Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
New evaluation of fetal oxidative stress: measurement of the umbilical cord blood dimethyl sulfate-induced ascorbyl free radical by an electron spin resonance method

Objective: The aim is to evaluate intrapartum fetal oxidative stress in real-time by umbilical cord blood dimethyl sulfate (DMSO)-induced ascorbyl free radical (AFR) measured by an electron spin resonance (ESR) method. Methods: 75 mothers delivering at gestational age after 37 weeks were recruited. They were divided into three groups: spontaneous vaginal birth (n = 27), elective cesarean section (CS) (n = 34), and emergency CS due to non-reassuring fetal status (n = 14). Umbilical artery (UA) and venous (UV) cord blood gas analysis was performed. Serum levels of DMSO-induced AFR (AFR/DMSO) that reflect vitamin C concentrations, was measured by ESR spectroscopy. Results: Blood gas analysis showed no significant differences among the groups. UA-AFR/DMSO level of elective CS group was significantly lower compared with spontaneous delivery group (0.32 ± 0.12 vs. 0.46 ± 0.14, p < 0.005). Emergency CS group showed significantly lower levels of UA-AFR/DMSO compared with elective CS group (0.25 ± 0.11 vs. 0.32 ± 0.12, p < 0.005). UV-AFR/DMSO levels had no significant difference among the groups. Conclusions: It is suggested that fetal cord blood AFR/DMSO is a sensitive marker to assess fetal oxidative stress during delivery.
Games Microbes Play

John Maynard Smith has addressed an incredible range of evolutionary problems in his remarkable career, including the development of evolutionary game theory and population-genetic analyses of bacteria in nature, among many others. This paper reviews three studies of complex dynamical interactions among competing microorganisms (including viruses as well as bacteria), each of which can be usefully cast in the game-theoretical framework. These studies demonstrate some of the most interesting outcomes of evolutionary game theory, including multiple stable equilibria, prisoneris dilemma, and balanced polymorphisms. Thus, even simple organisms can exhibit complex behaviors, our understanding of which benefits from game-theoretical analysis. Moreover, by virtue of their simple genetic systems, microbes are especially well suited for performing rigorous tests of evolutionary game theory. Finally, all three of these studies were performed in the laboratory, where the factors that shaped the interactions were further shown to depend on the genetic structure of the microbial populations. Thus, the evolutionary significance of these complex behaviors and interactions in nature remains poorly known. Future progress in understanding these fascinating systems will benefit from integrating evolutionary game theory with fine-scale analyses of population structure aimed at elucidating the patterns of genetic relationship among interacting individuals.
Ritmos de interacción social y ritmos biológicos: consistencia, sincronización y dependencia

Se analizaron las actividades vocal y ventilatoria de pares de sujetos en situaciones de conversacion. Los analisis de las series indicaron la presencia de componentes periodicos en ambas actividades, verificando la existencia de ritmos encontrados en otros estudios. Por lo general, los sujetos no fueron consistentes en los componentes ritmicos de actividad vocal y ventilatoria de una pareja a otra, aunque se observo cierta tendencia a mostrar sincronizacion en la actividad vocal. La presencia de sincronizacion se asocio con familiaridad entre las parejas; las parejas con antecedentes de interaccion no mostraron sincronizacion, mientras que las parejas sin antecedentes si tendieron a mostrar sincronizacion. Estos hallazgos se discuten en el contexto de proposiciones sobre la influencia de ritmos biologicos sobre los ritmos conductuales.
Solitary fibrous tumor of the lacrimal sac.

PURPOSE Solitary fibrous tumor is a rare spindle cell tumor arising in the pleura. We report two cases of this tumor occurring in the lacrimal sac. METHODS A 23-year-old man and a 34-year-old woman presented with a medial canthal mass. They underwent surgical excision of their tumors. RESULTS Solitary fibrous tumors were diagnosed by light microscopy, immunohistochemical study, and electron microscopy. Immunohistochemical staining showed that tumor cells were reactive with vimentin and CD34 and demonstrated no smooth muscle or neural differentiation (nonreactive with desmin and S-100 protein). CONCLUSIONS The findings indicate that solitary fibrous tumor can occur in the lacrimal sac and may recur locally if it is removed incompletely. To our knowledge, these are the first reported cases of solitary fibrous tumors occurring in the lacrimal sac.
Aspirin use, cancer, and polyps of the large bowel

