Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of captopril and oxygen on sleep apnoea in patients with mild to moderate congestive cardiac failure.

OBJECTIVES--To determine the effects of captopril and oxygen on sleep quality in patients with mild to moderate cardiac failure. DESIGN--An open observational study. PATIENTS--12 patients with New York Heart Association class II-III heart failure were studied at baseline. 9 of these patients were then examined at the end of 1 month of treatment with captopril; 9 of the patients were separately assessed during a single night of supplementary oxygen. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES--Sleep patterns by polysomnography, overnight oximetry, and subjective sleep assessment using visual analogue scores. RESULTS--Abnormal sleep was present in all baseline studies. Complete polysomnograms after treatment with captopril were obtained in 8 patients. Light sleep (stages 1 and 2) was reduced (mean (SEM) 61%(8)% to 48%(6)% actual sleep time, P < 0.05) but slow wave (stages 3 and 4) and REM (rapid eye movement) sleep increased (25%(6)% to 31%(5)%, 14%(2)% to 21%(5)% actual sleep time, P < 0.05). Apnoeic episodes (242(59) to 118(30), P < 0.05), desaturation events (171(60) to 73(37), P < 0.05), and arousals (33(5) to 18(3) P < 0.01) were reduced. Visual analogue scores of sleep quality increased 49(5) to 69(5), P < 0.01). Complete polysomnograms were obtained in 7 patients treated with oxygen. Light sleep duration was reduced (55% (7)% to 42%(5)% actual sleep time, P < 0.05) and slow wave sleep increased (30%(5)% to 38%(6)% actual sleep time, P < 0.05). REM sleep duration was not significantly different. Total arousals (33(6)% to 20(2) P < 0.05), desaturation events (140(33) to 38(10), P < 0.01), and apnoeic episodes (212(53) to 157(33), P < 0.05) were reduced. Visual analogue scores of sleep quality were unchanged. CONCLUSIONS--Captopril and oxygen may improve sleep quality and reduce nocturnal desaturation in patients with mild to moderate cardiac failure. Improved sleep quality could explain the reduction in daytime symptoms seen after treatment in patients with chronic heart failure.
Probiotics, prebiotics, synbiotics in prevention and treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases

Probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics are functional components able to exert positive effects on human health. Numerous medical conditions lack effective and safe approaches for prevention or treatment, thus usage of probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics is an alternative. Further, the benefit related to the consumption of these compounds is associated with lower morbidity of chronic diseases and reduced health-care costs. Various types of mediums to deliver probiotics/synbiotics to the human GIT are used. Although capsules and tablets are frequently applied as delivery systems for probiotics, the major challenge of the commercial sector is to market new functional foods containing probiotics and/or prebiotics. Discovering of new probiotic/synbiotic functional foods is connected to the interest of the food industry to revitalize continuously through introduction of products with improved nutritional value and pleasant taste, but also with health benefit for the consumers. The review provides insights and new perspectives in respect to usage of functional components and foods in prevention and treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) that are highly correlated with the modern lifestyle. The therapeutic and safety properties of probiotics and prebiotics, their role in pathogenesis of IBD, potential to prevent and treat these diseases as well as postulated mechanisms of action will be discussed, highlighting the main areas in which further research is an emergence.
High aspect ratio materials: role of surface chemistry vs. length in the historical “long and short amosite asbestos fibers”

