Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Recent data on Mediterranean diet, cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and life expectancy.

Benefits of dietary moderation when on a Mediterranean diet type (MD) have been known for well over half a century. In the past, there has been a vigorous renewal of interest in preventive potential of MD. This review is unique, by focusing on the very recent confirmatory data on the MD, all published within the first half of 2014. Benefits of MD in preventing and reducing cardiovascular disorders (CVD), known before, have been strongly confirmed. While there is little doubt regarding potential benefit of MD for obesity, diabetes type II, metabolic syndrome and fatty liver, critical evaluation has to be aimed at reported benefits of MD in such widely metabolic diverse disorders as cancer, pulmonary disease and cognition defects, including Alzheimer disease (Ref. 20). Text in PDF www.elis. sk.
A temperature‐sensitive mutant of human p53.

We discovered that the human ‘hot‐spot’ p53 mutant 143Ala is temperature sensitive for the binding of two DNA elements and for mediating the transcription of a downstream luciferase reporter gene. At 32.5 degrees C, 143Ala possesses strong DNA binding ability. In addition, its transcriptional activities are stronger than those of wild‐type p53. At 37.5 degrees C, however, both the mutant's DNA binding and transcriptional activation functions are greatly reduced or abolished. The activity differences correlate with the presence of two conformational states of p53, which are recognized by monoclonal antibodies: at 32.5 degrees C, 143Ala is recognized by PAb1620, which is specific for the wild‐type conformation, whereas at 37.5 degrees C, 143Ala is almost undetectable by PAb1620‐mediated immunoprecipitation. Although 143Ala's binding to p53 DNA recognition elements and its activation of reporter gene transcription at 32.5 degrees C is markedly higher than that of the wild‐type p53, 143Ala inhibited proliferation less robustly than wild‐type p53 and it did not increase inhibition of ras‐induced focus formation. These results indicate a partial correlation between the events involved in transcriptional activation and events involved in the proliferation suppression of p53. 143Ala therefore will be of use in dissecting the relationship between the structure of p53 and its different cellular functions.
Diversified Investment,Agency Problem and Corporate Performance

This paper differs from the formerly method of measuring diversified investment.Based on the sample of the listed companies in 2002～2004,it examines the relationship between diversified investment of Chinese listed companies and the value of enterprises.And it proved that diversified investment puts down the value of enterprises.Moreover,listed companies with different poverty rights restrains have different diversified investment performances.In this kind of situation,listed companies controlled by local government have the worst investment performances,and privately-owned corporations take second place,yet diversification doesnt have obvious effect on the performances of the listed companies controlled by central government.Furthermore,based on the agency theory,the author finds the reason why diversified investment performances would be different under different poverty rights restrains.The conclusion is that operators'self-interest,government intervention and controlling shareholder' self-interest are the most essential elements.
RBPIM: a PCIM-based framework for RBAC

This paper presents a PCIM-based framework for storing and enforcing RBAC (role based access control) policies in distributed heterogeneous systems. PCIM (policy core information model) is a generic information model proposed by IETF. This paper proposes a PCIM extension, called RBPIM (role-based policy information model), in order to represent network access policies based on the RBAC model. An RBPlM implementation framework based on the POP/PEP (policy decision point/policy enforcement point) approach is also presented. In the proposed framework, the communication between the PDP and the PEPs is implemented using the COPS (common open policy service) protocol, also defined by the IETF. The framework adopts the outsourcing approach, where the policy rules are evaluated by the PDP, as defined by the COPS standard. This paper evaluates the outsourcing model for access control by presenting a case study and the average response time of PDP under different load conditions.
Modulation of left ventricular hypertrophy by dietary salt and inhibition of angiotensin converting enzyme

The interactions of blood pressure, salt intake and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibition were investigated in the Dahl salt-sensitive (DS) and salt-resistant (DR) strains of rats. Eight-week-old DS and DR (40 of each) were separately randomized to receive a low- (0.4% NaCl) or a high- (8% NaCl) salt diet for 3 weeks. Thereafter the rats were further separated randomly to receive the ACE inhibitor lisinopril (3–8 mg/kg per day) or no drug treatment for 11 weeks. In untreated DS rats blood pressure rose, paralleled by a higher left ventricular mass (ratio left ventricular weight/body weight) irrespective of salt intake. Lisinopril lowered blood pressure to normotensive levels in all groups except DS rats on a high-salt diet, despite doses of up to 100 mg/kg per day, although there was a significant fall in blood pressure. Lisinopril reduced left ventricular mass significantly on the low- but not on the high-salt diet. Plasma renin activity increased on lisinopril treatment in all groups except DS rats on the high-salt diet. Regression of an increased left ventricular mass by ACE inhibition seemed to be impaired by a high salt intake, even when blood pressure was lowered. Therefore, although for regression of left ventricular hypertrophy, reduction of afterload was the leading factor, this might be adversely affected by a high salt intake.
Current status of functional MRI on small animals: application to physiology, pathophysiology, and cognition

