Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Lossless and Near-Lossless Compression for Mammographic Digital Images

In this paper, a method for lossless and near lossless compression of large digital mammograms is proposed. This method is based on a predictive coder that uses integer-to-integer operations, and generates a two-layer embedded bit stream (i.e. near-lossless and refinement layer). The maximum tolerated pixel distortion is guaranteed in the near lossless component. Comparisons with other proposed approaches are based on a database of high-resolution 12 bits/pixel digital mammograms. The simulation results indicate that our lossless compression method can offer average bit rates 39, 5%, 24%, 7% and 2.5% better than PNG, JPEG 2000, JPEG-lossless, and LOCO, respectively. Besides, for the same images, the proposed method offers near lossless compression at relatively low computational cost, providing an average bit rate of 2.57 bits/pixel and PSNR of 47.77 dB.
Design and implementation of an event-based P2P simulator: E-simulator

In order to analyze the characteristics of P2P systems and the performance of various protocols accurately, we design and implement an event-based P2P simulator. It is a genetic P2P simulator which will support many kinds of existing P2P protocols, search algorithms and topology generation algorithms. The simulator has a GUI which will not only help users construct the overlay network and monitor the dynamic changes in simulation progress, but also produce statistics at the end of the simulation. To reduce the variance of the load of the peers, we propose a new load balance strategy. Performance study shows that the method is effective.
Outcome and risk factors of early onset severe preeclampsia.

BACKGROUND Early onset severe preeclampsia is a specific type of severe preeclampsia, which causes high morbidity and mortality of both mothers and fetus. This study aimed to investigate the clinical definition, features, treatment, outcome and risk factors of early onset severe preeclampsia in Chinese women. METHODS Four hundred and thirteen women with severe preeclampsia from June 2006 to June 2009 were divided into three groups according to the gestational age at the onset of preeclampsia as follows: group A (less than 32 weeks, 73 cases), group B (between 32 and 34 weeks, 71 cases), and group C (greater than 34 weeks, 269 cases). The demographic characteristics of the subjects, complications, delivery modes and outcome of pregnancy were analyzed retrospectively. RESULTS The systolic blood pressure at admission and the incidence of severe complications were significantly lower in group C than those in groups A and B, prolonged gestational weeks and days of hospitalization were significantly shorter in group C than those in groups A and B. Liver and kidney dysfunction, pleural and peritoneal effusion, placental abruption and postpartum hemorrhage were more likely to occur in group A compared with the other two groups. Twenty-four-hour urine protein levels at admission, intrauterine fetal death and days of hospitalization were risk factors that affected complications of severe preeclampsia. Gestational week at admission and delivery week were also risk factors that affected perinatal outcome. CONCLUSIONS Early onset severe preeclampsia should be defined as occurring before 34 weeks, and it is featured by more maternal complications and a worse perinatal prognosis compared with that defined as occurring after 34 weeks. Independent risk factors should be used to tailor the optimized individual treatment plan, to balance both maternal and neonatal safety.
Comparison of two dose regimens of arginine vasopressin in advanced vasodilatory shock

