Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry-based body volume measurement for 4-compartment body composition.

BACKGROUND Total body volume (TBV), with the exclusion of internal air voids, is necessary to quantify body composition in Lohman's 4-compartment (4C) model. OBJECTIVE This investigation sought to derive a novel, TBV measure with the use of only dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) attenuation values for use in Lohman's 4C body composition model. DESIGN Pixel-specific masses and volumes were calculated from low- and high-energy attenuation values with the use of first principle conversions of mass attenuation coefficients. Pixel masses and volumes were summed to derive body mass and total body volume. As proof of concept, 11 participants were recruited to have 4C measures taken: DXA, air-displacement plethysmography (ADP), and total body water (TBW). TBV measures with the use of only DXA (DXA-volume) and ADP-volume measures were compared for each participant. To see how body composition estimates were affected by these 2 methods, we used Lohman's 4C model to quantify percentage fat measures for each participant and compared them with conventional DXA measures. RESULTS DXA-volume and ADP-volume measures were highly correlated (R(2) = 0.99) and showed no statistically significant bias. Percentage fat by DXA volume was highly correlated with ADP-volume percentage fat measures and DXA software-reported percentage fat measures (R(2) = 0.96 and R(2) = 0.98, respectively) but were slightly biased. CONCLUSIONS A novel method to calculate TBV with the use of a clinical DXA system was developed, compared against ADP as proof of principle, and used in Lohman's 4C body composition model. The DXA-volume approach eliminates many of the inherent inaccuracies associated with displacement measures for volume and, if validated in larger groups of participants, would simplify the acquisition of 4C body composition to a single DXA scan and TBW measure.
Role of dopamine in the secretory function of corpus luteum in cattle.

To investigate the role of dopamine (DA) in the secretion of progesterone and ovarian oxytocin (OT) in cattle in vivo and in vitro studies were performed. Luteal slices (middle stage of the luteal phase) were incubated-with five different amounts of DA (10(-3)-10(-7) M) and after 1, 2 and 4 h medium was collected for the progesterone and OT determination. The only 10(-5) M of DA enhanced OT medium concentrations (P < 0.05-0.001) and this response increased within duration of the incubation. The same dose of DA affected (P < 0.05-0.001) progesterone release during the incubation period. Next we wanted to study whether this mechanism will operate in conscious cattle. Mature heifers had cannulae inserted into the aorta abdominalis through the coccygeal artery for local infusion of saline or drugs, and into the jugular vein and the cava vena caudalis for the blood sample collection. In Experiment 2 six heifers on days 10-12 of the cycle received in Latin square design DA (8.4 micrograms/kg/min) for 2h, and they were pre-treated for 2 h with saline or for 1 h with droperidol (DROP; 1 microgram/kg/min) or with 4 micrograms/kg/min of beta-blocker, propranolol (PROP). DA increased (P < 0.05) OT plasma concentrations in all groups but secretion of progesterone was not changed (P > 0.05). DA decreased prolactin concentrations if pre-infused with saline and PROP and DROP diminished this effect of DA. Data suggest that DA affected OT release from both pituitary and from the ovary. Hence in Experiment 3 we wanted to elucidate whether DA caused those effects itself of after its conversion to the noradrenaline (NA). DA was given in six heifers as in Experiment 2 and blood samples were taken simultaneously from the vena cava and from the jugular vein. Within a few minutes from the start of DA infusion, large amount of DOPAC was measured by HPLC in blood. Next NA increase (P < 0.01) was observed in both veins but it was always higher (P < 0.05) in the vena cava. However, OT concentration in blood samples from both veins was not different (P > 0.05). Data indicate that DA can stimulate the secretory function of CL in cyclic heifers supposedly after its conversion to NA.
Nicotine gates long‐term potentiation in the hippocampal CA1 region via the activation of α2* nicotinic ACh receptors

Hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cells receive two major excitatory synaptic inputs via the Schaffer collateral (SC) and temporoammonic (TA) pathways. Nicotine promotes induction of long‐term potentiation (LTP) in the SC path; however, it is not known whether the modulatory effect of nicotine on LTP induction is pathway‐specific. Here we show that nicotine suppresses LTP induction in the TA path. Interestingly, these opposing effects of nicotine were absent or greatly reduced in α2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR)‐knockout (KO) mice, suggesting that an α2‐containing nAChR subtype mediates these effects. Optical imaging with a voltage‐sensitive dye revealed significantly stronger membrane depolarization in the presence of nicotine in the SC path, facilitating spread of excitatory neural activity along both the somatodendritic and the CA1 proximodistal axes. These effects of nicotine were also absent in α2 nAChR‐KO mice, suggesting that the enhanced optical signal is related to the nicotine‐induced facilitation of LTP induction. In contrast, in the TA path nicotine terminated depolarization more quickly and increased the delayed hyperpolarization in the termination zone of the TA path input. These inhibitory effects of nicotine were absent in α2 nAChR‐KO mice and, thus, most probably underlie the nicotine‐induced suppression of LTP induction. Our results suggest that nicotine influences the local balance between excitation and inhibition, gates LTP, and directs information flow through the hippocampal circuits via the activation of α2* nAChRs. These effects of nicotine may represent the cellular basis of nicotine‐mediated cognitive enhancement.
The Relative Importance of Metacognitive Skills, Emotional Status, and Executive Function in Psychosocial Adjustment Following Acquired Brain Injury

ObjectivesTo examine the interrelationships between metacognitive skills and measures of emotional status and executive function following acquired brain injury (ABI), and examine their relative importance to psychosocial outcomes. DesignA cross-sectional multicentre study employing correlational and multiple regression analyses. ParticipantsSixty-seven adults with ABI living in the community, on average 4.4 years (SD = 4.7) postinjury. MeasuresSydney Psychosocial Reintegration Scale, Self-Awareness of Deficits Interview, Self-Regulation Skills Interview, Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale, Beck Hopelessness Scale, and standardized measures of executive function. ResultsMetacognitive skills correlated with level of hopelessness and executive measures of idea generation and error self-regulation. The best predictor of psychosocial outcome was depressive symptoms, with specific outcomes additionally related to error self-regulation and intellectual awareness. ConclusionsThe findings highlight the need to evaluate interventions targeting depression and metacognitive skills to improve psychosocial outcomes.
Glucocorticoids reduce cardiac dysfunction after cardiopulmonary bypass and circulatory arrest in neonatal piglets

Objective The hypotheses were that glucocorticoid administration could improve ventricular recovery by reducing cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB)-induced inflammatory response and that presurgical administration might be more effective than intraoperative dosing. Design Animal case study. Subjects Crossbred piglets (5–7 kg). Interventions Piglets were cooled with CPB, followed by 120 mins of deep hypothermic circulatory arrest (DHCA). Animals were rewarmed to 38°C, removed from CPB, and maintained for 120 mins. Methylprednisolone (60 mg/kg) was administered in the CPB pump prime (intraoperative glucocorticoid [intraop GC]) or 6 hrs before CPB (30 mg/kg) in addition to the intraoperative dose (30 mg/kg; pre- and intraop GC). Controls (no GC) received saline. Measurements and Main Results In no GC, left ventricle (LV) positive change in pressure in time (+dP/dt) (mm Hg/sec) had a mean ± sd of 1555 ± 194 at baseline vs. 958 ± 463 at 120 mins after CPB, p = . 01). LV +dP/dt was maintained in glucocorticoid-treated animals (1262 ± 229 at baseline vs. 1212 ± 386 in intraop GC and 1471 ± 118 vs. 1393 ± 374 in pre- and intraop GC). Glucocorticoids reduced myocardial interleukin-6 messenger RNA expression, measured by ribonuclease protection assay, at 120 mins after CPB compared with animals receiving saline (p < .05), although interleukin-6 plasma and LV protein concentrations were not affected. Interleukin-10 myocardial protein concentrations were elevated after CPB-DHCA with higher concentrations in glucocorticoid-treated animals (p < .05). Glucocorticoid treatment maintained myocardial concentrations of the inhibitor of nuclear factor-&kgr;B in the cytosol and decreased nuclear factor-&kgr;B concentrations detected in the nucleus in a DNA/protein interaction array. Conclusions Glucocorticoids improved recovery of LV systolic function in neonatal animals undergoing CPB-DHCA. Animals receiving glucocorticoids before CPB had better postoperative oxygen delivery than those receiving only intraoperative treatment. Maintenance of cardiac function after glucocorticoids might be due, in part, to alterations in the balance of pro- and anti-inflammatory proteins, possibly through nuclear factor-&kgr;B-dependent pathways.
Degradation of the Herbicide Mecoprop [2-(2-Methyl-4-Chlorophenoxy)Propionic Acid] by a Synergistic Microbial Community

