Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Medial Canthopexy: A Proven Technique

The medial canthus comprises three limbs and functions to maintain the shape of the eye and to assist in drainage of the lacrimal sac. Repair of the medial canthal tendon is often complicated by canthal drift, extrusion of wires or sutures, and in-fracture of the contralateral orbital bones from pressure by transnasal wires. A technique used successfully for more than 25 years with a low rate of complications is described in a stepwise manner. The long-term outcomes of using this technique are reviewed. Thirty-three patient charts were reviewed. The mean age of patients was 22.4 years (range, 3 to 59 years). The surgical indications were trauma, neoplasm, and congenital deformity. Only 2 cases of canthal drift were noted after this procedure and were corrected with the same technique without recurrence. Traditional methods of medial canthopexy frequently result in complications; the technique described eliminates most if not all of these.
3D Printing in Surgical Management of Double Outlet Right Ventricle

Double outlet right ventricle (DORV) is a heterogeneous group of congenital heart diseases that require individualized surgical approach based on precise understanding of the complex cardiovascular anatomy. Physical 3-dimensional (3D) print models not only allow fast and unequivocal perception of the complex anatomy but also eliminate misunderstanding or miscommunication among imagers and surgeons. Except for those cases showing well-recognized classic surgical anatomy of DORV such as in cases with a typical subaortic or subpulmonary ventricular septal defect, 3D print models are of enormous value in surgical decision and planning. Furthermore, 3D print models can also be used for rehearsal of the intended procedure before the actual surgery on the patient so that the outcome of the procedure is precisely predicted and the procedure can be optimally tailored for the patient’s specific anatomy. 3D print models are invaluable resource for hands-on surgical training of congenital heart surgeons.
Arc-flash calculation comparison for energy storage systems

There is an increasing prevalence of energy storage systems on the electricity grid network. However, as of yet, there is no overriding standard on how to deal with DC arc-flash calculations and subsequent determination of the PPE requirements for a DC system within the UK. This paper compares various published DC arc-flash calculations using a case study based approach. The paper uses data available from the Willenhall Energy Storage System.
Letter re: Sirolimus for epilepsy in children with tuberous sclerosis complex: A randomized controlled trial

We read with interest the article by Overwater et al.,1 which showed that sirolimus did not significantly reduce seizure frequency in children with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) and intractable epilepsy.1 TSC/mammalian target of rapamycin signaling is involved in regulating cell proliferation, synaptogenesis, and growth of dendrites and axons.2,3 This suggests that any treatment aimed at correcting TSC-related epilepsy would need to be initiated during important developmental time windows.
The Biology of Human Fetal Skin at Ages Related to Prenatal Diagnosis

Abstract: It is the goal of the present article to review the state of knowledge of human skin development and to indicate some of the questions being approached in current studies of human fetal skin. Because of the breadth of the topic, the discussion will be limited to two ages during gestation that correspond to periods when samples of fetal skin or amniotic fluid cells (which in part are derived from the skin) are used to evaluate the condition of the fetus‐ These periods correspond to ages when amniocentesis (14–16 weeks) and fetoscopy accompanied by fetal skin biopsy (19–20 weeks) are performed.
Evolution of Dissolved Organic Matter Along a Septic System Plume: Evidence of Sustained Biogeochemical Activity in the Groundwater Zone

Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is an important energy source for biogeochemical reactions. However, DOM is often assumed to be recalcitrant in the groundwater zone due to extensive microbial processing in the overlying soil zone and long groundwater residence times. Consequently, further heterotrophic microbial processes proceed at inherently low rates. Septic systems provide an ideal opportunity to study the evolution of groundwater DOM due to the development of confined and easily identifiable plumes of known age. Here we use measures of DOM composition (size‐exclusion liquid chromatography, ultraviolet absorbance, and C:N) to quantify DOM evolution along an exceptionally well‐characterized septic‐impacted groundwater plume. Elevated concentrations (5 to 8 mg C/L) close to the tile bed decrease to values below 2 mg C/L with lower UV‐absorbing components normalized to overall DOM concentration (specific ultraviolet absorbance) along the six‐year‐old plume flow path. The humic substance fraction (HSF) comprises the largest percentage of DOM and decreases in concentration along the septic plume. HSF properties also change with travel time becoming lower in molecular weight, specific ultraviolet absorbance, and C:N. Denitrification continues along the length of the plume concomitant with changes in DOM and HSF composition. Thus, HSF, typically considered recalcitrant in subsurface environments, is actively cycled by microorganisms on multiyear time frames in accordance with the recent paradigm shift for soil organic matter evolution. Lastly, measures of DOM composition indicate changes in DOM that are not evident from measures of concentration alone.
Oncogenic H-Ras Reprograms Madin-Darby Canine Kidney (MDCK) Cell-derived Exosomal Proteins Following Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition*

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a highly conserved morphogenic process defined by the loss of epithelial characteristics and the acquisition of a mesenchymal phenotype. EMT is associated with increased aggressiveness, invasiveness, and metastatic potential in carcinoma cells. To assess the contribution of extracellular vesicles following EMT, we conducted a proteomic analysis of exosomes released from Madin-Darby canine kidney (MDCK) cells, and MDCK cells transformed with oncogenic H-Ras (21D1 cells). Exosomes are 40–100 nm membranous vesicles originating from the inward budding of late endosomes and multivesicular bodies and are released from cells on fusion of multivesicular bodies with the plasma membrane. Exosomes from MDCK cells (MDCK-Exos) and 21D1 cells (21D1-Exos) were purified from cell culture media using density gradient centrifugation (OptiPrep™), and protein content identified by GeLC-MS/MS proteomic profiling. Both MDCK- and 21D1-Exos populations were morphologically similar by cryo-electron microscopy and contained stereotypical exosome marker proteins such as TSG101, Alix, and CD63. In this study we show that the expression levels of typical EMT hallmark proteins seen in whole cells correlate with those observed in MDCK- and 21D1-Exos, i.e. reduction of characteristic inhibitor of angiogenesis, thrombospondin-1, and epithelial markers E-cadherin, and EpCAM, with a concomitant up-regulation of mesenchymal makers such as vimentin. Further, we reveal that 21D1-Exos are enriched with several proteases (e.g. MMP-1, -14, -19, ADAM-10, and ADAMTS1), and integrins (e.g. ITGB1, ITGA3, and ITGA6) that have been recently implicated in regulating the tumor microenvironment to promote metastatic progression. A salient finding of this study was the unique presence of key transcriptional regulators (e.g. the master transcriptional regulator YBX1) and core splicing complex components (e.g. SF3B1, SF3B3, and SFRS1) in mesenchymal 21D1-Exos. Taken together, our findings reveal that exosomes from Ras-transformed MDCK cells are reprogrammed with factors which may be capable of inducing EMT in recipient cells.
Fertility and income, consumption aspirations, and child quality standards

Data from a 1975 national survey of the American population were used to investigate the relationships between childbearing and aspirations for consumption goods, child quality standards, and income. The data were consistent with the hypothesis that preferences for child quality are negatively related to fertility. Aspirations for consumer goods which are related to the home were not found to be negatively related to childbearing while aspirations for nonhome goods were negatively related to fertility as hypothesized. Several indicators of income and, subjective economic well-being were examined, and the overall pattern of results was not supportive of the hypothesized effect of income on fertility.
Increasing B‐type natriuretic peptide levels predict mortality in unselected haemodialysis patients

Cardiac disease is the major cause of death in patients undergoing chronic haemodialysis. Recent studies have found that B‐type natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels accurately reflect the cardiovascular burden of dialysis patients. However, the prognostic potential of BNP measurements in dialysis patients remains unknown.
Generating intonation from a mixed CART-HMM model for speech synthesis

