Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Serotype 19A is the Most Common Streptococcus pneumoniae Isolate in Children With Chronic Sinusitis

Background: The introduction of the heptavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine has altered the epidemiology of acute otitis media and invasive pneumococcal disease in children. However, sparse data regarding pediatric sinusitis are available since the licensure of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine. In this study, sinus cultures which grew Streptococcus pneumoniae at Texas Children's Hospital were evaluated with regard to pneumococcal serotype, antimicrobial susceptibility, and frequency of coinfecting organisms. Methods: S. pneumoniae isolates from sinus cultures were identified from January 1, 2007 to July 31, 2008. A retrospective chart review was performed and information including age, ethnicity, gender, and comorbidities was collected. Isolates were serotyped and their susceptibility to oral penicillin, cefotaxime, erythromycin, clindamycin, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole was determined. Results: During the study period, 24 pneumococcal isolates were recovered from endoscopic sinus surgery cultures; 23 isolates were nonvaccine serotypes. Serotype 19A accounted for 50% of isolates. Eleven of the 12 serotype 19A isolates were nonsusceptible to oral penicillin as compared with 6 isolates of the other serotypes. Five of 12 serotype 19A isolates were nonsusceptible to cefotaxime; in comparison, all of the other serotypes were susceptible to cefotaxime. One third of the 19A isolates were nonsusceptible to all 5 antimicrobials tested. Other organisms were coisolated in 87% of cases. Conclusions: Serotype 19A has become the most common pneumococcal serotype isolated from chronic or recurrent pneumococcal sinusitis in children at Texas Children's Hospital. Serotype 19A isolates have high rates of antimicrobial resistance and are frequently isolated along with multiple other organisms.
Isocitrate Dehydrogenase 1 Is a Novel Plasma Biomarker for the Diagnosis of Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer

Purpose: Effective biomarkers for the diagnosis of non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) are needed. We previously showed that isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1) is significantly increased in NSCLC tumors. This study aimed to examine the plasma levels of IDH1 in a large patient population to evaluate its effectiveness in NSCLC diagnosis. Experimental Design: The plasma levels of IDH1, CA125, Cyfra21-1, and CEA were assayed by ELISA. Blood samples were obtained from 1,422 participants (943 patients with NSCLC and 479 healthy controls). The samples were randomly divided into a training set and a test set. Receiver operating characteristic and binary logistic regression analyses were applied to evaluate diagnostic efficacy and establish diagnostic mathematical models. Results: Plasma IDH1 levels were significantly higher in patients with NSCLCs than in healthy controls (P < 0.001). The diagnostic use of IDH1 in lung adenocarcinoma [area under curve (AUC): 0.858 and 0.810; sensitivity: 77.1% and 76.2%; specificity: 82.9% and 76.6%; in the training set and test set, respectively] was significantly greater than that of CA125, Cyfra21-1, or CEA (P < 0.001). The model combining IDH1 with CEA, CA125, and Cyfra21-1 was more effective for lung adenocarcinoma diagnosis than IDH1 alone (sensitivity and specificity in the training set: 75.8%, 89.6%; test set: 86.3%, 70.7%). In addition, the plasma levels of IDH1 could contribute to the diagnostic model of lung squamous cell carcinoma. Conclusions: IDH1 can be used as a plasma biomarker for the diagnosis of NSCLCs, particularly lung adenocarcinoma, with relatively high sensitivity and specificity. Clin Cancer Res; 19(18); 5136–45. ©2013 AACR.
Potent peptide inhibitors of human hepatitis C virus NS3 protease are obtained by optimizing the cleavage products.

