Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The calcium and vitamin D controversy

Areas of the world where vitamin D levels are low for months of the year and intakes of calcium are high have a high prevalence of osteoporosis and cardiovascular disease. This suggests a public health message of avoiding calcium supplements and increasing vitamin D intake. No message could be more welcome as vitamin D can be given as a bolus while calcium must be taken daily and may be poorly tolerated. This approach is based on no evidence from intervention studies. Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) suggest that vitamin D given with calcium elicits a small reduction in fracture risk and deaths. This has not been demonstrated for D given alone. The cardiovascular safety of calcium and vitamin D (CaD) supplements is difficult to ascertain due to weaknesses in RCT designs and adjudication that cannot be remedied by subanalysis. Moreover, no major new RCTs are in process to provide better evidence. It remains unclear that calcium from dietary sources has health advantages over supplements. Benefits may be confined to patients with poor nutritional intake and the small effects at societal levels may be derived from large effects in a small number of patients. This has been impossible to confirm given the limited information about baseline vitamin D and calcium status at entry into trials. Future intervention studies should carefully capture baseline characteristics as these may determine the strength of the response, and make more efficient use of randomization strategies allowing subsequent disassembly or subanalyses while maintaining balancing. Though large clinical RCTs currently evaluate the effects of higher vitamin D doses (equivalent to 50–83 µg/d) there is no current research effort regarding the calcium controversy. In the absence of such studies it is not possible to provide clinicians with evidence-based recommendations regarding the best use of CaD supplementation.
Combining Local Features for Offline Writer Identification

Several powerful approaches have recently been proposed for writer identification, which rely on local descriptors that capture the texture, shape and curvature properties of the handwriting. In this paper we use combinations of three of these features (K-Adjacent Segments, SURF, and Contour Gradient Descriptors), to address the writer identification problem. Experiments demonstrate that feature combinations outperform individual features, resulting in state-of-the-art performance on three datasets.
Molecular Mechanism of the Airborne Transmissibility of H9N2 Avian Influenza A Viruses in Chickens

ABSTRACT H9N2 avian influenza virus has been prevalent in poultry in many parts of the world since the 1990s and occasionally crosses the host barrier, transmitting to mammals, including humans. In recent years, these viruses have contributed genes to H5N1 and H7N9 influenza viruses, threatening public health. To explore the molecular mechanism for the airborne transmission of H9N2 virus, we compared two genetically close strains isolated from chickens in 2001, A/chicken/Shanghai/7/2001(SH7) and A/chicken/Shanghai/14/2001 (SH14). SH7 is airborne transmissible between chickens, whereas SH14 is not. We used reverse genetics and gene swapping to derive recombinant SH7 (rSH7), rSH14, and a panel of reassortant viruses. Among the reassortant viruses, we identified segments HA and PA as governing the airborne transmission among chickens. In addition, the NP and NS genes also contributed to a lesser extent. Furthermore, the mutational analyses showed the transmissibility phenotype predominantly mapped to the HA and PA genes, with HA-K363 and PA-L672 being important for airborne transmissibility among chickens. In addition, the viral infectivity and acid stability are related to the airborne transmissibility. Importantly, airborne transmission studies of 18 arbitrarily chosen H9N2 viruses from our collections confirmed the importance of both 363K in HA and 672L in PA in determining their levels of transmissibility. Our finding elucidates the genetic contributions to H9N2 transmissibility in chickens and highlights the importance of their prevalence in poultry. IMPORTANCE Our study investigates the airborne transmissibility of H9N2 viruses in chickens and the subsequent epidemic. H9N2 virus is the donor for several prevalent reassortant influenza viruses, such as H7N9/2013 and the H5N1 viruses. Poultry as the reservoir hosts of influenza virus is closely associated with human society. Airborne transmission is an efficient pathway for influenza virus transmission among flocks and individuals. Exploring the mechanism of the airborne transmission of the H9N2 virus in chickens could provide essential data regarding prevention and control of influenza endemics and pandemics.
Essentials Of Ultrasound Physics

