influence students of a different cultural background. I began wondering if there was a better way to teach students of a variety of cultural backgrounds. I resisted teaching by memorization and using "incentives" such as the usual caning and taught using group work and creative writing practices. I felt good about my efforts, but I always wondered if I left my students with the skills they needed to pass the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) examination. I left my students with an increased ability to rely on their own ideas and creative energies regarding writing and an ability to generate new ideas without the spoon-fed guidance of the teacher. Unfortunately, the kinds of knowledge they would be tested on in the KCSE exam were primarily memorization skills. Researching the topic of cultural influences in the writing classroom has given me the opportunity to look again at my own teaching practices and re-evaluate my future methods as a writing teacher.
Infanticide in Malaysia: Two case reports and a review of literature

In a strict and conservative society like Malaysia, the number of cases of infanticide has continued to occur. The authors present two typical cases of infanticide in Malaysia. Case 1 concerned a body of a fully mature newborn fetus disposed in a rubbish bin. The head was traumatically amputated by the rubbish truck’s compactor. The umbilical cord was still attached to the body, with no reddening around the insertion. The severed neck showed features consistent with post-mortem amputation. The significant finding was expanded crepitant lungs, which floated in water. The histology of the lungs showed expanded alveoli. It was concluded that the baby had been born alive, but no cause of death could be elicited. Case 2 concerned a decomposed mature newborn found in a scrub forest. The internal organs showed advanced putrefaction, the lungs being collapsed, congested, and hemorrhagic, typical of decomposed lungs. No conclusion could be made about the state of birth or the cause of death because of the putrefied state of the body. The two cases illustrate the typical cases and problems faced by pathologists locally and probably elsewhere in the world. Most of the bodies are found in a putrefied state. Pathologists have to ascertain not only maturity and live birth but also the cause of death, which may be very subtle or masked by putrefaction. The problems of diagnosis of live birth are discussed.
Polycation‐based DNA complexes for tumor‐targeted gene delivery in vivo

Efficient and target‐specific in vivo gene delivery is a major challenge in gene therapy. Compared to cell culture application, in vivo gene delivery faces a variety of additional obstacles such as anatomical size constraints, interactions with biological fluids and extracellular matrix, and binding to a broad variety of non‐target cell types.
A new analytical approach to estimate the effects of SEUs in TMR architectures implemented through SRAM-based FPGAs

In order to deploy successfully commercially-off-the-shelf SRAM-based FPGA devices in safety- or mission-critical applications, designers need to adopt suitable hardening techniques, as well as methods for validating the correctness of the obtained designs, as far as the system's dependability is concerned. In this paper we describe a new analytical approach to estimate the dependability of TMR designs implemented on SRAM-based FPGAs that, by exploiting a detailed knowledge of FPGAs architectures and configuration memory, is able to predict the effects of single event upsets with the same accuracy of fault injection but at a fraction of the fault-injection's execution time.
DEVELOPING ISLAMIC BANKING PERFORMANCE MEASURES BASED ON MAQASID AL-SHARI’AH FRAMEWORK: CASES OF 24 SELECTED BANKS

Islamic banking has achieved remarkable growth that has surpassed the growth of the conventional banking system. Yet, studies show that the performances of Islamic banks (IBs) seem to be trailing behind the conventional banks (CBs). Is the poor performance of IBs the result of mismatch between their objectives and their performance measurement criteria or it is a reflection of their true performances? The objectives of Islamic banking had not been formally addressed. Mustafa and Taib (2009) derived the objectives of Islamic banking from Abu Zahara’s theory of the objectives of Shari’ah (Maqasid al-Shari’ah) and, based on these Shari’ah objectives, developed a model of Islamic banking performance measures. They named it as Performance Measures based on Maqasid al-Shari’ah framework or the PMMS model. This paper has tested the PMMS model on a sample 24 banks (12 IBs and 12 CBs). The twenty four banks were also evaluated using the traditional conventional financial measures. Mann-Whitney U-Test results show IBs faring well in their performances when measured using the PMMS model than when they are measured using the conventional banking performance yardstick. Policy prescriptions and recommendations for further studies are provided at the concluding section of the paper. Key words: Maqasid al-shari’ah, operationalization, PMMS Model, Simple Additive Weighting (SAW), Mann-Whitney U-Test. JEL Classification: A13, B59, C02, C6, C12, C19, C42, C43, G21, M21, P46, P47, P49
Transforming Industrial Complexes to Innovative Clusters? A Korean Case Study

