Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Older Women with Breast Cancer

Abstract Objectives: The primary objective of this exploratory analysis was to assess the prevalence of caregiving among older (60+) newly diagnosed female breast cancer patients and to examine the risk of depression associated with breast cancer, caregiving, and age, at 3 months and 12 months after diagnosis. Methods: Data from interviews conducted for the case-control study, Health and Functioning in Women with Breast Cancer(HFW), were used for this analysis. Interviews were conducted at 3 months and 12 months post-diagnosis. Participants for this analysis were restricted to those who completed both interviews (cases n = 904; controls n = 966). Risk of depression was assessed using a self-reported depression question from the HFW instrument. Results: The multivariate analysis showed that stage of breast cancer was significantly related to depression among older women with breast cancer while controlling for various socio-demographic factors; however, caregiving did not significantly increase the risk for depression for this population. Discussion: A breast cancer diagnosis for women, regardless of age or caregiving status, presented an increased risk of depression at 3 and 12 months post-diagnosis. These and other findings and their implications for social work practice are discussed.
A Singular Value Decomposition approach for Microwave holography imaging of the breast: A feasibility study

In the last two decades, Microwave radar has been proposed as a complimentary technology for breast imaging. Microwave radar images illuminates the breast using an ultra wide band waveforms to form a map of the scatter caused by breast structures in which malignant lesions can potentially be detected. A common problem in Breast Microwave Radar (BMR) is the extraction of the breast structures in experimental datasets. This paper proposes presents some recent results on the use of Singular Value Decomposition for extracting the responses from breast structures on experimental datasets collected anthropomorphic phantoms. The results show that SVD can be used to extract the magnitude and phase information from experimental datasets, and be used to form accurate BMR images.
Closed-Form Expressions for Irradiance from Non-Uniform Lambertian Luminaires Part I : Linearly-Varying Radiant Exitance ∗

We present a closed-form expression for the irradiance at a point on a surface due to an arbitrary polygonal Lambertian luminaire with linearly-varying radiant exitance. The solution consists of elementary functions and a single well-behaved special function that can be either approximated directly or computed exactly in terms of classical special functions such as Clausen's integral or the closely related dilogarithm. We first provide a general boundary integral that applies to all planar luminaires and then derive the closed-form expression that applies to arbitrary polygons, which is the result most relevant for global illumination. Our approach is to express the problem as an integral of a simple class of rational functions over regions of the sphere, and to convert the surface integral to a boundary integral using a generalization of irradiance tensors. The result extends the class of available closed-form expressions for computing direct radiative transfer from finite areas to differential areas. We provide an outline of the derivation, a detailed proof of the resulting formula, and complete pseudo-code of the resulting algorithm. Finally, we demonstrate the validity of our algorithm by comparison with Monte Carlo. While there are direct applications of this work, it is primarily of theoretical interest as it introduces much of the machinery needed to derive closed-form solutions for the general case of luminaires with radiance distributions that vary polynomially in both position and direction.
How cells deploy ubiquitin and autophagy to defend their cytosol from bacterial invasion

Autophagy serves as a cell-autonomous effector mechanism of innate immunity in the cytosol. Autophagy restricts bacterial proliferation by separating bacteria from the nutrient-rich cytosol and delivering them into bactericidal autolysosomes. Autophagy also restricts inflammation by enclosing the membrane remnants of vacuoles from which bacteria have escaped. In contrast to starvation-induced autophagy, which engulfs cytosol nonspecifically, antibacterial autophagy is receptor-mediated and selective. Several distinct pathways of antibacterial autophagy have been identified recently, which can be triggered by either bacterial PAMPs, host-mediated modifications of bacteria-containing vacuoles, or cytosolic bacteria that have become decorated with ubiquitin. Ubiquitin-coated bacteria are sensed by p62, a promiscuous autophagy receptor required for the uptake of a variety of ubiquitin-marked autophagy substrates, and by NDP52, an autophagy receptor that, by associating with the immuno-regulatory kinase TBK1, may serve a dedicated function in cytosolic immunity.
Protein Biotinylation Visualized by a Complex Structure of Biotin Protein Ligase with a Substrate*

