Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hydroxyurea Therapy for Pediatric Patients With Hemoglobin SC Disease

Purpose Hydroxyurea (HU) has laboratory and clinical efficacy in hemoglobin SS (HbSS) disease, but its benefits in hemoglobin SC (HbSC) disease are unknown. A recent adult HbSC disease pilot trial with HU therapy documented a modest laboratory benefit. Our goal was to evaluate the laboratory and clinical responses of selected pediatric patients with severe HbSC disease to HU therapy. Patients and Methods As part of a retrospective case series, patients were selected from the Duke Pediatric Sickle Cell Program based on the frequency and severity of their vasoocclusive events or an episode of acute chest syndrome. Oral HU therapy was started as a single daily dose and increased to the maximally tolerated dose based on myelosuppression. Laboratory evaluation was performed at baseline and monthly thereafter. Once the maximum tolerated dose was reached, laboratory data were monitored bimonthly. Results We treated six severely affected pediatric HbSC patients with HU for a median of 27 months. Mean corpuscular volume increased significantly (+26 fL) without change in hemoglobin concentration (−0.1 g/dL); neutrophils decreased significantly. Percentage of fetal hemoglobin (+8.5%) and percentage of F cells (+35.7%) increased significantly. Two experienced only mild and reversible toxicity. Conclusion The laboratory responses in our pediatric patients with HbSC disease were striking, with increases in percentage of fetal hemoglobin and percentage of F-cells approaching responses observed in adult and pediatric patients with HbSS disease. All patients improved clinically. Our findings demonstrate that HU therapy benefits pediatric patients with severe HbSC disease, although larger clinical trials of HU therapy in HbSC disease are warranted.
Simple solutions to false-positive staphylococcal enterotoxin assays with seafood tested with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit (TECRA)

The TECRA kit, a commercial staphylococcal enterotoxin visual immunoassay kit, is an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay system which utilizes polyvalent antisera against staphylococcal enterotoxin types A to E. The test is simple and rapid to perform (4 h) and has therefore been widely used for screening purposes. In this study, the TECRA kit produced a number of false-positive reactions with seafood; 25% of 218 samples of seven types of seafood gave false-positive results, particularly shellfish such as mussels (85%), clams (32%), oysters (23%), winkles (20%), and squid (13%). Some nonshellfish samples also gave false-positive results with the TECRA kit (smelt [20%] and trout [10%]). The substance contributing to the false-positive results differed from true staphylococcal enterotoxins in that it was: (i) heat labile, being completely inactivated by heating for 3 min at 70 degrees C, compared with 5% inactivation of true staphylococcal enterotoxins by the same heat treatment, (ii) in a selective reaction with normal rabbit or calf serum (nonspecific reactions were completely abolished by these sera, whereas staphylococcal enterotoxins were not affected), and (iii) incapable of binding to a copper-chelate Sepharose gel (all of the substance remained in the unbound wash fraction, whereas staphylococcal enterotoxins were quantitatively bound to the gel). The false-positive reactions occurring with seafood were not associated with substances produced by microorganisms, since the bacterial isolates from the samples did not give positive results with the TECRA kit. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Signaling by the tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily in B‐cell biology and disease

Summary: Members of the tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily (TNFRSF) participate prominently in B‐cell maturation and function. In particular, B‐cell activating factor belonging to the TNF family receptor (BAFF‐R), B‐cell maturation antigen (BCMA), and transmembrane activator and calcium modulator and cyclophilin ligand interactor (TACI) play critical roles in promoting B‐cell survival at distinct stages of development by engaging a proliferation‐inducing ligand (APRIL) and/or BAFF. CD40 is also essential for directing the humoral response to T‐cell‐dependent antigens. Signaling by the TNFRSF is mediated primarily, albeit not exclusively, via the TNFR‐associated factor (TRAF) proteins and activation of the canonical and/or non‐canonical nuclear factor‐κB (NF‐κB) pathways. Dysregulated signaling by TNFRSF members can promote B‐cell survival and proliferation, causing autoimmunity and neoplasia. In this review, we present a current understanding of the functions of and distinctions between APRIL/BAFF signaling by their respective receptors expressed on particular B‐cell subsets. These findings are compared and contrasted with CD40 signaling, which employs similar signaling conduits to achieve distinct cellular outcomes in the context of the germinal center response. We also underscore how new findings and conceptual insights into TNFRSF signaling are facilitating the understanding of B‐cell malignancies and autoimmune diseases.
Metabolomic profiling as a useful tool for diagnosis and treatment of chronic disease: focus on obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases

There have been considerable improvements in therapeutics for chronic diseases. However, the maximum benefit of these or other options are hard to achieve in practice, due in part to the difficulties associated with determining optimal targets for such interventions. Recent developments have suggested that understanding changes in metabolite profiles will confer a high degree of predictive accuracy in terms of understanding the fundamental mechanisms resulting in perturbations of the metabolic state. Metabolomics involves the establishment of relationships between phenotype and a metabolic signature, which are key aspects of biological function. These approaches have been applied to the identification of serum/plasma metabolic markers involved in obesity, diabetes and vascular disease using animal models or in humans. Different kinds of metabolite profiling techniques using nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, mass spectrometry, ultraperformance liquid chromatography and so on are currently employed to generate global metabolic profiles. Scientific information derived from these techniques can be applied to provide accurate and clinically useful prognostic/diagnostic capability for the management of major chronic diseases. One current consideration limiting the widespread use of metabolomic profiling is the analysis of its cost–effectiveness. In summary, it is hoped that the information derived from metabolite profiling will make it possible to suggest individualized therapies that more effectively treat disease.
Nonstandard optics from quantum space-time

We study light propagation in the picture of semiclassical space-time that emerges in canonical quantum gravity in the loop representation. In such a picture, where space-time exhibits a polymerlike structure at microscales, it is natural to expect departures from the perfect nondispersiveness of an ordinary vacuum. We evaluate these departures, computing the modifications to Maxwell's equations due to quantum gravity and showing that under certain circumstances nonvanishing corrections appear that depend on the helicity of propagating waves. These effects could lead to observable cosmological predictions of the discrete nature of quantum space-time. In particular, recent observations of nondispersiveness in the spectra of gamma-ray bursts at various energies could be used to constrain the type of semiclassical state that describes the universe.
Does the Composition of a Company's Shareholder Base Really Matter?

Most corporations dedicate significant time and attention to managing their shareholder base. Furthermore, companies overwhelmingly prefer “long-term shareholders” to “short-term shareholders. ” There is little rigorous research, however, that conclusively demonstrates the impact that individual investor groups have on corporate decision making, or that quantifies the premium (or discount) that specific shareholder groups add to corporate value.We explore this topic in greater detail, and ask: Does the composition of a company’s shareholder base really matter? What substantive impact do shareholder — including activists — have on strategy, investment, and management? How long is long-term? How short is short-term? Can short-term market pressures be offset by long-term compensation incentives? The Closer Look series is a collection of short case studies through which we explore topics, issues, and controversies in corporate governance and executive leadership. In each study, we take a targeted look at a specific issue that is relevant to the current debate on governance and explain why it is so important. Larcker and Tayan are co-authors of the books Corporate Governance Matters and A Real Look at Real World Corporate Governance.
Chinese OFDI in Australia : drivers and entry modes

