Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Baroreflex control of heart rate and cardiac hypertrophy in angiotensin II-induced hypertension in rabbits.

The cardiac hypertrophy observed in hypertension is thought to be responsible for the accompanying deficiency in the baroreflex control of heart rate. In this study, we assessed the baroreflex relationship between heart rate and arterial pressure on a group of seven rabbits during a normotensive period, during the early phase of angiotensin II (Ang II)-induced hypertension II week) (50 ng/kg per minute i.v. via osmotic minipumps), after 7 weeks of continuous hypertension, then 2 days after Ang II was stopped, and finally 7 days after Ang II. Left ventricles were weighed for measurement of left ventricular weight-body weight ratio. One week of intravenous Ang II infusion produced hypertension (mean arterial pressure from 80 +/- 2 up to 115 +/- 8 mm Hg), with significantly increased heart rate and hematocrit. The heart rate-arterial pressure baroreflex curve was shifted to the right, with a significant 45% reduction in the gain of the reflex (-6.4 +/- 1.5 to -3.5 +/- 0.2 beats per minute/mm Hg). After 7 weeks of Ang II, arterial pressure was still elevated (112 +/- 4 mm Hg) and the gain of the baroreflex curve still somewhat attenuated, although it was no longer markedly different from normotensive levels (gain, -5.09 +/- 0.95, 20% reduction from normotensive level). Two days after the Ang II infusion was stopped, arterial pressure had returned to normotensive levels, although hematocrit and heart rate remained elevated. At this time, the baroreflex curve was similar to prehypertensive control levels, with no further changes when measured again 7 days after Ang II. Cardiac hypertrophy was present when measured at 7 days after angiotensin (left ventricular weight-body weight ratio: 1.78 +/- 0.05 versus 1.35 +/- 0.04 g/kg, hypertensive versus normotensive, P < .05). Thus, although Ang II infusion produced an initial deficit in the baroreflex control of heart rate, this effect became less as the hypertension continued. Furthermore, although cardiac hypertrophy developed, its presence did not appear to be sufficient to produce a decrease in barosensitivity independent of raised arterial pressure.
Adaptive Motion Model for Human Tracking Using Particle Filter

This paper presents a novel approach to model the complex motion of human using a probabilistic autoregressive moving average model. The parameters of the model are adaptively tuned during the course of tracking by utilizing the main varying components of the pdf of the target’s acceleration and velocity. This motion model, along with the color histogram as the measurement model, has been incorporated in the particle filtering framework for human tracking. The proposed method is evaluated by PETS benchmark in which the targets have non-smooth motion and suddenly change their motion direction. Our method competes with the state-of-the-art techniques for human tracking in the real world scenario.
Successful Epilepsy Surgery Without Intracranial EEG Recording: Criteria for Patient Selection

Summary: Twenty‐two patients with intractable complex partial seizures (CPS) were treated with temporal lobectomy. Eighteen of 22 (82%) are seizure‐free while receiving medication, with a mean follow‐up time of 4 years. In each case, the clinical seizure pattern, interictal and ictal scalp EEG, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), neuropsychological testing, and results of the intracarotid amobarbital procedure (IAP) converged to indicate a localized abnormality. None of the patients in this series had mass lesions, vascular malformations, or cortical scars, but 18 of 22 had hippocampal atrophy on MRI and 20 had hippocampal sclerosis (HS) on pathologic examination. We believe it is possible, on the basis of the preoperative evaluation described, to identify a population of epileptic patients who will do very well postoperatively. Such patients do not require invasive EEG monitoring, and they represent ∼20% of the patients treated surgically in our epilepsy unit in the past several years.
Clinical aspects of Chlamydia psittaci infection in cats infected with feline immunodeficiency virus