Global economic environment based on globalization processes caused a severe competition between the nations, and these nations launched various strategic approaches to increase their market shares in the global markets. The economic globalization process stimulates changes of technology environment that is not favor for the technology advanced nations to transfer their strategic technology areas toward developing and newly industrialized nations. Moreover, due to the change of external economic and technological environment national development strategies in all nations are also changing. In order to generate economic growth and gain a better position in severe competition between nations, the advanced nations have already established strong national and regional innovation systems The nations participating in the globalization processes actively tend to close free trade agreements (FTA) in order to intensify the movement of their production factors across the national borders as quick as possible. This new trend has cognized the importance of regions and regional competitiveness that are based on regional industries. In line with the new trend of global economies, building innovative local clusters has become one of the core strategies to develop the nations further. This frame shift has affected South Korea to a high extent because the nation cannot develop further without inventing its own core technology that costs a vast capital as well as takes a long time. This paper examines an attempt to restructure existing industrial complexes, turning them into innovative clusters at regional and local level. This contribution also tries to identify the tasks and strategies necessary to build locally embedded innovative clusters and how to best analyze these.
Efficacy of Spinal Instrumentation and Fusion in the Prevention of Postlaminectomy Spinal Deformity in Children With Intramedullary Spinal Cord Tumors

Postlaminectomy spinal deformity is a frequent problem after resection of a pediatric spinal cord tumor. However, the use of spinal fusion done at the time of resection in preventing the development of deformity is unknown. The purpose of our study was to assess the effectiveness of single-stage laminectomy, spinal cord decompression, and fusion for the prevention of postlaminectomy spinal deformity in children with intramedullary spinal cord tumors. Clinical charts and radiographs of 33 children with spinal cord tumors were reviewed for treatment description, preoperative spinal alignment, postoperative spinal alignment, and subsequent medical and surgical treatment. Spinal deformity was graded by predefined criteria. Significant spinal deformity developed in 10 of 17 children with laminectomy only, 3 of 4 children with laminoplasty, and 3 of 12 children with spinal fusion (2/6 with instrumentation, 1/6 with in situ fusion). Excluding patients that progressed to paraplegia, 9 of 16 patients treated with resection without fusion compared with 1 of 10 patients treated with resection and fusion developed a spinal deformity (P = 0.04). Among skeletally mature children that did not progress to paraplegia, 9 of 15 treated with resection without fusion compared with 1 of 7 patients treated with resection and fusion developed a deformity (P = 0.05). Removal of greater than 4 laminae (P = 0.03) was found to be associated with the development of postresection spinal deformity.
The Quorum Sensing Negative Regulators EsaR and ExpREcc, Homologues within the LuxR Family, Retain the Ability To Function as Activators of Transcription

ABSTRACT Most LuxR homologues function as activators of transcription during the process of quorum sensing, but a few, including EsaR and ExpREcc, negatively impact gene expression. The LuxR-activated luxI promoter and LuxR binding site, the lux box, were used in artificial contexts to assess the potential for transcriptional activation and DNA binding by EsaR and ExpREcc. Although the acyl-homoserine lactone responsiveness of both proteins is the opposite of that shown by most LuxR family members, EsaR and ExpREcc have preserved the ability to interact with RNA polymerase and activate transcription despite their low affinity for the lux box DNA.
The Position of Women in Community Management

There is no need to say that as a half of the human population, women play an unmatched Role in the developing process of each country, but global statistics indicate that they are in lower position in comparison with men. Women are faced with various discriminations in different areas, such as education, employment, health, nourishment, politics, family life and individual and social freedom which have caused them to get less individual and social progressive opportunities than men. This study precisely investigates the situation of women in labor market. The achieved results indicate that in Iran labor market, women are not in an entirely desirable opposition, especially considering some other social components such as education, fertility rate, marriage age and so on, while the changing process had promoted the situation in favor of them. But the acceleration of these changes is low and the necessity of more drastic changes is clearly understandable. Not proceeding to this has caused different social- economical consequences this from this point of view will end in an increase in social vulnerability of country.
Mexican Rice Borer (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) Oviposition Site Selection Stimuli on Sugarcane, and Potential Field Applications

