Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Toward a Meningitis-Free World

A conjugate vaccine against the A, C, W, and Y, serogroups of meningococcus and a protein-based vaccine against serogroup B should bring to an end the scourge of meninogococcal meningitis. Meningococcal meningitis is a devastating disease that is often fatal. Vaccines against the five major meningococcal serogroups causing disease are about to become available, a conjugate vaccine against meningococcus A is in use for mass vaccination in Africa, and a protein-based vaccine against meningococcal B is ready for licensure. With the availability of these new vaccines, the world can finally be rid of meningococcal meningitis, thus rewriting a new chapter in medical history.
Novel noise variance and SNR estimation algorithm for wireless MIMO OFDM systems

A new noise variance and SNR estimation algorithm for a 2 /spl times/ 2 MIMO wireless OFDM system as defined in the IST-STINGRAY project is presented. The SNR information is used to adapt parameters or reconfigure parts of the transmitter. The noise variance estimation algorithm uses only 2 OFDM training symbols from each transmitting antenna and the FFT output signals at the receiver. It does not require knowledge of the channel coefficients. Then, using the channel coefficient estimates given by a channel estimator and the estimate of the noise variance, the SNR is computed. The algorithm's performance is measured through Monte-Carlo simulations on a variety of channel models and compared to those of an MMSE algorithm using perfect channel estimates. The normalized MSE of the obtained noise variance estimate shows good results as long as the delay spread of the channel is small enough compared to the OFDM symbol period.
Comment on “The Predictive Capacity of Personal Genome Sequencing”

An alternative calculation of the predictive capacity of genomic sequencing based on the occurrence of cancer in the second breast of breast cancer patients offers a more optimistic view of the predictive value of genetic data than that presented by Roberts et al. An alternative calculation of the predictive capacity of genomic sequencing and an analysis based on the occurrence of cancer in the second breast of breast cancer patients both offer a more optimistic view of the predictive value of genetic data than that presented by Roberts et al.
Analyzing the risk of timing modeling based on path delay tests.

As technology scales, it is becoming increasingly difficult for simulation and timing models to accurately predict silicon timing behavior. When a collection of chips fail in timing in a similar way, diagnosis and silicon debug look to find the root-causes for the failure. However, little work has been done to develop a methodology that looks for useful design information in the good-chip data. This paper describes a path-based methodology that correlates measured path delays from the good chips, to the path delays predicted by timing analysis. We explain how to utilize this methodology for evaluating the risk of timing modeling.
Current Treatment of Childhood Constipation

Childhood constipation is a worldwide problem. It is one of the more common complaints presented to both general pediatricians and pediatric gastroenterologists. Treatment for chronic constipation is challenging and often requires long-term follow-up and medication use. Despite its high prevalence, few randomized trials have been performed to investigate the efficacy of different interventions used to treat this condition. In this review we will discuss current treatment options for childhood constipation and address some of the most frequently asked questions and misconceptions among parents and physicians.
Joint velocity estimation and symbol detection in non-stationary fading channels by particle filtering

The paper addresses the problem of joint velocity estimation and data detection in a realistic scenario where mobile velocity changes continuously, resulting in non-stationary fast fading channels. A time-varying AR model and a Gauss-Markov model are used to describe the respective fading channel and variation of velocity. A connection is shown between the coefficients of the TVAR model and mobile velocity which makes the joint estimation and detection possible. A hierarchical dynamic state space model is formed for the problem, and a particle filtering algorithm is proposed. In particular, a hybrid importance function and the mixture Kalman filter are used to achieve efficient implementation of particle filtering. Simulation results are provided that show the performance of the particle filtering algorithm.
Targeted Imaging of Esophageal Neoplasia with a Fluorescently Labeled Peptide: First-in-Human Results

