Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
[Correlation of serum eosinophil cationic protein with the severity of allergic rhinitis in childhood].

OBJECTIVE To investigate the relationships between the severity of childhood allergic rhinitis (AR) and the peripheral blood eosinophil count, serum eosinophil cationic protein (ECP), total IgE (tIgE), and allergen-specific IgE (sIgE) levels. METHODS A total of 138 children with AR aged 3 to 17 (9.96 ± 3.78, x() ± s) years old were enrolled in the study. All children had persistent AR sensitized to house dust mites with a clinical history of 3 months to 12 (4.21 ± 2.72) years. The disease severity was evaluated using 10 cm-visual analogue scale (VAS), and the serum levels of ECP, tIgE and sIgE were determined using an ImmunoCAP system. Statistical analysis was conducted with SPSS11.0 software. RESULTS Among 138 children with AR, the VAS scores for global severity of rhinitis and nasal obstruction symptom were 5.32 ± 2.16 and 4.78 ± 2.45, respectively. Blood eosinophil count was 0.39 [0.24; 0.63] (M[P(25); P(75)]) ×10(9)/ml. Serum levels of ECP and total IgE were 10.60 [3.26; 30.80] µg/L and (2.50 ± 0.53) log kU/L, respectively. Serum levels of allergen-sIgE against Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus and Dermatophagoides farinae were 58.20[24.75; > 100] kUA/L and 54.95 [24.55; > 100] kUA/L, respectively. The VAS scores of nasal obstruction symptom, but not global severity of rhinitis, were positively related to the duration of AR (r = 0.215, P = 0.011) and the levels of serum ECP (r = 0.196, P = 0.022) in bivariate correlation analysis. There was also a significant correlation between the serum ECP level and the blood eosinophil count (r = 0.295, P = 0.000). No relationships of blood eosinophil count, and serum tIgE and sIgE levels with global severity of rhinitis as well as nasal obstruction symptom were found (all P > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS These results suggested that the severity of nasal obstruction was positively correlated with the duration of rhinitis and the levels of serum ECP in childhood persistent AR due to house dust mites, indicating the disease severity might be related to chronic inflammatory process.
The effects of epidural deracoxib on the ground reaction forces in an acute stifle synovitis model.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the efficacy of epidurally administered deracoxib to mediate the signs of a sodium urate crystal-induced stifle synovitis in dogs, and to compare the efficacy of epidural versus subcutaneously administered deracoxib. STUDY DESIGN Experimental, randomized, blinded, placebo-controlled modified cross-over design. ANIMALS Random source, adult, mixed breed dogs (n = 24; 14 males, 10 females). METHODS Sodium urate crystals were used to create a stifle synovitis model to evaluate the efficacy of deracoxib. Dogs were divided into 4 groups: 3 mg/kg epidural deracoxib, 1.5 mg/kg epidural deracoxib, 3 mg/kg subcutaneous deracoxib, and a placebo (vehicle for deracoxib). Force plate and subjective evaluations were made at time 0, 2, 4, 8, 12, and 24 hours post-treatment. Repeated measures ANOVA with Bonferroni-corrected post hoc comparisons was used to determine significant treatment effects. RESULTS Peak vertical force (PVF) and vertical impulse (VI) were both significantly higher in deracoxib treated dogs compared with placebo. For 3 mg/kg epidural and subcutaneous deracoxib, PVF and VI were significantly greater than for 1.5 mg/kg epidural deracoxib. Overall pain score for all deracoxib-treated dogs was significantly lower than for placebo dogs. CONCLUSIONS Epidural administration of deracoxib is effective at providing analgesia in an acute joint pain model; however, it does not appear to be more effective than systemic administration. CLINICAL RELEVANCE Injectable deracoxib is effective in providing analgesia in acute inflammatory conditions of synovial joints.
Speech based human machine interaction system for home automation

