Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Focus on Variation in Morphology of Soft Palate Using Cone-Beam Computed Tomography with Assessment of Need's Ratio in Central Madhya Pradesh Population.

INTRODUCTION Soft palate is an anatomical structure that helps in modifying the quality of voice and to breathe while swallowing. Through the variants and shapes of the soft palate, we can assess the age and gender of an individual. AIM The aim of the present study was to investigate the variation in morphology of soft palate and to find its association with the Need's ratio, Velar Length (VL), Velar Width (VW) and Pharyngeal Depth (PD), in age groups and gender using CBCT in Central Madhya Pradesh population. MATERIALS AND METHODS The study sample consisted of 121 CBCT scans of individuals aged between 15 to 45 years. These scans were retrieved from the Department of Oral Radiology. The velar morphology on CBCT was examined and grouped into six types. The results obtained were subjected to a statistical analysis to find the association between variants of the soft palate with gender and different age groups. ANOVA and Z-test were used for statistical analysis. The p≤0.05 was considered as significant while p≤0.001 was considered as highly significant. RESULTS The most frequent type of soft palate was rat tail shaped. The mean VL and VW values were significantly higher in males while PD and Need's ratio were higher among females, insignificantly associated with the types of soft palate. A significant association was observed between the mean VL and VW with various age groups, showing an increase in values with an increase in age. CONCLUSION A variation in morphology of soft palate plays an important role in the assessment of velopharyngeal closure and in diagnosing obstructive sleep apnoea individuals.
Using linguistic incomplete preference relations to cold start recommendations

Purpose – Analyzing current recommender systems, it is observed that the cold start problem is still too far away to be satisfactorily solved. This paper aims to present a hybrid recommender system which uses a knowledge‐based recommendation model to provide good cold start recommendations.Design/methodology/approach – Hybridizing a collaborative system and a knowledge‐based system, which uses incomplete preference relations means that the cold start problem is solved. The management of customers' preferences, necessities and perceptions implies uncertainty. To manage such an uncertainty, this information has been modeled by means of the fuzzy linguistic approach.Findings – The use of linguistic information provides flexibility, usability and facilitates the management of uncertainty in the computation of recommendations, and the use of incomplete preference relations in knowledge‐based recommender systems improves the performance in those situations when collaborative models do not work properly.Research.
Hormones and Their Interaction with the Pain Experience

• Sex differences in the prevalence of painful conditions appear after puberty • Variation in symptom severity across the menstrual cycle occurs in a number of clinical pain conditions • Sex steroid hormones act at a number of sites in both the peripheral and central nervous systems and in both reproductive and non-reproductive tissues • Sex steroid hormones have traditionally been thought to alter transcription; however, there is evidence that there are also non-genomic effects • Sex steroid hormones can have organisational effects from as early as in utero • The relationship between sex hormones and pain is complex
Localized MR 1H spectroscopy reveals alterations of susceptibility in bone marrow with hemosiderosis

A noninvasive investigation of the structure of hemopoietic bone marrow is based on the determination of the magnetic field distribution within small volume elements in vertebral bodies by localized 1H MR spectroscopy. In patients with he‐matological diseases the status of the bone marrow was found to considerably influence the homogeneity of the magnetic field in trabecular bone in vivo. The line widths of the 1H signals were evaluated in follow‐up studies during initial chemotherapy of eight patients with leukemia. lntraindividual comparison revealed significant broadening of the field distribution after a few weeks of cytotoxic treatment in five of the patients. Additionally, 19 patients after bone marrow transplantation showed significantly broader field distributions in the lipid signals than 13 matched healthy volunteers. These alterations of the microscopic field homogeneity were not caused by trabecular density effects. Iliac crest biopsies revealed high amounts of hemosiderin in the cases with broadened line widths. Ten of the 19 patients after bone marrow transplantation showed high amounts of hemosiderin and broad lines in the spectra. The content of hemosiderin of the other patients was not significantly increased.
Proteolytic Cleavage of the Fusion Protein but Not Membrane Fusion Is Required for Measles Virus-Induced Immunosuppression In Vitro

