Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reply to Comment on "Teres Ligament Patch Reduces Relevant Morbidity After Distal Pancreatectomy (the DISCOVER Randomized Controlled Trial)".

may affect the sealing results. Using larger sealing materials such as gastric or jejunum wall may solve this problem, but in our practice, we tend to avoid using these as patches. The sealing effect is achieved by local adhesion. Minor amount of pancreatic fluid may accumulate around the surgical site before the adhesion completes. Exposing another part of gastrointestinal tract may increase the risk for postoperative gastric or jejunum fistula and other unwanted complications. We have also performed several teres ligament patching Surgeries under laparoscopic procedure. It takes a little longer to complete the suture, but overall surgical time does not increase (unpublished data). Instead of intermittent stitches, a run-up suture with a barbed suture may help to reduce the surgical time while maintaining the tension between the pancreatic remnant and the teres ligament. Sealing the pancreatic stump with teres ligament and other autologus tissues has only been explored in small cohorts and received different conclusions. This study by Dr Hassenpflug et al provided a high-quality evidence that will guide the practice of all pancreatic surgeons. Laparoscopic surgeries should be evaluated and more standardized suturing techniques should be developed in future studies.
Multi-objective predictive control: application for an uncertain process

This paper deals with the application of the Multi Objective Generalized Predictive Control (MOGPC) to level control in a laboratory process. The major characteristic of the considered plant is that the manual draining vane can take many positions causing changes in plant dynamics and strong disturbances in the process. The controller is based on a set of Controlled Auto Regressive Integrated Moving Average (CARIMA) model. The Recursive Least Squares (RLS) algorithm is used to estimate each model parameters. The control law is obtained by minimizing a multi objective optimization problem. The weighting sum approach is considered to formulate the control problem as a single criterion optimisation one. The real time control system implementation confirms the opportunity of using the MOGPC scheme to an uncertainty system.
Butyrate hastens restoration of barrier function after thermal and detergent injury to rat distal colon in vitro.

BACKGROUND Epithelial migration restores barrier function after superficial injury to any mucosa. The present study aimed to determine whether butyrate, important to colonic epithelial physiology in diverse ways, influences restoration of barrier function in the injured rat colon. METHODS Rat distal colon was transiently exposed in vitro to heat (55 degrees C for 10 sec) or to detergent (deoxycholic acid, 7.5 mM, for 15 min), and tissue damage was verified histologically. Epithelial barrier function was assessed, in colon tissue mounted in Ussing chambers, by measuring electric resistance and passive serosa-to-mucosa fluxes of 22Na and of 14C PEG 4000 under voltage clamp conditions. Studies were done in the absence and presence of 25 mM butyrate in the bathing solutions. RESULTS Heat exposure induced superficial epithelial damage, and the electric resistance decreased significantly. This was accompanied by increase in flux of 14C PEG and increased passive flux of 22Na. Electric resistance was significantly higher, and PEG flux significantly lower, in tissues bathed with butyrate. Exposure to deoxycholic acid also induced superficial epithelial damage, reduced tissue electric resistance, and increased passive flux of Na and PEG. Electric resistance was significantly higher, and PEG flux significantly lower, in injured tissues bathed in butyrate, than in injured tissues bathed in butyrate-free solution. The effect of butyrate on restoration of electric resistance towards normal was seen in colon both from adult rats and from younger rats that were 2 or 6 weeks old. CONCLUSIONS Butyrate enhanced restoration of mucosal barrier function in rat distal colon in response to heat and detergent injury.
Numerical Investigation of Self-Sustained Limit-Cycle Oscillations in a Flapping-Foil Energy Harvester

