Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effect of dietary aluminum on calcium and phosphorus metabolism and performance of laying hens.

The effect was studied of feeding dietary Al as aluminum sulfate on calcium and phosphorus metabolism and performance of Single Comb White Leghorn laying hens. In Trial 1, graded levels of Al (0, .05, .10, or .15%) were added to a corn-soybean meal layer diet containing 3.3% Ca and . 5% available P. Each diet was fed for 28 days to six groups of six individually caged hens. Adding . 15% Al to the diet significantly (P less than .05) reduced feed intake, egg production, body weight, tibia breaking strength, and plasma inorganic P. In Trial 2, graded levels of Al (0, .1, .2, or .3%) were added to the basal diet. Each diet was fed to five or six individually caged hens for 42 days. Feeding . 3% Al significantly (P less than .05) decreased plasma inorganic P in samples collected immediately following oviposition after 10 and 42 days of treatment. Plasma total Ca, tibia weight, and tibia breaking strength were unaffected by dietary treatments. Egg production and feed intake during Days 1 through 21, but not during Days 22 through 42, were significantly reduced by . 3% Al. The results indicated that the addition of . 3% Al to a laying hen diet has a negative effect on P metabolism and egg production.
Healthcare costs associated with language difficulties up to 9 years of age: Australian population-based study

Abstract Purpose. This study aimed to quantify the non-hospital healthcare costs associated with language difficulties within two nationally representative samples of children. Method. Data were from three biennial waves (2004–2008) of the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (B cohort: 0–5 years; K cohort: 4–9 years). Language difficulties were defined as scores ≤ 1.25 SD below the mean on measures of parent-reported communication (0–3 years) and directly assessed vocabulary (4–9 years). Participant data were linked to administrative data on non-hospital healthcare attendances and prescription medications from the universal Australian Medicare subsidized healthcare scheme. Result. It was found that healthcare costs over each 2-year age band were higher for children with than without language difficulties at 0–1, 2–3, and 4–5 years, notably 36% higher (mean difference = $AU206, 95% CI = $90, $321) at 4–5 years (B cohort). The slightly higher 2-year healthcare costs for children with language difficulties at 6–7 and 8–9 years were not statistically different from those without language difficulties. Modelled to the corresponding Australian child population, 2-year government costs ranged from $AU1.2–$AU12.1 million (depending on age examined). Six-year healthcare costs increased with the persistence of language difficulties in the K cohort, with total Medicare costs increasing by $192 (95% CI = $74, $311; p = .002) for each additional wave of language difficulties. Conclusion. Language difficulties (whether transient or persistent) were associated with substantial excess population healthcare costs in childhood, which are in addition to the known broader costs incurred through the education system. It is unclear whether healthcare costs were specifically due to the assessment and/or treatment of language difficulties, as opposed to conditions that may be co-morbid with or may cause language difficulties.
Fairness evaluation in cooperative hybrid cellular systems

Many method has been applied previously to improve the fairness of a wireless communication system. In this paper, we propose using hybrid schemes, where more than one transmission scheme are used in one system, to achieve this objective. These schemes consist of cooperative transmission schemes, maximal ratio transmission and interference alignment, and non-cooperative schemes, orthogonal and non-orthogonal schemes used alongside and in combinations in the same system to improve the fairness. We provide different weight calculation methods to vary the output of the fairness problem. We show the solution of the radio resource allocation problem for the transmission schemes used. Finally, simulation results is provided to show fairness achieved, in terms of Jain's fairness index, by applying the hybrid schemes proposed and the different weight calculation methods at different inter-site distances.
Atomistic simulations of solute-interface interactions in iron

