Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dissociated GαGTP and Gβγ Protein Subunits Are the Major Activated Form of Heterotrimeric Gi/o Proteins*

Background: The nature of the activated form of heterotrimeric Gi/o proteins is unclear. Results: Non-modified Gi/o heterotrimers dissociate upon activation, whereas fluorescently labeled Gi/o heterotrimers dissociate or rearrange depending on fluorescent protein localization. Conclusion: Dissociated GαGTP and Gβγ subunits represent the major activated form of Gi/o proteins. Significance: The identification of the Gi/o protein activated form is crucial for the elucidation of signaling mechanisms and rational drug design. Although most heterotrimeric G proteins are thought to dissociate into Gα and Gβγ subunits upon activation, the evidence in the Gi/o family has long been inconsistent and contradictory. The Gi/o protein family mediates inhibition of cAMP production and regulates the activity of ion channels. On the basis of experimental evidence, both heterotrimer dissociation and rearrangement have been postulated as crucial steps of Gi/o protein activation and signal transduction. We have now investigated the process of Gi/o activation in living cells directly by two-photon polarization microscopy and indirectly by observations of G protein-coupled receptor kinase-derived polypeptides. Our observations of existing fluorescently labeled and non-modified Gαi/o constructs indicate that the molecular mechanism of Gαi/o activation is affected by the presence and localization of the fluorescent label. All investigated non-labeled, non-modified Gi/o complexes dissociate extensively upon activation. The dissociated subunits can activate downstream effectors and are thus likely to be the major activated Gi/o form. Constructs of Gαi/o subunits fluorescently labeled at the N terminus (GAP43-CFP-Gαi/o) seem to faithfully reproduce the behavior of the non-modified Gαi/o subunits. Gαi constructs labeled within the helical domain (Gαi-L91-YFP) largely do not dissociate upon activation, yet still activate downstream effectors, suggesting that the dissociation seen in non-modified Gαi/o proteins is not required for downstream signaling. Our results appear to reconcile disparate published data and settle a long running dispute.
Lung irradiation for Ewing's sarcoma with pulmonary metastases at diagnosis: results of the CESS-studies.

BACKGROUND In the German CESS-studies, Ewing's sarcoma patients with pulmonary metastases at diagnosis were considered as candidates for additional bilateral lung irradiation. We have retrospectively analyzed the impact of radiotherapy on survival. MATERIAL AND METHODS Out of 42 patients presenting with pulmonary metastases of Ewing's sarcoma between 1981 and June 1992, 30 were evaluable. One patient died of progressive disease prior to lung irradiation. The other patients had a complete radiographic remission either after chemotherapy (n = 25) or chemotherapy plus resection of lung metastases (n = 4). 22 patients received bilateral lung irradiation with doses of 12 to 21 Gy (once daily 1.5 Gy or twice daily 1.25 Gy), six had no further treatment and one had bone marrow transplantation for consolidation. RESULTS Ten patients are in complete remission, nine of them had received lung irradiation and one had a complete resection of three lung metastases. Two patients are alive with disease, two have died from treatment-related complications and 16 have died from systemic disease with or without local relapse. NED-patients had received significant higher lung doses than relapsed patients p = 0.028. Moreover, a dose-response relationship was detectable: 1/6 patients without lung irradiation vs. 4/10 with 12 to 16 Gy vs. 5/6 with 18 to 21 Gy lung irradiation were in remission. CONCLUSION In this retrospective analysis, lung irradiation was beneficial in terms of improved survival of patients with pulmonary metastases of Ewing's sarcoma. We actually recommend lung irradiation with 18 (to 20) Gy for pulmonary metastases of Ewing's sarcoma.
Considerations on the Finite-Element Simulation of High-Temperature Superconductors for Magnetic Levitation Purposes