Two-degree-of-freedom (2DOF) fully passive motion of a flapping foil at a low Reynolds num- ber Re = 10,000 is studied numerically. The simulations are conducted using open source computational fluid dynamics (CFD) toolbox OpenFOAM. The present research is mainly fo- cused on the self-sustained limit-cycle oscillations of a flapping foil with potential application as a hydro-energy harvester. The effect of different parameters on the onset of linear flutter, the characteristics of the system response, the available power from a flapping foil and the flow patterns are investigated. It is found that given a small initial perturbation, the response of the foil is similar to that of classical linear flutter i.e., the oscillations converged to a constant value at reduced velocities lower than the flutter velocity and limit-cycle oscillations (LCOs) are ob- served once the reduced velocities are greater than the flutter velocity. The reduced frequency of the LCOs exhibits a decreasing trend with increasing reduced velocity. In contrast, the phase difference between pitch and plunge increases with the increase of the reduced velocity. The feasibility of power extraction is demonstrated and the time-averaged power shows a single peak at an intermediate reduced velocity. Limit-cycle oscillations are found to be influenced by leading-edge vortex shedding as well as trailing-edge flow separation.
Evidence for Genetic Linkage between the Gene Segments Encoding NSP4 and VP6 Proteins in Common and Reassortant Human Rotavirus Strains

ABSTRACT NSP4-encoding genes of 78 human rotavirus strains of common or reassortant genotypes were characterized by reverse transcription-PCR followed by sequencing and phylogenetic analysis. It was found that all the human strains characterized clustered into only two of the five known NSP4 genotypes. Linkage between NSP4 genotypes and VP6 subgroups was 100%, NSP4 genotype A being linked to VP6 of subgroup I (SGI) and NSP4 of genotype B being linked to VP6 of SGII. The diversity among the NSP4- and VP6-encoding genes was significantly less than that among the VP7 and VP4 genes in cocirculating human rotavirus strains. Whereas G and P types appear to be shared among different animal species and humans, the NSP4- and VP6-encoding genes appear to segregate according to their host of origin, suggesting that these two proteins may be host restriction determinants. The NSP4-VP6 association may be structurally determined during rotavirus replication (morphogenesis).
Identification of Influenza Cases During the H1N1 Pandemic in Massachusetts Using Population-Based Hospital Discharge Data

Objectives (1) To characterize the epidemiology of H1N1-related hospitalizations in Massachusetts; and (2) to compare characteristics of those hospitalized during periods of seasonal influenza activity and during the H1N1 pandemic. Methods Authors applied maximum and minimum criteria to the Massachusetts Hospital Discharge Database to identify H1N1-related hospitalizations. They constructed annual line graphs describing mean frequencies of influenza-like illness(ILI)-related discharges between 2005-2008, and compared these rates to early waves of H1N1 in 2009. Results During spring and summer 2009, there were significantly higher rates of ILI-related hospital discharges in Massachusetts compared to 2005-2008. Out of 359,344 total discharges between April 26-September 30,2009, H1N1-related hospitalizations ranged from 601 to 10,967 cases. Minimum criteria confirmed that H1N1 affected a younger population (50% were <18 years), with higher rates among African-Americans (18%) and Hispanics (23%) and higher rates of ICU admission (21%) compared to seasonal influenza (39%, 10%, 14%, and 17% respectively). Conclusions This is the first population-based assessment of epidemiological characteristics of hospitalized H1N1 cases in Massachusetts, and it is the first to include all possible hospitalized cases in the analysis. The authors confirm that large administrative data sets can detect hospitalizations for influenza during a pandemic, but estimated case counts vary widely depending on selection criteria used. Maximum criteria overestimated H1N1 activity, and those meeting minimum criteria resemble published accounts of H1N1-related hospitalizations closely.
Autonomic Middleware Services for Just-In-Time Grid Services Provisioning

