Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Defensins: Antimicrobial peptides for therapeutic development

A novel class of endogenous antimicrobial peptides called defensins has shown great versatility in their activity against a diverse range of microorganisms including bacteria, viruses and fungi. Their mode of action of bacterial cell lysis seems largely nonspecific and so promises to avert the development of resistance. These two features have made them an area of intense research activity and growing commercial interest. A successful multidisciplinary effort to investigate and develop novel defensins analogues has been established in Singapore that involves computer modeling, biochemistry, proteomics, chemical synthesis, molecular biology and clinical sciences.
Differential diagnosis of sarcomatoid mesothelioma from true sarcoma and sarcomatoid carcinoma using immunohistochemistry

Differentiation of sarcomatoid mesothelioma from other sarcomatoid tumors involving the pleura and other structures by light microscopy remains an important diagnostic challenge for surgical pathologists. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the utility of diagnostic immunohistochemistry for differentiating sarcomatoid mesothelioma from its histological mimics: true sarcoma and pulmonary sarcomatoid carcinoma. A total of 39 specimens of mesotheliomas with sarcomatoid components, 43 specimens of true sarcomas, and nine specimens of pulmonary sarcomatoid carcinomas were obtained from Japanese patients and examined using a 10‐antibody panel (calretinin, WT1, AE1/AE3, CAM5.2, epithelial membrane antigen, desmin, α‐smooth muscle actin, S‐100 protein, CD34, and CD68). CAM5.2 had the highest sensitivity and specificity for differentiating sarcomatoid mesothelioma from true sarcoma. The combination of CAM5.2, WT1, and AE1/AE3 is recommended for routine pathological diagnosis. Accurate clinical information is necessary for differentiating sarcomatoid mesothelioma from sarcomatoid carcinoma.
Gastrointestinal and external parasites of Enicognathus ferrugineus and Enicognathus leptorhynchus (Aves, Psittacidae) in Chile.

Parasite species are important components of biodiversity, as they provide valuable information about host health, evolutionary relationships, population structures, trophic interactions, the existence of environmental stresses, and climatic conditions. With the aim of describing the parasites associated with parrots of the genus Enicognathus Gray 1840 from central Chile, thirteen austral parakeets, Enicognathus ferrugineus, and five slender-billed parakeets, E. leptorhynchus, were examined between September 2007 and March 2014. The prevalence of ectoparasites and endoparasites was 88.9% and 22.2%, respectively. On eleven of the E. ferrugineus (84.6%) analyzed, and on all of the E. leptorhynchus analyzed (100%), five feather mite species (Pararalichus hastifolia, Genoprotolichus major, Protonyssus sp., Fainalges sp., and Eurydiscalges sp.) were collected. On ten E. ferrugineus (76.9%) and two E. leptorhynchus (40%), the chewing lice Heteromenopon macrurum, Psittacobrossus patagoni, and Paragoniocotes enicognathidis were collected. The nematode Capillaria plagiaticia was collected from three E. ferrugineus (23.1%), and the nematode Ascaridia hermaphrodita was found in one E. leptorhynchus (20%). The presence of C. plagiaticia, Protonyssus sp. , Fainalges sp. , and Eurydiscalges sp. from the two Enicognathus spp. are new records for Chile and represent new parasite-host associations.
Problems of integrity and distributed databases

A relational model of a small distributed database is used to illustrate problems of consistency and integrity with specific reference to distributed systems, and to discuss methods for their solution. It is shown that some limitation may be necessary on the freedom to make modifications on a purely local basis, and that questions of time consistency due to the network have a partial but limiting solution.
A Thyristor-Based DC Fault Current Limiter With Inductor Inserting–Bypassing Capability

DC fault current limiters (FCLs) are becoming increasingly important for the prompt dc fault clearance of modular multilevel converter (MMC)-based high-voltage direct current (HVdc) grids. This paper proposes a hybrid FCL topology, in which the main current limiting circuit is composed of thyristors, capacitors, and an inductor. Detailed theoretical analysis of the current limiting processes was carried out to check the electrical stresses. The relationship between the voltage stress and the current limiting time was analyzed, and then a design method for the FCL parameters was provided. An effective method for fast bypassing the FCL inductor was proposed to reduce the energy dissipation when fault current is interrupted by a dc circuit breaker (DCCB). The dynamic performance of the proposed approach has shown that the proposed FCL can effectively limit the rate of rising of the dc fault current and reduce the energy dissipation.
Alert correlation using artificial immune recognition system