Two groups of six cats were established, one a control group and one infected with feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) 18 months previously. The cats in both groups were inoculated with Chlamydia psittaci and the clinical progression of the infection was monitored by means of a clinical scoring system for 10 months. Haematological, serological and viral and chlamydial isolation studies were also made. The response of the FIV infected group to treatment with oxytetracycline was monitored in the 11th and 12th months. The FIV infection prolonged the duration of the clinical signs resulting from the infection with C psittaci and led to the development of chronic conjunctivitis. The haematological and antibody responses to C psittaci were comparable in the two groups. However, it was possible to isolate C psittaci from the FIV-infected cats up to day 270, when the treatment began, but only up to day 70 in the control group. In addition, it appeared that the infection with a secondary pathogen may have accelerated the clinical progression of the FIV infection.
Towards a Law and Economics of Power

[Pre-print version] The subject is not remote, philosophical nor esoteric; no one should venture into it with the feeling that it is a mystery that only the privileged can penetrate. Moreover, no one should surrender to a subject of such a great practical importance as this. The subject under scrutiny is power, and the attempt of this dissertation is to analyze its notion through the lens of a Law & Economics approach. This work has dealt with institutions as structures of power and countervailing power determined by a complex architecture of jural relations. The work is organized as follows. Section A is aimed at introducing the four elements to be considered in any analysis upon power relations: jural positionality, Commonsian transaction, cumulative effects, and, lastly, the jural incompleteness. These four 'components' allow us to investigate power in its three manifestations within the Coasean institutions, namely in the market, in the firm and in the State. This is the goal of section B.
Effects of cyproheptadine and cetirizine on eosinophilic airway inflammation in cats with experimentally induced asthma.

OBJECTIVE To determine whether oral administration of cyproheptadine or cetirizine blocks the action of serotonin and histamine, respectively, and results in diminished eosinophilic airway inflammation in cats with experimentally induced asthma. ANIMALS 9 cats in which asthma was experimentally induced through exposure to Bermuda grass allergen (BGA) during a 3-month period. PROCEDURES Cats were randomized to receive monotherapy with each of 3 treatments for 1 week: placebo (flour in a gelatin capsule, PO, q 12 h), cyproheptadine (8 mg, PO, q 12 h), or cetirizine (5 mg, PO, q 12 h). A 1-week washout period was allowed to elapse between treatments. Prior to and following each 1-week treatment period, blood and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) samples were collected. The percentage of eosinophils in BALF was evaluated to determine treatment efficacy. Serum and BALF BGA-specific immunoglobulin contents and plasma and BALF histamine concentrations were determined via ELISAs. Plasma and BALF serotonin concentrations were measured by use of a fluorometric method. RESULTS The mean +/- SD percentage of eosinophils in BALF did not differ significantly among treatment groups (placebo, 40 +/- 22%; cyproheptadine, 27 +/- 16%; and cetirizine, 31 +/- 20%). Among the treatment groups, BGA-specific immunoglobulin content and histamine and serotonin concentrations were not significantly different. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE In cats with experimentally induced asthma, cyproheptadine and cetirizine were not effective in decreasing airway eosinophilic inflammation or in altering several other measured immunologic variables. Neither cyproheptadine nor cetirizine can be advocated as monotherapy for cats with allergen-induced asthma.
Nucleotide sequence of the inverted terminal repetition in adeno-associated virus DNA

The inverted terminal repetition in adeno-associated virus type 2 DNA has been sequenced. The terminal repetition contain 145 nucleotides of which the first 125 nucleotides can self-base pair to form a T-shaped hairpin structure. Both restriction endonuclease analysis with SmaI and BglI and direct sequence analysis of the SmaI fragments provide evidence for two sequences in the region of the terminal repetition between nucleotides 44 and 81. The two sequences represent an inversion of the first 125 nucleotides of the terminal repetition. Based on these data a model for adeno-associated virus DNA replication is presented which agrees in detail with a general model for eucaryotic DNA replication originally proposed by Cavalier-Smith (T. Cavalier-Smith, Nature [London] 18:672--684, 1976).
Design and analysis of a high-reliability flux-switching DC generator with segmental rotor