The advent of widespread distributed computing environment, such as information systems and computational grids computing has enabled a new generation of applications that are based on seamless access, aggregation and interaction. The dramatic side of the story is a strong presence of the plea that those decentralized Grids are potentially affected by a number of primitives derived from their anatomy, in that, they are inherently large, complex, heterogeneous and dynamic, globally aggregating a large number of independent computing and communication resources. This has clearly exposed an essential exigency for a vital change to how these applications are developed and managed, which has motivated researchers to consider other techniques used by biological systems to deal with such problems. This is referred to as autonomic computing, which is defined by Ganek and Corbi[1] “… as a collection and integration of technologies that enable the creation of an information technology computing infrastructure for the next era of computing—e-business on demand …”. This study presents a computational model to support just-in-time and on-demand services for autonomic computing. Service reservation and job schedule systems are employed in this model to estimate the required services in advanced. Intelligent classification is utilized to cluster consumers into groups sharing the same behaviour and hence offer the required services for each consumer in advance, according to the group’s usage pattern of application services. To this end, a machine learning middleware service based on Self-Organizing Maps (SOM) is designed, developed and implemented to carry out the intelligent classification for the autonomic computing. A case-study scenario of intelligent connected homes is demonstrated in this study to show the usability of such system.
Factors Influencing the Rate of Post-Mastectomy Breast Reconstruction in a Canadian Teaching Hospital

Background: Post-mastectomy breast reconstruction (PMBR) improves psychosocial well-being, quality of life, and body image. Reconstruction rates vary widely (up to 42% in the United States), but the few Canadian studies available report rates of 3.8% to 7.9%. We sought to evaluate the current state of breast reconstruction in 1 Canadian teaching hospital and factors determining patients’ access to reconstruction. Methods: We performed a retrospective chart review of all patients with breast cancer undergoing mastectomy alone or mastectomy and reconstruction at a Canadian hospital between 2010 and 2013. We calculated rates of breast reconstruction and compared patient characteristics between the 2 groups, and then performed a multiple logistic regression to determine factors increasing the odds of receiving breast reconstruction. Results: A total of 152 patients underwent 154 total or modified radical mastectomies. We obtained a rate of PMBR of 21%, 14% immediate reconstruction, and 8% delayed. Statistical analysis showed that compared to patients with mastectomy alone, patients who received PMBR were significantly younger, with a larger percentage having bilateral mastectomies, non-invasive breast cancer, and residing further from the hospital. Patients less than 50 years old and those with bilateral mastectomies had significantly greater odds of having a reconstruction. Conclusions: Our Canadian tertiary care institution has a high volume of breast surgery and an active breast reconstruction team. However, the rate of immediate reconstruction remains low compared to similar centers in the United States. We recommend a united effort to increase awareness regarding PMBR and address common misconceptions hindering patients’ access to breast reconstruction. Level of Evidence: Epidemiologic study, Level III
Permeability, Underpressures, and Convection in the Oceanic Crust Near the Costa Rica Rift , Eastern Equatorial Pacific

In situ permeability and pore pressures were measured 200 m deep beneath the top of the oceanic crust at DSDP site 504B. These measurements have relevance for the transition from convective to conductive heat flow on the south flank of the Costa Rica Rift. Conventional ‘slug’ and constant rate injection tests were made below a hydraulic packer set at various depths in the hole. The packer was first set in a massive flow unit 37 m below the sediment-basement interface. The bulk permeability of the 172.5 m of pillow basalts and basaltic flows below the packer was found to be about 40 millidarcys (4×10−10 cm2). Measurements over 3- and 15-m intervals at the bottom of the hole in an altered pillow zone indicated a bulk permeability of 2–4 millidarcys. These values are thought to be accurate to ±30%. Formation pore pressures were found to be approximately 8 bars (∼2%) below hydrostatic. Interpretation of the data with respect to simple numerical convection models suggests that the transition from convective to conductive heat flow is controlled by the cessation of convective heat transport through the sedimentary layer rather than the cessation of convection in the sediment. Furthermore, the agreement between observed and modeled underpressures implies that hole 504B penetrated an active ocean crustal convection system. The thick sedimentary layer, layers of basal chert, and massive flow basalts above the layer 2A pillow flows apparently form an impermeable lid, effectively isolating the convection system from the ocean.
Tunable Bending Stiffness, Buckling Force, and Natural Frequency of Nanowires and Nanoplates