This review aims to make the reader aware of the potential of functional MRI (fMRI) in brain activation studies in small animal models. As small animals generally require anaesthesia for immobilization during MRI protocols, this is believed to be a serious limitation to the type of question that can be addressed with fMRI. We intend to introduce a fresh view with an in‐depth overview of the surprising number of fMRI applications in a wide range of important research domains in neuroscience. These include the pathophysiology of brain functioning, the basic science of activity, and functional connectivity of different sensory circuits, including sensory brain mapping, the challenges when studying the hypothalamus as the major control centre in the central nervous system, and the limbic system as neural substrate for emotions and reward. Finally the contribution of small animal fMRI research to cognitive neuroscience is outlined. This review avoids focusing exclusively on traditional small laboratory animals such as rodents, but rather aims to broaden the scope by introducing alternative lissencephalic animal models such as songbirds and fish, as these are not yet well recognized as neuroimaging study subjects. These models are well established in many other neuroscience disciplines, and this review will show that their investigation with in vivo imaging tools will open new doors to cognitive neuroscience and the study of the autonomous nervous system in experimental animals. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Use of Sedation and Neuromuscular Blockers in Critically Ill Adults Receiving High-Frequency Oscillatory Ventilation

Background: Nearly all patients receive sedation and neuromuscular blockers (NMBs) during high-frequency oscillatory ventilation (HFOV). Objective: To describe analgo-sedation and NMB use prior to and during HFOV in adults with acute respiratory distress syndrome. Methods: Retrospective single-center study of 131 consecutive adults whose care was managed with HFOV from 2002 to 2011. Results: During the first 4 days of HFOV, 89% and 95% of patients received sedation and opioids, respectively. Upon HFOV initiation, 119 (90.8%) patients received fentanyl doses higher than 200 µg/h; of these, 48 also received more than 20 mg/h of midazolam. Analgo-sedation doses increased significantly over time such that doses were double by day 3. Factors independently associated with fentanyl doses higher than 200 µg/h were NMB ever used (OR 4.43; 95% CI 1.26-15.65, p = 0.02), pH less than 7.15 (OR 2.08; 95% CI 1.22-3.5, p = 0.007), worsening partial pressure of oxygen/fraction of inspired oxygen (OR 1.05; 95% CI 1.00-1.10, p = 0.04), and Acute Physiology and Chronic Health Evaluation (APACHE) II score (OR 0.87; 95% CI 0.79-0.97, p = 0.009). Deep sedation was commonly administered when NMBs were not being used, with 99.2% of sedation-agitation scores of 1 or 2. Eighty-six patients (65.6%) received NMBs and use was greatest on day 1 (59.5%). Train-of-Four was measured every hour for 53.4% of patients; 29.2% of the measurements were 0 of 4. NMB use declined over the 10-year study period. Conclusions: High analgo-sedation doses were associated with APACHE II scores, worsening gas exchange, and NMB use. Two thirds of patients received NMBs; use was highest on day 1 and subsequently declined. The percentage of patients who received NMB during HFOV in our study was lower than that previously reported. Future research should evaluate patient outcomes with and without use of NMBs, as well as the potential to manage patients with less sedation.
Resolution of allergic inflammation and airway hyperreactivity is dependent upon disruption of the T1/ST2-IL-33 pathway.

RATIONALE Although there have been numerous studies on the development of allergen-induced inflammation, the mechanisms leading to resolution of inflammation remain poorly understood. This represents an important consideration because failure to resolve allergen driven inflammation potentially leads to irreversible airway remodeling, characteristic of chronic asthma. OBJECTIVES We investigated the resolution of allergic inflammation and identified the factors responsible. METHODS BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice were sensitized to ovalbumin and challenged through the airways to induce allergic inflammation. Mice were analyzed at 24 hours and 7 days after the final challenge. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS Airway hyperreactivity (AHR) and increased mucus production were present 7 days after the cessation of allergen challenge in BALB/c mice. Persisting AHR correlated with the continued presence of Th2 cells but not eosinophils in the lungs. The role of Th2 cells in maintaining AHR was confirmed using blocking antibodies against T1/ST2, IL-4, and IL-13 during the resolution period. Moreover, AHR in the "Th1 type" C57BL/6 mouse strain was resolved 1 week after allergen challenge, concomitant with clearance of Th2 cells from the lung. Expression of the T1/ST2 ligand, IL-33, also correlated with maintenance of AHR. CONCLUSIONS We have used blockade of Th2 function and strain differences to show for the first time that resolution of allergic inflammation and AHR may be dependent on the T1/ST2-IL-33 pathway and the presence of Th2 cells, suggesting they are necessary not only for the development of an allergic response but also for its maintenance.
Residential Appliance Identification Based on Spectral Information of Low Frequency Smart Meter Measurements