ABSTRACT The Mexican rice borer, Eoreuma loftini (Dyar) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), a key pest of sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) and rice, Oryza sativa L. , in Texas, has not been controlled with chemical insecticides or biological agents, but some sugarcane varieties have shown degrees of resistance. Assessment of selected sugarcane leaf characteristics indicate that preference for oviposition sites is mostly determined by the presence of a leaf fold and secondarily by the availability of dry leaf tissue, both of which are antixenotic nonchemical stimuli. We suggest that breeding sugarcane lines bearing leaves that do not fold on drying could provide substantial antixenotic resistance against the Mexican rice borer. Previously identified antixenotic chemical stimuli, i.e., low quantities or absence of important nutrients in green leaf tissue, only become apparent when resistant and susceptible sugarcane varieties are compared. Varietal differences in oviposition preference, however, were not observed on excised dry leaf tissue, indicating that expression of resistance in terms of chemical stimuli requires detection of biochemicals in nearby living leaf tissue. Excised dry sugarcane leaves retain the two dominant nonchemical oviposition preference stimuli for Mexican rice borers, and the leaves effectively trapped eggs away from intact plants when dry leaves were used as “mulch” at the bottom of greenhouse cages. Under commercial sugarcane field conditions, bundled dry leaves also collected Mexican rice borer eggs. Possible applications of dry sugarcane leaf substrate for egg scouting and for trapping eggs are discussed.
Isoprene oxidation mechanisms: measurements and modelling of OH and HO 2 over a South-East Asian tropical rainforest during the OP3 field campaign

Abstract. Forests are the dominant source of volatile organic compounds into the atmosphere, with isoprene being the most significant species. The oxidation chemistry of these compounds is a significant driver of local, regional and global atmospheric composition. Observations made over Borneo during the OP3 project in 2008, together with an observationally constrained box model are used to assess our understanding of this oxidation chemistry. In line with previous work in tropical forests, we find that the standard model based on MCM chemistry significantly underestimates the observed OH concentrations. Geometric mean observed to modelled ratios of OH and HO 2 in airmasses impacted with isoprene are 5.32 −4.43 +3.68 and 1.18 −0.30 +0.30 respectively, with 68 % of the observations being within the specified variation. We implement a variety of mechanistic changes into the model, including epoxide formation and unimolecular decomposition of isoprene peroxy radicals, and assess their impact on the model success. We conclude that none of the current suggestions can simultaneously remove the bias from both OH and HO 2 simulations and believe that detailed laboratory studies are now needed to resolve this issue.
Localization of the kinesin adaptor proteins trafficking kinesin proteins 1 and 2 in primary cultures of hippocampal pyramidal and cortical neurons

Neuronal function requires regulated anterograde and retrograde trafficking of mitochondria along microtubules by using the molecular motors kinesin and dynein. Previous work has established that trafficking kinesin proteins (TRAKs),TRAK1 and TRAK2, are kinesin adaptor proteins that link mitochondria to kinesin motor proteins via an acceptor protein in the mitochondrial outer membrane, etc. the Rho GTPase Miro. Recent studies have shown that TRAK1 preferentially controls mitochondrial transport in axons of hippocampal neurons by virtue of its binding to both kinesin and dynein motor proteins, whereas TRAK2 controls mitochondrial transport in dendrites resulting from its binding to dynein. This study further investigates the subcellular localization of TRAK1 and TRAK2 in primary cultures of hippocampal and cortical neurons by using both commercial antibodies and anti‐TRAK1 and anti‐TRAK2 antibodies raised in our own laboratory (in‐house). Whereas TRAK1 was prevalently localized in axons of hippocampal and cortical neurons, TRAK2 was more prevalent in dendrites of hippocampal neurons. In cortical neurons, TRAK2 was equally distributed between axons and dendrites. Some qualitative differences were observed between commercial and in‐house‐generated antibody immunostaining. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.