Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Variability of the Susceptibility to Deltamethrin in Triatoma infestans: The Female Factor

ABSTRACT We analyzed the variability of susceptibility to deltamethrin in putatively susceptible Triatoma infestans Klug (Hemiptera: Reduviidae), and evaluated the sample size implications on the hypotheses used in the current World Health Organization protocol for the measure of insecticide resistance in Triatominae. Following the protocol, using topical application of deltamethrin to unfed first instar nymphs of T. infestans, we found that susceptibility showed significant differences between offspring from different females, a significant association with female age, and significant interaction female X female age. Considering individual female data, three patterns of nymphal mortality were identified: one showed a strong positive relation between nymphal mortality and their mother's age, another showed high mortality with low variability and the third showed intermediate mortality with high variability along female age. The analysis suggests revision of the World Health Organization protocol for resistance detection in Triatominae, not only to take into consideration the sources of variation in susceptibility, but also the effects of sample size in relation to the significance and power probabilities of the test.
An Approach to Determine a Pair of Power-Flow Solutions Related to the Voltage Stability of Unbalanced Three-Phase Networks

This paper proposes an approach to determine a pair of power-flow solutions associated with the voltage stability of unbalanced three-phase networks. The approach is derived from the observations of the multiple three-phase power-flow solutions of a two-bus network. It is found that there are two pairs of solutions at the load bus. The plot of the voltage magnitude of each pair against the power demand at the load bus shows that two possible PV curves can be constructed for each phase. Each of the two curves is a combination of the two pairs of solutions. One of these curves is associated with the voltage stability of the system whereas the other is associated with the imbalance of the three-phase network. Based on the above observations, a constant impedance load model is utilized to calculate the solution associated with the voltage stability of the study system. Then the equivalent complex power load demand is used to calculate the two pairs of solutions, i.e., the multiple three-phase power-flow solutions. Simulation studies have been carried out for the multiple solutions. The results show that there is a point which is directly proportional to the imbalance in the power demand at the load bus. This point is used to set a criterion to differentiate between the two PV curves. Hence, the PV curve which is related to the voltage stability can be determined without the assumption of the linear load model at the start of the study.
The evidence and the rationale for the use of honey as a wound dressing

Although there are now several brands and types of honey wound-care products available as registered medical devices, there is little promotional advertising of honey products for wound care. The misconception that there is no evidence to support the use of honey, which seems to be quite common, may be due to this lack of advertising, and to the systematic reviews that have been published on honey concluding that the evidence is of low quality and/or there is a need for more evidence. However, the same lack of high-quality evidence exists with all the other options that clinicians have for dressing wounds. This places practitioners in a quandary. When clinical evidence of the highest level is not available, then decisions on modes of treatment need to be based on whatever evidence there is available. This review outlines the 16 randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of honey in wound care published since Molan reviewed the previous 17 in 2006, which bring the total of participants in the trials up from 1,965 to 3,556 and broadens the range of types of wounds on which trials with honey have been conducted. Another important factor influencing the choice by clinicians of which product to use on a wound is scientific rationale. This review covers the evidence and explanation of mode of action for various bioactivities in honey which aid wound healing: a very broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity that is effective on antibiotic-resistant strains; activation of autolytic debridement; anti-inflammatory activity; antioxidant activity; stimulation of growth of cells for tissue repair; and an osmotic action. The need for standardisation of these bioactivities is discussed.
The ideal reporting interval for an epidemic to objectively interpret the epidemiological time course

The reporting interval of infectious diseases is often determined as a time unit in the calendar regardless of the epidemiological characteristics of the disease. No guidelines have been proposed to choose the reporting interval of infectious diseases. The present study aims at translating coarsely reported epidemic data into the reproduction number and clarifying the ideal reporting interval to offer detailed insights into the time course of an epidemic. We briefly revisit the dispersibility ratio, i.e. ratio of cases in successive reporting intervals, proposed by Clare Oswald Stallybrass, detecting technical flaws in the historical studies. We derive a corrected expression for this quantity and propose simple algorithms to estimate the effective reproduction number as a function of time, adjusting the reporting interval to the generation time of a disease and demonstrating a clear relationship among the generation-time distribution, reporting interval and growth rate of an epidemic. Our exercise suggests that an ideal reporting interval is the mean generation time, so that the ratio of cases in successive intervals can yield the reproduction number. When it is impractical to report observations every mean generation time, we also present an alternative method that enables us to obtain straightforward estimates of the reproduction number for any reporting interval that suits the practical purpose of infection control.
Receptor subtype for vasopressin-induced release of nitric oxide from rat kidney.