The kinetics of the recrystallization and austenite-ferrite (fcc-bcc) phase transformation in steels are markedly affected by substitutional alloying elements. Nevertheless, the detailed mechanisms of their interaction with the grain boundaries and interfaces are not fully understood. Using density functional theory, we determine the segregation energies of commonly used alloying elements (e.g. Nb, Mo, Mn, Si, Cr, Ni) in the Σ5 (013) tilt grain boundary in bcc and fcc Fe, and the bcc-fcc interfaces. We find a strong interaction between large solutes (e.g. Nb, Mo and Ti) and grain boundaries or interfaces that is consistent with experimental observations of the effects of these alloying elements on delaying recrystallization and the austenite-to-ferrite transformation in low-carbon steels. In addition, we compute the solute-solute interactions as a function of solute pair distance in the grain boundaries and interfaces, which suggest co-segregation for these large solutes at intermediate distances in striking contrast to the bulk. Besides the prediction of solute segregation, the selfand solute-diffusion in Febased system are also investigated within a framework combining density functional theory calculations and kinetic Monte Carlo simulations. Good agreement between our calculations and the measurements for selfand solute diffusion in bulk Fe is achieved. For the first time, the effective activation energies and diffusion coefficients for various solutes in the α-Fe Σ5 (013) grain boundary are determined. The results demonstrate that grain boundary diffusion is significantly faster than for lattice diffusion, confirming grain boundaries are fast diffusion paths. By contrast, the effective activation energy of self-diffusion in a bcc-fcc Fe interface is close to the value of fcc bulk self-diffusion, and the investigated bcc-fcc interface provides a moderate “fast diffusion” path.
Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome and sleep quality in hypertensive patients.

INTRODUCTION Obstructive sleep apnea and hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) is one of the developmental factors of high blood pressure (HBP), a relevant global public health problem. OSAHS is characterized by the reduction or complete cessation of respiratory airflow due to intermittent airway collapse. Additionally, significant changes in sleep rhythm and pattern are observed in these patients. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the association between OSAHS and sleep quality in essential and resistant hypertensives. METHOD A cross-sectional, observational study evaluated 43 hypertensive patients treated at the outpatient clinics of the Faculdade de Medicina do ABC (FMABC) who were medicated with two or more antihypertensive drugs and divided into nonresistant or resistant to treatment. RESULTS Group I (using up to two antihypertensive agents - 60.47% of the sample) presented mean systolic blood pressure (SBP) of 127.5±6.4 mmHg, mean diastolic blood pressure (DBP) of 79.6±5.2 mmHg, mean body mass index (BMI) of 27.2±5.3 kg/m2 and mean age of 51.2±15.1 years. Group II (using more than two antihypertensive drugs - 37.2% of the sample) presented mean SBP of 132.1±9.3 mmHg, mean DBP of 84.5±5.8 mmHg, mean BMI of 27.2±7.2 kg/m2 and mean age of 55.5±13.4 years. The patients presented low quality of sleep/sleep disorder evaluated by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), which represents a preponderant factor for OSAHS. CONCLUSION Patients at high risk for OSAHS had poor sleep quality and high levels of DBP, suggesting a causal relation between these parameters. However, they did not present a higher prevalence of resistant high blood pressure (RHBP).
Nutritional implications of pectins in chicks in relation to esterification and origin of pectins.

