Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of Caffeine and Lycopene in Experimentally Induced Diabetes Mellitus

Objectives Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a global epidemic with increasing prevalence. The disease is chronic in nature, and patients must use antidiabetic drugs or insulin during their lifespan. Because of the difficulty of using injectable insulin preparations, patients and practitioners prefer to use oral antidiabetic drugs for prophylaxis and treatment. There are, however, numerous adverse effects of antidiabetic drugs and rapidly increasing attention is being paid to new nutraceutical drugs with fewer adverse effects. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of caffeine and lycopene on streptozotocin (STZ)-induced DM in rats. Methods Caffeine and lycopene were administered to the study groups by oral gavages for 1 month whereafter experimental diabetes was induced in 90 rats in 6 groups. Results There were no pathological effects of lycopene and caffeine on the pancreas. Marked vacuolization and degeneration were observed in STZ-treated groups. Caffeine and lycopene decreased the pathological findings and lowered the blood and urine glucose levels in the rats with STZ-induced DM, whereas these compounds increased serum insulin levels. Conclusions This study showed that caffeine and lycopene provided protective effects against experimentally induced DM. The protective effects of lycopene were observed to be much greater than those of caffeine.
Medical Miracle in Indianola, Mississippi: The Untold Story of Dr. Clinton Battle and the Indianola Conjoined / Matthews Siamese Twins

Conjoined twins are very rare. The overall survival rate has been estimated to be approximately 25% to 50%. We report a case of conjoined twins delivered in Indianola, Mississippi in 1955 who made medical history. The Matthews’ conjoined twins were the fi rst in history to be separated and both survive.
The prediction of T-and B-combined epitope of Ag 85 B antigen of Mycobacterium tuberculosis

After decades of intensive control efforts, tuberculosis (TB) still remains one of the most important causes of morbidity and mortality in the world. Antigen Ag85B, a major protein secreted by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is a vaccine candidate against TB. In the present study, we used Signalp, TMHMM, ProPred, BIMAS, SYFPEITHI, DNAStar and IEDB to predict the Tand B-cell epitopes. The analysis of the secondary structure and tertiary structure showed that there were five T-cell epitopes and seven B-cell epitopes. Bioinformatics analysis shows the Tand B-combined epitopes. Four Tand B-combined epitopes that triggering both T cell and B cell responses have been predicted. Four Tand B-combined epitopes were synthetic in rAg85B. The recombinant proteins rAg85B were found to have good immunogenicity. The obtained results in the present study may be beneficial in the investigation of rAg85B antigenicity and the development of dominant epitope vaccines.
The development of immunity in a social insect: Evidence for the group facilitation of disease resistance

The extraordinary diversity and ecological success of the social insects has been attributed to their ability to cope with the rich and often infectious microbial community inhabiting their nests and feeding sites. Mechanisms of disease control used by eusocial species include antibiotic glandular secretions, mutual grooming, removal of diseased individuals from the nest, and the innate and adaptive immune responses of colony members. Here we demonstrate that after a challenge exposure to the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae, dampwood termites Zootermopsis angusticollis have higher survivorship when individuals develop immunity as group members. Furthermore, termites significantly improve their ability to resist infection when they are placed in contact with previously immunized nestmates. This “social transfer” of infection resistance, a previously unrecognized mechanism of disease control in the social insects, could explain how group living may improve the survivorship of colony members despite the increased risks of pathogen transmission that can accompany sociality.
Emerging security threats for mobile platforms

The proliferation of smart-phone devices, with ever advancing technological features, has brought the issue of mobile device security back into focus. Mobile devices are rapidly becoming attractive targets for malicious attacks due to significant advances in both hardware and operating systems. The modern mobile platforms, like Android, iOS and Symbian, increasingly resemble traditional operating systems for PCs. Therefore, the challenges in enforcing smart-phone security are becoming similar to those present in PC platforms. By installing malicious content, smart-phones can be infected with worms, trojan horses or other virus families, which can compromise user's security and privacy or even gain complete control over the device. Such malicious content can easily spread due to advances in mobile network technologies which provide smart-phones with capability of constant Internet connection over 3G or Wi-Fi networks. Additionally, the improvements in smart-phone features introduce new types of security concerns. By compromising mobile OS, malicious applications can access voice-recording devices, cameras, intercept SMS messages or gain location information. Such security breaches severely compromise user's privacy. In this paper we present an analysis of contemporary mobile platform threats and give an in-depth overview of threat mitigation mechanisms built into state of the art mobile operating systems.
Design of a secure architecture for scalar multiplication on elliptic curves