ABSTRACT Immunosuppression induced by measles virus (MV) is associated with unresponsiveness of peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) to mitogenic stimulation ex vivo and in vitro. In mixed lymphocyte cultures and in an experimental animal model, the expression of the MV glycoproteins on the surface of UV-inactivated MV particles, MV-infected cells, or cells transfected to coexpress the MV fusion (F) and the hemagglutinin (H) proteins was found to be necessary and sufficient for this phenomenon. We now show that MV fusion-inhibitory peptides do not interfere with the induction of immunosuppression in vitro, indicating that MV F-H-mediated fusion is essentially not involved in this process. Proteolytic cleavage of MV F0 protein by cellular proteases, such as furin, into the F1-F2subunits is, however, an absolute requirement, since (i) the inhibitory activity of MV-infected BJAB cells was significantly impaired in the presence of a furin-inhibitory peptide and (ii) cells expressing or viruses containing uncleaved F0 proteins revealed a strongly reduced inhibitory activity which was improved following trypsin treatment. The low inhibitory activity of effector structures containing mainly F0 proteins was not due to an impaired F0-H interaction, since both surface expression and cocapping efficiencies were similar to those found with the authentic MV F and H proteins. These results indicate that the fusogenic activity of the MV F-H complexes can be uncoupled from their immunosuppressive activity and that the immunosuppressive domains of these proteins are exposed only after proteolytic activation of the MV F0protein.
Muralytic activity and modular structure of the endolysins of Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteriophages φKZ and EL

Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteriophage endolysins KZ144 (phage φKZ) and EL188 (phage EL) are highly lytic peptidoglycan hydrolases (210 000 and 390 000 units mg−1), active on a broad range of outer membrane‐permeabilized Gram‐negative species. Site‐directed mutagenesis indicates E115 (KZ144) and E155 (EL188) as their respective essential catalytic residues. Remarkably, both endolysins have a modular structure consisting of an N‐terminal substrate‐binding domain and a predicted C‐terminal catalytic module, a property previously only demonstrated in endolysins originating from phages infecting Gram‐positives and only in an inverse arrangement. Both binding domains contain conserved repeat sequences, consistent with those of some peptidoglycan hydrolases of Gram‐positive bacteria. Fusions of these domains with green fluorescent protein immediately label all outer membrane‐permeabilized Gram‐negative bacteria tested, isolated P. aeruginosa peptidoglycan and N‐acetylated Bacillus subtilis peptidoglycan, demonstrating the broad range of peptidoglycan‐binding capacity by these domains. Specifically, A1 chemotype peptidoglycan and fully N‐acetylated glucosamine units are essential for binding. Both KZ144 and EL188 appear to be a natural chimeric enzyme, originating from a recombination of a cell wall‐binding domain encoded by a Bacillus or Clostridium species and a catalytic domain of an unknown ancestor.
FLUID RESUSCITATION: PAST, PRESENT, AND THE FUTURE

Hemorrhage remains a major cause of preventable death following both civilian and military trauma. The goals of resuscitation in the face of hemorrhagic shock are restoring end-organ perfusion and maintaining tissue oxygenation while attempting definitive control of bleeding. However, if not performed properly, resuscitation can actually exacerbate cellular injury caused by hemorrhagic shock, and the type of fluid used for resuscitation plays an important role in this injury pattern. This article reviews the historical development and scientific underpinnings of modern resuscitation techniques. We summarized data from a number of studies to illustrate the differential effects of commonly used resuscitation fluids, including isotonic crystalloids, natural and artificial colloids, hypertonic and hyperoncotic solutions, and artificial oxygen carriers, on cellular injury and how these relate to clinical practice. The data reveal that a uniformly safe, effective, and practical resuscitation fluid when blood products are unavailable and direct hemorrhage control is delayed has been elusive. Yet, it is logical to prevent this cellular injury through wiser resuscitation strategies than attempting immunomodulation after the damage has already occurred. Thus, we describe how some novel resuscitation strategies aimed at preventing or ameliorating cellular injury may become clinically available in the future.
Molecular Phylogenetic Analysis of Archaeal Intron-Containing Genes Coding for rRNA Obtained from a Deep-Subsurface Geothermal Water Pool