An experiment was conducted to examine the effect of feeding high-methylated (HM) and low-methylated (LM) pectin on performance and physiological characteristics in broiler chicks. Two levels each (1.5 and 3%) of HM citrus pectin (HMC), LM citrus pectin (LMC), or HM sugar beet pectin (HMS) were added to a semi-purified basal diet. The experiment was conducted in battery brooders, and chicks received the diets as pellets from 6 to 27 d of age. The inclusion of LMC or HMS in the diet had little or no effect on the performance of chicks; however, when HMC was added to the diet growth and feed utilization were reduced significantly (P < 0.05). Water intake and water:feed ratio were increased (P < 0.05) after inclusion of all three pectin products in the diet. The effect on water consumption was more pronounced in the HMC-containing diets than in the LMC or HMS diets, and was dose-dependent. In vitro viscosity was increased significantly by incorporating HMC or LMC into the diet, whereas HMS had no effect on this parameter. Waterholding capacity of the diets and the excreta were increased significantly by including one (P < 0.05) of the three pectin products in the diet. The concentration of some of volatile fatty acids (VFA) in the cecal chyme was markedly decreased (P < 0.05) by feeding HMC, whereas LMC had no effect (P > 0.05) on the concentration of VFA. In contrast, inclusion of HMS in the diet significantly increased the concentration of VFA in the cecal content (P < 0.05) dose-dependently. Based on the results of the present study, it can be concluded that the effect of dietary pectin on chick performance is dependent on the degree of carboxyl groups that is esterified, the origin of the pectin product, and the amount added to the diet.
The effect of taurine transport antagonists on cardiac taurine concentration and the incidence of sudden death syndrome in male broiler chickens.

Two experiments were conducted in which 540 day-old male broiler chickens were raised in heated battery brooders to 4 wk of age. Diets contained taurine antagonists to test effects on cardiac taurine content and the incidence of Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS). In Experiment 1 treatments during Weeks 2 to 4 were A) basal diet; B) basal diet supplemented with . 25% guanidinoethyl sulfonate (GES) in Week 2 and 1.5% GES in Weeks 3 and 4; and C) basal diet supplemented with . 5% GES in Weeks 2 to 4. The taurine content of heart was significantly reduced (P less than .05) with GES supplementation, but no effects on SDS mortality rates were noted. In Experiment 2 birds received diets containing 0. 2.5, or 5% beta-alanine. Supplementation with this compound decreased cardiac taurine concentration to extremely low levels (P less than .05). No significant effects on SDS mortality rates were noted. The results are interpreted as suggesting that taurine does not play a major role in the etiology of SDS.
How can we implement exercise therapy for patellofemoral pain if we don’t know what was prescribed? A systematic review

Objective To evaluate the completeness of exercise prescription in randomised controlled trials (RCTs) for patellofemoral pain (PFP), identify which elements are most frequently missing and supplement recommendations based on additional data from authors. Design Systematic review. Data sources All studies included in the most recent Cochrane review were evaluated. Additionally, the Cochrane search was updated in June 2016 in Cochrane, MEDLINE, EMBASE, PEDro, CINAHL and AMED databases. Two raters independently assessed completeness of reporting using the Toigo and Boutellier mechanobiological exercise descriptors, and Template for Intervention Description and Replication (TIDieR) checklist. Authors were also contacted to provide additional information. Eligibility criteria for selecting studies RCTs of exercise interventions for PFP. Results We included 38 RCTs. The level of exercise prescription detail was low, with no study providing complete information. The most commonly reported exercise descriptors were the ’duration of the experimental period' (n=38/38) and ’number of exercise interventions' (n=35). From TIDieR, the most commonly reported items were the ’intervention name' (n=38) and ’rationale' (n=36). The least reported items from the exercise descriptors were ’volitional muscular failure', ’temporal distribution of contraction modes', ’time under tension' and ’recovery between exercise sessions' (all n=2/38). From TIDieR, the least reported item was ‘How well (fidelity and adherence)’ (n=3/38). 36 authors were contacted, with 22 replies and 13 providing additional exercise prescription details . Conclusion Exercise prescriptions in RCTs with proven efficacy for PFP are poorly reported, impairing their implementation in clinical practice. PROSPERO registration number CRD42016039138.
Sound Signal Processing with Seq2Tree Network

Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) and its variants have been the standard solution to sequential data processing tasks because of their ability to preserve previous information weighted on distance. This feature provides the LSTM family with additional information in predictions, compared to regular Recurrent Neural Networks (RNNs) and Bag-of-Words (BOW) models. In other words, LSTM networks assume the data to be chain-structured. The longer the distance between two data points, the less related the data points are. However, this is usually not the case for real multimedia signals including text, sound and music. In real data, this chain-structured dependency exists only across meaningful groups of data units but not over single units directly. For example, in a prediction task over sound signals, a meaningful word could give a strong hint to its following word as a whole but not the ﬁrst phoneme of that word. This undermines the ability of LSTM networks in modeling multimedia data, which is pattern-rich. In this paper we take advantage of Seq2Tree network, a dynamically extensible tree-structured neural network architecture which helps solve the problem LSTM networks face in sound signal processing tasks—the unbalanced connections among data units inside and outside semantic groups. Experiments show that Seq2Tree network outperforms the state-of-the-art Bidirectional LSTM (BLSTM) model on a signal and noise separation task (CHiME Speech Separation and Recognition Challenge).
The role of the neurometer CPT/C in sacral neuromodulation.

Objective The aim of the current research project was to study the role of the Neurometer® as a tool to predict responders to sacral neuromodulation therapy (SNM). Material and methods This was a prospective, open study in male and female patients, aged 18 and over with voiding dysfunction [non-obstructive retention and/or frequency/ urgency syndrome]. The first group underwent a screening test to evaluate percutaneous nerve functions (PNE) and to determine whether they are candidates for SNM with the InterStim®. Prior to PNE testing, all patients were evaluated with the pain tolerance test (PTT) using the electro-diagnostic Neurometer® CPT/C device. An InterStim® implant was placed in patients who were responders to PNE testing underwent. On the other hand, non-responders underwent a staged implant placement. The second group consisted of patients who already had InterStim® implanted for voiding dysfunction. During the routine office follow-up, the patients implanted with Interstim® underwent a PTT using the Neurometer® CPT/C device. All the testing using the Neurometer CPT/C was performed on the day of the PNE for the first group, and the day of the routine follow-up visit for the second group. All of the results for the Neurometer® testing were kept blinded from the PNE results, and those of the outcome of the follow-up visit. The study received approval by the Research Ethics Board of the University Health Network (No. 14-8196). Results We recruited a total of 123 patients. The results presented here include 110 patients who completed the study, 48 of whom were in the first group, and 62 in the second group. The statistical analysis used was as follows: Group 1: Simple linear regression analysis and the linear discriminate analysis were preformed. It was found that for patients without the InterStim® implant with a combined CPT/CPD of 800 and above, the Neurometer® could predict the test screening results with an accuracy of 71%. Group 2: Same analysis and tests were conducted for patients with the InterStim® implant, and the results showed that if the patient had a combined CPT/CPD of 600 and above, the Neurometer® could predict the patients satisfaction or dissatisfaction with an accuracy of 72%. Conclusion Neurometer® may play a role in predicting test trial positive responders and patient satisfaction after the placement of InterStim® implant.
Maximizing the Lifetime of Wireless Sensor Networks through Optimal Single-Session Flow Routing

Wireless sensor networks are becoming increasingly important in recent years due to their ability to detect and convey real-time, in-situ information for many civilian and military applications. A fundamental challenge for such networks lies in energy constraint, which poses a performance limit on the achievable network lifetime. We consider a two-tier wireless sensor network and address the network lifetime problem for upper-tier aggregation and forwarding nodes (AFNs). Existing flow routing solutions proposed for maximizing network lifetime require AFNs to split flows to different paths during transmission, which we call multisession flow routing solutions. If an AFN is equipped with a single transmitter/receiver pair, a multisession flow routing solution requires a packet-level power control at the AFN so as to conserve energy, which calls for considerable overhead in synchronization among the AFNs. In this paper, we show that it is possible to achieve the same optimal network lifetime by power control on a much larger timescale with the so-called single-session flow routing solutions, under which the packet-level power control and, thus, strict requirement on synchronization are not necessary. We also show how to perform optimal single-session flow routing when the bit-rate of composite flows generated by AFNs is time-varying, as long as the average bit-rate can be estimated
Relationship of plasma growth hormone to growth within and between turkey lines selected for differential growth rates.