Human-machine interaction technology defines the way human use machines and it plays crucial role for developing an ecosystem between user and machine. Speech based Human-machine interaction has potential to be future of Human-machine interaction and recent advancement in technology have made it possible to operate computers and electronic devices through speech. While there are lots of research going on for the development of better speech recognition systems but very less efforts are made to develop speech based Human-machine interaction system for everyday use. This paper presents an innovative approach by integrating an Android enabled device, Bluetooth technology, Matlab computing platform and advanced microcontroller to develop a Speech based Human-machine interaction system for operating home appliances. The proposed system is very effective speech based Human-machine interaction system for real world applications as it is affordable, flexible, user configurable, user friendly, and also it is very helpful for elderly persons and disabled people.
Small Signal Modeling of a High Bandwidth Voltage Regulator Using Coupled Inductors

Today's voltage regulator (VR) for the microprocessor requires a current loop to achieve adaptive voltage positioning and phase current sharing. A fundamental limitation, current loop sample hold effect, limits the control bandwidth to be pushed beyond 1/6 of the switching frequency. This paper reveals the limitation of the control bandwidth of a two-phase buck converter using peak current control scheme. The limitation can be overcome by coupling the two output inductors. A new small signal model is proposed to study the sample hold effect in coupled-inductor implementations. The relationship between the coupling coefficient and the sample hold effect is then discussed. Based on these understandings, a strongly coupled two-phase buck converter has double the bandwidth of the noncoupled VR; and this is experimentally verified
Intrapartum antibiotics for known maternal Group B streptococcal colonization.

BACKGROUND Maternal colonization with group B streptococcus (GBS) during pregnancy increases the risk of neonatal infection by vertical transmission. Administration of intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis (IAP) during labor has been associated with a reduction in early onset GBS disease (EOGBSD). However, treating all colonized women during labor exposes a large number of women and infants to possible adverse effects without benefit. OBJECTIVES To assess the effect of IAP for maternal GBS colonization on neonatal: 1) all cause mortality and 2) morbidity from proven and probable EOGBSD, late onset GBS disease (LOD), maternal infectious outcomes and allergic reactions to antibiotics. SEARCH STRATEGY We searched the Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth Group's Trials Register (April 2009). SELECTION CRITERIA Randomized trials assessing the impact of maternal IAP on neonatal GBS infections were included. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS We independently assessed eligibility and quality of the studies. MAIN RESULTS Three trials (involving 852 women) evaluating the effects of IAP versus no treatment were included. The risk of bias was high. The use of IAP did not significantly reduce the incidence of all cause mortality, mortality from GBS infection or from infections caused by bacteria other than GBS. The incidence of early GBS infection was reduced with IAP compared to no treatment (risk ratio 0.17, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.04 to 0.74, three trials, 488 infants; risk difference -0.04, 95% CI -0.07 to -0.01; number needed to treat to benefit 25, 95% CI 14 to 100, I(2) 0%). The incidence of LOD or sepsis from organisms other than GBS and puerperal infection was not significantly different between groups.One trial (involving 352 women) compared intrapartum ampicillin versus penicillin and reported no significant difference in neonatal or maternal outcomes. AUTHORS' CONCLUSIONS Intrapartum antibiotic prophylaxis appeared to reduce EOGBSD, but this result may well be a result of bias as we found a high risk of bias for one or more key domains in the study methodology and execution. There is lack of evidence from well designed and conducted trials to recommend IAP to reduce neonatal EOGBSD.Ideally the effectiveness of IAP to reduce neonatal GBS infections should be studied in adequately sized double-blind controlled trials. The opportunity to conduct such trials has likely been lost, as practice guidelines (albeit without good evidence) have been introduced in many jurisdictions.
Implications of the anisotropic thermal conductivity of capacitor windings

In this paper, as a result of their laminar structure, dry BOPP windings have substantially anisotropic thermal conductivity. In the plane of the film, the thermal conductivity is about twice that of bulk polypropylene and about three times the thermal conductivity through the plane of the film. Three-dimensional finite element computations demonstrate that the anisotropic thermal conductivity of BOPP capacitor windings has a substantial effect on tolerable power dissipation within a large capacitor, as a function of how the windings are oriented within the case. For enclosure configurations that optimize heat transfer to the case, the maximum capacitor temperature can be estimated with good accuracy using analytical approximations.
Interleukin-8 Up-regulation by Neutrophil Elastase Is Mediated by MyD88/IRAK/TRAF-6 in Human Bronchial Epithelium*

