Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Shock attenuation in the human lumbar spine during walking and running

ABSTRACT During locomotion, each step generates a shock wave that travels through the body toward the head. Without mechanisms for attenuation, repeated shocks can lead to pathology. Shock attenuation (SA) in the lower limb has been well studied, but little is known about how posture affects SA in the spine. To test the hypothesis that lumbar lordosis (LL) contributes to SA, 27 adults (14 male, 13 female) walked and ran on a treadmill. Two lightweight, tri-axial accelerometers were affixed to the skin overlying T12/L1 and L5/S1. Sagittal plane accelerations were analyzed using power spectral density analysis, and lumbar SA was assessed within the impact-related frequency range. 3D kinematics quantified dynamic and resting LL. To examine the effects of intervertebral discs on spinal SA, supine MRI scans were used to measure disc morphology. The results showed no association between LL and SA during walking, but LL correlated with SA during running (P<0.01, R2=0.30), resulting in as much as 64% reduction in shock signal power among individuals with the highest LL. Patterns of lumbar spinal motion partially explain differences in SA: larger amplitudes of LL angular displacement and slower angular displacement velocity during running were associated with greater lumbar SA (P=0.008, R2=0.41). Intervertebral discs were associated with greater SA during running (P=0.02, R2=0.22) but, after controlling for disc thickness, LL remained strongly associated with SA (P=0.001, R2=0.44). These findings support the hypothesis that LL plays an important role in attenuating impact shocks transmitted through the human spine during high-impact, dynamic activities such as running. Highlighted Article: Human lumbar lordosis helps balance our bipedal trunk but also plays an important role in attenuating shocks transmitted through the spine during high-impact activities such as running.
Food Restriction Effects on the Body Composition of Free-Living Ground Squirrels, Spermophilus beldingi

I conducted a field experiment to examine the use of body fat as an energy reserve by juvenile female Belding's ground squirrels, Spermophilus beldingi, prior to hibernation. Squirrels were divided into two groups: the squirrels in one group had their foraging times restricted by being placed in a cage for part of each day for four consecutive days (deprived group), and the squirrels in the other group foraged ad lib. (ad lib. group). The deprived group foraged in its normal habitat morning and evening but had access only to water and lettuce while captive. Total body electrical conductivity (TOBEC), an in vivo method of estimating fat-free mass, was used to follow changes in body composition. The deprived group lost mass, while the ad lib. group gained mass. Total body electrical conductivity measurements indicated that the deprived group lost fat-free mass and not fat, whereas mass gained by the ad lib. group was mostly fat. This is consistent with an emphasis on fat anabolism prior to hibernation. I also show that the TOBEC method is affected by variation in stomach contents, and I evaluate conditions under which an intraspecific calibration equation is needed
Characterization of polysaccharide multilayered capsules for tissue engineering applications

Cell encapsulation has been widely studied as an alternative therapy for almost every human diseases and disorders. This technique enables the inclusion of various types of living cells inside spherical systems which, among other capabilities, mimic the environment provided by the extracellular matrix. This new therapeutic approach has already proved to be successful either in vitro or in vivo studies, thus becoming one of the most promising tools in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. The main goal of this thesis was to explore some of the potential of cell encapsulation using simple and versatile techniques that can be performed in physiological and friendly conditions to the cells. In a first approach, cells were encapsulated in liquid-core capsules using a three step methodology: (i) the precipitation of a polymer solution of alginate into a bath of calcium chloride (ionotropic gelation), (ii) deposition of polyelectrolyte multilayers onto the surface of the beads, in a process called layer-by-layer. (iii) use of EDTA to liquefy the alginate core. Two different natural-based polymers were used, alginate, the most studied copolymer for cell encapsulation and chitosan, a polymer widely explored in a variety of biomedical applications. Both polymers were proved to be biocompatible, biodegradable and can be manipulated under physiological conditions. All the capsules produced exhibited spherical shape, smooth surface and liquid-core. The results shown that encapsulated cells were viable and Preparation and characterization of polysaccharide multilayered capsules for tissue engineering applications Abstract proliferating few days after the alginate-chitosan multilayer buildup, which suggests that the develop capsules posses a semipermeable membrane which allows the correct diffusion of nutrients and metabolites. A preliminary study was started to test the feasibility of culturing anchorage-dependent cells in PLLA solid microparticles previously treated with human serum fibronectin followed by the encapsulation of the whole set in alginate-chitosan liquid-core capsules. The results are still very incipient but
Pig Domestication and Human-Mediated Dispersal in Western Eurasia Revealed through Ancient DNA and Geometric Morphometrics