The ontogeny of plasma growth hormone (GH) was determined within and between genetically-related turkey lines selected for differential growth rates. Blood samples were obtained at weekly intervals from hatching through 195 days of age from male and female poults of a slow-growing, randombred line (RBC-2), representing the base population, and a fast-growing line selected over 20 generations from RBC-2 for increased 16-wk body weight (F). Growth rate of the F line exceeded that of RBC-2 during the very early (0 to 14 day) posthatch period (P less than .05), but was not different from that of the RBC-2 line by 77 to 195 days of age. Males of both lines were larger than females at all ages (P less than .05). Plasma GH increased from hatching until 2 wk of age and declined thereafter in both lines. Differences between overall plasma GH concentrations of the lines were not observed during the 0 to 14 day period, but concentrations were higher (P less than .05) in RBC-2 than F birds thereafter (21 to 195 days of age). Plasma GH concentrations initially (0 to 14 days) were higher in females than in males for both lines (P less than .05), but thereafter (21 to 195 days) declined more rapidly and averaged lower overall in females than in males (P less than .05). Correlations between measures of GH and growth rate within lines over age were strongly positive (r = .83 to .93; P less than .001). (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Multimarker analysis and imputation of multiple platform pooling-based genome-wide association studies

For many genome-wide association (GWA) studies individually genotyping one million or more SNPs provides a marginal increase in coverage at a substantial cost. Much of the information gained is redundant due to the correlation structure inherent in the human genome. Pooling-based GWA studies could benefit significantly by utilizing this redundancy to reduce noise, improve the accuracy of the observations and increase genomic coverage. We introduce a measure of correlation between individual genotyping and pooling, under the same framework that r(2) provides a measure of linkage disequilibrium (LD) between pairs of SNPs. We then report a new non-haplotype multimarker multi-loci method that leverages the correlation structure between SNPs in the human genome to increase the efficacy of pooling-based GWA studies. We first give a theoretical framework and derivation of our multimarker method. Next, we evaluate simulations using this multimarker approach in comparison to single marker analysis. Finally, we experimentally evaluate our method using different pools of HapMap individuals on the Illumina 450S Duo, Illumina 550K and Affymetrix 5.0 platforms for a combined total of 1 333 631 SNPs. Our results show that use of multimarker analysis reduces noise specific to pooling-based studies, allows for efficient integration of multiple microarray platforms and provides more accurate measures of significance than single marker analysis. Additionally, this approach can be extended to allow for imputing the association significance for SNPs not directly observed using neighboring SNPs in LD. This multimarker method can now be used to cost-effectively complete pooling-based GWA studies with multiple platforms across over one million SNPs and to impute neighboring SNPs weighted for the loss of information due to pooling.
Immunofluorescence Localization of Fibronectin in Chondrosarcoma

In this study, we have compared the extracellular matrix components and the in vitro adhesion characteristics of normal rat epiphysial chondrocytes with those from the Swarm rat Chondrosarcoma, which has many of the biochemical charac teristics of normal cartilage. With the use of immunofluorescence techniques, tissue slices and chondrocytes in culture were tested for the presence of collagen types I and II, carti lage-characteristic proteoglycan, and fibronectin. Both normal and tumor matrix contained type II collagen and cartilage proteoglycan, but only the tumor matrix contained fibronectin. In culture, tumor-derived chondrocytes continued to accumu late fibronectin in their matrix, even after deposition of type II collagen and proteoglycans, while normal chondrocytes did not. When the attachment characteristics of both types of chondrocytes were compared, tumor chondrocytes required fibronectin for attachment, while normal chondrocytes used another attachment factor that had been identified previously as chondronectin. These studies suggest that, although bio chemically similar to normal chondrocytes, tumor chondrocytes are no longer able to express the regulatory mechanisms for fibronectin accumulation.