Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Intracellular distribution of differentially phosphorylated dual‐specificity tyrosine phosphorylation‐regulated kinase 1A (DYRK1A)

The gene encoding dual‐specificity tyrosine phosphorylation‐regulated kinase 1A (DYRK1A) is located within the Down syndrome (DS) critical region of chromosome 21. DYRK1A interacts with a plethora of substrates in the cytosol, cytoskeleton, and nucleus. Its overexpression is a contributing factor to the developmental alterations and age‐associated pathology observed in DS. We hypothesized that the intracellular distribution of DYRK1A and cell‐compartment‐specific functions are associated with DYRK1A posttranslational modifications. Fractionation showed that, in both human and mouse brain, almost 80% of DYRK1A was associated with the cytoskeleton, and the remaining DYRK1A was present in the cytosolic and nuclear fractions. Coimmunoprecipitation revealed that DYRK1A in the brain cytoskeleton fraction forms complexes with filamentous actin, neurofilaments, and tubulin. Two‐dimensional gel analysis of the fractions revealed DYRK1A with distinct isoelectric points: 5.5–6.5 in the nucleus, 7.2–8.2 in the cytoskeleton, and 8.7 in the cytosol. Phosphate‐affinity gel electrophoresis demonstrated several bands of DYRK1A with different mobility shifts for nuclear, cytoskeletal, and cytosolic DYRK1A, indicating modification by phosphorylation. Mass spectrometry analysis disclosed one phosphorylated site in the cytosolic DYRK1A and multiple phosphorylated residues in the cytoskeletal DYRK1A, including two not previously described. This study supports the hypothesis that intracellular distribution and compartment‐specific functions of DYRK1A may depend on its phosphorylation pattern. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Thermal-Mechanical Stress Modeling of Copper Chip-to-Substrate Pillar Connections

The thermal stress induced by the coefficient of thermal expansion mismatch between a silicon integrated circuit and an organic substrate is an important reliability issue for chip-to-substrate connections. Copper pillar chip-to-substrate connections, including solder-capped and all-copper pillars, are potential replacements for solder balls with underfill in flip-chip applications. The thermal stresses associated with copper pillar connections are a function of the shape, dimensions, and materials for copper pillars and their associated chip and substrate terminations. In this paper, the design of the copper pillar, chip-to-substrate connections has been studied using finite element analysis. A 3-D, half generalized plane deformation slice model is used to study the static thermal stress at elevated temperature. The design parameters include the shape and material of the pads at the terminus of the copper pillars and the nature of supporting collar around the pillar. The modeling results show that a chip-pad helps to lower the maximum thermal stress within the silicon die. Moreover, a supporting collar around the copper pillars serves to decrease the maximum thermal stress on the silicon die. A high-modulus polymer collar around the copper pillar serves to lower the stress at the pillar-to-chip-pad junction and increase the stress within the center of the pillar. The maximum thermal stress within the die was lowered from 160 MPa to 100 MPa by increasing the elastic modulus of the collar from 1.2 GPa to 11.8 GPa.
Structural study of the salivary glands of Anocentor nitens (Acari: Ixodidae) during the feeding cycle

The salivary glands of Anocentor nitens (Neumann, 1897 ) occur in pairs and are located in the anterolateral region of the general cavity, with milky white color and approximately equal sizes. They consist of a secretory portion and an excretion duct. In some glandular acini, all the cells had a basophilic appearance they were stained by hematoxylin, whereas others presented cells with different staining affinities. In this work, we describe the variations observed in these glands during the feeding cycle of ticks [after feeding (0 h) and successively at 24, 48, 72, 96, 120, and 144 h]. The cells stained by hematoxylin were shown to be more reactive to Alcian blue, thus demonstrating the presence of acid glycosaminoglycans, whereas those stained using eosin presented weak or no reaction. A strong reaction was found by the use of the periodic acid‐Schiff (PAS) technique, thereby suggesting the presence of glycogen and/or glycoconjugates containing hexose, confirmed by using salivary amylase before PAS, with partial destaining of the slides. Continuing presence of residual staining in these cells suggests the presence of glycoconjugates containing hexose. Cells with nuclei of circular outline and few granules (of different sizes) were found in type II acini, 72 h after collection. Type I acini presented wide lumina and walls composed of larger numbers of cells of cubic to cylindrical shape. The pronounced degranulation shown in this study over the course of the feeding cycle was associated with the release of substances for oviposition. Microsc. Res. Tech., 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Ventral hippocampal neurons inhibit postprandial energy intake

