Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
[Efficacy of infliximab in treatment of pediatric Crohn's disease in China].

OBJECTIVE To investigate the efficacy of infliximab versus corticosteroids in achieving clinical remission in pediatric patients with Crohn's disease in China. METHOD Data of all newly diagnosed active Crohn's disease pediatric cases seen from June 2009 to December 2013 in Children's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine were retrospectively recorded and reviewed. INCLUSION CRITERIA the age of the children was less than 18 years; pediatric Crohn's disease activity index (PCDAI) was more than 10; infliximab or corticosteroids were used for inducing remission; infliximab, immunosuppressive medications or mesalamine was prescribed for maintaining remission. Patients in steroids group were followed up for more than 1 year. The enrolled patients were divided into two groups: infliximab group and steroids group. Clinical data, laboratory findings and side effects of the medications were collected at week 2, 4, 12, 24 and 48. PCDAI and Crohn's disease endoscopic index score (CDEIS) were calculated. Clinical response rate, clinical remission rate, relapse rate, mucosal healing and growth were evaluated. RESULT Eleven children received infliximab therapy and 11 subjects received corticosteroids. In Infliximab group, 6, 5 and 7 patients were in clinical remission at week 2, 4, and 8, while so were 6, 9, and 9 patients in steroids group. The difference was not statistically significant (χ² = 0.00, 3.14, 0.92, P > 0.05). In infliximab group, 8, 8, and 11 patients were in clinical remission at week 2, 4, and 8, so were 8, 9, and 9 patients in steroids group. The difference was not statistically significant (χ² = 0.00,0.26, 2.20, P > 0.05). When compared with data at baseline, significant decreases were observed in the median PCDAI between the two groups at week 2, 4, and 8 (all P < 0.05). But there were no significant differences between two groups at week 2, 4, and 8 (all P > 0.05). At week 12, 24 and 48, 8/11, 7/8, 3/5 cases on infliximab versus 7/11, 9/11, 8/11 cases on steroids maintained remission. There was no significant differences between the two groups (all P > 0.05). In 7 patients and 9 patients remission was successfully induced at week 8. The relapse rate was similar at week 12, 24, and 48 (χ² = 0.83, 0.09, 1.00, all P > 0.05). Height for age Z score in infliximab group was significantly higher than that in steroids group at week 24 (P < 0.05). Body mass index Z score between the two groups at week 8, 24, and 48 were not statistically significant (all P > 0.05). Of the children treated with infliximab, 3 developed side effects. All the children treated with steroids got Cushing's syndrome. CONCLUSION In children with Crohn's disease, infliximab therapy is as effective as corticosteroids to induce remission.Less side effects were observed with infliximab therapy compared with immunosuppressive medication and mesalamine.
Profiling the elite middle-age Chinese outbound travellers: a 3rd wave?*

ABSTRACT With inductive analysis of relevant statistics and literature, this paper reveals an elite middle-age Chinese cohort of significant size, with ample buying power and considerable discretionary time to support the outbound travel of themselves and their children. This middle age group has experienced a time of dramatic change in recent years causing a transformation of traditional livelihood activities and lifestyles. Associated changes in wealth and values contribute to overseas travel proclivities that could entail both positive and negative impacts for both host and guest. The depiction of the current status and potential development in Chinese outbound travel suggests that this group could possibly form a ‘3rd wave’ of Chinese outbound tourists. The segmentation based on generation cohort and social status is particularly suitable in helping the tourism industry service providers in identifying market characteristics for marketing, product development and comprehensive destination development.
A one-chip isolated gate driver with an electromagnetic resonant coupler using a SPDT switch

The isolated direct gate driver with Drive-by-Microwave technologies can directly drive a power switching device by wireless power transmission of RF modulated signal through the electromagnetic resonant coupler and requires no additional isolated voltage source. In order to improve the performance such as a fall time characteristic and a power consumption of the gate driver, a new direct gate driver using a SPDT switch is proposed, which can effectively switch the inter-channels for the positive and negative voltage outputs. The fabricated GaN single-chip direct gate driver realized 2.0Mbps signal isolation and successfully drove a GaN power switching device with a very fast fall time by the negative voltage output for off-state.
Genetic linkage of the Marfan syndrome, ectopia lentis, and congenital contractural arachnodactyly to the fibrillin genes on chromosomes 15 and 5. The International Marfan Syndrome Collaborative Study.

