Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A cross-sectional investigation of biomarkers of risk after a decade of smoking

Two groups of 20 healthy volunteers with cigarettes of different tar yield were compared with a group of 20 never smokers over 24 h for several biomarkers. All groups were of similar mean ages and the smokers had smoked for a homogeneous period of approximately 10 yr. The groups were assessed using routine medical parameters as well as biomarkers of recent smoke exposure and other biomarkers that were under evaluation as possible markers of risk for smoking-associated diseases. All biomarkers of exposure—carbon monoxide, nicotine plus its five major metabolites, and 4-(methylnitrosamine)-1-(3-pyridyl)-1-butanol (NNAL)—were significantly elevated in smokers. For biomarkers of potential risk evaluated in the blood, white cells and immunoglobulin (Ig) G showed a decrease related to smoking status (p < .01). Interleukin 6 levels were higher in smoker groups compared to never smokers, with a significant increasing trend across the groups (p < .05). Among the urinary biomarkers studied, 11-deydro-thromboxane B2, 2,3-dinor-thromboxane B2, and thymidine glycol showed significant increasing trends across the groups (p < .01). The results suggest that after the first decade or less of smoking, changes in inflammatory, immunological, and cardiovascular function can be observed. However, further studies on larger groups will be required to better understand the kinetics of these subtle effects observed early in smokers and their relationship with the potential risk of subsequent smoking-associated disease.
Robust face recognition based on Kernel Reduced Rank Regression

In practical applications, face recognition will be influenced by a number of uncontrolled factors, such as varied facial expression, poses, illumination, etc. In our paper, we aim at reducing the impact brought by variations of head pose. Under ordinary conditions, there is only one frontal face of each person in the gallery, thus we augment the gallery by synthesizing images in other different poses by using an effective regression based approach. In this approach, the facial landmarks on non-frontal faces can be estimated from their frontal images by the learned mappings between frontal landmarks and non-frontal ones. The mappings are achieved offline via Kernel Reduced Rank Regression (KRRR). Then the non-frontal face images are synthesized by Piecewise Affine Warping (PAW) and used for gallery extension. To demonstrate the validation of this approach, a frontal recognition system based on Multi-Region Histograms is augmented, and the augmented recognition system is tested on Multi-PIE dataset. Compared with other state-of-the-art methods, the approach is more robust to pose variation, while less time consuming.
Learning Ability Models for Human-Robot Collaboration

Our vision is a pro-active robot that assists elderly or disabled people in everyday activities. Such a robot needs knowledge in the form of prediction models about a person’s abilities, preferences and expectations in order to decide on the best way to assist. We are interested in learning such models from observation. We report on a first approach to learn ability models for manipulation tasks and identify some general challenges for the acquisition of human models.
Normalized maximum likelihood model of order-1 for the compression of DNA sequences

We present the NML model for classes of models with memory described by first order dependencies. The model is used for efficiently locating and encoding the best regressor present in a dictionary. By combining the order-1 NML with the order-0 NML model the resulting algorithm achieves a consistent improvement over the earlier order-0 NML algorithm, and it is demonstrated to have superior performance on the practical compression of the human genome
Mannose-contaminating agglutinin for Actinomyces viscosus and Actinomyces naeslundii

Rapid agglutination of Actinomyces viscosus and Actinomyces naeslundii cells by D-mannose solutions was observed during studies of their attachment to mammalian cells in vitro. The specificity of the agglutination reaction was studied by slide agglutination tests and by measuring the rate of decrease in optical density of bacterial phosphate buffer suspensions caused by the setting of bacterial aggregates. Actinomyces cells were agglutinated by protein-containing mannose solutions of several chemical suppliers. Solutions of sugars other than D-mannose and solutions of mannitol and mannan all failed to agglutinate A. viscsus and A. naeslundii. "Mannose-enhanced" agglutination was impaired by boiling or autoclaving the mannose but was not affected by heating the bacteria, the presence of chloramphenicol, running the assay in the cold, or incorporating any of several commercially purchased sugars in the reaction mixture. During these hapten inhibition experiments, only 6-deoxy-L-talcose-containing extracts of an A. viscosus strain retarded the rate of mannose-enhanced agglutination. Protein-containing fractions of D-mannose mother liquors also agglutinated cells of A. viscosus and A. naeslundii. Other species of oral gram-positive rods were not agglutinated by mannose solutions. Together the data indicate that plant seed-derived D-mannose contains a protein-associated agglutinin for A. viscosus and A. naeslundii which may function via a "lectin-like" selective affinity for the unique cell wall sugar 6-deoxy-L-talose.
Genetics of Ataxias: Hereditary Forms

