Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prognostic Factors of Early Morphological Response to Treatment with Ranibizumab in Patients with Wet Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Aim. To assess the significance of age, gender, baseline best corrected visual acuity, baseline macula thickness, and type and size of choroidal neovascularization in early morphological therapeutic response to ranibizumab treatment in patients with the wet form of age-related macular degeneration. Methods. From 09/2008 to 06/2013 we evaluated 1153 newly diagnosed, treatment-naïve patients treated with ranibizumab. Based on the morphological findings in the macula following the initial 3 injections of ranibizumab, the patients were divided into two groups based on active and inactive choroidal neovascularization. Results. After the initial 3 injections of ranibizumab, we examined the sample of 841 eyes with active CNV and 312 eyes with inactive CNV. In the inactive group, we found a statistically higher proportion of occult CNV (P < 0.001) and lower incidence of CNV greater than 5DA (P < 0.001) compared with the active group. We found no statistically significant difference in age, gender, baseline best corrected visual acuity, or baseline macula thickness between the inactive and active groups. Conclusion. Occult CNV and CNV smaller than 5DA are optimistic factors for a better morphological therapeutic response at the beginning of ranibizumab treatment.
Estimating Software Development Effort Based on Phases

Software development effort estimation is a very important issue in software engineering and several models have been defined to this end. In this paper, we carry out an empirical study on the estimation of software development effort broken down by phase, so that estimation can be used along the software development lifecycle. More specifically, our goal is twofold. At any given point in the software development lifecycle, we estimate the effort needed for the next phase. Also, we estimate the effort for the remaining part of the software development process. Our empirical study is based on historical data from the ISBSG database. The results show a set of statistically significant correlations between: (1) the effort spent in one phase and the effort spent in the following one, (2) the effort spent in a phase and the remaining effort, (3) the cumulative effort up to the current phase and the remaining effort. However, the results also show that these estimation models come with different degrees of goodness of fit. Finally, including further information, such as the functional size, does not significantly improve estimation quality.
Composition of coronary plaques obtained by directional atherectomy in stable angina: its relation to serum lipids and statin treatment

Objectives. The stability and inflammatory activity in atherosclerotic plaques may be modulated by lipids and lipoproteins as well as the pleiotropic effects of statins. The aim of this study was to analyse the effect of statin treatment as well as the relation of plasma lipids and lipoproteins to tissue composition in atherosclerotic plaques.
A comparative study of feature ranking methods as dimension reduction technique in Genome-Wide Association Study

In the recent years, Genome-Wide Association Study (GWAS) has been performed by many scientist around the world to find association between genetic profiles of different individuals with the risk of developing certain diseases. GWAS are performed using the Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) data which represents the genotypes of two different groups of individuals: the case group of individuals with the disease and the control group of individuals without the disease. The very high dimensional SNP data poses challenges in analyzing GWAS result. This issue can be tackled by performing feature ranking to remove non-relevant features for reducing the dimension of the original data. This work compares several feature ranking methods including the chi-square statistics, information gain, recursive feature elimination and Relief algorithm by analyzing the performance of different learning machines combined with the feature ranking. The highest performance is gained by combining recursive feature elimination with linear SVM while the worst performance is shown by the Relief algorithm. The experiments show that the classifiers generally benefit from the feature selection, but that the highest ranked features are not the best classifier.
Using higher dimensionalities to identify abnormal behavior in noisy data sets

In cluster analysis, distinguishing abnormal behavior from noise is an important problem that has remained unresolved for many years. This paper presents a general approach for distinguishing abnormal behavior from noise and for identifying abnormal behavior in noisy data sets. The approach is an application of a new, complete linkage hierarchical clustering method for n·(n-1) over 2 + 1-level hierarchical sequences and a means for finding meaningful levels of such hierarchical sequences prior to performing a cluster analysis. These technologies were designed with small-n, large-m data sets in mind. Based on four broadly applicable assumptions, the approach uses higher dimensionalities to reveal inherent structure in noisy data sets and find meaningful levels in the corresponding hierarchical sequences. The new clustering method is used to construct only the cluster sets that correspond to these levels. Results from a first experiment show how the effects of noise are attenuated as the dimensionality of the data points increases. Results from a second experiment show how meaningful cluster sets can have real world meanings that are useful for identifying abnormal behavior.
Anti-atherosclerosis action of the traditional Korean medicine Bok Ryung Ban Ha-Tang in ApoE KO mice