Zooarcheological evidence suggests that pigs were domesticated in Southwest Asia ∼8,500 BC. They then spread across the Middle and Near East and westward into Europe alongside early agriculturalists. European pigs were either domesticated independently or more likely appeared so as a result of admixture between introduced pigs and European wild boar. As a result, European wild boar mtDNA lineages replaced Near Eastern/Anatolian mtDNA signatures in Europe and subsequently replaced indigenous domestic pig lineages in Anatolia. The specific details of these processes, however, remain unknown. To address questions related to early pig domestication, dispersal, and turnover in the Near East, we analyzed ancient mitochondrial DNA and dental geometric morphometric variation in 393 ancient pig specimens representing 48 archeological sites (from the Pre-Pottery Neolithic to the Medieval period) from Armenia, Cyprus, Georgia, Iran, Syria, and Turkey. Our results reveal the first genetic signatures of early domestic pigs in the Near Eastern Neolithic core zone. We also demonstrate that these early pigs differed genetically from those in western Anatolia that were introduced to Europe during the Neolithic expansion. In addition, we present a significantly more refined chronology for the introduction of European domestic pigs into Asia Minor that took place during the Bronze Age, at least 900 years earlier than previously detected. By the 5th century AD, European signatures completely replaced the endemic lineages possibly coinciding with the widespread demographic and societal changes that occurred during the Anatolian Bronze and Iron Ages.
Prevalence and characteristics of extended-spectrum β-lactamase-producing Escherichia coli in domestic and imported chicken meats in Japan

The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)-producing Escherichia coli (ESBL-Ec) in retail chicken meats in Japan. Fifty-six domestic and 50 imported (Brazil, n=36; United States, n=8; Thailand, n=6) chicken meat samples were analyzed. The 162 ESBL-Ec included 111 from 43 (77%) domestic samples and 51 from 26 (52%) Brazilian samples. Fifty-three and 30 of 111 and 51 ESBL-Ec from domestic and Brazilian chickens, respectively, were selected for ESBL genotyping. The blaCTX-M (91%), blaTEM (36%) and blaSHV (15%) genes were detected in ESBL-Ec isolated from domestic chickens, whereas blaCTX-M (100%) and blaTEM (20%) were detected in ESBL-Ec isolated from imported chickens. Among the blaCTX-M group, blaCTX-M-2 (45%) and blaCTX-M-1 (34%) were prevalent in domestic chicken isolates, whereas blaCTX-M-2 (53%) and blaCTX-M-8 (43%) were prevalent in imported chicken isolates. Domestic chicken isolates were mostly resistant to tetracycline (83%), followed by streptomycin (70%) and nalidixic acid (62%). Imported chicken isolates were resistant to streptomycin (77%), followed by nalidixic acid (63%) and tetracycline (57%). Notably, extensive multidrug resistance was detected in 60% (32/53) and 70% (21/30) ESBL-Ec from domestic and imported chickens, respectively. Virulence genes associated with diarrheagenic and extra-intestinal pathogenic E. coli were detected in ESBL-Ec isolated from domestic and imported chickens. These data suggest that ESBL-Ec in retail chicken meats could be a potential reservoir for antimicrobial resistance determinants and that some are potentially harmful to humans.
Simultaneous Detection of Key Bacterial Pathogens Related to Pneumonia and Meningitis Using Multiplex PCR Coupled With Mass Spectrometry

