Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Gestation length and birth weight in relation to intake of marine n-3 fatty acids

It has been hypothesized that marine n-3 fatty acids ingested during pregnancy prolong duration of pregnancy and increase fetal growth rate in humans. By a combined self-administered questionnaire and interview applied in the 30th week of gestation we assessed dietary intake of marine n-3 fatty acids and energy in a population-based sample of 965 pregnant Danish women; in a random 14% subsample we also measured marine n-3 fatty acids relative to arachidonic acid (FA-ratio) in erythrocytes. Mean intake of marine n-3 fatty acids was 0·25 (95% range 0–0·75) g/d. We could detect no association between n-3 fatty acid intake and FA-ratio on the one hand, and gestation length, birth weight and birth length on the other. The analyses were adjusted for maternal height, prepregnant weight, parity and smoking. The conclusion from the study was that within the intake range of this population, marine n-3 fatty acids ingested in the weeks prior to the 30th week of pregnancy seem not to be a predictor of gestation length or fetal growth rate.
Circuit techniques to overcome Class-D audio amplifier limitations in mobile devices

Circuit techniques to overcome practical noise, reliability, and EMI limitations are reported. An auxiliary loop with ramping circuits suppresses pop-and-click noise to 1 mV for an amplifier with 4V achievable output voltage. Switching edge rate control enables the system to meet the EN55022 Class-B standard with a 15 dB margin. An enhanced scheme detects short-circuit conditions without relying on over-limit current events.
The physiological effects of slow breathing in the healthy human

Slow breathing practices have been adopted in the modern world across the globe due to their claimed health benefits. This has piqued the interest of researchers and clinicians who have initiated investigations into the physiological (and psychological) effects of slow breathing techniques and attempted to uncover the underlying mechanisms. The aim of this article is to provide a comprehensive overview of normal respiratory physiology and the documented physiological effects of slow breathing techniques according to research in healthy humans. The review focuses on the physiological implications to the respiratory, cardiovascular, cardiorespiratory and autonomic nervous systems, with particular focus on diaphragm activity, ventilation efficiency, haemodynamics, heart rate variability, cardiorespiratory coupling, respiratory sinus arrhythmia and sympathovagal balance. The review ends with a brief discussion of the potential clinical implications of slow breathing techniques. This is a topic that warrants further research, understanding and discussion. Key points Slow breathing practices have gained popularity in the western world due to their claimed health benefits, yet remain relatively untouched by the medical community. Investigations into the physiological effects of slow breathing have uncovered significant effects on the respiratory, cardiovascular, cardiorespiratory and autonomic nervous systems. Key findings include effects on respiratory muscle activity, ventilation efficiency, chemoreflex and baroreflex sensitivity, heart rate variability, blood flow dynamics, respiratory sinus arrhythmia, cardiorespiratory coupling, and sympathovagal balance. There appears to be potential for use of controlled slow breathing techniques as a means of optimising physiological parameters that appear to be associated with health and longevity, and that may extend to disease states; however, there is a dire need for further research into the area. Educational aims To provide a comprehensive overview of normal human respiratory physiology and the documented effects of slow breathing in healthy humans. To review and discuss the evidence and hypotheses regarding the mechanisms underlying slow breathing physiological effects in humans. To provide a definition of slow breathing and what may constitute “autonomically optimised respiration”. To open discussion on the potential clinical implications of slow breathing techniques and the need for further research. Slow breathing techniques have been used in asthma but are there effects in healthy individuals? http://ow.ly/gCPO30eQOPZ
Neonatal seizures

In childhood, the risk for seizures is greatest in the neonatal period. Currently used therapies have limited efficacy. Although the treatment of neonatal seizures has not significantly changed in the past several decades, there has been substantial progress in understanding developmental mechanisms that influence seizure generation and responsiveness to anticonvulsants. This review includes an overview of current approaches to the diagnosis and treatment of neonatal seizures, identifies some of the critical factors that have limited progress, and highlights recent insights about the pathophysiology of neonatal seizures that may provide the foundation for better treatment. Ann Neurol 2007
The bacterial microbiome in paired vaginal and vestibular samples from women with vulvar vestibulitis syndrome.

