Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation Enhanced Oxidative Stress in Haemodialysis Patients Receiving Intravenous Iron Therapy Recently, Intravenous Iron Therapy Has Become An

Conclusion. We demonstrated that increased oxidative stress in the blood circulation of the uraemic patients Background. Iron balance is critical for adequate erythropoiesis and there remains much debate con-on haemodialysis is exacerbated by the elevated base-line serum ferritin levels and intravenous iron infusion. cerning the optimal timing and dosage of iron therapy for haemodialysis patients receiving recombinant The resultant oxidative damage may contribute to the increased incidence of atherosclerosis in the human erythropoietin therapy. Methods. In this study, we examined the influence of patients with end-stage renal disease on long-term haemodialysis. baseline ferritin level and intravenous infusion of 100 mg ferric saccharate on the oxidative status of the Key words: Key words: erythropoiesis; erythropoietin patients on maintenance haemodialysis. The levels of therapy; haemodialysis; intravenous iron therapy; oxid-antioxidant enzymes and lipid peroxides were deter-ative stress; reactive oxygen species; uraemia mined in erythrocytes and plasma of 50 uraemic patients on haemodialysis. These patients were divided into groups 1, 2, and 3, based on their baseline serum ferritin levels of <300, 301–600, and >601 mg/l, Introduction respectively. Results. We found that the mean superoxide dismutase Several lines of evidence have indicated that reactive (SOD) activities in the erythrocytes were similar in the oxygen species (ROS) may be involved in the uraemic three groups of patients and did not differ from those toxicity of patients with end-stage renal disease of the age-matched controls. On the other hand, all (ESRD). In addition, these patients are also chronic-the haemodialysis patients showed significantly higher ally exposed to the oxidative stress of ROS as a result plasma SOD activity as compared to controls. After of activation of neutrophils induced by their interaction intravenous iron infusion, group 3 patients showed the with the dialysis membranes [1,2]. Increased concentra-largest decrease in plasma SOD activity. The plasma tion of malondialdehyde (MDA), one of the end glutathione peroxidase (GSHPx) activities of the products of the peroxidation of polyunsaturated fatty patients in all three groups and the erythrocyte GSHPx acids, has been reported in plasma and erythrocytes activities of the patients in the groups 2 and 3 were [3–5] of haemodialysis patients. It has been observed lower than those of the healthy controls. In all three that plasma levels of glutathione (GSH) [6 ], GSH groups of patients, no difference in GSHPx activity peroxidase (GSHPx) [4], vitamins C [4] and E [5] are was found before and after intravenous iron infusion. decreased in …
Reduced Expression of the Vesicular Acetylcholine Transporter and Neurotransmitter Content Affects Synaptic Vesicle Distribution and Shape in Mouse Neuromuscular Junction

In vertebrates, nerve muscle communication is mediated by the release of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine packed inside synaptic vesicles by a specific vesicular acetylcholine transporter (VAChT). Here we used a mouse model (VAChT KDHOM) with 70% reduction in the expression of VAChT to investigate the morphological and functional consequences of a decreased acetylcholine uptake and release in neuromuscular synapses. Upon hypertonic stimulation, VAChT KDHOM mice presented a reduction in the amplitude and frequency of miniature endplate potentials, FM 1–43 staining intensity, total number of synaptic vesicles and altered distribution of vesicles within the synaptic terminal. In contrast, under electrical stimulation or no stimulation, VAChT KDHOM neuromuscular junctions did not differ from WT on total number of vesicles but showed altered distribution. Additionally, motor nerve terminals in VAChT KDHOM exhibited small and flattened synaptic vesicles similar to that observed in WT mice treated with vesamicol that blocks acetylcholine uptake. Based on these results, we propose that decreased VAChT levels affect synaptic vesicle biogenesis and distribution whereas a lower ACh content affects vesicles shape.
Advances in IC-Scheduling Theory: Scheduling Expansive and Reductive Dags and Scheduling Dags via Duality

