Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Clinical cancer research: An embattled species

Clinical cancer research is at a crossroads. The major progress which has been achieved will continue, provided that factors which threaten the clinical cancer researcher are identified and corrected. These problems (with proposed solutions) include: the increasing number of clinical oncologists, particularly medical oncologists; the relationship of the practicing clinical oncologist to cancer centers; the relative attractions of clinical practice, on the one side, and basic science on the other, as compared to clinical cancer research; the lack of recognition that clinical cancer research provides an opportunity for high achievement and challenge, and originality; the threat of curtailment of research funding; jurisdictional and other conflicts between scientific and clinical disciplines; the emerging “establishment generation” of clinical oncology; and the bureaucratic and regulatory ambience that has increasingly enveloped the clinical cancer researcher. That opportunities for originality continue was illustrated by a new therapeutic strategy known as neoadjuvant or anterior chemotherapy. In this strategy, systemic treatment is employed prior to surgery and/or radiotherapy for patients with head and neck cancer has increased operability (“upstaged” the patient) and on preliminary analysis would appear to be increasing diseasefree survival. A clinical trial in osteogenic sarcoma involving initial chemotherapy has indicated that such treatment not only provides substantial regression of the primary in the majority of patients but also results in a substantially improved disease‐free and overall survival, particularly in patients with locally responsive disease.
Constipation in children: fibre and probiotics.

INTRODUCTION Prevalence of childhood constipation has been estimated at 1% to 30% in the general population worldwide; most children have no obvious aetiological factors. One third of children with chronic constipation continue to have problems beyond puberty. Half of the children with chronic faecal impaction and faecal incontinence have experienced an episode of painful defecation, and many children with chronic constipation exhibit withholding behaviour. METHODS AND OUTCOMES We conducted a systematic review and aimed to answer the following clinical questions: What are the effects of fibre for children with chronic constipation? What are the effects of probiotics for children with chronic constipation? We searched: Medline, Embase, The Cochrane Library, and other important databases up to May 2014 (Clinical Evidence reviews are updated periodically; please check our website for the most up-to-date version of this review). We included harms alerts from relevant organisations such as the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). RESULTS We found 12 studies that met our inclusion criteria. We performed a GRADE evaluation of the quality of evidence for interventions. CONCLUSIONS In this systematic review, we present information relating to the effectiveness and safety of the following interventions: fibre and probiotics.
Relationship between Extraversion and Neuroticism, and Intelligence for Students in Grade Nine English and Mathematics

53 Grade 9 students in an urban high school who had just completed their academic courses in English and mathematics were divided into groups according to their median scores in intelligence, Extraversion, and Neuroticism. The Eysenck Personality Inventory and the Differential Aptitude Tests were employed as the classification variables; the dependent variables were English and mathematics scores. A three-way multivariate analysis of variance showed a significant interaction between intelligence and Neuroticism. Post hoc analyses of contrasts indicated that neither mathematics nor English scores contributed significantly to the rejection of the directional null hypothesis. This study supported previous research that highly intelligent subjects perform optimally when at a low level of arousal.
Line Matching and Pose Estimation for Unconstrained Model-to-Image Alignment

This paper has two contributions in the context of line based camera pose estimation, 1) We propose a purely geometric approach to establish correspondence between 3D line segments in a given model and 2D line segments detected in an image, 2) We eliminate a degenerate case due to the type of rotation representation in arguably the best line based pose estimation method currently available. For establishing line correspondences we perform exhaustive search on the space of camera pose values till we obtain a pose (position and rotation) which is geometrically consistent with the given set of 2D, 3D lines. For this highly complex search we design a strategy which performs precomputations on the 3D model using separate set of constraints on position and rotation values. During runtime, the set of different rotation values are ranked independently and combined with each position values in the order of their ranking. Then successive geometric constraints which are much simpler when compared to computing reprojection error are used to eliminate incorrect pose values. We show that the ranking of rotation values reduces the number of trials needed by a huge factor and the simple geometric constraints avoid the need for computing the reprojection error in most cases. Though the execution time for the current MATLAB implementation is far from real time requirement, our method can be accelerated significantly by exploiting simplicity and parallelizability of the operations we employ. For eliminating the degenerate case in the state of art pose estimation method, we reformulate the rotation representation. We use unit quaternions instead of CGR parameters used by the method.
The turn of the gradient? Educational differences in breast cancer mortality in 18 European populations during the 2000s