A fluorescently labeled peptide enables first-in-human targeted endoscopic imaging of esophageal neoplasia. Fluorescent Peptide Probe for Esophageal Cancer Detecting cancerous tissue isn’t always easy—and it can be particularly difficult for the early stages of esophageal cancer because the new lesions are often flat (versus a bulky tumor, for example) and thus invisible to the naked eye. To confidently detect esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC), Sturm and colleagues designed a fluorescently labeled synthetic peptide, named ASY*-FITC, that recognizes cancer tissue and allows for in vivo imaging with a clinical endoscope. The cancer-targeting ASY*-FITC peptide was discovered using phage display technology and was found to bind tightly to human EAC cells and tissues ex vivo, but not to normal (squamous) tissue or metaplastic tissue, such as Barrett’s esophagus (BE). The tissues identified as cancerous were confirmed via histology. The authors then took this peptide into 25 patients. The fluorescent peptide was administered as would be expected during clinical exam: sprayed on the suspect area and then imaged with an endoscope. No ASY*-FITC bound to the squamous areas, and only minimal amounts of peptide bound to BE. However, areas of EAC as well as a high-grade dysplasia (HGD) were brightly illuminated and easily detected. The peptide was found to be safe and well tolerated in both humans and animals, and was synthesized according to good manufacturing practices (GMPs), suggesting that translation to a clinical setting will be possible in the near future. Further testing is needed to address optical limitations, such as imaging depth. Nevertheless, this first-in-human study paves the way for detection of HGD and EAC and other neoplasias, potentially without invasive biopsy. Esophageal adenocarcinoma is rising rapidly in incidence and usually develops from Barrett’s esophagus, a precursor condition commonly found in patients with chronic acid reflux. Premalignant lesions are challenging to detect on conventional screening endoscopy because of their flat appearance. Molecular changes can be used to improve detection of early neoplasia. We have developed a peptide that binds specifically to high-grade dysplasia and adenocarcinoma. We first applied the peptide ex vivo to esophageal specimens from 17 patients to validate specific binding. Next, we performed confocal endomicroscopy in vivo in 25 human subjects after topical peptide administration and found 3.8-fold greater fluorescence intensity for esophageal neoplasia compared with Barrett’s esophagus and squamous epithelium with 75% sensitivity and 97% specificity. No toxicity was attributed to the peptide in either animal or patient studies. Therefore, our first-in-human results show that this targeted imaging agent is safe and may be useful for guiding tissue biopsy and for early detection of esophageal neoplasia and potentially other cancers of epithelial origin, such as bladder, colon, lung, pancreas, and stomach.
Aplicabilidade da técnica de cell block na avaliação citológica do conteúdo de lesões de aspecto cístico dos maxilares

INTRODUCTION: The search for new methods that aid and optimize the diagnosis of cystic and tumoral maxillary lesions aims to benefit both patients and professionals from oral diagnosis. In addition to clinical, radiographic and histological findings traditionally used in research protocol for maxillary lesions, the adaptation of widely used medical techniques may be very helpful. The cell block procedure streamlines this process, inasmuch as it consists of cytopathological analysis of materials, liquids and effusions, collected from aspirated lesions such as maxillary cysts and cystic maxillary tumors. OBJECTIVE: To demonstrate the applicability of cell block technique for cytological assessment of biological material collected from cystic maxillary lesions. RESULTS: The cytological evaluation revealed that five out of 20 lesions, whose content had been processed by this technique, were odontogenic keratocystic tumors (TOCs), predominantly with keratin and always with parakeratin areas. In the other cases (five dentigerous, five radicular and five residual cysts) there were erythrocytes, inflammatory cells, and cholesterol clefts. CONCLUSION: The cytological assessment through cell block technique was useful as to establishing the differential diagnosis between TOC and other lesions, radicular, residual and dentigerous cysts.
Tennessee Lives Count: Statewide Gatekeeper Training for Youth Suicide Prevention