In the absence of a broadly effective cure for hepatitis caused by hepatitis C virus (HCV), much effort is currently devoted to the search for inhibitors of the virally encoded protease NS3. This chymotrypsin-like serine protease is required for the maturation of the viral polyprotein, cleaving it at the NS3-NS4A, NS4A-NS4B, NS4B-NS5A, and NS5A-NS5B sites. In the course of our studies on the substrate specificity of NS3, we found that the products of cleavage corresponding to the P6-P1 region of the substrates act as competitive inhibitors of the enzyme, with IC50s ranging from 360 to 1 microM. A detailed study of product inhibition by the natural NS3 substrates is described in the preceding paper [Steinkühler, C. , et al. (1997) Biochemistry 37, 8899-8905]. Here we report the results of a study of the structure-activity relationship of the NS3 product inhibitors, which suggest that the mode of binding of the P region-derived products is similar to the ground-state binding of the corresponding substrates, with additional binding energy provided by the C-terminal carboxylate. Optimal binding requires a dual anchor: an "acid anchor" at the N terminus and a "P1 anchor" at the C-terminal part of the molecule. We have then optimized the sequence of the product inhibitors by using single mutations and combinatorial peptide libraries based on the most potent natural product, Ac-Asp-Glu-Met-Glu-Glu-Cys-OH (Ki = 0.6 microM), derived from cleavage at the NS4A-NS4B junction. By sequentially optimizing positions P2, P4, P3, and P5, we obtained several nanomolar inhibitors of the enzyme. These compounds are useful both as a starting point for the development of peptidomimetic drugs and as structural probes for investigating the substrate binding site of NS3 by modeling, NMR, and crystallography.
Factors Affecting Wealth Management Services: From Investors’ and Advisors’ Perspectives

Understanding the key factors that affect consumers’ decision process in selecting a wealth management (WM) service provider has become a critical issue for financial institutions as competition for WM customers becomes more fierce. This study applies the analytic hierarchy process technique to identify and weight these factors by surveying the relative importance of factors through questionnaires given to consumers and financial advisors. This article also analyzes the gaps of recognition of WM services from investors’ and advisors’ perspectives. In general, investors’ first concern about WM is the product, followed by the quality of service and image. This article suggests that investors have changed their priorities after the recent global financial crisis. However, financial advisors have not yet caught up with the changing patterns because they still generally emphasize the quality of service as the most important factor when they offer WM.
ESTRATÉGIAS DE CRESCIMENTO E VANTAGEM COMPETITIVA: UM ESTUDO QUALITATIVO SOBRE FRANCHISING, NA ÓTICA DO FRANQUEADO STRATEGIES FOR GROWTH AND COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE: A QUALITATIVE STUDY ON FRANCHISING FROM THE FRANCHISEES PERSPECTIVE

E ste artigo objetiva entender como franqueadores e franqueados crescem e criam vantagem competitiva. Para tanto, realizou-se um estudo qualitativo a partir das impressoes e opinioes de franqueados dos ramos de Alimentacao e Esporte, Saude, Beleza e Lazer, de acordo com a classificacao da Associacao Brasileira de Franchising (ABF). As principais estrategias de crescimento utilizadas pelos franqueadores sao: (a) crescer pelo desenvolvimento de mercados e (b) pelo desenvolvimento de produtos. Para os franqueados prevalecem como estrategias de crescimento: (a) a penetracao de mercado, (b) o desenvolvimento de mercados e, em alguns casos, (c) a diversificacao. Foi destacada a importância dos recursos, principalmente as pessoas, para criacao de Vantagem Competitiva. Em Franchising o relacionamento entre franqueador e franqueado e as redes de relacionamento de franqueados podem ser considerados como fatores de crescimento.
Non-invasive measurement of blood lactate in humans using microwave sensors

There is a growing demand for non-invasive point of care devices to monitor metabolites in blood such as lactate. In hospital environments, having such tools would reduce the risk of infection, increase the frequency of measurement and ensure timely intervention only when necessary. In sports situations, such tools will enhance training of athletes, and enable more effecting training regimes to be prescribed. This work demonstrates the use of novel electromagnetic wave lactate sensors on cyclists, 34 in total, in a controlled environment. Sensors attached to the arm and legs of participants gathered spectral data, blood samples were measured using a Lactate Pro V2, as well as temperature and heart rate data being collected. Using pairwise mutual information and neural networks, a predictive model is shown to give a good correlation (R = 0.78) between the standard invasive and novel non-invasive microwave based blood lactate measurements, with an error of 13.4% in the range of 0–12 mmol/L.
Effects of lumbar discectomy on disability and depression in patients with chronic low back pain

