Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Topographic Patterns in Refractive Surgery Candidates

Purpose: To evaluate the prevalence of different topographic patterns in refractive surgery candidates and to estimate the extent of candidate rejection based on topography alone. Methods: We performed a retrospective evaluation of videokeratographies of previously unoperated refractive surgery candidates. The defined topographic patterns of their corneas and the indices computed by the videokeratographer software were registered. The data were evaluated by SPSS/PC statistical software. Results: One hundred candidate electronic topography records were evaluated. The candidates included 41 women and 59 men whose average age was 32 years (range 17.5–63.5). Their topographic patterns were: spherical (36/200 evaluated eyes), spherocylindrical (60), upper steep (32), lower steep (43), irregular astigmatism (9), decentered (3), suspected keratoconus (11), and probable keratoconus (6 eyes). Rejection from undergoing the procedure was based on topography alone in 27 of the 200 eyes. It was difficult to decide what to do with the 43 eyes with a lower steep pattern, and they were eventually rejected. Of the nine software-calculated indices, only one, “keratoconus index,” could distinguish between the spherocylindrical and the lower steep patterns. Conclusions: More than one-half of corneal topographies of refractive surgery candidates did not comply with the assumed “normal” spherical or spherocylindrical patterns. The possible continuum of keratoconus-suspected keratoconus–lower steep pattern raises the question of where to draw the line between reasonable and risky when considering corneal refractive surgery.
Exhalation immediately before inhalation optimizes dry powder inhaler use

Abstract Objective: Although exhalation immediately prior to inhalation (EPI) from dry powder inhalers (DPIs) is universally advised, its benefit has not been investigated. The objective of this study to assess the effects of EPI on inhaled flow from a DPI. Methods: We measured peak inhaled flow rate (PIFR) and inhaled gas volume of 25 volunteers unfamiliar with DPIs. They inhaled strongly and deeply through a flow meter either with or without EPI before and after connecting Turbuhaler® or Diskus®. Results: Median PIFR increased significantly with EPI both without connection to DPIs (178.8 versus 140.4 L min−1), and with connection to Diskus® (75.6 versus 67.8 L min−1), or to Turbuhaler® (51.0 versus 48.0 L min−1). As a result, the number of subjects whose PIFR exceeded 60 L min−1 was significantly increased with connection to either Diskus® (76 versus 64%) or to Turbuhaler® (24 versus 4%). EPI significantly increased median inhaled volume both without connection to DPIs (2.84 versus 1.84 L), and with connection to Diskus® (1.95 versus 1.66 L), or to Turbuhaler® (1.86 versus 1.28 L). EPI significantly increased F0.2 (flow at 0.2 s after onset of inhalation) and AC30 (flow acceleration at 30 L min−1), parameters representing the rate of flow increase during the early phase of inhalation, in all the three groups. Conclusions: EPI increases PIFR which may augment drug dispersion and facilitate fine particle generation from a DPI.
Global trends in wildfire and its impacts: perceptions versus realities in a changing world

Wildfire has been an important process affecting the Earth's surface and atmosphere for over 350 million years and human societies have coexisted with fire since their emergence. Yet many consider wildfire as an accelerating problem, with widely held perceptions both in the media and scientific papers of increasing fire occurrence, severity and resulting losses. However, important exceptions aside, the quantitative evidence available does not support these perceived overall trends. Instead, global area burned appears to have overall declined over past decades, and there is increasing evidence that there is less fire in the global landscape today than centuries ago. Regarding fire severity, limited data are available. For the western USA, they indicate little change overall, and also that area burned at high severity has overall declined compared to pre-European settlement. Direct fatalities from fire and economic losses also show no clear trends over the past three decades. Trends in indirect impacts, such as health problems from smoke or disruption to social functioning, remain insufficiently quantified to be examined. Global predictions for increased fire under a warming climate highlight the already urgent need for a more sustainable coexistence with fire. The data evaluation presented here aims to contribute to this by reducing misconceptions and facilitating a more informed understanding of the realities of global fire. This article is part of themed issue ‘The interaction of fire and mankind’.
Relationship between physical activity level and psychosocial and socioeconomic factors and issues in children and adolescents with asthma: a scoping review

