Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of obesity surgery on non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.

CONTEXT Most individuals who have non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus are obese. The obese population has proved a frustrating entity regarding weight loss and diabetes control. Results of medical weight loss programs, medications, and behavior therapy have proved disappointing. HYPOTHESIS Bariatric surgery is the most effective method of diabetes management and cure in the morbidly obese population. Surgical procedures to cause malabsorption provide a more dramatic effect on diabetes owing to the imparted bypass of the hormonally active foregut. DATA SOURCES Pertinent journal articles spanning the last 40 years, as well as textbooks. CONCLUSIONS Bariatric surgical procedures have proven a much more successful method of weight loss and diabetes control in the obese population than conservative methods. These surgical procedures have proven safe with reported mortality rates of 0% to 1.5%. Bariatric operations may be divided based on the method of weight loss and effect on diabetes. The first category is restrictive and includes vertical banded gastroplasty and adjustable silicone gastric banding. These operations improve diabetes by decreasing food intake and body weight with a slowing of gastric emptying. The second category not only contains restrictive components but also elements of malabsorption. This category includes the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and biliary-pancreatic diversion, which bypass the foregut. Although all of the surgical procedures for obesity offer improved weight loss and diabetes control compared with conservative methods, the Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and biliary-pancreatic diversion offer superior weight loss and resolution of diabetes. The more dramatic effect seen in the surgical procedures to cause malabsorption is likely secondary to the bypass of the foregut resulting in increased weight loss and elevation of the enteroglucagon level.
Molecular phylogeny of the humbug damselfishes inferred from mtDNA sequences

The damselfish genus Dascyllus comprises nine species of both large- and small-bodied fishes distributed over the entire Indo-West Pacific. Most members of the genus have polygynous mating systems with protogynous sex change, while others are promiscuous with no sex change. Hypotheses linking presumed phylogenetic relationships with body size, sex change and mating structure have been proposed previously. However, lack of a strong phylogenetic hypothesis has prevented the careful testing of such hypotheses. In this study, the phylogenetic relationships between Dascyllus species based on mitochondrial DNA sequences (cytochrome b and 16SrRNA) have been established. The data also shed light on the relationship between mating structure and body size, as well as on the complex biogeographical patterns of the genus. 1999 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles
Identification of Epileptic Seizure Using ReHo from Rs-fMRI

Localization of the epileptic seizure sources is a very essential procedure that assists the surgeon in concentrating on the diseased area leaving its vicinity unaffected. Epilepsy is a condition in which the brains own neurons releases abnormal electrical pulses that inhibits the normal activities of other neurons, that needs surgery to be corrected. Hence to enhance the surgical intervention a suitable methodology must be formulated that ensures the spatial localization of the epileptic seizure. This paper studies about Regional homogeneity (ReHo) which is a powerful correlating method that could be employed in measuring the brain activity. Two sample t tests are followed to compare the pre-defined standard with the ReHo that provides clear detailed epileptic seizure localization. Amplitude of Low Frequency Fluctuations (ALFF) is also measured and the resultant is subjected to sample t test and they are compared with ReHo to measure the similarity.
The Easy Chair: Judging Effectiveness of Work in OR/MS Practice and Claiming Credit for Its Consequences

Discussion of the “practical credentials” of the OR/MS work and what it is that constitutes quality and effectiveness in OR/MS practice as seen by our profession, and especially by its large and growing academic community. The matter of scientific quality is left aside, as the supporting material for the cases offers ample evidence of their excellence.
Plasma gelsolin: in search of its raison d'etre. Focus on "Modifications of cellular responses to lysophosphatidic acid and platelet-activating factor by plasma gelsolin".

the actin cytoskeleton provides the scaffolding that allows cells to crawl and eat. Localized dismantling of the semi-rigid interlinked actin filament network is necessary for cell motility and phagocytosis and is regulated by a variety of actin-binding proteins. Gelsolin, as its name implies, was
A fractional cointegration analysis of European electricity spot prices