Background. The effect of aspirin use on 490 patients with cancer of the colon, 340 with cancer of the rectum as the first primary site, and 212 patients with polyps having no coexisting malignancies was compared with that of two groups of control subjects that consisted of 524 hospital patients having no cancers and no diseases of the digestive organs and 1138 healthy visitors to the screening clinic. All subjects entered Roswell Park Cancer Institute between 1982 and 1991.
Respiratory and ionic regulation in invertebrates exposed to both water and air.

Transition from aquatic to aerial life is a major event that probably took place several times during animal evolution, but was often far from complete. A great number of forms, particularly invertebrates, now occupy ecological niches at the water-air interface and remain able to thrive, at least temporarily, in both media. Due to very contrasted physical properties, successful life in water and in air requires many different physiologic characteristics (22-24). Accordingly, a variety of specific adaptations have been recognized in an­ imals exposed to both water and air. The present review focuses on those adaptations concerned with respiratory and ionic regulations.
Genetic Variations of Common Carp (Cyprinus carpio L.) In South-Eastern Part of Caspian Sea Using Five Microsatellite Loci

Five highly variable microsatellite loci were used to investigate genetic variations and population structure of common carp of Caspian Sea. A total of 54 fish were genotyped giving 35 alleles over all loci. The mean number of alleles, per locus in population ranges from 5.5 to 13.0 and the mean observed heterozygosity at the five loci was 0.84. An analysis of genetic variations indicated the Ho within each groups varied between 0.412 to 1 which the lowest was in female at Loc5 loci and highest at Syp4 loci. The range of He was 0.696-0.856 that the lowest was in Lid II in male. Highly significant deviation from Hardy-Weinberg, mostly due to deficits of heterozygote except for Ca3/4 and Z9/10 loci in male, based on 2-test, showed no deviation form HWE.
Novel fractal modification of wideband cone antenna designed by global optimization method

In the proposed paper, a novel types of genetic algorithms are used as a global optimization method to seek the geometry of ultra-band discone antenna with Koch motive. The global optimization method is real codes genetic algorithms SPX-PNX used for accurate results of optimization. For accurate and wideband computation, time domain method in CST MW Studio is used. The antenna is optimized for two basic parameters: wideband impedance matching and directivity pattern of the antenna.
Human papillomaviruses in 91 oral cancers from indian betel quid chewers—high prevalence and multiplicity of infections

India has one of the world's highest incidences of oral cancer. The habit of chewing betel quid is widespread and is suspected to play a role in the etiology of this disease. Studies in many other countries have also pointed to a role for human papilloma‐viruses (HPVs) in the etiology of some oral cancers. In this study we analyzed biopsies from 91 Indian oral cancer patients, most of whom were betel quid chewers, by PCR amplification and direct DNA sequencing. HPV DNA was detected in 74% of these lesions, of which 41% had multiple HPV infections. Among the lesions from different oral sites, lesions of the tongue had the highest rate (9 of 11) of HPV infection. These HPV prevalences are among the highest ever reported in oral cancers. As to individual HPV types, prevalences of HPV‐6, HPV‐II, HPV‐16 and HPV‐18 were 13%, 20%, 42% and 47%, respectively. No additional known or novel HPV types were detected. To understand the unexpectedly high prevalences of the “low‐risk” types HPV‐6 and HPV‐11, we compared the subtypes and variants that were found in oral cancers against those from benign genital warts from the same patient population but found no differences. The high prevalence of HPV in the oral cancers of these Indian patients suggests that viral infection is an important etiological component, with betel quid probably causing additional mutagenic steps in the carcinogenic process. © 1995 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
EEG Changes following Scopolamine Administration in Healthy Subjects

