Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Role of steroid maintenance in sensitized kidney transplant recipients.

AIM To evaluate whether there is a threshold sensitization level beyond which benefits of chronic steroid maintenance (CSM) emerge. METHODS Using Organ Procurement and Transplant Network/United Network of Organ Sharing database, we compared the adjusted graft and patient survivals for CSM vs early steroid withdrawal (ESW) among patients who underwent deceased-donor kidney (DDK) transplantation from 2000 to 2008 who were stratified by peak-panel reactive antibody (peak-PRA) titers (0%-30%, 31%-60% and > 60%). All patients received perioperative induction therapy and maintenance immunosuppression based on calcineurin inhibitor (CNI) and mycophenolate mofetil (MMF). RESULTS The study included 42851 patients. In the 0%-30% peak-PRA class, adjusted over-all graft-failure (HR 1.11, 95%CI: 1.03-1.20, P = 0.009) and patient-death (HR 1.29, 95%CI: 1.16-1.43, P < 0.001) risks were higher and death-censored graft-failure risk (HR 1.06, 95%CI: 0.98-1.14, P = 0.16) similar for CSM (n = 25218) vs ESW (n = 7399). Over-all (HR 1.04, 95%CI: 0.85-1.28, P = 0.70) and death-censored (HR 0.97, 95%CI: 0.78-1.21, P = 0.81) graft-failure risks were similar and patient-death risk (HR 1.39, 95%CI: 1.03-1.87, P = 0.03) higher for CSM (n = 3495) vs ESW (n = 850) groups for 31%-60% peak-PRA class. In the > 60% peak-PRA class, adjusted overall graft-failure (HR 0.90, 95%CI: 0.76-1.08, P = 0.25) and patient-death (HR 0.92, 95%CI: 0.71-1.17, P = 0.47) risks were similar and death-censored graft-failure risk lower (HR 0.84, 95%CI: 0.71-0.99, P = 0.04) for CSM (n = 4966) vs ESW (n = 923). CONCLUSION In DDK transplant recipients who underwent perioperative induction and CNI/MMF maintenance, CSM appears to be associated with increased risk for death with functioning graft in minimally-sensitized patients and improved death-censored graft survival in highly-sensitized patients.
Big data implementation and visualization

Government agencies and large corporations are launching research programs to address big data's challenges. Visualization in today's time is very effective for presenting essential information in vast amounts of data. Big-data discovery tools present new research opportunities to the graphics and visualization community. The size of the collected data about the Web and mobile device users is even greater. To provide the ability to make sense and maximize utilization of such vast amounts of data for knowledge discovery and decision making is crucial to scientific advancement; we need new tools beyond conventional data mining and statistical analysis. Visualization is a tool which is shown to be effective for gleaning insight in big data. Here we also discuss data cube that fits in a tablet or a smart phone memory, actually for billions of entrances; we call this information structure a nanocube. [13]. We present pseudo code to compute and query a nanocube [13], and show how it can be used to generate well-known visual encodings such as heat maps, histograms, and parallel coordinate plots. While Apache* Hadoop* and other technologies are emerging to support back-end concerns such as storage and processing, visualization-based data discovery tools focus on the front end of big data-on helping businesses explore the data more easily and understand it more fully.
A review of gliptins for 2014

Introduction: Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors (gliptins) occupy an increasing place in the armamentarium of drugs used for the management of hyperglycaemia and offer new opportunities for a personalized medicine in patients with Type 2 diabetes. Areas covered: An updated review providing an analysis of available recent data with commercialized DPP-4 inhibitors, with a special focus on: differences between the various molecules, novelties regarding their mechanism of action, clinical efficacy in mono- and various combined therapies, comparison with other new therapies, efficacy-safety profile in at risk patients, concern about pancreatic safety, perspectives in cardiovascular prevention and, finally, a selection of remaining unanswered important questions for the clinician. Expert opinion: DPP-4 inhibitors offer various advantages when compared to other glucose-lowering agents. Despite they have been commercialized since a few years only, available data obtained in randomised controlled trials are of better quality compared to those available with ancient classical glucose-lowering agents, especially in more fragile populations such as elderly people, individuals with renal impairment or at high cardiovascular risk and patients at higher risk of hypoglycaemia. However, there remain uncertainties and controversies that should be resolved by further ongoing large prospective controlled trials and increasing clinical experience combined with a careful post-marketing surveillance.
Indoor navigation system based on omni-directional corridorguidelines

