Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Paternal influence on the time of first embryonic cleavage post insemination and the implications for subsequent bovine embryo development in vitro and fertility in vivo

The objectives of this study were: (1) to evaluate the effect of sire on the time from insemination to first cleavage following insemination in vitro and the relationship of this parameter to field fertility and (2) to establish the relationship between the kinetics of cleavage in vitro and oocyte developmental competence for bulls of known field fertility. Frozen semen from six bulls with 150‐day non‐return rates ranging from 57–78% was used. In experiment 1, after insemination with semen from one of the six bulls, presumptive zygotes were transferred to IVC in droplets of synthetic oviduct fluid. Droplets were examined at 24, 27, 30, 33, 36, 42, and 48 hr after insemination and the number of cleaved oocytes was recorded. Blastocyst yield was recorded on Days 6‐, 7‐, and 8‐post insemination. In experiment 2, culture droplets were examined at 30, 36, and 48 hr after insemination. At each time point, the number of cleaved embryos was recorded and these embryos were transferred into new droplets and were cultured separately for the duration of the experiment. The proportion of embryos developing to the blastocyst stage was recorded for each of the groups for each bull. The best predictor of field fertility was a model containing 33‐hpi‐cleavage percentage only (r = 0.689, P < 0.0001). There was also a significant correlation between blastocyst yield and non‐return rate, with Day 7 blastocyst yield having the highest correlation (r = 0.356), although this was relatively low in comparison. In experiment 2, irrespective of sire, a significantly higher proportion of those early‐cleaving oocytes (before 30 hpi) developed to blastocysts than those cleaving later. In most cases, a higher proportion of blastocysts derived from early‐cleaving oocytes hatched from the zona pellucida suggesting that such blastocysts are of superior quality to those derived from late‐cleaving oocytes. In conclusion these data confirm our earlier observations that earliest cleaving zygotes are more competent in terms of development to the blastocyst stage than those that cleave later. This phenomenon is independent of the sire used. However, we have demonstrated that the kinetics of early embryonic development as measured by the timing of the first cleavage division post insemination vary between different bulls and that these differences can be used to discriminate between bulls of high and low bull field fertility. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 60: 47–55, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
nOSGi: a posix-compliant native OSGi framework

Ubiquitous computing aims at dynamically supporting users in everyday life with applications on mobile and embedded devices in the surroundings. Component frameworks, such as OSGi, ease the dynamic management of such application software. Yet, OSGi focuses on Java, while many mobile devices only support native languages with reasonable performance. Furthermore, Java may increase the costs for devices, and even small additional costs are a relevant factor for mass-market production. This paper presents nOSGi, the first native OSGi implementation. Our C++ prototype implements the features of the OSGi R4 specification and runs without any modifications on standard POSIX systems with support for ELF binaries. It provides the core functionality of the OSGi module, life cycle and service layer in a native C++ environment. We measured considerable improvements of performance and memory consumption in comparison to common Java OSGi frameworks. Successful tests on various platforms, such as x86, x64, Sun SPARC and ARM demonstrate the portability of nOSGi.
Disaster mental health preparedness in the community: A systematic review study

The objective of this study was to perform a systematic review of articles that cover aspects of disaster mental health preparedness. This assessment was done by a thorough review and summary of the available studies which provided a considerable background and amplified the gaps in knowledge about community mental health preparedness. By this systematic review, we tried to identify available concept of community mental health preparedness and related tools that communities and individuals will need to prepare for natural disasters. We found there is a lack of mental health preparedness in the majority of countries; valid and reliable tools and context-bound programs should be developed based on the experiences and perceptions of the community.
INDUCTION OF DIRECT AND INDIRECT SINGLE‐STRAND BREAKS IN HUMAN CELL DNA BY FAR‐ AND NEAR‐ULTRAVIOLET RADIATIONS: ACTION SPECTRUM AND MECHANISMS

