Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Nitric oxide synthase inhibition exacerbates sepsis-induced renal hypoperfusion.

BACKGROUND Hyperdynamic sepsis is often complicated by renal dysfunction, caused in part by renal vasoconstriction and impaired blood flow. Nitric oxide (NO) is an important mediator of hemodynamic responses to sepsis; however, its importance in the renal microcirculation during sepsis is unknown. Our purpose was to determine the role of NO in the renal microcirculation during bacteremia. METHODS In vivo videomicroscopy was used to study the microcirculation in five groups of hydronephrotic rat kidneys. Cardiac output (CO), mean arterial pressure, interlobular artery (ILA) diameter and flow, and afferent (AFF) and efferent arteriole diameters were measured. RESULTS NO synthase inhibition in normal rats resulted in hypertension, decreased CO, selective preglomerular constriction (ILA, -21%; AFF, -26% of baseline), and hypoperfusion (-56%). Escherichia coli resulted in a normotensive, high CO state (+23%) with ILA (-25%) and AFF (-20%) constriction and hypoperfusion (-60%). NO synthase inhibition during bacteremia normalized CO and increased mean arterial pressure (+34%) but exacerbated constriction (ILA, -45%; AFF, -33%) and further impaired flow (-90%). CONCLUSIONS NO maintains preglomerular tone and flow during basal conditions and appears to counteract intrarenal vasoconstrictors during E. coli bacteremia.
Rac1 and RhoA: Networks, loops and bistability

ABSTRACT Cell migration requires a precise temporal and spatial coordination of several processes which allow the cell to efficiently move. The extension and retraction of membrane protrusion, as well as adhesion are controlled by the Rho-family small GTPases. Two members of the family, Rac1 and RhoA, can show opposite behaviors and spatial localisations, with RhoA being active toward the rear of the cell and regulating its retraction during migration, whereas Rac1 is active toward the front of the cell. In addition to the spatial segregation, RhoA and Rac1 activity at the leading edge of the cells has an element of temporal segregation, with RhoA and Rac1 activities peaking at separate points during the migratory cycle of protrusion and retraction. Elements of this separation have been explained by the presence of 2 mutually inhibitory feedbacks, where Rac1 inhibits RhoA and RhoA in turn can inhibit Rac1. Recently, it was shown that Rac1 and RhoA activity and downstream signaling respond in a bistable manner to perturbations of this network.
Year in review: health protection in NSW, 2011.

Health protection involves the prevention and control of threats to health from communicable diseases and the environment. Health protection is achieved through a complex array of activities involving multiple agencies. Health protection activities include: • immunisation • the provision of safe environments including clean water, food and air • disease surveillance, epidemiological investigations, risk assessments, capacity building, quality assurance, providing expert advice • the development and application of legislation, regulations, policies and guidelines, distributing resources, and monitoring of program performance and outcomes.
Asymmetrical DC link voltage balance of a cascaded two level inverter based STATCOM

Voltage unbalance is one of the main limitation of cascaded based multilevel STATCOM. This paper presents a simple control strategy for the voltage balance of a cascaded two level inverter based STATCOM. The topology consists of two conventional three phase two level inverters connected in cascade. The two inverters operate at two different dc link voltages to obtain four level operation at STATCOM output. Simulation studies are carried out to predict the performance of the proposed control strategy. A laboratory prototype is developed to validate the results. Small signal stability analysis of cascaded inverter is also carried out to predict the system behavior.
Changes In Gene Expression Induced by Tienilic Acid and Sulfamethoxazole: Testing the Danger Hypothesis