High volumes of low-level alerts that are generated by intrusion detection systems (IDSs) are serious obstacle for using them effectively. These high volumes of alerts overwhelm system administrators in such a way that they cannot manage and interpret them. Alert correlation is used to reduce the number of alerts and increase their level of abstraction. It selects a group of low-level alerts and converts them into a higher level attack and then produces a high-level alert for them. In this paper, a new artificial immune system-based alert correlation system is presented, named AISAC. It learns the correlation probability between each pair of alert types and uses this knowledge to extract the attack scenarios. AISAC does not need intensive domain knowledge and rule definition efforts. It also does not need to manually update the extracted knowledge. The computational cost of learning algorithm is linear, and the initial learning is done by a very limited general data in offline mode. AISAC is evaluated by DARPA 2000 and netForensics Honeynet data. Results show that although it uses a relatively simple algorithm, it generates the attack graphs with acceptable accuracy.
Effects of subcutaneous oestradiol implants on ovarian activity

Summary. The effects of subcutaneous oestradiol implants on ovarian activity were investigated in 14 ovulating premenopausal women. Treatment with either 100 mg or 150 mg oestradiol was combined with cyclical oral norethisterone from days 20 to 26 of the cycle to ensure regular withdrawal periods and prevent endometrial hyperplasia. Ovarian function was monitored by regular pelvic ultrasonography and urinalysis over a period of nine cycles. During the first three cycles after hormone implantation, follicular development continued in almost half the study group, but only one of the women in each treatment group showed signs of follicular rupture and luteinization. By the sixth cycle, over half the women given the lower dose of oestradiol were developing follicles, including a large functional cyst in one, but none of them ovulated. A further implant given early in the seventh cycle was associated with ovarian suppression in all cases. Both doses of implant elevated the excretion of oestrone‐3‐glucuronide compared to pretreatment. The contraceptive and therapeutic implications of these results are discussed.
Zero-current-switching switched-capacitor bidirectional DC-DC converter

The proposed zero-current-switching switched-capacitor quasi-resonant DC-DC converter is a new type of bidirectional power flow control conversion scheme. It possesses the conventional features of resonant switched-capacitor converters: low weight, small volume, high efficiency, low EMI emission and current stress. A zero-current-switching switched-capacitor step-up/step-down bidirectional converter is presented that can improve the current stress problem during bidirectional power flow control processing. It can provide a high voltage conversion ratio using four power MOSFET main switches, a set of switched capacitors and a small resonant inductor. The converter operating principle of the proposed bidirectional power conversion scheme is described in detail with circuit model analysis. Simulation and experiment are carried out to verify the concept and performance of the proposed bidirectional DC-DC converter.
The Role of 3-D Sound in Human Reaction and Performance in Augmented Reality Environments

Three-dimensional sound's effectiveness in virtual reality (VR) environments has been widely studied. However, due to the big differences between VR and augmented reality (AR) systems in registration, calibration, perceptual difference of immersiveness, navigation, and localization, it is important to develop new approaches to seamlessly register virtual 3-D sound in AR environments and conduct studies on 3-D sound's effectiveness in AR context. In this paper, we design two experimental AR environments to study the effectiveness of 3-D sound both quantitatively and qualitatively. Two different tracking methods are applied to retrieve the 3-D position of virtual sound sources in each experiment. We examine the impacts of 3-D sound on improving depth perception and shortening task completion time. We also investigate its impacts on immersive and realistic perception, different spatial objects identification, and subjective feeling of "human presence and collaboration". Our studies show that applying 3-D sound is an effective way to complement visual AR environments. It helps depth perception and task performance, and facilitates collaborations between users. Moreover, it enables a more realistic environment and more immersive feeling of being inside the AR environment by both visual and auditory means. In order to make full use of the intensity cues provided by 3-D sound, a process to scale the intensity difference of 3-D sound at different depths is designed to cater small AR environments. The user study results show that the scaled 3-D sound significantly increases the accuracy of depth judgments and shortens the searching task completion time. This method provides a necessary foundation for implementing 3-D sound in small AR environments. Our user study results also show that this process does not degrade the intuitiveness and realism of an augmented audio reality environment
Control system for compensation of antenna mistuning and absorption caused by user's index finger

