Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The identification and long term effects of fetal growth restriction

The study of intrauterine growth retardation continues to be important for both obstetricians and paediatricians. It is of increasing interest, too, to those concerned with subsequent growth and development since the effects of growth faltering in utero continue beyond the neonatal period. It is the point of birth at which it is most apparent however; not surprisingly, the focus of attention has been at this time in the life cycle. The debate surrounding fetal growth is complex, and at times even questions whether a problem exists’. Just as the aetiology and manifestations are heterogeneous, so too are methodologies and outcomes, and this has led to some scepticism. The greatest problem plaguing the efforts to understand growth faltering is that of definition. There has been particular confusion between the concepts of size and growth, and the interchangeable use of the terms ‘small for gestational age’ and ‘intrauterine growth retardation’ reflect this confusion. Infants born small for gestational age (SGA) have often been presumed to have suffered growth retardation in utero; in fact, the group designated SGA on the basis of standardised weight-for-gestational-age charts will include normally grown infants, and others who are small for pathological reasons. Growth is the process through which size at birth is reached, and it is the growth process which is the proper focus for examining the impact of growth faltering. There is, furthermore, surprisingly little overlap between the efforts of those who investigate the process of growth up to the point of birth, and those who consider the consequences of fetal growth rate in the medium and long term. Obstetricians are properly concerned with the identification of the fetus which is faltering in its growth trajectory, and with how well a given method of identification will predict neonatal o ~ t c o m e ~ , ~ . A few investigators have considered the impact of neonatal growth status on subsequent growth and de~elopmenP. ~, although there is a paucity of systematic investigations of postnatal outcome. If being born small in comparison with a determined optimal size matters beyond the perinatal period, then it is important that researchers co-ordinate their efforts in order to elucidate causes and effects. This review will address issues of definition and identification of fetal growth faltering, consider what is known about the outcome birth affected by intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) and will suggest links between the two research endeavours. Methods of review
Influence of Residual Facet Reflection on the Eye-Diagram Performance of High-Speed Electroabsorption Modulated Lasers

The influence of residual facet reflection on the small-signal modulation response and the large-signal eye-diagram performance of 40 Gb/s electroabsorption modulated lasers (EMLs) is studied. Measurement and simulation show that the eye-diagram performance is not only limited by the modulation bandwidth of the device, but also significantly degraded by the low frequency resonances in the frequency response due to residual facet reflection. Clear eye-opening has been demonstrated by optimizing the anti-reflection (AR) coating of the EA modulator facet.
Correlates with Thymocyte Selection Flux 2+ Degree of TCR Internalization and Ca

Recent evidence suggests that TCR down-regulation directly reﬂects the number of TCRs that have engaged MHC/peptide ligand complexes. Here, we examined the inﬂuence of deﬁned peptides on thymic selection based on their ability to induce differential TCR internalization. Our results demonstrate that there is a direct correlation: peptides that induce strong TCR down-regulation are most efﬁcient at mediating negative selection, whereas peptides that induce suboptimal TCR internalization are more efﬁcient at triggering positive selection. As a consequence of suboptimal TCR internalization, a proportion of TCR complexes that remain on the cell surface may be able to relay continual signals required for survival and differentiation. In addition, we show that the magnitude of Ca 2 1 inﬂux set by these peptides reﬂects the hierarchy of TCR down-regulation and correlates with positive vs negative selection of transgenic thymocytes. Together, our data suggest that T cell selection is mediated by differing intensities of the same TCR-mediated signal, rather than by distinct signals. The Journal of Immunology, 1998, 161: 6030–6037. he TCR repertoire of mature T cells is formed through contact with self-peptide/MHC complexes during differentiation in the thymus Positive selection involves engagement of TCRs on immature, double-positive (CD4 1 CD8 ) thymocytes with self-MHC products expressed on cortical epithelial cells (4). This multistep process involves a series of TCR engagements within the thymic environment to give rise to mature CD4 1 or CD8 1 T cells Negative selection eliminates po-tentially autoreactive T cells bearing TCRs with high afﬁnity for self-MHC ligands through clonal deletion. the mecha-nisms by which these TCR-ligand/MHC
Negative effects of wind speed on individual foraging performance and breeding success in little penguins