A microbial community isolated from wheat root systems was capable of growth on mecoprop as the sole carbon and energy source. When exposed to fresh herbicide additions, the community was able to shorten the lag phase from 30 days to less than 24 h. The community comprised two Pseudomonas species, an Alcaligenes species, a Flavobacterium species, and Acinetobacter calcoaceticus. None of the pure cultures was capable of growing on mecoprop. Certain combinations of two or more community constituents were required before growth commenced. The mecoprop-degrading community could also degrade 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid and 2-methyl-4-chlorophenoxyacetic acid but not 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid.
Applications of Dynamic Susceptibility Contrast Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Neuropsychiatry

Functional neuroimaging has assumed an important role in the cognitive and clinical neurosciences. Recently, substantial progress has been made toward developing functional magnetic resonance imaging techniques for the examination of cerebral hemodynamic changes that accompany brain function and toward earlier and better diagnosis of brain disease. Dynamic susceptibility contrast (DSC) MRI offers unique information about cerebral hemodynamics both at rest and in response to brain activation. We review the clinical applications of DSC MRI and present our experience with this modality in the evaluation of patients with neuropsychiatric disorders. Our experience suggests that DSC MRI may afford new insights into the diagnosis and treatment of cognitive disorders.
Melatonin synthesis in rice seedlings in vivo is enhanced at high temperatures and under dark conditions due to increased serotonin N‐acetyltransferase and N‐acetylserotonin methyltransferase activities

Temperature and light are important environmental factors for plant growth and development. The final two enzymes in the melatonin synthesis pathway in plants are serotonin N‐acetyltransferase (SNAT) and N‐acetylserotonin methyltransferase (ASMT), which have thermophilic characteristics. Thus, the effects of temperature and light on melatonin synthesis in rice seedlings were investigated. Here, we demonstrated that melatonin levels increased as temperature increased when rice seedlings were exposed to various temperatures for 1 hr. Moreover, the relative melatonin levels were higher in the dark. For example, exposure of rice seedlings to 1‐hr darkness at 55°C resulted in a melatonin yield of 4.9 ng/g fresh weight (fw), compared with 2.95 ng/g fw under light conditions. Temperature‐dependent melatonin synthesis was closely associated with an increase in both SNAT and ASMT activities, but not with transcript levels of melatonin biosynthetic genes. The daily melatonin levels in field‐grown rice plants were unaffected as the positive effect of the relatively high temperature during the day was counteracted by the negative effect of the high light. The opposite effect occurred during the night, in which the positive effect of darkness on melatonin synthesis was counteracted by the negative effect of a low temperature.
Clinal variation in post‐winter male fertility retention; an adaptive overwintering strategy in Drosophila melanogaster

In insects including Drosophila melanogaster, females can overwinter at the adult stage by adopting a shallow reproductive diapause, but almost nothing is known about male reproductive diapause. In this study, we test for the maintenance of fertility in overwintering males from the eastern Australian D. melanogaster cline. Males from southern temperate populations maintained in field cages in temperate Melbourne had a higher fertility in spring compared with males from tropical locations. Temperate males successfully inseminated more females, and there were also more offspring produced per inseminated female. The resulting linear post‐winter fertility clines were unrelated to male body size. In contrast, there was no clinal variation for fertility in nonoverwintering males held in the laboratory. The cline in overwintering male fertility is likely to have evolved as an adaptive response to latitudinal climatic variation over the last 100 years.
A method to establish the relationship between chronological age and stage of union from radiographic assessment of epiphyseal fusion at the knee: an Irish population study