In this paper, an antenna arrangement and a control system that decreases the losses caused by the user of the mobile terminal, is presented. Performance of the system is evaluated with the presence of user hand and index finger. Experimental results prove that two switchable antenna elements are able to increase the total efficiency up to 2.5 dB at 900 MHz.
Cost-Effectiveness of Lopinavir/Ritonavir Versus Nelfinavir As the First-Line Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy Regimen for HIV Infection

Abstract Purpose: Selecting the optimal treatment regimen for antiviral-naïve patients may be difficult, given the concern about the antiviral activity, the development of drug resistance, and the increase in drug costs. This study evaluates the costs and effectiveness of using lopinavir/ritonavir (LPV/r) vs. nelfinavir (NFV), both coadministered with stavudine and lamivudine, as the first HAART regimen in treating HIV patients, based on the results from the published clinical trial M98-863. Method: A Markov model was developed using a combination of viral load (VL) and CD4 count as surrogate markers to define health states. VL and CD4 count data from the 48-week analysis of the clinical trial were used as measures of effect. The impact of resistance difference between NFV and LPV/r was also examined. Results: Over the first 5 years, the model estimated that LPV/r could save $3,461 per patient in total HIV care costs compared with NFV. If the resistance advantage of LPV/r was taken into account, the cost savings by LPV/r increased to $5,546. For longer term projection, without considering the resistance difference, the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (CER) for LPV/r vs. NFV was $6,653 per quality-adjusted life-year (QALY). This CER compares favorably to therapies for HIV disease and for common drug treatments for other conditions and is well within accepted thresholds for health policy makers. Conclusion: When treatment options are being considered, this study suggests that use of LPV/r in the first antiretroviral regimen, as compared to NFV, is cost-effective based on improved efficacy and resistance.
Value of a Complete Sonographic Survey in Detecting Fetal Abnormalities

Objective. To determine the sensitivity of using a complete anatomic sonographic survey in detecting fetal abnormalities via correlation with perinatal autopsy results. Methods. All perinatal autopsies (1994–2001) with positive findings for at least 1 fetal abnormality and performed by a single perinatal pathologist at our institution were retrospectively reviewed. From these cases, singleton fetuses who received prenatal sonography solely in our unit were identified. The sensitivity of sonography in detecting anomalous fetuses as well as fetal abnormalities and abnormalities by organ system was determined. Abnormalities were classified as major or minor. In addition, findings from sonography and autopsy were compared, and their correlation was assigned to 1 of 3 categories. Results. Of 88 fetuses identified, 85 had 1 or more abnormal structural sonographic findings (sensitivity for fetuses with anomalies, 97%). A total of 372 separate abnormalities were found on autopsy; of the 299 major and 73 minor abnormalities, prenatal sonography showed 224 (75%) and 13 (18%), respectively. There was either complete agreement or only minor differences between sonographic and autopsy findings in 57 (65%) of 88. The sensitivity of sonography in identifying abnormalities was greater than 70% in these systems: central nervous system, cardiac system, urinary system, extremities, genitalia, ribs, and hydrops. Conclusions. In experienced hands, sonography has 97% sensitivity in detecting anomalous fetuses when compared with perinatal autopsy results. Although the sensitivity of sonography in detecting major fetal abnormalities is 75%, the sensitivity for minor abnormalities is poor, even when using a complete anatomic sonographic survey. Although it has limitations, this type of survey is invaluable for both patients and physicians in diagnosing fetal abnormalities.
Accurate Long Read Mapping using Enhanced Suffix Arrays

With the rise of high throughput sequencing, new programs have been developed for dealing with the alignment of a huge amount of short read data to reference genomes. Recent developments in sequencing technology allow longer reads, but the mappers for short reads are not suited for reads of several hundreds of base pairs. We propose an algorithm for mapping longer reads, which is based on chaining maximal exact matches and uses heuristics and the Needleman-Wunsch algorithm to bridge the gaps. To compute maximal exact matches we use a specialized index structure, called enhanced suffix array. The proposed algorithm is very accurate and can handle large reads with mutations and long insertions and deletions.
Cardiovascular actions of adrenomedullin in conscious sheep.