A robust and fast numerical course for investigating the magnetic levitation (maglev) performance of high-temperature superconductors (HTSs) is proposed and implemented via finite-element methods (FEMs) in this paper. This numerical course uses the magnetic vector potential as the state variable to establish the partial differential equations (PDEs) for governing the electromagnetic properties of 2-D simplified HTSs, a smoothed Bean-Kim's model of a critical state to describe the nonlinear constitutive law of HTSs, and the advanced algorithm of Jacobian-free Newton-Krylov (JFNK) to handle the nonlinear system of the FEM equation. After being tested, this homemade FEM model was applied to investigate the influence of various FEM parameters, e.g., the dimension of the computational domain, the prescribed tolerance for convergence, the coarseness of the mesh, and the time step, upon the precision of levitation/guidance force on an HTS bulk while moving in a nonuniform field generated by a permanent-magnet track. The most important findings through these studies are that the coarse choice of tolerance can cause the nonphysical phenomena such as the crossings in the force loops, and the numerical results are very robust against the dimension of the computational domain, the coarseness of the mesh, and the time step. Based on these findings, it was found that the time consumed for performing a typical cycle of levitation force calculation is merely a few seconds, making the application of this FEM model for optimizing the HTS maglev system very attractive.
On the Feasibility of Verification of 3D Dosimetry Near Brachytherapy Sources Using PRESAGE/Optical-CT

The feasibility of using the PRESAGE/Optical-CT system for 3D dosimetry verification around a brachytherapy source is investigated. Method and Materials: Brachytherapy dose distributions were obtained by irradiation of cylindrical PRESAGE volumes 6cm in diameter by 8cm height with a GammaMed 12i Ir-192 HDR unit (Varian Medical Systems). A narrow channel on the central axis was created by setting a steel catheter in the Presage during manufacture, enabling measurements close to the source (∼3mm). Results: Comparison of dose line profiles shows good agreement between PRESAGE and verified calculated dose calculation, in both high and low dose regions. Conclusion: The PRESAGE/Optical-CT shows good potential in verification of 3D dose distributions around brachytherapy sources.
Modern phased array radar systems in Germany

Radar technology, predominantly in the area of defence applications, is in a continuous process of extending its capabilities. Particularly, Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radars with their unprecedented degree of operational flexibility are currently about to revolutionise the performance of airborne, naval and ground radars. The current status of phased array radar developed and produced in Germany and the trends in system and technology advances are discussed.
PCR-based screening and lineage identification of Trypanosoma cruzi directly from faecal samples of triatomine bugs from northwestern Argentina

This study applied improved DNA extraction and polymerase chain reaction strategies for screening and identification of Trypanosoma cruzi lineages directly from faeces of triatomines collected in a well-defined rural area in northwestern Argentina. Amplification of the variable regions of the kinetoplastid minicircle genome (kDNA-PCR) was performed in faecal lysates from 33 microscope (MO)-positive and 93 MO-negative Triatoma infestans, 2 MO-positive and 38 MO-negative Triatoma guasayana and 2 MO-positive and 73 MO-negative Triatoma garciabesi. kDNA-PCR detected T. cruzi in 91% MO-positive and 7·5% MO-negative T. infestans, which were confirmed by amplification of the minicircle conserved region. In contrast, kDNA-PCR was negative in all faecal samples from the other triatomine species. A panel of PCR-based genomic markers (intergenic region of spliced-leader DNA, 24Sα and 18S rRNA genes and A10 sequence) was implemented to identify the parasite lineages directly in DNA lysates from faeces and culture isolates from 28 infected specimens. Two were found to be infected with TCI, 24 with TCIIe, 1 with TCIId and 1 revealed a mixed TCI+TCII infection in the faecal sample whose corresponding culture only showed TCII, providing evidence of the advantages of direct typing of biological samples. This study provides an upgrade in the current diagnosis and lineage identification of T. cruzi in field-collected triatomines and shows T. cruziII strains as predominant in the region.
Is inflation a growth killer? Evidence from sub-Saharan Africa