Objective:To evaluate the effects of two arginine vasopressin (AVP) dose regimens (0.033 vs. 0.067 IU/min) on treatment efficacy, hemodynamic response, prevalence of adverse events, and changes in laboratory variables. Design:Retrospective, controlled study. Patients:A total of 78 patients with vasodilatory shock (mean norepinephrine dosage, 1.07 &mgr;g·kg−1·min−1; 95% confidence interval, 0.82–1.56 &mgr;g·kg−1·min−1). Interventions:Supplementary infusion of AVP at 0.033 (n = 39) and 0.067 IU/min (n = 39). Measurements and Main Results:Cardiocirculatory, laboratory, and clinical variables were evaluated and compared between groups before and at 0.5, 1, 4, 12, 24, 48, and 72 hrs after initiation of AVP. Treatment efficacy was assessed by the increase in mean arterial blood pressure and the extent of norepinephrine reduction during the first 24 hrs of AVP therapy. Standard tests and a mixed-effects model were used for statistical analysis. Although the relative increase in mean arterial pressure was comparable between groups (0.033 vs. 0.067 IU/min: 16.8 ± 18.4 vs. 21.4 ± 14.9 mm Hg, p = .24), norepinephrine could be reduced significantly more often in patients receiving 0.067 IU/min. AVP at 0.067 IU/min resulted in a higher mean arterial pressure (p < .001), lower central venous pressure (p = .001), lower mean pulmonary arterial pressure (p = .04), and lower norepinephrine requirements (p < .001) during the 72-hr observation period. Increases in liver enzymes occurred more often in patients treated with 0.033 IU/min (71.8% vs. 28.2%, p < .001). The prevalence of a decrease in cardiac index (69.2% vs. 53.8%, p = .24), decrease in platelet count (94.8% vs. 84.6%, p = .26), and increase in total bilirubin (48.7% vs. 71.8%, p = .06) was not significantly different between groups. Bilirubin levels (3.1 ± 3.4 vs. 5.2 ± 5.5 mg/dL, p = .04) and base deficit (−7.2 ± 4.3 vs. −3.9 ± 5.9 mmol/L, p = .005) were lower and arterial lactate concentrations higher (76 ± 67 vs. 46 ± 38 mg/dL, p < .001) in patients receiving 0.033 IU/min. Conclusions:AVP dosages of 0.067 IU/min seem to be more effective to reverse cardiovascular failure in vasodilatory shock requiring high norepinephrine dosages than 0.033 IU/min.
A Golgi study of rat neostriatal neurons: Light microscopic analysis

At least two types of large neurons (somatic cross‐sectional areas, SA > 300 μm2) and five types of medium neurons (SA between 100 and 300 μm2) were distinguished in Golgi preparations of the adult rat neostriatum. Type I large cells had aspinous somata with long, radiating, sparsely spined dendrites which were sometimes varicose distally, whereas type II large cells had spines on both somatic and dendritic surfaces. Type I medium cells had aspinous somata and proximal dendrites, but their distal dendrites were densely covered with spines. Type II medium cells had somatic spines, and their radiating dendrites were sparsely spined. Other medium cells had no somatic spines: Type III cells had poorly branched and sparsely spined dendrites. Type IV cells had profusely branched, sparsely spined dendrites. Type V cells had radiating and varicose dendrites which could also be sparsely spined.
An early evaluation of clinical and economic costs and benefits of implementing point of care NAAT tests for Chlamydia trachomatis and Neisseria gonorrhoea in genitourinary medicine clinics in England

Objectives To estimate the costs and benefits of clinical pathways incorporating a point of care (POC) nucleic acid amplification test (NAAT) for chlamydia and gonorrhoea in genitourinary medicine (GUM) clinics compared with standard off-site laboratory testing. Method We simulated 1.2 million GUM clinic attendees in England. A simulation in Microsoft Excel was developed to compare existing standard pathways of management for chlamydia and gonorrhoea with a POC NAAT. We conducted scenario analyses to evaluate the robustness of the model findings. The primary outcome was the incremental cost-effectiveness ratio. Secondary outcomes included the number of inappropriate treatments, complications and transmissions averted. Results The baseline cost of using the point of POC NAAT was £103.9 million compared with £115.6 million for standard care. The POC NAAT was also associated with a small increase of 46 quality adjusted life years, making the new test both more effective and cheaper. Over 95 000 inappropriate treatments might be avoided by using a POC NAAT. Patients receive diagnosis and treatment on the same day as testing, which may also prevent 189 cases of pelvic inflammatory disease and 17 561 onward transmissions annually. Discussion Replacing standard laboratory tests for chlamydia and gonorrhoea with a POC test could be cost saving and patients would benefit from more accurate diagnosis and less unnecessary treatment. Overtreatment currently accounts for about a tenth of the reported treatments for chlamydia and gonorrhoea and POC NAATs would effectively eliminate the need for presumptive treatment.
Interpretation of quasielastic scattering spectra of probe species in complex fluids.