Pneumonia and meningitis continue to present an enormous public health burden and pose a major threat to young children. Among the causative organisms of pneumonia and meningitis, bacteria are the most common causes of serious disease and deaths. It is challenging to accurately and rapidly identify these agents. To solve this problem, we developed and validated a 12-plex PCR coupled with matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS) method (bacterial pathogen-mass spectrometry, BP-MS) that can be used to simultaneously screen for 11 key bacterial pathogens related to pneumonia and meningitis. Forty-six nasopharyngeal swabs and 12 isolates were used to determine the specificity of the method. The results showed that, using the BP-MS method, we could accurately identify the expected bacteria without cross-reactivity with other pathogens. For the 11 target bacterial pathogens, the analytical sensitivity of the BP-MS method was as low as 10 copies/reaction. To further evaluate the clinical effectiveness of this method, 204 nasopharyngeal swabs from hospitalized children with suspected pneumonia were tested using this method. In total, 81.9% (167/204) of the samples were positive for at least one of the 11 target pathogens. Among the 167 bacteria-positive samples, the rate of multiple infections was 55.7% (93/167), and the most frequent combination was Streptococcus pneumoniae with Haemophilus influenzae, representing 46.2% (43/93) two-pathogen mixed infections. We used real-time PCR and nested PCR to confirm positive results, with identical results obtained for 81.4% (136/167) of the samples. The BP-MS method is a sensitive and specific molecular detection technique in a multiplex format and with high sample throughput. Therefore, it will be a powerful tool for pathogen screening and antibiotic selection at an early stage of disease.
A novel method of identifying motor primitives using wavelet decomposition

This study reports a new technique for extracting muscle synergies using continuous wavelet transform. The method allows to quantify coincident activation of muscle groups caused by the physiological processes of fixed duration, thus enabling the extraction of wavelet modules of arbitrary groups of muscles. Hierarchical clustering and identification of the repeating wavelet modules across subjects and across movements, was used to identify consistent muscle synergies. Results indicate that the most frequently repeated wavelet modules comprised combinations of two muscles that are not traditional agonists and span different joints. We have also found that these wavelet modules were flexibly combined across different movement directions in a pattern resembling directional tuning. This method is extendable to multiple frequency domains and signal modalities.
Bright region preserving back-light image enhancement using clipped histogram equalization

This paper presents a back-light image enhancement method using modified histogram as an optimal intensity transfer function based on clipped histogram equalization. The proposed method separates and clips the input histogram according to the clipping rate computed by the mean brightness of an input image. Next, the clipped histogram bins are adaptively redistributed according to the shape of histogram in the bright region. Since the bright region of modified histogram has a uniform shape, the proposed method makes the cumulative distribution function be a linear function in the bright region of the histogram. The experimental results show that the proposed method enhances the contrast of dark region without saturation and over-enhancement in the bright region.
A Meta-analysis on Resting State High-frequency Heart Rate Variability in Bulimia Nervosa.

OBJECTIVE Autonomic nervous system function is altered in eating disorders. We aimed to quantify differences in resting state vagal activity, indexed by high-frequency heart rate variability comparing patients with bulimia nervosa (BN) and healthy controls. METHODS A systematic search of the literature to identify studies eligible for inclusion and meta-analytical methods were applied. Meta-regression was used to identify potential covariates. RESULTS Eight studies reporting measures of resting high-frequency heart rate variability in individuals with BN (n = 137) and controls (n = 190) were included. Random-effects meta-analysis revealed a sizeable main effect (Z = 2.22, p = .03; Hedge's g = 0.52, 95% CI [0.06;0.98]) indicating higher resting state vagal activity in individuals with BN. Meta-regression showed that body mass index and medication intake are significant covariates. DISCUSSION Findings suggest higher vagal activity in BN at rest, particularly in unmedicated samples with lower body mass index. Potential mechanisms underlying these findings and implications for routine clinical care are discussed. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.
Cold Sintering Process of Composites: Bridging the Processing Temperature Gap of Ceramic and Polymer Materials