Until recently entry mode studies focused largely on the choices made by North American and European firms and entry mode choices of firms from developing countries were largely neglected. In recent years the focus of entry mode research has attempted to remedy this neglect in large part because of the rapid economic growth that has taken place in several emerging economies and, increasingly, the rapid increase in their direct investments in foreign markets. China is perhaps the most frequently investigated case. However, although there are now a limited number of studies looking at the investment motivations and entry mode choices of Chinese investors and their determinants, there has been no detailed study of Chinese OFDI and entry mode choices in regard to Australian markets. This is despite the fact that Australia is a major recipient of Chinese OFDI and has been so for some thirty years. Hence the goal of this study is to remedy this deficiency and, in addition, to throw further light on the determinants of entry mode choice by firms from emerging economies. The study adopts no single theoretical or conceptual framework, given that each has a number of limitations. Instead, it draws upon a range of frameworks, notably Dunning‟s eclectic paradigm on firms‟ internationalisation process (1980 & 1988), the institutional framework (for example, North, 1990; Scott, 1995; Peng, 2002), and the resource-based perspective (for example, Barney, 1991). The thesis, based on a series of case studies, found that Chinese firms invest in Australia for a variety of reasons, including market-seeking, resource-seeking, asset-seeking, as well as a newly identified permanent residency or welfare-seeking motivations. It also found that larger Chinese MNEs with previous international experience preferred to have full control in their Australian affiliates, while those who perceive a high level of scrutiny and constraints imposed by the Australian government upon their investments were prone to choose a shared control mode. The findings of this thesis suggest that a single theoretical perspective is not comprehensive enough to explain OFDI initiated from China into a developed country such as Australia. On a practical level, it may provide some guidance on the internationalisation decisions of those Chinese MNEs who intend to conduct OFDI. In addition, the significant effect government can bring upon towards Chinese MNEs‟ entry mode decisions as found in this study also signals that thesis is of value to policy makers.
Teicoplanin induced drug hypersensitivity syndrome

Drug hypersensitivity syndrome (also known as drug rash with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms) is characterised by a generalised skin eruption, fever, lymphadenopathy, eosinophilia, and visceral involvement. Sulphonamides and anticonvulsants are most often implicated as causal agents.1 2 Teicoplanin, a glycopeptide antibiotic used in the treatment of Gram positive infections, has not previously been associated with drug hypersensitivity syndrome. A 47 year old man with previously stable psoriasis and taking acitretin was admitted with generalised pustular psoriasis, precipitated by cellulitis, which had been treated in the community with oral prednisolone and …
Dealing with gastrointestinal illness on a cruise ship--Part 1: Description of sanitation measures. Part 2: An isolation study.

BACKGROUND Recent outbreaks of gastrointestinal illness (GI) on passenger ships have caused cruise companies to expand their sanitation programs. OBJECTIVES To describe sanitation procedures and measures involving the medical staff of one cruise ship (Part 1), and to show how one of the new measures, isolation, influenced medical practice (Part 2). METHODS Consecutive GI logs were reviewed from 17 cruises of a ship with an average of 590 passengers and 611 crew per day. RESULTS During a 250-day period 207 persons were isolated for a total of 419 days: 113 passengers (75 with GI, 38 asymptomatic contacts) and 94 crew (57 with GI, 37 contacts). The percentage of GI cases per 7 days varied between 0.10% and 0.43% among passengers and between 0 and 0.39% among crew, except for one cruise when the percentage per 7 days reached 2.16% among passengers and 0.61% among crew. CONCLUSIONS A detailed operational directive for all aspects of sanitation is helpful for prevention and control of GI outbreaks on ships. A strict isolation policy is an expensive, but critical measure, which in particular challenges the medical staff.
Self-Knowledge Distillation: A Simple Way for Better Generalization

The generalization capability of deep neural networks has been substantially improved by applying a wide spectrum of regularization methods, e.g., restricting function space, injecting randomness during training, augmenting data, etc. In this work, we propose a simple yet effective regularization method named self-knowledge distillation (Self-KD), which progressively distills a model's own knowledge to soften hard targets (i.e., one-hot vectors) during training. Hence, it can be interpreted within a framework of knowledge distillation as a student becomes a teacher itself. The proposed method is applicable to any supervised learning tasks with hard targets and can be easily combined with existing regularization methods to further enhance the generalization performance. Furthermore, we show that Self-KD achieves not only better accuracy, but also provides high quality of confidence estimates. Extensive experimental results on three different tasks, image classification, object detection, and machine translation, demonstrate that our method consistently improves the performance of the state-of-the-art baselines, and especially, it achieves state-of-the-art BLEU score of 30.0 and 36.2 on IWSLT15 English-to-German and German-to-English tasks, respectively.
Clinical validation of a specially sized class II compression knee-sock for the prevention of recurrent ulcers in patients with chronic venous stasis (CEAP 5).