The objective of this paper is to correct an error in analyses of quasielastic scattering spectra. The error invokes a valid calculation under conditions in which its primary assumptions are incorrect, which results in misleading interpretations of spectra. Quasielastic scattering from dilute probes yields the incoherent structure factor g((1s))(q, t) = , with q being the magnitude of the scattering vector q and Δx(t) being the probe displacement parallel to q during a time interval t. The error is a claim that g((1s))(q, t) ~ exp (-q(2)<(Δx(t))(2)>∕2) for probes in an arbitrary solution, leading to the incorrect belief that <(Δx(t))(2)> of probes in complex fluids can be inferred from quasielastic scattering. The actual theoretical result refers only to monodisperse probes in simple Newtonian liquids. In general, g((1s))(q, t) is determined by all even moments <(Δx(t))(2n)>, n = 1, 2, 3, . of the displacement distribution function P(Δx, t). Correspondingly, <(Δx(t))(2)> cannot in general be inferred from g((1s)) (q, t). The theoretical model that ties g((1s))(q, t) to <(Δx(t))(2)> also quantitatively determines exactly how <(Δx(t))(2)>∕2) must behave, namely, <(Δx(t))(2)> must increase linearly with t. If the spectrum is not a single exponential in time, g((1s))(q, t) does not determine <(Δx(t))(2)>.
Variation in innate immunity in relation to ectoparasite load, age and season: a field experiment in great tits (Parus major)

SUMMARY It remains largely unknown which factors affect the innate immune responses of free-living birds. Nevertheless, the degree of innate immunity may play a crucial role in an individual's survival as it procures the first defence against pathogens. We manipulated the ectoparasite load of great tit (Parus major) nests by infesting them with hen fleas (Ceratophyllus gallinae) before egg laying. We subsequently quantified natural antibody (NAb) concentration and complement activation in nestlings and adult females during breeding and post-breeding periods. NAb concentrations increased in nestlings and adult females breeding in flea-infested nest boxes during the nestling provisioning period, but not in breeding females during incubation. In contrast, parasite abundance did not affect levels of complement activity in females. NAb levels of nestlings were already fully developed at the end of the nestling stage, but complement activation was only observed post-fledging. Concentrations of NAbs and complement activation of adult females were significantly lower during the breeding season compared with post-breeding levels, but did not differ between incubation and chick rearing. Further experimental studies in species that vary in life-history strategies will allow us to unravel the mechanisms underlying the observed variation in innate immune defences.
The social consequences of occupational injuries and illnesses.

BACKGROUND Most outcome studies of occupational injuries and illnesses have tended to focus on direct economic costs and duration of work disability. Rarely have the broader social consequences of work-related disorders or their impacts on injured workers' families, coworkers, and community been investigated. This paper examines a wide range of social consequences including workers' psychological and behavioral responses, vocational function, and family and community relationships. METHODS Literature review and development of conceptual framework. RESULTS Complex and multifactorial relationships are described whereby occupational injuries and illnesses produce a variety of social consequences involving filing and administration of workers' compensation insurance claims, medical care experiences, domestic function and activities of daily living, psychological and behavioral responses, stress, vocational function, rehabilitation and return to work, and equity and social justice. CONCLUSION A research agenda is proposed for guiding future investigations in this field.
Intelligence économique et modélisation financière : mise en œuvre d'un outil pour les projets d'entreprises

Face a une globalisation economique toujours plus affirmee, les entreprises doivent mieux prendre en compte l'environnement economique afin d'obtenir et de maintenir un avantage competitif. L'analyse et l'utilisation strategique des donnees financieres sont des elements incontournables de cette lutte. Nous avons donc explore les liens unissant intelligence economique et finance et avons analyse les raisons derriere un manque de cooperation apparent entre les deux champs. L'analyse de leurs developpements historiques et theoriques nous a conduits a explorer les apports de la finance comportementale. Nous montrons comment la rupture avec les modeles prones par la finance "rationnelle" ouvre la porte aux apports de l'intelligence economique. Nous montrons alors, au travers d'un outil d'evaluation des projets d'entreprise, qu'il est possible d'integrer des parametres d'analyse afin de mieux prendre en compte certains risques lies aux caracteristiques specifiques de ces projets
Multichannel time-spread scheduling: a new approach to handling heavy traffic loads in ad hoc networks