Tienilic acid (TA) was withdrawn due to idiosyncratic hepatotoxicity. Two hypotheses for the mechanisms of idiosyncratic reactions are the hapten and danger hypotheses, which are not mutually exclusive. Both human CYP 2C9 and rat CYP 2C11 metabolize TA to a reactive metabolite that was reported to bind exclusively to these enzymes. TA-Induced liver toxicity is associated with antibodies against CYP 2C9, thus TA appears to act as a hapten. However, if the binding were limited to CYP 2C, it is unlikely that this would lead to significant cell stress. If TA does not cause cell stress it would suggest that acting as a hapten is sufficient to induce an idiosyncratic reaction. To test whether TA can cause cell stress rats were dosed with TA and hepatic gene expression was profiled at 6 and 24 hr after drug administration. TA induced changes in genes involved in oxidative stress (aldo-keto reductase, glutathione-S-transferase, thioredoxin reductase, epoxide hydrolase), inflammation (IL-1β, interferon regulatory factor 1, macrophage stimulating protein 1), cytotoxicity (caspase-12), and liver regeneration (p27Kip1, DUSP6, serine dehyratase, spectrin β II, inhibin βA). These data support the hypothesis that danger signals in the form of cell-stress may be involved in initiating the immune response observed in TA-induced toxicity. In separate experiments, we examined the changes in gene expression induced in mice by sulfamethoxazole, which also causes idiosyncratic reactions. Sulfamethoxazole is an aromatic amine, and aromatic amines in general are associated with idiosyncratic drug reactions. They form reactive metabolites that both act as electrophiles and can redox cycle; therefore, it was assumed that sulfamethoxazole would cause some type of cell stress, the only question was what changes in mRNA expression would occur. In contrast to expectations, no changes induced by sulfamethoxazole could easily be interpreted as a danger signal. These data are presented together because they are the opposite of the expected results and convey a complex story.
Closing the Gender Gap: Increased Female Authorship in AJR and Radiology.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to evaluate gender differences in the authorship of original research articles by radiologists in two major American radiology journals, AJR and Radiology. MATERIALS AND METHODS In a retrospective bibliometric analysis, all original articles published in AJR and Radiology during three 3-year periods (1991-1993, 2001-2003, and 2011-2013) were reviewed to determine the gender of the first and corresponding radiology authors. In addition, radiologic subspecialty and country of the authors were also abstracted from each article. RESULTS The gender of the first and corresponding authors could be determined for 10,043 of 10,228 authors (98.2%) of original research in radiology. Between the periods 1991-1993 and 2011-2013, the percentage of female authors significantly increased: from 20.4% to 34.4%, respectively, among first authors (p < 0.0001); and from 18.0% to 28.7%, respectively, among corresponding authors (p < 0.0001). There was a significant correlation between the gender of the first and corresponding authors (p < 0.05). In the 2011-2013 period, the proportion of female authors was highest in breast (64.2%) and pediatric (48.2%) and lowest in vascular and interventional (18.5%) and cardiac (21.0%) subspecialties. The proportion of female authors was the highest in The Netherlands (47.3%), South Korea (37.9%), France (36.2%), and Italy (33.6%). CONCLUSION There was a significant increase in the female authorship of original research articles in two major American radiology journals between the periods 1991-1993 and 2011-2013.
Assessing quality and use of economic data: case of Kosovo

: Quality of economic data is of key importance in real assessment of economic situation in a country. Among the challenges in Kosovo in terms of economic statistics is their quality and consistency. Study will examine the quantity and quality of economic data with particular emphasis on macroeconomic data. International statistical standards of the International Monetary Fund, European Central Bank / Eurostat are used as reference for comparison regarding the quantity and quality of economic data. For the study purposes, the economic data will be divided into sectors according to international standards. Official statistics producers will be used as data inputs as specified in the respective law in Kosovo. Data quality are reliability, transparency, accuracy are criteria to be used. Statistics revision policy or procedure as well as time-series and accessibility will be part of the study also. UBT STATS established in June 2013 deals with the collection, organization and publication of statistical data and emerged as a need of having a structured database consistent with international practices. An overview will be devoted to UBT STATS also as center for statistics, modelling, and economic forecasting.
A survey of perceptual feedback issues in dexterous telemanipulation. II. Finger touch feedback