A novel high-reliability DC generator system integrating flux-switching machine with segmental rotor, of which both armature and excited windings are located in the stator, rectifier and excitation controller was proposed in this paper. At first, the working principle of SFSM and the DC generator was introduced in detail. Further, a prototype was designed based on finite element analysis of flux-switching machine with segmental rotor, analysis of working modes of the excitation main circuit topology and the closed loop control strategy. At last, a platform was built and the experiment study including static and dynamic state characteristic was conducted. The experimental result proved the design and analysis above well.
Adrenal Influences on the Inhibitory Effects of Procaterol, a Selective Beta-Two-Adrenoceptor Agonist, on Antigen-Induced Airway Microvascular Leakage and Bronchoconstriction in Guinea Pigs

While the guinea pig has been the preferred choice for use as a model of allergic bronchial asthma in the evaluation of anti-asthmatic drugs, it has been shown that antigen-induced bronchoconstriction in guinea pigs is attenuated by epinephrine released from the adrenal gland. In order to investigate the possible influence of the adrenal gland on the effects of antiexudative and bronchodilative drugs on antigen-induced airway responses, we examined the inhibitory effects of procaterol, a selective β2-adrenoceptor agonist, on antigen-induced airway microvascular leakage and bronchoconstriction in adrenalectomized guinea pigs and compared them with the drug’s effects in sham-operated animals. Guinea pigs sensitized passively with anti-ovalbumin (OA) guinea-pig serum were adrenalectomized or sham-operated under urethane anesthesia and examined 30 min after surgery in the following experiments. (1) Animals were intravenously administered Evans blue dye to quantify airway plasma exudation, and then OA was inhaled for 10 min while measuring pulmonary inflation pressure, a parameter of bronchoconstriction. Procaterol (1, 3, 10, or 30 µg/kg) or saline (control) was administered into the airways 10 min prior to OA inhalation. The amount of extravasated Evans blue dye in the airways was calculated. (2) Venous blood samples were collected during OA or saline inhalation and plasma catecholamine levels were compared. In control animals, OA-induced increases in both the amount of Evans blue dye and in pulmonary inflation pressure were markedly greater in adrenalectomized animals than in sham-operated animals. Procaterol dose-dependently inhibited OA-induced airway microvascular leakage and bronchoconstriction, and its effects were more potent in adrenalectomized animals (significant at 1 µg/kg and higher) than in sham-operated animals (significant at 10 µg/kg and higher). Although the plasma concentration of epinephrine during OA inhalation was approximately 3 times higher than that during saline inhalation in sham-operated animals, no difference was seen in adrenalectomized animals. In conclusion, while procaterol essentially possesses pronounced inhibitory effects on antigen-induced airway microvascular leakage and bronchoconstriction in guinea pigs, the effects are considerably masked by epinephrine released from the adrenal gland.
Effects of Different Types of Warm-Up on Swimming Performance, Reaction Time, and Dive Distance

Abstract Balilionis, G, Nepocatych, S, Ellis, CM, Richardson, MT, Neggers, YH, and Bishop, PA. Effects of different types of warm-up on swimming performance, reaction time, and dive distance. J Strength Cond Res 26(12): 3297–3303, 2012—The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of 3 types of warm-up (WU) on swimming performance, reaction time, and dive distance. In repeated-measures counterbalanced design, National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I swimmers (n = 16) used 3 WUs before performing 50-yd (45.7-m) freestyle swim trials. The WU consisted of (a) no WU, (b) short WU (50-yd at 40% of swimmers' maximal effort and 50-yd at 90%), and (c) regular WU (usual precompetition WU). The mean 50-yd time was significantly faster (p = 0.01) after the regular WU (24.95 ± 1.53 seconds) when compared with that of the short WU (25.26 ± 1.61 seconds). However, individual data indicated that 19% of the participants performed their best in the 50-yd category after short, 37% after no, and 44% after regular WU. Heart rate was significantly higher (p = 0.01) after regular WU (100 ± 13 b·min−1) when compared with that of the no WU category (88 ± 18 b·min−1). However, no significant differences among WUs were found for reaction time (p = 0.96), rating of perceived exertion post 50-yd time trial (p = 0.11), dive distance (p = 0.67), or stroke count (p = 0.23). In conclusion, the average regular WU was better than short or noWU to achieve the fastest mean time in the 50-yd freestyle; however, some individual performances were faster after WUs different from their regular approach.
Differential NDR/LATS Interactions with the Human MOB Family Reveal a Negative Role for Human MOB2 in the Regulation of Human NDR Kinases