AIM Patients cured of venous ulcers (VU) often suffer recurrences if they do not wear elastic compression hosiery. Unfortunately, only half of them can benefit of this treatment, because their leg proportions have changed, obliging them to order to measure products which are harder to find, and expensive. This study was designed to validate a class II elastic knee-sock (GGG-Ral standards) manufactured on the basis of the ankle and calf circumferences of recently cured patients. METHODS In all, 177 consecutive patients were given a sock that fitted properly, to be worn for 30 days. Numerical and analogue symptom scales and a questionnaire on clinical improvement have been used to evaluate treatment benefits. RESULTS Symptom improvements reached respectively 68% and 65% and clinical improvements 96% of the patients. Compliance was 91.6%. CONCLUSIONS Specially-sized elastic hose for patients cured of VU would serve to treat the large numbers who cannot use routine-production sizes, with improvements in compliance and clinical symptoms.
Time-Domain to Delay-Doppler Domain Conversion of OTFS Signals in Very High Mobility Scenarios

In Orthogonal Time Frequency Space (OTFS) modulation, information symbols are embedded in the delay-Doppler (DD) domain instead of the time-frequency (TF) domain. In order to ensure compatibility with existing OFDM systems, most prior work on OTFS receivers consider a two-step conversion, where the received time-domain (TD) signal is firstly converted to a time-frequency (TF) signal (using an OFDM demodulator) followed by post-processing of this TF signal into a DD domain signal. In this paper, we show that the spectral efficiency (SE) performance of a two-step conversion based receiver degrades in very high mobility scenarios where the Doppler shift is a significant fraction of the communication bandwidth (e.g., control and non-payload communication (CNPC) in Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS)). We therefore consider an alternate conversion, where the received TD signal is directly converted to the DD domain. The resulting received DD domain signal is shown to be not the same as that obtained in the two-step conversion considered in prior works. The alternate conversion does not require an OFDM demodulator and is shown to have lower complexity than the two-step conversion. Simulations reveal that even in very high mobility scenarios, the SE and symbol error rate performance of the alternate conversion is invariant of Doppler shift and is significantly better than the performance achieved with two-step conversion (which degrades with increasing Doppler shift).
Informal Venture Capital: Investors, Investments and Policy Issues in Finland

List of Figures. List of Tables. Foreword. Preface. 1. Entrepreneurship and Venture Capital. Part One: Informal Venture Capital in Finland: Investors and Investments. 2. Methodology. 3. The Characteristics of Business Angels. 4. Deal Flow. 5. Investment Activity. 6. The Modus Operandi of Business Angels. 7. Investment Motives and Decision-Making. 8. The Value-Added Contribution of Business Angels. 9. Investment Performance. 10. Future Investment Activity. 11. The Size of the Informal Venture Capital Market in Finland. Part Two: Policy Issues. 12. Promoting Informal Venture Capital: Some Preliminary Considerations. 13. Promoting Informal Venture Capital: I. Business Introduction Services. 14. Promoting Informal Venture Capital: II. Co-Investing, Syndication and Indirect Investment Models. 15. Promoting Informal Venture Capital: III. Tax Incentives. 16. Conclusion. References. Index.
Digital and analog communication systems

Add this article to private library Remove from private library Submit corrections to this record View record in the new ADS The book presents an introductory treatment of digital and analog communication systems with emphasis on digital systems. Attention is given to the following topics: systems and signal analysis, random signal theory, information and channel capacity, baseband data transmission, analog signal transmission, noise in analog communication systems, digital carrier modulation schemes, error control coding, and the digital transmission of analog signals. Bibtex entry for this abstract Preferred format for this abstract
Interleukin‐15 production by monocyte‐derived dendritic cells and T cell proliferation in HIV‐infected patients with discordant response to highly active antiretroviral therapy