For part I see ibid., p.263-70 (1994). The existing touch display technologies in the literature are surveyed. This survey indicates five main approaches to touch feedback, involving visual, pneumatic, vibro-tactile, electro-tactile and neuromuscular stimulations. A pneumatics approach could use air jets, air pockets or inflatable bladders to provide touch feedback cues to the operator. Similarly the vibro-tactile approach could use vibrating pins, voice coils, or piezoelectric crystals to provide tickling sensation to the human operator's skin to signal the touch. The electro-tactile stimulation method can provide electric pulses of appropriate width and frequency to the skin, while the neuromuscular stimulation approach provides the signals directly to the primary cortex of the operator's brain. With regard to this, 17 devices, most of which were built for sensory substitution purposes, are examined and compared for their suitability as touch feedback devices for dexterous telemanipulation. <<ETX>>
Developing drugs for developing countries.

Infectious and parasitic diseases create enormous health burdens, but because most of the people suffering from these diseases are poor, little is invested in developing treatments. We propose that developers of treatments for neglected diseases receive a "priority review voucher. " The voucher could save an average of one year of U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review and be sold by the developer to the manufacturer of a blockbuster drug. In a well-functioning market, the voucher would speed access to highly valued treatments. Thus, the voucher could benefit consumers in both developing and developed countries at relatively low cost to the taxpayer.
New stable adaptive fuzzy approach to control uncertain nonlinear SISO systems

This paper deals with the synthesis of a new robust adaptive fuzzy control for a class of nonlinear and disturbed single-input single-output (SISO) systems. To attenuate the effect of both of the approximation errors and the external disturbances to a prescribed level, two signals are added to the indirect adaptive fuzzy control law: the first deduced from a fuzzy system allows approximation errors and external disturbances to eliminated; the second signal deduced from the Riccati equation attenuates the effect of the residual errors to a prescribed level. To illustrate the efficiency of the proposed approach, a simulation example is presented.
Optical properties of native and coagulated porcine liver tissue between 400 and 2400 nm

Laser induced thermotherapy (LITT) is a promising treatment for irresectable liver tumors. For predicting the effects of laser applications and optimizing irradiation planning in LITT, knowledge about light distribution in tissue, optical tissue properties (absorption, scattering, anisotropy, penetration depth) and their changes due to thermal denaturation is indispensable.
Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in patients without HIV infection.

BACKGROUND Investigations of outbreaks of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis have found low rates of treatment response and very high mortality, and they have mainly involved patients with advanced human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. For patients without HIV infection, one study reported an overall rate of response to treatment of 56 percent, and the mortality from tuberculosis was 22 percent. We investigated treatment response and mortality rates in 26 HIV-negative patients in New York with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. METHODS We obtained detailed data from seven teaching hospitals in New York City on patients with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis--defined as tuberculosis resistant at least to isoniazid and rifampin--who were HIV-negative on serologic testing. Lengths of times from diagnosis to the initiation of appropriate therapy and from the initiation of appropriate therapy to conversion to negative cultures were assessed. Therapeutic responses were evaluated by both microbiologic and clinical criteria. RESULTS Between March 1991 and September 1994, 26 HIV-negative patients were identified and treated. Of the 25 patients for whom adequate data were available for analysis, 24 (96 percent) had clinical responses; all 17 patients for whom data on microbiologic response were available had such a response. The median times from diagnosis to the initiation of appropriate therapy and from the initiation of therapy to culture conversion were 44 days (range, 0 to 181) and 69 days (range, 2 to 705), respectively. Side effects requiring the discontinuation of medication occurred in 4 of 23 patients (17 percent) who were treated with second-line antituberculosis medications. The median follow-up for the 23 patients who responded and who received appropriate therapy was 91 weeks (range, 41 to 225). CONCLUSIONS In this report from New York City, HIV-negative patients with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis, contrary to previous reports, responded well to appropriate chemotherapy, both clinically and microbiologically.
Structure and self-similarity of silica aerogels.