Biotin protein ligase (BPL) catalyzes the biotinylation of the biotin carboxyl carrier protein (BCCP) only at a special lysine residue. Here we report the first structure of BPL·BCCP complex crystals, which are prepared using two BPL mutants: R48A and R48A/K111A. From a detailed structural characterization, it is likely that the mutants retain functionality as enzymes but have a reduced activity to produce the reaction intermediate biotinyl-5′-AMP. The observed biotin and partly disordered ATP in the mutant structures may act as a non-reactive analog of the substrates or biotinyl-5′-AMP, thereby providing the complex crystals. The four crystallographically independent BPL·BCCP complexes obtained can be classified structurally into three groups: the formation stages 1 and 2 with apo-BCCP and the product stage with biotinylated holo-BCCP. Residues responsible for the complex formation as well as for the biotinylation reaction have been identified. The C-terminal domain of BPL shows especially large conformational changes to accommodate BCCP, suggesting its functional importance. The formation stage 1 complex shows the closest distance between the carboxyl carbon of biotin and the special lysine of BCCP, suggesting its relevance to the unobserved reaction stage. Interestingly, bound ATP and biotin are also seen in the product stage, indicating that the substrates may be recruited into the product stage complex before the release of holo-BCCP, probably for the next reaction cycle. The existence of formation and product stages before and after the reaction stage would be favorable to ensure both the reaction efficiency and the extreme substrate specificity of the biotinylation reaction.
Effects of fish oil- and olive oil-rich diets on iron metabolism and oxidative stress in the rat

The objective of the present study was to examine the effects of fish oil (FO)- and olive oil (OO)-rich diets on Fe metabolism and oxidative stress. Rats were fed for 16 weeks with diets containing 50 g lipid/g; either OO, maize oil (MO) or FO. OO or MO diets contained a standard amount (100 m/g) of all-rac-α-tocopheryl acetate. FO diets were supplemented with 0, 100 or 200 mg all-rac-α-tocopheryl acetat/g (FO-0, FO-1 or FO-2 diets, respectively). At the end of the feeding period, we measured non-haem Fe stores in liver and spleen, and erythrocyte and reticulocyte count. We also determined antioxidants and products derived from lipid peroxidation in plasma and erythrocytes. Our results showed reduced non-haem Fe stores in rats fed any of the FO diets. Reticulocyte percentage was higher in the rats fed FO-0 and FO-1. Plasma α-tocopherol was very low in rats fed the FO-0 diet. Rats fed the FO-1 and FO-2 diets showed higher α-tocopherol in plasma than the FO-0 group but lower than the MO or OO groups. We did not observe such differences in the α-tocopherol content in erythrocyte membranes. Superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase activities were lower in the erythrocytes of rats fed the FO-0 diet. The products derived from lipid peroxidation were also higher in the FO groups. The administration of FO-rich diets increased lipid peroxidation and affected Fe metabolism. On the other hand, the OO-rich diet did not increase oxidative stress and did not alter Fe metabolism. Based on these results, we conclude that FO supplementation should be advised carefully.
The Accounting Profession: Serving the Public Interest or Capital Interest?

As an integral facet of society, the accounting profession has a role in the State and the corporate sector, and is also expected to serve the public interest. The capacity for the Australian accounting profession to serve the public interest is considered in the context of legislation and the accounting standard setting process. Specific reference is made to the CLERP Act 1999 and ASIC Act 2001. It is argued that the combined effect of these Acts is to legislate bias so that accounting standards privilege the specific needs of holders of capital, that is capital interest. The assumption that capital markets are surrogate for the public interest is contested. Accordingly, if the accounting profession follows national objectives to support capital markets, it may undermine its role in serving society.
A HYPOTHALAMIC DIGOXIN-MEDIATED MODEL FOR AUTISM