Youth suicide remains a significant public health problem in the United States. In 2004, the Garrett LeeSmith Memorial Act provided states and tribes with funding to implement and evaluate youth suicideprevention programs. The Tennessee Lives Count project was developed through a collaborative modelat the state level and delivers an enhanced version of the Question, Persuade, Refer gatekeeper trainingprogram to individuals working with youth across the state. This article describes the development of theproject and preliminary outcomes of 416 participants in child welfare, juvenile justice, health, andeducation systems at pretest, posttest, and 6-month follow-up. The findings suggest the training has animmediate and long-term impact on perceived knowledge of suicide prevention, self-efficacy, andattitudes about the inevitability of suicide. Policy and practice implications are presented.Keywords: suicide prevention, gatekeeper training, child welfare, juvenile justice, public health nursing, educationEditors Note. This is one of eight accepted articles received in responseto an open call for submissions on interventions for suicidal people acrossthe life span. MCRD
Echinomycin, a Potential Binder of FKBP12, Shows Minor Effect on Calcineurin Activity

Echinomycin, a member of the quinoxaline family of antibiotics, is known to be a small-molecule inhibitor of hypoxia inducible factor–1 (HIF-1) DNA binding activity. Recently, it has been shown to suppress mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling and growth in leukemia cell lines. In this study, we investigated whether echinomycin interacts with the FKBP12 protein. Molecular docking was used, and the predicted binding energy was −10.61 kcal/mol. Moreover, surface plasmon resonance imaging and fluorescence quenching techniques were used to validate this interaction. Echinomycin binds to FKBP12 with a strong binding affinity comparable with rapamycin. Furthermore, the echinomycin-FKBP12 complex has been shown to affect calcineurin activity when tested in a calcineurin phosphatase inhibition assay. All of these studies have shown that echinomycin may have a double impact on HIF signaling by direct inhibition and through mTOR.
Die Vibrationsbehandlung - neue Wege in Therapie und Training von Muskelfunktionen

Bewegung ist gesund, Bewegungsmangel macht krank: Allgemeinplätze? Interessant und herausfordernd wird es, sobald Details zur Diskussion stehen. Welche Art von Bewegung? Wie oft, wie viel, wie stark, wie lange? Die Datenlage zu den positiven Wirkungen von Bewegung ist überzeugend. Literaturbasierte Zusammenstellungen der Wirkung von körperlicher Aktivität lesen sich wie die Versprechungen eines Wundermittels (Tab. 1). Viele internationale wissenschaftliche Gesellschaften, Ärzteverbände sowie öffentliche Gesundheitsbehörden haben in den letzten Jahren umfangreiche Literaturzusammenstellungen mit sehr konkreten Einzelheiten zum gesundheitlichen Nutzen körperlicher Aktivität herausgegeben [1].
Personalized Neuroprosthetics

Personalized neuroprosthetics is the synergy between accurate diagnosis, integrated development of neurotechnology, and patient-specific treatment design “to help the brain help itself” in nervous system disorders. Helping the Brain Help Itself In this Review, Courtine and colleagues describe “personalized neuroprosthetics” as the synergy between accurate diagnosis, integrated development of neurotechnology, and patient-specific treatment design, ultimately “to help the brain help itself” in nervous system disorders. Decades of technological developments have populated the field of neuroprosthetics with myriad replacement strategies, neuromodulation therapies, and rehabilitation procedures to improve the quality of life for individuals with neuromotor disorders. Despite the few but impressive clinical successes, and multiple breakthroughs in animal models, neuroprosthetic technologies remain mainly confined to sophisticated laboratory environments. We summarize the core principles and latest achievements in neuroprosthetics, but also address the challenges that lie along the path toward clinical fruition. We propose a pragmatic framework to personalize neurotechnologies and rehabilitation for patient-specific impairments to achieve the timely dissemination of neuroprosthetic medicine.
Phase 2 study of dual VEGF/HER2 blockade with pazopanib + lapatinib in patients with first-line HER2 positive advanced or metastatic (adv/met) breast cancer.

CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium: 2008 Abstracts Abstract #4114 Background: Evidence indicates a direct molecular link between HER2 amplification and up-regulation of VEGF in HER2+ breast cancer. Concurrent over-expression of HER2 and VEGF is associated with a poorer clinical outcome than over-expression of either alone. These data provide the rationale for simultaneous blockade of both pathways. Pazopanib (P) is an oral angiogenesis inhibitor targeting VEGFR, PDGFR, and c-kit. Lapatinib (Tykerb®) (L) is an oral tyrosine kinase inhibitor of EGFR (ErbB1) and HER2 (ErbB2). This study ([VEG20007][1]) evaluated the efficacy and safety of dual pathway inhibition in patients (pts) with HER2+ adv/met breast cancer. Methods: Eligible pts received no prior chemotherapy or HER2-directed therapy for met disease and had measurable disease per RECIST. Pts were enrolled in one of 2 cohorts. In cohort 1 (C1), pts were randomized to P 400 mg/d + L 1000 mg/d or L alone (1500 mg/d). Enrollment to cohort 2 (C2) began after completion of enrollment to C1. In C2 pts received the combination at doses of P 800 mg/d and L 1500 mg/d. Following disease assessment at week (wk) 12, pts with an objective response could continue on study treatment following re-consent; those with stable disease could continue only where trastuzumab was unavailable. The primary endpoint of C1 was progressive disease rate (PDR) at wk 12 in HER2 FISH+ pts. The primary endpoint of C2 is week 12 response rate in HER2 FISH+ pts. Results: 140 pts were included in the randomized cohort analysis which was previously reported [J Clin Onc 26:2008 (May 20 suppl; abstr 1016)]. Enrollment in C2 has been completed; 40 pts (36 confirmed FISH+) have been enrolled. A preliminary safety analysis has been performed. The most common adverse events of any grade were diarrhea, nausea, fatigue, hypertension, and rash. The most common laboratory abnormalities were ALT and AST increase. Efficacy data will be analyzed when the last pt has completed the week 12 assessment. Conclusion: This is the first Phase II trial to evaluate the combination of 2 oral targeted agents in first-line Her2+ adv/met breast cancer. The lower dose combination demonstrated improved response rate compared to L monotherapy. Previously unreported efficacy and safety data from the higher dose cohort will be presented. Citation Information: Cancer Res 2009;69(2 Suppl):Abstract nr 4114. [1]: /lookup/external-ref? link_type=GENPEPT&access_num=VEG20007&atom=%2Fcanres%2F69%2F2_Supplement%2F4114.atom
AACN Clinical Issues Advanced Practice in Acute and Critical Care

Read more and get great! That's what the book enPDFd aacn clinical issues advanced practice in acute and critical care physiologic monitoring will give for every reader to read this book. This is an on-line book provided in this website. Even this book becomes a choice of someone to read, many in the world also loves it so much. As what we talk, when you read more every page of this aacn clinical issues advanced practice in acute and critical care physiologic monitoring, what you will obtain is something great.
Electron microscopy and the expansion of regional anesthesia knowledge

Abstract We describe the findings obtained with the use of the transmission and scanning electron microscopy in the study of human meninges and peripheral nerves. We show details about morphology and distribution of the fibers inside the dural sac. We provide information about the origin of subdural space and structural organization of the arachnoid trabeculates in sleeves that wrap the nervous roots inside the subarachnoid space. We encountered natural fenestrations in the pia mater and studied ultrastructural components of the peripheral nerves coverings. A brief comment on the history of the electron microscopy and the basics of these microscopes complete the presentation of this work. Copyright 2002, Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.
Going with the Flow: From Circulating Tumor Cells to DNA

Experience gained from the translation of circulating tumor cell detection should help chauffeur circulating tumor DNA into the clinic. Molecular analyses of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) in plasma from cancer patients have the potential to deliver minimally invasive diagnostic and disease-monitoring biomarkers. Drawing from experience gained through the translation of circulating tumor cell detection to clinical tests, we discuss ctDNA as a source of tumor material for biomarker development.
Maximum Satisfiability: Anatomy of the Fitness Landscape for a Hard Combinatorial Optimization Problem