This paper proposes two algorithms for generating intonation from a mixed CART-HMM intonation model for speech synthesis. Based either on a Viterbi search or on the Expectation-Maximization algorithm, the two generation algorithms are analyzed in terms of likelihood and F 0 Root Mean Square Error. Listening tests are performed to subjectively evaluate the quality of the generated intonation
Antenatal Intravenous Immunoglobulin in Chronic Immune Thrombocytopenic Purpura: Case Report and Literature Review

Immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) may complicate pregnancy and, uncommonly, may cause severe neonatal thrombocytopenia. However, it is difficult to predict which neonates are at risk of severe thrombocytopenia. Direct fetal sampling is not commonly done, as it poses significant risks to the fetus. Furthermore, appropriate antenatal treatment of neonates is controversial. We describe the case of a 32-year-old woman with chronic severe ITP and a previous severely affected infant, pregnant with trichorionic triplets, who was successfully managed with the use of weekly intravenous immunoglobulin 1 g/kg without recourse to direct fetal sampling.
Cellular mechanisms of myocardial stunning.

Stunning describes the impairment of contraction observed in myocardium that has been reperfused after brief periods of ischemia (12, 31, 90). The critical feature of the definition lies in the premise that no permanent injury has occurred; hence, stunning resolves entirely, albeit slowly (hours to days; 12). Histologically and metabolically, the stunned heart exhibits no sign of irreversible injury (12). The paradox of long lasting dysfunction in completely viable tissue has captured the imagination of clinicians (stunning probably underlies some types of dysfunction in coronary artery disease and related conditions; 9) while presenting an interesting challenge to experimental physiologists. Although the tools for investigating excitation-contraction coupling in iso­ lated cells are highly refined (93), such tools cannot be brought to bear directly on the problem because stunning, by definition, is an after-effect of ischemia. Unlike metabolic inhibition or hypoxia, ischemia is a vascular phenomenon (82), therefore, the only unequivocal models are those in which the heart can be perfused, made ischemic, and reperfused via its native coronary circulation. Indeed, stunning has classically been induced by brief occlusion of a coronary artery in the intact canine heart, with contractile strength monitored by segment shortening (4, 31, 44, 90). Such complex whole-animal models have the advantage that they retain stability and physi-
In Vitro and in Silico Study of Homologous Sequences in Leishmania Major Thiruvarutchelvan S ,

Leishmaniasis is a widely spread disease caused by protozoan parasites belonging to the genus Leishmania. The unique life cycle of this parasite has two main stages of existence, amastigote and promastigote. The non-infective amastigotes, found in the primary host (example: human) when taken up by certain species of sand fly (Phlebotomine) whilst ingesting the blood of the infected person, were transformed into promastigotes which is the infective form of the parasite and this process takes place in the mid-gut of the sandfly. One of specific proteins in the parasite’s genome in the transformation process, the adhesion protein gene was selected for this homology study. This In Silico approach to identify the homologous sequences in Leishmania major was to understand the evolutionary relationship among species, both in structural and functional aspects. The adhesion protein gene, which is responsible for the adhesion of the parasite in promastigote stage on to the midgut wall of the insect vector, was selected for the purpose of primer design. The DNA from the leishmania major culture was extracted and the designed primers were used against it in PCR. The product was purified from the gel and the PCR product was sequenced. The sequenced data was found to have homology with Leishmania major genome and the confirmations are produced.
Paclitaxel Binding to Human and Murine MD-2*

