Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Evidence for a Central Mechanism of Obesity in the Zucker Rat: Role of Neuropeptide Y and Leptin 1

Abstract Thirty-five years ago, Lois and Theodore Zucker reported the discovery of a genetic mutation in the rat that resulted in juvenile-onset obesity, increased food intake, decreased energy expenditure, and insulin resistance. The mutation was called fatty (fa). The fatty gene is passed on to successive generations by an autosomal recessive mode of inheritance. In the intervening years, much work has been done to characterize the many abnormalities of this animal model of obesity. Nearly 10 years ago, we reviewed the evidence for a central nervous system mechanism in the etiology of obesity in the fatty Zucker rat. Since that time, the discovery of novel peptides and genes has revolutionized the study of the etiology of genetically linked obesities. In this review, we update the evidence for a central nervous system mechanism of obesity in Zucker rats by focusing on the possible role of neuropeptide Y (NPY) and leptin in the etiology of obesity. We also discuss the role of glucocorticoids and insulin in the regulation of NPY.
FORCE-POSITION CONTROLLER DESIGN FOR 4 DOF'S REHABILITATION ROBOT ARM USING PSO ALGORITHM

Human limbs disability such as full or partial loss of function of the upper limb is a common impairment in the elderly and due to strokes, sports injuries, and occupational injuries. The conventional rehabilitation approach is to assist patient to perform Activities of Daily Living (ADL) through a set of preprogrammed trajectories. Therapist performs the rehabilitation program to the patient. This work focuses on designing, simulating and implementing a 4 DoF's (3 active joints), nonwearable rehabilitation robot for arm movements. The nonlinear mathematical model of the robot includes kinematic and dynamic models for the 4 DoF's (3 active joints), is developed and simulated using MATLAB. The friction term of robot actuators with the external disturbances of the patient limb on the robot links are considered. Intelligent Force-Position controllers incorporated PD-like Fuzzy Logic position control are designed to track the required medical trajectories for the simulated and implemented robot. Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm is used to tune the gains of the position part of the ForcePosition controller's to reach minimum position error, minimum oscillation and minimum overshoot in the position of each joint. These controllers are implemented using MATLAB Simulink. The controllers are controlling the implemented rehabilitation robot using two Data Acquisition Cards (Advantech PCI-1712), which generate and reads the required digital and analog signals for the robot.
Commentary - Discussion of "Alleviating the Constant Stochastic Variance Assumption in Decision Research: Theory, Measurement, and Experimental Test"

We discuss the Salisbury and Feinberg paper [Salisbury, L. C. , F. M. Feinberg. 2010. Alleviating the constant stochastic variance assumption in decision research: Theory, measurement, and experimental test. Marketing Sci.29(1) 1--17], setting their contribution in the historical context of the wider literature on the role of error variability in discrete choice models. We discuss the seminal nature of their contribution and suggest that the paper should be required reading for current and future Ph.D. students.
Implementation and validation of a fluence pencil kernels model for GaN-based dosimetry in photon beam radiotherapy

Gallium nitride (GaN), a direct-gap semiconductor that is radioluminescent, can be used as a transducer yielding a high signal from a small detecting volume and thus potentially suitable for use in small fields and for high dose gradients. A common drawback of semiconductor dosimeters with effective atomic numbers higher than soft tissues is that their responses depend on the presence of low energy photons for which the photoelectric cross section varies strongly with atomic number, which may affect the accuracy of dosimetric measurements. To tackle this ‘over-response’ issue, we propose a model for GaN-based dosimetry with readout correction. The local photon spectrum is calculated by convolving fluence pencil kernel spectra with the beam aperture fluence distribution. The response of a GaN detector is modelled by combining large cavity theory and small cavity theory for the low and high energy components of the local spectrum. Monte Carlo simulations are employed for determination of specific correction factors for different GaN transducer sizes and irradiation conditions. Some model parameters such as the cut-off energy and partitioning energy are discussed. The accuracy of the GaN dosimetric response model has been evaluated for tissue phantom ratio experiments along the central axis. These experiments have shown that calculated and measured GaN responses stay within ±3% at all depths beyond the build-up depth. The calculated GaN response factor is also in good agreement with measured data (±2.5%). The validated model with response compensation improves significantly the accuracy of dosimetric measurements: below 2.5% deviation as compared to 13% without compensation, for a 10 × 10 cm2 field, at depth from 1.5 to 22 cm.
Maternal characteristics and toddler temperament in infantile anorexia.