Background Asthma is a heterogeneous chronic airway disease which may reduce capability for physical activity. In healthy peers, physical activity is influenced by psychosocial and socioeconomic factors. Knowledge about the role of these factors has not been mapped in children and adolescents with asthma. Objective The main objective of this scoping review was to identify psychosocial and socioeconomic factors associated with physical activity level in children and adolescents with asthma in the literature. The specific objectives were to map the instruments used to measure these factors, report on the construction and validation of these instruments, map psychosocial and socioeconomic issues related to physical activity level reported in qualitative studies, and identify gaps in knowledge about the relationship between psychosocial and socioeconomic factors and physical activity level in children and adolescents with asthma. Inclusion criteria Types of participants Children and adolescents with asthma aged six to 18 years. Concept Psychosocial and socioeconomic factors related to physical activity level and participation. Context All physical activity contexts. Types of sources Quantitative and qualitative primary studies in English, with no date limit. Search strategy The databases searched included nine major databases for health and sports science, and five databases for unpublished studies. After screening and identification of studies, the reference lists of all identified reports were searched, and forward citation searches were conducted using four databases. Extraction of the results The following data were extracted: (a) relevant study characteristics and assessment of physical activity level, (b) instruments used to assess psychosocial and socioeconomic factors, (c) association between physical activity level and these factors, (d) construction and validation of instruments, and (e) psychosocial and socioeconomic issues related to physical activity participation. Presentation of the results Twenty-one quantitative and 13 qualitative studies were included. In cross-sectional studies, enjoyment, physical self-concept, self-efficacy, attitudes and beliefs about physical activity and health, psychological distress, health-related quality of life, and social support were more often reported as being correlated with physical activity level. In three studies, the construct validity was assessed by factor analysis and construct reliability tests for the study population. Qualitative studies reported 10 issues related to physical activity participation, and capability and being like peers were most commonly reported. There was no direct evidence that qualitative research informed the development or adjustment of instruments in quantitative studies. Conclusions Seven psychosocial factors correlated with physical activity level; capability and being like peers were the most commonly reported issues. Reports of the construction and validation of instruments were sparse.
Operons and the effect of genome redundancy in deciphering functional relationships using phylogenetic profiles

Phylogenetic profiles (PPs) are one of the most promising methods for predicting functional relationships by genomic context. The idea behind PPs is that if the products of two genes have a functional interdependence, the genes should both be either present or absent across genomes. One of the main problems with PPs is that evolutionarily close organisms tend to share a higher number of genes resulting in the overscoring of PP‐relatedness. The proper measure of the overscoring effect of evolutionary redundancy requires examples of both functionally related genes (positive gold standards) and functionally unrelated genes (negative gold standards). Since experimentally verified functional interactions are only available for a few model organisms, there is a need for an alternative to gold standards. The presence of operons (polycistronic transcription units formed of functionally related genes) in prokaryotic genomes offers such an alternative. Genes in operons are located next to each other in the same DNA strand, and thus their presence should result in a higher proportion of predicted functional interactions among adjacent genes in the same strand than among adjacent genes in opposite strands. Under the preceding principle, we present a confidence value (CV) designed for evaluating predictions of functional interactions obtained using PPs. We first show that the CV corresponds to a positive predictive value calculated using experimentally known operons and further validate operon predictions based on this CV in other organisms using available microarray data. Then, we use a fixed CV of 0.90 as a reference to compare PP predictions obtained using different nonredundant genome datasets filtered at varying thresholds of genomic similarity. Our results demonstrate that nonredundant genome datasets increase the number of high‐quality predictions by an average of 20%. Confidence values as those presented here should help compare other strategies and scoring systems to use phylogenetic profiles and other genomic context methods for predicting functional interactions. Proteins 2008. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
A reconfigurable WSN node based on ISO/IEC/IEEE 21451 standard

Ubiquitous and plug-and-play are fundamental characteristics in the development of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). The ISO/IEC/IEEE 21451 standard has proven its interest in this development, making easier the introduction of both characteristics in the design of wireless sensor nodes. Re-configurability is a new subject that is gaining importance in the development of embedded systems and wireless sensor nodes in the last few years. Sensors re-configurability capability increases the scalability and heterogeneity abilities of sensor nodes. However, previous developed frameworks and standards do not support the implementation of these capabilities into novel wireless sensor nodes. This paper presents an ISO/IEC/IEEE 21451 based node architecture for WSN nodes that support the management of reconfigurable devices. The node is implemented in an Environmental Sensor Network to validate its interest and utility.
Fish intake during pregnancy or infancy and allergic outcomes in children: A systematic review and meta‐analysis