Atherosclerosis is characterized by vascular obstruction from the deposits of plaque, resulting in reduced bloo flow. Here, we investigate that dynamic changes of bodyweight, liver weight, lipid levels, atherosclerotic lesion and liver steatosis, during the progression of atherosclerosis in ApoE KO mice. Male ApoE KO mice were fed a high fat diet (western type diet, WD) for 16 weeks. BRBHT; Bok Ryung Ban Ha -Tang, treatment of WD-fed atherosclerosis mice significantly reduced body weight, liver weight, blood pressure and lipid levels relative to the WD-fed mice. Lipid levels of T-chole, LDL, TG, Glucose were significantly decreased in the BRBHT treat mice compared with the WD-fed mice, also AST, ALT were significantly chaged in the BRBHT mice compared with the levels in the WD mice. Histological examination showed that the atherosclerotic lesions were reduced in the WD with BRBHT group compared with the WD group. Furthermore, the administration of BRBHT decreased fat accumulation in hepatic. Taken together, the present data indicate that BRBHT prevents atherosclerosis in WD-induced ApoE KO mice by regulation of lipid and liver steatosis.
Identification, characterization, and DNA sequence of a functional "double" groES-like chaperonin from chloroplasts of higher plants.

Chloroplasts of higher plants contain a nuclear-encoded protein that is a functional homolog of the Escherichia coli chaperonin 10 (cpn10; also known as groES). In pea (Pisum sativum), chloroplast cpn10 was identified by its ability to (i) assist bacterial chaperonin 60 (cpn60; also known as groEL) in the ATP-dependent refolding of chemically denatured ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase and (ii) form a stable complex with bacterial cpn60 in the presence of Mg.ATP. The subunit size of the pea protein is approximately 24 kDa--about twice the size of bacterial cpn10. A cDNA encoding a spinach (Spinacea oleracea) chloroplast cpn10 was isolated, sequenced, and expressed in vitro. The spinach protein is synthesized as a higher molecular mass precursor and has a typical chloroplast transit peptide. Surprisingly, however, attached to the transit peptide is a single protein, comprised of two distinct cpn10 molecules in tandem. Moreover, both halves of this "double" cpn10 are highly conserved at a number of residues that are present in all cpn10s that have been examined. Upon import into chloroplasts the spinach cpn10 precursor is processed to its mature form of approximately 24 kDa. N-terminal amino acid sequence analysis reveals that the mature pea and spinach cpn10 are identical at 13 of 21 residues.
Guided waves in a helical peripheral strand of a wirerope by electromagnetic acoustic transducers

Guided waves are propagated in rods and pipes for a long distance without energy loss. Therefore, compared with conventional methods requiring long time, guided waves are ideal for non-destructive testing of wireropes. In this research, aiming to evaluate effects of the geometry of wireropes on guided wave propagation and to generate particular oscillation modes, we carried out experiments and finite element analysis. The results of experiments showed selective excitation of oscillation modes by electromagnetic acoustic transducers and propagation of guided waves along peripheral strands. Numerical results showed slight effect of helical structure on received signals.
Assessment of user behavior and QoE in multi-view video and audio IP transmission

This paper investigates QoE (Quality of Experience) of MVV (Multi-View Video) and audio transmission over IP networks. Unlike previous works that mainly discuss MVV transmission from aspects of video codecs, we study MVV and audio transmission under various IP traffic and delay conditions by experiment. We compare two schemes: a scheme that the user watches a single viewpoint, and the one that he/she can choose one viewpoint from many viewpoints. At the same time, we perform a user study which helps us to understand the user behavior in the MVV system under those conditions. As a result, we show that high QoE can be achieved when the user can change the viewpoint with low load traffic and delay.
In‐Store Valuation of Steak Tenderness