Characteristic changes during epiphyseal union provide a skeletal age, which when compared with age‐based standards provides an estimation of chronological age. Currently there are no data on epiphyseal union for the purposes of age estimation specific to an Irish population. This cross‐sectional study aims to investigate the relationship between stage of epiphyseal union at the knee joint and chronological age in a modern Irish population. A novel radiographic method that sub‐divides the continuum of development into five specific stages of union is presented. Anteroposterior and lateral knee radiographs of 148 males and 86 females, aged 9–19 years, were examined. Fusion was scored as Stage 0, non‐union; Stage 1, beginning union; Stage 2, active union; Stage 3, recent union; or Stage 4, complete union. Stage of epiphyseal union is correlated with chronological age in both males and females. Mean age gradually increases with each stage of union and also varies between male and female subjects. A statistically significant difference in mean age was recorded between stages when compared to the previous stage, for the three epiphyses. Irish children are comparable to those from previously published studies with epiphyseal union in females occurring earlier than males. A significant difference was noted between the mean age of union for males and females for each of Stages 1 and 2 for the femur and Stages 0, 1, 2 and 3 for the tibia and the fibula. The results also suggest that the stages of union occur at earlier ages in this Irish population. Implementation of standardized methodology is necessary to investigate if this is due to a secular or population variation in maturation or to a methodology which clearly identifies five stages of union.
Development and validation of a sensitive UHPLC-MS/MS method for the simultaneous analysis of tramadol, dextromethorphan chlorpheniramine and their major metabolites in human plasma in forensic context: application to pharmacokinetics.

The prerequisites for forensic confirmatory analysis by LC/MS/MS with respect to European Union guidelines are chromatographic separation, a minimum number of two MS/MS transitions to obtain the required identification points and predefined thresholds for the variability of the relative intensities of the MS/MS transitions (MRM transitions) in samples and reference standards. In the present study, a fast, sensitive and robust method to quantify tramadol, chlorpheniramine, dextromethorphan and their major metabolites, O-desmethyltramadol, dsmethyl-chlorpheniramine and dextrophan, respectively, in human plasma using ibuprofen as internal standard (IS) is described. The analytes and the IS were extracted from plasma by a liquid-liquid extraction method using ethyl acetate-diethyl-ether (1:1). Extracted samples were analyzed by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (UHPLC-ESI-MS/MS). Chromatographic separation was performed by pumping the mobile phase containing acetonitrile, water and formic acid (89.2:11.7:0.1) for 2.0 min at a flow rate of 0.25 μL/min into a Hypersil-Gold C18 column, 20 × 2.0 mm (1.9 µm) from Thermoscientific, New York, USA. The calibration curve was linear for the six analytes. The intraday precision (RSD) and accuracy (RE) of the method were 3-9.8 and -1.7-4.5%, respectively. The analytical procedure herein described was used to assess the pharmacokinetics of the analytes in 24 healthy volunteers after a single oral dose containing 50 mg of tramadol hydrochloride, 3 mg chlorpheniramine maleate and 15 mg of dextromethorphan hydrobromide.
Parallel approximation algorithms for minimum routing cost spanning tree

With the popularity of internet, more and more data is transferred in the network. With the enormous information, the network bandwidth is still a bottleneck. The internet must provide high quality of service to ensure that the information can be transferred fluently. There are some common factors that can affect the quality of services, such as delay time, building cost, routing cost, loss probability, and bandwidth. Estimation of some factors, such as building cost, can be solved in polynomial time, but the estimations of other factors, such as finding the minimum routing cost spanning tree MRCT, are NP-hard problems. In this paper, we focus on improving two MRCT approximation algorithms 2 and 15/8 approximation with parallel-computing methods and obtain the impressive experiment results with reduced calculation time.
A Review of Energy Conservation in Wireless Sensor Networks