SCA : spinocerebellar ataxia Ataxia is a neurologic disorder in which there is loss of coordination of movement. It can result from dysfunction of the cerebellum and brain stem and their afferent or efferent pathways. The etiology of ataxia can be divided into 3 main categories: acquired,
Immune-Mediated Disorders Associated with Idiopathic Sudden Sensorineural Hearing Loss

Different immune disorders are involved in the development of sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSNHL). This includes a wide spectrum of immune-mediated disorders such as immune complexes, production of autoantibodies to the inner ear proteins, production of anticardiolipin (aCL) antibodies, and cellular immune defects. Some studies have also found an elevation of total IgE levels and a type 1 immune reaction. Our objective was to establish the association of “idiopathic” SSNHL (ISSNHL) with various autoantibodies, and to analyze the persistence over time of existing aCL and anti–β2 glycoprotein 1 (anti–β2 GP1) antibodies in such patients. Finally, we sought to establish a possible association between ISSNHL and total IgE elevation and whether this elevation is due to a specific type I immune reaction. In this prospective follow-up study, 51 patients considered as having ISSNHL were compared with 35 age-sex matched healthy volunteers over a 3-year period. All participants were tested for serum antinuclear antibodies, antithyroid antibodies, aCL, and rheumatoid factor. All patients who were positive for aCL antibodies were reanalyzed 3 months later for aCL antibody persistence and for the coexistence and persistence of anti-β2 GP1 antibodies. Skin prick tests were performed in patients in whom total IgE was elevated. Antinuclear antibodies were positive in 9 of 51 (17%) and antithyroid antibodies in 11 of 51 (21%) ISSNHL patients, as compared to 1 of 35 (3%) and 2 of 35 (6%), respectively, in the control group. Rheumatoid factor was positive in 6 of the 51 patients (12%) and in none of the control group. Positive aCL antibodies were present in 16 of 51 patients (31%), 6 of whom (12%) were also positive for anti–β2 GP1 antibodies. Three months later, aCL antibodies persisted in 7 patients (14%), and anti–β2 GP1 in 4 patients. Only 2 of the normal subjects (6%) were positive for aCL antibodies, which persisted in only 1 of them (3%). The level of total IgE was elevated in 14 of 51 patients (27%), in contrast to 3 of 35 controls (8%). Six of them (42%) demonstrated a positive skin test to at least 1 allergen, but only 3 presented allergy symptoms. Our findings support the reported existence of multiple immune-mediated disorders in patients with ISSNHL. The lack of aCL antibody persistence in as many as half of our patients strongly suggests that transient phenomena (eg, viral infection) may trigger aCL antibody activity. However, the presence of aCL antibodies, especially in conjunction with anti–β2 GP1 antibodies, suggests that in some patients, SSNHL is included among the rare symptoms of the antiphospholipid syndrome.
Model identification of a tropical hotel suite room

Building modeling is a crucial part to implement optimal control strategies in Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) Systems. In this research, an alternative for modeling the thermal dynamics of a critical room from a case study hotel using TRNSYS is presented. The fan coil unit installed in the room is modeled using manufacturer datasheet and implemented in TRNSYS as a mechanical ventilation. In this simulation environment, the indoor dry bulb temperature of the room is modeled as a function of the supply chilled water temperature, ambient temperature and intensity of solar radiation. A linear discrete-time state space model is proposed for describing the system dynamics using subspace identification method and a comparison with other black-box parametric models is also presented. The model is simulated using real data collected every 5 minutes by the Building Automation System (BAS) installed in the hotel. Room modeling is an important tool for predicting the thermal behavior of rooms as well as implementing an optimal control application using the model as a comfort reference.
RNN Encoder Decoder 3 D Skeleton Converter 2 D Pose Sequence Generator Input Image 2 D Pose Heatmaps 3 D Skeleton Hourglass network