Adrenomedullin (Adm) is a 52-amino acid peptide that promotes a potent vasodilator action in rats and elevates adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate levels in isolated vascular tissue preparations. To date, the cardiovascular activity of Adm has been examined only in anesthetized animals, hence the present study examines in detail the hemodynamic actions of human Adm-(1-52) in conscious, chronically instrumented sheep. Five sheep were injected intravenously with 0.1, 1, 10, 50, or 100 micrograms Adm, and mean arterial pressure, heart rate (HR), cardiac output (CO), stroke volume (SV), total peripheral conductance (TPC), coronary blood flow (CF), coronary conductance (CC), peak aortic flow (Fmax), and left ventricular dF/dt were monitored by a computer-based data collection system. Adm produced dose-dependent changes in all parameters measured, with the threshold dose being 10 micrograms. Adm injected at 100 micrograms rapidly and significantly decreased blood pressure by 10 +/- 1 mmHg, accompanied by an increase in HR of 35 +/- 4 beats/min. CO increased by 1.6 +/- 0.3 l/min, whereas SV exhibited a small reduction of 11 +/- 4 ml/beat. TPC was markedly increased by 35 +/- 7 ml.min-1.mmHg-1. CF showed an increase of 27 +/- 4 ml/min, and CC increased in parallel by 0.45 +/- 0.06 ml.min-1. mmHg-1. Fmax and dF/dt showed small increases of 3.8 +/- 0.8 l/min and 104 +/- 12 l.min-1.s-1, respectively. All hemodynamic parameters had returned to control values by 40 min postinjection. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Avian genetic resources for biological research

Research with a variety of genetic stocks has produced many important discoveries in the areas of genetics, virology, immunology, developmental biology, and animal agriculture. (see CRAWFORD 1990, for a review). These include the pioneering studies on Mendelian inheritance and sex determination of BATESON (1902), and BATESON and PUNNETT (1906, 1908). Not surprisingly, given its history of use in genetic studies, the first linkage map reported for any domestic animal species was that for the chicken published by HUTT (1936). The turkey has provided one of the few known vertebrate models for parthenogenesis (embryo formation in an unfertilized egg) (Box 5), and the wide range of metabolic and developmental mutations in chicken (Boxes 8, 13) and quail have allowed researchers to start investigating the molecular bases of these defects, and, eventually, to determine the normal function of the affected gene. In virology, chicken hosts were used by ROUS (1911) to identify the first tumor-causing virus, Rous sarcoma virus. Later, the genetics of host resistance to RNA viruses was elucidated (CRITTENDEN et al. 1963), and the Marek’s-like herpes virus found in turkeys was used in the first successful vaccination program against a tumor-causing virus in the chicken (OKAZAKI et al. 1970). More recently, BUMSTEAD and PALYGA (1992) described one of the first molecular genetic maps of a domestic animal using DNA markers (RFLPs), and the chicken genome map continues to be among the best developed of those for agricultural animals (LEVIN et al. 1994; CHENG et al. 1995; CROOIJMANS et al. 1996; CHENG 1997). It is by far the bestdeveloped map for any avian species or any species with ZW sex chromosome determination. In particular, the usefulness of the chicken genome map in cross-species comparisons was highlighted at the First International Workshop on Comparative Genome Organization (ANDERSSON ALTHOUGH MOST WIDELY KNOWN for their utility in the production of food (meat and eggs) and other commercial products (feathers, vaccines, fertilizer, etc.), chicken, Japanese quail and other domesticated avian species have long been a preferred experimental organism in applied and basic life sciences. Some features contributing to their popularity are:
Elections in Kenya