ABSTRACT Molecular phylogenetic analysis of a naturally occurring microbial community in a deep-subsurface geothermal environment indicated that the phylogenetic diversity of the microbial population in the environment was extremely limited and that only hyperthermophilic archaeal members closely related to Pyrobaculum were present. All archaeal ribosomal DNA sequences contained intron-like sequences, some of which had open reading frames with repeated homing-endonuclease motifs. The sequence similarity analysis and the phylogenetic analysis of these homing endonucleases suggested the possible phylogenetic relationship among archaeal rRNA-encoded homing endonucleases.
Control strategy selection for autonomous vehicles in a dynamic environment

Autonomous mobile vehicles rely on sensors as a primary perception mechanism. Multiple sensors are used to tolerate certain types of errors and inaccuracy due to system faults and uncertain environment. An autonomous vehicle should be able to detect the dependability of various sensor data and choose the best control strategy based on its internal state and the external environment. This paper proposes a fuzzy rule based control strategy selection approach for mobile navigation in a dynamic real world environment. Fuzzy reasoning Petri nets are used for system modeling and parallel reasoning. The control strategy combining the most dependable sensor data can be chosen quickly based on the proposed approach. Case studies are provided to illustrate and verify the approach.
[Endoscopic third ventriculostomy for chronic communicating hydrocephalus in adults].

BACKGROUND Shunt devices to treat hydrocephalus are associated with a malfunction of 81 % at 12 years and 10 % of infection. The objective was to assess safeness and efficacy of endoscopic third ventriculostomy (ETV) for the treatment of chronic communicating hydrocephalus. METHODS Eight patients with chronic communicating hydrocephalus were included in a period between September, 2012 and April, 2013. X ray computed tomography scans were performed when patients were admitted, after the surgery, and at 30, 180 and 365 days. The follow-up was of 251 days (the biggest was of 459 days). The variables included were: age, sex, etiology, time of evolution, and the total number of shunt malfunctions. Conventional technique with a 30° rigid endoscope was performed, malfunctional shunt was removed, and a tied shunt device was placed. RESULTS Four males and four females, with a mean age of 42 years (27-63 years); neurocysticercosis was identified in five patients (62.5 %); the evolution rate was of 18 years (15-30 years); the hospital stay rate was of 6.5 days (3-22 days); the mean of previous shunt malfunctions was 4 (1-6). COMPLICATIONS neuroinfection in one patient, malfunction in three patients. None of them died. CONCLUSIONS ETV is a safety procedure for treating chronic communicating hydrocephalus; it has a success rate higher than 60 %. Neurocysticercosis showed better results when previous shunt malfunctions were lower than three.
Structural basis of specific interactions of Lp-PLA2 with HDL revealed by hydrogen deuterium exchange mass spectrometry[S]

Lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A2 (Lp-PLA2), specifically Group VIIA PLA2, is a member of the phospholipase A2 superfamily and is found mainly associated with LDL and HDL in human plasma. Lp-PLA2 is considered as a risk factor, a potential biomarker, a target for therapy in the treatment of cardiovascular disease, and evidence suggests that the level of Lp-PLA2 in plasma is associated with the risk of future cardiovascular and stroke events. The differential location of the enzyme in LDL/HDL lipoproteins has been suggested to affect Lp-PLA2 function and/or its physiological role and an abnormal distribution of the enzyme may correlate with diseases. Although a mutagenesis study suggested that a surface helix (residues 362–369) mediates the association between Lp-PLA2 and HDL, the molecular details and mechanism of association has remained unknown. We have now employed hydrogen deuterium exchange mass spectrometry to characterize the interaction between recombinant human Lp-PLA2 and human HDL. We have found that specific residues 113–120, 192–204, and 360–368 likely mediate HDL binding. In a previous study, we showed that residues 113–120 are important for Lp-PLA2-liposome interactions. We now find that residues 192–204 show a decreased deuteration level when Lp-PLA2 is exposed to apoA-I, but not apoA-II, the most abundant apoproteins in HDL, and additionally, residues 360–368 are only affected by HDL.The results suggest that apoA-I and phospholipid membranes play crucial roles in Lp-PLA2 localization to HDL.
Does a water-training macrocycle really create imbalances in swimmers' shoulder rotator muscles?