Evidence suggests that the memory of a recently ingested meal limits subsequent intake. Given that ventral hippocampal (vHC) neurons are involved in memory and energy intake, the present experiment tested the hypothesis that vHC neurons contribute to the formation of a memory of a meal and inhibit energy intake during the postprandial period. We tested (1) whether pharmacological inactivation of vHC neurons during the period following a sucrose meal, when the memory of the meal would be undergoing consolidation, accelerates the onset of the next sucrose meal and increases intake and (2) whether sucrose intake increases vHC expression of the synaptic plasticity marker activity‐regulated cytoskeletal‐associated protein (Arc). Adult male Sprague‐Dawley rats were trained to consume a 32% sucrose solution daily at the same time and location. On the experimental day, the rats were given intra‐vHC infusions of the GABAA receptor agonist muscimol or vehicle after they finished their first sucrose meal. Compared to vehicle infusions, postmeal intra‐vHC muscimol infusions decreased the latency to the next sucrose meal, increased the amount of sucrose consumed during that meal, increased the total number of sucrose meals and the total amount of sucrose ingested. In addition, rats that consumed sucrose had higher levels of Arc expression in both vHC CA1 and CA3 subfields than cage control rats. Collectively, these findings are the first to show that vHC neurons inhibit energy intake during the postprandial period and support the hypothesis that vHC neurons form a memory of a meal and inhibit subsequent intake. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The psychometric validity of the NEI VFQ-25 for use in a low-vision population.

PURPOSE To determine the psychometric validity of the National Eye Institute-Visual Function Questionnaire (NEI VFQ-25) and its subscale structure for use in people with low vision. METHODS Two hundred thirty-two participants completed the NEI VFQ-25. Rasch analysis was used to test the psychometric performance of the questionnaire and each subscale. Factor models were hypothesized and tested with confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and subsequently validated with Rasch analysis. RESULTS For the overall scale, two rating scales had to be dichotomized and three misfitting items removed to improve fit to the Rasch model. There was evidence of multidimensionality, indicating that the scale would benefit from scale splitting. For the NEI VFQ-25 subscale structure, six of the original 12 subscales could not fit the Rasch model because of item insufficiency (fewer than two items) and the remaining six displayed poor item fit characteristics indicating that the NEI VFQ-25 does not have a viable subscale structure. CFA supported a two-factor model with visual functioning (10 items) and socioemotional (9 items) scales. Most goodness-of-fit statistics were within the recommended range of values. The factor loadings of items on their respective scales were statistically significant (P < 0.001) and ranged between 0.59 and 0.84. The two scales individually fitted the Rasch model and were found to be unidimensional with adequate psychometric characteristics. CONCLUSIONS The native NEI VFQ-25 is a better performing instrument when split into visual functioning and socioemotional scales. These scales possess valid parameters for assessment of the impact of low vision in this population.
FINE NEEDLE ASPIRATION BIOPSY (FNAB) FOR RETINOBLASTOMA

Purpose To determine the incidence of diagnostic fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) in eyes with retinoblastoma (RB) as well as its indications and potential complications. Methods A retrospective study by survey was designed and a questionnaire inquiring on FNAB use in RB diagnosis during the past 15 years was submitted to 12 high-volume ocular oncology clinics. Results A total of 3,651 patients with RB have been diagnosed and treated in 12 clinics since 1985. During the same period, eight biopsies were obtained for diagnostic purposes and six of these proved to be RB by cytology; the other two showed inflammatory cells and benign retinal cells. The median age for the biopsied patients was 46 months; 6 of the biopsied children were older than 4 years of age. The average age at the time of biopsy was 46 months. Most of the cases were biopsied with clinical diagnosis of uveitis/endophthalmitis through the limbus and pars plana with 25- and 27-gauge needles. Five of six cases of RB had enucleation and one patient had cryotherapy and I-125 brachytherapy after FNAB. The average follow-up time for biopsy-proven RB cases was 10.8 years with no recurrent disease. Conclusion The results of this survey suggest that FNAB indication for RB diagnosis is rare; the majority of cases can be diagnosed and treated by ocular oncologists without invasive procedures.
The Economics of Managing Scarce Water Resources

This article surveys the literature on the economics of water scarcity and water demand. We examine demand estimation in diverted uses (urban, agricultural, and industrial), as well as the demand for instream uses such as recreation and habitat preservation. The article also assesses what is known about efficient water pricing, water allocation, and water trading within and across sectors. The literature examining the efficiency and distributional impacts of large water projects such as dams for irrigation and hydroelectric power is also discussed. Water conservation is examined from the perspective of efficiency and cost-effectiveness. We highlight water management issues to which economics has made important contributions, as well as areas where further research is needed.
Perceptions of a psychoeducation program for caregivers of persons with dementia at end of life: a qualitative study