Co‐sintering ceramic and thermoplastic polymer composites in a single step with very high volume fractions of ceramics seems unlikely, given the vast differences in the typical sintering temperatures of ceramics versus polymers. These processing limitations are overcome with the introduction of a new sintering approach, namely “cold sintering process” (CSP). CSP utilizes a transient low temperature solvent, such as water or water with dissolved solutes in stoichiometric ratios consistent with the ceramic composition, to control the dissolution and precipitation of ceramics and effect densification between room temperature and ≈200 °C. Under these conditions, thermoplastic polymers and ceramic materials can be jointly formed into dense composites. Three diphasic composite examples are demonstrated to show the overall diversity of composite material design between organic and inorganic oxides, including the microwave dielectric Li2MoO4–(C2F4 ) n , electrolyte Li1.5Al0. 5Ge1.5(PO4)3–(CH2CF2 ) x [CF2CF(CF3)] y , and semiconductor V2O5–poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate composites. Cold sintering is more general and shall have a major impact on the processing of composite materials for many different applications, mechanical, thermal, and electronic, to mention a few possibilities. CSP concepts open up new composite material design and device integration schemes, impacting a wide variety of applications.
® cation of general audio data for content-based retrieval

In this paper, we address the problem of classi®cation of continuous general audio data (GAD) for content-based retrieval, and describe a scheme that is able to classify audio segments into seven categories consisting of silence, single speaker speech, music, environmental noise, multiple speakers' speech, simultaneous speech and music, and speech and noise. We studied a total of 143 classi®cation features for their discrimination capability. Our study shows that cepstralbased features such as the Mel-frequency cepstral coecients (MFCC) and linear prediction coecients (LPC) provide better classi®cation accuracy compared to temporal and spectral features. To minimize the classi®cation errors near the boundaries of audio segments of dierent type in general audio data, a segmentation±pooling scheme is also proposed in this work. This scheme yields classi®cation results that are consistent with human perception. Our classi®cation system provides over 90% accuracy at a processing speed dozens of times faster than the playing rate. Ó 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Breast Cancer : Targets and Therapy Role of lapatinib alone or in combination in the treatment of HER 2-positive breast cancer

Correspondence: Sara A Hurvitz Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology-Oncology, 10945 Le Conte Avenue, PVUB Suite 3360, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA Tel +1 310 794 6500 Fax +1 310 829 6192 Email shurvitz@mednet.ucla. edu Purpose: This review aims to present the preclinical and clinical data regarding efficacy and safety of lapatinib alone and in combination with other agents in the treatment of human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER2)-overexpressing breast cancer. Background: HER2-positive (HER2+) breast cancer remains a treatment challenge. It is more aggressive than other breast cancers and it is associated with a poor outcome. Targeted therapy for HER2+ breast cancer has significantly changed the clinical course of the disease. Despite advances in therapy, there remains an unmet need in the treatment of HER2+ breast cancer. Lapatinib is a novel, orally bioavailable epidermal growth factor receptor/HER2+ targeted agent. Many trials have investigated the efficacy and safety of lapatinib alone and in conjunction with other agents in the treatment of HER2+ breast cancer. Methods and results: Preclinical and clinical trials of lapatinib have shown that it is effective in the treatment on HER2+ breast cancer. More important, studies show that it is effective in the setting of trastuzumab resistance and in the treatment of central nervous system metastases, both of which are current treatment challenges. Furthermore, lapatinib is effective in conjunction with trastuzumab in the treatment of early breast cancer. Data regarding the safety of lapatinib show that it is generally well tolerated; however, multiple studies have shown significant (grade 3 and 4) diarrhea and rash associated with lapatinib, thereby limiting its use. Carditoxicity has not been a significant adverse event associated with the use of lapatinib. Conclusion: Lapatinib is effective alone and in conjunction with other agents in the treatment of HER2+ breast cancer. However, its use is limited by significant diarrhea and rash.
Adherence to insulin treatment in insulin-naïve type 2 diabetic patients initiated on different insulin regimens