Composition of the bacterial microbiome in the vagina and vestibule from 30 women with vulvar vestibulitis syndrome (VVS) and 15 healthy controls were compared by pyrosequencing 16S rRNA gene amplicons. Vaginal concentrations of interleukin (IL)-1β were determined by ELISA. Questionnaires elicited clinical and symptom data. Eighteen genera were detected in vaginal samples, and 23 genera were identified in vestibule samples, from women with VVS. The genera at both sites and the mean number of genera in subjects with VVS were largely similar to those in control subjects. However, differences were noted including higher proportions of Streptococcus and Enterococcus in women with VVS. Furthermore, Lactobacillus iners was more frequently identified in women with VVS while L. crispatus was more frequent in the control women. The dominant bacterial genera in the vagina closely paralleled the dominant genera present in the corresponding vestibular sample in both groups, leading us to postulate that vaginal secretions are an important source of bacteria present on the vestibule. Vaginal IL-1β levels were similar and varied depending on the dominant bacteria. We conclude in this pilot study that no major differences are apparent in the vagina and vestibule between women with or without VVS, except for an increased prevalence of Streptococcus and L. iners in some women with VVS.
A Case Study for the Enhanced Performance Measurement Model in Mobile Business Environment

Due to drastic growth of mobile customers in recent days, mobile business has brought a paradigm shift and expanded its application areas with mass production of various mobile business fields. Consequently, diverse attempts are being made in order to analyze the mobile business for its successful performance. In this work, we propose performance metrics to measure the performance of mobile business and suggest the enhanced performance measurement model for analyzing the mobile business using proposed performance metrics. The performance metrics are categorized into two types, customer retention and product engagement, according to the characteristics of each mobile businesses. We automatically collected the raw data from mobile applications and the crawling data from mobile market in order to measure performance metrics of mobile business and statistically analyzed the two performance metrics above using big data processing system based on cloud environment. In this work, we suggest the enhanced performance measurement model in mobile business environment and present the results analyzed with the proposed model as case study. The proposed model should support efficient decision making in mobile business field such as mobile marketing and mobile commerce.
Mapping arbitrary mathematical functions and dynamical systems to neuromorphic VLSI circuits for spike-based neural computation

Brain-inspired, spike-based computation in electronic systems is being investigated for developing alternative, non-conventional computing technologies. The Neural Engineering Framework provides a method for programming these devices to implement computation. In this paper we apply this approach to perform arbitrary mathematical computation using a mixed signal analog/digital neuromorphic multi-neuron VLSI chip. This is achieved by means of a network of spiking neurons with multiple weighted connections. The synaptic weights are stored in a 4-bit on-chip programmable SRAM block. We propose a parallel event-based method for calibrating appropriately the synaptic weights and demonstrate the method by encoding and decoding arbitrary mathematical functions, and by implementing dynamical systems via recurrent connections.
Direct volume visualization of three-dimensional vector fields

Current techniques for direct volume visualization offer only the ability to examine scalar fields. However most scientific explorations require the examination of vector and possibly tensor fields as well as numerous scalar fields. This paper describes an algorithm to directly render three-dimensional scalar and vector fields. The algorithm uses a combination of sampling and splatting techniques, that are extended to integrate display of vector field data within the image.
Early Low Protein Diet Aggravates Unbalance between Antioxidant Enzymes Leading to Islet Dysfunction

Background Islets from adult rat possess weak antioxidant defense leading to unbalance between superoxide dismutase (SOD) and hydrogen peroxide-inactivating enzymatic activities, catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPX) rending them susceptible to oxidative stress. We have shown that this vulnerability is influenced by maternal diet during gestation and lactation. Methodology/Principal Findings The present study investigated if low antioxidant activity in islets is already observed at birth and if maternal protein restriction influences the development of islet antioxidant defenses. Rats were fed a control diet (C group) or a low protein diet during gestation (LP) or until weaning (LPT), after which offspring received the control diet. We found that antioxidant enzymatic activities varied with age. At birth and after weaning, normal islets possessed an efficient GPX activity. However, the antioxidant capacity decreased thereafter increasing the potential vulnerability to oxidative stress. Maternal protein malnutrition changed the antioxidant enzymatic activities in islets of the progeny. At 3 months, SOD activity was increased in LP and LPT islets with no concomitant activation of CAT and GPX. This unbalance could lead to higher hydrogen peroxide production, which may concur to oxidative stress causing defective insulin gene expression due to modification of critical factors that modulate the insulin promoter. We found indeed that insulin mRNA level was reduced in both groups of malnourished offspring compared to controls. Analyzing the expression of such critical factors, we found that c-Myc expression was strongly increased in islets from both protein-restricted groups compared to controls. Conclusion and Significance Modification in antioxidant activity by maternal low protein diet could predispose to pancreatic islet dysfunction later in life and provide new insights to define a molecular mechanism responsible for intrauterine programming of endocrine pancreas.
Isolation and characterization of new polymorphic microsatellite loci in the mixotrophic orchid Limodorum abortivum L. Swartz (Orchidaceae)

