Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Viral respiratory tract infections increase platelet reactivity and activation: an explanation for the higher rates of myocardial infarction and stroke during viral illness

Factor VIII and Factor IX in a twin population. Evidence for a major effect of ABO locus and factor VIII level. Am J Hum Genet 1985; 37: 89. 16 O’Donnell J, Boulton F, Manning R, Laffan M. Genotype at the secretor blood locus is a determinant of plasma von-Willebrand factor level. Br J Haematol 2002; 116: 350–6. 17 Meiklejohn DJ, Vickers MA, Morrison ER, Dijkuisen R, Moore I, Urbaniak SJ, Greaves M. In vivo platelet activation in atherothrombotic stroke is not determined by polymorphisms of human platelet glycoprotein IIIa or Ib. Br J Haematol 2001; 112: 621–31. 18 Downing J, Darke C. A modified PCR-SSP method for the identification of ABO blood group antigens. Eur J Immunogenet 2003; 30: 295–8. 19 Vestergaard EM, Wolf H, Orntoft TF. Increased concentration of genotype-interpreted Ca 19-9 in urine of bladder cancer patients mark diffuse atypia of the urothelium. Clin Chem 1998; 44: 197–204. 20 O’Donnell J, Boulton F,Manning R, LaffanM.Amount of H antigen expressed on circulating von Willebrand factor is modified by ABO blood group genotype and is a major determinant of plasma von Willebrand factor antigen levels. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol 2002; 22: 335–341.
Asia grapples with obesity epidemics

A major report on how millions of people around the world can avoid chronic disease through diet and exercise has called on the food industry to reduce amounts of certain types of fats as well as salt and sugar in snacks and processed foods. The report says that many deaths attributed to chronic diseases are due to obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol concentrations, and low levels of physical …
The effect of demand response on operation of smart home energy system with renewable energy resources

In this paper, a model is proposed for operation of a microgrid considering non-operational production, i.e. wind turbines and solar system, and energy storage system as well as customers. This microgrid is capable of bilateral exchange of energy with upstream network. In addition, in this mircorgrid, there exist two general types of controllable and non-controllable loads. For the former types, by proposing operational models and new control, their amount of consumption is varied based on wind turbine and solar radiation intermittence, upstream system price, and customers' welfare level or the consumption amount is transferred to another time. This control performance leads to rewards and/or penalties in consumed power prices. For this optimization program, an objective function from the microgrid manager's viewpoint is extracted and is maximized using particle swarm optimization. Finally, optimal operational schedule is suggested for a sample microgrid and the results of simulation are analyzed and compared to consider load control programs in its operation.
The Role of High Spatial Frequencies in Hemispheric Processing of Categorical and Coordinate Spatial Relations

Right-handed participants performed categorical and coordinate spatial relation tasks on stimuli presented either to the left visual field-right hemisphere (LVF-RH) or to the right visual field-left hemisphere (RVF-LH). The stimuli were either unfiltered or low-pass filtered (i.e., devoid of high spatial frequency content). Consistent with previous studies, the unfiltered condition produced a significant RVF-LH advantage for the categorical task and an LVF-RH advantage for the coordinate task. Low-pass filtering eliminated this Task Visual Field interaction; thus, the RVF-LH advantage disappeared for the categorical task. The present results suggest that processing of high spatial frequency contributes to the left hemispheric advantage for categorical spatial processing.
Bevacizumab plus Low-Dose Metronomic Oral Cyclophosphamide in Heavily Pretreated Patients with Recurrent Ovarian Cancer