Small-angle neutron scattering from silica aerogels reveals that they form mutually self-similar volume fractals for a wide range of densities and preparations. The fractal dimension is D=2.40\ifmmode\pm\else\textpm\fi{}0.03. The fractal behavior extends down to near-molecular sizes. Indication for a volume-to-surface fractal crossover is also obtained. These results apply to neutrally prepared or acid-catalyzed materials. Base-catalyzed gels have widely different properties.
Servitization, Coopetition, and Sustainability: An Operations Perspective in Aviation Industry

The dominant paradigm of being a pure product manufacturer is facing a transition towards also providing services along with the product. Although manufacturing has remained embedded in a pure product environment for several years, different factors have compelled manufacturers to move towards product-service systems (PSS) or the phenomenon of servitization, that is, when firms go beyond giving support to the customers in operating the equipment to offering the experience through owning and leasing the product. This strategic move by manufacturers to have a revenue stream through services is called servitization (Vandermerwe & Rada, 1988). The value proposition of this integrated offering called PSS has been widely studied (Anderson & Narks, 1995; Baines et al., 2007; Kim, Lee, Lee, Hong, & Park, 2012; Matthyssens & Vandenbempt, 1998; Neely, 2008; Ng, Parry, Wilde, McFarlane, & Tasker, 2011; Wise & Baumgartner, 1999). By definition, it consists of tangible products and intangible services, designed and combined so that they are jointly capable of fulfilling specific customer needs (Tischner, Verkuijl, & Tukker, 2002). Although the challenges that the manufacturing firms face while moving from being a product provider to a product-service provider are multipronged, this system could add economic, environmental, and social values for a diverse set of stakeholders in the system (Mont, 2000). Product-based manufacturing and process-based manufacturing have proved to be relatively easy to imitate by competitors, whereas servitization is less easy to replicate (Wilkinson, Dainty, & Neely, 2009). This has pushed many manufacturers to recognize the strategic integration of services as a source of sustainable competitive advantage and corporate profitability (Neely, 2008; Oliva & Kallenburg, 2003).
Treatment adherence and self-stigma in patients with depressive disorder in remission - A cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE A wide range of variables may influence the rate of adherence to treatment. These variables can be associated with the disease itself, method of treatment, patient's personality, environmental factors and therapeutic relationship. Self-stigma is one of the possible factors related to poor adherence. The aim of the study was to find out the relationship between current adherence, discontinuation of medication in the past and self-stigma in stable psychiatric outpatients diagnosed with depressive disorder. METHODS The study included 72 stable outpatients diagnosed with depressive disorder with a mean age of 49.00 ± 12.56. Disorder severity was assessed using the Clinical Global Impression scale. Adherence was measured by the Drug Attitude Inventory - 10 items (DAI-10) scale and self-stigma by the Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness (ISMI) scale. The data were evaluated in 66 patients. Six patients were excluded because of incompletely filled in questionnaires. RESULTS The rate of adherence was not associated with gender, education, employment, family burden (family history) or partner status. Current adherence did not differ between patients who arbitrarily discontinued their medication in the past and those who did not. Adherence was significantly positively correlated with patient's age, age at disease onset and the level of self-stigma. CONCLUSIONS The study results suggest that the level of self-stigma and age of the patient can be very important factors associated with adherence in patients with depressive disorder.
Virtualization Of Youth Deviation As Trend Of Information Society

This article presents the process of virtualization of youth deviation as a trend of information society. In accordance with performed researches, it is concluded that youth as a special social community in virtue of its performance specifications has a prepossession for irregularity in all its forms and manifestations of both positive and negative dispositions. This community is innovative, initiating new behavior patterns, its own slang, fashion, values and subcultural communications. Reference is made to a tendency of virtualization of youth deviation. Basic social needs are set up to actualize through the Internet and web virtual contacts, aggression has spurted, ties of interchangeable nature are settled, and the crimes are committed. The youth is presented as a special social community, which mentality and functional characteristics dispose to breaking different kinds of rules; moreover, the irregularities might be of both positive and negative nature. It is established that the social deviations among the youth are often determined by not meeting their basic needs – by the lack of communication, the lack or absence of ability of self-affirmation or self-fulfillment. The approaches to possible preventive measures of youth deviation are developed.
Mineral Warfare: The Dark Side of Technology and International Mediation