Previous studies that tested for integration of European electricity spot markets employed standard unit root tests. This study extends the existing literature about electricity market integration by adopting a fractional cointegration analysis and providing empirical evidence that the classical unit root test framework, which tests for common stationary trends, may be inadequate because of long range dependencies in electricity spot prices. Hourly data from APX-ENDEX (UK and Netherlands), EPEX (Germany, Switzerland), Nordpool (Finland, Denmark, Norway) and Powernext (France) are employed between January 2009 and April 2011. Results based on parametric fractional ARIMA models suggest that long memory and cointegration in some but not all markets exists. Germany and the Netherlands seem to share the strongest cointegrating relationship. France and Germany as well as France and the Netherlands also share a common stationary trend. Hence, price shocks can be lasting and the EU policy goal of market integration is yet to be achieved.
Alternative Bearing Surfaces: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

This article discusses current bearing-surface alternatives for long-term total hip articulations involving metal-polyethylene, ceramic-polyethylene, metal-metal, and ceramic-ceramic couples. The enduring success of the low-friction arthroplasty advanced by Sir John Charnley as a solution for painful hip problems can be appreciated by the fact that, in 1999, more than 270,000 hip arthroplasties were performed in the United States. Over the last three decades, patient profiles have changed substantially, resulting in demands for a greater service life of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene hip components. Material failure, often leading to an osteolytic response, is increasingly associated with younger, more active patients. In this context, the low-friction solution has become a problem, limiting in vivo system longevity (Figs. 1 and 2). Fig. 1: A marked osteolytic response in a fifty-year-old patient. Fig. 2: Corresponding intracellular polyethylene debris viewed under polarized light. Previous attempts to improve the performance of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene have included carbon-fiber reinforcement (Poly-2) and, more recently, polymer reprocessing to enhance mechanical properties (Hylamer). The former was withdrawn from the market because of excessive inflammatory response, whereas the latter has been linked to debris-induced osteolytic responses in early reports. Laboratory simulation has demonstrated that the resistance of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene to wear is improved with increased cross-linking of the carbon-hydrogen polymer chains. A number of thermal and chemical processing solutions have been described. One such approach involves component storage at elevated temperatures in an oxygen-depleted environment. This is done following irradiation and encourages kinetic recombination of the carbon-hydrogen free radicals created by the radiation process. Other techniques deliver increased radiation doses to the component material followed by remelting to quench free radicals. While this results in dramatic wear reduction in laboratory simulations (Fig. 3), it also changes the amorphous and crystalline regions of the polymer, affecting mechanical properties and potentially reducing fatigue strength. …
Effects of Raloxifene, a Selective Estrogen Receptor Modulator, on Bone Turnover Markers and Serum Sex Steroid and Lipid Levels in Elderly Men

Several lines of evidence implicate estrogen deficiency as a cause of bone loss in elderly men. Thus, in 50 elderly men (mean age ± SD, 69.1 ± 6.0 years), we performed a randomized blinded study to assess the effect of 6 months of treatment with 60 mg/day of raloxifene (a selective estrogen receptor modulator [SERM] that has an agonist effect on bone but is not feminizing) versus placebo on bone turnover markers. The mean changes in bone turnover markers, serum sex steroid, or lipid levels with treatment did not differ between groups. However, changes in urinary cross‐linked N‐telopeptide of type I collagen (NTX) excretion were related directly to the baseline serum estradiol level in the raloxifene (r = 0.57; p = 0.004) but not in the placebo‐treated (r = 0.15; p = 0.485) men (p = 0.015 for the difference between groups). Moreover, the men in whom NTX excretion decreased after raloxifene treatment had significantly lower baseline estradiol levels (mean ± SEM, 22 ± 2 pg/ml) than the men in whom urinary NTX excretion didn't change or increased after raloxifene therapy (30± 3 pg/ml; p = 0.03), and no such difference was found in the placebo group. Thus, raloxifene has no significant effect on bone turnover markers or lipid levels in elderly men. However, the association noted between baseline estradiol levels and the change in urine NTX excretion in the raloxifene‐treated men suggests that a subset of men with low estradiol levels may respond to raloxifene or other SERMs, and further studies are needed to directly test this possibility.
Planning for Weakly-Coupled Partially Observable Stochastic Games