Aim: To retrospectively assess the efficacy and safety of bevacizumab plus low-dose metronomic oral cyclophosphamide in heavily pretreated patients with recurrent ovarian cancer. Patients and Methods: Patients with recurrent ovarian cancer and prior treatment with platinum- and taxane-based chemotherapy were included. Treatment consisted of bevacizumab 10 mg/kg intravenously every 2 weeks plus oral cyclophosphamide 50 mg daily until disease progression or unacceptable toxicity. Response rates (RR) were determined according to RECIST criteria and by monitoring the CA 125 serum tumor marker according to Rustin’s criteria. The endpoints were progression-free survival (PFS), RR, overall survival (OS), and safety. Results: Thirty-eight patients were treated; 79% were platinum resistant and 21% were platinum sensitive. The median number of previous treatments was 4 (range 1–8). Seventy-nine percent of patients had received more than 2 previous lines of treatment. Eighty-one percent of patients had received gemcitabine, 76% liposomal doxorubicin, and 50% topotecan. A median of 8 (range 1–70) cycles of bevacizumab were administered. The overall RR was a complete response (CR) in 3 patients (8.1%), a partial response (PR) in 12 (32.4%), and stable disease (SD) ≧6 months in 3 (8.1%). The median PFS and OS were 4.5 and 10.7 months, respectively. Thirty-nine percent of patients were progression free for at least 6 months. In an exploratory analysis there was a significant relation of prior platinum response and performance status with the risk of progression. Grade 3–4 toxicities included anemia (1), hypertension (2), hematuria (1), arterial thrombosis in the leg (1), dyspnea (1), and intestinal fistulae (1). There were no cases of gastrointestinal perforation (GIP) or treatment-related deaths. Conclusion: The combination of bevacizumab and metronomic cyclophosphamide was active and well-tolerated in heavily pretreated patients with recurrent ovarian cancer.
Resistive-switching analogue memory device for neuromorphic application

We have investigated the analogue memory characteristics of an oxide-based resistive-switching device under an electrical pulse to mimic biological spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP) synapse characteristics. As a synaptic device, a Pr0.7Ca0. 3MnO3 based resistive - switching device exhibiting excellent analogue memory characteristics was used to control the synaptic weight by applying various pulse amplitudes and cycles. Furthermore, by adopting CMOS devices as neurons and TiN/PCMO devices as synapses, we implemented neuromorphic hardware that mimics associative memory characteristics in real time for the first time. Owing to their excellent scalability, resistive-switching devices, shows promise for future high-density neuromorphic applications.
Evaluating change in clinical status: reliability and measures of agreement for the assessment of glenohumeral range of motion.

OBJECTIVES To evaluate intra-rater and inter-rater reliability and measurement error in glenohumeral range of motion (ROM) measurements using a standard goniometer. STUDY DESIGN 17 adult subjects with and without shoulder pathology were evaluated for active and passive range of motion. Fifteen shoulder motions were assessed by two raters to determine reliability. The intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC) were calculated and examined to determine if reliability of ICC ≥ 0.70 existed. The standard error of measurement (SEM) and the minimal clinical difference (MCD) were also calculated. RESULTS Thxe criterion reliability was achieved in both groups for intra-rater reliability of standing AROM abduction; supine AROM and PROM abduction, flexion, external rotation at 0° abduction; and for inter-rater reliability of supine AROM and PROM abduction, external rotation at 0° abduction. The SEM ranged from 4°-7° for intra-rater and 6°-9° for inter-rater agreement on movements that achieved the criterion reliability. The MCD ranged from 11°-16° for a single evaluator and 14°-24° for two evaluators. CONCLUSIONS Assessment of AROM and PROM in supine achieves superior reliability. The use of either a single or multiple raters affects the number of movements that achieved clinically meaningful reliability. Some movements consistently did not achieve the criterion and may not be the best movements to monitor treatment outcome.
Isolated vitamin E deficiency with demyelinating neuropathy

A 22‐year‐old man, with a past history of generalized tonic‐clonic seizures treated with phenobarbital, presented with spinocerebellar ataxia. The electrophysiological studies revealed a demyelinating motor‐sensory neuropathy. The serum vitamin E level was low. Sural nerve biopsy revealed loss of large myelinated fibers with evidence of remyelination. Vitamin E supplementation led to clinical and electrophysiological recovery of sensory conduction and evoked potentials. Motor nerve conduction, however, showed only partial recovery. Vitamin E deficiency leading to a demyelinating neuropathy, as in the present case, suggests that the full spectrum of the disease entity is not fully defined. Muscle Nerve, 2005
Flexible inkjet printed CPW octagonal inductor on PET substrate