This paper examines the impact of ination on economic growth in Sub-Saharan Africa in order to provide an empirical evidence whether ination hinders or boost economic activities in the region. The paper found that ination exhibits a reducing-growth effect in both short-term and long-term periods using Panel Autoregressive Distributed Lag (PARDL) model. Therefore, the study recommends that African government needs to address the issues of ination especially imported ination in order to stimulate sustainable economic growth in the region. In addition, strengthening political commitment to ensure conducive business environment has to be paramount rather than depending on the traditional model of bring your own infrastructure. Keywords: Ination, Sub-Sahara Africa, Panel Autoregressive Distributed Lag
One-Year Prevalence of Low Back Pain in Two Swiss Regions: Estimates From the Population Participating in the 1992–1993 MONICA Project

Study Design. A cross-sectional survey was performed. Objective. To estimate the extent of low back pain as a public health problem. Summary of Background Data. Health surveys converge on very high estimates of low back pain in general populations, but few studies have included severity criteria in their definition and conclusions. Because it is unlikely that interventions will influence the prevalence of minimal and infrequent symptoms, greater attention should be paid to characteristics of low back pain that indicate some impact on the life of survey respondents. Methods. Two regions participated in the MONICA (MONitoring of trends and determinants in CArdiovascular disease) project in Switzerland. Participants randomly selected from the general population completed a standard self-administered questionnaire on cardiovascular risk factors. A special section on low back pain was added in the third (1992–1993) MONICA survey and completed by 3227 participants. Results. A regional difference found in the 12-month prevalence rate disappeared with the inclusion of severity criteria. Low back pain over more than seven cumulated days was reported among men by 20.2% (age range, 25–34 years) to 28.5% (age range, 65–74 years), respectively, among women by 31.1% to 38.5%. Similar rates of reduction in activity (professional, housekeeping, and leisure time) and medical consultation (conventional and nonconventional) motivated by low back pain characterized the two participating regions. The cumulative duration of pain was related to all the indicators showing the impact of low back pain on everyday life. Conclusions. Determining the cumulative duration of low back pain over the preceding year is a straightforward task, and a cutoff at 1 week seems appropriate for distinguishing between low- and high-impact low back pain.
Telomere Formation by Rap1p Binding Site Arrays Reveals End-Specific Length Regulation Requirements and Active Telomeric Recombination

ABSTRACT Rap1p, the major telomere repeat binding protein in yeast, has been implicated in both de novo telomere formation and telomere length regulation. To characterize the role of Rap1p in these processes in more detail, we studied the generation of telomeres in vivo from linear DNA substrates containing defined arrays of Rap1p binding sites. Consistent with previous work, our results indicate that synthetic Rap1p binding sites within the internal half of a telomeric array are recognized as an integral part of the telomere complex in an orientation-independent manner that is largely insensitive to the precise spacing between adjacent sites. By extending the lengths of these constructs, we found that several different Rap1p site arrays could never be found at the very distal end of a telomere, even when correctly oriented. Instead, these synthetic arrays were always followed by a short (≈100-bp) “cap” of genuine TG repeat sequence, indicating a remarkably strict sequence requirement for an end-specific function(s) of the telomere. Despite this fact, even misoriented Rap1p site arrays promote telomere formation when they are placed at the distal end of a telomere-healing substrate, provided that at least a single correctly oriented site is present within the array. Surprisingly, these heterogeneous arrays of Rap1p binding sites generate telomeres through a RAD52-dependent fusion resolution reaction that results in an inversion of the original array. Our results provide new insights into the nature of telomere end capping and reveal one way by which recombination can resolve a defect in this process.
Study on a detection algorithm for MIMO systems

In this paper, we present a detection algorithm for MIMO system with nonbinary modulation scheme. The proposed method is based on rectangular searching. It restricts the searching area to a certain rectangle when searching the candidate symbols for each symbol. It has considerably reduced computational complexity compared to ML (maximum likelihood) algorithm because only a small part of candidate constellation points are located in the searching rectangle. However, to our surprise, Simulation results show that the BER (bit error rate) performance of the proposed method outperforms the ML (maximum likelihood) algorithm when the SNR is between -10 dB and 15 dB. The reasons responsible for this unusual phenomena are also given.
Functional properties of tumor-infiltrating and blood lymphocytes in patients with solid tumors: effects of tumor cells and their supernatants on proliferative responses of lymphocytes.

Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) were obtained from 22 humans with solid tumors. In three cases only, one colon and two lung carcinomas, TIL which contained from 3 to 10% of T cells expressing the interleukin 2 receptor (IL 2R) were obtained, and these proliferated in the presence of exogenous IL 2. In most TIL preparations, however, the T lymphocytes did not express the IL 2R and failed to proliferate in response to IL 2. In contrast, TIL were able to proliferate in response to irradiated allogeneic spleen cells in mixed lymphocyte culture. Proliferative responses of autologous PBL were not inhibited by the addition of TIL. In most tumors, the TIL showed no response or had significantly lower (p less than 0.01) responses to PHA, Con A, and the phorbol ester TPA than did autologous peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL). A limiting-dilution microculture system which allows clonal growth of every T cell was used to demonstrate decreased responses of the TIL to PHA at a single-cell level. In contrast to normal PBL-T with proliferating frequencies from 0.46 to 1.0, those for T cells in three TIL preparations were zero, 0.005, and 0.01. Normal PBL exposed in vitro to tumor cells or their supernatants lost the ability to respond to mitogens and to clone normally (e.g., proliferating frequency of 0.147 vs 0.863 in control). The TIL isolated from solid tumors resemble normal PBL exposed in vitro to tumor cells or their supernatants in terms of decreased responses to mitogens and poor clonogenicity in the PHA-dependent microculture system. It is possible that tumor cells may inhibit certain functions of the TIL in human solid tumors.
Online state space filtering of biosignals using neural network-augmented Kalman filter

Since its inception, the Kalman filter, which represents the optimal estimator for linear, Gaussian state space models, has been adopted for a wide array of practical applications due to its efficient, recursive formulation. At the same time, the field of nonlinear time series analysis has produced powerful methods for filtering time series with deterministic dynamics. These nonlinear filters differ significantly from linear filters, because they transform the time series via delay embedding and exploiting geometric features in delay space. However, they are not capable of operating recursively like the Kalman filter. In this paper, we propose a state space filter based on the delay embedding principle, but capable of online estimation. This is achieved by formulating the nonlinear delay space filter as a state estimation problem, which can be solved using the extended Kalman filter. In order for this reformulation to work, it is necessary to approximate the dynamics of the time series. For this purpose, we use a feed-forward neural network. By embedding the neural network weights in the Kalman filter state, we are able to simultaneously estimate the hidden dynamics of the time series and perform online state space filtering. We present preliminary performance estimates of our online state space filtering approach obtained from tests with artificial biomedical time series.
Non-carious cervical lesions on permanent anterior teeth: a new morphological classification.

BACKGROUND Various cross-sectional forms of non-carious cervical lesions have been described but no formal morphological classification system has been developed. The aims of this study were to describe the spectrum of common morphological forms of non-carious cervical lesions observed within a large sample of extracted human permanent anterior teeth and to develop a system for classification based on morphological features. METHODS Over 15,000 extracted permanent anterior teeth were examined macroscopically under illumination at 2x magnification. Well-defined, descriptive categories were formed, based on observable non-carious cervical lesion features and using terminology currently reported in the literature. The lesions were then sorted into these categories. RESULTS Five hundred and forty-two non-carious cervical lesions were identified on 15 289 teeth extracted in the early to mid 20th century, representing a frequency of 3.5%. The main categories developed were "shallow", "concave", "wedge-shaped", "notched", and "irregular". CONCLUSIONS The new morphological classification system provides an alternative to presently used systems based on aetiology, and should facilitate future research on non-carious cervical lesions.
Association between C-reactive protein and biomarkers of bone and mineral metabolism in chronic hemodialysis patients: a cross-sectional study.