Cystic fibrosis is characterized in the lungs by neutrophil-dominated inflammation mediated significantly by neutrophil elastase (NE). Previous work has shown that NE induces interleukin-8 (IL-8) gene expression and protein secretion in bronchial epithelial cells. We sought to determine the intracellular mechanisms by which NE up-regulates IL-8 in bronchial epithelial cells. The data show that stimulation of 16HBE14o− cells with NE induced IL-8 protein production and gene expression. Both responses were abrogated by actinomycin D, indicating that regulation is at the transcriptional level. Electrophoretic mobility shift assays demonstrated that nuclear factor κB (NFκB) was activated in 16HBE14o− cells stimulated with NE. Western blot analysis demonstrated that activation of NFκB by NE was preceded by phosphorylation and degradation of IκB proteins, principally IκBβ. In addition, we observed that interleukin-1 receptor-associated kinase (IRAK) was degraded in 16HBE14o− cells stimulated with NE. Quantification of IL-8 reporter gene activity by luminometry demonstrated that dominant negative MyD88 (MyD88Δ) or TRAF-6 (TRAF-6Δ) inhibited IL-8 reporter gene expression in response to NE. Furthermore, MyD88Δ inhibited NE-induced IRAK degradation. These results show that NE induces IL-8 gene up-regulation in bronchial epithelial cells through an IRAK signaling pathway involving both MyD88 and TRAF-6, resulting in degradation of IκBβ and nuclear translocation of NFκB. These findings may have implications for therapeutic treatments in the cystic fibrosis condition.
Risk stratification of individual coronary lesions using local endothelial shear stress: a new paradigm for managing coronary artery disease

Purpose of review The purpose of this review is to summarize the role of endothelial shear stress in the natural history of coronary atherosclerosis, and to propose an individualized risk-stratification strategy of atherosclerotic lesions based on the in-vivo characterization of local endothelial shear stress and wall morphology. Recent findings Low endothelial shear stress promotes the development of early fibroatheromas, which subsequently follow an individualized natural history of progression. This individual natural history is critically dependent on the magnitude of low endothelial shear stress, which subsequently regulates the severity of inflammation within the wall and ultimately the vascular remodeling response. Very low endothelial shear stress enhances plaque inflammation, leading to excessive expansive remodeling. Excessive expansive remodeling leads to perpetuation, or even exacerbation, of the local low endothelial shear stress environment, thereby setting up a self-perpetuating vicious cycle among low local endothelial shear stress, inflammation, and excessive expansive remodeling, which transforms an early fibroatheroma to a high-risk plaque. Summary In-vivo assessment of the local endothelial shear stress environment, severity of inflammation and vascular remodeling response, all responsible for individual plaque behavior and natural history, in combination with systemic biomarkers of vulnerability, may allow for detailed risk stratification of individual early atherosclerotic plaques, thereby guiding both systemic and local, lesion-specific therapeutic strategies.
Children having children? Religion, psychology and the birth of the teenage pregnancy problem

This article presents a genealogical examination of the emergence of governmental concern with ‘children having children’, focusing on the work of the London County Council and local voluntary organizations in the 1950s and 1960s. The article explores the moral-Christian discourse shaping governmental work with ‘unwed mothers’ and identifies the discursive shifts associated with the ascent of the problematization of ‘teenage motherhood’. It is argued that within the moral-Christian discourse, a woman’s subjectivity was delineated primarily according to her ‘character’ not her age or her ‘maturity’. Furthermore, the prospect that a young unwed mother will raise her child was viewed positively as it was seen to contribute to the desired transformation of her character. The shift to a concern with ‘children having children’ was linked with a rise in the influence of psychological discourse on government work. Two psychological notions were particularly important: the proposition that teenagers are emotionally immature and the assertion that inadequate mothering has a lasting effect on the health of a child. The article concludes that unless contemporary scientific claims regarding young people’s psychological and physiological maturity are challenged, the ‘problem’ of teenage parenthood will persist in the years to come.
Awake airway control in patients with anticipated difficult mask ventilation