A nonintrusive load monitoring (NILM) method for residential appliances based on uncorrelated spectral components of an active power consumption signal is presented. This method utilizes the Karhunen Loéve expansion to breakdown the active power signal into subspace components (SCs) so as to construct a unique information rich appliance signature. Unlike existing NILM techniques that rely on multiple measurements at high sampling rates, this method works effectively with a single active power measurement taken at a low sampling rate. After constructing the signature data base, SC level power conditions were introduced to reduce the number of possible appliance combinations prior to applying the maximum a posteriori estimation. Then, an appliances matching algorithm was presented to identify the turned-on appliance combination in a given time window. After identifying the turned-on appliance combination, an energy estimation algorithm was introduced to disaggregate the energy contribution of each individual appliance in that combination. The proposed NILM method was validated by using two public databases: 1) tracebase; and 2) reference energy disaggregation data set. The presented results demonstrate the ability of the proposed method to accurately identify and disaggregate individual energy contributions of turned-on appliance combinations in real households.
P300-based brain computer interface experimental setup

A Brain-Computer interface (BCI) is a communication system that enables the generation of a control signal from brain signals such as sensorymotor rhythms and evoked potentials; therefore, it constitutes a novel communication option for people with severe motor disabilities (such as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis patients). This paper presents the development of a P300-based BCI. This prototype uses a homemade six-channel electroencephalograph for the acquisition of the signals, and a visual stimulation matrix; since this matrix contains letters of the alphabet as well as images associated to them, it permits word-writing and the elaboration of messages with the images. To process the signals the software BCI2000 and MATLAB 7.0 were used. The latter was used to program three linear translation algorithms (Stepwise Linear Discriminant Analysis, Lineal Discriminant Analysis and Least Squares) to convert the brain signals into communication signals. These algorithms had a classification accuracy of 90.73 %, 95.75 % and 89.45 % respectively, when using raw data; and of 90.78%, 49.48 % and 53.9 %, when data was previously common-average filtered. The experimental setup was tested in ten healthy volunteers; 5 of them got a 100% success, 1 a 90% success, 2 an around 70% success and 2 a 50% success, in the online free-spelling tests.
Orchid pollination by sexual deception: pollinator perspectives

The extraordinary taxonomic and morphological diversity of orchids is accompanied by a remarkable range of pollinators and pollination systems. Sexually deceptive orchids are adapted to attract specific male insects that are fooled into attempting to mate with orchid flowers and inadvertently acting as pollinators. This review summarises current knowledge, explores new hypotheses in the literature, and introduces some new approaches to understanding sexual deception from the perspective of the duped pollinator. Four main topics are addressed: (1) global patterns in sexual deception, (2) pollinator identities, mating systems and behaviours, (3) pollinator perception of orchid deceptive signals, and (4) the evolutionary implications of pollinator responses to orchid deception, including potential costs imposed on pollinators by orchids. A global list of known and putative sexually deceptive orchids and their pollinators is provided and methods for incorporating pollinator perspectives into sexual deception research are provided and reviewed.
Robust aortic valve non-opening detection for different cardiac conditions.

In recent years, extensive studies have been conducted in the area of pumping state detection for implantable rotary blood pumps. However, limited studies have focused on automatically identifying the aortic valve non-opening (ANO) state despite its importance in the development of control algorithms aiming for myocardial recovery. In the present study, we investigated the performance of 14 ANO indices derived from the pump speed waveform using four different types of classifiers, including linear discriminant analysis, logistic regression, back propagation neural network, and k-nearest neighbors (KNN). Experimental measurements from four greyhounds, which take into consideration the variations in cardiac contractility, systemic vascular resistance, and total blood volume were used. By having only two indices, (i) the root mean square value, and (ii) the standard deviation, we were able to achieve an accuracy of 92.8% with the KNN classifier. Further increase of the number of indices to five for the KNN classifier increases the overall accuracy to 94.6%.
Comparison of OnabotulinumtoxinA and RimabotulinumtoxinB for the Treatment of Axillary Hyperhidrosis