This paper presents the first study on forecasting human dynamics from static images. The problem is to input a single RGB image and generate a sequence of upcoming human body poses in 3D. To address the problem, we propose the 3D Pose Forecasting Network (3D-PFNet). Our 3DPFNet integrates recent advances on single-image human pose estimation and sequence prediction, and converts the 2D predictions into 3D space. We train our 3D-PFNet using a three-step training strategy to leverage a diverse source of training data, including image and video based human pose datasets and 3D motion capture (MoCap) data. We demonstrate competitive performance of our 3D-PFNet on 2D pose forecasting and 3D pose recovery through quantitative and qualitative results.
Influence of post-surgery time after cardiac transplantation on exercise responses.

Influence of post-surgery time after cardiac transplantation on exercise responses. Med. Sci. Sports Exerc. , Vol. 28, No. 2, pp. 171-175, 1996. To test the hypothesis that exercise response changes with time after cardiac transplantation, we investigated the cardiorespiratory responses of nine orthotopic heart transplant patients (52.4 +/- 2 yr) during graded exercise tests (30 W.3 min-1) done at 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months post-surgery. At peak exercise, 1) oxygen uptake per kg of body weight (VO2), minute ventilation (VE) and oxygen pulse (O2 pulse) did not change significantly between 1 and 12 months postsurgery; 2) transplanted heart rate (HRt) and delta heart rate (peak exercise heart rate--resting heart rate) increased significantly over time (P < 0.01; P < 0.05) with a marked increase between 1 and 3 months (P < 0.05); and (3) a significant negative correlation existed between O2 pulse and HRt (r = -0.36, P < 0.05), whereas no correlation was found between delta heart rate and delta VO2 (peak exercise VO2- resting VO2, l.min-1). During submaximal exercise, HRt increased significantly over time (P < 0.001); VO2, VE, and O2 pulse showed no significant change; and the VO2-HRt relationship shifted toward higher values of HRt. We conclude that, in the absence of formal physical training, the exercise response of denervated transplanted heart increases in relation to post-surgery time but does not affect oxygen uptake at submaximal and peak levels of exercise.
Kinetics for the inhibition of carboxylesterase by malaoxon.

Malaoxon and carboxylesterase undergo two separate but simultaneous reactions when mixed in solution. One results in the irreversible inhibition of carboxylesterase. In the other, malaoxon acts as a substrate and is hydrolyzed.This work is concerned primarily with the inhibition reaction, although direct evidence of the substrate reaction is also given. It seemed possible that inhibition could occur by two mutually exclusive routes. Equations were derived for each of the two routes, and both equations gave identical and unambiguous expressions for ki, the bimolecular velocity constant of the inhibition reaction. A procedure for determining the ki values of malaoxon and of four carboalkoxy homologues of malaoxon in reaction with partially purified rat-liver carboxylesterase is described. Evidence is given which suggested that the substrate reaction was controlled by the acylation step. This in turn suggested that useful estimates of the binding (Ka) and phosphorylation rate constants (k2p) could be made. V.
Time course of cytokines, hemodynamic and metabolic parameters during hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy.