Abstract— An action spectrum for the immediate induction in DNA of single‐strand breaks (SSBs, frank breaks plus alkali‐labile sites) in human P3 teratoma cells in culture by monochromatic 254‐, 270‐, 290‐, 313‐, 334‐, 365‐, and 405‐nm radiation is described. The cells were held at +0.5d̀C during irradiation and were Iysed immediately for alkaline sedimentation analysis following the irradiation treatments. Linear fluence responses were observed over the fluence ranges studied for all energies. Irradiation of the cells in a D2O environment (compared with the normal H2O environment) did not alter the rate of induction of SSBs by 290‐nm radiation, whereas the D2O environment enhanced the induction of SSBs by 365‐ and 405‐nm irradiation. Analysis of the relative efficiencies for the induction of SSBs, corrected for quantum efficiency and cellular shielding, revealed a spectrum that coincided closely with nucleic acid absorption below 313 nm. At longer wavelengths, the plot of relative efficiency vs. wavelength contained a minor shoulder in the same wavelength region as that observed in a previously obtained action spectrum for stationary phase Bacillus subtilis cells. Far‐UV radiation induced few breaks relative to pyrimidine dimers, whereas in the near‐UV region of radiation, SSBs account for a significant proportion of the lesions relative to dimers, with a maximum number of SSBs per lethal event occurring at 365‐nm radiation.
Human Computer Interface by Gaze Estimation -With Eyetouch System

Eye Touch is an extension to the development of human-computer interface systems. It is one of the light-reflection-based eye tracking systems which is implemented by placing IR LEDs and IR sensors around an eyeglasses frame which provide moderately accurate estimation of the point of gaze with less computational power. Based on the physical implementation of Eye Touch, the sensor measurements are utilized in low-computational least-square algorithms to estimate arbitrary gaze directions. The system also utilizes an effective pattern classification algorithm to be able to perform left, right, and double clicks based on respective eye winks with significantly high accuracy by employing a robust custom microcontroller based data acquisition system.
A compact low-loss Ka-band filter using 3-dimensional micromachined integrated coax

This paper presents a novel low-loss (1.74 dB) 3-pole Butterworth distributed filter operating in the Ka-band with a center frequency of 29 GHz. The filter has a compact 6 mm square footprint and is designed using 3-dimensional (3D) micromachined integrated coax. The integrated coax transmission lines are made of forty-one nickel layers and fabricated using a selective electrochemical metal deposition process (EFAB/spl trade/). Full-wave simulations of the filter using Ansoft HFSS show very good agreement on insertion loss compared with measured results. Using the EFAB/spl trade/, we have been able to produce low-loss, all-metal, completely shielded transmission lines with small bend radii and no inter-line coupling.
RHYTHM-BASED REGULATION / MODIFICATION OF MOVEMENTS IN HIGH-PERFORMANCE ROWING AND NEUROLOGIC REHABILITATION

Research over the past two decades has revealed a rich physiological connection between the auditory and motor system across a variety of cortical, subcortical, and spinal levels. Entrainment accrues due to the fast and precise processing of temporal information in the auditory system. Results in high performance sports and neurologic rehabilitation showed significantly improved movementexecution and stabilized temporal motor control with provided external acoustic information due to rhythm-based auditorymotor-synchronization.
Phospholipase C (heat-labile hemolysin) of Pseudomonas aeruginosa: purification and preliminary characterization

Phospholipase C (heat-labile hemolysin) was purified from Pseudomonas aeruginosa culture supernatants to near homogeneity by ammonium sulfate precipitation followed by a novel application of DEAE-Sephacel chromatography. Enzymatic activity remained associated with DEAE-Sephacel even in the presence of 1 M NaCl, but was eluted with a linear gradient of 0 to 5% tetradecyltrimethylammonium bromide. Elution from DEAE-Sephacel was also obtained with 2% lysophosphatidylcholine, and to a lesser extent with 2% phosphorylcholine, but not at all with choline. The enzyme was highly active toward phospholipids possessing substituted ammonium groups (e.g., phosphatidycholine, lysophosphatidylcholine, and sphingomyelin); however, it had little if any activity toward phospholipids lacking substituted ammonium groups (e.g., phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylserine, and phosphaditylglycerol). Collectively, these data suggest that phospholipase C from P. aeruginosa exhibits high affinity for substituted ammonium groups, but requires an additional hydrophobic moiety for optimum binding. The specific activity of the purified enzyme preparation increased 1,900-fold compared with that of culture supernatants. The molecular weight of the phospholipase C was estimated to be 78,000 by both sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and Sephacryl S-200 column chromatography and was 76,000 by high-performance size exclusion chromatography. The isoelectric point was 5.5. Amino acid analysis showed that phospholipase C was rich in glycine, serine, threonine, aspartyl, glutamyl, and aromatic amino acids, but was cystine free.
Effect of a nonavalent conjugate vaccine on carriage of antibiotic-resistant Streptococcus pneumoniae in day-care centers