This paper aims to obtain the simple closed-form results for the combined effects of surface elasticity, initial stress/ strain, and material Poisson ratio on the bending stiffness, natural frequency and buckling force of nanowires and nano-plates. The results demonstrate that all these properties of nanowires or nanoplates can be designed either very sensitive or not sensitive at all to the amplitude of an applied electric potential; show how much of those properties can be controlled to vary; and thus provide a reliable guide to the measurement of the Young’s modulus of nanowires/nanoplates and to the design of nano-devices, such as nano-sensors or the cantilever of an AFM.
Association between Polyphenol Intake and Hypertension in Adults and Older Adults: A Population-Based Study in Brazil

Background/Objective Hypertension is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease, and diet has been identified as a modifiable factor for preventing and controlling hypertension. Besides, epidemiological studies have suggested an inverse association between polyphenol intake and cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between the intake of polyphenols and hypertension in a general population of Sao Paulo. Methods Data came from the ‘Health Survey of Sao Paulo (ISA-Capital)’ among 550 adults and older adults in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Diet was assessed by two 24-hour dietary recalls (24HR). Usual intakes were calculated using the Multiple Source Method. Polyphenol intake was calculated by matching food consumption data from the 24HR with the Phenol-Explorer database. The associations between the hypertension and tertiles of the total and classes of polyphenols intake were tested by multivariate logistic regression analysis. Results After multivariate adjustment for potential confounding factors the findings showed an inverse and linearly association between the hypertension and highest tertiles of tyrosols (OR = 0.33; 95%CI 0.18, 0.64), alkylphenols (OR = 0.45; 95%CI 0.23, 0.87), lignans (OR = 0.49; 95%CI 0.25, 0.98), as well as stilbenes (OR = 0.60; 95%CI 0.36, 0.98), and other polyphenols (OR = 0.33; 95%CI 0.14, 0.74). However, total polyphenol intake, and phenolic acids were significantly associated only in the middle tertile with hypertension and flavonoids were not significant associated. Conclusion There is an inverse and linearly association between the highest tertile of some classes of polyphenols, such as, tyrosols, alkylphenols, lignans, stilbenes, other polyphenols and hypertension.
Differential wear resistance as a function of tooth enamel structure in the koala Phascolarctos cinereus

The crests on the molar teeth of the koala are an ideal model for studying the interaction between an invariable diet, a unidirectional jaw movement and an enamel with regional variations in its ultrastructure. Three zones exist within this enamel; leading, intermediate, and trailing. In leading and trailing enamel, the prisms are aligned so that they oppose the predominantly labial to lingual chewing stroke, but those in the intermediate zone are random. Twenty-seven crests from six koala molars were viewed under the scanning electron microscope. Qualitatively, microwear on worn surfaces varied between the three zones. The number of striae per mm of crest length and width of striae in μm in each zone was measured on enlarged electron micrographs using a digital image analysis system. The indentation hardness (Knoop) of each zone was also measured. The number and the width of striae varied significantly (P < 0.01) between zones and individuals. Further, analysis of striae which spanned all three zones showed they were narrower in the leading zone, broader in the intermediate and narrower again in the trailing zone. No significant difference in Knoop hardness was found between the zones. These findings show that the natural scratch hardness of the leading and trailing zones is approximately equal and greater than that of the intermediate zone. Thus enamel ultrastructure appears to influence the microwear facets of the koala, despite no measureable difference in indentation hardness.
An experimental protocol of the model to quantify traction applied to the retina by vitreous cutters.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to use a novel method to quantify the traction applied to the retina during vitrectomy. METHODS Five 20-gauge electric cutters were used. Fresh porcine eyes were positioned in a specially developed holder and transfixed to the retinal layers with a microwire, and the other end was fixed to the load cell of a strain gauge. The cutter to be assessed was introduced into the eye by a micromanipulator at a 45 degrees angle adjacent to the retina. The traction force was evaluated when the cutter was at 3 and 5 mm from the retina. As control, the experiment was repeated in eyes filled with water, and the results were compared to those when the eyes had vitreous gel. RESULTS Results from the eyes with vitreous gel indicate that retinal traction increased with increasing aspiration vacuum (7.90 dyn for each 100 mm Hg increased; P < 0.05) and proximity to the retina (2.17 dyn; P < 0.05) and decreased with increasing cut rate (2.51 dyn for each 500 cuts per minute increased; P < 0.05). In all eyes filled with water, traction was not observed. CONCLUSIONS The present study establishes a new reproducible technique to quantify vitreoretinal traction during vitrectomy and demonstrates that the effects of aspiration, distance from the retina, and cut rate are crucial factors in the amount of retinal traction created by vitreous cutters.
Identification of Bax-interacting proteins in oligodendrocyte progenitors during glutamate excitotoxicity and perinatal hypoxia–ischemia