In nanotoxicology the question arises whether high aspect ratio materials should be regarded as potentially pathogenic like asbestos, merely on the base of their biopersistence and length to diameter ratio. A higher pathogenicity of long asbestos fibers is associated to their slower clearance and frustrated phagocytosis. In the past decades, two amosite fibers were prepared and studied to confirm the role of fiber length in asbestos toxicity. Long fiber amosite (LFA) and short fiber amosite (SFA) have here been revisited, to check differences in their surface properties, known to modulate the biological responses elicited. We report: (i) micromorphology (abundance of exposed cylindrical vs. truncated surfaces; (ii) surface reactivity (oxidation and coordination state of surface iron, free radical generation and oxidizing potential); (iii) activation of nitric oxide (NO) synthase in lung epithelial cells, as representative of an inflammatory cell response. LFA shows a higher free radical yield, stimulates, more than SFA, NO production by cells and reacts with ascorbic acid, thus depriving the lung lining layer of its antioxidant defenses. The higher activity of LFA than SFA is ascribed to the presence of Fe2+ ions poorly coordinated to the surface. SFA shows only a large number of loosely bound Fe3+ ions, pristine Fe2+ ions having been oxidized during the grinding process converting LFA into SFA. Several factors determine a higher toxicity of LFA than SFA, beside length. The lesson from asbestos indicates that other features besides aspect ratio contribute to the pathogenic potential of a fiber type. All these aspects should be considered when predicting the possible hazard associated to any new fibrous material proposed to the market, let alone nanofibers.
Paracetamol Crystallization Using Laser Backscattering and ATR-FTIR Spectroscopy: Metastability, Agglomeration, and Control

A systematic approach is developed for the in situ control of the crystal size distribution, and is applied to the aqueous crystallization of paracetamol (acetaminophen) as a model pharmaceutical system. This involves the determination of the solubility curve and the metastable limit, and the operation of concentration-controlled batch crystallization. The solution concentration and the solubility curve of paracetamol in water are determined using attenuated total reflection (ATR)-Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy coupled with chemometrics. The metastable zone width of paracetamol is determined using laser backscattering and ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. Seeded batch crystallizations of paracetamol following a desired supersaturation profile near the metastable limit are carried out using in situ solution concentration measurements obtained from ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. The in situ chord length distributions of crystals obtained from laser backscattering are related to characteristics of the crystal s.
Visualization of Dopamine Transporter Trafficking in Live Neurons by Use of Fluorescent Cocaine Analogs

The dopamine transporter (DAT) mediates reuptake of dopamine from the synaptic cleft and is a target for widely abused psychostimulants such as cocaine and amphetamine. Nonetheless, little is known about the cellular distribution and trafficking of natively expressed DAT. Here we use novel fluorescently tagged cocaine analogs to visualize DAT and DAT trafficking in cultured live midbrain dopaminergic neurons. The fluorescent tags were extended from the tropane N-position of 2β-carbomethoxy-3β-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)tropane using an ethylamino-linker. The rhodamine-, OR Green-, or Cy3-labeled ligands had high binding affinity for DAT and enabled specific labeling of DAT in live neurons and visualization by confocal imaging. In the dopaminergic neurons, DAT was uniformly distributed in the plasma membrane of the soma, the neuronal extensions, and varicosities along these extensions. FRAP (fluorescence recovery after photobleaching) experiments demonstrated bidirectional movement of DAT in the extensions and indicated that DAT is highly mobile both in the extensions and in the varicosities (immobile fraction less than ∼30%). DAT was constitutively internalized into vesicular structures likely representing intracellular transporter pools. The internalization was blocked by lentiviral-mediated expression of dominant-negative dynamin and internalized DAT displayed partial colocalization with the early endosomal marker EGFP-Rab5 and with the transferrin receptor. DAT internalization and function was not affected by activation of protein kinase C (PKC) with phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate (PMA) or by inhibition with staurosporine or GF109203X. These data are in contrast to findings for DAT in transfected heterologous cells and challenge the paradigm that trafficking and cellular distribution of endogenous DAT is subject to regulation by PKC.
Dapagliflozin: A Novel Sodium‐Glucose Cotransporter Type 2 Inhibitor for the Treatment of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