ABSTRACT MOB proteins are integral components of signaling pathways controlling important cellular processes, such as mitotic exit, centrosome duplication, apoptosis, and cell proliferation in eukaryotes. The human MOB protein family consists of six distinct members (human MOB1A [hMOB1A], -1B, -2, -3A, -3B, and -3C), with hMOB1A/B the best studied due to their putative tumor-suppressive functions through the regulation of NDR/LATS kinases. The roles of the other MOB proteins are less well defined. Accordingly, we characterized all six human MOB proteins in the context of NDR/LATS binding and their abilities to activate NDR/LATS kinases. hMOB3A/B/C proteins neither bind nor activate any of the four human NDR/LATS kinases. We found that both hMOB2 and hMOB1A bound to the N-terminal region of NDR1. However, our data suggest that the binding modes differ significantly. Our work revealed that hMOB2 competes with hMOB1A for NDR binding. hMOB2, in contrast to hMOB1A/B, is bound to unphosphorylated NDR. Moreover, RNA interference (RNAi) depletion of hMOB2 resulted in increased NDR kinase activity. Consistent with these findings, hMOB2 overexpression interfered with the functional roles of NDR in death receptor signaling and centrosome overduplication. In summary, our data indicate that hMOB2 is a negative regulator of human NDR kinases in biochemical and biological settings.
Enhancing foster parent-orphan relationships in rural community based orphanages

In the face of increasing number of orphans in Southern Africa, local community-based orphan programs are being considered as important conduits for social integration of orphaned and vulnerable children. The purpose of this study was to ascertain social and behavioral characteristics of foster parents that promote relationships with orphaned and vulnerable children. Focus group discussions were conducted with 30 foster parents drawn purposively from Chimanimani District of Manicaland Province in Zimbabwe to qualitatively explore their expectations. Results of the study showed that the majority of foster parents in the community based initiative were middle-aged women. Criteria considered important by foster parents selection were the individual’s social standing, common experience with orphans, ability to inculcate life skills to orphans and responsiveness of the foster parent. The results point to the need to involve local institutions in the selection of appropriate foster parents for sustainable orphans-foster parent relationships.
Efficient Compressed Sensing for Wireless Neural Recording: A Deep Learning Approach

Data compression is crucial for resource-constrained wireless neural recording applications with limited data bandwidth, and compressed sensing (CS) theory has successfully demonstrated its potential in neural recording applications. Based on deep learning theory, this paper presents a binarized autoencoder scheme for CS, in which a binary sensing matrix and a noniterative recovery solver are jointly optimized. Experimental results on synthetic dataset reveal that the proposed approach outperforms the state-of-the-art CS-based methods both in terms of recovery quality and computation time.
The Fragile Histidine Triad Gene: A Molecular Link Between Cigarette Smoking and Cervical Cancer

Purpose: Smoking is an epidemiologic risk factor for cervical cancer. The fragile histidine triad (FHIT) gene is a tumor suppressor gene that is altered in 80% of tobacco-associated lung cancers. We hypothesized that reduced FHIT protein expression, homozygous deletions (HD) or hemizygous deletions (HemiD) and microsatellite alterations (MA) at the FHIT/FRA3B locus occur more commonly in cervical cancers of smokers than nonsmokers. Experimental Design: Archival tissues of 58 patients with stage IA1 to IB2 squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix were identified. FHIT protein expression was studied with immunohistochemistry. Laser capture microdissection was used to isolate tumor and normal DNA. HD/HemiD of FHIT exons 4 and 5 were analyzed by monoplex real-time PCR. MA at FHIT/FRA3B were studied with multiplex nested PCR with three fluorescently labeled microsatellite markers (D3S1300, D3S1312, and D3S1480). Results: Eighteen of 26 tumors from smokers (69%) and 13 of 32 nonsmokers (41%; P < 0.05) showed loss of FHIT protein expression. Thirty-seven stage IB tumors yielded sufficient DNA for analyses. HD or HemiD of both exons tested occurred in 8 of 17 smokers (47%) and 2 of 20 nonsmokers (10%; P < 0.05). MA at more than two sites were found in 11 of 17 tumors of smokers (65%) and 6 of 20 nonsmokers (30%; P < 0.05). Mean composite genomic FHIT alteration scores were significantly higher for tumors of smokers versus nonsmokers (0.67 versus 0.40; P < 0.02). Conclusion: Loss of FHIT expression, HD, HemiD, and MA at the FHIT/FRA3B locus occur significantly more commonly in cervical cancers of smokers. These findings suggest that the tumor suppressor gene FHIT may represent a molecular target in cigarette smoking–associated cervical carcinogenesis.
Characterisation of epidermal regeneration in vivo: a 60-day follow-up study.