This is a concise, practical reference that can be a companion to "Hagen-Ansert Textbook of Diagnostic Ultrasonography 4/e", or used as a stand-alone resource for anyone interested in ultrasound physics. This easy-to-follow text works well as a primer for the Registry exam. Topics covered include broadband transducers, modern beam formers, dynamic frequency filtering, intraluminal transducers, colour flow imaging methodology, bioeffects and acoustic output labelling standards. Plus, chapter outlines, review questions and answers, and a practice Registry exam help to reinforce the learning process.
Multiple Perspectives on the Impact of Electronic Ordering on Hospital Organisational and Communication Processes

Electronic ordering systems provide many potential benefits for improving the efficiency and effectiveness of healthcare delivery. They also have major implications for organisational and communication processes within hospitals. We undertook a qualitative study using focus groups and interviews with doctors, nurses, IT managers, and pathology laboratory managers to investigate the impact of the system on their work processes and relations within a major teaching hospital. This study revealed that the new electronic ordering system involved major alterations to the information management processes within the hospital, which in turn affected communication processes and work relations.
Sorafenib Impedes Rift Valley Fever Virus Egress by Inhibiting Valosin-Containing Protein Function in the Cellular Secretory Pathway

ABSTRACT There is an urgent need for therapeutic development to combat infections caused by Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV), which causes devastating disease in both humans and animals. In an effort to repurpose drugs for RVFV treatment, our previous studies screened a library of FDA-approved drugs. The most promising candidate identified was the hepatocellular and renal cell carcinoma drug sorafenib. Mechanism-of-action studies indicated that sorafenib targeted a late stage in virus infection and caused a buildup of virions within cells. In addition, small interfering RNA (siRNA) knockdown studies suggested that nonclassical targets of sorafenib are important for the propagation of RVFV. Here we extend our previous findings to identify the mechanism by which sorafenib inhibits the release of RVFV virions from the cell. Confocal microscopy imaging revealed that glycoprotein Gn colocalizes and accumulates within the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and the transport of Gn from the Golgi complex to the host cell membrane is reduced. Transmission electron microscopy demonstrated that sorafenib caused virions to be present inside large vacuoles inside the cells. p97/valosin-containing protein (VCP), which is involved in membrane remodeling in the secretory pathway and a known target of sorafenib, was found to be important for RVFV egress. Knockdown of VCP resulted in decreased RVFV replication, reduced Gn Golgi complex localization, and increased Gn ER accumulation. The intracellular accumulation of RVFV virions was also observed in cells transfected with siRNA targeting VCP. Collectively, these data indicate that sorafenib causes a disruption in viral egress by targeting VCP and the secretory pathway, resulting in a buildup of virions within dilated ER vesicles. IMPORTANCE In humans, symptoms of RVFV infection mainly include a self-limiting febrile illness. However, in some cases, infected individuals can also experience hemorrhagic fever, neurological disorders, liver failure, and blindness, which could collectively be lethal. The ability of RVFV to expand geographically outside sub-Saharan Africa is of concern, particularly to the Americas, where native mosquito species are capable of virus transmission. Currently, there are no FDA-approved therapeutics to treat RVFV infection, and thus, there is an urgent need to understand the mechanisms by which the virus hijacks the host cell machinery to replicate. The significance of our research is in identifying the cellular target of sorafenib that inhibits RVFV propagation, so that this information can be used as a tool for the further development of therapeutics used to treat RVFV infection.
Antagonistic Relationship between Human Cytomegalovirus pUL27 and pUL97 Activities during Infection