This paper presents fully inkjet printed CPW (coplanar waveguide) octagonal inductor. The inductor was printed with water-based silver nanoparticle ink on flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate. The fabricated structure has small outer dimension (8.5mm × 8.5mm), and value of effective inductance around 20 nH. Measured Q-factor is up to 1, and self-resonant frequency is slightly below 2 GHz.
A Scene Recognition Algorithm Based On Multi-Instance Learning

Abstract In Bag of Words image presentation model, visual words are generated by unsupervised clustering, which leaves out the spatial relations between words and results in such shorting comings as limited semantic description and weak discrimination. To solve this problem, we propose to substitute visual words by visual phrases in this article. Visual phrases built according to spatial relations between words are semantic distrainable, and they can improve the accuracy of Bag of Words model. Considering the traditional classification method based on Bag of Words model is vulnerable to the background, block and scalar variance of an image, we propose in this article a multiple visual words learning method for image classification, which is based on the concept of visual phrases combined with Multiple Instance Learning. The final classification model is able to show the spatial features of image classes. Experiments performed on standard image testing sets, Caltech 101 and Scene 15, show the satisfying performance of this algorithm.
USING NANOPARTICLE-APTAMER BIOCONJUGATES FOR IMAGING AND TREATING PROSTATE CANCER

Prostate cancer diagnoses increase each year, and current treatment strategies cause disturbing levels of serious side effects. This has necessitated a search for new strategies to employ more targeted treatments for malignant tissues. One promising alternative therapy is the use of a chemotherapeutic-nanoparticle-aptamer bioconjugate. This method employs aptamers which target over-expressed proteins on cancerous cell surfaces and bind to individual prostate tumour cells with incredible affinity. Once bound, the bioconjugate is taken into the cell where it delivers a toxic payload of chemotherapeutics and destroys the cell by cytotoxic means. The bioconjugate therapy method is specific for cancerous cells which limits side-effects to non-target tissues. Fluorescent properties of some chemotherapeutic components and quantum dot nanoparticles can also provide imaging of these cancerous masses with extreme precision. Successful trials employing aptamers for targeted therapy demonstrate the promise of this technology for future chemotherapeutic applications. Additionally, aptamer conjugates are safer, less expensive, and potentially more effective substitutes to antibody-based targeting methods which are currently being explored as a competing option for this type of treatment.
Neuropsychological Weaknesses in Adult ADHD; Cognitive Functions as Core Deficit and Roles of Them in Persistence to Adulthood

Abstract Prior investigations have shown that individuals with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have impaired neuropsychological functions. This study had two aims, first to investigate weakened cognitive functions in adult ADHD (aADHD), and second, to investigate difference between persisters (those having persistently ongoing ADHD diagnosis in adulthood), and remitters (those having ADHD diagnosis only in childhood and not in adulthood), in terms of cognitive deficits. We evaluated performance on a comprehensive neuropsychological battery in three groups including 34 persisters, 35 remitters, and 35 healthy control group (absence of childhood and adulthood ADHD diagnosis). Our findings showed that adults with ADHD have inefficient attention, interference control and set-shifting functions, which may be revealed on neuropsychological tests that require greater cognitive demand. Given the finding that interference control deficit exists across the lifespan in people with ADHD, we suggest that interference control-associated functional weakness may be a core deficit for ADHD. (JINS, 2012, 18, 1–8)
Impact of a physical activity program on cerebral vasoreactivity in sedentary elderly people.