OBJECTIVE To explore the association between specific maternal characteristics, maternal perceptions of toddler temperament, and infantile anorexia. METHOD Three groups of toddlers (aged 12-37 months) participated in this study: toddlers with infantile anorexia (n = 34), picky eaters (n = 34), and healthy eaters (n = 34). Mothers completed questionnaires that assessed their own eating attitudes, marital satisfaction, and their toddlers' temperament, and an interview that explored their attachment representations. Mothers and toddlers were videotaped during a feeding session, and toddlers were weighed and measured. RESULTS Temperament ratings differentiated between infantile anorexics and healthy eaters (p < .0001), with infantile anorexics receiving higher difficulty, irregularity, negativity, dependence, and unstoppable ratings. Mothers of anorexics showed greater attachment insecurity than mothers of healthy eaters (p < .05), but they demonstrated neither overt eating pathology nor less marital satisfaction than the other groups. Thirty-nine percent of variance in feeding conflict was explained by toddlers' diagnoses, temperament ratings, and maternal characteristics. Twenty-one percent of variance in toddlers' weights was explained by temperament ratings and feeding conflict. CONCLUSION Maternal characteristics and perceptions of their toddlers' temperament characteristics should be addressed in treatment for infantile anorexia.
Action of RNase II and Polynucleotide Phosphorylase against RNAs Containing Stem-Loops of Defined Structure

ABSTRACT The 3′→5′ exoribonucleases, RNase II and polynucleotide phosphorylase (PNPase), play an essential role in degrading fragments of mRNA generated by prior cleavages by endonucleases. We have assessed the ability of small RNA substrates containing defined stem-loop structures and variable 3′ extensions to impede the exonucleolytic activity of these enzymes. We find that stem-loops containing five G-C base pairs do not block either enzyme; in contrast, more stable stem-loops of 7, 9, or 11 bp block the processive action of both enzymes. Under conditions where enzyme activity is limiting, both enzymes stall and dissociate from their substrates six to nine residues, on average, from the base of a stable stem-loop structure. Our data provide a clear mechanistic explanation for the previous observation that RNase II and PNPase behave as functionally redundant.
To Bribe or Not to Bribe: Incentives to Protect Tanzania’s Forests

Where participatory forest management has been introduced into Tanzania, “volunteer” patrollers take responsibility for enforcing access restrictions, often receiving a share of the fine revenue that they collect as an incentive. We explored how this shared revenue and alternative sources of forest products for villagers determine the effort patrollers put into enforcement and whether they choose to take a bribe from illegal harvesters rather than honestly reporting the illegal activity. Using an optimal enforcement model, we show that, without transparency or funds to pay and monitor the volunteers undertaking enforcement, policymakers face tradeoffs between efficiency, enforcement effectiveness, and revenue collection.
Executive computing in a developing country: a case study evaluation of turkish experience

Executives have long been regarded as the last group of people in an organization to use computers. There are several reasons for this: their work is highly unstructured and non-repetitive; they rely on verbal communication more than any other type of communication; they already have support staff for their information needs; and it is difficult for system analysts to "make them talk" about their information requirements. Moreover, they are busy people who might not have time to acquire the skills needed to use computers. However, a new type of information system, known as Executive Information System (EIS), emerged in the 1980s aimed at executive users and this has achieved some success. This research is an exploratory analysis of EIS implementations in the conditions of a Less Developed Country (LDC), namely Turkey. Although Turkish organizations are fairly computerized compared to many other LDCs, the concept of EIS is in its infancy in the country and there are very few EIS implementations. Four pioneering organizations were identified and extensive interviews were conducted with both the executive users and the support staff. The scarcity of EIS applications in the country required such a qualitative case study approach. By any measure EIS is a newly emerging type of IS (Information System) in the country, and only general observations rather than specific recommendations could be provided about its development, implementation,
factors to the imminent broad-based impact of nanotechnology on our everyday lives ( Maboudian