This study examined the effects of the anticholinergic drug, scopolamine (0.25 mg) in 16 right-handed healthy volunteers. EEGs were recorded before and 60 min after intramuscular administration, and spectral analysis was performed on EEGs recorded at rest and during photic stimulation. Each subject was also evaluated by the Wechsler Memory Scale (WMS; form 1 or 2) before and 90 min after drug administration. In the resting EEG, the scopolamine administration resulted in a significant increase in the absolute power on the delta band (2.0– 3.8 Hz) and in the relative power on the delta and theta-1 bands (4.0–5.8 Hz) mainly over the central and parieto-occipital regions. In contrast, scopolamine significantly decreased the relative alpha-2 band (9.2–12.8 Hz) power mainly over the frontal regions and the absolute alpha-2 band power at most of the recording sites. The analysis of stimulus data showed that scopolamine significantly decreased fundamental photic driving responses elicited by photic stimulation at 15 Hz, with significant effects confined to the occipital regions. These EEG changes occurred in association with a significant reduction in total WMS scores as well as in scores of logical and visual memory subtests. These findings suggest that, in addition to cognitive impairments, central cholinergic dysfunction can cause EEG changes under both nonstimulus and stimulus conditions.
MEMS Scale PVDF-TrFE-Based Piezoelectric Energy Harvesters

This paper presents the design, the fabrication, and the performance characterization of microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) scale cantilever-type piezoelectric energy harvesters (PEHs) that utilize the piezoelectric polymer polyvinylidene fluoride-trifluoroethylene (PVDF-TrFE). Ranges are determined for device dimensions according to the calculations based on mathematical models. Designed devices were fabricated using standard MEMS fabrication techniques. Electrodes were formed with sputtered Al and Ti/Al thin films, and a 1.3-μm-thick PVDF-TrFE film was deposited using spin coating. Cantilevers were suspended using a two-step process: backside DRIE to perform the bulk etch, followed by XeF2 gaseous etch for the final release. Remnant polarization and coercive field of the fabricated devices were measured as 6.1 μC/cm2 and 74.9 V/μm, respectively. Piezoelectric performances were evaluated by a press-and-release type of measurement. For these measurements, custom-made probe tips attached to micropositioners were used. Based on the experimental results, maximum power output was calculated as 35.1 pW for a peak tip displacement of 500 μm from a 1200 μm × 300 μm cantilever, which corresponds to a power output density of 97.5 pW/mm2. The proposed method has the potential to create the PEHs that are monolithically integrated with complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor circuits and lead to self-sustained low power electronics.
Pharmacokinetics of itraconazole following oral administration to normal volunteers

The pharmacokinetics of itraconazole, an orally effective, broad-spectrum, systemic antifungal agent, were evaluated in five healthy male volunteers. Each subject was studied on days 1 and 15 at the following dosages: 100 mg once daily (regimen A), 200 mg once daily (regimen B), and 200 mg twice daily (regimen C). On each study day, itraconazole was administered with a standardized meal. Plasma samples were collected for 72 h postdose, and 24-h urine specimens were obtained. On day 1 of regimen C, plasma samples were collected following the second dose. Samples were assayed for itraconazole by a sensitive, reverse-phase, high-performance liquid chromatography method. Wide intersubject variations in itraconazole concentration in plasma versus time profiles were observed on all study days. Absorption appeared to be slow, with day 1 mean peak itraconazole concentrations in plasma of 110 ng/ml at 2.8 h (regimen A), 272 ng/ml at 3.0 h (regimen B), and 553 ng/ml at 3.4 h (regimen C). Mean peak itraconazole concentrations in plasma on day 15 were 412 ng/ml at 3.0 h (regimen A), 1,070 ng/ml at 4.4 h (regimen B), and 1,980 ng/ml at 6.0 h (regimen C). The steady state was achieved by day 13. Respective elimination half-lives on days 1 and 15 were 15 and 34 h (regimen A), 20.7, and 36.5 h (regimen B), and 25 and 41.7 h (regimen C), respectively. The areas under the plasma concentration versus time curves (0 to infinity) on day 1 were 1,320 (regimen A), 4,160 (regimen B), and 12,600 ng.h/ml (regimen C). With the exception of one patient on day 15 of regimen C, itraconazole was not detected in the urine. All data support dose-dependent pharmacokinetic behavior for itraconazole.
Dialysis adequacy and transport test for characterization of peritoneal transport type in Chinese peritoneal dialysis patients receiving three daily exchanges.