Partially observable stochastic games (POSGs) provide a powerful framework for modeling multi-agent interactions. While elegant and expressive, the framework has been shown to be computationally intractable [Bernstein et al., 2002]. An exact dynamic programming algorithm for POSGs has been developed recently, but due to high computational demands, it has only been demonstrated to work on extremely small problems. Several approximate approaches have been developed [Emery-Montemerlo et al., 2004; Nair et al., 2003], but they lack strong theoretical guarantees. In light of these theoretical and practical limitations, there is a need to identify special classes of POSGs that can be solved tractably. One dimension along which computational gain can be leveraged is by exploiting the independence present in the problem dynamics. In this paper, we examine a class of POSGs where the agents only interact loosely by restricting one another’s available actions. Specifically, rather than having fixed action sets, each agent’s action set is a function of the global state. The agents are independent from one another otherwise, i.e. they have separate transition and reward functions that do not interact. This class of problems arises frequently in practice. Many real world domains are inhabited by self-interested agents that act to achieve their individual goals. They may not affect each other in any way, except for occasionally putting restrictions on what each other can do. The best-known solution concepts in game theory are that of computing Nash equilibrium and performing strategy elimination. Our work addresses both of these solution concepts. First, we show that finding a Nash equilibrium where each agent achieves reward at least k is NP-hard. Another contribution of this work is that we present an exact algorithm for performing iterated elimination of dominated strategies. It is able to solve much larger problems than exact algorithms for the general class by exploiting problem structure.
Psychiatric disorders in smokers seeking treatment for tobacco dependence: relations with tobacco dependence and cessation.

OBJECTIVE The present research examined the relation of psychiatric disorders to tobacco dependence and cessation outcomes. METHOD Data were collected from 1,504 smokers (58.2% women; 83.9% White; mean age = 44.67 years, SD = 11.08) making an aided smoking cessation attempt as part of a clinical trial. Psychiatric diagnoses were determined with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview structured clinical interview. Tobacco dependence was assessed with the Fagerström Test of Nicotine Dependence (FTND) and the Wisconsin Inventory of Smoking Dependence Motives (WISDM). RESULTS Diagnostic groups included those who were never diagnosed, those who had ever been diagnosed (at any time, including in the past year), and those with past-year diagnoses (with or without prior diagnosis). Some diagnostic groups had lower follow-up abstinence rates than did the never diagnosed group (ps < .05). At 8 weeks after quitting, strong associations were found between cessation outcome and both past-year mood disorder and ever diagnosed anxiety disorder. At 6 months after quitting, those ever diagnosed with an anxiety disorder (OR = .72, p = .02) and those ever diagnosed with more than one psychiatric diagnosis (OR = .74, p = .03) had lower abstinence rates. The diagnostic categories did not differ in smoking heaviness or the FTND, but they did differ in dependence motives assessed with the WISDM. CONCLUSION Information on recent or lifetime psychiatric disorders may help clinicians gauge relapse risk and may suggest dependence motives that are particularly relevant to affected patients. These findings also illustrate the importance of using multidimensional tobacco dependence assessments.
A 70-ns word-wide 1-Mbit ROM with on-chip error-correction circuits

A 1-Mb ROM has been developed, organized as either 64K/spl times/16 or 128K/spl times/8 in a pin-selectable option. Multiplexing the address inputs and the data outputs onto the same pins makes it possible to fit into a 28-pin package and to perform straightforward interfacing with some popular 16-bit microprocessors. The process technology is a 1.5-/spl mu/m twin-well double-level-metal CMOS on a grounded p-type substrate. The device uses some dynamic circuitry during the start of the active cycle, but automatically takes itself back into the static precharge state-except for the latched outputs. Typical access time is 70 ns. New high-speed error detection and correction circuits were developed which work in about 10 ns. Because all 16 outputs are not driven at once, but half are delayed by about 15 ns through a process-tracking delay circuit, the on-chip error correction is finished before the process-tracking delay circuit is through, and error correction costs no further access penalty. These error correction circuits enhance both yield and reliability.
Chapter 8 : Kidney Disease in Elderly Diabetic Patients