Experimental methods were used to examine consumer willingness-to-pay for steak tenderness in a grocery store setting. When relying on a taste test alone to determine product quality, the participants paid an average premium of $1.23/lb for a tender versus tough steak. Fifty-one percent of the participants were willing to pay an average of $1.84/lb when they had completed a taste test and were also provided information about the steak’s tenderness. Results indicate that most consumers prefer more tender steaks and that many are willing to pay a premium for tender steaks.
Disentangling Vector-Borne Transmission Networks: A Universal DNA Barcoding Method to Identify Vertebrate Hosts from Arthropod Bloodmeals

Emerging infectious diseases represent a challenge for global economies and public health. About one fourth of the last pandemics have been originated by the spread of vector-borne pathogens. In this sense, the advent of modern molecular techniques has enhanced our capabilities to understand vector-host interactions and disease ecology. However, host identification protocols have poorly profited of international DNA barcoding initiatives and/or have focused exclusively on a limited array of vector species. Therefore, ascertaining the potential afforded by DNA barcoding tools in other vector-host systems of human and veterinary importance would represent a major advance in tracking pathogen life cycles and hosts. Here, we show the applicability of a novel and efficient molecular method for the identification of the vertebrate host's DNA contained in the midgut of blood-feeding arthropods. To this end, we designed a eukaryote-universal forward primer and a vertebrate-specific reverse primer to selectively amplify 758 base pairs (bp) of the vertebrate mitochondrial Cytochrome c Oxidase Subunit I (COI) gene. Our method was validated using both extensive sequence surveys from the public domain and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) experiments carried out over specimens from different Classes of vertebrates (Mammalia, Aves, Reptilia and Amphibia) and invertebrate ectoparasites (Arachnida and Insecta). The analysis of mosquito, culicoid, phlebotomie, sucking bugs, and tick bloodmeals revealed up to 40 vertebrate hosts, including 23 avian, 16 mammalian and one reptilian species. Importantly, the inspection and analysis of direct sequencing electropherograms also assisted the resolving of mixed bloodmeals. We therefore provide a universal and high-throughput diagnostic tool for the study of the ecology of haematophagous invertebrates in relation to their vertebrate hosts. Such information is crucial to support the efficient management of initiatives aimed at reducing epidemiologic risks of arthropod vector-borne pathogens, a priority for public health.
Adenosine A2A receptor induces protein kinase A‐dependent functional modulation of human α3β4 nicotinic receptor

Non‐technical summary In many brain regions, adenosine regulates the function of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor–channel, which allows the movement of ions across neuronal membrane if nicotine or acetylcholine is present. In this work we use a very controlled experimental system to study the details of adenosine action. We show that adenosine enhances the function of the receptor–channel when it is repeatedly stimulated. The intracellular signalling molecule protein kinase A mediates the effects of adenosine on the nicotinic receptor–channel. Our results contribute to understanding the function of receptor proteins involved in the normal function of the brain, but also in pathologies such as nicotine addiction.
Indoor climate and air quality. Review of current and future topics in the field of ISB study group 10.

In industrialized countries about 90% of the time is spent indoors. The ambient parameters affecting indoor thermal comfort are air temperature and humidity, air velocity, and radiant heat exchange within an enclosure. In assessing the thermal environment, one needs to consider all ambient parameters, the insulating properties of the occupants' clothing, and the activity level of the occupants by means of heat balance models of the human body. Apart from thermal parameters, air quality (measured and perceived) is also of importance for well-being and health in indoor environments. Pollutant levels are influenced by both outdoor concentrations and by indoor emissions. Indoor levels can thus be lower (e.g. in the case of ozone and SO2) or higher (e.g. for CO2 and formaldehyde) than outdoor levels. Emissions from cooking play an important role, especially in developing countries. The humidity of the ambient air has a wide range of effects on the energy and water balance of the body as well as on elasticity, air quality perception, build-up of electrostatic charge and the formation or mould. However, its effect on the indoor climate is often overestimated. While air-handling systems are commonly used for achieving comfortable indoor climates, their use has also been linked to a variety of problems, some of which have received attention within the context of "sick building syndrome".
Compression of Isosurfaces for Structured Volumes