ABSTRACT Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a member of the betaherpesvirus family. During infection, an array of viral proteins manipulates the host cell cycle. We have previously shown that expression of HCMV pUL27 results in increased levels of the cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) inhibitor p21Cip1. In addition, pUL27 is necessary for the full antiviral activity of the pUL97 kinase inhibitor maribavir (MBV). The purpose of this study was to define the relationship between pUL27 and pUL97 and its role in MBV antiviral activity. We observed that expression of wild-type but not kinase-inactive pUL97 disrupted pUL27-dependent induction of p21Cip1. Furthermore, pUL97 associated with and promoted the phosphorylation of pUL27. During infection, inhibition of the kinase resulted in elevated levels of p21Cip1 in wild-type virus but not a pUL27-deficient virus. We manipulated the p21Cip1 levels to evaluate the functional consequence to MBV. Overexpression of p21Cip1 restored MBV activity against a pUL27-deficient virus, while disruption reduced activity against wild-type virus. We provide evidence that the functional target of p21Cip1 in the context of MBV activity is CDK1. One CDK-like activity of pUL97 is to phosphorylate nuclear lamin A/C, resulting in altered nuclear morphology and increased viral egress. In the presence of MBV, we observed that infection using a pUL27-deficient virus still altered the nuclear morphology. This was prevented by the addition of a CDK inhibitor. Overall, our results demonstrate an antagonistic relationship between pUL27 and pUL97 activities centering on p21Cip1 and support the idea that CDKs can complement some activities of pUL97. IMPORTANCE HCMV infection results in severe disease upon immunosuppression and is a leading cause of congenital birth defects. Effective antiviral compounds exist, yet they exhibit high levels of toxicity, are not approved for use during pregnancy, and can result in antiviral resistance. Our studies have uncovered new information regarding the antiviral efficacy of the HCMV pUL97 kinase inhibitor MBV as it relates to the complex interplay between pUL97 and a second HCMV protein, pUL27. We demonstrate that pUL97 functions antagonistically against pUL27 by phosphorylation-dependent inactivation of pUL27-mediated induction of p21Cip1. In contrast, we provide evidence that p21Cip1 functions to antagonize overlapping activities between pUL97 and cellular CDKs. In addition, these studies further support the notion that CDK inhibitors or p21Cip1 activators might be useful in combination with MBV to effectively inhibit HCMV infections.
A neural network fingerprint segmentation method

In this work a computational segmentation method, applied to the detection of the region of interest on fingerprint images, is proposed. The approach is based on the hypothesis that a small fingerprint fragment resembles a two-dimension sinusoid function. Therefore, its Fourier spectrum must present a well-defined pattern. Since neural networks are very suitable for solving pattern recognition problems, an MLP network is used to discriminate the regions containing fingerprint fragments from the rest of the image. The proposed model is tested over fingerprint images obtained from the NIST special database 27, and the obtained results demonstrate that the approach works reasonably well for images with different noise and contrast levels.
The Impact of Continuous Glucose Monitoring on Low Interstitial Glucose Values and Low Blood Glucose Values Assessed by Point-of-care Blood Glucose Meters

Objective: In a randomized crossover trial the impact of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) was tested on the occurrence of low blood glucose values measured by point of care (POC) measurement and on low glucose values measured by CGM in the interstitial fluid. Methods: A total of 41 type 1 diabetic patients (age 42.0 ± 11.4 years, diabetes duration 15.3 ± 10.1 years, A1c 8.2 ± 1.4%) used a CGM system (Dexcom SEVEN PLUS system) twice. In first study phase (CGM blind), patients were blind regarding the CGM current glucose levels and were not alerted when critical glucose values were reached. In the second phase (CGM real time), patients had access to current glucose levels and were alerted if critical glucose values were reached. Results: During CGM real time the proportion of hypoglycemic POC blood glucose values were significantly reduced (7.5 ± 5.6% vs 10.1 ± 7.5%; P = .04), whereas the proportion of euglycemic blood glucose values were significantly enhanced (73.7 ± 18.3% vs 68.3 ± 12.1%; P = .01). The duration of low glucose periods in the interstitial fluid was significantly lower in the CGM real time phase (125 ± 89 vs 181 ± 125 minutes per day; P = .005). The time until a low blood glucose was detected by POC measurement was shortened by 33.2 ± 76.1 minutes (P = .03). Conclusion: The study demonstrated that CGM is able to not only reduce duration of hypoglycemia measured by CGM in interstitial fluid, but also reduce the proportion of low POC blood glucose measurements. In addition, hypoglycemia can be detected earlier.
A Robot That Can Engage in Both Task-Oriented and Non-Task-Oriented Dialogues