BACKGROUND Recently, rimabotulinumtoxinB has been increasingly used as an off-label treatment of primary axillary hyperhidrosis (PAH). However, the optimal conversion ratios for onabotulinumtoxinA and rimabotulinumtoxinB remain to be determined. OBJECTIVE To compare effectiveness, satisfaction level, and safety of rimabotulinumtoxinB with onabotulinumtoxinA at a conversion ratio of 1:30 for the treatment of PAH. METHODS Adults with PAH were enrolled in this bilaterally paired single-subject study. Each patient was randomly treated with 1,500 U rimabotulinumtoxinB on 1 axilla and 50 U onabotulinumtoxinA contralaterally. Hyperhidrosis Disease Severity Scale was assessed before and after treatment up to 20 weeks. A 10-cm visual analog scale representing improvement of hidrotic symptom and starch–iodine test were also used to assess therapeutic efficacy. RESULTS Twenty-four patients completed the study. Both groups showed comparable and efficacious anhidrotic effects through 20 weeks for any variable. There were no significant differences in terms of the onset of action or mean duration of action between the 2 groups. Overall satisfaction with the treatment was equally high in both groups. CONCLUSION Both toxins showed comparable anhidrotic effect for the treatment of axillary hyperhidrosis at a conversion ratio of 1:30.
Meta‐analysis: Reduced incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients not responding to interferon therapy of chronic hepatitis C

Interferon treatment for chronic hepatitis C reduces the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in sustained responders. However, estimation of the effect of interferon treatment on HCC development in nonresponders is yet to be fully implemented. We conducted a meta‐analysis of 3 randomized controlled trials and 6 prospective cohort studies, including 3,246 patients (1,922 patients received interferon treatment) to estimate the effect of single‐course interferon treatment on HCC development in patients with chronic hepatitis C. Single‐course interferon treatment prevented HCC development (RR 0.45; 95% CI 0.31–0.65). This preventive effect was shown even in nonresponders (RR 0.48; 95% CI 0.25–0.90). By subgroup analyses, single‐course interferon treatment reduced HCC incidence in cirrhotic patients (RR 0.49; 95% CI 0.29–0.84), patients with annual HCC incidence less than 3% in control group (RR 0.42; 95% CI 0.26–0.66) and patients with annual HCC incidence of 3% or more in control group (RR 0.46; 95% CI 0.26–0.83). Furthermore, HCC incidence was reduced in 3 studies with follow‐up period less than 5 years (RR 0.38; 95% CI 0.21–0.66) and in 6 studies with follow‐up period of 5 years or more (RR 0.46; 95% CI 0.28–0.76). In conclusion, single‐course interferon treatment was shown to prevent HCC development in chronic hepatitis C, even in nonresponders. This preventive effect may be speculated to be due to anti‐inflammatory effect on persistent necro‐inflammation and blocking progression of fibrosis in liver. Even if sustained virological response is not achieved, interferon may be worth administering in order to reduce HCC incidence in patients with chronic hepatitis C.
Tibialis anterior moment arm: effects of measurement errors and assumptions.

UNLABELLED Accurate estimates of tibialis anterior (TA) muscle force are important in many contexts. Two approaches commonly used to estimate moment arms are the tendon excursion (TE) and geometric (GEO) methods. Previous studies report poor agreement between the two approaches. PURPOSE The purposes of this study were to 1) assess the effect of methodological variations in the two methods of moment arm estimation and 2) determine how these variations affect agreement between the methods. METHODS TA moment arms were determined using TE and GEO. Errors associated with tendon stretch/hysteresis, talus rotation relative to the foot, and the location of the line of action were investigated. RESULTS For TE, large errors in moment arm estimates across the range of motion were found when tendon length changes (P = 0.001) were not corrected for. For GEO, the estimated moment arm was reduced at an ankle angle of -15° when discrepancies between talus and foot rotations were accounted for or when an alternative tendon line of action was used either separately (effect size (ES), 0.46 and 0.58, respectively; P > 0.05) or together (ES, 0.89; P > 0.05). TE-derived moment arms were smaller than GEO-derived moment arms (ES, 0.68-4.86, varying by angle) before accounting for sources of error. However, these differences decreased after error correction (ES, 0.09-1.20, P > 0.05). Nonetheless, the shape of the moment arm-joint angle relation was curvilinear for TE but linear for GEO. CONCLUSIONS Of all methodological modifications, accounting for tendon length changes had the largest effect on TA moment arm estimates. We conclude that the TE method is viable to determine TA moment arms as long as changes in tendon length are accounted for.
Proposal of a Sustainability Index for the Automotive Industry

In a scenario of increasing globalization, sustainable development has emerged as an attractive and strategic issue for both countries and individual organizations and their supply chains. Companies have faced different challenges in seeking to combine the best economic performance with increased social and environmental responsibility. Monitoring sustainability is essential for decision-making and management of activities that comprise an organization’s system processes. Evaluation can be performed using indices or a set of indicators. In addition to increasing organizational effectiveness and improving competitiveness, customer service and profitability, it is also a crucial influence on the development of business sustainability. This paper proposes a sustainability index that provides companies with information about their level of economic, social and environmental sustainability, showing their performance at both individual and supply chain level. The importance of the indicators is assessed by using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) methodology applied to a case study of a supply chain in the automotive industry. The various stages experienced during the construction of the index are also shown. The final results achieved are then presented and discussed in light of the objectives.