The vasopressin receptor subtype that causes nitric oxide (NO) release remains controversial. To elucidate this receptor-ligand interaction, we examined the effects of vasopressin receptor antagonists on vasopressin-induced release of NO from isolated perfused rat kidneys by using a sensitive chemiluminescence assay. Vasopressin increased renal perfusion pressure and NO signals in the perfusate in a dose-dependent manner. N omega-Monomethyl-L-arginine abolished this increase in NO release; however, a similar increase in renal perfusion pressure induced by prostaglandin F2 alpha was not associated with the increase in NO release. OPC-21268, a V1 receptor antagonist, significantly reduced the vasopressin-evoked renal vasoconstriction and NO release, whereas OPC-31260, a V2 receptor antagonist, had no effects. Moreover, desmopressin, a selective V2 receptor agonist, did not increase the NO signal. NO release by vasopressin was markedly attenuated in deoxycorticosterone acetate (DOCA)-salt hypertensive rat kidneys compared with control kidneys (10(-10) mol/L vasopressin: +0.8 +/- 0.3 versus +6.9 +/- 1.4 fmol/min per gram kidney, DOCA versus control; P < . 001). Histochemical analysis for renal NO synthase revealed a substantial attenuation of the staining of endothelial NO synthase in DOCA-salt rats. These results directly demonstrate that vasopressin stimulates NO release via the endothelial V1 receptor in the rat kidney.
Evolute‐based Hough transform method for characterization of ellipsoids

We propose a novel and algorithmically simple Hough transform method that exploits the geometric properties of ellipses to enable the robust determination of the ellipse position and properties. We make use of the unique features of the evolute created by Hough voting along the gradient vectors of a two‐dimensional image to determine the ellipse centre, orientation and aspect ratio. A second one‐dimensional voting is performed on the minor axis to uniquely determine the ellipse size. This reduction of search space substantially simplifies the algorithmic complexity. To demonstrate the accuracy of our method, we present analysis of single and multiple ellipsoidal particles, including polydisperse and imperfect ellipsoids, in both simulated images and electron micrographs. Given its mathematical simplicity, ease of implementation and reasonable algorithmic completion time, we anticipate that the proposed method will be broadly useful for image processing of ellipsoidal particles, including their detection and tracking for studies of colloidal suspensions, and for applications to drug delivery and microrheology.
Increased Mortality Due to Cardiovascular Disease in Type 1 Diabetic Patients Transplanted for End‐stage Renal Failure

The graft and patient survivals following renal transplantation in all Type 1 diabetic patients transplanted within the North‐West of England between 1981 and 1990 at Manchester Royal Infirmary were studied. Fifty‐two Type 1 (insulin‐dependent) diabetic patients with end‐stage renal failure due to diabetic nephropathy were transplanted during this period. They were compared to controls matched for age, sex, and year of transplantation and also to all 904 patients transplanted during the same period. Graft survival rates at 1 and 5 years in the diabetic patients were lower (80.8% and 62.1%, respectively), compared to controls (88.9% and 77.9%, respectively, p = 0.02) but were similar to those seen in all grafts (80.4% and 59.0%, respectively, p = NS). Actuarial patient survival rate at 5 years was lower in diabetic patients (76.3%) compared to the control group (94.2%, p = 0.003). Myocardial infarction was the main cause (60%) of death in diabetic patients. The results of this large recent series indicate that good graft and patient survival rates can be obtained in Type 1 diabetic patients, although they remain poorer than those of patients with non‐diabetic renal disease. More rigorous pre‐transplantation cardiac assessment and treatment before acceptance of Type 1 diabetic patients for renal transplantation may help to improve patient survival.
Allograft Bone Decreases in Strength In Vivo over Time

Allograft bone is the primary source of graft material for structural oncological limb salvage procedures. Failure rates after massive allograft reconstructions have been reported as high as 60% at 10 years, which are associated with a multitude of biologic processes influencing the graft incorporation and functional capacity. It is unknown if mechanical failure is associated with a gradual loss of bulk material properties of the bone (strength and modulus), loss of bone mineral density, osteoclastic resorption of the allograft, unrepaired allograft microfractures or microcracks, and/or local stress concentration within the tissue. Allograft material properties, bone mineral density, microcrack prevalence, and cortical porosity were quantified in 13 failed human allograft retrievals ranging in longevity from 1 to 13 years in vivo. Nonimplanted allograft tissue (n = 27) served as the baseline for comparison. A 50% loss in strength of allograft tissue was noted after 10 years in vivo. Loss of strength was correlated with an increase in microfracture prevalence and decrease in bone mineral density within the retrieved allograft cortex. This study suggests functional failure of allograft limb salvage procedures may, in part, be attributed to degradation of the tissue’s material properties, bone mineral density and prevalence of microcracks.
Comment on: Pomegranate Flower Extract Does Not Prevent Cisplatin-induced Nephrotoxicity in Female Rats

activates expression of the genes for inflammatory chemokines, selectin species, adhesion molecules, and pro‐inflammatory cytokines. These are considered as processes closely related to vascular injury. [9] Furthermore, several studies have demonstrated that plants with antioxidant activity have positive effects in prevention and treatment of oxidative stress induced renal injury. [10‐14] In fact various mechanisms have been considered by which reno‐protection might be achieved, from them, anti‐oxidative properties have been considered as one of the most important of them. [15‐17]
Monitoring global vegetation with the Yearly Land Cover Dynamics (YLCD) method