2 Acknowledgements 4 List of figures and tables 5 Abbreviations and Acronyms 6 Introduction 9 Literature Review 14 Section 1: Congo’s Story 24 Chapter 1: The Evolving Nature of Congo’s War 25 Chapter 2: Rise of Mineral Wealth 38 Chapter 3: Criminalization of the Mining Sector 46 Section 2: Congo’s International Mineral Fame 53 Chapter 4: How ‘Conflict Minerals’ became a hot topic and its current relevance 54 Chapter 5: A Critical Analysis of Dodd-Frank 60 Chapter 6: Other efforts to formalising the mining sector and tackle mining abuses 68 Conclusion 90 Recommendations 93 Concluding Remarks 98
A time-frequency method for multiple fault detection in three-phase induction machines

It is well known that induction machine stator current is a nonstationary signal and its properties change with respect to operating conditions. The computed spectrum using the fast Fourier transform (FFT) does not provide accurate time-domain information about the operating conditions. As a result, the FFT spectrum analysis makes difficult to recognize fault conditions from the normal operation of the induction machine. A time-frequency approach is proposed in order to track some frequency components associated to electrical and load faults. This method is applied to a 18.5 kW three-phase induction machine with three broken rotor bars and under the effect of load torque variation which can result from a load fault.
Sleep disturbance associated with an enhanced orexinergic system induced by chronic treatment with paroxetine and milnacipran

Recent reports have shown that acute or chronic treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) or serotonin‐noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) causes unpleasant side effects in patients. In the present study, through the use of electroencephalography (EEG) and electromyography (EMG), we found that chronic treatment with the SSRI paroxetine or the SNRI milnacipran significantly induced sleep disturbance, which was characterized by an increase in the total wake time and decreased total nonrapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. Furthermore, RT‐PCR analysis demonstrated that chronic treatment with paroxetine or milnacipran significantly increased the mRNA levels of orexin 1 receptor and orexin 2 receptor in the hypothalamus and of histamine 1 receptor and histidine decarboxylase in the frontal cortex of mice. The present findings suggest that chronic treatment with either paroxetine or milnacipran causes sleep disturbance associated with an increase in orexinergic transmission in the hypothalamus and histaminergic transmission in the frontal cortex. Although further studies are needed, these imbalances in the orexinergic and histaminergic systems may be, at least in part, responsible for the pathogenesis of sleep disturbance induced by chronic treatment with SSRI or SNRI in rodents. Synapse, 2011. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
The animatronics workshop

The Animatronics Workshop is an extracurricular activity where kids build complete robotic shows. Designed for 11--14 year-olds, the program emphasizes the interplay of technical and artistic skills. Activities include a mix of character development, script writing, design and construction of robotic mechanisms, voice performance, audio editing, set design and construction, and motion programming.
TMPTCP: Tailless Multi-path TCP

Multi-path TCP (MPTCP) has been introduced to take advantage of the path diversity for network performance enhancement. To date, the energy efficiency aspect of MPTCP has not been studied extensively, and the effect of tail energy, which plays a significant role in energy waste, has been neglected. This paper proposes Tailless Multi-path TCP (TMPTCP) to improve the energy efficiency of MPTCP by tail energy minimization, therefore, network traffic behaviors and transceiver characteristics have been taken into account. The problem is formulated as a Markov decision process (MDP), endeavoring to optimize jointly energy efficiency and delay by selecting the best policy. Offline experiments show that the proposed scheme reduces energy consumption by up to 46% for uploading and 34% for downloading. Moreover, it is revealed that on average TMPTCP saves 30%-45% energy, compared to MPTCP, but at the expense of more delay.