Wireless mobile networks that do not have infrastructure or centralized administration, known as the ad hoc networks, have received considerable attention in the last few years. The salient characteristics of such networks - time-varying topology and lack of centralized control design - have made medium access control design more complicated and challenging, which is particularly when multiple channels are employed. Recently, many multichannel transmission protocols, such as collision-avoidance transmission scheduling (CATS), have been investigated for their higher efficiency although their problems are abundant. In this paper, we propose a new protocol, namely, multichannel time-spread scheduling (MATS), to improve the throughput performance under heavy traffic loads. In MATS, nodes with transmission requests are divided into three groups, and carry out channel reservations in parallel with a short overhead. We carry out simulation study and the results show that the performance of this protocol under high traffic loads is significantly improved.
Motile invaded neutrophils in the small intestine of Toxoplasma gondii-infected mice reveal a potential mechanism for parasite spread

Significance Toxoplasma gondii infection occurs following consumption of infected meat or contaminated water and produce. As a result, the parasite first enters the body in the intestine, but we understand surprisingly little about how it behaves there. In this study, we show that T. gondii can invade neutrophils in the intestine directly, hitching a ride in these cells as they migrate out of the intestinal tissue into the lumen. Our findings implicate neutrophils and other immune cells in a surprising luminal pathway for the spread of infection and suggest new targets for therapeutic intervention in oral infection. Toxoplasma gondii infection occurs through the oral route, but we lack important information about how the parasite interacts with the host immune system in the intestine. We used two-photon laser-scanning microscopy in conjunction with a mouse model of oral T. gondii infection to address this issue. T. gondii established discrete foci of infection in the small intestine, eliciting the recruitment and transepithelial migration of neutrophils and inflammatory monocytes. Neutrophils accounted for a high proportion of actively invaded cells, and we provide evidence for a role for transmigrating neutrophils and other immune cells in the spread of T. gondii infection through the lumen of the intestine. Our data identify neutrophils as motile reservoirs of T. gondii infection and suggest a surprising retrograde pathway for parasite spread in the intestine.
Asymptotic Independence in the Spectrum of the Gaussian Unitary Ensemble

Consider a $n \times n$ matrix from the Gaussian Unitary Ensemble (GUE). Given a finite collection of bounded disjoint real Borel sets $(\Delta_{i,n},\ 1\leq i\leq p)$ with positive distance from one another, eventually included in any neighbourhood of the support of Wigner's semi-circle law and properly rescaled (with respective lengths $n^{-1}$ in the bulk and $n^{-2/3}$ around the edges), we prove that the related counting measures ${\mathcal N}_n(\Delta_{i,n}), (1\leq i\leq p)$, where ${\mathcal N}_n(\Delta)$ represents the number of eigenvalues within $\Delta$, are asymptotically independent as the size $n$ goes to infinity, $p$ being fixed. As a consequence, we prove that the largest and smallest eigenvalues, properly centered and rescaled, are asymptotically independent; we finally describe the fluctuations of the ratio of the extreme eigenvalues of a matrix from the GUE.
Flow Cytometric Analysis of Microsporidia Belonging to the Genus Encephalitozoon

ABSTRACT Flow cytometry was used in the identification of human microsporidia belonging to the genus Encephalitozoon. Microsporidian spores of Encephalitozoon hellem, E. cuniculi, and E. intestinalis were propagated in axenic cultures of monkey kidney E6 cells, purified with Percoll, and exposed to homologous and heterologous rabbit antiserum and monoclonal antibody prepared against E. hellem spores. After reaction to goat anti-rabbit immunoglobulin G (IgG) or goat anti-mouse IgG conjugated to fluorescein isothiocyanate, fluorescence histograms from gated data on light-scatter profiles showed that rabbit anti-E. hellem serum was reactive to E. hellem spores but also had cross-reactivity to spores of E. cuniculi andE. intestinalis. On the other hand, fluorescence histograms showed that rabbit anti-E. cuniculi and rabbit anti-E. intestinalis sera were reactive with homologous spores only. Monoclonal antibody prepared against E. hellemreacted only with spores of E. hellem. Neither the polyclonal antibodies nor the monoclonal antibodies reacted withCryptosporidium parvum oocysts. Fluorescence histograms of spores treated with 10% formalin also showed reactivity, but the number of events in the most intense peaks of fluorescence was fewer (7 to 42%, depending on species) than the number of events in the most intense peaks of fluorescence for nontreated spores. By flow cytometry, formalin-treated and nontreated spores of Encephalitozoonwere identified to the species level by using gated data on light-scatter profiles and analyzing the fluorescence histograms from the indirect immunofluorescence of the spores. Once a procedure is established for the isolation of Encephalitozoon spores from clinical specimens, identification of spores by flow cytometry may be useful not only for diagnosis but also for epidemiologic studies.
Verbal and spatial working memory performance among HIV-infected adults