Global vegetation has been traditionally monitored mainly through the use of the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI). Land surface temperature (LST) provides additional information, and is generally less affected by atmospheric conditions when water vapor is taken into account. The Yearly Land Cover Dynamics (YLCD) method can then be used to retrieve 3 parameters which allow for a good differentiation between biomes at the global and local levels. Using NASA's Long Term Data Record (LTDR), the YLCD method has been applied to IDR (iterative Interpolation for Data Reconstruction) reconstructed LTDR data, in order to account for atmospheric contamination of part of the dataset for a few selected pixels. The evolution of the retrieved YLCD parameters is monitored throughout the 20-year span of the LTDR dataset.
In vitro antifungal activity of Croton macrostachys and Allium sativum extracts against Candida albicans and Trichophyton mentagrophytes isolates

In-vitro studies on the efficacy of crude extracts of Croton macrostachys and Allium sativum against Candida albicans and Trichophyton mentagrophytes was conducted in JimmaTown, Ethiopia. The leaves and the bulb cloves of Croton macrostachys and Allium sativum, respectively, were collected and the crude plant extracts were prepared. The in-vitro antifungal activity was evaluated at six different concentrations by agar disc diffusion method for several replicates, and the activity obtained was not concentration dependent except methanolic extract of Croton macrostachys on the strain of mould. The results were compared with standard antifungal drug (Ketoconazole) and distilled water. T. mentagrophytes was more susceptible fungal strain, while Candida albicans was more resistant one. The results revealed that the methanolic extract of A. sativum demonstrated more growth inhibitory activity against both fungi strains which studied than methanolic and aqueous extract of C. macrostachys. There was no significant variation in the zone of inhibition between the different concentrations (p > 0.05). However, there was high significant variation between the plant species, method of extraction and the tested fungus (p < 0.001). Findings from this study confirmed that plant extracts can be used as natural fungicides to control pathogenic fungi, thus reducing the dependence on the synthetic fungicides.
Land-Based Scatterometer Measurements and Retrieval of Surface Parameters Using Neural Networks

In this study, a multi-band FM-CW land- based scatterometer is used to measure the backscattering coefficient of bare soil surface. And then combined with the neural network which can be simulated in any nonlinear problem in theory, and integrated equation model (IEM) which has a wide range of surface roughness, has realized all of the surface parameters inversion through the theoretical simulation and the experimental data, including dielectric constant, surface rms high and correlation length. The results have a better consistency with the actual measurement parameters, and the difference among different angles inversion results reflects the uneven characteristics of reality surface. Final shows that retrieval of multi-parameter using neural networks to be effective, at the same time that simultaneous measurement of backscattering coefficient and surface parameter is a effective means that study features of microwave scattering.
On the Accuracy of Online Geocoders

Geocoding is the conversion of a textual description of a location to geographic coordinates. With online geocoders being freely available to researchers and practitioners alike, their in uence on data quality needs to be estimated. To this end, we rst describe the basics of address-based geocoding and accuracy issues. We then look at two of the most widely-used geocoders and provide analysis of their automatic geocoder results, discuss their quality, and present a correction methodology to increase the accuracy of geocoding, using both independent sources, heuristics on accuracy metadata and conation techniques.
Survival of patients undergoing chronic hemodialysis and renal transplantation.

Abstract Over an eight-year period 172 patients received an allograft from a living, related donor, 112 received cadaveric transplants, and 125 were placed on home dialysis. In a period of three years, 287 patients passed through our center dialysis program. Analysis of survival curves shows that patient survival was significantly better in recipients of transplants from living, related donors and in dialysis patients than in those receiving a cadaver graft. One-year patient survival rates for recipients of parental, sibling and cadaver allografts were 84.2, 89.5 and 68.7 per cent respectively. Survival rates at one and two years for home-dialysis patients were 88.5 and 77.8 per cent, and similar values for center patients were 92.9 and 86.1 per cent. These probabilities should be considered in the choice of which form of therapy to employ in a given patient, and illustrate the need for continued investigation into the prevention of allograft rejection and cadaver-recipient selection, (N Engl J Med 288:86.
A New Algorithm for Mining Global Frequent Itemsets in a Stream