BACKGROUND The large glycoprotein fibrillin is a structural component of elastin-containing microfibrils found in many tissues. The Marfan syndrome has been linked to the fibrillin gene on chromosome 15, but congenital contractural arachnodactyly, which shares some of the physical features of the syndrome, has been linked to the fibrillin gene on chromosome 5. METHODS Using specific markers for the fibrillin genes, we performed genetic linkage analysis in 28 families with the Marfan syndrome and 8 families with four phenotypically related disorders--congenital contractural arachnodactyly (3 families), ectopia lentis (2), mitral-valve prolapse syndrome (2), and annuloaortic ectasia (1). RESULTS Genetic linkage was established between the Marfan syndrome and only the fibrillin gene on chromosome 15, with a maximum lod score of 25.6 (odds for linkage, 10(25.6):1). Ectopia lentis was also linked to the fibrillin gene on chromosome 15, whereas congenital contractural arachnodactyly was linked to the fibrillin gene on chromosome 5. There was no linkage of mitral-valve prolapse to the fibrillin gene on chromosome 5; studies of chromosome 15 were not informative. Annuloaortic ectasia was not linked to either fibrillin gene. CONCLUSIONS The Marfan syndrome appears to be caused by mutations in a single fibrillin gene on chromosome 15. Diagnosis of the Marfan syndrome by genetic linkage and analysis is now feasible in many families.
Abnormal cortical excitability in sporadic but not homozygous D90A SOD1 ALS

Background: Excitotoxicity is one pathogenic mechanism proposed in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and loss of cortical inhibitory influence may be contributory. Patients with ALS who are homozygous for the D90A superoxide dismutase-1 (SOD1) gene mutation (homD90A) have a unique phenotype, associated with prolonged survival compared with patients with sporadic ALS (sALS). In this study, transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was used to explore cortical excitation and inhibition. Flumazenil binds to the benzodiazepine subunit of the GABAA receptor, and 11C-flumazenil positron emission tomography (PET) was used as a marker of cortical neuronal loss and/or dysfunction, which might in turn reflect changes in cortical inhibitory GABAergic mechanisms. Methods: Cortical responses to single and paired stimulus TMS were compared in 28 patients with sALS and 11 homD90A patients versus 24 controls. TMS measures included resting motor threshold, central motor conduction time, silent period, intracortical inhibition (ICI), and facilitation. 11C-flumazenil PET of the brain was performed on 20 patients with sALS and nine with homD90A. Statistical parametric mapping was used to directly compare PET images from the two patient groups to identify those areas of relatively reduced cortical 11C-flumazenil binding that might explain differences in cortical excitability seen using TMS. Results: Increased cortical excitability, demonstrated by reduction in ICI, was seen in the patients with sALS but not the homD90A patients. A relative reduction in cortical 11C-flumazenil binding was found in the motor and motor association regions of the superior parietal cortices of the patients with sALS. Conclusions: A cortical inhibitory deficit in sALS was not demonstrable in a homogeneous genetic ALS population of similar disability, suggesting a distinct cortical vulnerability. 11C-flumazenil PET demonstrated that neuronal loss/dysfunction in motor and motor association areas may underlie this difference. The corollary, that there may be relative preservation of neuronal function in these areas in the homD90A group, has implications for understanding the slower progression of disease in these patients.
Multivariate Pattern Analysis of fMRI in Breast Cancer Survivors and Healthy Women