The prevalence of diabetes mellitus has grown to staggering numbers, and its incidence is expected to rise in the next 2 decades. The need for novel approaches to treat hyperglycemia cannot be ignored. Current agents have been shown to modestly improve glycemia and in some cases prevent complications of diabetes, but they become less effective over time and are often accompanied by undesirable adverse effects. Dapagliflozin is the lead agent in a new class of oral antidiabetic agents known as sodium‐glucose cotransporter type 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors, which represent a novel approach to the management of type 2 diabetes mellitus. By selectively and reversibly blocking the SGLT2 receptor, dapagliflozin prevents the reabsorption of glucose at the renal proximal tubule. Phase II and III clinical trials have demonstrated that dapagliflozin is a safe and effective method for treating type 2 diabetes. Dapagliflozin produces a sustained, dose‐dependent reduction in plasma glucose levels while simultaneously improving insulin secretion and sensitivity. Over 12–24 weeks, reductions in hemoglobin A1c ranged from 0.54–0.89% when dapagliflozin was administered once/day (either as monotherapy or add‐on therapy to oral antidiabetic drugs with or without insulin) to patients with type 2 diabetes. Therapy with dapagliflozin also results in a mild osmotic‐diuretic effect that may account for decreases in total body weight (~2–3 kg) and blood pressure (systolic 2–5 mm Hg, diastolic 1.5–3 mm Hg), and increases in hematocrit (1–2%). Dapagliflozin has a favorable safety profile, with the rates of hypoglycemia similar to those of placebo. Genital and urinary tract infections were more commonly reported in patients taking dapagliflozin (2–13%) than those taking placebo (0–8%). Dapagliflozin does not appear to cause electrolyte disturbances, hepatotoxicity, or nephrotoxicity. Results from clinical trials have been promising, and well‐designed clinical programs that address the long‐term safety and efficacy of dapagliflozin are under way.
Generalizing loop-invariant code motion in a real-world compiler

Motivated by the perpetual goal of automatically generating efficient code from high-level programming abstractions, compiler optimization has developed into an area of intense research. Apart from general-purpose transformations which are applicable to all or most programs, many highly domain-specific optimizations have also been developed. In this project, we extend such a domain-specific compiler optimization, initially described and implemented in the context of finite element analysis, to one that is suitable for arbitrary applications. Our optimization is a generalization of loop-invariant code motion, a technique which moves invariant statements out of program loops. The novelty of the transformation is due to its ability to avoid more redundant recomputation than normal code motion, at the cost of additional storage space. This project provides a theoretical description of the above technique which is fit for general programs, together with an implementation in LLVM, one of the most successful open-source compiler frameworks. We introduce a simple heuristic-driven profitability model which manages to successfully safeguard against potential performance regressions, at the cost of missing some speedup opportunities. We evaluate the functional correctness of our implementation using the comprehensive LLVM test suite, passing all of its 497 whole program tests. The results of our performance evaluation using the same set of tests reveal that generalized code motion is applicable to many programs, but that consistent performance gains depend on an accurate cost model. Applied unconditionally, our optimization introduces two major execution time improvements of over 30% in the test suite, but otherwise proves to be very detrimental. Coupled with the current cost model, all noticeable slowdowns are eliminated, but so is one of the previous speedups. We believe that with further refinement of the cost model, our technique could bring major improvements to a wide range of programs.
Dynamic Boolean Matrix Factorizations

Boolean matrix factorization is a method to decompose a binary matrix into two binary factor matrices. Akin to other matrix factorizations, the factor matrices can be used for various data analysis tasks. Many (if not most) real-world data sets are dynamic, though, meaning that new information is recorded over time. Incorporating this new information into the factorization can require a re-computation of the factorization -- something we cannot do if we want to keep our factorization up-to-date after each update. This paper proposes a method to dynamically update the Boolean matrix factorization when new data is added to the data base. This method is extended with a mechanism to improve the factorization with a trade-off in speed of computation. The method is tested with a number of real-world and synthetic data sets including studying its efficiency against off-line methods. The results show that with good initialization the proposed online and dynamic methods can beat the state-of-the-art offline Boolean matrix factorization algorithms.
Transcriptome and Proteome Data Reveal Candidate Genes for Pollinator Attraction in Sexually Deceptive Orchids