Awake intubation is considered a technique of choice in anticipated difficult airway, similarly “awake airway control” in anticipated difficult mask ventilation (DMV) should be considered to maintain continuous oxygenation. Based on the practice guidelines for management of difficult airway by the American Society of Anaesthesiologists task force, El‐Orbany and Woehlck[1] recommend the use of oropharyngeal airway (OPA) and nasopharyngeal airway (NPA) as an adjunct to optimize DMV. Authors suggest that in patients with predicted DMV placement of the NPA can be achieved prior to induction of anaesthesia without patient discomfort to optimise face mask ventilation following induction of anaesthesia.
Interaction between cellular and viral genes in the expression of the RSV‐induced transformation‐specific cell‐surface antigen VCSA

Transformation of BHK hamster fibroblasts by an env strain of Rous sarcoma virus (RSV) leads to the appearance at the cell surface of a virus‐induced nonvirion antigen (VCSA), specific for transformation, whose expression is controlled by the transforming src gene. Previous work has shown that a rabbit anti‐VCSA serum lyses specifically, in the presence of complement, 51Cr‐labelled RSV‐transformed cells from different animal species. Now, by competition experiments with a panel of different unlabelled cells we show that the VCSA expressed on RSV‐transformed hamster fibroblasts is a complex of at least three distinct antigenic specificities: (1)one expressed on all RSV‐transformed fibroblasts, regardless their species and the subgroup or strain of the transforming virus; (2) one cross‐reacting with a cell‐surface antigen (CSA) expressed at various degrees on untransformed avian fibroblasts, but not on mammalian fibroblasts; (3) one species‐specific, present only on RSV‐transformed hamster fibroblasts. It is concluded that VCSA is a complex of several antigenic determinants, and that some of these differ in different cells transformed by RSV. This observation indicates that VCSA expression at the cell suface is likely to be the result of the interaction between the viral src gene product pp60src with host cell gene(s) or gene product(s), rather than the simple expression of this molecule at the cell surface.
Tight-adherence genes of Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans are required for virulence in a rat model

Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans is a Gram-negative coccobacillus that has been associated with localized aggressive periodontitis and infections of the heart, brain, and urinary tract. Wild-type clinical isolates have the remarkable ability to adhere tenaciously and nonspecifically to solid surfaces such as glass, plastic, and hydroxyapatite. Adherence by A. actinomycetemcomitans is mediated by the tight-adherence (tad) gene locus, which consists of 14 genes (flp-1–flp-2–tadV–rcpCAB–tadZABCDEFG). All but 2 of the genes have been shown to be required for the secretion and assembly of long, bundled Flp1 fibrils. To test whether the tad locus is required for colonization and disease, we developed a rat model for periodontal disease. To mimic the natural route of infection, Sprague–Dawley rats were inoculated orally by adding bacteria directly to their food for 8 days. After inoculation with wild-type or mutant strains defective in adherence (flp-1 and tadA), the rats were assessed for colonization of the oral cavity and pathogenesis. Wild-type A. actinomycetemcomitans was able to colonize and persist for at least 12 weeks in the oral cavity, elicit a humoral immune response, and cause significant bone loss in rats. In contrast, rats fed flp-1 or tadA mutant strains showed no bone loss and their immune responses were indistinguishable from those of the uninoculated controls. These results demonstrate the critical importance of the tad locus in the colonization and pathogenesis of A. actinomycetemcomitans.
3D edge detection of medical images using mathematical morphological and cellular logic array processing techniques

This paper introduces a novel algorithm called cellular logic array processing for extracting volumetric edges from 3D medical images. A sample MRI image of a human skull is used as a test data for analysis purposes. A comparative study of the algorithm introduced in this paper with existing morphological algorithms has been made and results reported here. In addition, a modified morphological filter based 3D edge detecting algorithm has also been introduced in this paper.
Heteroscedastic Regression Analysis of Factors Affecting BMD Monitoring