Friction and wear are part and parcel of all walks of life, and for interfaces that are in close or near contact, tribology and mechanics are supremely important. They can critically influence the efficient functioning of devices and components. Nanoscale friction force follows a complex nonlinear dependence on multiple, often interdependent, interfacial and material properties. Various studies indicate that nanoscale devices may behave in ways that cannot be predicted from their larger counterparts. Nanoscale friction and wear mapping can help identify some ‘sweet spots’ that would give ultralow friction and near-zero wear. Mapping nanoscale friction and wear as a function of operating conditions and interface properties is a valuable tool and has the potential to impact the very way in which we design and select materials for nanotechnology applications.
Approximate Entropy Analysis of Event-Related Potentials in Patients With Early Vascular Dementia

Summary: This study investigated differences in event-related potential (ERP) parameters among early vascular dementia (VD) patients, healthy elder controls (ECs), and young controls (YCs). A visual “oddball” color identification task was performed while individuals' electroencephalograms (EEGs) were recorded. Approximate entropy (ApEn), a nonlinear measure, along with P300 latencies and amplitudes were used to analyze ERP data and compare these three groups. The patients with VD showed more complex ERP waveforms and higher ApEn values than did ECs while performing the visual task. It was further found that patients with VD showed reduced P300 amplitudes and increased latencies. The results indicate that patients with VD have fewer attention resources to devote to processing stimuli, lower speed of stimulus classification, and lower synchrony in their cortical activity during the response period. We suggest that ApEn, as a measure of ERP complexity, is a promising marker for early diagnosis of VD.
Uncomfortably numb: new evidence for suppressed emotional reactivity in response to body-threats in those predisposed to sub-clinical dissociative experiences

ABSTRACT Introduction: Depersonalisation and derealisation disorders refer to feelings of detachment and dissociation from one’s “self” or surroundings. A reduced sense of self (or “presence”) and emotional “numbness” is thought to be mediated by aberrant emotional processing due to biases in self-referent multi-sensory integration. This emotional “numbing” is often accompanied by suppressed autonomic arousal to emotionally salient stimuli. Methods: 118 participants completed the Cambridge Depersonalisation scale [Sierra, & Berrios, 2000. The Cambridge Depersonalisation Scale: A new instrument for the measurement of depersonalisation. Psychiatry Research, 93, 153–164)] as an index of dissociative anomalous experience. Participants took part in a novel “Implied Body-Threat Illusion” task; a pantomimed injection procedure conducted directly onto their real body (hand). Objective psychophysiological data were recorded via standardised threat-related skin conductance responses and finger temperature measures. Results: Individuals predisposed to depersonalisation/derealisation revealed suppressed skin conductance responses towards the pantomimed body-threat. Although the task revealed a reliable reduction in finger temperature as a fear response, this reduction was not reliably associated with measures of dissociative experience. Conclusions: The present findings significantly extend previous research by revealing emotional suppression via a more direct body-threat task, even for sub-clinical groups. The findings are discussed within probabilistic and predictive coding frameworks of multi-sensory integration underlying a coherent sense of self.
Patient Activation and Disparate Health Care Outcomes in a Racially Diverse Sample of Chronically Ill Older Adults