The fitness landscape of MAX-3-SAT is investigated for random instances above the satisfiability phase transition. This paper includes a scaling analysis of the time to reach a local optimum, the number of local optima, the expected probability of reaching a local optimum as a function of its fitness, the expected fitness found by local search and the best fitness, the probability of reaching a global optimum, the size and relative positions of the global optima, the mean distance between the local and global optima, the expected fitness as a function of the Hamming distance from an optimum and their basins of attraction. These analyses show why the problem becomes hard for local search algorithms as the system size increases. The paper also shows how a recently proposed algorithm can exploit long-range correlations in the fitness landscape to improve on the state-of-the-art heuristic algorithms.
Targeting the Good Target

A person’s judgeability, or the extent to which a person is easy to understand, plays an important role in how accurately a target will be perceived by others. Research on this topic, however, has not been systematic or well-integrated. The current review begins to remedy this by integrating the available research on judgeability from the fields of personality perception, nonverbal communication, and social cognition. Specifically, this review summarizes the characteristics that are likely to promote judgeability and explores its potential consequences. A diverse range of characteristics are identified as predictors of judgeability, all relating to three broader categories: psychological adjustment, social status, and socialization. Furthermore, being judgeable has a variety of potential, largely positive, consequences for the target, leaving good targets poised for greater personal and interpersonal well-being. Nevertheless, many questions on this topic remain and it is crucial for this relatively understudied topic to receive more systematic empirical attention.
Kuhn–Munkres Parallel Genetic Algorithm for the Set Cover Problem and Its Application to Large-Scale Wireless Sensor Networks

Operating mode scheduling is crucial for the lifetime of wireless sensor networks (WSNs). However, the growing scale of networks has made such a scheduling problem more challenging, as existing set cover and evolutionary algorithms become unable to provide satisfactory efficiency due to the curse of dimensionality. In this paper, a Kuhn-Munkres (KM) parallel genetic algorithm is developed to solve the set cover problem and is applied to the lifetime maximization of large-scale WSNs. The proposed algorithm schedules the sensors into a number of disjoint complete cover sets and activates them in batch for energy conservation. It uses a divide-and-conquer strategy of dimensionality reduction, and the polynomial KM algorithm a are hence adopted to splice the feasible solutions obtained in each subarea to enhance the search efficiency substantially. To further improve global efficiency, a redundant-trend sensor schedule strategy was developed. Additionally, we meliorate the evaluation function through penalizing incomplete cover sets, which speeds up convergence. Eight types of experiments are conducted on a distributed platform to test and inform the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm. The results show that it offers promising performance in terms of the convergence rate, solution quality, and success rate.
Social Value Orientation

What motivates people when they make decisions and how those motivations are potentially entangled with concerns for others are central topics for the social, cognitive, and behavioral sciences. According to the postulate of narrow self-interest, decision makers have the goal of maximizing personal payoffs and are wholly indifferent to the consequences for others. The postulate of narrow self-interest—which has been influential in economics, psychology, and sociology—is precise and powerful but is often simply wrong. Its inadequacy is well known and efforts have been made to develop reliable and valid measurement methods to quantify the more nuanced social preferences that people really have. In this paper, we report on the emergence and development of the predominant conceptualization of social preferences in psychology: social value orientation (SVO). Second, we discuss the relationship between measurement and theory development of the SVO construct. We then provide an overview of the literature regarding measurement methods that have been used to assess individual variations in social preferences. We conclude with a comparative evaluation of the various measures and provide suggestions regarding the measures’ constructive use in building psychologically realistic theories of people’s social preferences.
Hemodynamic Impact of Mechanical Ventilation in the Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome

Recent data show that mortality from adult respiratory distress syndrome has declined over the years yet these patients continue to be a challenge for physicians. Mechanical ventilatory support is required to maintain oxygenation and support respiratory workload. However, experimental data, largely from animal studies, have shown that lung injury can be induced by mechanical ventilation and positive pressure ventilation may worsen the hemodynamic status of an already unstable patient. Some ventilatory strategies may be more deleterious than others. Using the evidence from experimental and clinical studies, a “lung protective” strategy of mechanical ventilation has been proposed combining low tidal volumes to limit stretch and adequate levels of positive end-expiratory pressure to prevent alveolar collapse. This strategy may also limit end organ damage and promote hemodynamic stability.