Paclitaxel (PTX) is an important cancer chemotherapeutic agent that binds to β-tubulin and prevents mitosis through microtubule overstabilization. Recent evidence also implicates PTX in the induction of apoptosis of cancer cells via the TLR4 innate immune pathway. The TLR4 accessory protein, MD-2, is an essential component for the species-specific proinflammatory activity of PTX on murine cells. However, whether PTX binds to human MD-2 and how MD-2 and TLR4 interact with PTX are not well defined. Recombinant human MD-2 (rhMD-2) was produced in a Pichia pastoris expression system, and the interaction between rhMD-2 and PTX was assessed by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to show that PTX binds rhMD-2. Formation of the latter complex was found to be dose-dependent and inhibited by anti-MD-2 antibody but not by an isotype control antibody. As measured by human tumor necrosis factor α production, human THP-1 monocytes expressing TLR4 and MD-2 were poorly responsive to the addition of PTX, but murine macrophages expressing TLR4 and MD-2 responded in a dose-dependent manner. Human embryonic kidney (HEK293) cells transfected with both human TLR4 and human MD-2 or human MD-2 and murine TLR4 were also poorly responsive to PTX (10 μm). However, HEK293 cells transfected with murine MD-2 and human TLR4 or murine MD-2 and murine TLR4 were highly responsive to PTX (10 μm), indicating that the murine MD-2/PTX interaction is required for TLR4 activation. To further define the structural differences for MD-2/TLR4 activation, crystal structures of both murine and human MD-2 were subjected to PTX docking by computational methods. These models indicate that PTX binds in the pocket of both human and mouse MD-2 structures. The species-specific difference between human and murine MD-2 activation of TLR4 by PTX can be explained by alterations of surface charge distribution (i.e. electrostatic potential), binding pocket size, and the locus of PTX binding within the MD-2 pocket, which results in reorganization of the 123-130 amino acid loop. In particular, Phe126 appears to operate as a bridge for TLR4·MD-2 dimerization in the mouse but not the human protein.
Geographic variation in mimetic precision among different species of coral snake mimics

Batesian mimicry is widespread, but whether and why different species of mimics vary geographically in resemblance to their model is unclear. We characterized geographic variation in mimetic precision among four Batesian mimics of coral snakes. Each mimic occurs where its model is abundant (i.e. in ‘deep sympatry’), rare (i.e. at the sympatry/allopatry boundary or ‘edge sympatry’) and absent (i.e. in allopatry). Geographic variation in mimetic precision was qualitatively different among these mimics. In one mimic, the most precise individuals occurred in edge sympatry; in another, they occurred in deep sympatry; in the third, they occurred in allopatry; and in the fourth, precise mimics were not concentrated anywhere throughout their range. Mimicry was less precise in allopatry than in sympatry in only two mimics. We present several nonmutually exclusive hypotheses for these patterns. Generally, examining geographic variation in mimetic precision – within and among different mimics – offers novel insights into the causes and consequences of mimicry.
Sistema de administración de operaciones para el sector frutícola del cantón Cevallos provincia de Tungurahua

El sector fruticola del canton Cevallos, esta representado por las asociaciones y agricultores independientes que se dedican al cultivo, produccion y comercializacion de frutas y sus derivados en la zona centro del Ecuador. Este sector representa una importante fuente de empleos e ingresos para la economia del canton, por esta razon el presente trabajo de investigacion muestra la necesidad de evaluar las operaciones y competitividad, para disenar un sistema de administracion de operaciones eficiente que permita industrializar las materias primas y anada valor en cada proceso para aumentar la competitividad y las ventas. Los resultados de esta investigacion permitieron determinar el nivel de la gestion de la administracion de operaciones y la competitividad a traves de la aplicacion de un cuestionario, se evidencio la dependencia de estos dos factores mediante la utilizacion de un estadistico de prueba, que ayudo a determinar que se necesita mejorar los dos aspectos por cuanto los fruticultores encuestados obtuvieron bajos niveles de rendimiento. Se diseno un sistema de operaciones para el sector fruticola de manera que sea un instrumento guia para que los fruticultores puedan industrializar las materias primas, a traves del control de stock, proyeccion de demanda, planeacion de actividades y flujogramas, el resultado reflejara un producto de calidad atractivo para los consumidores o clientes finales.
BMP‐4 and Noggin signaling modulate dorsal fin and somite development in the axolotl trunk