To find global frequent itemsets in a multiple, continuous, rapid and time-varying data stream, a fast, incremental, real-time, and little-memory-cost algorithm should be used. Based on the max-frequency window model, a BHS summary structure and a novel algorithm called GGFI-MFW are proposed. It merely updates the summaries for subsets of the data new arrived and could directly generate the max-frequency for a given item set without scanning the whole summary. Experiment results indicate that the proposed algorithm could efficiently find global frequent itemsets over a data stream with a small memory and perform overwhelming superiority for a large number of distinct items.
The Pathophysiology of Human Mesial Temporal Lobe Epilepsy

The correlation between clinical epilepsy and pathologic changes in the hippocampus was recognized in the early 1800s. However, the study of hippocampal pathology remained an anatomically descriptive discipline until the mid 1970s. In 1976, exploration of the electrical characteristics of the epileptic hippocampus and temporal neocortex began with the application of in vitro electrophysiologic techniques to human brain slices. Subsequently, recognition of the importance of neurotransmitters in epilepsy prompted ligand binding studies of receptor distributions in the epileptic brain. Recent refinements of DNA isolation and immunocytochemical techniques have led to the explosive development of antibodies to receptors, neurotransmitters, enzymes, and neurotransmitter transport systems. Since the 1980s, several alterations in epileptic hippocampus have been discovered with use of these pharmacologic and biochemical tools. The combination of anatomic, electrophysiologic, and biochemical experimental approaches has led to valuable insights into epilepsy-associated changes in temporal lobe tissue and has increased our understanding of the pathophysiology of temporal lobe epilepsy. Most of the summarized data in this review were derived from tissue excised from patients with medically intractable temporal lobe epilepsy or from postmortem brain. Although no attempt was made to cover the vast literature on animal models of epilepsy, some animal studies are discussed to illustrate current hypotheses that aid in the interpretation of the human findings.
Anatomical circuitry of lateral inhibition in the eye of the horseshoe crab, Limulus polyphemus

Lengthy uninterrupted series of sections of the neural plexus in the compound eye of the horseshoe crab, Limulus polyphemus, have been used to reconstruct all the arborizations and their synaptic interconnections in a neuropil knot. This one microglomerulus contains the axons of 19 retinular cells, which pass by without contacts; 13 efferent fibres with 44 synapses to and from eccentric cell collaterals; and arborizations from 54 eccentric cells with 577 synapses. Eccentric cell axons are devoid of synaptic input. Their collaterals ramify in synaptic knots and subserve both pre- and postsynaptic functions simultaneously. Arborizations near the axon of origin have a highly branched pattern (up to 20 bifurcations), a high synaptic input:output ratio (up to about 9:1), and high synaptic density (a maximum of 12 per micrometre of neurite length). The opposite extreme is represented by sparsely branched eccentric cell collaterals distant from their axons of origin with very little synaptic input and sparse output. Spatially graded lateral inhibition is the apparent outcome of a radially decreasing distribution of inhibitory synapses on the arborizations of eccentric cell collaterals combined with possible decremental signal transmission in the plexus. The synaptic analysis has a bearing on most physiological aspects of lateral inhibition that have been studied in the Limulus eye. Implied in the results is the suggestion that synapse formation is an intrinsic property of the presynaptic element, but that the connectivity is governed by the electrical activity of target neurons.
Development of the kidney medulla

The mature renal medulla, the inner part of the kidney, consists of the medullary collecting ducts, loops of Henle, vasa recta and the interstitium. The unique spatial arrangement of these components is essential for the regulation of urine concentration and other specialized kidney functions. Thus, the proper and timely assembly of medulla constituents is a crucial morphogenetic event leading to the formation of a functioning metanephric kidney. Mechanisms that direct renal medulla formation are poorly understood. This review describes the current understanding of the key molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying morphological aspects of medulla formation. Given that hypoplasia of the renal medulla is a common manifestation of congenital obstructive nephropathy and other types of congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract (CAKUT), better understanding of how disruptions in medulla formation are linked to CAKUT will enable improved diagnosis, treatment and prevention of CAKUT and their associated morbidity.
A Gaussian process echo state networks model for time series forecasting

In this paper, a novel Gaussian process echo state networks (GPESN) model is proposed for time series forecasting. This method establishes the direct relationship between the prediction origin and prediction horizon without iterating in the prediction process, which avoids the accumulative iteration error. Instead of using linear regression, Gaussian process is used to obtain the relationship between the reservoir state and network output of ESN, which eliminates the ill conditioned reservoir state matrix. The GPESN model is capable of achieving not only a better prediction result but also an accurate probability estimation of the results. The proposed method is verified by the standard prediction benchmark, Mackey-Glass time series, and is applied to a practical prediction problem in steel industry. The experiment results indicate that the proposed GPESN is effective and reliable.