Most effects of environmental and climate variability on predator life-history traits and population dynamics result from indirect effects mediated through the food chain. There is growing evidence that wind strength might affect seabirds while foraging at sea. Here, we investigated the effect of wind speed on the foraging performance of a flightless marine predator, the little penguin (Eudyptula minor). To this end, we used satellite-derived wind data collected over 11 breeding seasons during which the daily attendance and body mass changes of more than 200 penguins breeding at Phillip Island (Victoria, Australia) were recorded by an automated penguin monitoring system. Over 17,363 foraging trips, we found that wind speed had important effects on foraging and provisioning parameters in breeding adults. During incubation and chick-guard, stronger winds were associated with decreased foraging efficiency (lower body mass gain). During chick-guard, stronger winds were furthermore associated with lower meal s.
Identificación de Oportunidades de Mejora en Procesos de Neurorrehabilitación

El modelado de procesos es una tecnica de gestion empresarial destinada a la mejora continua de los procesos de una organizacion, como base operativa y estructural de la misma. En el ambito de la Neurorrehabilitacion, crece el interes por los mapas de procesos como herramienta de comprension, representacion y analisis de los procesos clinicos. El presente trabajo se centra en la identificacion de oportunidades de mejora de las actividades de rehabilitacion, con el objetivo de definir nuevas estrategias de monitorizacion y automatizacion que permitan su evolucion hacia el nuevo modelo de rehabilitacion ubicua, personalizada y basada en la evidencia.
The effect of metformin on blood pressure, plasma cholesterol and triglycerides in type 2 diabetes mellitus: a systematic review.

BACKGROUND The UKPDS 34 showed that intensive treatment with metformin significantly reduces macrovascular end-points and mortality in individuals with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes compared with intensive treatment with insulin or sulphonylurea derivatives, despite similar glycaemic control. How this should be explained is as yet unclear. We hypothesized that metformin may have a glucose-lowering independent effect on blood pressure and lipid profile. In order to test this hypothesis we systematically reviewed the literature and pooled the data obtained in a meta-analysis. METHODS Included were randomized-controlled trials in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and metformin treatment lasting at least 6 weeks. To identify all eligible trials we conducted electronic searches using the bibliographic databases Medline and Embase, contacted the manufacturer and checked obtained publications for cross-references. RESULTS Forty-one studies (3074 patients) provided data on blood pressure and/or lipid profile. When compared with control treatment, metformin associated effects on systolic and diastolic blood pressure and HDL cholesterol were small and statistically not significant [-1.09 mmHg 95% confidence interval (-3.01-0.82), P = 0.30; -0.97 (-2.15-0.21) mmHg, P = 0.11 and +0.01 (-0.02-0.03) mmol L(-1), P = 0.50, respectively]. Compared with control treatment, however, metformin decreased plasma triglycerides, total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol significantly [-0.13 (-0.21--0.04) mmol L(-1), P = 0.003; -0.26 (-0.34--0.18) mmol L(-1), P < 0.0001 and -0.22 (-0.31--0.13) mmol L(-1), P < 0.00001, respectively]. We found no indications for publication bias. Of note, glycaemic control as assessed by HbA1c was better with metformin than with control treatment [-0.74 (-0.84--0.65) percentage point; P < 0.00001]. When studies were subdivided into tertiles according to increasing difference in glycaemic control between metformin and control treatment, it appeared that in case of near similar glycaemic control metformin had no effect versus control treatment on triglycerides, whereas still there was a significant effect on total and LDL cholesterol. CONCLUSIONS This meta-analysis of randomized-controlled clinical trials suggests that metformin has no intrinsic effect on blood pressure, HDL cholesterol and triglycerides in patients with type 2 diabetes. This drug, however, independent of its effect on glycaemia, reduces total and LDL cholesterol significantly, but the reductions in these variables are relatively small.
Nanocarriers: a tool to overcome biological barriers in siRNA delivery