In many applications surfaces containing a large number of primitives occur. Geometry compression reduces storage space and transmission time for such models. A special case is given by polygonal isosurfaces generated from gridded volume data. However, most current state-of-the-art geometry compression systems do not capitalize on the structure that is characteristic of such isosurfaces, namely that the surfaces are defined by a set of vertices on edges of the grid. We propose a compression method for isosurfaces that is designed to exploit this feature. We tested our method for several isosurfaces from a CT scan of a human head. For this data set our coder outperformed state-of-the-art geometry compression methods by a factor of 2.2 to 2.8 in terms of compression ratio.
Loci for autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa and dominant cystoid macular dystrophy on chromosome 7p are not allelic.

To the Editor: We recently described a new locus for autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa (adRP) on chromosome 7p in a large English pedigree (Inglehearn et al. 1993). The phenotype in this family has been described by Moore et al. (1993) and is unusual in that there is wide variation in severity in different patients. Subsequently, Kremer et al. (1994) described a locus for dominant cystoid macular dystrophy (DCMD), also on 7p, in several Dutch families. The markers used in each study were different, but the localizations for adRP and DCMD appeared to be similar. This observation was of particular interest in the light of our own and other laboratories' recent studies on the range of peripheral and central retinal degenerations that are caused by different mutations at the peripherin/rds locus (Kajiwara et al. 1993; Nichols et al. 1993; Wells et al. 1993). Much of the discussion in the paper by Kremer et al. was therefore given over to speculation on the possibility that these two different disorders were allelic mutations in the same gene. However, in the April edition of the Journal, we published a further refinement of the localization for the 7p adRP locus, to a 2-cM interval between markers D7S526 and D7S484 (Inglehearn et al. 1994). The disease is clearly proximal to D7S526, since this marker shows two crossovers with the disease locus in the family and since these same crossovers are apparent with other more distal markers on 7p. The DCMD locus, on the other hand, had been shown by haplotype analysis to be distal to D7S526, with the most likely interval being between D7S516 and D7S493, some 8 cM distal to D7S526. We would therefore like to highlight the fact that these are clearly two different genetic eye-disease loci, mapping 10 cM apart on chromosome 7p.
Two Histone/Protein Acetyltransferases, CBP and p300, Are Indispensable for Foxp3+ T-Regulatory Cell Development and Function

ABSTRACT T-regulatory (Treg) cells are important to immune homeostasis, and Treg cell deficiency or dysfunction leads to autoimmune disease. A histone/protein acetyltransferase (HAT), p300, was recently found to be important for Treg function and stability, but further insights into the mechanisms by which p300 or other HATs affect Treg biology are needed. Here we show that CBP, a p300 paralog, is also important in controlling Treg function and stability. Thus, while mice with Treg-specific deletion of CBP or p300 developed minimal autoimmune disease, the combined deletion of CBP and p300 led to fatal autoimmunity by 3 to 4 weeks of age. The effects of CBP and p300 deletion on Treg development are dose dependent and involve multiple mechanisms. CBP and p300 cooperate with several key Treg transcription factors that act on the Foxp3 promoter to promote Foxp3 production. CBP and p300 also act on the Foxp3 conserved noncoding sequence 2 (CNS2) region to maintain Treg stability in inflammatory environments by regulating pCREB function and GATA3 expression, respectively. Lastly, CBP and p300 regulate the epigenetic status and function of Foxp3. Our findings provide insights into how HATs orchestrate multiple aspects of Treg development and function and identify overlapping but also discrete activities for p300 and CBP in control of Treg cells.
Human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 expression in locally advanced rectal cancer: Association with response to neoadjuvant therapy and prognosis