This study aims to investigate the association between educational level and breast cancer mortality in Europe in the 2000s. Unlike most other causes of death, breast cancer mortality tends to be positively related to education, with higher educated women showing higher mortality rates. Research has however shown that the association is changing from being positive over non‐existent to negative in some countries. To investigate these patterns, data from national mortality registers and censuses were collected and harmonized for 18 European populations. The study population included all women aged 30‐74. Age‐standardized mortality rates, mortality rate ratios, and slope and relative indexes of inequality were computed by education. The population was stratified according to age (women aged 30‐49 and women aged 50‐74). The relation between educational level and breast cancer mortality was predominantly negative in women aged 30‐49, mortality rates being lower among highly educated women and higher among low educated women, although few outcomes were statistically significant. Among women aged 50‐74, the association was mostly positive and statistically significant in some populations. A comparison with earlier research in the 1990s revealed a changing pattern of breast cancer mortality. Positive educational differences that used to be significant in the 1990s were no longer significant in the 2000s, indicating that inequalities have decreased or disappeared. This evolution is in line with the “fundamental causes” theory which stipulates that whenever medical insights and treatment become available to combat a disease, a negative association with socio‐economic position will arise, independently of the underlying risk factors.
Serum levels of total homocysteine, homocysteine metabolites and of advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) in patients after renal transplantation.

AIMS Hyperhomocysteinemia has been described as an independent risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVD) influencing patient outcome. Advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) are involved in the pathogenesis of vascular damage in uremia. This study was undertaken to assess whether high serum levels of total homocysteine (tHcy) with its metabolites methylmalonic acid (MMA), methylcitric acid (MCA) and cystathionine (CYSTA) as well as elevated serum concentrations of the AGEs pentosidine and Nepsilon-carboxymethyllysine (CML) are independent risk factors for CVD, left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) or hypertension as well as kidney dysfunction in renal transplant recipients (RTR). METHODS Serum levels of tHCy, MMA, MCA and CYSTA were measured by a gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric assay, pentosidine by HPLC and CML using an ELISA assay. RESULTS All measured parameters were significantly higher in RTRs than in healthy subjects (p < 0.0001). The levels of pentosidine and CML as well as of tHcy and its metabolites correlated significantly with each other, but not with those ofMMA and CYSTA. Significant correlations were also found between pentosidine and tHcy, MMA or MCA as well as between CML, MMA and MCA, respectively. Acute or chronic rejection did not influence these values. No significant differences were observed between patients with or without CVD or with hypertension. In RTRs with LVH, only the tHcy levels were significantly higher than in those RTRs without LVH (p = 0.006). Logistic regression analysis revealed an independent influence of tHcy on the presence of LVH. CONCLUSION These results may indicate an association between high tHcy values and LVH. Further investigation is needed to determine whether a reduction of tHcy and Hcy metabolites and/or AGE serum concentrations would significantly improve patient outcome after undergoing renal transplantation.
Coarse-To-Fine Parsing for Expressive Grammar Formalisms

We generalize coarse-to-fine parsing to grammar formalisms that are more expressive than PCFGs and/or describe languages of trees or graphs. We evaluate our algorithm on PCFG, PTAG, and graph parsing. While we achieve the expected performance gains on PCFGs, coarse-to-fine does not help for PTAG and can even slow down parsing for graphs. We discuss the implications of this finding.
Urban Aerosol Studies of PM1 Size Fraction with Reference to Ambient Conditions and Visibility

Mass measurement of ambient PM10 and PM2.5 size fractions is a rather well established technique. However there is a broad consensus in the scientific community about the importance of smaller particle size fractions regarding epidemiological and environmental aspects. We present aerosol mass measurement performed with two different aerosol impactors operated simultaneously – a commercial real cascade impactor and a custom made cascade virtual impaction plate impactor. Both instruments have size segregation for 10, 2.5 and 1 µm in terms of an aerodynamic diameter, hence corresponding to PM10, PM2.5 and PM1. Furthermore the Vienna Telephotometer delivers information about the extinction coefficient in the vicinity of local particle sampling. The time-resolved size distributions of the PM1 fraction are measured by means of the scanning differential mobility analyzer and are merged with the time-resolved aerosol extinction coefficient data in the area of interest, along with the particle surface and mass concentration measurement. Results show the importance of time resolved measurement of the PM1 size fraction and indicate a good correlation between the ratio of PM1 to PM2.5 and PM10 with the extinction coefficient.
Formation of specialized propagules resistant to desiccation and cryopreservation in the threatened moss Ditrichum plumbicola (Ditrichales, Bryopsida).