Abstract Advances in breast cancer (BC) treatments have resulted in significantly improved survival rates. However, BC chemotherapy is often associated with several side effects including cognitive dysfunction. We applied multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to find a brain connectivity pattern that accurately and automatically distinguishes chemotherapy-treated (C+) from non-chemotherapy treated (C−) BC females and healthy female controls (HC). Twenty-seven C+, 29 C−, and 30 HC underwent fMRI during an executive-prefrontal task (Go/Nogo). The pattern of functional connectivity associated with this task discriminated with significant accuracy between C+ and HC groups (72%, p = .006) and between C+ and C− groups (71%, p = .012). However, the accuracy of discrimination between C− and HC was not significant (51%, p = .46). Compared with HC, behavioral performance of the C+ and C− groups during the task was intact. However, the C+ group demonstrated altered functional connectivity in the right frontoparietal and left supplementary motor area networks compared to HC, and in the right middle frontal and left superior frontal gyri networks, compared to C−. Our results provide further evidence that executive function performance may be preserved in some chemotherapy-treated BC survivors through recruitment of additional neural connections. (JINS, 2013, 19, 1–11)
Association of abacavir and impaired endothelial function in treated and suppressed HIV-infected patients

Background:HIV-infected patients have accelerated atherosclerosis. Abacavir has been associated with increased risk of cardiovascular events, for reasons that remain to be elucidated. As endothelial dysfunction is central to the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis, we tested the hypothesis that current treatment with abacavir is associated with impaired endothelial function. Methods:We studied a cohort of 61 antiretroviral-treated patients who had undetectable plasma HIV RNA levels. Endothelial function was assessed by measuring flow-mediated dilation (FMD) of the brachial artery. We compared FMD in patients treated with or without abacavir, while adjusting for traditional risk factors and HIV-specific characteristics. Results:The median age was 50 years (interquartile range 45–57). The median duration of HIV infection was 18 years, and the median CD4 cell count was 369 cells/μl. Thirty patients (49%) were receiving abacavir. Overall, the median FMD in the HIV-infected patients was low (3.5%; interquartile range 2.3–5.6%). The FMD was lower in the abacavir-treated patients than those not on abacavir (2.8 vs. 4.9%, P = 0.01). After adjustment for traditional risk factors, HIV-specific factors, and baseline brachial artery diameter, current abacavir use was independently associated with lower FMD (P = 0.017). Duration of therapy and CD4 cell count were not associated with reduced FMD. Conclusion:Endothelial function, a central mechanism in atherosclerosis and a marker of cardiovascular risk, is impaired among antiretroviral-treated patients with undetectable viral loads. Current use of abacavir was independently associated with impaired endothelial function. This finding suggests that abnormal endothelial function may underlie the clinically observed increased risk in myocardial infarction among abacavir-treated patients.
Nutritional Status in Children With Shwachman-Diamond Syndrome

Objective In Shwachman-Diamond syndrome (SDS), pancreatic insufficiency can lead to malabsorption of fat-soluble vitamins and trace elements. The aim of this study was to assess the serum concentrations of vitamins A and E, zinc, copper, and selenium and their deficiencies. Methods This retrospective review was performed in 21 children (12 were male; median age, 7.8 years) with genetically confirmed SDS at a tertiary pediatric hospital. Pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT) and vitamin or trace elements supplements were documented. Results Twenty patients (95%) had pancreatic insufficiency receiving PERT, 10 (47%) had a combined vitamin and trace element deficiency, 6 (29%) had an isolated vitamin deficiency, and 4 (19%) had an isolated trace element deficiency. Vitamins A and E deficiency occurred in 16 (76%) and 4 (19%) of 21, respectively. Low serum selenium was found in 10 (47%), zinc deficiency in 7 (33%), and copper deficiency in 5 (24%). Eleven patients (52%) were on multivitamin supplementation, and 2 (10%) on zinc and selenium supplements. No statistical differences were found between repeated measurements for all micronutrients. Conclusions More than 50% of the children had vitamin A and selenium deficiencies despite adequate supplementation of PERT and supplements. Micronutrients should be routinely measured in SDS patients to prevent significant complications.
Canadian Contributions to Family Economics