Introduction: siRNA has poor in vivo stability and has a plasma half life of only a few minutes after intravenous administration. These problems can be overcome by conjugating/encapsulating siRNA with various nanosystems. Surface modifications of such nanosystems can further improve the cellular uptake of siRNA-nanosystems. In this review, the authors have highlighted the problems encountered in siRNA delivery, conjugation strategies and nanosystems for siRNA delivery and for improving their in vivo delivery performance. Areas covered: The authors briefly cover various problems encountered in siRNA delivery and discuss nanocarriers for overcoming these biological barriers. Expert opinion: siRNA binding and unpacking are important factors for optimizing the interactions between siRNA and nanosystems. Several crucial conjugation parameters, such as the conjugation site of siRNA, and the nature of molecules to be conjugated (charge, molecular weight and hydrophobicity), should be carefully considered for maximising delivery efficiency of siRNA conjugated nanosystems.
Canarypox Virus-Induced Maturation of Dendritic Cells Is Mediated by Apoptotic Cell Death and Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha Secretion

ABSTRACT Recombinant avipox viruses are being widely evaluated as vaccines. To address how these viruses, which replicate poorly in mammalian cells, might be immunogenic, we studied how canarypox virus (ALVAC) interacts with primate antigen-presenting dendritic cells (DCs). When human and rhesus macaque monocyte-derived DCs were exposed to recombinant ALVAC, immature DCs were most susceptible to infection. However, many of the infected cells underwent apoptotic cell death, and dying infected cells were engulfed by uninfected DCs. Furthermore, a subset of DCs matured in the ALVAC-exposed DC cultures. DC maturation coincided with tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) secretion and was significantly blocked in the presence of anti-TNF-α antibodies. Interestingly, inhibition of apoptosis with a caspase 3 inhibitor also reduced some of the maturation induced by exposure to ALVAC. This indicates that both TNF-α and the presence of primarily apoptotic cells contributed to DC maturation. Therefore, infection of immature primate DCs with ALVAC results in apoptotic death of infected cells, which can be internalized by noninfected DCs driving DC maturation in the presence of the TNF-α secreted concomitantly by exposed cells. This suggests an important mechanism that may influence the immunogenicity of avipox virus vectors.
The prevalence and progression of mild cognitive impairment among clinic and community populations: a systematic review and meta-analysis

ABSTRACT Background: It has been reported that up to 42% of the population aged over 60 are affected by mild cognitive impairment (MCI) worldwide. This study aims to investigate the prevalence and progression of MCI through a meta-analysis. Methods: We searched Embase and PubMed for relevant literature. Stable disease rate (SR), reversion rate (RR), dementia rate (DR), and Alzheimer's disease rate (AR) were used to evaluate the progression of MCI. The prevalence and progression rates were both obtained by reported percentile and indirect data analysis. Additionally, we carried out sensitivity analysis of each index by excluding some studies due to influence analysis with the most publication bias. Results: Effect size (ES) was used to present adjusted overall prevalence (16%) and progression rates including SR (45%), RR (15%), DR (34%), and AR (28%) of MCI. Compared with clinic-based outcomes, MCI prevalence, SR, and RR are significantly higher in community, while DR and AR are lower. Despite significant heterogeneity found among the studies, no publication bias was observed. Conclusions: Age and gender were observed to be associated with MCI, in which age was considered as an impact factor for DR. The strong heterogeneity may result from variations in study design and baselines. Standardized MCI criteria were suggested to systematically evaluate MCI in the future.
Unstructured road detection based on fuzzy clustering arithmetic