Background Sexually deceptive orchids of the genus Ophrys mimic the mating signals of their pollinator females to attract males as pollinators. This mode of pollination is highly specific and leads to strong reproductive isolation between species. This study aims to identify candidate genes responsible for pollinator attraction and reproductive isolation between three closely related species, O. exaltata, O. sphegodes and O. garganica. Floral traits such as odour, colour and morphology are necessary for successful pollinator attraction. In particular, different odour hydrocarbon profiles have been linked to differences in specific pollinator attraction among these species. Therefore, the identification of genes involved in these traits is important for understanding the molecular basis of pollinator attraction by sexually deceptive orchids. Results We have created floral reference transcriptomes and proteomes for these three Ophrys species using a combination of next-generation sequencing (454 and Solexa), Sanger sequencing, and shotgun proteomics (tandem mass spectrometry). In total, 121 917 unique transcripts and 3531 proteins were identified. This represents the first orchid proteome and transcriptome from the orchid subfamily Orchidoideae. Proteome data revealed proteins corresponding to 2644 transcripts and 887 proteins not observed in the transcriptome. Candidate genes for hydrocarbon and anthocyanin biosynthesis were represented by 156 and 61 unique transcripts in 20 and 7 genes classes, respectively. Moreover, transcription factors putatively involved in the regulation of flower odour, colour and morphology were annotated, including Myb, MADS and TCP factors. Conclusion Our comprehensive data set generated by combining transcriptome and proteome technologies allowed identification of candidate genes for pollinator attraction and reproductive isolation among sexually deceptive orchids. This includes genes for hydrocarbon and anthocyanin biosynthesis and regulation, and the development of floral morphology. These data will serve as an invaluable resource for research in orchid floral biology, enabling studies into the molecular mechanisms of pollinator attraction and speciation.
Food reward system: current perspectives and future research needs

This article reviews current research and cross-disciplinary perspectives on the neuroscience of food reward in animals and humans, examines the scientific hypothesis of food addiction, discusses methodological and terminology challenges, and identifies knowledge gaps and future research needs. Topics addressed herein include the role of reward and hedonic aspects in the regulation of food intake, neuroanatomy and neurobiology of the reward system in animals and humans, responsivity of the brain reward system to palatable foods and drugs, translation of craving versus addiction, and cognitive control of food reward. The content is based on a workshop held in 2013 by the North American Branch of the International Life Sciences Institute.
AVALIAÇÃO DA APRENDIZAGEM DO HANDEBOL POR JOVENS ENTRE 11 E 14 ANOS A PARTIR DO MÉTODO SITUACIONAL

O ensino a partir do metodo situacional nao tem como objetivo a maestria tecnica e sim o entendimento da tatica do jogo coletivo, fazendo com que os jogadores se habituem as situacoes-problema, percebam que ha diversas formas de soluciona-las e selecionem a resposta mais adequada. A presente pesquisa teve como objetivo avaliar as influencias do metodo situacional no ensino das capacidades tecnicas e taticas do handebol utilizando-se dos testes propostos em Greco (1995) e tambem a partir dos niveis de jogo propostos por Garganta (1995). Apos a aplicacao de um programa de ensino-aprendizagem-treinamento de 32 sessoes, observou-se uma melhoria da capacidade tatica dos jogadores e a manutencao de sua capacidade tecnica, o que demonstra a eficacia do metodo para o aprendizado tatico do jogo.
Performance comparison of IPsec and TLS based VPN technologies

IPsec and TLS based VPN technologies are widely used in nowadays networks. But one can hardly find information about their performance, especially compared to each other. So when there was a speed and delay sensitive interconnection project, a direct performance comparison had to be performed. This article realizes a performance comparison of Open VPN and IPSec based VPN; we measure what throughput each protocol can provide on given hardware while using the same cipher and key length.
IntelliShopper: a proactive, personal, private shopping assistant