Embedded systems support more and more features. Authentication and confidentiality are part of them. These systems have limitations that put the public-key RSA algorithm at a disadvantage: Elliptic curve cryptography (ECC) becomes more attractive because it requires less energy and less area. A lot of attacks exploit physical access on cryptographic hardware device: power analysis attacks (SPA, DPA), or timing analysis attacks. The coprocessor presented here supports all critical operations of an ECC cryptosystem and has been secured against side channel attacks.
Germline mutation analysis of the androgen receptor gene in Finnish patients with prostate cancer.

PURPOSE Steroid hormones, particularly androgens, are suspected to have a major role in prostate carcinogenesis. Since androgen receptor mediates androgenic effects on cells and recent studies suggest that the androgen receptor gene is a putative prostate cancer susceptibility locus, we screened the coding region of the androgen receptor gene for germline mutations using the genomic DNA of patients with prostate cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS DNA samples from 38 patients with early onset prostate cancer and 36 from Finnish prostate cancer families showing no male-to-male transmission of prostate cancer were analyzed for mutations in the androgen receptor gene using single strand conformation polymorphism analysis and subsequent sequencing. RESULTS R726L substitution in the hormone binding region of androgen receptor was found in 1 prostate cancer family but no previously uncharacterized germline mutations were detected. CONCLUSIONS Our results indicate that constitutional androgen receptor mutations explain only a small fraction of familial and early onset prostate cancer cases in Finland.
Concomitant cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone chemotherapy plus highly active antiretroviral therapy in patients with human immunodeficiency virus‐related, non‐Hodgkin lymphoma

The feasibility and efficacy of concomitant chemotherapy and highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) is still unknown in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)‐related malignancies. To evaluate the impact of chemotherapy plus HAART on the clinical course of patients with HIV‐related, systemic, non‐Hodgkin lymphoma (HIV‐NHL), the authors compared retrospectively a group of 24 patients with HIV‐NHL who were treated with the cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone (CHOP) chemotherapy regimen plus HAART with a group of 80 patients who were treated with CHOP chemotherapy or a CHOP‐like regimen (i.e., cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, teniposide, and prednisone with vincristine plus bleomycin) without receiving antiretroviral therapy.
Bioinspired Hydroxyapatite/Poly(methyl methacrylate) Composite with a Nacre‐Mimetic Architecture by a Bidirectional Freezing Method

Using a bidirectional freezing technique, combined with uniaxial pressing and in situ polymerization, "nacre-mimetic" hydroxyapatite/poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) composites are developed by processing large-scale aligned lamellar ceramic scaffolds. Structural and mechanical characterization shows "brick-and-mortar" structures, akin to nacre, with interesting combinations of strength, stiffness, and work of fracture, which provide a pathway to making strong and tough lightweight materials.
Adaptive predictive control with an adaptive output predictor for multi-rate sampled systems

The predictive controls are one of the major control strategies in the process control. However, in general, an exact model of the controlled system is required in order to predict the system's outputs accurately. In this paper, we deal with a predictive control design problem for uncertain multi-rate sampled systems. An adaptive predictive control using an adaptive output predictor with a simple structure for uncertain multi-rate sampled systems will be proposed.
BIOTECHNOLOGICALLY RELEVANT ENZYMES AND PROTEINS Purification and functional characterization of endo-β-mannanase MAN5 and its application in oligosaccharide production from konjac flour