BACKGROUND Systemic response to cytoreductive surgery (CRS) and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) causes the activation of endocrine, metabolic, hemodynamic and inflammatory processes. The aim of this work is to describe and analyze the time course of the inflammatory markers concentration during CRS+HIPEC in plasma and peritoneal fluids and the association with hemodynamic and metabolic parameters. METHODS Pre-, intra- and postoperative data were collected. Tumor necrosis factor (TNF), interleukine 6 (IL-6), pro-calcitonin (PCT), cancer antigen 125 (CA-125) in blood and in peritoneal fluids were evaluated. RESULTS Thirty-eight patients were included, 29 (76.3%) of them were female. Mean/median PCI was 9.2/5, primary malignancy was 5 colorectal cancer (13.2%), 5 gastric cancer (13.2%), 23 ovarian cancer (60.5%) and 5 other malignancies (13.2%). Combined clinical risk 0-1 was reached in all patients. Cardiac index, heart rate and central venous pressure increased during the procedure, while stroke volume variation showed a decrease. Mean arterial pressure and superior vena cava oxygenation were stable throughout the whole procedure. TNF and CA-125 were steady during the whole procedure; IL-6 had a relevant increase from baseline to start of perfusion (P<0.01); PCT had a steady increase at every time point. Peritoneal sampling showed a statistically significant increase (P<0.01) between start and end of the perfusion phase for all markers but TNF. Serum and peritoneal marker concentration were similar for TNF, PCT and CA-125. IL-6 showed a sharp difference. CONCLUSIONS The most significant variations were in IL-6 and PCT levels. The cytokines level parallels the hemodynamic derangements. Treatment during HIPEC should mimic the established treatment during sepsis and septic shock.
Combination of DNA repair gene single nucleotide polymorphisms and increased levels of DNA adducts in a population-based study.

Inherited single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of DNA repair genes may contribute to variations in DNA repair capacity and susceptibility to cancer. We investigated the role of SNPs in three DNA repair genes (X-ray repair cross-complementing group 1-Arg399Gln, exon 10; X-ray repair cross-complementing group 3-Thr241Met, exon 7; and xeroderma pigmentosum-D-Lys751Gln, exon 23) and their combination, in modulating the levels of "bulky" DNA adducts in a population sample of 628 Italian healthy individuals belonging to the prospective European project "European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition. " DNA-adduct levels were measured as relative adduct level per 10(9) nucleotides by (32)P-post DNA labeling assay in WBCs from peripheral blood. Genotyping was performed by PCR-RFLP analysis or primer extension/denaturing high-performance liquid chromatography technique. We found a dose-response relationship between the number of at-risk alleles and levels of adducts (P = 0.0046). Individuals with at least three variant alleles had a statistically significant odds ratio (OR) for being in the highest tertile of adducts compared with those with undetectable adducts [three alleles, adjusted OR = 5.07, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.29-19.9; four alleles, adjusted OR = 5.03, 95% CI = 1.18-21.45; five alleles, adjusted OR = 7.65, 95% CI = 0.94-62.2]. Our study suggests that the combined effect of multiple variant alleles may be more important than the investigation of single SNP in modulating DNA repair capacity.
Experience-dependent coding of frequency-modulated trajectories by offsets in auditory cortex

Frequency modulations are an inherent feature of many behaviorally relevant sounds, including vocalizations and music. Changing trajectories in a sound’s frequency often conveys meaningful information, which can be used to differentiate sound categories, as in the case of intonations in tonal languages. However, it is not clear what features of the neural responses in what parts of the auditory cortical pathway might be more important for conveying information about behaviorally relevant frequency modulations, and how these responses change with experience. Here we uncover tuning to subtle variations in frequency trajectories in mouse auditory cortex. Surprisingly, we found that auditory cortical responses could be modulated by variations in a pure tone trajectory as small as 1/24th of an octave. Offset spiking accounted for a significant portion of tuned responses to subtle frequency modulation. Offset responses that were present in the adult A2, but not those in Core auditory cortex, were plastic in a way that enhanced the representation of an acquired behaviorally relevant sound category, which we illustrate with the maternal mouse paradigm for natural communication sound learning. By using this ethologically inspired sound-feature tuning paradigm to drive auditory responses in higher-order neurons, our results demonstrate that auditory cortex can track much finer frequency modulations than previously appreciated, which allows A2 offset responses in particular to attune to the pitch trajectories that distinguish behaviorally relevant, natural sound categories.
Comparison of Gastrointestinal and Rectal Temperatures During Recovery After a Warm-Weather Road Race.