The isoprenoid pathway and its metabolites--digoxin, dolichol, and ubiquinon--were assessed in autism. The isoprenoid pathway and digoxin status was also studied for comparison in individuals of differing hemispheric dominance to determine the role of cerebral dominance in the genesis of autism. There was an upregulation of the isoprenoid pathway as evidenced by elevated HMG CoA reductase activity in autism. Digoxin, an endogenous Na+-K+ ATPase inhibitor secreted by the hypothalamus, was found to be elevated and RBC membrane Na+-K+ ATPase activity was found to be reduced in autism. Membrane Na+-K+ ATPase inhibition can result in increased intracellular Ca2+ and reduced magnesium levels. Hypothalamic digoxin can modulate conscious and subliminal perception and its dysfunction may lead to autism. Digoxin can also preferentially upregulate tryptophan transport over tyrosine resulting in increased levels of depolarizing tryptophan catabolites--serotonin, quinolinic acid (NMDA agonist), strychnine (blocks glycinergic inhibitory transmission), and nicotine (promotes dopamine release) and decreased levels of hyperpolarizing tyrosine catabolites--dopamine, noradrenaline, and morphine--contributing to membrane Na+-K+ ATPase inhibition. Increased nicotine levels can produce increased dopaminergic transmission in the presence of low dopamine levels. NMDA excitotoxicity could result from hypomagnesemia induced by membrane Na+K+ ATPase inhibition and quinolinic acid, an NMDA agonist acting on the NMDA receptor. Hypomagnesemia and increased dolichol level can affect glycoconjugate metabolism and membranogenesis leading on to disordered synaptic connectivity in the limbic allocortex and defective presentation of viral antigens and neuronal antigens contributing to autoimmunity and viral persistance important in the pathogenesis. Membrane Na+-K+ ATPase inhibition can produce immune activation, a component of autoimmunity. Mitochondrial dysfunction consequent to altered calcium/magnesium ratios and reduced ubiquinone levels can result in increased free radical generation and reduced free radical scavenging and defective apoptosis leading to abnormal synaptogenesis. Autism can thus be considered a syndrome of hypothalamic digoxin hypersecretion consequent to an upregulated isoprenoid pathway. The biochemical patterns including hyperdigoxinemia observed in autism correlated with those obtained in right hemispheric chemical dominance. Right hemispheric chemical dominance is a predisposing factor for autism
Staphylococcus Efflux msr(A) Gene Characterized in Streptococcus, Enterococcus, Corynebacterium, and Pseudomonas Isolates

ABSTRACT The staphylococcal msr(A) gene, coding for a macrolide efflux protein, was identified in three new gram-positive genera and one gram-negative genus. These msr(A) genes shared 99 to 100% identity with each other and the staphylococcal gene. This study demonstrates that the msr(A) gene has a wider host range than previously reported.
Vestibular dysfunction in childhood schizophrenia.

In this study we have investigated vestibular functioning in schizophrenic children. This area was chosen for several reasons. First, hyporeactivity and paradoxical vestibular reactions were reported in adult schizophrenics by Angyal.5 In commenting on that study, Paul Schilder seemed convinced that organic changes in vestibular functioning were present in some adult
Facing the Challenge: Evaluation of Serious Games / Herausforderung Serious Games: Evaluation von Spielen mit Lerncharakter

Zusammenfassung Diese Arbeit gibt einen Überblick über den aktuellen Forschungsstand im Bereich der Serious Games. Wir behandeln Fragen und Probleme bezüglich des Konzepts von Serious Games - Spiele, die den Anspruch haben, mehr zu sein, als bloße Unterhaltung und Wissen auf spielerische Art und Weise vermitteln möchten. Wir präsentieren Anwendungsgebiete wie Militär, Gesundheit oder Bildung sowie neueste Trends. Zudem werden positive Auswirkungen auf die persönliche Entwicklung des Spielers aufgezeigt. Aufgrund mangelnder empirischer Belege zur Wirksamkeit derartiger Spieler präsentieren wir eine Auswahl vielversprechender Ansätze zur Gestaltung und Evaluation. Zusammenfassend werden mehr wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zur Effektivität von Serious Games benötigt, deren Durchführung bereits zu Beginn des Design- und Entwicklungsprozesses berücksichtigt werden sollte. Summary. This paper gives an overview about the current academic research state of the art in the field of serious games. We illustrate issues concerning the concept of serious games which are games that claim to be more than just entertainment and pursue the serious aim to transfer knowledge in a playful way. We present application areas such as military, health or education and identify new trends within the field. An overview of the positive impacts on the players’ development by playing such games is given as well. As there is still not enough empirical evidence on the effectiveness of serious games we present some promising approaches for the design and assessment of serious games. We conclude that more experimental studies have to be conducted which already have to be considered at the very beginning of the design process.
Culture , Economics , and Cross-National Variation in the Founding and Social Outreach of Microfinance Organizations