Abstract The continuous execution of swimming techniques may cause muscle imbalances in shoulder rotators leading to injury. However, there is a lack of published research studies on this topic. The aim of this study was to analyze the influence of a competitive swim period on the shoulder rotator–cuff balance in young swimmers. A randomized controlled pretest–posttest design was used, with two measurements performed during the first macrocycle of the swimming season (baseline and 16 weeks). Twenty-seven young male swimmers (experimental group) and 22 male students who were not involved in swim training (control group) with the same characteristics were evaluated. Peak torque of shoulder internal and external rotators was assessed. Concentric action at 1.04 rad s−1 (3 repetitions) and 3.14 rad s−1 (20 repetitions) was measured using an isokinetic dynamometer (Biodex System 3). External/internal rotators strength ratios were also obtained. For both protocols, there were significant training effects on internal rotator strength and external/internal rotator ratios (p ≤ .05). This trend was the same for both shoulders. Within-group analysis showed significant changes from baseline to 16 weeks for internal rotators strength and unilateral ratios of the experimental group. Swimmers' internal rotator strength levels increased significantly. In contrast, a significant decrease of the unilateral ratios was observed. Findings suggest that a competitive swim macrocycle leads to an increase in muscular imbalances in the shoulder rotators of young competitive swimmers. Swimming coaches should consider implementing a compensatory strength-training program.
Taming wickedness: industrial megaprojects and local governance strategies

Theoretical literature suggests that the complex problems many local governments are facing are drivers towards innovation and new types of collaborative governance arrangements. We add nuance to this presumption by exploring how two Norwegian municipalities act when faced with problems related to mineral extraction and tax revenue. The article shows that similar types of problems give rise to significantly different strategies, ranging from collaborative arrangements to authoritative and competitive strategies. In conclusion, the article argues that local governments need to develop a higher innovative preparedness, and that scholars should also be attentive to governance strategies that are not collaborative.
Heart rate variability and performance at two different altitudes in well-trained swimmers.

UNLABELLED The aim of this study was to compare the effects of training at two different altitudes on heart rate variability (HRV) and performance in well-trained swimmers. Eight national-level male swimmers (age = 17.0 +/- 1.8 yrs, weight = 67.0 +/- 6.6 kg, height = 180.4 +/- 7.2 cm, V(O2max) = 60.4 +/- 4.0 ml.min(-1). kg(-1)) trained 17 days at 1200 m altitude (T1200), then, after 6 weeks of moderate training at sea level, reproduced the same training plan at 1850 m (T1850). The training was mainly aerobic with 86 % and 84 % < or = anaerobic threshold for T 1200 and T1850, respectively. Four HRV analysis tests were performed during T1200 and T1850, respectively (pre-test = day 0, test 2 = day 5, test 3 = day 11, post-test = day 17), in supine and standing position. Performance was measured over a 2000-m freestyle test at the altitude of 1200 m. A difference in HRV changes was observed between the two altitudes: during T1200, addition of parasympathetic and sympathetic activity in supine (TP(SU)) (p < 0.05) and standing (TP(ST)) (p < 0.05) position, supine parasympathetic activity (HF(SU)) (p < 0.05), and standing sympathetic activity (LF(ST)) (p < 0.05) were increased and the 2000-m performance was improved (p < 0.05) whereas none of these parameters was changed during T1850. Change in performance was correlated with increase in HF(SU) (r = 0.73; p < 0.05) and tended towards correlation with increase in LF(ST) (r = 0.73; p = 0.06). CONCLUSION the same training loads induced a positive effect on HRV and performance at 1200 m but not at 1850 m. This may be the consequence of greater stress due to an interaction between greater hypoxic stimulus and the same training loads. These results highlight two opposing effects: aerobic training increases, whereas hypoxia decreases HF(SU), due to the correlation between HRV and changes in performance during altitude training.
Link prediction of complex networks from temporal quantity variation assigned to elements