Identifying factors affecting BMD precision and interindividual heterogeneity in BMD change can help optimize BMD monitoring. BMD change for the lumbar spine and total hip for short‐term reproducibility (n = 328) and long‐term clinical monitoring (n = 2720) populations were analyzed with heteroscedastic regression using linear prediction for mean (monitoring population only) and log‐linear prediction for SD (both populations). For clinical monitoring, male sex, baseline body mass index (BMI), and systemic corticosteroid use were associated with greater SD of BMD change. Weight gain was negatively associated with SD for the hip, whereas height change was positively associated with SD for the spine. Each additional year of monitoring increased the SD by 6.5–9.2%. Osteoporosis treatment affected mean change but did not increase dispersion. For short‐term reproducibility, performing scans on a different day increased the SD of measurement error by 38–44%. Baseline BMD, difference in bone area, and a repeat scan performed by different technologists were associated with higher measurement error only for the hip. For both samples, heteroscedastic regression outperformed models that assumed homogeneous variance. Heteroscedastic regression techniques are powerful yet underused tools in analyzing longitudinal BMD data and can be used to generate individualized predictions of BMD change and measurement error.
Canine osteoarthritis: Effects of endogenous neutral metalloproteoglycanases on articular cartilage proteoglycans

The aim of this study was to analyze the mechanisms by which neutral metalloproteoglycanases (NMPE) degrade proteoglycans (PGs) in the cartilage of an experimental model of osteoarthritis (OA). We demonstrated that chondrocytes in osteoarthritic cartilage synthesize PGs with the same functional characteristics as those found in normal cartilage. Osteoarthritic cartilage contains NMPE in both active and latent forms. Both forms can degrade newly synthesized and endogenous PG macromolecules, as indicated by the reduced hydrodynamic size found in the two PG populations of osteoarthritic cartilage. PG monomers, derived from the included fraction of Sepharose CL2B chromatography, were unable to form aggregates with hyaluronic acid. Reduction and alkylation showed that PG monomers from osteoarthritic cartilage had a small hydrodynamic size, especially after activation with aminophenylmercuric acetate. No significant differences were observed in the size of the chondroitin sulfate chain when normal cartilage was compared with its osteoarthritic equivalent. These results suggest that the proteolytic degradation of cartilage matrix PGs by NMPE occurs at both the hyaluronate‐binding region and at the chondroitin sulfate‐rich region of the core protein.
Optimal path planning of two-wheeled mobile robots in the presence of dynamic obstacles

To solve the problem of optimal path planning of two-wheeled mobile robots (TWMRs) in the presence of dynamic obstacles, a symplectic pseudospectral method for solving nonlinear optimal control problems with inequality constraints is developed. The proposed algorithm transforms the original nonlinear optimal problem into a series of linear-quadratic optimal control problems (LQOCPs) by using quasilinearization techniques. And the LQOCP in each iteration is replaced by a coupling of a system of linear algebraic equations and a linear complementarity problem (LCP) with the help of the parametric variational principle and the second kind of generating function. The proposed method satisfies the first-order necessary conditions for optimal control problems and matrices involved are found to be sparse and symmetric, leading it to be accurate and efficient. Numerical simulations demonstrate that the proposed method is effective for nonlinear optimal control problems with complicated constraints.
Dupuytren’s disease therapy: targeting the vicious cycle of myofibroblasts?

Introduction: Dupuytren’s disease (DD) is a proliferative fibromatosis of the hand, which causes permanent flexion contracture of the digits and, ultimately, loss of function. The treatment of DD is complex and involves surgical and nonsurgical approaches, with the goal of removing the affected tissue. New biological targets are under investigation in order to develop innovative therapies. Areas covered: The etiology of DD is still unknown. Several authors who focused their studies on the genetics of DD recognized an inherited autosomal dominant pattern. Actually, DD is a multifactorial and complex disease. Myofibroblasts are thought to play a crucial role in its pathogenesis, although their origin is not clear. Expert opinion: There is a general consensus that a better understanding of cellular and molecular mechanisms of DD will lead to the design of more specific and effective treatment alternatives. In this review, the authors hypothesize a new biological model for DD pathology, where myofibroblasts enhance the reservoir of the disease acting as if in a vicious cycle. This could help, ultimately, in identifying new therapeutic strategies to treat this common and disabling fibroproliferative disorder.