Microfinance is widely hailed as a sustainable approach to global poverty reduction, particularly among women who are over-represented among the world’s poor and often lack access to traditional labor markets and financial instruments. In this regard, evidence suggests that microfinance positively affects women’s empowerment, social capital, and economic conditions. However, there is considerable cross-national variance in the prevalence of microfinance organizations as well as in their commitment to women’s lending, the underlying causes of which are not well understood. The few studies which have examined these issues offer economic explanations, promoting neoliberal economic reform as a catalyst for entrepreneurial activity; an approach that is also favored by development agencies such as The World Bank. We argue that this approach is limited, however, because it fails to take into account the status of women as microfinance clients. Combining insights from organizational sociology and culturalinstitutional perspectives on gender inequality, we suggest that patriarchy will suppress the founding of microfinance organizations as well as their outreach to women. We further argue that while neoliberal economic policies may help address the patriarchal barriers to microfinance organization foundings, they will likely amplify its suppression of women’s lending. (192 Words)
Role of maternal diet and mode of infant feeding in prevention of atopic dermatitis in high risk infants

Ever since the first description of atopic eczema mentioned in the introduction of this supplement, we have come a long way towards understanding its clinical characteristics, contributing and precipitating factors, diagnosis, and management. It is clear that hereditary predisposition is an important underlying factor. In addition, both dietary and environmental allergens may initiate the disorder and contribute to its persistence. The heavy burden of atopic illness in terms of physical and emotional costs has led to attempts at prevention. It is clear that exclusive breast feeding affords partial protection. However, the undoubted occurrence of serious atopic disease even among the exclusively breast-fed infants has prompted us to postulate that sensitization to food antigens may occur in utero as well as via breast milk after birth (1). In view ol these considerations, we have conducted several studies to evaluate the role of maternal diet during pregnancy and lactation.
Constructing a speech banana for Thai consonants: Some considerations for male and female voices

“Speech banana” is a banana-shaped plot of speech power distribution. It shows speech sounds spoken with normal loudness in terms of frequency and intensity level. Speech bananas have been mainly proposed for Indo-European languages. This work describes an ongoing work of constructing a speech banana for Thai, a Non-Indo-European language. Speech materials are taken from 11 Thais (males and females). Comparisons are carried out to examine if there is any difference in speech power distribution of 21 consonants from male and female voices. The findings show statistically significant differences in terms of level of intensity for 13 phonemes (//, //, //, //, //, //, //, //, //, //, /, /, /) and in terms of frequency for // only. It is suggested that significant acoustic differences associated with male and female voices should be incorporated in representation of speech banana.
Control and Experiment of AC/AC Sparse Modular Multilevel Converter

The sparse modular multilevel converter (MMC) is a new type of high-voltage ac/ac MMC topology suitable for high-power applications. It is based on an alternative configuration of half/full-bridge submodules, and voltage unfolder stages on each side of the converter. This topology has fewer components compared to conventional approaches and as an additional benefit, more than half of the switches operate under the soft switching condition. A comprehensive control strategy is proposed to ensure capacitor voltage balancing while exploiting the full power capability of the converter. A modified unfolder is also suggested to eliminate the inherent zero-crossing circulating current. The effectiveness of the proposed control strategy is confirmed by simulation and experimental results.
HIN-200 Proteins Regulate Caspase Activation in Response to Foreign Cytoplasmic DNA