Background. In the developed societies, day-care centers (DCCs) play an important role in the spread of antibiotic-resistant pneumococci both within the facility and from the facility to the community. This study was conducted to determine the effect of a nonavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV-9) on the carriage of antibiotic-resistant pneumococci in the DCC. Subjects and methods. Healthy DCC attendees ages 12 to 35 months were randomized to receive either PCV-9 or a control vaccine (conjugate meningococcus C vaccine) in a double blinded manner. Nasopharyngeal Streptococcus pneumoniae cultures were obtained from each subject before vaccination, monthly during the first year of follow-up and every 2 to 3 months during the second year of follow-up. For each isolate the serotype and antibiotic susceptibility were determined Results. A total of 132 and 130 evaluable toddlers received either PCV-9 or the control vaccine, respectively. In total 3748 cultures were obtained, of which 2450 (65%) were positive for S. pneumoniae. The resistance rates to penicillin, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole and erythromycin were 36, 35 and 16%, respectively. Resistance rates to ≥1 and ≥3 antibiotic categories were 52 and 9%, respectively. Antibiotic resistance was found mainly in the 5 serotypes included in the pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (6B, 9V, 14, 19F and 23F) and in 2 related serotypes (6A and 19A). In the vaccinated group a clear and significant reduction of the carriage rate of the serotypes included in the vaccine and the related serotype 6A as well as an increase in the carriage rate of the serotypes not included in the vaccine were observed. In parallel a significant decrease in carriage rate of antibiotic-resistant pneumococci was observed. The reduction of carriage of antibiotic-resistant pneumococci was seen in all age windows but was greater in the age window <36 months. Conclusions. The carriage rate of antibiotic-resistant S. pneumoniae, including multiply resistant S. pneumoniae, in DCC attendees is high. Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines seem to be an important tool for reducing the carriage rate of antibiotic-resistant pneumonia in DCCs.
Preference for conspecifics evolves earlier in males than females in a sexually dimorphic radiation of fishes

Speciation by sexual selection is generally modeled as the coevolution of female preferences and elaborate male ornaments leading to behavioral (sexual) reproductive isolation. One prediction of these models is that female preference for conspecific males should evolve earlier than male preference for conspecific females in sexually dimorphic species with male ornaments. We tested that prediction in darters, a diverse group of freshwater fishes with sexually dimorphic ornamentation. Focusing on the earliest stages of divergence, we tested preference for conspecific mates in males and females of seven closely related species pairs. Contrary to expectation, male preference for conspecific females was significantly greater than female preference for conspecific males. Males in four of the 14 species significantly preferred conspecific females; whereas, females in no species significantly preferred conspecific males. Relationships between the strength of preference for conspecifics and genetic distance revealed no difference in slope between males and females, but a significant difference in intercept, also suggesting that male preference evolves earlier than females’. Our results are consistent with other recent studies in darters and suggest that the coevolution of female preferences and male ornaments may not best explain the earliest stages of behavioral isolation in this lineage.
Commentary on 'Prebiotics, immune function, infection and inflammation: a review of the evidence'.