MAN5, the main extracellular saccharide hydrolase from Bacillus sp. MSJ-5, is an endo-β-mannanase with a demand of at least five sugar moieties for effective cleavage. It has a pH optimum of 5.5 and a temperature optimum of 50°C and is stable at pH5–9 or below 65°C. MAN5 has a very high ability to hydrolyze konjac flour, 10 U/mg of which could completely liquefy konjac flour gum in 10 min at 50°C. HPLC analysis showed that most glucomannan in the konjac flour was hydrolyzed into a large amount of oligosaccharides with DP of 2–6 and a very small amount of monosaccharide. With the culture supernatant as enzyme source, the optimum condition to prepare oligosaccharides from konjac flour was obtained as 10 mg/ml konjac flour incubated with 10 U/mg enzyme at 50°C for 24 h. With this condition, more than 90% polysaccharides in the konjac flour solution were hydrolyzed into oligosaccharides and a little monosaccharide (2.98% of the oligosaccharides). Konjac flour is an underutilized agricultural material with low commercial value in China. With MAN5, konjac flour can be utilized to generate high valueadded oligosaccharides. The high effectiveness and cheapness of this technique indicates its potential in industry.
Contacting paper-based supercapacitors to printed electronics on paper substrates

Abstract Hybrid printed electronics, in which printed structures and silicon-based components co-exist will likely be among the first commercial solutions. In this case the paper substrate acts much in the same way as circuit boards, containing conductive tracks and acting as a carrier for the electrical components. It is important to consider the contacting of the components to be able to produce low resistance electrical contacts to the conductive tracks. Supercapacitors are able to deliver a large amount of current in a short time and are a good option for short term energy storage and if the printed product is to be used only one, or a few times, it can be the only power source needed. When manufacturing printed electronics, the overall resistance of the printed tracks as well as the contact resistance of the mounted components will add up to the total resistance of the system. A high resistance will cause a voltage drop from the power source to the component. This will waste power that goes to Joule heating and also the voltage and current available to components may be too low to drive them. If the intention is to use a power supply such as batteries or solar cells this becomes a limitation. In this article have been tested several conductive adhesives used to contact paper based supercapacitors to ink jet printed silver tracks on paper. The best adhesive gives about 0.3 Ω per contact, a factor 17 better compared to the worst which gave 5 Ω. The peak power that is possible to take out from a printed system with a flexible battery and super capacitors is about 10 times higher than compared with the same system with only the battery.
Amplitude-modulated ventilation. Effects in acute lung injury and characterization of mechanisms of action.

Amplitude modulated ventilation, administered as intermittent deep breaths to guinea pigs with experimental ALl, resulted in an increase in lung compliance which lasted many respiratory cycles. The response was greater in magnitude and longer lasting than that observed in control animals. Viscoelastic dynamic responses of parenchymal tissue strips and surfactant film preparations from damaged and control animals used in a microstructural model of alveolar stability failed to adequately predict the time responses observed in the intact lung. We are currently developing a more detailed dynamic model of alveolar microstructure which we hope will allow us to better understand how AMV may work, and how we can plan rationale strategies for improving alveolar stability and overall lung function in ALI without promoting damage in previously intact regions of the lung.
Autonomic Function in Hypertensive and Normotensive Subjects: The Importance of Gender

Abstract—Baroreceptor reflex sensitivity (BRS) has been found lower and heart rate variability (HRV) parasympathetic markers have been found higher in healthy women than in healthy men. Thus, in the present study we hypothesized gender differences in the autonomic function among hypertensive subjects. Forty-one hypertensive patients and 34 normotensive subjects, age 53±1 years, were examined. Four weeks after cessation of antihypertensive therapy, HRV was assessed in 24-hour Holter ECGs, and BRS was calculated with the transfer technique. A t test was performed after log transformation of spectral values. Resting blood pressure and heart rate in the hypertensive and the normotensive groups were 150±2/100±1 (mean±SEM) and 121±2/81±1 mm Hg, respectively, and 68±1 and 60±1 bpm, respectively (P <0.0005). Compared with normotensive controls, hypertensive patients had lower total power (1224±116 versus 1797±241 ms2;P =0.03), lower low frequency power (550±57 versus 813±115 ms2;P =0.04), lower high frequency power (141±23 versus 215±38 ms2;P =0.06), lower root mean square successive difference (28.7±2.7 versus 35.7±3.0 ms;P =0.03), and PNN50 (4.9±0.6% versus 9.8±1.5%;P =0.003). BRS was also lower in the hypertensive subjects (7.6±0.6 versus 10.4±0.8 ms/mm Hg;P =0.005). When comparing the same parameters between normotensive subjects and hypertensive subjects within the same gender group, we found significant reduction (P <0.05) only within the female group. The difference in BRS within the female group was twice that within the male group. Stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed gender, age, HDL cholesterol, and blood pressure as independent explanatory variables of BRS and HRV. Our results suggest that gender is an important determinant of BRS and HRV. Autonomic function parameters were especially impaired in hypertensive women compared with hypertensive men.
A neural network model of kinetic depth