OBJECTIVE Both chronic inflammation and dysregulation of bone and mineral metabolism are closely related with long-term outcomes of dialysis patients. Our objective was to investigate the relationship between these two abnormalities. DESIGN This was a cross-sectional study. SETTING This study was performed at a hospital-based hemodialysis center. PATIENTS We enrolled 448 (male, 198; female, 250) clinically stable hemodialysis patients. Patients with chronic inflammatory disease, malignancy, or viral hepatitis were excluded. Their age (mean +/- SD) was 57.4 +/- 12.5 years. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Biomarkers, including high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), total calcium, phosphate, and intact parathyroid hormone levels, were measured and compared with the recommended range in the K/DOQI guidelines. Correlations between these parameters were analyzed, and factors independently associated with hsCRP and the calcium phosphate product (Ca x P) were identified by regression analysis. RESULTS Most patients did not achieve the K/DOQI recommended therapeutic range in the four parameters, and only 50 patients (11%) met their treatment goals. The hsCRP level was directly related to calcium, phosphate, and Ca x P. Patients who achieved the guidelines' range had lower hsCRP levels (1.97 mg/L vs. 2.71 mg/L, P < .05). A high hsCRP level (> or = 10 mg/L) was associated with higher calcium, phosphate, and Ca x P levels, and lower albumin levels. Serum albumin, Ca x P, alkaline phosphatase, and diabetes independently predicted hsCRP levels. CONCLUSION There is a strong association between chronic inflammation and the disturbance of bone mineral metabolism in chronic hemodialysis patients.
Carcinosarcoma of the Ovary: Analysis of 13 Cases and Review of the Literature

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate our experience with patients affected by ovarian carcinosarcoma. Patients and Methods: During a 16-year period, data on 13 patients with ovarian carcinosarcoma were collected. They were obtained from hospital charts and follow-up visits. Survival curves were estimated by the Kaplan-Meier method and compared using the log-rank test. All tests were two-tailed with p values <0.05 considered significant. Results: Our study was conducted on 13 patients with ovarian carcinosarcoma referred to our unit, during an observation time of about 16 years (March 1994 to October 2010). An improved survival was observed in patients treated with optimal cytoreductive surgery with residual tumors <2 cm (30 vs. 5 months; p = 0.042). All patients underwent adjuvant chemotherapy based on the combination of cisplatin, epirubicin and ifosfamide (PEI) and taxol and carboplatin (TAX-CBDCA) regimen. Overall survival of the patient population was 17 months. Conclusions: Similarly to data published in the literature, we observed that malignant mixed mullerian ovarian tumors are very aggressive and are usually diagnosed at an advanced age and at an advanced stage of disease. Therefore, due to the rarity of the tumor we would like to add our series to those already published in the literature, although our treatment recommendations are actually based upon retrospective studies with a small patient population.
Introductory Chapter: Global Health Communication - Focused Issues and Challenges

The current art and science of social and behavior change (SBC) has benefited from the many lessons learned and documented over the years from a wide variety of disciplines and approaches—including anthropology, psychology, marketing, communication research, social marketing, and more recently behavioral economics and human-centered design. Over the years, SBC has accumulated a robust body of compelling evidence, consisting of both scientific research, and documented success stories that demonstrate how the tools and approaches of SBC have effectively influenced behavior change in almost every area of public health, as well as related sectors. The many creative products and events that have been developed within the field make it easy for us to see that art and creativity play an important role in SBC. However, the science behind SBC is less visible but has, arguably, been even more important to the field’s success.
A Contextualized Vocabulary Model for identifying technical debt on code comments

The identification of technical debt (TD) is an important step to effectively manage it. In this context, a set of indicators has been used by automated approaches to identify TD items, but some debt may not be directly identified using only metrics collected from the source code. In this work we propose CVM-TD, a model to support the identification of technical debt through code comment analysis. We performed an exploratory study on two large open sources projects with the goal of characterizing the feasibility of the proposed model to support the detection of TD through code comments analysis. The results indicate that (1) developers use the dimensions considered by CVM-TD when writing code comments, (2) CVM-TD provides a vocabulary that may be used to detect TD items, and (3) the proposed model needs to be calibrated in order to reduce the difference between comments returned by the vocabulary and those that may indicate a TD item. Code comments analysis can be used to detect TD in software projects and CVM-TD may support the development team to perform this task.