Diabetes is a major health issue affecting the aging US population: epidemiologic studies show an increased prevalence of diabetes with aging. The reported incidence of diabetes in the elderly US population is at least 10 to 17%, caused by factors such as obesity, decreased activity, insulin resistance, and increased oxidative tissue damage. The prevalence of metabolic syndrome also increases with age and is frequently complicated by hypertension and chronic kidney disease (CKD). With further advances in the treatment of diabetes, longer lifespan is leading to more diabetes-related complications. Kidney disease secondary to diabetes has an increased prevalence in the geriatric population,1 which comprises the fastest-growing subgroup of CKD and end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) in the United States. About one third of older diabetic individuals have microalbuminuria,2 and an equal fraction have depressed kidney function. However, CKD care of the elderly diabetic patient remains underemphasized, and nephrology consultation remains underused. Clinical guidelines for type 2 diabetes in the elderly do not address CKD, and guidelines for diabetic CKD have not distinguished age groups.3
Gender differences in leisure-time versus non-leisure-time physical activity among Saudi adolescents.

OBJECTIVES The aim of the study was to examine the gender differences and predictors of leisure versus non-leisure time physical activities among Saudi adolescents aged 14-19 years. MATERIALS AND METHOD The multistage stratified cluster random sampling technique was used. A sample of 1,388 males and 1,500 females enrolled in secondary schools in three major cities in Saudi Arabia was included. Anthropometric measurements were performed and Body Mass Index was calculated. Physical activity, sedentary behaviours and dietary habits were measured using a self-reported validated questionnaire. RESULTS The total time spent in leisure and non-leisure physical activity per week was 90 and 77 minutes, respectively. The males spent more time per week in leisure-time physical activities than females. Females in private schools spent more time during the week in leisure-time physical activities, compared to females in Stateschools. There was a significant difference between genders by obesity status interaction in leisure-time physical activity. Gender, and other factors, predicted total duration spent in leisure-time and non-leisure-time physical activity. CONCLUSIONS The study showed that female adolescents are much less active than males, especially in leisure-time physical activities. Programmes to promote physical activity among adolescents are urgently needed, with consideration of gender differences.
L'impact de la taille des classes sur la réussite scolaire dans les écoles, collèges et lycées français - Estimations à partir du panel primaire 1997 et du panel secondaire 1995

Cette etude, realisee par Thomas Piketty et Mathieu Valdenaire ((Ecole des hautes etudes en sciences sociales), utilise les donnees du panel primaire 1997 et du panel secondaire 1995 et exploite les discontinuites liees au franchissement des seuils d'ouverture et de fermeture de classes pour estimer l'impact des tailles de classes reduites sur la reussite scolaire. Au niveau des ecoles primaires,l'etude met en evidence grâce a cette methode des impacts positifs nettement plus eleves que ceux supposes habituellement. Une reduction d'un eleve par classe de la taille de CE1 conduit a une augmentation de 0,7 point du score obtenu par les eleves defavorises aux evaluations de mathematiques de debut de CE2. D'apres ces estimations, la suppression de la legere politique de ciblage des moyens actuellement en vigueur en faveur des ZEP (taille moyenne des classes de 20,9 en ZEP, contre 22,8 hors ZEP) conduirait a une progression de 14 % de l'ecart moyen de reussite scolaire entre ecoles ZEP et non-ZEP. Inversement, une forte politique de ciblage (reduction supplementaire de cinq eleves des tailles de classe en ZEP, a moyens constants) conduirait a une reduction supplementaire de 46 % de l'inegalite de reussite scolaire. En utilisant les memes methodes pour les colleges et les lycees, cette etude met en evidence des effets statistiquement significatifs mais quantitativement plus faibles que dans le primaire. La suppression des ZEP aboutirait a une augmentation de l'inegalite de 10 % au college et de 3 % au lycee, et une forte politique de ciblage (cinq eleves de moins en ZEP) conduirait a une reduction de l'inegalite de 22 % au college et 4 % au lycee. Ces resultats indiquent que des politiques realistes de ciblage des moyens peuvent avoir un effet considerable sur la reduction des inegalites scolaires, mais que ces politiques gagneraient probablement a se concentrer sur les plus jeunes eleves. Les resultats de cette etude n'engagent que leurs auteurs, et ne sauraient en aucun cas engager la DEP. (presentation editeur)
Evaluation of Bison (Bison bison) Semen from Yellowstone National Park, Montana, USA, Bulls for Brucella abortus Shedding