Finding way in indoor environments may pose a challenge to people who have some sort of visual loss. This paper describes straight corridor positioning and junction detection algorithms for use in indoor navigation system which is designed for the visually impaired. Also, a model that extracts the edges from the image captured by omni-camera is proposed and the system can direct the visually impaired according to the edge information so that they can move in correct direction and in the middle of the corridor. The proposed navigation system was carried out using omni-camera which can capture images of 360deg view. It has many advantages compared with the conventional camera. Our experiment results show that it works well in corridor environment.
Visual navigation with efficient ConvNet features

In this paper, we propose a system for autonomous vehicle following without a line of sight. From monocular camera images, the leading vehicle extracts scene descriptors which it transmits to the following vehicle by means of vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication. The follower is able to recognize the scenes using its own camera and follow autonomously. A particle filter framework is employed for jump-free localization on the driven path of the leading vehicle. We compare the performance of different place features for accurate localization on a custom application-oriented dataset and evaluate methods to reduce the feature size for low-bandwidth V2V communication, while maintaining and even improving the recognition performance. Real-world results demonstrate the applicability of our system.
Who will labor in the vineyard? the new Catholic mentality and religious commitment

This paper explores the origins of a new Catholic mentality, marked by low levels of commitment to, but not complete disengagement from, the religious tradition. This poses challenges for the vitality of many Church sponsored institutions, especially in countries which share a Western culture. The paper focuses on better understanding the lack of strong commitment amongst younger Catholics and points to changes in socialization and the rise of personal spiritualities as key explanatory factors. Any discussion of the future configuration of Catholic institutions is dependant on how this primary challenge of low religious commitment is addressed.
Psychiatric Disability after Head Injury: The Significance of Brain Damage

draw attention to two points: (1) The pathological changes recorded in these circumstances are in no way specific. (2) In most if not all of the few cases recorded in the literature, and certainly in those I have seen personally, the injury has been minor. The absence of any such case amongst a large number of severely head-injured patients carefully followed over a lengthy period is suggestive, and in my opinion the balance of probabilities is against the easy assumption that these few very unusual cases represent true 'posttraumatic dementia' in any strict atiological sense, and favours the view that they are more probably banal instances of pre-senile dementia brought to light by injury. Recognition of the earliest signs of deterioration in the family circle is difficult and reluctant, and the hot pursuit of the compensation claim which is an almost invariable concomitant of this situation does not offer ideal conditions for the scrupulous enquiry which often antedates the apparent onset of such syndromes in more ordinary circumstances.
Proteomics and Its Applications in Diagnosis of Auto Immune Diseases

Although the proteomics and its applications in detecting autoimmune diseases are a prominently discussed issue, this review will focus particularly some prominent aspects regarding clinical utility of these techniques in prognosis, diagnosis, and treatment of these diseases. The impact of immunofluorescent techniques, enzyme immunoassays and use of proteomics biomarkers in the characterization of the auto immune diseases is briefly discussed. The necessity of adopting existing technologies of protein chemistry, predisposition testing, targeted monitoring and prevention of diseases through nutrition coupled with lifestyle changes will be focused as modern diagnostic tools in realizing the changeover from isolated medicine to personalized medicine. Use of biological fluids, in order to identify low abundance proteins as biomarkers in detecting autoimmune diseases is attempted in the study of serum/plasma proteomics.
CT features of ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease.