Background: Back pain is one of the most prevalent health problems for which physicians are consulted. Back pain has many economic impacts, such as sickness absences and long-term disability. The prevalence of major depression in patients with chronic low back pain is approximately 3 to 4 times greater than the prevalence rate reported in the general population. Objectives: This study was designed to evaluate the depression and disability improvement after lumbar discectomy compared with presurgery levels in patients with chronic low back pain and radicular leg pain. Patients and Methods: One hundred forty-eight patients with chronic low back pain and radicular leg pain were included in this analytic observational study. The study evaluated several main variables, including age; sex; educational level; job; height; weight; and patient history of abortion, leg pain, back pain, smoking, trauma, number of previous pregnancies, driving, long-term sitting, lifting heavy bodies, and disability and depression before and 6 and 12 months after laminectomy. Results: The depression and disability scores of patients before lumbar discectomy significantly decreased after surgery. Conclusions: Our results indicate that lumbar discectomy surgery significantly improved depression and disability in patients with chronic herniated discs.
Mammalian Numb Proteins Promote Notch1 Receptor Ubiquitination and Degradation of the Notch1 Intracellular Domain*

The cell fate determinant Numb influences developmental decisions by antagonizing the Notch signaling pathway. However, the underlying molecular mechanism of this inhibition is poorly understood. Here we report that the mammalian Numb protein promotes the ubiquitination of membrane-bound Notch1 receptor. Furthermore, Numb expression resulted in the degradation of the Notch intracellular domain following activation, which correlated with a loss of Notch-dependent transcriptional activation of the Hes1 promoter as measured by a Hes1 luciferase reporter assay. The phosphotyrosine-binding (PTB) domain of Numb was required for both Notch1 ubiquitination and down-regulation of Notch1 nuclear activity. Numb-mediated ubiquitination of Notch1 was not dependent on the PEST region, which was previously shown to mediate Sel10-dependent ubiquitination of Notch in the nucleus, suggesting a distinct E3 ubiquitin ligase is involved. In agreement we demonstrate that Numb interacts with the cytosolic HECT domain-containing E3 ligase Itch and that Numb and Itch act cooperatively to promote ubiquitination of membrane-tethered Notch1. These results suggest that Numb recruits components of the ubiquitination machinery to the Notch receptor thereby facilitating Notch1 ubiquitination at the membrane, which in turn promotes degradation of the intracellular domain circumventing its nuclear translocation and downstream activation of Notch1 target genes.
Project oriented teaching approaches for e-learning environment

Internet of Things is deeply integrated into all aspects of human life. This is also the case in higher education as well. Introduction of different e-learning tools requires from teachers and students deep knowledge in new emerging techniques. In the article we describe a project oriented approach in studying and 3 case studies on how new technology can improve the e-learning environment in HEIs.
Plasmon‐Enhanced Sub‐Wavelength Laser Ablation: Plasmonic Nanojets

In response to the incident light's electric field, the electron density oscillates in the plasmonic hotspots producing an electric current. Associated Ohmic losses raise the temperature of the material within the plasmonic hotspot above the melting point. A nanojet and nanosphere ejection can then be observed precisely from the plasmonic hotspots.
Generic compliance check tool in examining the conformity of company-specific standards to public standards

Compliance to standards has always been an important topic in quality management. It is the job of quality engineers to assure that their organization complies with public standards and is prepared for future developments. However, the quality models underlying company-specific and public standards are typically complex and not necessarily homogeneous. Analyzing and visualizing the conformity of a company-specific standard to a public standard is a challenging task. In this paper, we propose a generic compliance check tool to support quality engineers of various industrial domains in this challenge.
HISTOCHEMISTRY OF GLOMERULAR CELLS IN ANIMAL MODELS OF CRESCENTIC GLOMERULONEPHRITIS

&NA; A histochemical enzyme profile has been used to determine the origin of the cells of glomerular crescents in rabbit and sheep models of rapidly progressive crescentic glomerulonephritis. Crescentic glomeruli were examined for β‐glucuronidase, esterase and acid phosphatase, the characteristic phagolysosomal enzymes of the monocyte‐macrophage series and its transformed tissue counterpart, the epithelioid cell. More than 50% of the cells of the glomerular crescents of animals with experimental crescentic glomerulonephritis contained large amounts of all the enzymes, whereas the cells of normal glomeruli contained only trace amounts of acid phosphatase and esterase and no glucuronidase. These findings support the hypothesis that the major proportion of the cells of glomerular crescents are monocytes which have accumulated in Bowman's space rather than intrinsic glomerular cells which have proliferated.
Effect of various factors on ethanol yields from lignocellulosic biomass by Thermoanaerobacterium AK17