Whether all of these changes take place in turn depends not just on the new personnel in government and the new party. Their commitment is likely to be shaped by the extent of popular pressure for such changes. Thankfully, the last ten years of mainly extra-parliamentary struggle has generated a remarkable range of civil society organisations in Kenya. They are already showing they will assiduously monitor the new government. Their efforts and stamina, together with trade unions and peasant bodies, will be crucial.
Niveles y factores de riesgo de reincidencia sexual entre adolescentes infractores institucionalizados

Today, crime against sexual liberty is the second most commited crime in adolescents in Peru, followed only by crime against patrimony (Gerencia de Centros Juveniles, 2016). Nevertheless, there isn’t a sexual agression specific program for adolescent infractors in Lima. Also it was impotantat for the study to search the risk factors and the risk level of sexual recidivism in order to do a preventive work and follow the evolution of the infractor in the treatment center. The present investigation describes the level of sexual crime recidivism in institutionalized adolescents. In the other hand it was of interest to calculate the presence of the sexual recidivism risk factors to analize the relationship between each factor and the risk levels with other variables that characterized the sample of study. In order to do this, it was necessary the use of the Estimate of risk of adolescent sexual offense recidivism (ERASOR) and a sociodemografic data report in 100 male participants with an average age of 17 years (SD=1.633) institucionalized for commiting a crime against sexual liberty, were analized. The results showed that the grand mayority of participants had a low Risk level. On the other hand, it was found that the risk factors with more presence in the study sample were Escalade of recent rage or negative feelings, Sexual crimes against children and Non existence o treatment strategies. Also there were found several statistically significant correlations between these factors, their categories and risks levels, and the theoretically revelant variables of the sample. To conclude, the possible future lines of investigation about treatment and prevention of the sexual agression in Peru were discussed.
Cariogenicity of Streptococcus mutans V403 glucosyltransferase and fructosyltransferase mutants constructed by allelic exchange

Streptococcus mutans produces several enzymes which metabolize sucrose. Three glucosyltransferase genes (gtfB, gtfC, and gtfD) and a single fructosyltransferase gene (ftf) encode enzymes which are important in formation of exopolysaccharides. Mutants of S. mutans V403 carrying single and multiple mutations of the gtfB, gtfC, gtfD, and ftf genes recently have been constructed by allelic exchange in our laboratory. Using selected strains from this panel of mutants, we examined the importance of water-insoluble glucan, water-soluble glucan, and fructan production in cariogenicity while controlling for the effects of strain and species variability. Genetic and biochemical characterization of mutants and assays of glucosyltransferase and fructosyltransferase activities were performed to ensure that the phenotypes of strains coincided with deficiencies predicted by genotype. The young gnotobiotic rat model of cariogenicity was used to assess virulence of the wild-type strain and isogenic mutants. Mutant strains were less virulent than the wild type in almost every location examined for caries on tooth surfaces and level of involvement of lesions (depth and severity). Inactivation of either gtfB and gtfC or ftf dramatically reduced virulence; the subsequent inactivation of gtfD did not enhance the effect of reduced virulence.
Influence of fluoride on the bacterial composition of a dual-species biofilm composed of Streptococcus mutans and Streptococcus oralis

Abstract Despite the widespread use of fluoride for the prevention of dental caries, few studies have demonstrated the effects of fluoride on the bacterial composition of dental biofilms. This study investigated whether fluoride affects the proportion of Streptococcus mutans and S. oralis in mono- and dual-species biofilm models, via microbiological, biochemical, and confocal fluorescence microscope studies. Fluoride did not affect the bacterial count and bio-volume of S. mutans and S. oralis in mono-species biofilms, except for the 24-h-old S. mutans biofilms. However, fluoride reduced the proportion and bio-volume of S. mutans but did not decrease those of S. oralis during both S. oralis and S. mutans dual-species biofilm formation, which may be related to the decrease in extracellular polysaccharide formation by fluoride. These results suggest that fluoride may prevent the shift in the microbial proportion to cariogenic bacteria in dental biofilms, subsequently inhibiting the cariogenic bacteria dominant biofilm formation.