The unstructured road detection plays a key role in an autonomous vehicle navigation system. However, the unstructured road images often contain shadows and are easily affected by ambient light, resulting to an inaccuracy with road detection. A robust road detection technique is required. In this paper, we adopted an improved fuzzy c-means(FCM) clustering algorithm to address these issues. The new technique considered the neighborhood impact factor when calculating distances between the cluster center and a pixel. Our experimental results show that the improved FCM have better outcomes.
The Carriage Population of Staphylococcus aureus from Mali Is Composed of a Combination of Pandemic Clones and the Divergent Panton-Valentine Leukocidin-Positive Genotype ST152

ABSTRACT Staphylococcus aureus is an important human pathogen, but it appears more commonly in asymptomatic colonization of the nasopharynx than in cases of invasive disease. Evidence concerning the global population structure of S. aureus is limited by the overrepresentation in the multilocus sequence testing database of disease isolates recovered from Western Europe, the Americas, Australia, and Japan. We address this by presenting data from the S. aureus carriage population in Mali, the first detailed characterization of asymptomatic carriage from an African population. These data confirm the pandemic spread of many of the common S. aureus clones in the carriage population. We also note the high frequency (∼24%) of a single divergent genotype, sequence type 152 (ST152), which has not previously been recovered from nasal carriage isolates but corresponds to a sporadic Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL)-positive, community-acquired methicillin-resistant S. aureus clone noted mostly in Central Europe. We show that 100% of the ST152 isolates recovered from nasal carriage samples in Mali are PVL positive and discuss implications relating to the emergence and spread of this virulent genotype.
Pre-exposure prophylaxis in HIV

Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is an experimental approach to HIV prevention and consists of antiretroviral drugs to be taken before potential HIV exposure in order to reduce the risk of HIV infection and continued during periods of risk. An effective PrEP could provide an additional safety net to sexually active persons at risk, when combined with other prevention strategies. Women represent nearly 60% of adults infected with HIV and PrEP can be a female-controlled prevention method for women who are unable to negotiate condom use. Two antiretroviral nucleoside analog HIV-1 reverse transcriptase inhibitor drugs are currently under trial as PrEP drugs, namely tenofovirdisoproxilfumarate (TDF) alone and TDF in combination with emricitabine (FTC), to be taken as daily single dose oral drugs. There are 11 ongoing trials of ARV-based prevention in different at risk populations across the world. The iPrex trial showed that daily use of oral TDF/FTC by MSM resulted in 44% reduction in the incidence of HIV. This led to publication of interim guidance by CDC to use of PrEP by health providers for MSM. Few other trials are Bangkok Tenofovir Study, Partners PrEP Study, FEM-PrEP study, and VOICE (MTN-003) study. Future trials are being formulated for intermittent PrEP (iPrEP) where drugs are taken before and after sex, "stand-in dose" iPrEP, vaginal or rectal PrEP, etc. There are various issues/concerns with PrEP such as ADRs and resistance to TDF/FTC, adherence to drugs, acceptability, sexual disinhibition, use of PrEP as first line of defense for HIV without other prevention strategies, and cost. The PrEP has a potential to address unmet need in public health if delivered as a part of comprehensive toolkit of prevention services, including risk-reduction, correct and consistent use of condoms, and diagnosis and treatment of sexually transmitted infections.
Effects of Sampling Conditions on the Size Distribution of Fine Particulate Matter Emitted from a Pilot-Scale Pulverized-Coal Combustor

A dilution sampler has been designed and manufactured to simulate the effects of dilution processes on particulate matter emissions from coal-fired power plants and other combustion systems. The sampler allows independent control of the dilution ratio and residence time. Experiments were performed to examine the effects of these parameters on the particulate emissions of a pilot-scale pulverized coal combustor burning a low sulfur bituminous coal. Measurements included the particle size distribution in the range from 0.003 to 20 μm and the PM2.5 mass emission rate. The residence time and dilution ratio do not influence the particle mass emission rate, but have a significant effect on the size distribution and the total number of particles emitted. Increasing the residence time dramatically decreases the total particle number concentration, and shifts the particle mass to larger sizes. Increasing the dilution ratio increases the concentration of ultrafine particles. The effects of residence time can be exp.
Cryogenic Etching of Silicon: An Alternative Method for Fabrication of Vertical Microcantilever Master Molds