Subtypes of working memory performance were examined in a cohort of 50 HIV-infected adults and 23 uninfected controls using an n-back paradigm (2-back) in which alphabetic stimuli were quasi-randomly presented to a quadrant of a computer monitor. In the verbal working memory condition, participants determined whether each successive letter matched the letter that appeared two previously in the series, regardless of spatial location. In the spatial working memory condition, participants determined whether each letter matched the spatial location of the letter that had appeared two previously, regardless of letter identity. The dependent variable was percent accuracy in each condition. Results of mixed model ANOVA revealed that the HIV-infected participants performed significantly worse than controls on both the verbal and spatial working memory tasks. A significant main effect for working memory condition was also present with both participant groups performing better on the spatial working memory task. These results, the first study of HIV-infected adults to directly compare verbal versus spatial working memory performance using the identical test stimuli across task conditions, suggests that HIV infection is associated with a decrement in working memory efficiency that is equally apparent for both verbal and spatial processing. These findings implicate central executive dysfunction as a likely substrate and provide the basis for hypothesizing that decline in working memory may contribute to other HIV-associated neuropsychological deficits. (JINS, 2002, 8, 532–538.)
Efficient suppression of FGF-2-induced ERK activation by the cooperative interaction among mammalian Sprouty isoforms

Strict regulation of the receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK)/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway is essential for maintaining balanced growth in multi-cellular organisms. Several negative regulators of the pathway have been identified which include Sprouty proteins. Mammalian cells express four Sprouty isoforms (Sprouty1-4) in an ERK-dependent manner. In this study, we have examined the molecular mechanisms by which Sprouty proteins elicit their inhibitory effects on the RTK/ERK pathway, with special focus on the co-operation among Sprouty isoforms. The four mammalian Sprouty isoforms interact with each other, most probably to form hetero- as well as homo-oligomers through their C-terminal domains. Sprouty1 specifically interacts with Grb2, whereas Sprouty4 interacts with Sos1. Although any of the Sprouty isoforms by itself inhibits the fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2)-induced activation of the ERK pathway significantly, hetero-oligomers show a more pronounced inhibitory activity. The hetero-oligomer formed between Sprouty1 and Sprouty4 exhibits the most potent inhibitory effect on ERK activation through its highly effective ability to suppress the association of Grb2-Sos1 complex with FRS2. The cooperative interactions observed among Sprouty isoforms could represent an advanced system that functions to regulate strictly the activation state of the RTK/ERK pathway in mammalian cells.
Functional Recovery of a Human Neonatal Heart After Severe Myocardial Infarction.

RATIONALE Cardiac remodeling and subsequent heart failure remain critical issues after myocardial infarction despite improved treatment and reperfusion strategies. Recently, cardiac regeneration has been demonstrated in fish and newborn mice after apex resection or cardiac infarctions. Two key issues remain to translate findings in model organisms to future therapies in humans: what is the mechanism and can cardiac regeneration indeed occur in newborn humans? OBJECTIVE To assess whether human neonatal hearts can functionally recover after myocardial infarction. METHODS AND RESULTS Here, we report the case of a newborn child having a severe myocardial infarction due to coronary artery occlusion. The child developed massive cardiac damage as defined by serum markers for cardiomyocyte cell death, electrocardiograms, echocardiography, and cardiac angiography. Remarkably, within weeks after the initial ischemic insult, we observed functional cardiac recovery, which translated into long-term normal heart function. CONCLUSIONS These data indicate that, similar to neonatal rodents, newborn humans might have the intrinsic capacity to repair myocardial damage and completely recover cardiac function.