Dialysis adequacy and transport test (DATT) is an accurate method to classify peritoneal transport type for continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) patients with a regimen of four exchanges of 2 L/d. We examined the accuracy of DATT for the characterization of peritoneal transport type in patients with a regimen of three exchanges of 2 L/d, which is the standard CAPD regimen in Hong Kong Chinese. We studied 189 adult Chinese CAPD patients with a prescription of three exchanges of 2 L/d. Patients who had a peritonitis episode within the previous 30 days were excluded. Standard peritoneal equilibration test (PET) and DATT were performed on consecutive days. Correlation coefficients between dialysate-to-plasma ratios of creatinine (D/P) obtained for the PET and the DATT was 0.698 (P < 0.001). Peritoneal transport type was classified according to the reported D/P creatinine reference values obtained from the PET at 4 hours. When the result was compared with the transport type classified by the DATT result using the linear regression formula derived, the Cohen kappa was 0.433 (95% confidence interval, 0.329 to 0.537), which could be regarded as a moderate level of agreement. For classification of the low transporters, the specificity of DATT was 90.1%, and sensitivity was 72.3%. For classification of the high transporters, the specificity of DATT was 96.6%, and sensitivity was 57.1%. DATT and PET had a reasonable agreement in the classification of peritoneal transport type for Chinese CAPD patients receiving a daily schedule of three exchanges of 2 L/d. Although DATT may be less accurate for CAPD patients with three daily exchanges, it remains a specific method to identify low and high transporters.
Wavelet Transform for Log Periodogram Regression in Long Memory Stochastic Volatility Model

We consider semiparametric log periodogram regression estimation of memory parameter for the latent process in long memory stochastic volatility models. It is known that though widely used among researchers, the Geweke and Porter-Hudak (1983; GPH) LP estimator violates the Gaussian or Martingale assumption, which results in significant negative bias due to the existence of the spectrum of non-Gaussian noise. Through wavelet transform of the squared process, we effectively remove the noise spectrum around zero frequency, and obtain Gaussian-approximate spectral representation at zero frequency. We propose wavelet-based regression estimator, and derive the asymptotic mean squared error and the consistency in line with the asymptotic theory in the long memory literature. Simulation studies show that wavelet-based regression estimation is an effective way in reducing the bias, compared with the GPH estimator.
Primary care physician compensation method in medical groups: does it influence the use and cost of health services for enrollees in managed care organizations?

CONTEXT Growth of at-risk managed care contracts between health plans and medical groups has been well documented, but less is known about the nature of financial incentives within those medical groups or their effects on health care utilization. OBJECTIVE To test whether utilization and cost of health services per enrollee were influenced independently by the compensation method of the enrollee's primary care physician. DESIGN Survey of medical groups contracting with selected managed care health plans, linked to 1994 plan enrollment and utilization data for adult enrollees. SETTING Medical groups, major managed care health plans, and their patients/enrollees in the state of Washington. STUDY PARTICIPANTS Sixty medical groups in Washington, 865 primary care physicians (internal medicine, pediatrics, family practice, or general practice) from those groups and affiliated with 1 or more of 4 managed care health plans, and 200 931 adult plan enrollees. INTERVENTION The effect of method of primary care physician's compensation on the utilization and cost of health services was analyzed by weighted least squares and random effects regression. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Total visits, hospital days, and per member per year estimated costs. RESULTS Compensation method was not significantly (P>.30) related to utilization and cost in any multivariate analyses. Patient age (P<.001), female gender (P<.001), and plan benefit level (P<.001) were significantly positively related to visits, hospital days, and per member per year costs. The primary care physician's age was significantly negatively related (P<.001) to all 3 dependent measures. CONCLUSIONS Compensation method was not significantly related to use and cost of health services per person. Enrollee, physician, and health plan benefit factors were the prime determinants of utilization and cost of health services.
Market segmentation and willingness to pay for organic products in Spain