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Successful cryopreservation of bryophytes is linked to intrinsic desiccation tolerance and survival can be enhanced by pre-treatment with abscisic acid (ABA) and sucrose. The pioneer moss Ditrichum plumbicola is naturally subjected to desiccation in the field but showed unexpectedly low survival of cryopreservation, as well as a poor response to pre-treatment. The effects of the cryopreservation protocol on protonemata of D. plumbicola were investigated in order to explore possible relationships between the production in vitro of cryopreservation-tolerant asexual propagules and the reproductive biology of D. plumbicola in nature. METHODS Protonemata were prepared for cryopreservation using a four-step protocol involving encapsulation in sodium alginate, pre-treatment for 2 weeks with ABA and sucrose, desiccation for 6 h and rapid freezing in liquid nitrogen. After each stage, protonemata were prepared for light and electron microscopy and growth on standard medium was monitored. Further samples were prepared for light and electron microscopy at intervals over a 24-h period following removal from liquid nitrogen and re-hydration. KEY RESULTS Pre-treatment with ABA and sucrose caused dramatic changes to the protonemata. Growth was arrested and propagules induced with pronounced morphological and cytological changes. Most cells died, but those that survived were characterized by thick, deeply pigmented walls, numerous small vacuoles and lipid droplets in their cytoplasm. Desiccation and cryopreservation elicited no dramatic cytological changes. Cells returned to their pre-dehydration and cryopreservation state within 2 h of re-hydration and/or removal from liquid nitrogen. Regeneration was normal once the ABA/sucrose stimulus was removed. CONCLUSIONS The ABA/sucrose pre-treatment induced the formation of highly desiccation- and cryopreservation-tolerant propagules from the protonemata of D. plumbicola. This parallels behaviour in the wild, where highly desiccation-tolerant rhizoids function as perennating organs allowing the moss to endure extreme environmental conditions. An involvement of endogenous ABA in the desiccation tolerance of D. plumbicola is suggested.
Normal children at risk for suicidal behavior: a two-year follow-up study.

ABSTRACT Seventy-five preadolescents, mean age 12.1 ± 0.25 years, with no prior history of psychiatric care, and their mothers were extensively interviewed in this 2-year follow-up study. Among 67 children who reported on suicidal tendencies at follow-up, there were: 80.6% nonsuicidal, 17.9% with suicidal ideas, and 1.5% with suicidal threats. One hundred and one children studied initially included 88.1% nonsuicidal, 8.9% with suicidal ideas, 2.0% with suicidal threats, and 1.0% with mild suicidal attempts. Fifty percent reported suicidal ideas or acts initially and at follow-up. Of the children who were not initially suicidal, 15.3% were suicidal at follow-up. Suicidal tendencies at follow-up were associated with depression, death preoccupation, aggression, general psychopathology, and ego defenses of denial, reaction formation, and projection. Associations between suicidal tendencies and depression, death preoccupations, and general psychopathology were reported also in the initial study. At follow-up, some factors not associated with suicidal tendencies were: social status, age, sex, race/ethnicity, impulse control, hopelessness, and parental depression. Implications of these findings are discussed.
Introduction: Addressing Cardiometabolic Risk

Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Efforts to reduce cardiovascular events have traditionally focused on reducing lowdensity lipoprotein cholesterol concentrations and blood pressure and encouraging smoking cessation and the adoption of healthy lifestyle behaviors, including dietary modification and increased physical activity. Numerous large clinical trials have demonstrated clinically important reductions (e.g., 30%) in cardiovascular events with the use of lipid-lowering therapy and by achieving optimal blood pressure control. Recent efforts to reduce the residual risk of cardiovascular events have focused on lowering triglyceride levels, increasing highdensity lipoprotein cholesterol levels, reducing glucose abnormalities, and achieving a healthy body weight. Hypertension, dyslipidemia, abnormal glucose metabolism, and obesity are components of the metabolic syndrome, a constellation of cardiometabolic risk factors with an etiology that is unclear but may be related to insulin resistance. The metabolic syndrome was first described in 1988, and it was referred to initially as “syndrome X. ” Whether these cardiometabolic risk factors represent a true syndrome or merely distinct abnormalities that frequently occur together is controversial. A syndrome is a group of signs and symptoms caused by a similar pathophysiology that confers a risk different from the sum of the components. The clinical implications are clear, regardless of the controversy. When one cardiometabolic risk factor is identified in a patient, a comprehensive evaluation should be performed because of the high likelihood of finding additional cardiometabolic risk factors. In this supplement, recently published data regarding strategies that might be used to mitigate cardiometabolic risk factors will be discussed. The first article addresses the definition of the metabolic syndrome and its prevalence and impact on cardiovascular disease. The current standard of care for patients with various cardiometabolic risk factors that contribute to the metabolic syndrome is reviewed. The second article explores recent evidence of the impact of drug therapies on one or more cardiometabolic risk factors that contribute to the metabolic syndrome. The mechanisms of action of new and emerging agents and their effects on multiple cardiometabolic risk factors are described. Finally, the third article presents a case study that illustrates the process by which a comprehensive patient evaluation is conducted, and appropriate treatment recommendations are made to reduce the risk for cardiovascular disease.
A scheduling mechanism for lock-free operation of a lightweight process library for SMP computers