AIM The aim of the present study was to determine the effect of a physical activity program on the hemodynamic response of the brain (vasoreactivity) in elderly people. METHODS Eighteen men and 25 women (aged 62-67 years) were randomly assigned to an experimental (EXP, N.=22, 12 women) and a control (CON, N.=21, 13 women) group. Subjects in EXP group were required to complete a 7-month program based on aerobic training (3-4 sessions/weekd, 50 min/session, 3-4 sessions/week, at 70% maximum heart rate). Transcranial Doppler ultrasound was used to examine the cerebral blood flow response to hypercapnic and hypocapnic stimuli. We also determined blood pressure, total serum cholesterol, HDL and LDL cholesterol, and triglycerides, and conducted an aerobic capacity test (the 2.4-Km walking test). RESULTS.Brain vasomotor reactivity improved in the EXP group, reflected by a higher blood flow velocity in the middle cerebral artery (MCA) in both cerebral hemispheres in response to hypercapnia (induced by breath holding) (P<0.05). Subjects in EXP group also improved the cardiovascular profile aerobic physical condition (P<0.001) in terms of reduced arterial pressure, total cholesterol and triglyceride levels. CONCLUSION Our findings indicate that cerebral vasoreactivity in elderly may be improved by undertaking an aerobic exercise program.
Osteogenic potential of effective bone engineering using dental pulp stem cells, bone marrow stem cells, and periosteal cells for osseointegration of dental implants.

PURPOSE The aim of this comparative study was to investigate cell-based effective bone engineering and the correlation between the osseointegration of dental implants and tissue-engineered bone using dental pulp stem cells (DPSC), bone marrow stem cells (BMSC), and periosteal cells (PC). MATERIALS AND METHODS The first molar and all premolars were extracted from the mandibles of three dogs, and in each dog, six bone defects (three on each side) were prepared with a 10-mm-diameter trephine bur after 4 weeks. Different materials were implanted in the defects and the sites were allowed to heal. The experimental groups were as follows: (1) dog DPSC and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) (dDPSC/PRP), (2) dog BMSC and PRP (dBMSC/PRP), (3) dog PC and PRP (dPC/PRP), and (4) control (defect only). Eight weeks later, dental implants were placed in the defects. After another 8 weeks, the amount of bone regeneration was assessed by histologic and histomorphometric analyses (bone-implant contact). RESULTS The mean bone-implant contact values were 66.7% ± 3.6% for group 1 (dDPSC/PRP), 62.5% ± 3.1% for group 2 (dBMSC/PRP), 39.4% ± 2.4% for group 3 (dPC/PRP), and 30.3% ± 2.6% for the control group. CONCLUSIONS DPSC showed the highest osteogenic potential and may be a useful cell source for tissue-engineered bone around dental implants.
Isolated mitral regurgitation: quantitative assessment with 64-section multidetector CT--comparison with MR imaging and echocardiography.

PURPOSE To evaluate the accuracy of 64-section multidetector computed tomography (CT) for the assessment of the severity of isolated mitral regurgitation by measuring ventricular volumetrics compared with those at magnetic resonance (MR) imaging and echocardiography. MATERIALS AND METHODS This study was approved by an institutional review board; patient informed consent was obtained. Forty-nine patients (22 men, 27 women; mean age, 39 years +/- 11 [standard deviation]) with isolated mitral regurgitation underwent retrospective electrocardiographically (ECG) gated 64-section CT, echocardiography, and MR imaging for the assessment of the severity of mitral regurgitation. Stroke volumes of the left and right ventricles were measured at 64-section CT and MR imaging. With these measurements, regurgitant volumes (RVs) and regurgitant fractions (RFs) were calculated and compared. The agreement between CT and MR imaging was tested by using linear regression and Bland-Altman analyses. RFs were compared with corresponding echocardiographic grades (grades I-IV) based on the absolute area of the regurgitation jet and in relation to the size of the left atrium by using Spearman rank order correlation and a weighted kappa test. RESULTS No significant differences were found in calculated RV and RF between 64-section CT and MR imaging (P = .56 and .87, respectively; paired t test). Regression analysis showed that 64-section CT correlated well with MR imaging for the measurement of RV (r = 0.89; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.81, 0.94) and for calculating the RF (r = 0.91; 95% CI: 0.84, 0.95). Bland-Altman analysis showed no significant differences in RV (bias, -1.0 mL) and RF (bias, 0.2%) between 64-section CT and MR imaging. The severity of regurgitation estimated by using echocardiography correlated well with that estimated by using 64-section CT (r = 0.95; 95% CI: 0.92, 0.97) and MR imaging (r = 0.94; 95% CI: 0.91, 0.96). CONCLUSION ECG-gated 64-section CT helps provide quantitative information with high accuracy for determining the severity of isolated mitral regurgitation.
fMRI measurement of brain dysfunction in alcohol-dependent young women.