A discordant response to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) occurs when CD4 T cell counts are stable or increased over time despite persistently detectable HIV‐RNA levels. In order to identify immunological factors affecting discordant treatment responses, a total of 27 HIV‐infected patients were studied: (a) 10 naive patients (mean CD4+ = 101·5 cells/µl; mean HIV‐RNA = 4·8 log10 copies/ml); (b) seven responder patients (mean CD4+ = 908·9 cells/µl); and (c) 10 discordant patients (mean CD4+ = 396·1 cells/µl; mean HIV‐RNA = 5·4 log10 copies/ml). Five healthy blood donors were included as HIV‐seronegative controls. The following parameters were evaluated: interleukin (IL)‐15 production by monocyte‐derived dendritic cells (MDDC) after stimulation with lypopolysaccaride (LPS) and Candida albicans; recall and HIV‐1‐specific antigen lymphocyte proliferation (LP). Increased levels of IL‐15 production by MDDC after stimulation with LPS and C. albicans were found both in discordant patients and responder patients. Conversely, a strong reduction of IL‐15 levels was observed in naive patients. Discordant patients developed positive LP responses to C. albicans and HIV‐1 p24. LP in response to C. albicans and HIV‐1 p24 was also positive in responder patients. Decreased LP response was found in naive patients. In conclusion, HIV‐infected patients with discordant viro‐immunological responses to HAART present increased levels of IL‐15 production by MDDC and enhanced recall and HIV‐1‐specific antigen LP responses, suggesting an improvement in indices of immune function.
Power dissipation impacted by stochastic characteristics of signals

This paper investigates power dissipation by studying stochastic characteristics of signals in the circuit. Not only the correlation of transition probability is considered but also the correlation of the inputs is factored in the analysis. We simulate the inputs by using random sequences following specified stochastic characteristics. The results show that stochastic parameters impact switch activity, and the degree of impact relates to structures of the circuit. Our observations indicate that, in order to reduce power consumption, circuit has to be carefully designed with concerning parameters such as ordering of variables and input stochastic characteristics of inputs. The other advantage of stochastic model analysis is that it leaves space to add more parameters, such as circuit delay, into considerations.
Commentary: Slack resources in health care organizations--fat to be trimmed or muscle to be exercised?

In this issue, Hussey et al. (2009) at RAND summarize their results of a systematic review of ways to identify and evaluate health care efficiency. Their approach was deliberately broadly inclusive in that they did not require that the studies reviewed simultaneously measure quality as well as costs or resources consumed when assessing ‘‘efficiency. ’’ Hussey and colleagues argue that there are important reasons to take a broad perspective of the measures of efficiency in health care at this juncture. First, they want to portray the wide variation in the methods that policy makers and researchers are currently using to draw implications about efficiency.
The corporate blog as an emerging genre of computer-mediated communication: features, constraints, discourse situation

The central focus of this dissertation project rests on a register study 1 of an emergent type of professional discourse: the corporate blog. A phenomenon that has only appeared in the course of the last two years, corporate or enterprise blogging is the use of blogs by business professionals to further organizational goals. Corporate blogs serve a variety of purposes – they are used both for extra-organizational (marketing, public relations, customer relationship management, recruiting) and intra-organizational communication (internal management, expert blogging) as well as for other issues pertinent to large organizations, e.g. knowledge management.
SALMONELLAE ISOLATED FROM CAPTIVE ANIMALS IN IBADAN, WESTERN STATE OF NIGERIA

Six serotypes of salmonellae, Salmonella offa, S. glostrup, S. wimborne, S. dublin, S. saint-paul and S. webridge were isolated from captive wild animals in Ibadan, Western State of Nigeria. S. wimborne and S. glostrup are reported for the first time in Nigeria. All strains were sensitive to nitrofurantoin (200 mcg) and chloramphenical (10 mcg) but there was marked resistance to sulphafurazole (100 meg) and penicillin (1.5 units).