Icerative colitis andCrohn’s dis-ease, collectively known asidio-pathic inflammatory boweldisease (IBD), remain adiagnostic andthera-peutic challenge. Whereas otherinflammatorydiseases ofthe gutaredistinguished eitherbyaspecific etiologic agentorbythenature oftheinflammatory activity, ulcerative colitis andCrohn’s disease aredisorders withunknownetiologies, uncertain and unpredictablecourses, andvariable responses tomedical andsurgical management. Colonoscopy andbar-iumstudies aretheprinciple methods ofevalu-ating patients withknown orsuspected IBD[11.Bothtechniques provide superb visualiza-tionofthebowel mucosa, abnormal surfacepatterns, andchanges inintestinal caliber [21.However, these techniques cannot show thetransmural extent ofinflammation ortheintra-peritoneal orextraintestinal complications ofIBD. Inrecent years, CThasbecome indis-pensable in theassessment ofpatients withIBDbyvirtue ofitsability toshowpathologicchanges involving thebowel wall,mesentericattachments, andadjacent structures [3-51.Foracutely illpatients, CTisoftentheonlystudyre-quired. providing crucial information forboth accurate diagnosis andmanagement ofthemany complications associated withIBD[6,7]. Thepurpose ofthisarticle istoreviewthevalue andcurrent applications ofCTforpatients withIBD.Technical ConsiderationsComplete opacification ofawell-distendedgutismandatory foraccurate CTevaluation ofthebowel wallthickening anddistortion ofmural components thatarethehallmarks of
Aggressiveness of cancer-care near the end-of-life in Korea.

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to examine the appropriateness of chemotherapy and care in Korean cancer patients near the end-of-life. METHODS We designed a retrospective cohort composed of patients diagnosed as having metastatic cancer and who received palliative chemotherapy at Seoul National University Hospital in 2002. Two hundred and ninety-eight patients who died of cancer were evaluated in terms of the appropriateness of the cancer-care they received, including chemotherapy. RESULTS Median duration of chemotherapy was 6.02 months compared with 8.67 months for median overall survival. The median period between last chemotherapy and death was 2.02 months. Of the 298 patients, 50.3% received chemotherapy during the last 2 months of life. Furthermore, 17 patients (5.7%) died within 2 weeks after receiving chemotherapy. The proportion who visited an emergency room (ER) more than once during the last months of life was 33.6%, and the average number of ER visits after a diagnosis of cancer was 1.72. Only 9.1% of patients were referred to a hospice consultation service and only 11.7% of patients agreed with written DNR. CONCLUSIONS Among patients who died of cancer, significant proportions were found to have received chemotherapy up to the end-of-life and to have visited ERs. Hospice referrals and discussions about DNR were not conducted well during the end-of-life period in Korea.
Prevalence of metallo-beta lactamase (MBL) producing Pseudomonas spp. and Acinetobacter spp. in a tertiary care hospital in India.

OBJECTIVE Gram-negative bacteria with acquired metallo-beta lactamases production have been increasingly reported in some countries, necessitating their detection. We determined the occurrence of acquired metallo-beta lactamases (MBL) producing bacteria in our teaching hospital. METHOD The method employed was a rapid technique using a disk of imipenem plus 750 microg of EDTA, on Mueller-Hinton plate which was supplemented with 70 microg/ml of zinc sulfate, to differentiate MBL producing Pseudomonads and Acinetobacter. RESULT Out of 200 isolates tested, 7.5% of our Pseudomonads and Acinetobacter were shown to be MBL producers. CONCLUSIONS Though MBL prevalence is still low in our hospital set up, screening for MBL among Pseudomonas and Acinetobacter isolates should be routinely done in laboratory.
Model predictive control with integral control and constraint handling for mechatronic systems

In this paper, we present a model predictive control (MPC) method which combines integral control and constraint handling simultaneously. The state observer using pole placement is designed for output feedback control and real-time implementation. By appropriately augmenting the integrator dynamics, the original MPC problem is transformed to a quadratic programming problem with constraints. The proposed MPC controller was applied to a piezo-actuated system and implemented at a 10 kHz sampling rate for step tracking. Several controller design parameters affecting the control performance were analyzed and discussed through the experimental results presented. In particular, the constraint handling results demonstrate the effectiveness and potential of the proposed method for mechatronic systems.
Light intensity of 5 or 20 lux on broiler behavior, welfare and productivity