BACKGROUND Studies of brain functioning in alcohol-dependent adults have produced varied results but generally suggest that alcohol affects brain functioning and that relatively short durations of heavy drinking may adversely affect women. It remains unclear when in the course of alcohol dependency and at which developmental stage these brain changes emerge. Our neuropsychological studies have indicated that drinking-related neurocognitive effects occur as early as adolescence (Brown et al., 2000; Tapert & Brown, 1999). This study seeks to characterize brain regions that subserve the affected neurocognitive functions. METHODS Alcohol-dependent young women (n = 10) were recruited from a longitudinal study of alcohol- and drug-abusing youth, all of whom met criteria for alcohol dependence. Control participants (n = 10) had no history of alcohol or drug problems and were comparable with alcohol-dependent participants on age (18-25 years), family history of alcohol use disorders, and education. After a minimum of 72 hr of abstinence, functional magnetic resonance imaging, neuropsychological, alcohol/drug involvement, and mood data were collected. Participants performed spatial working memory and vigilance tasks during functional magnetic resonance imaging acquisition to probe brain response. RESULTS Alcohol-dependent women demonstrated significantly less blood oxygen level-dependent response than controls during the spatial working memory task in the right superior and inferior parietal, right middle frontal, right postcentral, and left superior frontal cortex, after controlling for the baseline vigilance response. CONCLUSIONS Working memory produces a larger neuronal response in some cortical regions than vigilance. Alcohol-dependent women showed less differential response to working memory than controls in frontal and parietal regions, especially in the right hemisphere. Heavy, chronic drinking appears to produce adverse neural effects that are detectable by functional magnetic resonance imaging.
THE IMPACT OF INTRINSIC AND EXTRINSIC REWARDS ON EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION AT A MEDICAL DEVICES COMPANY IN SOUTH AFRICA

In a competitive business environment, the concept of rewards and employee motivation has become a popular point of discussion in many successful organisations. Companies need to review their reward systems in order to improve employee motivation, increase performance and stay competitive. The main purpose of this research was to investigate the role that intrinsic and extrinsic rewards play in motivating employees. This study in assessment of this problem adopted an explanatory research design using quantitative methodology and a survey strategy carried out among employees at a medical devices company in South Africa in order to assess these. The research had the following three essential objectives: to ascertain whether employees value rewards as motivation factors, to establish the extent to which employees are satisfied with current reward systems, and to identify which rewards (extrinsic or intrinsic) employees consider most beneficial. Forty (40) questionnaires were collected from respondents in order to explore and analyse their opinions on these topics. The analysis of the data collected from the questionnaires suggested that rewards are highly valued as a motivating factor by respondents. The research further suggested that employees were generally satisfied with, and benefited from the current rewards offered by the company. Additionally, it was found that employees were more motivated by intrinsic rewards rather than extrinsic rewards, although a thirteenth cheque and annual salary increases (extrinsic rewards) were the most ranked rewards for employees at the company.
saturnismo por retenção de projétil de arma de fogo em articulação: relato de caso Saturnism caused by retained intra-articular bullet: case report

resUMo A intoxicacao por chumbo, tambem conhecida como saturnismo, que ocorre em razao do projetil retido em ferimento por arma de fogo, e uma complicacao ja conhecida e descrita na literatura. O risco dessa intoxicacao endogena por chumbo esta associado ao contato do projetil com o liquido sinovial ou liquido cefalorraquidiano. O tratamento e feito com terapia de quelacao, sendo definitivo com a retirada cirurgica do projetil. Relatamos aqui um caso clinico de um paciente que desenvolveu intoxicacao por chumbo em razao de projetil retido em contato com liquido sinovial. Paciente do genero masculino, 24 anos, internado para investigacao de quadro de dor abdominal associada a nauseas, vomitos e febre ha 7 dias. Diagnosticado saturnismo, que foi confirmado por meio de exames laboratoriais e de imagem. Procedeu-se, entao, a retirada dos fragmentos, alem do segmento clinico de suporte. Apresentou evolucao favoravel apos tratamento.