This paper examines the use of deep reactive ion etching of silicon with fluorine high-density plasmas at cryogenic temperatures to produce silicon master molds for vertical microcantilever arrays used for controlling substrate stiffness for culturing living cells. The resultant profiles achieved depend on the rate of deposition and etching of an SiOxFy polymer, which serves as a passivation layer on the sidewalls of the etched structures in relation to areas that have not been passivated with the polymer. We look at how optimal tuning of two parameters, the O2 flow rate and the capacitively coupled plasma power, determine the etch profile. All other pertinent parameters are kept constant. We examine the etch profiles produced using electron-beam resist as the main etch mask, with holes having diameters of 750 nm, 1 ¿m , and 2 ¿m.
Desnutrin, an Adipocyte Gene Encoding a Novel Patatin Domain-containing Protein, Is Induced by Fasting and Glucocorticoids

We have used rat cDNA microarrays to identify adipocyte-specific genes that could play an important role in adipocyte differentiation or function. Here, we report the cloning and identification of a 2.0-kb mRNA coding for a putative protein that we have designated as desnutrin. The novel gene is expressed predominantly in adipose tissue, and its expression is induced early during 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation. Desnutrin mRNA levels were regulated by the nutritional status of animals, being transiently induced during fasting. In vitro desnutrin gene expression was up-regulated by dexamethasone in a dose-dependent manner but not by cAMP, suggesting that glucocorticoids could mediate the increase in desnutrin mRNA levels observed during fasting. Desnutrin mRNA codes for a 486-amino acid putative protein containing a patatin-like domain, characteristic of many plant acyl hydrolases belonging to the patatin family. Confocal microscopy of enhanced green fluorescent protein-tagged desnutrin protein-transfected cells showed that the fusion protein localized in the cytoplasm. Moreover, cells overexpressing desnutrin by transfection showed an increase in triglyceride hydrolysis. Interestingly, we also found that the desnutrin gene expression level was lower in ob/ob and db/db obese mouse models. Overall, our data suggest that the newly identified desnutrin gene codes for an adipocyte protein that may function as a lipase and play a role in the adaptive response to a low energy state, such as fasting, by providing fatty acids to other tissues for oxidation. In addition, decreased expression of desnutrin in obesity models suggests its possible contribution to the pathophysiology of obesity.
Strategies and properties of local control for distributed generation

In this paper, a local voltage control algorithm of Distributed Generation (DG) as on-grid inverter was proposed, and its strategies and properties were discussed. It is argued that the maximum voltage appears at the accessing point and thus it is feasible to apply local control of DG. Multi-round local control strategy based on regular time interval is also proposed. Within each round, the voltage is adjusted via controlling the active power and reactive power of DG with respective to the range of voltage limits. Furthermore, a series of damping factor is introduced to increase the stability of the control system. To verify the proposed algorithm, numerical tests are conducted on a case of IEEE 33-Bus DN. The results suggest that a reasonable damping factor will increase the performance of the local control system.
A 60W class S and outphasing hybrid digital transmitter for wireless communication

This paper presents a digital RF outphasing transmitter with delta sigma modulation for future all digital wireless systems. Wireless systems make use of complex signals with high Peak to Average Power Ratio (PAPR). High PAPR degrades efficiency performance of RF power amplifiers which results in power hungry transmitter design. On the other hand, high PAPR also dictates linear power amplification to maintain signal quality and spectral efficiency, which then compromise efficient use of power sources. RF outphasing transmitters lead the way to efficiently amplify amplitude varying wireless communication signals with switch mode RF power amplifiers. However, considerable loss occurs at the RF power combiner due to large outphasing angle variation. An all-digital outphasing transmitter with class D RF power amplifiers at UHF band is developed and fed with digitally modulated LTE outphasing signal to optimize efficiency and linearity. 70 W output power with %26 power efficiency at 8.7dB PAPR is achieved with −20 dB Adjacent Channel Power Ratio (ACPR) performance.