&NA; Light intensity can influence broiler behavior, but discrepancies in the scientific literature remain. Furthermore, few studies have investigated the welfare implications induced by varying light intensity. We investigated the effects of providing 5 or 20 lux light intensity on broiler behavior, welfare and productivity. A total of 1,872 Ross 308 broilers of mixed sex were studied across 2 replicates. Treatments began on d 8 with one of 2 light intensity levels: 5 lux or 20 lux, using LED lights on a 16L:8D photoperiod with 30 min sunrise and sunset periods. Production data, behavioral activity, and plasma samples for corticosterone concentration analysis were collected weekly from 8 to 46 d of age. Eye weight was collected at 42 d of age. Leg strength was assessed at 35, 42 and 45 d of age using the latency to lie test and leg and foot conditions (foot pad dermatitis, hock burn, leg straightness) were assessed at 46 d. Live weight differed between light treatments, with broilers kept at 20 lux being lighter than broilers kept at 5 lux at 46 d of age (males: ‐5.1%, females: ‐2.8%, P < 0.0001), despite no significant differences in feed intake. However, broilers kept at 20 lux were more active during the photophase than broilers kept at 5 lux throughout the rearing period (P < 0.0001). Eye weight was also on average 5% lighter for broilers kept at 20 lux compared to 5 lux (P = 0.001). Nonetheless, there was no significant effect of light intensity on other measures of broiler welfare: mortality and culls, plasma corticosterone concentrations, or latency to lie reflective of leg strength. Hence, broilers kept at 20 lux compared to 5 lux were found to be more active, had slower growth, and had lighter eye weight, but other welfare measures reflective of biological functioning or leg health did not show significant changes.
mTOR inhibitors in the treatment of cancer.

BACKGROUND The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) is a protein kinase of the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/Akt signalling pathway with a central role in the control of cell proliferation, survival, mobility and angiogenesis. Dysregulation of mTOR pathway has been found in many human tumours; therefore, the mTOR pathway is considered an important target for the development of new anticancer drugs. OBJECTIVE To review the mTOR pathway, the role of the mTOR inhibitors in cancer treatment, the preclinical features and clinical results of the three mTOR inhibitors currently in development, temsirolimus, everolimus and deforolimus. METHODS Review of the published literature (abstracts, full papers) since 1995 on mTOR pathway and related pathway signalling, rapamycin and analogues. RESULTS/CONCLUSION With each of the three mTOR inhibitors temsirolimus (CCI-779), everolimus (RAD001) and deforolimus (AP23573), a safe schedule of treatment has been defined and promising results of antitumour activity have been achieved in a variety of solid tumours, thus confirming the preclinical expectations.
Dictionnaire kakabé-français

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Cutting Edge: TLR9 and TLR2 Signaling Together Account for MyD88-Dependent Control of Parasitemia in Trypanosoma cruzi Infection1

Activation of innate immune cells by Trypanosoma cruzi-derived molecules such as GPI anchors and DNA induces proinflammatory cytokine production and host defense mechanisms. In this study, we demonstrate that DNA from T. cruzi stimulates cytokine production by APCs in a TLR9-dependent manner and synergizes with parasite-derived GPI anchor, a TLR2 agonist, in the induction of cytokines by macrophages. Compared with wild-type animals, T. cruzi-infected Tlr9−/− mice displayed elevated parasitemia and decreased survival. Strikingly, infected Tlr2−/−Tlr9−/− mice developed a parasitemia equivalent to animals lacking MyD88, an essential signaling molecule for most TLR, but did not show the acute mortality displayed by MyD88−/− animals. The enhanced susceptibility of Tlr9−/− and Tlr2−/−Tlr9−/− mice was associated with decreased in vivo IL-12/IFN-γ responses. Our results reveal that TLR2 and TLR9 cooperate in the control of parasite replication and that TLR9 has a primary role in the MyD88-dependent induction of IL-12/IFN-γ synthesis during infection with T. cruzi.
Refractive index reconfigurable metamaterial structure at 28 GHz frequency range