Abstract We propose a network model that accounts for the kinetic depth in structure from motion phenomena. Using plausible neural mechanisms, the model accounts for (1) fluctuations in perception when viewing a simple kinetic depth stimulus, (2) disambiguation of this stimulus with stereoscopic information, and (3) subsequent bias of the percept of this stimulus following stereoscopic adaptation. The model comprises two levels: a layer of monocular directionally selective motion detectors that provide input to a second layer of disparity- selective and direction-selective binocular mechanisms. The network of facilitatory and inhibitory connections between binocular mechanisms gives rise to fluctuations in network activity that mimic the fluctuations in perception of kinetic depth in the absence of disparity information. The results of a psychophysical experiment are consistent with the nature of the proposed interactions.
Computed cranial tomographic findings in cerebral sinovenous occlusion.

Eleven patients with angiographically and/or pathologically verified cerebral sinovenous occlusions not directly caused by trauma were studied by computed cranial tomography (CCT). Static radionuclide brain scans and dynamic radionuclide flow studies were also obtained in four patients; in two, findings diagnostic of lateral sinus thrombosis were noted. These comprised a "negative on dynamic, hot on static" image, as well as a "hot on static with nonfilling on angiography. " Computed cranial tomography findings included visualization of the thrombosed vein ("cord sign") or sinus ("empty triangle" or "delta sign"), multiple focal bilateral parasagittal hemorrhages, intense tentorial enhancement, gyral enhancement indistinguishable from infarct, solitary intracerebral hematoma, small ventricles, and normal scan. Excluding the patients with underlying meningioma, all three of whom survived, seven of the remaining eight patients expired during the acute phase of their illness, an 88% mortality. This group includes one patient who had normal CCT findings, albeit without contrast enhancement, who was diagnosed as pseudotumor cerebri. The need for full neuroradiological evaluation, including angiography, is thus stressed if this highly fatal yet treatable condition is not to remain undiagnosed.
Tracking and Follow-Up of Marginalized Populations: A Review

Maintaining study cohorts is a key element of longitudinal research. Participant attrition introduces the possibility of bias and limits the generalizability of a study's findings, but with appropriate planning it is possible to sustain contact with even the most transient participants. This paper reviews the essential elements of tracking and follow-up of marginalized populations, which are (1) collection of contact information, (2) thorough organization of tracking efforts, (3) attention to staff training and support, (4) use of phone and mail follow-up, (5) use of incentives, (6) establishing rapport with participants, (7) assurance of confidentiality, (8) use of agency tracking, (9) use of field tracking, and (10) attention to safety concerns. Diligent application of these tracking strategies allows researchers to achieve follow-up rates of 75 percent to 97 percent with vulnerable populations such as homeless, mentally ill adults, injection drug users, and runaway youth.
A new dual-polarized broadband horn antenna

This letter describes a new design of dual-polarized broadband horn antennas. The bandwidth of the designed horn antenna is from 2 to 26.5 GHz. A novel coaxial line to quadruple-ridged waveguide transition is introduced to improve the return loss performance of the horn antenna. Measured results for VSWR, isolation, gain, and radiation pattern of the designed horn antenna are presented.
Effects of sustained inflation and postinflation positive end-expiratory pressure in acute respiratory distress syndrome: Focusing on pulmonary and extrapulmonary forms*