OBJECTIVE To characterise the long-term course of epidermal regeneration in a suction-blister wound model in healthy humans. METHOD A single-centre, prospective cohort study was conducted. Suction blister wounds of 8mm diameter were created on the volar forearms of healthy volunteers. Planimetry was used to measure the wound surface area. Transepidermal water loss was estimated to characterise the skin barrier function. Skin brightness was measured using the chromametric luminance L* parameter and skin (visco)elastic properties were measured by a controlled suction device. RESULTS Thirty-two subjects (mean age 28.6 years) participated. Epithelisation was nearly completed after 8 days, but it took approximately 3 weeks for complete skin barrier restoration. Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation was observed at the end of day 60 in the majority of skin areas. Elastic and viscoelastic deformation and recovery at the end of the follow-up period did not reach baseline values. CONCLUSION Newly formed epidermis requires considerable time before reaching complete recovery of the skin barrier function. Up to 2 months after the injury, regenerated epidermis in junction with the reticular dermis is stiffer compared to before. Under mechanical loading increased local stiffness might increase the risk for subsequent injuries at the same or adjacent skin areas. Due to its increased vulnerability it is recommended to protect or to offload the epidermal tissue as long as possible to support the structural long-term regeneration. Artificial suction blister wounds are well standardised and controlled models for a wide range of clinical studies and they offer advantages over uncontrolled patient conditions in wound healing studies. DECLARATION OF INTEREST This study was funded by La Roche-Posay Laboratoire Pharmaceutique (Asnieres, France). The sponsor had no influence on the design, conduct, and analysis and presentation of the data and on the content of this manuscript. The authors have no financial interest in this article.
Robust Filtering for General Nonlinear Stochastic State-Delayed Systems

This paper studies the robust H∞ filtering problem of nonlinear stochastic systems with time delay appearing in state equation, measurement, and controlled output, where the state is governed by a stochastic Ito-type equation. Based on a nonlinear stochastic bounded real lemma and an exponential estimate formula, an exponential (asymptotic) mean square H∞ filtering design of nonlinear stochastic time-delay systems is presented via solving a Hamilton-Jacobi inequality. As one corollary, for linear stochastic time-delay systems, a Luenberger-type filter is obtained by solving a linear matrix inequality. Two simulation examples are finally given to show the effectiveness of our results.
Weight smoothing to improve network generalization

A weight smoothing algorithm is proposed in this paper to improve a neural network's generalization capability. The algorithm can be used when the data patterns to be classified are presented on an n-dimensional grid (n>/=1) and there exists some correlations among neighboring data points within a pattern. For a fully-interconnected feedforward net, no such correlation information is embedded into the architecture. Consequently, the correlations can only be extracted through sufficient amount of network training. With the proposed algorithm, a smoothing constraint is incorporated into the objective function of backpropagation to reflect the neighborhood correlations and to seek those solutions that have smooth connection weights. Experiments were performed on problems of waveform classification, multifont alphanumeric character recognition, and handwritten numeral recognition. The results indicate that (1) networks trained with the algorithm do have smooth connection weights, and (2) they generalize better.