In recent years, consumer concerns on environmental and health issues related to food products have increased and, as a result, the demand for organically grown production has grown. Higher costs of production and retailer margins generate a gap between real prices and those that consumers are willing to pay for organic food. In this article, consumer willingness to pay for organic food in two Spanish regions is analyzed. Markets in both regions are segmented considering consumers lifestyles. Results indicate that consumers concerned about healthy diet and environmental degradation are the most likely to buy organic food, and are willing to pay a high premium. Organic attributes are easily identified in perishable products as the premium consumers would pay for organic meat, fruits, and vegetables is higher. © 2001 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved.
Coronary Artery Calcium Determined by Electron Beam Computed Tomography for Predicting Angiographic Coronary Artery Disease in Moderate- to High-Risk Chinese Patients

The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of coronary calcification among moderate- to high-risk Chinese patients and to evaluate the ability of the coronary calcium score determined by electron beam computed tomography (EBCT) to predict angiographic coronary artery disease in this population. We enrolled 163 consecutive patients and analyzed their cardiovascular risk factors, coronary calcium scores and coronary angiogram results. One hundred and twenty-five patients (76.7%) had a positive EBCT scan result (coronary calcium score >0). The prevalence of calcification and the calcium scores showed a graded relation to the number of cardiovascular risk factors and age (p < 0.001 for trend). Coronary calcium scores showed statistically significant differences between patients with angiographic evidence of coronary artery disease and patients with normal coronary angiography (p < 0.05), but could not differentiate between patients with significant and insignificant coronary artery disease. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis showed that a coronary calcium score >5 predicted angiographic coronary artery disease with 93% sensitivity and 86% specificity (area under the curve 0.95 ± 0.019). Multivariate analysis showed a coronary calcium score >5 to be the strongest independent predictor of angiographic coronary artery disease (odds ratio 120.7, 95% confidence interval 21.7–671.4; p < 0.001). Coronary calcium score determined by EBCT appears to have a similar predictive value in Chinese patients as it does in other ethnic populations that have been reported to date.
Position and altitude control of a quadcopter using State-Dependent Riccati Equation (SDRE) control

This paper presents a solution to the problem of trajectory tracking for a quadcopter using a State-Dependent Riccati Equation (SDRE) controller. SDRE requires a pseudo-linear model of the system to be controlled so a pseudo-linear model of the quadcopter is derived first. At each time step, a control law is obtained using the SDRE approach but the state used to form the control law at each of those steps is fed from an estimator (Kalman filter). The results of a simulation done in Python are presented in the simulations section.
Variant genotypes of CDKN1A and CDKN1B are associated with an increased risk of breast cancer in Chinese women

p21Cip1 and p27Kip1 are cyclin‐dependent kinase inhibitors, which can arrest cell proliferation and serve as tumor suppressors. Reduced protein expression of p21Cip1 and p27Kip1 was frequently observed in a subset of cancers, including breast cancer. In this study, we hypothesized that genetic variants in CDKN1A (encode for p21Cip1) and CDKN1B (encode for p27Kip1) may modulate the risk of breast cancer. To test this hypothesis, we evaluated the associations of the polymorphisms of Ser31Arg and C+20T in CDKN1A and C−79T and Gly109Val in CDKN1B, as well as their combinations, with breast cancer risk in a case‐control study of 368 breast cancer cases and 467 cancer‐free controls in a Chinese population. We found that a significantly increased risk of breast cancer was associated with the variant genotypes of CDKN1B C−79T [adjusted OR = 1.43 (95% CI = 1.03−1.98) for −79TC/TT], compared with the −79CC genotype, but no associations were observed for other variant genotypes. However, the combined variant genotypes of the 4 loci were associated with a significantly increased breast cancer risk (adjusted OR = 1.49, 95% CI = 1.11−2.01 among subjects carrying 3 or more variant alleles), especially among premenopausal women (adjusted OR= 2.30, 95% CI = 1.45−3.66). Furthermore, in premenopausal women, this significant association remained unchanged, after including other individual risk factors in the multivariate logistic regression model, suggesting an independent role of CDKN1A and CDKN1B variants in breast cancer risk. Although the exact biological mechanism remains to be explored, our findings suggest possible involvement of CDKN1A and CDKN1B variants in the etiology of breast cancer. Further large and functional studies are needed to confirm our findings. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.