Here, we report the isolation and characterization of 11 polymorphic microsatellites in Limodorum abortivum. Allele variability has been characterized in three populations from Southern Italy and France. The number of alleles ranged from one to six per locus with an average of 3.8 alleles per locus. Observed and expected heterozygosity values ranged from 0.000 to 1.000 and from 0.492 to 0.806, respectively, with striking differences among populations. These microsatellites should be valuable tools for studying fine‐scale genetic structure of scattered Limodorum abortivum populations, patterns of relationship with closely related taxa and the evolutionary ecology of its mycorrhizal interactions.
Deforming metrics in the direction of their Ricci tensors

In [4], R. Hamilton has proved that if a compact manifold M of dimension three admits a C Riemannian metric g0 with positive Ricci curvature, then it also admits a metric g with constant positive sectional curvature, and is thus a quotient of the sphere S. In fact, he shows that the original metric can be deformed into the constant-curvature metric by requiring that, for t ≥ 0, x ∈ M and g = g(t, x),
The role of psychological and biological factors in postinfective gut dysfunction

BACKGROUND Both psychological and physiological disturbances have been implicated in the aetiopathogenesis of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). AIMS To investigate how the psychological factors act, and the involvement of infective and physiological factors. METHODS Consecutive patients hospitalised for gastroenteritis reported life events for the previous 12 months, and past illness experiences on standardised questionnaires. They also completed psychometric questionnaires for anxiety, neuroticism, somatisation, and hypochondriasis. In some patients, rectal biopsy specimens were obtained during the acute illness and at three months postinfection. RESULTS Ninety four patients completed all questionnaires: 22 patients were diagnosed with IBS after their gastroenteritis (IBS+), and 72 patients returned to normal bowel habits (IBS−). IBS+ patients reported more life events and had higher hypochondriasis scores than IBS− patients. The predictive value of the life event and hypochondriasis measures was highly significant and independent of anxiety, neuroticism, and somatisation scores, which were also elevated in IBS+ patients. Rectal biopsy specimens from 29 patients showed a chronic inflammatory response in both IBS+ and IBS− patients. Three months later, specimens from IBS+ patients continued to show increased chronic inflammatory cell counts but those from IBS− patients had returned to normal levels. IBS+ and IBS− patients exhibited rectal hypersensitivity and hyper-reactivity and rapid colonic transit compared with normal controls, but there were no significant differences between IBS+ and IBS− patients for these physiological measurements. CONCLUSION Psychological factors most clearly predict the development of IBS symptoms after gastroenteritis but biological mechanisms also contribute towards the expression of symptoms.
Associations between Polygenic Risk for Psychiatric Disorders and Substance Involvement

Despite evidence of substantial comorbidity between psychiatric disorders and substance involvement, the extent to which common genetic factors contribute to their co-occurrence remains understudied. In the current study, we tested for associations between polygenic risk for psychiatric disorders and substance involvement (i.e., ranging from ever-use to severe dependence) among 2573 non-Hispanic European–American participants from the Study of Addiction: Genetics and Environment. Polygenic risk scores (PRS) for cross-disorder psychopathology (CROSS) were generated based on the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium’s Cross-Disorder meta-analysis and then tested for associations with a factor representing general liability to alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, nicotine, and opioid involvement (GENSUB). Follow-up analyses evaluated specific associations between each of the five psychiatric disorders which comprised CROSS—attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (AUT), bipolar disorder (BIP), major depressive disorder (MDD), and schizophrenia (SCZ)—and involvement with each component substance included in GENSUB. CROSS PRS explained 1.10% of variance in GENSUB in our sample (p < 0.001). After correction for multiple testing in our follow-up analyses of polygenic risk for each individual disorder predicting involvement with each component substance, associations remained between: (A) MDD PRS and non-problem cannabis use, (B) MDD PRS and severe cocaine dependence, (C) SCZ PRS and non-problem cannabis use and severe cannabis dependence, and (D) SCZ PRS and severe cocaine dependence. These results suggest that shared covariance from common genetic variation contributes to psychiatric and substance involvement comorbidity.
STUDY OF SPORTS TEACHERS STUDENTS' SKILLS FOR SELF-ASSESSMENT OF THEIR PROFESSIONAL QUALITIES

n essential characteristic of the teacher's profession is the constant process of self- improvement, which is impossible without exist- ence of a specific personal position and criteria of the sport pedagogue. One of the trends for self- improvement is his personal and professional quali- ties. They are important because of their specific role - as a means of influence on the trained stu- dents in the educational process. Self-evaluation of the level of their growth is a regulator for the sport teachers conduct and activity because it determines the genuine orientation for the level of his qualities, the satisfaction or dissatisfaction. Key word: sports pedagogy, self-evaluation, students, professional's properties
Socioeconomic inequalities in health. No easy solution.