Earlier work has developed the underpinnings of the IC-scheduling theory, a framework for scheduling computations having intertask dependencies - modeled via directed acyclic graphs (DAGs) - for Internet-based computing. The goal of the schedules produced is to render tasks eligible for execution at the maximum possible rate, with the dual aim of 1) utilizing remote clients' computational resources well by always having work to allocate to an available client and 2) lessening the likelihood of a computation's stalling for lack of eligible tasks. The DAGs handled by the theory thus far are those that can be decomposed into a given collection of bipartite building block DAGs via the operation of DAG decomposition. A basic tool in constructing schedules is a relation >, which allows one to "prioritize" the scheduling of a complex DAG's building blocks. The current paper extends the IC-scheduling theory in two ways: by expanding significantly the repertoire of DAGs that the theory can schedule optimally and by allowing one sometimes to shortcut the algorithmic process required to find optimal schedules. The expanded repertoire now allows the theory to schedule optimally, among other DAGs, a large range of DAGs that are either "expansive", in the sense that they grow outward from their sources, or "reductive", in the sense that they grow inward toward their sinks. The algorithmic shortcuts allow one to "read off" an optimal schedule for a DAG from a given optimal schedule for the DAG's dual, which is obtained by reversing all arcs (thereby exchanging the roles of sources and sinks).
Antioxidant Vitamins and Their Use in Preventing Cardiovascular Disease

Atherosclerosis remains one of the leading causes of death in Western populations. Subsequent to the discovery that oxidative stress plays a pivotal role in the development and progression of atherosclerosis, vitamins C and E, along with other antioxidants, were studied as potential therapies for the disease. However, while in vitro and in vivo studies showed promising antiatherogenic effects for vitamins C and E, clinical trials in which patients were given high doses of vitamin E or C showed no benefit and even possible harm. This review will attempt to summarize the known mechanistic data regarding the biochemical effects of vitamins C and E and their relevance to atherosclerosis, and offer an explanation for the failure of clinical trials to show that supplementation with these vitamins provides any benefit when given indiscriminately. We provide one example of how pharmacogenomics may be used to identify a sub-population which may indeed benefit from antioxidant supplementation.
Screening for genes and subnetworks associated with pancreatic cancer based on the gene expression profile

The present study aimed to screen for potential genes and subnetworks associated with pancreatic cancer (PC) using the gene expression profile. The expression profile GSE 16515 was downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus database, which included 36 PC tissue samples and 16 normal samples. Limma package in R language was used to screen differentially expressed genes (DEGs), which were grouped as up- and downregulated genes. Then, PFSNet was applied to perform subnetwork analysis for all the DEGs. Moreover, Gene Ontology (GO) and REACTOME pathway enrichment analysis of up- and downregulated genes was performed, followed by protein-protein interaction (PPI) network construction using Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes Search Tool for the Retrieval of Interacting Genes. In total, 1,989 DEGs including 1,461 up- and 528 downregulated genes were screened out. Subnetworks including pancreatic cancer in PC tissue samples and intercellular adhesion in normal samples were identified, respectively. A total of 8 significant REACTOME pathways for upregulated DEGs, such as hemostasis and cell cycle, mitotic were identified. Moreover, 4 significant REACTOME pathways for downregulated DEGs, including regulation of β-cell development and transmembrane transport of small molecules were screened out. Additionally, DEGs with high connectivity degrees, such as CCNA2 (cyclin A2) and PBK (PDZ binding kinase), of the module in the protein-protein interaction network were mainly enriched with cell-division cycle. CCNA2 and PBK of the module and their relative pathway cell-division cycle, and two subnetworks (pancreatic cancer and intercellular adhesion subnetworks) may be pivotal for further understanding of the molecular mechanism of PC.
An improved artificial bee colony algorithm