CONTEXT It has been well established that gastrointestinal temperature (TGI) tracks closely with rectal temperature (TREC) during exercise. However, the field use of TGI pills is still being examined, and little is known about how measurements obtained using these devices compare during recovery after exercise in warm weather. OBJECTIVE To compare TGI and TREC in runners who completed an 11.3-km warm-weather road race and determine if runners with higher TGI and TREC present with greater passive cooling rates during recovery. DESIGN Cross-sectional study. SETTING Field. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS Thirty recreationally active runners (15 men, 15 women; age = 39 ± 11 years, weight = 68.3 ± 11.7 kg, body fat = 19.2% ± 5.0%). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S) The TGI and TREC were obtained immediately after the race and during a 20-minute passive rest at the 2014 Falmouth Road Race (heat index = 26.2°C ± 0.9°C). Temperatures were taken every 2 minutes during passive rest. The main dependent variables were mean bias and limits of agreement for TGI and TREC, using Bland-Altman analysis, and the 20-minute passive cooling rates for TGI and TREC. RESULTS No differences were evident between TGI and TREC throughout passive rest (P = .542). The passive cooling rates for TGI and TREC were 0.046 ± 0.031°C·min(-1) and 0.060 ± 0.036°C·min(-1), respectively. Runners with higher TGI and TREC at the start of cooling had higher cooling rates (R = 0.682, P < .001 and R = 0.54, P = .001, respectively). The mean bias of TGI during the 20-minute passive rest was -0.06°C ± 0.56°C with 95% limits of agreement of ±1.09°C. CONCLUSIONS After participants completed a warm-weather road race, TGI provided a valid measure of body temperature compared with the criterion measure of TREC. Therefore, TGI may be a viable option for monitoring postexercise-induced hyperthermia, if the pill is administered prophylactically.
Bound water in the collagen‐like triple‐helical structure

The ir amide bands of the triple‐helical polytripeptides and collagens upon hydration of films are investigated. On the basis of our assignment of the amide I components, the formation of hydrogen bonds between the peptide backbone and structural water is studied. The C1O1—HOH hydrogen bonds are found more ordered than the C3O3—HOH hydrogen bonds. The specific incorporation of water in the triple helix is followed by multistep conformational changes and by increasing of the interpeptide hydrogen‐bond strength. The formation of the polypeptide hydrate structure depending on the amino acid composition and the chain length is examined.
Information Technology Investment Decision in an Educational Sector: a Case Study Using Contextualist Framework

In 2003, GartnerG2 and Forbes.com hosted a senior executive survey to find out their beliefs and attitudes towards information technology(IT)(MacDonald, 2003). Seventy percent of the respondents agreed that companies that invest heavily in IT have a strong competitive advantage. However, Carr(2003) argues that IT is not always associated with competitive advantage, hence investment in IT should be reduced. These two different points of view leads to this research to examine how companies make IT investment decisions. This study adopt a contextualist framework to explore how a continuing education institution(CEI) evaluate the IT investment.
Teriparatide in the Treatment of Severe Postmenopausal Osteoporosis: A Cost-Utility Analysis

Teriparatide is a new agent serves as a treatment of choice for severe post-menopausal osteoporotic patients who are at high risk of fracture or have failed or been intolerant of previous osteoporosis therapy. The objective of this study is to estimate the cost-utility of teriparatide compared with no treatment from health system perspective in Iran. A micro-simulation model was developed for a cohort of hypothetical Iranian patient population (women aged 70 years, T-score -2.5 with previous fracture or T-score -3.0 without prior fracture) over a lifetime horizon. The model consisted of the seven health states. During each cycle, patients could have a fracture, remain healthy, remain in a post-fracture state or die. Background fracture risks, mortality rates, persistence rates, utilities, medical and drug costs were derived using published sources. Total accumulated life-time costs and quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) were estimated. Teriparatide was associated with 4.786 QALYs and total direct costs of IRR 143,168,259 over a lifetime horizon. Compared to no treatment, teriparatide provided an additional 0.145 QALY at an incremental cost of IRR 33,511,013. The resulting incremental cost-effectiveness ratio was IRR 230,333,030/QALYs gained. The probabilistic analysis showed that accepting a willingness-to-pay 2 and 3 GDP/capita in Iran, the probability of teriparatide being cost-effective were 51% and 83%, respectively. Compared to no treatment, teriparatide was indicated to be more costly and associated with fewer fractures, more life-years, and more QALYs. The result showed that teriparatide may be considered a cost-effective intervention when targeted to the appropriate patients.