OPC (oligodendrocyte progenitor cell) death contributes significantly to the pathology and functional deficits following hypoxic-ischemic injury in the immature brain and to deficits resulting from demyelinating diseases, trauma and degenerative disorders in the adult CNS. Glutamate toxicity is a major cause of oligodendroglial death in diverse CNS disorders, and previous studies have demonstrated that AMPA/kainate receptors require the pro-apoptotic protein Bax in OPCs undergoing apoptosis. The goal of the present study was to define the pro-apoptotic and anti-apoptotic effectors that regulate Bax in healthy OPCs and after exposure to excess glutamate in vitro and following H–I (hypoxia–ischemia) in the immature rat brain. We show that Bax associates with a truncated form of Bid, a BH3-only domain protein, subsequent to glutamate treatment. Furthermore, glutamate exposure reduces Bax association with the anti-apoptotic Bcl family member, Bcl-xL. Cell fractionation studies demonstrated that both Bax and Bid translocate from the cytoplasm to mitochondria during the early stages of cell death consistent with a role for Bid as an activator, whereas Bcl-xL, which normally complexes with both Bax and Bid, disassociates from these complexes when OPCs are exposed to excess glutamate. Bax remained unactivated in the presence of insulin-like growth factor-1, and the Bcl-xL complexes were protected. Our data similarly demonstrate loss of Bcl-xL–Bax association in white matter following H–I and implicate active Bad in Bax-mediated OPC death. To identify other Bax-binding partners, we used proteomics and identified cofilin as a Bax-associated protein in OPCs. Cofilin and Bax associated in healthy OPCs, whereas the Bax–cofilin association was disrupted during glutamate-induced OPC apoptosis.
Optimum configuration of plate-type heat exchangers for the use in ORCs for low-temperature geothermal heat sources

Organic Rankine cycles (ORCs) are used for electricity production from low-temperature (geothermal) heat sources. These ORCs are often designed based on experience, but this experience will not always lead to the optimum configuration. The ultimate goal is to design ORCs by performing a system optimization. In such an optimization, all components and cycle parameters are optimized together to obtain the optimum power plant configuration; all components are adjusted to each other. In this paper, a first step towards such a system optimization is taken by optimizing the cycle parameters together with the configuration of the plate heat exchangers. In this way every heat exchanger has the optimum allocation of heat exchanger surface, pressure drop and pinch point temperature difference for the given boundary conditions and for use in the obtained ORC.
Moviltooth: context-aware system for mobile phones based on bluetooth technology

Nowadays the amount of accessible information across Internet is enormous. Context-aware systems try to filter and to adapt that information to the environment of the user who requests it. This paper introduces a context-aware system that uses the physical location of the request origin. The system is designed for mobile devices using Bluetooth radio-frequency technology for data transfer and location system. The main feature of the system is its low cost and simplicity.