Canadian scholars have made substantial contributions to the relatively new field of family economics. These include new models of how men and women match in marriage markets, and of how decisions are made in multi-person households. Several were early contributors to the literature on married women's labour supply and labour supply in a family context, and helped to develop empirical methods in this area. A particular focus has been on the impacts of policy-relevant parameters, such childcare costs, on family labour supply and child well-being. New work on child development, the impact of early life conditions, and the processes of intergenerational transmission also highlight the importance of family context in determining economic well-being.
Verbal autopsies for adult deaths: issues in their development and validation.

BACKGROUND The verbal autopsy appears to be an attractive technique for the assessment of causes of adult death in settings where the proportion of people who die while under medical care is low. Verbal autopsies have been used extensively to assess causes of childhood deaths. The existing experience in verbal autopsies for adult deaths is limited mainly to maternal deaths. This paper aims to highlight the critical issues in verbal autopsies to assess causes of adult death which need further research. METHODS This paper reviews the methods of verbal autopsy used in 35 published studies and discusses issues in the development of verbal autopsies, including mortality classification, design of questionnaires, interviewers, respondents, recall periods, procedures for deriving a diagnosis and the recording of single versus multiple causes of death. It also discusses issues in the validation of verbal autopsies, including the choice of reference diagnosis and the required sample size. RESULTS The methodological approaches used in verbal autopsy studies have varied widely. Very few studies of the validity of verbal autopsies have been conducted. In these studies, the reported sensitivity and specificity varied widely between different causes of death and between studies. CONCLUSIONS The information available is inadequate to draw firm conclusions on preferred methodological approaches for verbal autopsies for adult deaths. Before these tools are used more widely for adult deaths, further research is required to compare alternative methods and to evaluate the validity of this tool in a range of settings.
UltraWideBand indoor positioning systems and their use in emergencies

Reliable and accurate indoor positioning for moving users requires a local replacement for satellite navigation. An UltraWideBand (UWB) system is particularly suitable for such local systems, including temporary installations supporting emergency services inside large buildings. The requirements for emergencies will be very variable, but will generally include: good radio penetration through structures, the rapid set-up of a stand-alone system, tolerance of high levels of reflection, and high accuracy. The accuracy should be better than 1 m, as sometimes it matters which side of a door you are, and locations should be in 3 dimensions. Support for robots as well as people would call for still better accuracy. Rapid set-up implies very little surveying of the fixed terminals, and positioning relative to the mobile and fixed terminals. A radio system that measures ranges between fixed and mobile terminals matches these requirements, but the requirements for accuracy and for dealing with multipath need a bandwidth of more than 1 GHz. Thus UWB is the preferred solution, as it has the specific advantage of high accuracy, even in the presence of severe multipath. This paper presents the features and system design options for UWB positioning systems, and shows how they match the indoor location demands of emergency services. The main features that are covered are: the deployment of terminals (how many, and where), the minimum requirements for fixed terminal surveying, integration (hybridisation) with GNSS, and solving for position inside the network. The main system design options are: whether the mobile terminals are transceivers or solely receivers, the UWB signal design and frequency span, and the use of the same signal for communications. The paper includes results from a demonstration UWB indoor positioning system being built at TRT (UK).
Effects of Isolation by Continental Islands in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan, on Genetic Diversity of the Large Japanese Field Mouse, Apodemus speciosus (Rodentia: Muridae), Inferred from the Mitochondrial Dloop Region