To determine if bison (Bison bison) bulls from Yellowstone National Park (YNP), Montana, USA, shed an infective dose of Brucella abortus in semen, 50 YNP bulls were captured on public lands in Montana during the winter and early spring (April–May) of 2010 and 2011. The bulls were immobilized, and blood and semen samples were collected for serology and Brucella culture. Thirty-five bulls (70%) were antibody-positive, and B. abortus was cultured from semen in three (9%) of the 35 antibody-positive or suspect bulls, though not at concentrations considered an infective dose. Eight bulls (six antibody-positive, two negative) had palpable lesions of the testes, epididymides, or seminal vesicles consistent with B. abortus infection. Breeding soundness exams and semen analysis suggested that antibody-positive bulls were more likely to have nonviable ejaculate (8/35; 23%) than bulls without detectable antibody (2/15; 13%).
A role for cytokines in potentiation of malaria vaccines through immunological modulation of blood stage infection

Summary: Malaria is the world's major parasitic disease, for which effective control measures are urgently needed. One of the difficulties hindering successful vaccine design against Plosmodium is an incomplete knowledge of antigens eliciting protective immunity, the precise types of immune response for which to aim, and how these can be induced. A greater appreciation of the mechanisms of protective immunity, on the one hand, and of immunopathology, on the other, should provide critical clues to how manipulation of the immune system may best be achieved. We are studying the regulation of the balance between T helper I (Th 1) and T helper 2 (Tb2) CD4+ T lymphocytes in immunity to asexual blood stages of malaria responsible for the pathogenicity of the disease. Protective immunity to the experimental murine malarias Plasmodium chabaudi and Plasmodium yoelii involves both Th1 and Tb2 cells, which provide protection by different mechanisms at different times of infection characterised by higher and lower parasite densities, respectively. This model therefore facilitates a clearer understanding of the Th1/Th2 equilibrium that appears central to immunoregulation of all host/pathogen relationships. It also permits a detailed dissection in vivo of the mechanisms of antimalarial immunity. Here, we discuss the present state of malaria vaccine development and our current research to understand the factors involved in the modulation of vaccine‐potentiated immunity.
In Vitro Inactivation of Pulmonary Surfactant Replacement Preparations by Serum Albumin

Inactivation of the surface activity of pulmonary surfactant by serum proteins is an important part of neonatal respiratory distress syndrome. The ability of serum proteins to diminish the surface activity of surfactant preparations used to treat respiratory distress syndrome has not been fully described. The sensitivity of clinically useful pulmonary replacement preparations beractant (Survanta) and colfosceril palmitate, cetyl alcohol, and tyloxapol (Exosurf) to albumin inactivation was examined in vitro by the Wilhelmy plate technique. At a final lipid concentration of 0.1 mg/mL and in the absence of albumin, both Survanta and Exosurf exhibited equilibrium surface tensions in the range of 35 dynes/cm. In the presence of albumin, the surface tension of Survanta was markedly higher. Maximal response of Survanta to albumin was observed at about 1 mg/mL protein concentration. When the lipid concentration was raised to 0.3 mg/mL, the presence of albumin had little effect. With Exosurf, the presence of albumin resulted in only minor elevations of surface tension, even at an albumin concentration 10-fold greater than that used in the experiments with Survanta. These results indicate that at lipid concentrations of 0.1 mg/mL and less, the surface activity of the bovine purified lung surfactant Survanta is more sensitive to the presence of albumin than is the synthetic preparation Exosurf.