The Patient Activation Measure (PAM) assesses people’s ability to self-manage their health. Variations in PAM score have been linked with health behaviors, outcomes, and potential disparities. This study assessed the relative impacts of activation, socio-demographic and clinical factors on health care outcomes in a racially diverse sample of chronically ill, elderly homecare patients. Using survey and administrative data from 249 predominantly non-White patients, logistic regression was conducted to examine the effects of activation level and patient characteristics on the likelihood of subsequent hospitalization and emergency department (ED) use. Activation was not a significant predictor of hospitalization or ED use in adjusted models. Non-Whites were more likely than Whites to have a hospitalization or ED visit. Obesity was a strong predictor of both outcomes. Further research should examine potential sources of disadvantage among chronically ill homecare patients to design effective interventions to reduce health disparities in this population.
Mixture of latent words language models for domain adaptation

This paper introduces a novel language model (LM) adaptation method based on mixture of latent word language models (LWLMs). LMs are often constructed as mixture of n-gram models, whose mixture weights are optimized using target domain data. However, n-gram mixture modeling is not ﬂexible enough for domain adaptation because model merger is conducted on the observed word space. Since the words in out-of domain LMs often differ from those in the target domain LM, it is hard for out-of domain LMs to offer adequate adaptation performance. Our solution is to carry out model merger in a latent variable space created from LWLMs. The latent variables in the LWLMs are represented as speciﬁc words selected from the observed word space, so LWLMs can share a common latent variable space and we can realize mixture modeling with consideration of the latent variable space. Following this change, this paper also describes a method to estimate mixture weights for LWLM mixture modeling. We use a sampling technique based on the Bayesian criterion in place of the conventional expectation maximization algorithm. Our experiments show that the LWLM mixture modeling is more effective than n-gram mixture modeling.
Why does quick‐release bromocriptine decrease cardiac events?

A placebo‐controlled prospective safety study of quick‐release bromocriptine in patients with type 2 diabetes has shown a 40% reduction in cardiovascular events. Possible explanations for this decrease are that through re‐establishing diurnal variation a decrease in insulin resistance and its associated risk factors occurs. In addition, a decrease in the activity of the sympathetic nervous and renin–angiotensin systems and re‐establishment of diurnal variations in the pituitary–adrenal axis may play a role. However, the most probable explanation is that because of the lowering of insulin resistance there are decreases in hepatic glucose production and an increased uptake of glucose leading to decreased levels of postprandial glucose, free fatty acids and triglycerides, which cause decreases in inflammation, oxidative stress and accumulation of atheroma.
Cardiovascular Pathology in Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria: Correlation With the Vascular Pathology of Aging

Objective—Children with Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome (HGPS) exhibit dramatically accelerated cardiovascular disease (CVD), causing death from myocardial infarction or stroke between the ages of 7 and 20 years. We undertook the first histological comparative evaluation between genetically confirmed HGPS and the CVD of aging. Methods and Results—We present structural and immunohistological analysis of cardiovascular tissues from 2 children with HGPS who died of myocardial infarction. Both had features classically associated with the atherosclerosis of aging, as well as arteriolosclerosis of small vessels. In addition, vessels exhibited prominent adventitial fibrosis, a previously undescribed feature of HGPS. Importantly, although progerin was detected at higher rates in the HGPS coronary arteries, it was also present in non-HGPS individuals. Between the ages of 1 month and 97 years, progerin staining increased an average of 3.34% per year (P<0.0001) in coronary arteries. Conclusion—We find concordance among many aspects of cardiovascular pathology in both HGPS and geriatric patients. HGPS generates a more prominent adventitial fibrosis than typical CVD. Vascular progerin generation in young non-HGPS individuals, which significantly increases throughout life, strongly suggests that progerin has a role in cardiovascular aging of the general population.
The Antibacterial Activity of Selected Labiatae (Lamiaceae) Essential Oils against Brucella melitensis