It has been suggested that n‐3 long‐chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n‐3 LC‐PUFAs) have anti‐inflammatory properties and may reduce the risk of allergic disease. Fish is a great source of n‐3 LC‐PUFAs. However, the effect of fish on allergic disease remains controversial. PubMed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched for randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and prospective cohort studies regarding the effect of fish intake during pregnancy or infancy on allergic outcomes in children. The outcomes of interest were atopy, eczema, allergic rhinitis, wheeze, asthma, and food allergy. One RCT and 17 publications from 13 prospective cohort studies were included for maternal fish intake during pregnancy, and eight publications from five prospective cohort studies for fish intake in infancy. Pooled analysis suggested that maternal fish intake during pregnancy was not associated with lower risk of any allergic outcome, both in RCT and observational studies. Consumption of fish during the first year of life reduced the risk of eczema (RR 0.61; 95% CI 0.47, 0.80; p = 0.0003; I2 = 68%) and allergic rhinitis (RR 0.54; 95% CI 0.36, 0.81; p = 0.003; I2 = 74%). Current evidence indicates that fish intake in infancy could reduce the risk of eczema and allergic rhinitis in children, whereas maternal fish intake during pregnancy does not affect any atopic outcome. The intake of fish per se in infancy, not specially n‐3 LC‐PUFAs, may have an allergy protective effect. High‐quality and adequately powered RCTs are warranted to confirm this.
Whales Before Whaling in the North Atlantic

It is well known that hunting dramatically reduced all baleen whale populations, yet reliable estimates of former whale abundances are elusive. Based on coalescent models for mitochondrial DNA sequence variation, the genetic diversity of North Atlantic whales suggests population sizes of approximately 240,000 humpback, 360,000 fin, and 265,000 minke whales. Estimates for fin and humpback whales are far greater than those previously calculated for prewhaling populations and 6 to 20 times higher than present-day population estimates. Such discrepancies suggest the need for a quantitative reevaluation of historical whale populations and a fundamental revision in our conception of the natural state of the oceans.
Frontiers of mutagenesis and DNA repair: a workshop.

The Chemical Pathology Study Section, Center for Scientific Review, NIH hosted a 1-day workshop in Ventura, California, in the winter of 2003. There were 32 invited participants including invited speakers. The workshop consisted of three sessions and focused on recent developments in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of mutagenesis and DNA repair, namely, error-prone DNA polymerases, DNA repair models and DNA repair networks.
Orally disintegrating and oral standard olanzapine tablets similarly elevate the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance index and plasma triglyceride levels in 12 healthy men: a randomized crossover study.

OBJECTIVE Treatment with olanzapine is associated with obesity, diabetes mellitus, and dyslipidemia. Reports have indicated that orally disintegrating tablets (ODT) cause less weight gain than oral standard tablets (OST). The aim of this study was to compare the effect of short-term treatment with these 2 distinct olanzapine formulations on glucose and lipid metabolism in healthy men. METHOD Twelve healthy men (mean ± SEM age: 25.1 ± 5.5 years) received olanzapine ODT (10 mg od, 8 days), olanzapine OST (10 mg od, 8 days), or no intervention in a randomized crossover design. At breakfast and dinner, glucose, insulin, free fatty acids (FFA), and triglyceride concentrations were measured at 10-minute intervals from 30 minutes prior to 2 hours after ingestion of standard meals. Leptin and adiponectin concentrations were measured at 20- and 30-minute intervals, respectively, between 0000h-1200h. Physical activity was assessed with an accelerometer. Fuel oxidation was measured in fasting condition by indirect calorimetry. The study was conducted from April 2006 through September 2006. RESULTS Treatment with olanzapine ODT and OST equally elevated the homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) (P = .005). At breakfast, both formulations equally increased fasting and postprandial triglyceride concentrations (P = .013 and P = .005, respectively) while decreasing fasting and postprandial FFA concentrations (P = .004 and P = .009, respectively). Body weight, body composition, physical activity, or fuel oxidation did not differ between treatment modalities. CONCLUSIONS Eight days of treatment with both olanzapine formulations similarly increased HOMA-IR and triglyceride concentrations and decreased FFA concentrations in response to standard meals without affecting anthropometrics or physical activity. These data suggest that olanzapine hampers insulin action via mechanistic routes other than body adiposity or physical inactivity. TRIAL REGISTRATION controlled-trials.com. Identifier: ISRCTN17632637.
The Impact of Haptic Feedback Quality on the Performance of Teleoperated Assembly Tasks

In teleoperation, haptic feedback allows the human operator to touch the remote environment. Yet, it is only partially understood to what extent the quality of haptic feedback contributes to human-in-the-loop task performance. This paper presents a human factors experiment in which teleoperated task performance and control effort are assessed for a typical (dis-)assembly task in a hard-to-hard environment, well known to the operator. Subjects are provided with four levels of haptic feedback quality: no haptic feedback, low-frequency haptic feedback, combined low- and high-frequency haptic feedback, and the best possible-a natural spectrum of haptic feedback in a direct-controlled equivalent of the task. Four generalized fundamental subtasks are identified, namely: 1) free-space movement, 2) contact transition, 3) constrained translational, and 4) constrained rotational tasks. The results show that overall task performance and control effort are primarily improved by providing low-frequency haptic feedback (specifically by improvements in constrained translational and constrained rotational tasks), while further haptic feedback quality improvements yield only marginal performance increases and control effort decreases, even if a full natural spectrum of haptic feedback is provided.
Religious and Sacred Imperatives in Human Conflict