OBJECTIVE Socioeconomic status (SES) is strongly associated with risk of disease and mortality. Universal health insurance is being debated as one remedy for such health inequalities. This article considers mechanisms through which SES affects health and argues that a broader and more comprehensive approach is needed. DATA SOURCES Published articles surveyed using MEDLINE and review articles and bibliographies. METHODS AND RESULTS Research is reviewed on the association of SES with health outcomes in different countries, including those with universal health coverage. Socioeconomic status relates to health at all levels of the SES hierarchy, and access to care accounts for little of this association. Other mechanisms are suggested and implications for policy and clinical practice are discussed. CONCLUSION Health insurance coverage alone is not likely to reduce significantly SES differences in health. Attention should be paid both in policy decisions and in clinical practice to other SES-related factors that may influence patterns of health and disease.
Thirteen posttranslational modifications convert a 14-residue peptide into the antibiotic thiocillin

The thiazolylpeptides are a family of >50 bactericidal antibiotics that block the initial steps of bacterial protein synthesis. Here, we report a biosynthetic gene cluster for thiocillin and establish that it, and by extension the whole class, is ribosomally synthesized. Remarkably, the C-terminal 14 residues of a 52-residue peptide precursor undergo 13 posttranslational modifications to give rise to thiocillin, making this antibiotic the most heavily posttranslationally-modified peptide known to date.
L'entrée dans l'entreprise des jeunes diplômés

L'ouvrage presente tout d'abord les approches theoriques permettant d'apprehender l'entree dans l'entreprise des jeunes diplomes. Face aux limites des approches identifiees, il propose d'analyser cette periode d'entree dans l'entreprise a travaers le concept de tensions de roles (qui regroupe les conflits de role et l'ambiguite de role) vecus par les jeunes diplomes. Une enquete a la fois qualitative et quantitative (719 questionnaires analyses a l'aide de methodes statistiques avancees) permet ensuite d'identifier les formes specifiques de conflits de roles vecus par les jeunes diplomes et de developper une nouvelle echelle mesure. Puis, l'impact relatif de chaque forme de tensions de roles est mis en evidence.
On the Appropriateness of Domain-Specific Languages Derived from Different Metamodels

In model-driven development domain-specific languages (DSL) are often considered models while the description of DSLs are expressed using various metamodels. To estimate the influence of a metamodel on the quality of DSLs derived from it, it is appropriate to measure functional suitability. As defined by the standard ISO/IEC 25010 (SQuaRE), functional suitability consists of completeness, correctness, and appropriateness. Among these issues, only appropriateness can be evaluated without specifying the domain. This paper is a study of a relationship between (a) the metamodel's expressive power regarding the syntax of the DSLs derived from the metamodel and (b) the appropriateness of those DSLs. In this regard two metrics are defined. The first metric evaluates a metamodel and produces the estimation of the derived DSLs' appropriateness. The second metric incorporates the domain and further assesses the quality of a DSL in terms of appropriateness. Both metrics are based on abstract syntax trees of programs written in the derived DSLs, and demonstrated using examples on two different domains.
Making bare hand input more accurate

To enable seamless interaction with both virtual and physical worlds, computers need to reliably distinguish intended input from other hand movements. Accurately classifying this input can reduce mode switches needed between interacting with computers and with physical objects in the environment. I aim to investigate the influence of proprioception and interaction context on hand postures and movements. Preliminary studies suggest consistent relationships that potentially allow for a more accurate prediction of users' intentions.
Experimental evidence for convergent evolution of maternal care heuristics in industrialized and small-scale populations

Maternal care decision rules should evolve responsiveness to factors impinging on the fitness pay-offs of care. Because the caretaking environments common in industrialized and small-scale societies vary in predictable ways, we hypothesize that heuristics guiding maternal behaviour will also differ between these two types of populations. We used a factorial vignette experiment to elicit third-party judgements about likely caretaking decisions of a hypothetical mother and her child when various fitness-relevant factors (maternal age and access to resources, and offspring age, sex and quality) were varied systematically in seven populations—three industrialized and four small-scale. Despite considerable variation in responses, we found that three of five main effects, and the two severity effects, exhibited statistically significant industrialized/ small-scale population differences. All differences could be explained as adaptive solutions to industrialized versus small-scale caretaking environments. Further, we found gradients in the relationship between the population-specific estimates and national-level socio-economic indicators, further implicating important aspects of the variation in industrialized and small-scale caretaking environments in shaping heuristics. Although there is mounting evidence for a genetic component to human maternal behaviour, there is no current evidence for interpopulation variation in candidate genes. We nonetheless suggest that heuristics guiding maternal behaviour in diverse societies emerge via convergent evolution in response to similar selective pressures.