The mammalian innate immune system is activated by foreign nucleic acids. Detection of double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) in the cytoplasm triggers characteristic antiviral responses and macrophage cell death. Cytoplasmic dsDNA rapidly activated caspase 3 and caspase 1 in bone marrow–derived macrophages. We identified the HIN-200 family member and candidate lupus susceptibility factor, p202, as a dsDNA binding protein that bound stably and rapidly to transfected DNA. Knockdown studies showed p202 to be an inhibitor of DNA-induced caspase activation. Conversely, the related pyrin domain–containing HIN-200 factor, AIM2 (p210), was required for caspase activation by cytoplasmic dsDNA. This work indicates that HIN-200 proteins can act as pattern recognition receptors mediating responses to cytoplasmic dsDNA.
Computational consequences and partial solutions of a generalized unification problem

A generalization of first-order unification, called semiunification, is studied with two goals in mind: (1) type-checking functional programs relative to an improved polymorphic type discipline; and (2) deciding the typability of terms in a restricted form of the polymorphic lambda -calculus. <<ETX>>
Endogenous opioids and sexual motivation and performance during the light phase of the diurnal cycle.

The sexual motivation and performance of sexually experienced male rats were tested during the light phase of the diurnal cycle after treatment with saline or 1 mg.kg-1 naloxone in a bilevel testing box. The sexual motivation during the light phase, as assessed by the increase in anticipatory level changes prior to introduction of a receptive female on subsequent weekly sessions, was comparable to that during the dark phase. Opioid blockade reduced the increase of level changes, suggesting that endogenous opioids are involved in sexual motivation. The sexual performance was impaired during the light phase. Naloxone treatment failed to affect the sexual performance, other than that the post ejaculatory refractory period was increased. This increased latency to re-initiate copulation may be an expression of the reduced sexual motivation. It is concluded that endogenous opioids are not involved in the regulation of the impaired sexual performance during the light phase of the diurnal cycle. In contrast, the sexual motivation, which displays no marked diurnal variation, may be stimulated by endogenous opioids.
Understanding effective treatments of myofascial trigger points

Abstract This article considers specific treatment approaches and the role of etiological mechanisms in terms of clinical feature characteristics of MTrPs: increased muscle tension, pain and tenderness, painful stretch range of motion, initiating causes of MTrPs. Final sections note additional treatments that are currently used, and summarize the etiological and clinical distinctions between MTrPs and fibromyalgia.
Formation control and obstacle avoidance for multi-agent systems with dynamic topology

This paper presents the distributed formation control of a multi-agent systems with first- and second-order dynamics. The proposed control algorithms are based on the virtual leaders approach. The modifications of the base controls which ensures that agents avoid collisions and obstacles are considered in this paper. Specific rules that allow each agent to calculate the virtual leaders' position and the priority of each leader are suggested. The formation topology is chosen by the agents dynamically depending on the number of neighbouring agents, only local information is used by the agents. Obstacle avoidance is implemented with the help of potential repulsive function. Based on the developed discrete-time algorithm, solution for maintaining formation and avoiding collisions and obstacles while moving towards the target point, is proposed. Simulation results are presented, indicating capabilities of the algorithms.
Assessing Compliance with Peritoneal Dialysis

efficacy and on how well the patient adheres to the suggested regimen. Noncompliance often results in a poor outcome. In medical terms, compliance has been defined as "the extent to which a person's behavior (taking medications, following diets, or executing lifestyle changes) coincides with medical or health advice" (1). Compliance is an important issue in patients with endstage renal disease (ESRD), and the literature stresses noncompliance as a potentially serious problem for such patients. This is not surprising considering that patients must make significant lifestyle changes, adhere to fluid and dietary restrictions, remember to take numerous medications, and perform a time consuming and fairly regimented dialysis schedule. Accordingly, for a dialysis patient, such cooperation has been divided into three domains: compliance with the dialysis prescription, with medication, and with diet.