This paper presents a new type of conversational humanoid robot, which can engage in both task-oriented dialogues and non-task-oriented dialogues. Most previously built conversational robots can engage in either task-oriented dialogues for accurately understanding human requests or non-task-oriented dialogues to allow humans to enjoy conversations. Since both are beneficial functionalities for a humanoid robot as a human partner, it is desirable for one humanoid robot to be able to engage in both types of dialogues. Our model is based on a multi-expert model, which features control modules called experts each of which is specialized to perform certain kinds of tasks through performing physical actions and engaging in dialogues. One of the experts takes charge in understanding human utterances and deciding robot utterances or actions. Non-task-oriented dialogue functionality is incorporated into this model by building an expert called the chat expert which is dedicated to non-task-oriented dialogues. The chat expert utilizes the outputs of a large-vocabulary speech recognizer, while other task-oriented experts utilize the outputs of a small-vocabulary speech recognizer. By selecting an appropriate expert according to the speech recognition result and dialogue context, we can alleviate degradation in speech recognition accuracy in spite of incorporating a large-vocabulary speech recognizer. The chat expert is dealt with as the default expert that has the responsibility to reply to human utterances. If a human utterance is considered to be a request for a task with a high plausibility, the expert for understanding the request is selected. The implemented system, which has been combined with Honda ASIMO, demonstrates that it can dynamically change dialogue strategy based on speech recognition results
Epidemiologia delle batteriemie nosocomiali in Lombardia nel triennio 1999-2001

We analyzed bloodstream infection(BI) performed in eight hospitals in Region Lombardia in the period 19992001 following criteria and methods as in the study performed in the year 1997.Data were evaluated from 434.000 hospital patients (one third of hospital patients annualy recovered in Lombardia Region each year). Of these 56.3 positive blood coltures /1000 patients were observed. Data were similar as 1997. In total 3063 episodes of bacteriemia were observed (6.98 BI / 1000 hospital patients). 53% of cases correlated to hospital infection. Organism identification of causative organisms resulted 22.5% for E.coli and 10.6% for KES; 17.7% S.aureus,4.5% Yeast . Anaerobic bacteria resulted involved in 3.4%. Among the frequency of isolates difference was noted in different wards In intensive care unit E.coli was pathogenic in 5.9% of patients, but KES in 25.5% of cases. Differences were noted if nosocomial or comunity infections were involved. It was concluded that epidemiological data of BI from all the hospital of Region Lombardia could support the knowledge of bacteriemic episodes in different wards as useful method of surveillance particularly in order to control economic aspects and efficacy of prevention.
Online gait planning with Dynamical 3D-Symmetrization method

This paper proposes a fast online gait planning method with vertical oscillation of body. It uses an analytic solution of equation of motion. In previous works, the analytic solution is calculated under the condition of constant height of COG(center of gravity). However these works cannot treat various motions involving vertical oscillation. Our method can treat COG vertical oscillation by dynamical 3D-Symmetrization. This method symmetrizes dynamic characteristics of vertical motion and horizontal motion by constraining the vertical COG motion with a differential equation. Using this method we can solve for the equations of motion which involve COG vertical oscillation. This can allow the generation of various gaits such as running and dancing. The validity of proposed method is demonstrated on a simulated robot.
Realization of stretch-legged walking of the humanoid robot