The aim of this study was to determine whether pretreatment status of human epidermal growth factor receptor‐2 (HER‐2) could predict pathologic response to neoadjuvant chemoradiotherapy (nCRT) and outcomes for patients with locally advanced rectal cancer (LARC). A total of 119 patients diagnosed with LARC received standardized multimodal treatment. Their HER‐2 status was determined in pretreatment biopsies by immunohistochemistry (IHC) and FISH. Tumor response was assessed in resected regimens using the tumor regression grade system and TNM staging system. Twenty‐two cases in 119 patients assessed as IHC3+ or IHC2+ plus gene‐amplified were determined as HER‐2 positive. Positive HER‐2 status was not associated with any pretreatment clinicopathologic parameters (P > 0.05). HER‐2 status could not predict pathologic response to nCRT based on downstaging (P = 0.210) and tumor regression grade (P = 0.085) but it provides us with a trend that HER‐2‐positive tumors may be resistant to nCRT. Positive HER‐2 status was significantly associated with poor 5‐year disease‐free survival (P = 0.015) and 5‐year overall survival (P = 0.026). It can act as a worse prognostic factor for LARC patients.
Handlung und Ästhetik

Zusammenfassung Die Kategorie der Ästhetik hat sowohl im weiteren Bedeutungsumfang dieses Begriffes als Sinnlichkeit oder Emotionalität wie auch in der engeren Bedeutung als Kunst in der soziologischen Forschung an Stellenwert gewonnen. Dabei scheint es einen Konsens zu geben, daß sich die Einsicht in die Bedeutung von Ästhetik durchsetzen mußte gegen die etablierte traditionelle soziologische Theorie, insbesondere gegen das mit dem Etikett der normativistischen Sozialintegration versehene Theorieprogramm Talcott Parsons’. Der Aufsatz versucht eine Revision dieser Sichtweise. Es wird argumentiert, daß Ästhetik eine wichtige Rolle in der Entwicklung der Parsonsschen Handlungstheorie zukam. Dies beginnt mit der Einsicht in die Notwendigkeit der Erweiterung des voluntaristischen Bezugsrahmens durch „Ausdrucksformen“ und findet im Strukturfunktionalismus als grundlegende „affektiv-kathektische Handlungsdimension“ Eingang in die Ausarbeitung der Theorie sozialer Systeme, der Kultur und der Persönlichkeit. In der Reformulierung der Handlungstheorie im AGIL-Paradigma geht im Zuge einer instrumentellen Umdeutung der motivationalen Expressivität in Zielerreichung sowie der Normativität der Integrationsfunktion der Theoriegewinn der strukturfunktionalistischen Phase, jedenfalls was Ästhetik betrifft, weitestgehend verloren. Auch wenn ästhetische Aspekte in den verschiedenen Theoriephasen widersprüchlich ausgearbeitet wurden, ist ein Verständnis dieses „kontrapunktischen Themas“ - wie Parsons es selbst ausgedrückt hatte - der Allgemeinen Handlungstheorie von Bedeutung für den aktuellen Diskurs um Ästhetik in der Soziologie sowie für eine angemessenere Beurteilung des Parsonsschen Gesamtwerkes.
A new synchronization algorithm for UWB impulse radio communication systems

In this paper, a new high speed synchronization algorithm for ultra wideband (UWB) communication systems is developed. The proposed synchronization algorithm includes two successive stages, named acquisition and tracking ones. The real-time acquisition is realized by a new parallel searching algorithm, where four branches of Barker code matching is employed. By doing so, both the acquisition speed (convergence time) and accuracy (detection probability) are improved significantly. Moreover, an adaptive early-late tracking algorithm is proposed which can lock the pulse location into the true one with a rapid response. Combining these two schemes, the simulated synchronization algorithm can realize the acquisition time of less than 3 mus and tracking accuracy is within 0.02 ns for the pulse transmission rate up to 200 Msampls/s