Background: Brucellosis, a zoonosis caused by four species of brucella, has a high morbidity. The major cause of brucellosis worldwide is brucella melitensis. Medicinal plants are considered as new antibacterial sources that could replace conventional antibiotics in the treatment of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of some native plants, alone and in combination with some antibiotics, in the treatment of brucellosis. Methods: The present experimental in vitro study was carried out to evaluate the anti-brucella activities of essential oils of Rosmarinus officinalis L. , Origanum syriacum, Thymus syriacus, Salvia palaestina Benth, Mentha piperia, and Lavandula stoechas L. , alone and in combination with some antibiotics. The activity against 16 tetracycline-resistant B. melitensis isolates was determined by disc diffusion method incorporating a concentration of 5%. Antibiotic discs were also used as a control. Microdilution brucella broth susceptibility assay was used in order to determine the MICs of essential oils and five antibiotics. Results: Among all the herbs evaluated, only the essential oils of O. syriacum and T. syriacus plants demonstrated most effective anti-brucella activity, and were then chosen for MIC study. The minimal inhibitory concentrations (MIC50) of essential oils of O. syriacum and T. syriacus against tetracycline-resistant B. melitensis were 3.125 µl/ml and 6.25 µl/ml, respectively. Conclusion: Among the essential oils studied, those of O. syriacum and T. syriacus were most effective. Since a combination of levofloxacin and Thymus syriacus essential oil increased the efficacy of this antibiotic, O. syriacum and T. syriacus are recommended to be used as bactericidal agents against B. melitensis.
Seat Occupancy Detection Based on Capacitive Sensing

This paper presents a simple yet efficient seat occupancy detection scheme based on a capacitive sensing principle. Parameters such as the presence, position, and type of the occupant of the seat are essential for successful air-bag control in vehicles. Without this information, during a collision, the air bag may be inflated to an empty seat (ES), wasting it and, hence, leading to allied repair and reinstallation. Also, if deployed, it can cause fatal injuries to infants in rear-facing infant seats. The proposed capacitive sensor system detects the presence of an occupant and provides information about the occupant's position. A prototype occupancy detection system has been developed, and the feasibility of the new method has been validated through practical tests. The developed system takes 200 mus to complete a measurement and, hence, promises real-time operation of the air-bag system. The presented method employs a carrier-frequency method and lock-in-amplifier technique to measure the capacitances. Thus, the influence of external electromagnetic fields on the final result is kept low.
Antibiotic-impregnated cement spacers for the treatment of infection associated with total hip or knee arthroplasty.

[Graphic][1] Infection at the site of a total joint arthroplasty can be classified into four basic categories: Type I (early postoperative), Type II (late chronic), Type III (acute hematogenous), and Type IV (positive intraoperative cultures with clinically unapparent infection). [Graphic][2] The current standard of care for late chronic infection is considered to be two-stage revision arthroplasty including removal of the prosthesis and cement, thorough debridement, placement of an antibiotic-impregnated cement spacer, a course of intravenous antibiotics, and a delayed second-stage revision arthroplasty. [Graphic][3] The choice of the spacer, either articulating or nonarticulating, is based on many factors, including the amount of bone loss, the condition of the soft tissues, the need for joint motion, the availability of prefabricated spacers or molding methods, and antibiotic selection. [Graphic][4] Current data have demonstrated that the use of antibiotic-impregnated cement spacers has improved the outcomes of the treatment of infection associated with total joint arthroplasty. Total joint replacement is one of the most frequent and successful types of operations in orthopaedics. Infection is a rare yet devastating complication of the procedure, with a reported prevalence of 0.5% to 3% and with a higher reported prevalence after total knee arthroplasty than after total hip arthroplasty1-4. There is also a higher rate of infection after revision hip and knee arthroplasties than after primary hip and knee arthroplasties1-8. Two-stage revision surgery was first described in 1983 by Insall et al., who demonstrated the necessity of removing the implants as well as the cement and of introducing antibiotic therapy for definitive treatment9. This procedure has emerged as the standard of care for a late chronic infection at the site of a total joint replacement4,5,10-17. Garvin and Hanssen reviewed twenty-nine studies and found that two-stage … [1]: /embed/inline-graphic-1.gif [2]: /embed/inline-graphic-2.gif [3]: /embed/inline-graphic-3.gif [4]: /embed/inline-graphic-4.gif