In this paper, a new refractive index reconfigurable metamaterial structure at millimeter wave (MMW) frequency range has been designed and simulated for beam switching in a future fifth-generation (5G) mobile network applications. The new proposed structure is composed of a Ladder shaped resonator (LSR) printed on the front face of a substrate layer and operates at 28 GHz. By proper arrangement of LSR unit cell, the proposed structure achieves a low loss and almost full transmission by −0.26 dB (0.97 in linear scale). To provide the refractive index reconfigurable feature, two PIN diodes are formed in the gaps of the structure. Thus, LSR can be switched between four states with a different refractive index values which are −60, −14, 0 and −12 at 28 GHz. In the simulation, the copper strip and measured S-parameters of the proposed PIN diode are used to achieve the reconfigurability. To demonstrate a reconfigurability of the new metamaterial structure, the return loss, insertion loss and real parts of the effective refractive index at each reconfigurable frequency are studies and investigated.
Infiltration of tumors by systemically transferred tumor-reactive T lymphocytes is required for antitumor efficacy.

The systemic transfer of ex vivo-activated tumor-sensitized T lymphocytes can mediate immunologically specific regression of established tumors. However, it has not been conclusively established whether the infiltration of systemically transferred T cells into metastases is required for their effector function. In this study, T cells from lymph nodes draining the murine fibrosarcoma MCA 205 cells were activated ex vivo with anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody and interleukin-2. During the final 24 h of culture, the T cells were treated with pertussis toxin (PTX) to inhibit signaling through G protein-coupled chemokine receptors required for diapedesis. Systemically transferred PTX-treated cells did not have any therapeutic efficacy against 3-day established pulmonary metastases. This lack of efficacy correlated with their failure to infiltrate the tumor parenchyma. However, PTX-treated cells responded to tumor antigen stimulation with IFN-gamma secretion in vitro. More importantly, PTX-treated effector T cells prevented tumor growth when they were admixed with tumor cells and inoculated s.c. These results demonstrate that systemically transferred tumor-reactive T lymphocytes need to infiltrate the tumor parenchyma through the endothelium to initiate tumor regression, but PTX-sensitive proteins are not required for either antigen recognition or effector functions.
A Multilevel Test of Constrained Choices Theory

According to Bird and Rieker’s sociology of constrained choices, decisions and priorities concerning health are shaped by the contexts—including policy, community, and work/family—in which they are formulated. While each level received attention in the original and subsequent research, we contend their constrained choices theory provides a powerful multilevel framework for modeling health outcomes. We apply this framework to tobacco clean air restrictions, combining a comprehensive database of tobacco policies with the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 from ages 19 to 31. Using multilevel panel models, we find that clean air policies lower the odds of past 30 day smoking and dependence while controlling for other policy-, city-, and individual-level constraints. We also find unique between- and within-person effects, as well as gender effects, for the constraint levied by smoking bans. We argue for the theory’s broad applicability beyond commonly cited findings regarding gender and biological influences.
Clinical-pathologic correlation in a patient with selective loss of hair cells in the vestibular endorgans

We found a selective loss of vestibular hair cells in a patient followed for more than 10 years with imbalance and oscillopsia due to idiopathic progressive loss of vestibular function. Hearing function and cochlear hair cells were normal. The vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) gain at high frequencies was relatively maintained despite marked shortening of the dominant VOR time constant (to less than 500 ms). Ultrastructural examination of remaining hair cells showed mitochondrial abnormalities. The ultrashort VOR time constant probably resulted from changes in firing patterns of the primary afferent nerves due to loss of hair cells and impaired energy metabolism in remaining hair cells.