Artificial bee colony algorithm (ABC) is a relatively new optimization technique which has been shown to be competitive to other population-based algorithms. In this work, we propose an improved solution search equation in scout bee phase. In addition, the initial population is generated by piecewise Logistic equation to enhance the global convergence. Experiments are conducted on a set of 6 benchmark functions. The results demonstrate good performance of the improved ABC in solving complex numerical optimization problems when compared with other modified ABC algorithms.
Patterns of grief in young children following the death of a sibling

Abstract Specific grief behaviors observed in children ages 4-16 years in the 2 years after the death of a sibling are reported. Using the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), the parents of 90 boys and girls rated the occurrence of behavior problems in their children. Behavior problems identified in 50% or more of the children are reported both for the total sample and by age and sex groups. The behaviors commonly observed in the bereaved children predominanty fell into the Agression subscale of the standardized CBCL. It is suggested that bereaved children use aggressive behaviors instrumentally to gain parental attention, rather than as an instinctual expression of hostility and anger.
Amount of reinforcement and level of performance.

The effects upon performance of quantitative variation in amount of reinforcement is a realm of motivation theory which, for unaccountable reasons, has been a stepchild compared to the considerable body of research upon the parallel problem of the effects of variation in drive. Treatises upon behavior (6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 14, 17) have naturally been forced to raise the problem as no presentation of motivation could otherwise be presumed to be complete. More often than not, however, because of the scarcity of data, they have relied upon the results of an early study by Grindley (4) as definitive despite the fact that, as shall be shown, it is characterized by a number of serious methodological weaknesses. The most recent systematic treatment of behavior theory, the Principles of behavior by Clark L. Hull, is not entirely an exception to this rule. Though two later researches are utilized, one by Gantt (3) and one by Wolfe and Kaplon (16), which bear indirectly upon the problem, Grindley's results are still given heavy weight. These additional studies give Hull a somewhat broader base for theorizing than his predecessors, but he is still led to some generalizations which, owing to the meagerness of the data, are rather more speculation than inference. The object of the present paper is to subject Hull's treatment of quantitative variation of incentive and performance to criticism and amplification in the light of a recent series of experiments by the writer (2). On the basis of this ap-
BPMiner: mining developers' behavior patterns from screen-captured task videos

Many user studies of software development use screen-capture software to record developers' behavior for post-mortem analysis. However, extracting behavioral patterns from screencaptured videos requires manual transcription and coding of videos, which is often tedious and error-prone. Automatically extracting Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) data from screen-captured videos and systematically analyzing behavioral data will help researchers analyze developers' behavior in software development more effectively and efficiently. In this paper, we present BPMiner, a novel behavior analysis approach to mine developers' behavior patterns from screencaptured videos using computer vision techniques and exploratory sequential pattern analysis. We have implemented a proof-of-concept prototype of BPMiner, and applied the BPMiner prototype to study the developers' online search behavior during software development. Our study suggests that the BPMiner approach can open up new ways to study developers' behavior in software development.
Guided Oral Reading and Miscue Focused Verbal Feedback in Second-Grade Classrooms.

THIS STUDY investigated the nature and effects of teacher-pupil interaction patterns surrounding reading miscues occurring during guided oral reading lessons. The subjects were 22 second grade teachers and the students assigned to either highest (N = 152) or lowest (N = 157) reading groups. Audio tapes of reading group lessons were collected biweekly over a 10 week period. Verbal interactions were coded using the FORMAS (Feedback to Oral Reading Analysis System) taxonomy. In addition to the interaction patterns, data were also collected on student reading achievement levels (PRE/ POST), reading rate and reading accuracy. The findings point toward important relationships between miscue related behaviors and teacher verbal feedback patterns. Further, relationships between growth in reading achievement and such factors as error rate in practice materials and verbal feedback patterns are suggested. These findings are discussed in terms of instructional routines for teachers and pupils which are adapted into as a means of maintaining activity flow and maximizing content coverage. Some instructional implications are drawn which suggest ways in which these routines-in particular those which appear detrimental to the less skilled reader-might be modified.
Entrepreneurship as Method: Open Questions for an Entrepreneurial Future