Religion, in promoting outlandish beliefs and costly rituals, increases ingroup trust but also may increase mistrust and conflict with outgroups. Moralizing gods emerged over the last few millennia, enabling large-scale cooperation, and sociopolitical conquest even without war. Whether for cooperation or conflict, sacred values, like devotion to God or a collective cause, signal group identity and operate as moral imperatives that inspire nonrational exertions independent of likely outcomes. In conflict situations, otherwise mundane sociopolitical preferences may become sacred values, acquiring immunity to material incentives. Sacred values sustain intractable conflicts that defy “business-like” negotiation, but also provide surprising opportunities for resolution.
Isolate PM1 populations are dominant and novel methyl tert-butyl ether-degrading bacterial in compost biofilter enrichments.

The gasoline additive MTBE, methyl tert-butyl ether, is a widespread and persistent groundwater contaminant. MTBE undergoes rapid mineralization as the sole carbon and energy source of bacterial strain PM1, isolated from an enrichment culture of compost biofilter material. In this report, we describe the results of microbial community DNA profiling to assess the relative dominance of isolate PM1 and other bacterial strains cultured from the compost enrichment. Three polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based profiling approaches were evaluated: denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis of 230 bp 16S rDNA fragments; thermal gradient gel electrophoresis (TGGE) analysis of 575 bp 16S rDNA fragments; and non-denaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of 300-1,500 bp fragments containing 16S/23S ribosomal intergenic transcribed spacer (ITS) regions. Whereas all three DNA profiling approaches indicated that PM1-like bands predominated in mixtures from MTBE-grown enrichments, ITS profiling provided the most abundant and specific sequence data to confirm strain PM1's presence in the enrichment. Moreover, ITS profiling did not produce non-specific PCR products that were observed with T/DGGE. A further advantage of ITS community profiling over other methods requiring restriction digestion (e.g. terminal restriction fragment length polymorphisms) was that it did not require an additional digestion step or the use of automated sequencing equipment. ITS bands, excised from similar locations in profiles of the enrichment and PM1 pure culture, were 99.9% identical across 750 16S rDNA positions and 100% identical across 691 spacer positions. BLAST comparisons of nearly full-length 16S rDNA sequences showed 96% similarity between isolate PM1 and representatives of at least four different genera in the Leptothrix subgroup of the beta-Proteobacteria (Aquabacterium, Leptothrix, Rubrivivax and Ideonella). Maximum likelihood and parsimony analyses of 1,249 nucleotide positions supported isolate PM1's position in a separate lineage within the Leptothrix subgroup.
Control of photoreceptor autophagy after retinal detachment: the switch from survival to death.

PURPOSE To examine whether calpain inhibition following retinal detachment would prolong autophagy and result in reduced photoreceptor apoptosis. METHODS Retinal detachments were created in Brown-Norway rats by subretinal injection of 1% hyaluronic acid and simulated in vitro by Fas-receptor activation of 661W cells, a cone cell line. Protein levels of LC3 and autophagy-related gene 5 (Atg5), both of which are involved in the creation of the autophagosome, were assayed by Western blot. Calpain 1, the protease responsible for Atg5 cleavage and transitioning photoreceptors from autophagy to apoptosis, activity was monitored by α-spectrin cleavage. Various calpain inhibitors were added either to the subretinal space or cell culture media. Apoptosis was assessed in vitro by caspase-8 activity assays and in vivo via TUNEL assays. Cell counts were assessed in vivo at 2 months following detachment. RESULTS Following retinal detachment or Fas-receptor activation of 661W cells, there was an increase in Atg5 and LC3-II that peaked at 3 days and decreased by 7-days postdetachment. Calpain 1 activity level peaked at 7 days and was associated with decreased autophagy. Calpain inhibition led to increased autophagy, a decrease in caspase-8 activation, reduced TUNEL-positive photoreceptors, and increased photoreceptor cell survival. CONCLUSIONS Our data suggest that calpain activation, which peaks at 7-days postdetachment, is a key step in triggering photoreceptors to shift from cell survival to death. Prolonging autophagy through calpain inhibition leads to significantly reduced photoreceptor apoptosis and increased cell survival.