ABSTRACT Objectives: Caregivers (CG) of persons with dementia have described positive and challenging experiences related to caring for a person with a neurological disease. This study explored perceived benefits and challenges of a unique psychoeducation program provided at end of life (EOL) jointly attended by current and bereaved CGs of persons with dementia, residing in a hospital Specialized Care Unit. Method: Semi-structured interviews were held with sixteen participants and analyzed with content analysis. Results: Program benefits were perceived by CGs such as: (i) enhanced emotional well-being, (ii) increased feelings of preparedness for EOL, and (iii) personal growth into role models. Within the organization the program was perceived as promoting relationship-centered care and increasing resources. Challenges such as diverse CG preferences, day-time scheduling and limited involvement of unit staff were perceived as barriers. Conclusions: This program fills a gap in care for CGs at the critical stage of EOL with continuity into bereavement. Implications for practice include: increasing engagement of unit staff for involvement and tailoring of the program, and translation of the program into alternative settings like long-term care. Policies outlining the support needs and resources for CGs through EOL within and outside the hospital are necessary to ensure access and continuity of care.
Log-domain iterative decoding combined USTM with codes over GF(2m) on flat Rayleigh fading channel

In this paper, a serial concatenated scheme combining USTM with LDPC codes over GF(2m) is presented. A modulation technique of USTM, Unitary space-time modulation, can efficiently work on decoding when the channel state information is unknown at the receiver in multi-input multi output system over flat raleigh fading channel. The BER performance of USTM system in MIMO channel will largely be improved by serially concatenating a good achieving the shannon limit LDPC(low-density parity-check) codes as outer codes, which have attracted much more attention recently, defined by a sparse parity check matrix over GF(2m) in our scheme. The well-known Sum-Product algorithm is also used as the iterative decoding of LDPC codes over GF(2m) , but here the algorithm works in the log-domain other than probability-domain for some advantages, such as implementation, computational complexity and etc. Simulating results show that our scheme works very well and about 20dB coding gain is provided by LDPC codes as an outer codes at a BER of 10-5 than USTM without channel coding. And further simulations assure that USTM concatenating with LDPC codes over GF(2m) outperforms more 5-6dB coding gain that LDPC codes over GF(2).
More Than the Sum of Its Parts: Meta-Analysis and Its Potential to Discover Sources of Heterogeneity in Psychosomatic Medicine

Meta-analyses may contribute to more reliable knowledge about the existence of certain relations in the area of psychosomatic research. Surprisingly, the increasing popularity of meta-analysis is not reflected in the number of meta-analyses of observational studies published in Psychosomatic Medicine. This may be due to the specific difficulties that apply to meta-analyses of observational research. The aim of this paper is to provide a nontechnical overview of the principles of meta-analysis applied to observational research. We will highlight general principles of meta-analysis and discuss the major threats to its validity, with an emphasis on its specific merits and pitfalls for psychosomatic research, using several examples. We conclude that meta-analysis is a relatively simple technique, leaving little reason for not routinely applying it when performing a systematic review. An adequately conducted meta-analysis may not only provide a summary estimate of a certain association, but it has additional value in discovering relevant confounders, mediators, and moderators, as well as identifying areas of research that require more attention. BMI = body mass index; IL = interleukin; IPD = individual patient data; OR = odds ratio; PTSD = posttraumatic stress disorder; SEM = standard error of the mean; SMD = standardized mean difference.
Local waiting time fluctuations along a randomly pinned crack front.

The propagation of an interfacial crack along a heterogeneous weak plane of a transparent Plexiglas block is followed using a high resolution fast camera. We show that the fracture front dynamics is governed by local and irregular avalanches with very large size and velocity fluctuations. We characterize the intermittent dynamics observed, i.e., the local pinnings and depinnings of the crack front by measuring the local waiting time fluctuations along the crack front during its propagation. The deduced local front line velocity distribution exhibits a power law behavior, P(v) alpha v-eta with eta=2.55+/-0.15, for velocities v larger than the average front speed . The burst size distribution is also a power law, P(S) alpha S-gamma with gamma=1.7+/-0.1. Above a characteristic length scale of disorder Ld approximately 15 microm, the avalanche clusters become anisotropic providing an estimate of the roughness exponent of the crack front line, H=0.66.
[The variability of the leakage pressure threshold due to exertion "the Valsalva Leak Point Pressure" as a function of the filling volume of the bladder].