In this essay, we outline the provocative argument that in the realm of human affairs there exists an “entrepreneurial method” analogous to the scientific method spelled out by Francis Bacon and others with regard to the natural realm. We then suggest a series of open questions that we believe will help future scholars spell out the contents of such a method and ways in which it can be put to work in the design and achievement of socioeconomic ends. At least one normative implication of accepting the argument would be to teach entrepreneurship not only to entrepreneurs but to everyone, as a necessary and useful skill and an important way of reasoning about the world.
Microarray Analyses of Genes Regulated by Isoflurane Anesthesia In Vivo: A Novel Approach to Identifying Potential Preconditioning Mechanisms

BACKGROUND:Although general anesthetics are recognized for their potential to render patients unconscious during surgery, exposure can also lead to long-term outcomes of both cellular damage and protection. As regards the latter, delayed anesthetic preconditioning is an evolutionarily conserved physiological response that has the potential for protecting against ischemic injury in a number of tissues. Although it is known that delayed preconditioning requires de novo protein synthesis, knowledge of anesthetic-regulated genes is incomplete. In this study, we used the conserved nature of preconditioning to analyze differentially regulated genes in 3 different rat tissues. We hypothesized that by selecting those genes regulated in multiple tissues, we could develop a focused list of gene candidates potentially involved in delayed anesthetic preconditioning. METHODS:Young adult male Sprague–Dawley rats were anesthetized with a 2% isoflurane/98% air mixture for 90 minutes. Immediately after anesthetic exposure, animals were euthanized and liver, kidney, and heart were removed and total RNA was isolated. Differential gene expression was determined using rat oligonucleotide gene arrays. Array data were analyzed to select for genes that were significantly regulated in multiple tissues. RESULTS:All 3 tissues showed differentially regulated genes in response to a clinically relevant exposure to isoflurane. Analysis of coordinately regulated genes yielded a focused list of 34 potential gene candidates with a range of ontologies including regulation of inflammation, modulation of apoptosis, regulation of ion gradients, and maintenance of energy pathways. CONCLUSIONS:Through using an analysis approach focusing on coordinately regulated genes, we were able to generate a focused list of interesting gene candidates with potential to enable future preconditioning studies.
Distrust As a Disease Avoidance Strategy: Individual Differences in Disgust Sensitivity Regulate Generalized Social Trust

Throughout human evolutionary history, cooperative contact with others has been fundamental for human survival. At the same time, social contact has been a source of threats. In this article, we focus on one particular viable threat, communicable disease, and investigate how motivations to avoid pathogens influence people's propensity to interact and cooperate with others, as measured by individual differences in generalized social trust. While extant studies on pathogen avoidance have argued that such motivations should prompt people to avoid interactions with outgroups specifically, we argue that these motivations should prompt people to avoid others more broadly. Empirically, we utilize two convenience samples and a large nationally representative sample of US citizens to demonstrate the existence of a robust and replicable effect of individual differences in pathogen disgust sensitivity on generalized social trust. We furthermore compare the effects of pathogen disgust sensitivity on generalized social trust and outgroup prejudice and explore whether generalized social trust to some extent constitutes a pathway between pathogen avoidance motivations and prejudice.
Exploiting Modern Hardware for High-Dimensional Nearest Neighbor Search. (Exploitation du matériel moderne pour la recherche de plus proche voisin en haute dimensionnalité)