This paper presents a new forward walking pattern known as stretch-legged walking and posture control algorithm in single support phase. Additionally, what has been termed the walking guide platform (WGP) was developed to verify the developed walking pattern. Walking pattern is generated by simple function such as sine function and 3rd polynomial. Especially pelvis center is generated by 3rd polynomial that is tuned by hip shape factor. The value is selected by experiment. Posture control that is composed of body balancing controller and vibration-reduction controller maintains posture of robot in single support phase. It prevent robot falling in walking. Based on proposed walking pattern, posture control makes realization of stretch-legged walking in humanoid robot.
A fast convolution-based methodology to simulate 2-Dd/3-D cardiac ultrasound images

This paper describes a fast convolution-based methodology for simulating ultrasound images in a 2-D/3-D sector format as typically used in cardiac ultrasound. The conventional convolution model is based on the assumption of a space-invariant point spread function (PSF) and typically results in linear images. These characteristics are not representative for cardiac data sets. The spatial impulse response method (IRM) has excellent accuracy in the linear domain; however, calculation time can become an issue when scatterer numbers become significant and when 3-D volumetric data sets need to be computed. As a solution to these problems, the current manuscript proposes a new convolution-based methodology in which the data sets are produced by reducing the conventional 2-D/3-D convolution model to multiple 1-D convolutions (one for each image line). As an example, simulated 2-D/3-D phantom images are presented along with their gray scale histogram statistics. In addition, the computation time is recorded and contrasted to a commonly used implementation of IRM (Field II). It is shown that COLE can produce anatomically plausible images with local Rayleigh statistics but at improved calculation time (1200 times faster than the reference method).
Role of Herpes Simplex Virus 1 Immediate Early Protein ICP22 in Viral Nuclear Egress

ABSTRACT In order to investigate the novel function(s) of the herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) immediate early protein ICP22, we screened for ICP22-binding proteins in HSV-1-infected cells. Our results were as follows. (i) Tandem affinity purification of ICP22 from infected cells, coupled with mass spectrometry-based proteomics and subsequent analyses, demonstrates that ICP22 forms a complex(es) with the HSV-1 proteins UL31, UL34, UL47 (or VP13/14), and/or Us3. All these proteins were previously reported to be important for viral egress through the nuclear membrane. (ii) ICP22 colocalizes with UL31 and UL34 at the nuclear membrane in wild-type HSV-1-infected cells. (iii) The UL31-null mutation prevents the targeting of ICP22 to the nuclear membrane. (iv) The ICP22-null mutation resulted in UL31 and UL34 being mislocalized in the endoplasmic reticulum (in addition to the nuclear membrane) and significantly reduced numbers of primary enveloped virions in the perinuclear space, although capsids accumulated in the nuclei. Collectively, these results suggest that (i) ICP22 interacts with HSV-1 regulators of nuclear egress, including UL31, UL34, UL47, and Us3 in HSV-1-infected cells; (ii) UL31 mediates the recruitment and anchorage of ICP22 at the nuclear membrane; and (iii) ICP22 plays a regulatory role in HSV-1 primary envelopment, probably by interacting with and regulating UL31 and UL34. Here we report a previously unknown function for ICP22 in the regulation of HSV-1 nuclear egress. IMPORTANCE The herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) immediate early protein ICP22 is recognized primarily as a regulator of viral gene expression. In this study, we show that ICP22 interacts with the HSV-1 proteins UL31 and UL34, which play crucial roles at the nuclear membrane in HSV-1 primary envelopment during viral nuclear egress. We also demonstrate that UL31 is required for the targeting of ICP22 to the nuclear membrane and that ICP22 is required for the correct localization of UL31 and/or UL34. Furthermore, we confirm that ICP22 is required for efficient HSV-1 primary envelopment during viral nuclear egress. Thus, we report, for the first time, that ICP22 plays a regulatory role in HSV-1 nuclear egress.