The IntelliShopper is a shopping assistant designed to empower consumers. It is a personal assistant in that it observes the users while shopping and learns their preferences with respect to various features that characterize shopping items. It is proactive in that it remembers the users' requests and autonomously monitors vendor sites for new items that might match the users' needs and preferences. Finally, it protects users' privacy by means of pseudonymity, IP anony\-mizing, and trusted filtering. Pseudonymity is achieved through the use of personae; we show that this approach also behooves successful classification. IP anonymizing can be performed in at least two manners, which we discuss and compare in the context of our application. Trusted filtering --- as opposed to merchant-based filtering --- improves privacy by allowing users to select their preferred privacy representative. This paper introduces the IntelliShopper system, discusses its architecture and components, describes a prototype implementation, and outlines preliminary evaluations of its performance.
Labour market adjustments during the crisis: the role of working time arrangements1

Depending on the country in question, the crisis has had different impacts on employment. We will analyse the main reasons for these differences and scrutinize the main characteristics of the policies that have been implemented in reaction to the crisis. The analysis focuses mainly on a comparison between France and Germany. This leads us to stress the differences between these two countries in the ability of social partners to find ways to prevent redundancies through job protection agreements. It appears that the gap between job protection and employment protection can be overcome when certain conditions are met in dealing with employees working short time, with training as a paramount consideration. We highlight the role of new working time arrangements and regulations – among them working time accounts – for promoting flexibility and security for both employers and employees.
Piaget’s pre-operational stage in children : a comparative study

Each stage of Piaget’s Cognitive development process has its own distinctive origin and its own form of final resolution. All the stages are thus related to one another, the structure of each being a more complex version of the structure developed in a prior stage. Since cognition is an evolutionary, dialectical process, the final form of the first stage is the source for the origin and the initial form of the second stage. The second stage of Piaget’s cognitive development process is named as the pre-operational stage. In this stage, the children of 2-7 years old goes through significant cognitive development process such as imaginative thinking, make-believe play, egocentrism, logical thought, memory, spatial reasoning, conservation and so on. Though Piaget’s theory asserts that, every children goes through each of the stages according to their age but in reality a normal growing children and an autistic children have several differences in case of their cognitive development. The aim of the paper is to explore in what extent normal children’s cognitive development differs from autistics children’s cognitive development during Piaget’s pre-operational stage. v Table of
High Tibial Osteotomy for the Treatment of Unicompartmental Knee Osteoarthritis: A Review of the Literature, Indications, and Technique

Abstract In the past decades, there has been varying support for high tibial osteotomy. This surgical procedure was originally popularized by Mark B. Coventry, MD in the 1960s, but fell out of favor with orthopedic surgeons as knee arthroplasty became more commonplace. In the past 10 years, osteotomy has been rediscovered as an important adjunct to cartilage repair procedures that rely on a normalized biomechanical environment. Furthermore, there has been an increase in the number of patients presenting with unicompartmental disease (eg, after prior meniscectomy) who are at an age and functional level that is not ideally suited for joint arthroplasty. High tibial osteotomy allows 70% to 85% of patients to delay arthroplasty for ≥ 5 to 10 years and 50% to 60% for ≥ 15 years. This article provides an overview of the indications, technique, complications, and outcomes of high tibial osteotomy, specifically the more commonly used opening wedge technique.
Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use Among People With Diabetes in Turkey

The aim of this study was to investigate use of complementary and alternative medicines, and factors that affect use of these agents, in individuals with diabetes. This cross-sectional and descriptive study was performed at the outpatient clinics of four hospitals in Turkey with 396 diabetic individuals between October 2006 and March 2007. In this study, 34.6% of the participants were using complementary and alternative medicine in addition to conventional medicine; 73% of these individuals had not informed their doctors and nurses about their complementary and alternative medicine practice. Nurses, as health care providers, should not ignore complementary and alternative medicine options. Instead, they should try to determine the rate of complementary and alternative medicine use among their patients and understand their effects and the reasons for use of these agents. Nurses should learn more about these medicines and educate their patients.