The ethanol production capacity from sugars and lignocellulosic biomass hydrolysates (HL) by Thermoanaerobacterium strain AK17 was studied in batch cultures. The strain converts various carbohydrates to, acetate, ethanol, hydrogen, and carbon dioxide. Ethanol yields on glucose and xylose were 1.5 and 1.1 mol/mol sugars, respectively. Increased initial glucose concentration inhibited glucose degradation and end product formation leveled off at 30 mM concentrations. Ethanol production from 5 g L−1 of complex biomass HL (grass, hemp, wheat straw, newspaper, and cellulose) (Whatman paper) pretreated with acid (0.50% H2SO4), base (0.50% NaOH), and without acid/base (control) and the enzymes Celluclast® and Novozyme 188 (0.1 mL g−1 dw; 70 and 25 U g−1 of Celluclast and Novozyme 188, respectively) was investigated. Highest ethanol yields (43.0 mM) were obtained on cellulose but lowest on hemp leafs (3.6 mM). Chemical pretreatment increased ethanol yields substantially from lignocellulosic biomass but not from cellulose. The influence of various factors (HL, enzyme, and acid/alkaline concentrations) on end‐product formation from 5 g L−1 of grass and cellulose was further studied to optimize ethanol production. Highest ethanol yields (5.5 and 8.6 mM ethanol g−1 grass and cellulose, respectively) were obtained at very low HL concentrations (2.5 g L−1); with 0.25% acid/alkali (v/v) and 0.1 mL g−1 enzyme concentrations. Inhibitory effects of furfural and hydroxymethylfurfural during glucose fermentation, revealed a total inhibition in end product formation from glucose at 4 and 6 g L−1, respectively. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2012; 109:686–694. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A New Antiswing Control Method for Underactuated Cranes With Unmodeled Uncertainties: Theoretical Design and Hardware Experiments

In practice, cranes often suffer from various unfavorable factors, such as extraneous disturbances and friction. Moreover, there are always some unmodeled uncertainties that are difficult to be described with accurate mathematical expressions. These practical problems bring much challenge for control development and may induce instability unless suitably tackled. In this paper, in terms of the aforementioned problems, we suggest a new antiswing control scheme for underactuated gantry cranes. In particular, we construct an elaborate manifold and then present a nonlinear control law that keeps the system state always staying on the manifold. Without any approximation operations to the original nonlinear model, it is rigorously proven that the state variables converge to the equilibrium point when they are on the manifold. The developed control system is robust due to the specific control structure. Hardware experiments are included, which suggest that the proposed scheme achieves superior control performance over existing methods, and it shows strong robustness to unmodeled uncertainties and external disturbances.
Scattering-limited and ballistic transport in nanoelectronic devices

The fundamental processes on nanoscale that may influence the design of nanoelectronic chips, sensors, and systems is presented. The focus is on the breakdown of Ohm's law in nanoscale devices extensively being used to assess the performance of a “system-on-a-chip,” may it be for bio, chemical, physical or engineering applications. Novel insights on theories of three sources of transformation of Ohm's Law are enumerated: quantum confinement in low-dimensional nanostructures, ballistic transport when conducting channel length is smaller than the mean free path, and high-field initiated carrier asymmetric distribution. The saturation velocity arising from the high-field initiated mobility degradation is shown to be the intrinsic velocity that depends on the nanostructure dimensionality, its carrier concentration, and the ambient temperature, in direct contrast to single number that is quoted in the literature. The ballistic intrinsic velocity is the ultimate saturation velocity that can be lowered by the onset of a quantum emission that may be an optical phonon or photon quantum emitted from an excited quantized level to the ground state. The results presented will have profound impact in the interpretation of data on a variety of nanoelectronic devices and systems that may exist with varying low dimensionality, i. e. , classical (analogue energy spectrum) in one or more of the three cartesian directions while other directions go quantum (digitized energy spectrum).
Cell-Free DNA Next-Generation Sequencing in Pancreatobiliary Carcinomas.