There is a growing awareness that the gut microbiota and an appropriately functioning immune system play an important role in maintaining human health. Recent population statistics have highlighted some worrying trends, specifically that there is a growing burden of immunological disease in Western populations, that Western populations are ageing, and that obesity, with its strong inflammatory component, is reaching epidemic proportions.
Agreement between Rapid Onsite and Final Cytologic Interpretations of EUS-guided FNA Specimens: Implications for the Endosonographer and Patient Management

BACKGROUND:The practice of onsite cytology interpretation varies across endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) programs in the Untied States and Europe. The value, reliability, and agreement of rapid onsite evaluation (ROSE) compared with final interpretation and its impact on patient management remain largely unknown. We compared agreement between ROSE of EUS-FNA (endoscopic ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration) specimens with final cytology interpretation and their respective operating characteristics.METHODS:We prospectively evaluated consecutive EUS-FNA specimens obtained by a single endosonographer in the presence of an attending cytopathologist (July 2000–November 2002). The “agreement” between ROSE and final cytology interpretation was assessed by the “kappa” statistic. The frequency and possible reasons for discrepancy between ROSE and final cytologic interpretation were determined.RESULTS:A total of 540 patients (median age 63 yr, 77% white) underwent EUS-FNAs of 656 lesions. These included lymph nodes (LNs, N = 248), solid pancreatic masses (SPMs, N = 229), cystic pancreatic masses (CPM, N = 57), mural lesions (41), bile duct/gallbladder (N = 28), liver (N = 17), mediastinum/lung (N = 17), adrenal (N = 15), spleen (N = 3), and kidney (N = 1). Data were available for onsite evaluation in 607 lesions. Intitial cytology was benign (N = 243), atypical (N = 23), suspicious (24), malignant (300), and indeterminate (N = 17). Out of the 243 benign lesions interpreted by onsite evaluation, five lesions (2.1%) were upgraded to be malignant or suspicious for malignancy on final cytology report. Of the 300 lesions initially reported malignant on ROSE, 294 (98%) remained malignant on the final cytology. There was an excellent agreement between ROSE and final cytologic evaluation (kappa = 84.0%, 95% CI 80.2–87.7), Compared with the true final status, accuracy for final interpretation was slightly higher than for ROSE but was not statistically significant (95.8% vs 93.9%). Scant cellularity remained the most frequent reason for discrepancy, accounting for 21 of 51 discrepancies (41%). Other reasons for discrepancy included: cases requiring an intradepartmental consultation (22%), cases requiring ancillary studies (12%), intra-observer variability (10%), and challenging diagnosis (10%). In three cases, (6%) we were unable to determine the possible reason for discrepancy.CONCLUSION:ROSE of EUS-FNA specimens is highly accurate compared with final cytologic evaluation. Because the diagnosis of malignancy rarely changes, informing our patients and their families and our referring physicians of a cancer diagnosis significantly reduces physician work load and expedites patient management. The majority of discrepancies are related to the nature of the lesion either because it sheds few cells, has challenging morphology, and/or requires additional ancillary studies.
Risikoteilung durch Crowdfunding-Vorverkäufe

Mochte ein Unternehmensgrunder ein neues Produkt entwickeln und verkaufen, so sind ex ante fur gewohnlich die Qualitat des neuen Produktes und die zukunftigen Einzahlungen aus den Verkaufserlosen unsicher, der Grunder ist also einem finanziellen Risiko ausgesetzt. Mittels eines Vorverkaufs-Crowdfundings ist es dem Grunder moglich, sein Produkt bereits vor der Entwicklung einem grosen Publikum zum Vorverkauf anzubieten. Solche Vorverkaufe sind damit unabhangig von der erst ex post bekannten, realisierten Qualitat des Produktes und damit sind die gesamten Verkaufserlose weniger unsicher. Der vorliegende Beitrag betrachtet in einem Modell, unter welchen Umstanden Konsumenten an einem Vorverkaufs-Crowdfunding teilnehmen, und analysiert die Auswirkungen solcher Vorverkaufe auf die unsicheren Einzahlungen aus den Verkaufserlosen. Es wird aufgezeigt, wie es durch Crowdfunding-Vorverkaufe zu einer Risikoteilung zwischen dem Unternehmensgrunder und den Konsumenten kommen kann und welchen Einfluss dabei ein Vorverkaufsrabatt auf den Umfang der Vorverkaufe und das Ausmas der Risikoteilung hat.
Organotypic Raft Cultures as an Effective In Vitro Tool for Understanding Raman Spectral Analysis of Tissue ¶