In wireless sensor networks, energy efficiency plays a major role to determine the lifetime of the network. The network is usually powered by a battery which is hard to recharge. Hence, one major challenge in wireless sensor networks is the issue of how to extend the lifetime of sensors to improve the efficiency. In order to reduce the rate at which the network consumes energy, researchers have come up with energy conservation techniques, schemes and protocols to solve the problem. This paper presents a brief overview of wireless sensor networks, outlines some causes of its energy loss and some energy conservation schemes based on existing techniques used in solving the problem of power management. Keywords: Wireless sensor network, Energy conservation, Duty cycling and Energy efficiency.
SISO and MIMO channel estimation and symbol detection using data-dependent superimposed training

We address the problem of frequency-selective channel estimation and symbol detection using superimposed training. Both single and multiple antenna systems are studied. The superimposed training consists of the sum of a known sequence and a data-dependent sequence unknown to the receiver. The data-dependent sequence cancels the effects of the unknown data on channel estimation. The performance of the proposed approach is shown to outperform significantly existing methods based on superimposed training.
Functional Network Changes in Hippocampal CA1 after Status Epilepticus Predict Spatial Memory Deficits in Rats

Status epilepticus (SE) is a common neurological emergency, which has been associated with subsequent cognitive impairments. Neuronal death in hippocampal CA1 is thought to be an important mechanism of these impairments. However, it is also possible that functional interactions between surviving neurons are important. In this study we recorded in vivo single-unit activity in the CA1 hippocampal region of rats while they performed a spatial memory task. From these data we constructed functional networks describing pyramidal cell interactions. To build the networks, we used maximum entropy algorithms previously applied only to in vitro data. We show that several months following SE pyramidal neurons display excessive neuronal synchrony and less neuronal reactivation during rest compared with those in healthy controls. Both effects predict rat performance in a spatial memory task. These results provide a physiological mechanism for SE-induced cognitive impairment and highlight the importance of the systems-level perspective in investigating spatial cognition.
Etudes de nouvelles techniques d'estimation et d'égalisation de canal adaptées au systéme SC-FDMA. (New estimation and channel equalization techniques studies adapted to SC-FDMA system)

Le SC-FDMA " Single-Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Acces ", est une technique d'acces multiple a repartition frequentielle, permettant d'allouer efficacement aux differents mobiles, les ressources de communication. Cette technique a suscite un interet particulier lors des conventions de normalisation du standard 3GPP LTE " Long Term Evolution ". Le regain de consideration pour cette technique, est lie au fait qu'elle engendre des signaux temporels a faible variation d'amplitude caracterisee par un faible PAPR ou " Peak to Average Power Ratio ". Cet avantage majeur, rend possible l'utilisation de l'amplificateur de puissance du systeme dans sa zone proche du point de compression, maximisant ainsi son rendement sans toutefois risquer l'apparition des distorsions. C'est pourquoi, ce systeme a ete adopte dans la norme 3GPP LTE comme technique d'acces multiple pour la voix montante. Cependant, dans les specifications du 3GPP LTE un symbole sur sept est systematiquement reserve pour l'estimation de canal sur toutes les porteuses du systeme engendrant ainsi une reduction importante du debit utile du signal transmis. L'objectif de cette these est de proposer des techniques d'estimation et d'egalisation de canal adaptees pour le SC-FDMA afin d'eviter tant que possible cette perte de debit. Nous avons pu analyser, quelques techniques d'egalisation comme celle basee sur des references fantomes, mais egalement quelques techniques d'estimation de canal comme celle basee sur un " Ajout de Signal "dans la bande passante du signal utile.
Real-World Vehicle Emissions: A Summary of the Sixteenth Coordinating Research Council On-Road Vehicle Emissions Workshop

Abstract The Coordinating Research Council held its 16th workshop in March 2006, with 83 presentations describing the most recent mobile source-related emissions research. In this paper, we summarize the presentations from researchers who are engaged in improving our understanding of the contribution of mobile sources to air quality. Participants in the workshop discussed evaluation of inuse emissions control programs, effects of fuels on emissions, emission models and emission inventories, results from gas- and particle-phase emissions studies from spark-ignition and diesel-powered vehicles, and efforts to improve our capabilities in performing on-board emissions measurements, as well as topics for future research.