UNLABELLED Patients with pancreatic and biliary carcinomas lack personalized treatment options, in part because biopsies are often inadequate for molecular characterization. Cell-free DNA (cfDNA) sequencing may enable a precision oncology approach in this setting. We attempted to prospectively analyze 54 genes in tumor and cfDNA for 26 patients. Tumor sequencing failed in 9 patients (35%). In the remaining 17, 90.3% (95% confidence interval, 73.1%-97.5%) of mutations detected in tumor biopsies were also detected in cfDNA. The diagnostic accuracy of cfDNA sequencing was 97.7%, with 92.3% average sensitivity and 100% specificity across five informative genes. Changes in cfDNA correlated well with tumor marker dynamics in serial sampling (r = 0.93). We demonstrate that cfDNA sequencing is feasible, accurate, and sensitive in identifying tumor-derived mutations without prior knowledge of tumor genotype or the abundance of circulating tumor DNA. cfDNA sequencing should be considered in pancreatobiliary cancer trials where tissue sampling is unsafe, infeasible, or otherwise unsuccessful. SIGNIFICANCE Precision medicine efforts in biliary and pancreatic cancers have been frustrated by difficulties in obtaining adequate tumor tissue for next-generation sequencing. cfDNA sequencing reliably and accurately detects tumor-derived mutations, paving the way for precision oncology approaches in these deadly diseases.
Mechanism of protective effect of phyllanthin against carbon tetrachloride-induced hepatotoxicity and experimental liver fibrosis in mice

Abstract Chronic injury to liver triggers synthesis of extracellular matrix components resulting in progressive fibrosis and eventually cirrhosis. Transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) transduces its signal by binding to TGF-β type 1 receptor kinase or activin like kinase (ALK5) receptor and mediates hepatic fibrosis by increasing the transcription of downstream entities such as collagen via Smad2 and Smad3. The present study was carried out to investigate the mechanism by which phyllanthin, a hepatoprotective lignin isolated from the plant Phyllanthus amarus (P. amarus) exerts its anti-fibrotic effect. The inhibitory role of phyllanthin on ALK5 was first analyzed using molecular docking experiments. Phyllanthin was found to effectively bind to serine (Ser) 280 at the active site of ALK5 by forming hydrogen bonds. The in vivo protective effect of phyllanthin against carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)-induced hepatic fibrosis was established by studying the protein expressions of TGF-β1, ALK5 and Smad2 and 3 and by determining various biochemical and histopathological parameters. Phyllanthin was found to exert its anti-fibrotic effect by down-regulating TGF signaling pathway via ALK5 and Smad2 and 3 inhibition.
Partial resistance to malonate‐induced striatal cell death in transgenic mouse models of Huntington's disease is dependent on age and CAG repeat length

Transgenic Huntington's disease (HD) mice, expressing exon 1 of the HD gene with an expanded CAG repeat, are totally resistant to striatal lesion induced by excessive NMDA receptor activation. We now show that striatal lesions induced by the mitochondrial toxin malonate are reduced by 70–80% in transgenic HD mice compared with wild‐type littermate controls. This occurred in 6‐ and 12‐week‐old HD mice with 150 CAG repeats (line R6/2) and in 18‐week‐old, but not 6‐week‐old, HD mice with 115 CAG repeats (line R6/1). Therefore, we show for the first time that the resistance to neurotoxin in transgenic HD mice is dependent on both the CAG repeat length and the age of the mice. Importantly, most HD patients develop symptoms in adulthood and exhibit an inverse relationship between CAG repeat length and age of onset. Transgenic mice expressing a normal CAG repeat (18 CAG) were not resistant to malonate. Although endogenous glutamate release has been implicated in malonate‐induced cell death, glutamate release from striatal synaptosomes was not decreased in HD mice. Malonate‐induced striatal cell death was reduced by 50–60% in wild‐type mice when they were treated with either the NMDA receptor antagonist MK‐801 or the caspase inhibitor zVAD‐fmk. These two compounds did not reduce lesion size in transgenic R6/1 mice. This might suggest that NMDA receptor‐ and caspase‐mediated cell death pathways are inhibited and that the limited malonate‐induced cell death still occurring in HD mice is independent of these pathways. There were no changes in striatal levels of the two anti cell death proteins Bcl‐XL and X‐linked inhibitor of apoptosis protein (XIAP), before or after the lesion in transgenic HD mice. We propose that mutant huntingtin causes a sublethal grade of metabolic stress which is CAG repeat length‐dependent and results in up‐regulation over time of cellular defense mechanisms against impaired energy metabolism and excitotoxicity.