This paper presents a method to predict gene regulatory networks from gene expression time course data, where each gene has multiple types of quantity values and each quantity type might be influenced by all other quantity types. This problem is considerably harder than the prediction from time course data of only one quantity type. The method is based on a ultra high speed gene network simulator Starpack and evolutionary mechanisms. The prediction is a combination of two stage loop, each stage using evolutionary mechanism. Networks are simulated with Starpack, and those producing time course data similar to the target gene expression data are selected as candidates. The simulation of the second stage has higher precision than the first stage, serving as local optimization process. A synthetic network was used for evaluation, and results suggest necessity of improvements.
P-glycoprotein retains function when reconstituted into a sphingolipid- and cholesterol-rich environment Published, JLR Papers in Press, July 16, 2004. DOI 10.1194/jlr.M400220-JLR200

P-glycoprotein (P-gp) appears to be associated within specialized raftlike membrane microdomains. The activity of P-gp is sensitive to its lipid environment, and a functional association in raft microdomains will require that P-gp retains activity in the microenvironment. Purified hamster P-gp was reconstituted in liposomes comprising sphingomyelin and cholesterol, both highly enriched in membrane microdomains and known to impart a liquid-ordered phase to bilayers. The activity of P-gp was compared with that of proteoliposomes composed of crude egg phosphatidylcholine (unsaturated) or dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine (saturated) in the presence or absence of cholesterol. The maximal rate of ATP hydrolysis was not significantly altered by the nature of the lipid species. However, the potencies of nicardipine and XR9576 to modulate the ATPase activity of P-gp were increased in the sphingolipid-based proteoliposomes. The drug-P-gp interaction was investigated by measurement of the rates of [3H]XR9576 association and dissociation from the transporter. The lipid environment of P-gp did not affect these kinetic parameters of drug binding. In summary, P-gp retains function in liquid-ordered cholesterol and sphingolipid model membranes in which the communication between the transmembrane and the nucleotide binding domains after drug binding to the protein is more efficient.
Spectrum Utilization in a Digital Radio-Relay Network

Digital radio-relay networks in urban areas have been proposed to connect telephone switching centers and to develop new broad-band services. This paper describes a methodology for evaluating the "amount" of radio spectrum "used" by a node in the network, on the basis of general criteria and definitions for spectrum use and efficiency. Several factors influencing the spectral efficiency of the system (antenna diagrams, propagation characteristics, network density, modulation techniques) are taken into account in the proposed approach. Some examples of application, allowing the assessment of trends and possible tradeoffs in spectrum utilization are given. Extensions and other applications of this approach are suggested.
Expression of PRL-3 Phosphatase in Human Gastric Carcinomas: Close Correlation with Invasion and Metastasis

Objective: High expression of PRL-3, a protein tyrosine phosphatase, has been reported to be associated with metastasis of colorectal carcinoma. The aim of this study is to investigate the significance of PRL-3 expression in tumor progression and metastasis of gastric carcinoma. Methods: The levels of PRL-3 mRNA expression in 8 gastric cancer cell lines were examined by RT-PCR. Ninety-four human gastric carcinomas and 54 matched lymph node metastases were employed in this study. The expression of PRL-3 was detected by immunohistochemistry and the relationship with clinicopathological parameters was analyzed. Results: The expression of PRL-3 mRNA was clearly detected in 7 of 8 gastric cancer cell lines (87.5%) by RT-PCR. In tumor samples, PRL-3 expression was detected in 68% of primary gastric carcinoma (with nodal metastasis 81.5%, without nodal metastasis 50%; p = 0.004). The incidence of PRL-3 expression in lymph node metastasis was significantly higher than that in primary gastric cancers (p < 0.001). Moreover, PRL-3 expression was closely associated with lymphatic invasion (p = 0.002), extent of lymph node metastasis (p = 0.002) and tumor stage (p = 0.045). Conclusions: These results strongly suggest that PRL-3 expression may play a significant role in invasion and metastasis of gastric carcinoma. PRL-3 might be a novel molecular marker for aggressive gastric cancer.