We have designed and implemented a lightweight process (thread) library called "Lesser Bear" for SMP computers. Lesser Bear has high portability and thread-level parallelism. Lesser Bear executes threads in parallel by creating UNIX processes as virtual processors and a memory mapped file as a huge shared-memory space. To schedule threads in parallel, the shared-memory space has been divided into working spaces for each virtual processor and a ready queue has been distributed. But the preview version of Lesser Bear sometimes requires a lock operation for dequeueing. We therefore proposed a scheduling mechanism that does not require a lock operation. To achieve this, each divided space forms a rotatory topology through the queue, and we use a lock-free algorithm for the queue operation. This mechanism is applied to Lesser Bear and evaluated by experimental results.
Joint Buffering and Rate Control for Video Streaming over Heterogeneous Wireless Networks

Joint Buffering and Rate Control for Video Streaming over Heterogeneous Wireless Networks Lei Hua Master of Applied Science Graduate Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering University of Toronto 2010 The integration of heterogeneous access networks is becoming a possible feature of 4G wireless networks. It is challenging to deliver the multimedia services over such integrated networks because of the discrepancy in the bandwidth of different networks. This thesis presents an adaptive approach that combines source rate adaptation and buffering to achieve high quality VBR video streaming with less quality variation over an integrated two-tier network. Statistical information of the residence time in each network or localization information are utilized to anticipate the handoff occurrence. The performance of this approach is analyzed under the CBR case using a Markov reward model. Simulation under the CBR and VBR cases is conducted for different types of network models. The results are compared with a dynamic programming algorithm as well as other naive or intuitive algorithms, and proved to be promising.
Interferon-based hepatitis C antiviral treatment outcomes may be predicted by alanine aminotransferase levels.

To the Editor: On-therapy decline or normalization of liver enzyme levels is often observed following initiation of interferon-based hepatitis C virus (HCV) antiviral treatment and may reflect response to therapy and decreasing HCV RNA levels (1,2). On-treatment alanine aminotransferase (ALT) level elevation may be associated with persistent viremia (3-5). The value of enzymatic response in predicting sustained virological response (SVR) and relapse is unclear. We evaluated the role of baseline and week 4 ALT and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels in predicting HCV response to interferon-based antiviral therapy. A retrospective database analysis of 434 adults with HCV initiating therapy at The Ottawa Hospital Viral Hepatitis Clinic (Ottawa, Ontario) between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2009 was conducted (Research Ethics Board number 2004-196). Patients were predominately Caucasian (81%) and male (72%), with a mean (± SD) age of 44.3± 9.1 years. HCV risk factors included intravenous drug use history (56%) and contaminated blood product exposure (26%). Nine percent were HIV coinfected. The population was predominantly infected with HCV genotype 1 (56.1%), genotype 3 (22.4%) and genotype 2 (15.8%). Advanced fibrosis (F3 to F4) was identified in 35% of patients. Thirty-nine percent had normal ALT (<63 U/L) and 26% had normal AST (<37 U/L) levels at baseline. At week 4, 83% of patients had normal ALT levels and 57% had normal AST levels. Fifty-two patients (62%) achieved rapid virological response, 182 (88%) early virological response and 154 (68%) SVR. Twenty-four (11%) patients relapsed post-treatment. Baseline ALT and AST levels were higher in patients not achieving SVR. According to multivariate analysis, baseline AST (OR 0.99 [95% CI 0.98 to 0.99]) was a predictor of SVR. A ROC curve of this model generated an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.739. In a model including week 4 variables, baseline ALT and normal ALT levels at week 4 predicted SVR. The ROC AUC for this model was 0.627. Among the subset of patients with elevated ALT levels at baseline, genotype (2/3), low baseline viral load (<800,000 U/L) and baseline platelet levels were associated with SVR. The ROC AUC for this model was 0.531. In a model considering week 4 variables, normalized ALT levels at week 4 resulted in an AUC of 0.734 (OR 17.04 [95% CI 6.17 to 47.09]). In an evaluation of the entire population, ALT levels at week 4 (above/below normal) yielded a 77% positive predictive value and a 77% negative predictive value for SVR (Figure 1). This suggests
A sustainable solution for monitoring malnutrition in children in developing countries

Malnutrition in children is a serious problem globally and is far more significant in developing countries. According to UNICEF reports, globally 101 million children of age below five years are underweight. Being a developing nation, India ranks 2nd in child malnutrition, which is an alarming fact as child malnutrition has a long term negative impact on country's economic growth. The Government of India has initiated many programs to tackle the problem of malnutrition but assessing the malnutrition status is a challenging task. In this paper, authors describe their efforts in solving the problem in hand by a novel technological solution developed to monitor the growth in children in a cost effective and easy way.