Objective We aimed to evaluate adherence to insulin treatment in terms of treatment persistence and daily adherence to insulin injections among insulin-naïve type 2 diabetic patients initiating insulin therapy with basal (long acting), basal-bolus, and premixed insulin regimens in a tertiary endocrinology outpatient clinic. Methods A total of 433 (mean age of 55.5±13.0 years; 52.4% females) insulin-naïve type 2 diabetic patients initiated on insulin therapy were included in this questionnaire-based phone interview survey at the sixth month of therapy. Via the telephone interview questions, patients were required to provide information about persistence to insulin treatment, self-reported blood glucose values, and side effects; data on demographics and diabetes characteristics were obtained from medical records. Results Self-reported treatment withdrawal occurred in 20.1% patients, while 20.3% patients were nonadherent to daily insulin. Negative beliefs about insulin therapy (24.1%) and forgetting injections (40.9%) were the most common reasons for treatment withdrawal and dose skipping, respectively. Younger age (49.5±15.0 vs 56.4±12.0 years) (P=0.001) and shorter duration of diabetes (4.8±4.3 vs 8.8±6.3 years) (P=0.0008) and treatment duration (5.2±2.4 vs 10.7±2.4 months) (P=0.0001) were noted, respectively, in discontinuers vs continuers. Basal bolus was the most commonly prescribed insulin regimen (51.0%), while associated with higher likelihood of skipping a dose than regular use (61.3% vs. 46.0%, P=0.04). Conclusions Persistence to insulin therapy was poorer than anticipated but appeared to be higher in patients with the basal bolus regimen. Negative perceptions about insulin therapy seemed to be the main cause for poor adherence in our cohort.
Somatic Cytokinesis and Pollen Maturation in Arabidopsis Depend on TPLATE, Which Has Domains Similar to Coat Proteins[W]

TPLATE was previously identified as a potential cytokinesis protein targeted to the cell plate. Disruption of TPLATE in Arabidopsis thaliana leads to the production of shriveled pollen unable to germinate. Vesicular compartmentalization of the mature pollen is dramatically altered, and large callose deposits accumulate near the intine cell wall layer. Green fluorescent protein (GFP)–tagged TPLATE expression under the control of the pollen promoter Lat52 complements the phenotype. Downregulation of TPLATE in Arabidopsis seedlings and tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) BY-2 suspension cells results in crooked cell walls and cell plates that fail to insert into the mother wall. Besides accumulating at the cell plate, GFP-fused TPLATE is temporally targeted to a narrow zone at the cell cortex where the cell plate connects to the mother wall. TPLATE-GFP also localizes to subcellular structures that accumulate at the pollen tube exit site in germinating pollen. Ectopic callose depositions observed in mutant pollen also occur in RNA interference plants, suggesting that TPLATE is implicated in cell wall modification. TPLATE contains domains similar to adaptin and β-COP coat proteins. These data suggest that TPLATE functions in vesicle-trafficking events required for site-specific cell wall modifications during pollen germination and for anchoring of the cell plate to the mother wall at the correct cortical position.
Fabrication of a Single-Electron Inverter in Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes

A single-electron inverter has been fabricated in single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) by connecting two single-electron transistors (SETs) in series. Each SET was fabricated in different SWNTs only by depositing metallic contacts on them. For one SET, SWNTs appeared to be single and semiconducting, while they appeared to form a bundle for the other SET. The inverter performance was obtained at 1.5 K with a full voltage swing and a gain of ∼0.6, although the SETs were not fabricated from the simple individual metallic nanotubes.