OBJECTIVE To determine the influence of the bladder filling volume on the Valsalva Leak Point Pressure (VLPP) in patients investigated for urinary stress incontinence. PATIENTS AND METHODS 50 patients investigated for urinary stress incontinence were included in this prospective study. Evaluation consisted of clinical examination, urodynamic examination with simultaneous fluoroscopic assessment and cystoscopy. VLPP was measured while standing every 100 cc during filling until the cystomanometric bladder capacity. RESULTS We observed a significant reduction of VLPP as a function of bladder filling volume. The VLPP measured at 200 cc constituted the reference value in view of its sensitivity and specificity for the diagnosis of type III urinary stress incontinence (Blaivas' classification). CONCLUSION Measurement of VLPP must be standardized and interpreted as a function of bladder filling volume.
Stabilizing Potential of Anterior, Posterior, and Circumferential Fixation for Multilevel Cervical Arthrodesis: An In Vitro Human Cadaveric Study of the Operative and Adjacent Segment Kinematics

Study Design. This is an in vitro biomechanical study. Objective. The current investigation was performed to evaluate the stabilizing potential of anterior, posterior, and circumferential cervical fixation on operative and adjacent segment motion following 2 and 3-level reconstructions. Summary of Background Data. Previous studies reported increases in adjacent level range of motion (ROM) and intradiscal pressure following single-level cervical arthrodesis; however, no studies have compared adjacent level effects following multilevel anterior versus posterior reconstructions. Materials and Methods. Ten human cadaveric cervical spines were biomechanically tested using an unconstrained spine simulator under axial rotation, flexion-extension, and lateral bending loading. After intact analysis, all specimens were sequentially instrumented from C3 to C5 with: (1) lateral mass fixation, (2) anterior cervical plate with interbody cages, and (3) combined anterior and posterior fixation. Following biomechanical analysis of 2-level constructs, fixation was extended to C6 and testing repeated. Full ROM was monitored at the operative and adjacent levels, and data normalized to the intact (100%). Results. All reconstructive methods reduced operative level ROM relative to intact specimens under all loading methods (P < 0.05). However, circumferential fixation provided the greatest segmental stability among 2 and 3-level constructs (P < 0.05). Moreover, anterior cervical plate fixation was least efficient at stabilizing operative segments following C3–C6 arthrodesis (P < 0.05). Supradjacent ROM was increased for all treatment groups compared to normal data during flexion-extension testing (P < 0.05). Similar trends were observed under axial rotation and lateral bending loading. At the distal level, flexion-extension and axial rotation testing revealed comparable intergroup differences (P < 0.05), while lateral bending loading indicated greater ROM following 2-level circumferential fixation (P < 0.05). Conclusions. Results from our study revealed greater adjacent level motion following all 3 fixation types. No consistent significant intergroup differences in neighboring segment kinematics were detected among reconstructions. Circumferential fixation provided the greatest level of segmental stability without additional significant increase in adjacent level ROM.
Histologic evaluation of platinum coil embolization in an aneurysm model in rabbits.

PURPOSE To characterize the histologic response to platinum coil embolization by using a rabbit aneurysm model. MATERIALS AND METHODS Saccular aneurysms were created in New Zealand White rabbits by using vessel ligation with intraluminal elastase incubation. Aneurysms were subsequently embolized by using platinum coils. Subjects were sacrificed at various intervals up to 12 weeks following coil embolization. The aneurysm cavities and adjacent vessels were embedded in methylmethacrylate, were sectioned, and were stained for histologic examination. RESULTS Two weeks following coil implantation, aneurysms were filled predominantly with unorganized thrombus. Six weeks following coil implantation, histologic features included complete filling of the aneurysm lumen with either prominent laminated but unorganized thrombus or areas of unorganized thrombus interspersed among areas of cellular infiltration. At 12 weeks following coil implantation, aneurysms were filled with the loosely packed, disordered cells contained within the extracellular matrix. Fibrosis or smooth muscle cell infiltration was not present in any of the 6- or 12-week samples. CONCLUSION Platinum coils placed into experimental saccular aneurysms in New Zealand White rabbits failed to elicit a fibrotic response. This model can be used for the testing of biologic modifications of platinum coils aimed at increasing intra-aneurysmal fibrosis.
Privacy Framework for Peer Affective Feedback

In Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS), peer affective feedback could be an effective solution to regulate the learners' emotions when the feedback provided by the ITS is inadequate. However, this option raises many privacy problems since peer affective feedback involves the disclosure of the learner's personal data. However, the protection of learners' privacy is imperative to ensure an unbiased environment for learners to support each other emotionally without prejudice. Consequently, in this work, we propose a privacy framework for peer affective feedback. The framework protects learners by combining several techniques including: anonymity, assessing privacy risk, and evaluating peers' trust levels based on personality traits and the ratings of their co-learners.