Many multimedia information retrieval or machine learning problems require efficient high-dimensional nearest neighbor search techniques. For instance, multimedia objects (images, music or videos) can be represented by high-dimensional feature vectors. Finding two similar multimedia objects then comes down to finding two objects that have similar feature vectors. In the current context of mass use of social networks, large scale multimedia databases or large scale machine learning applications are more and more common, calling for efficient nearest neighbor search approaches. This thesis builds on product quantization, an efficient nearest neighbor search technique that compresses high-dimensional vectors into short codes. This makes it possible to store very large databases entirely in RAM, enabling low response times. We propose several contributions that exploit the capabilities of modern CPUs, especially SIMD and the cache hierarchy, to further decrease response times offered by product quantization.
Effects of combined treatment with rhDNase and airflow oscillations on spinnability of cystic fibrosis sputum in vitro

Treatment with either rhDNase or high‐frequency oscillation has been shown to be effective in improving the physical and transport properties of airway secretions in cystic fibrosis (CF). The objects of this in vitro study was to examine whether combined treatment with oscillation and rhDNase results in greater change of CF sputum spinnability than either treatment by itself. Aliquots of sputum (0.4 g) from eight CF patients were subjected to the following protocols for 15 minutes and then followed for a total of 30 minutes: (1)incubation with 0.04 ml DNase 50 μg rhDNasenormal saline (10% dilution) at 37°C to achieve 5 μg DNase/g of sputum final concentration; (2)airflow oscillation at 27 Hz similar to the airflow magnitude produced by a commercial high‐frequency chest compression (HFCC) device; (3)negative control with no treatment; (4)positive (dilution) control, incubating with 10% saline by volume; (5)combination of DNase and oscillation, and (6)combination of saline and oscillation. For each protocol, sputum spinnability (in mm, mean ± SD) was measured by means of a filancemeter at baseline, 15, and 30 minutes. Treatment with DNase decreased spinnability significantly more than either saline or oscillation at 15 and 30 minutes (P < 0.02 and P < 0.04, respectively). Incubation with saline or oscillation of CF sputum for 15 and 30 minutes decreased spinnability significantly compared with control. The combination of DNase and oscillation decreased spinnability significantly more than treatment with DNase alone (3.74 ± 0.45 vs. 6.54 ± 0.73 at 15 minutes, P < 0.01). The combination of saline and oscillation over 15 minutes decreased spinnability similarly to the application of DNase alone over the same period of time (7.84 ± 1.91 ± 6.54 ± 0.73, respectively). These in vitro results demonstrate an optimal effect on sputum spinnability when DNase and oscillation are used concomitantly. This suggests that combining biochemical (rhDNase) and physical (HFCC) treatments in CF patients may provide greater benefits than treatment with one modality at a time. Pediatr Pulmonol. 1995; 20:78–82. © 1995 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Sex Variability in Pediatric Leukemia Survival: Large Cohort Evidence

Purpose. Sex disparities in pediatric leukemia have been previously reported, and male children continue to present with poorer survival. However, the observed disparities are not fully understood. This current study sought to examine disparities in survival by the sex, and to determine if tumor prognostic factors impact on these disparities. Patients and Methods. We used the Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results dataset of pediatric leukemia patients (ages 0–19 years) diagnosed in the United States from 1973 to 2006. There were 15,215 patients of whom 8,622 (65.7%) were boys and 6,593 (43.3%) were girls. The Kaplan-Meier survival estimates, log rank test, and Cox proportional hazard methods were used to assess the data. Results. The overall (both sexes) five-year survival rate was 67.9%. Girls had a survival rate of 70.1%, while the rate was 66.3% in boys. Girls had a significant 14% decreased risk of dying relative to boys, hazard ratio (HR) = 0.86, 99% CI = 0.80–0.93. There were significant differences between boys and girls with respect to tumor cell type, race, age at diagnosis, year of diagnosis, and number of primaries, P < 0.001. After controlling for these factors, the sex differences in survival persisted, with girls still less likely to die from leukemia compared to boys, adjusted HR (AHR) = 0.85, 99% CI = 0.72–1.00, P < 0.01. Conclusion. In a large population-based pediatric leukemia study, boys continued to show poorer survival. These disparities were not completely explained by treatment received, tumor prognostic or socio-demographic factors.