BMP‐4, a member of the TGF‐beta superfamily of growth factors, is involved in various developmental processes. We investigated the effects of BMP‐4 and its antagonist Noggin on axolotl trunk development. Implantation of BMP‐4‐coated microbeads caused inhibition of muscle and dorsal fin formation in the vicinity of the microbeads. At some distance, myotomes developed with reduced height but increased width, which was accompanied by increased cell proliferation. These effects could be modulated by co‐implanting Noggin‐coated beads. Immunostaining of Pax7 further revealed that although the dermomyotome was absent in the vicinity of BMP‐4‐coated beads, at some distance from them, it was thicker than in controls, indicating that moderate amounts of BMP‐4 stimulate this layer of undifferentiated cells. In contrast, Noggin generally inhibited the dermomyotome, possibly indicating premature differentiation of dermomyotome cells. We conclude that BMP‐4 and Noggin are involved in the regulation of cell proliferation and differentiation during somite development. Developmental Dynamics 236:2464–2474, 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Crosstalk in Substrate Integrated Waveguides

Substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) represents an emerging technology for the implementation of waveguide components in planar form, in the frequency range of microwaves and mm-waves. While the SIW is similar to a classical metallic waveguide, the structure is not completely shielded and may be subject to a radiation leakage. This leakage could cause a crosstalk between adjacent SIW interconnects. While for other structures, e.g., microstrip lines, the determination of the crosstalk was widely investigated, no quantitative relationship was previously derived in the case of SIW structures. In order to fill this gap, this paper presents for the first time the derivation of a formula to calculate the crosstalk in SIW structures.
Transient hypothyroxinaemia in preterm infants

Caroline Delahunty; Judith Simpson Department of Child Health; Kerry Richard Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology; Michael Coughtrie Department of Molecular and Cellular Pathology; Fiona Williams Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, University of Dundee, Scotland; Nuala Murphy; Tom Matthews Department of Paediatrics, Rotunda Hospital, Dublin, Republic of Ireland; The0 Visser Department of Internal Medicine 111, Erasmus University Medical School, Rotterdam, The Netherlands; Robert Hume Departments of Child Health, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, and Molecular and Cellular Pathology, University of Dundee, Scotland.
The need for data standards in zoomorphology

eScience is a new approach to research that focuses on data mining and exploration rather than data generation or simulation. This new approach is arguably a driving force for scientific progress and requires data to be openly available, easily accessible via the Internet, and compatible with each other. eScience relies on modern standards for the reporting and documentation of data and metadata. Here, we suggest necessary components (i.e., content, concept, nomenclature, format) of such standards in the context of zoomorphology. We document the need for using data repositories to prevent data loss and how publication practice is currently changing, with the emergence of dynamic publications and the publication of digital datasets. Subsequently, we demonstrate that in zoomorphology the scientific record is still limited to published literature and that zoomorphological data are usually not accessible through data repositories. The underlying problem is that zoomorphology lacks the standards for data and metadata. As a consequence, zoomorphology cannot participate in eScience. We argue that the standardization of morphological data requires i) a standardized framework for terminologies for anatomy and ii) a formalized method of description that allows computer‐parsable morphological data to be communicable, compatible, and comparable. The role of controlled vocabularies (e.g., ontologies) for developing respective terminologies and methods of description is discussed, especially in the context of data annotation and semantic enhancement of publications. Finally, we introduce the International Consortium for Zoomorphology Standards, a working group that is open to everyone and whose aim is to stimulate and synthesize dialog about standards. It is the Consortium's ultimate goal to assist the zoomorphology community in developing modern data and metadata standards, including anatomy ontologies, thereby facilitating the participation of zoomorphology in eScience. J. Morphol. , 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.