There is a growing body of evidence showing that optical spectroscopy has the potential to be a useful in vivo diagnostic tool. Yet, so far there is no definitive cellular and biochemical understanding for the differences seen in the spectra from different tissue categories and disease states. In this study, we examine the use of organotypic raft cultures as an in vitro model of in vivo tissue conditions in an attempt to overcome some of the limitations of previously used methods. Organotypic raft cultures resembling normal and dysplastic epithelial cervical tissue were constructed and grown at an air–liquid interface for 2 weeks. Raman spectra of normal as well as dysplastic raft cultures were measured and compared with in vivo spectra from the corresponding tissue type. Histologic comparisons ensured that the raft cultures had similar structure and morphology to the corresponding intact tissue types. Raman spectra were also acquired from different layers of tissue. Spectral comparisons show that the Raman spectra of the raft cultures are similar to the spectra acquired from the cervix in vivo for both normal and dysplastic tissues. These results show that organotypic raft cultures are an effective and useful tool for the cellular and biochemical analysis of tissue spectroscopy.
Management of the Low Cardiac Output Syndrome Following Surgery for Congenital Heart Disease

The purpose of this review is to discuss the management of the low cardiac output syndrome (LCOS) following surgery for congenital heart disease. The LCOS is a well-recognized, frequent post-operative complication with an accepted collection of hemodynamic and physiologic aberrations. Approximately 25% of children experience a decrease in cardiac index of less than 2 L/min/m2 within 6-18 hours after cardiac surgery. Post-operative strategies that may be used to manage patients as risk for or in a state of low cardiac output include the use of hemodynamic monitoring, enabling a timely and accurate assessment of cardiovascular function and tissue oxygenation; optimization of ventricular loading conditions; the judicious use of inotropic agents; an appreciation of and the utilization of positive pressure ventilation for circulatory support; and, in some circumstances, mechanical circulatory support. All interventions and strategies should culminate in improving the relationship between oxygen supply and demand, ensuring adequate tissue oxygenation.
Lymphodepletion and Homeostatic Proliferation: Implications for Transplantation

Control of the alloimmune response requires elimination and/or suppression of alloreactive immune cells. Lymphodepleting induction therapies are increasingly used to accomplish this goal, both as part of tolerance induction protocols or to reduce the requirements for maintenance immunosuppression in the peritransplant setting. However, it is well recognized that lymphopenia induces compensatory proliferation of immune cells, generally termed ``homeostatic proliferation,'' which favors the emergence of memory T cells. Paradoxically therefore, the result may be a situation that favors graft rejection and/or makes tolerance difficult to achieve or sustain. Yet all depletion is not alike, particularly with respect to the timing of reconstitution and the types of cells that repopulate the host. Thus, to design more effective induction strategies it is important to understand the homeostatic mechanisms, which exist to maintain a balanced repertoire of naïve and memory T and B cells in the periphery and how they respond to lymphodepletion. Here we will review the biology of homeostatic proliferation stimulated by lymphopenia, the effects of specific depleting agents on reconstitution of the T‐ and B‐cell immune repertoire, drawing from both from animal models and human experience, and potential strategies to enhance allodepletion while minimizing the adverse effects of homeostatic proliferation.
Maximum Efficiency Beam Synthesis of Radiating Planar Arrays for Wireless Power Transmission

The synthesis of radiating planar arrays for wireless power transmission (WPT) is discussed. The objective is the maximization of the ratio between the power radiated on a target area and the total transmitted power. The optimal tapering is analytically found as the solution of a generalized eigenvalue problem whose descriptive matrices are either computed in closed-form or obtained through numerical integration depending on the problem geometry. A set of representative numerical results concerned with different transmitting apertures and target areas is presented.
Expression of cyclo‐oxygenase‐2 in gastrointestinal carcinoid tumors

Background: Cyclo‐oxygenase (COX)‐2 overexpression is observed in various neoplasms and COX‐2 inhibition has been attempted as prevention and/or therapy in these neoplasms. Carcinoid tumors are thought to arise from neuroendocrine cells and originate mainly in the gastrointestinal tract. Cyclo‐oxygenase‐2 is reportedly expressed in neuroendocrine cells of normal colorectal mucosa. The role of COX in carcinoids has not previously been investigated. The aim of the present paper was to clarify the expression of COX‐1 and ‐2, and their role in human gastrointestinal carcinoids.