To study the effects of post-glacial isolation by islands on population genetic diversity and differentiation of the large Japanese field mouse, Apodemus speciosus, we examined partial nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial Dloop region (ca. 300 bp) in 231 individuals collected from islands in the Seto Inland Sea and adjacent regions on Honshu and Shikoku Islands in the western part of the Japanese archipelago. Molecular phylogenetic and network analyses showed that haplotypes in each island tended to form monophyletic groups, while those in Honshu and Shikoku (the major Japanese islands) showed scattered relationships and were connected with island haplotypes. These observations suggest that a set of Honshu and Shikoku haplotypes became the ancestral lineages of the island population. No gene flow was detected among island populations, indicating that independent evolution occurred on each island, without the influence of human activities, since the establishment of the islands in the Holocene. Population genetic diversities on each island were lower than those on Honshu and Shikoku. Comparison between genetic diversity and island area size showed positive correlations and supported the suggestion that genetic drift is a major factor that shaped the current haplotype constitution of the islands in the Seto Inland Sea.
Performance evaluation of interior permanent magnet synchronous machines using deadbeat-direct torque flux control in an indirect matrix converter with a reactor free boost converter

This paper discusses the performance of an interior permanent magnet synchronous machine by using deadbeat-direct torque flux control (DB-DTFC) in a hybrid power circuit structure, which consists of an indirect matrix converter (IMC) and a reactor free boost converter (RFBC). The first section of this paper documents the performance of DB-DTFC when carrier comparison PWM and space vector modulation (SVM) are used as modulation techniques. Corresponding Volt-sec solutions for each modulation technique are shown via simulation and experiments. The second section discusses DB-DTFC properties in the proposed IMC/RFBC circuit. The results demonstrate that DB-DTFC is capable of delivering fast dynamic torque response in one sample period even when (i) variable switching frequency is applied in the inverter of the IMC and (ii) DC offset current occurs in the output current of the IMC.
Exploration of Relationship between FDI and GDP: A Comparison between India and Its Neighbouring Countries

Foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows have been a trigger for accelerating economic growth in a number of countries. The pattern of FDI flows into India and its neighbourhood has been varied and so has been its impact on the economic growth in each of the countries. Although a lot of research has been carried out to establish causality between FDI and economic growth, the results are sometimes varied and conflicting. This study attempted to study the pattern of FDI into the Indian subcontinent and India’s neighbours, such as Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, and explore the causality between FDI and gross domestic product (GDP). The results showed that the different economic policies of the respective countries had a role to play in explaining the difference in the quantum of the flow and there is an association between FDI and GDP, and in all the cases, FDI is instrumental in enhancing the economic growth of the countries included in the study.
Delayed Single-Tap Frequency-Domain Chromatic-Dispersion Compensation

A long-haul transmission of 100 Gb/s without optical chromatic-dispersion (CD) compensation provides a range of benefits regarding cost effectiveness, power budget, and nonlinearity tolerance. The channel memory is largely dominated by CD in this case with an intersymbol-interference spread of more than 100 symbol durations. An efficient implementation of digital CD compensation is feasible by frequency-domain (FD) filtering. Still the large size of the Fourier transform requires a high gate-count and a large chip size. We propose a new FD filtering on the basis of a nonmaximally decimated discrete Fourier transform filter bank with a trivial prototype filter and a delayed single-tap equalizer per sub-band. This method, which can be regarded as an extension to the popular overlap-save method, allows us to increase the CD tolerance drastically. At the same time, the implementation complexity is not altered apart from adding simple memory elements realizing sub-band delays. With this technique, the uncompensated trans-Pacific transmission becomes feasible with the digital CD compensation.
Finance, Talent Allocation, and Growth

The growing finance wage premium is related to a modest net reallocation of skilled workers from non-finance sectors into finance in a broad sample of 24 countries over 35 years. The reallocation is higher when the finance wage premium grows faster than the contribution of the financial sector to the economy, which we proxy with the relative value added of finance. More innovative sectors and sectors exhibiting lower labor-transition costs face a higher reallocation of skilled workers. Yet, the growing finance wage premium is unrelated to sectoral or aggregate growth, to countries’ innovative capacity, to student enrollment in STEM degrees, and to the riskiness, efficiency, and competitiveness of banking sectors. Overall, the reallocation of skilled labor implied by a growing finance wage premium appears too modest to materially affect economic growth.