ObjectiveTo investigate whether the response to sustained inflation and postinflation positive end-expiratory pressure varies between acute respiratory distress syndrome with pulmonary (ARDSp) and extrapulmonary origin (ARDSexp). DesignProspective clinical study. SettingMultidisciplinary intensive care unit in a university hospital. PatientsA total of 11 patients with ARDSp and 13 patients with ARDSexp. InterventionsA 7 ml/kg tidal volume, 12–15 breaths/min respiratory rate, and an inspiratory/expiratory ratio of 1:2 was used during baseline ventilation. Positive end-expiratory pressure levels were set according to the decision of the primary physician. Sustained inflation was performed by 45 cm H2O continuous positive airway pressure for 30 secs. Postinflation positive end-expiratory pressure was titrated decrementally, starting from a level of 20 cm H2O to keep the peripheral oxygen saturation between 92% and 95%. Fio2 was decreased, and baseline tidal volume, respiratory rate, inspiratory/expiratory ratio were maintained unchanged throughout the study period. Measurements and Main ResultsBlood gas, airway pressure, and hemodynamic measurements were performed at the following time points: at baseline and at 15 mins, 1 hr, 4 hrs, and 6 hrs after sustained inflation. After sustained inflation, the Pao2/Fio2 ratio improved in all of the patients both in ARDSp and ARDSexp. However, the Pao2/Fio2 ratio increased to >200 in four ARDSp patients (36%) and in seven ARDSexp patients (54%). In two of those ARDSp patients, the Pao2/Fio2 ratio was found to be <200, whereas none of the ARDSexp patients revealed Pao2/Fio2 ratios of <200 at the 6-hr measurement. Postinflation positive end-expiratory pressure levels were set at 16.7 ± 2.3 cm H2O in ARDSexp and 15.6 ± 2.5 cm H2O in ARDSp. The change in Pao2/Fio2 ratios was found statistically significant in patients with ARDSexp (p = .0001) and with ARDSp (p = .008). Respiratory system compliance increased in ARDSexp patients (p = .02), whereas the change in ARDSp was not statistically significant. ConclusionsSustained inflation followed by high levels of postinflation positive end-expiratory pressure provided an increase in respiratory system compliance in ARDSexp; however, arterial oxygenation improved in both ARDS forms.
A fully automatic reference deconvolution strategy to increase the accuracy of in vivo lipid signal quantification

Lipid signals measured by 1H MR spectroscopy cannot be adequately quantified by common fitting routines like VARPRO or AMARES, if lipid spectra are distorted by irregular spatial and temporal inhomogeneities of the static magnetic field during readout. A fully automatic reference deconvolution algorithm is presented that eliminates these distortions before application of fitting routines.
IMPACTOS DO DOW JONES, DOS PREÇOS DO PETRÓLEO E DA TAXA DE CÂMBIO SOBRE O INDX: UMA ANÁLISE DO EFEITO CONTÁGIO / IMPACTS OF DOW JONES, OIL PRICES AND EXCHANGE RATE ON INDX: AN ANALYSIS OF THE CONTAGION EFFECT

O objetivo da pesquisa e avaliar a existencia do efeito contagio do indice Dow Jones, dos precos do petroleo e da taxa de câmbio sobre o comportamento do indice de acoes de empresas do setor industrial brasileiro (INDX), no periodo 05/01/2000 a 31/03/2015, alem de verificar as relacoes de longo prazo entre as variaveis. O marco teorico fundamenta-se no efeito contagio, em que ocorre a propagacao de perturbacoes no mercado de um pais para outro. Para tanto, foi aplicado teste de cointegracao de acordo com procedimento sugerido por Engle e Granger (1987) e um modelo de vetores autorregressivos (VAR), proposto por Sims (1980). Os resultados do teste de cointegracao de Engle e Granger nao indicaram a existencia de relacoes em longo prazo entre as variaveis. Em termos dos efeitos de curto prazo, as funcoes de resposta a impulso mostraram que o indice de acoes de empresas brasileiras do setor industrial reage nao apenas positivamente com o indice Dow Jones e com a taxa de câmbio, mas tambem negativamente com o preco do petroleo, o que corrobora a hipotese de presenca do efeito contagio.