Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Does heparin coating improve patency or reduce infection of tunneled dialysis catheters?

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Tunneled dialysis catheters are prone to frequent malfunction and infection. Catheter thrombosis occurs despite prophylactic anticoagulant locks. Catheter thrombi may also serve as a nidus for catheter infection, thereby increasing the risk of bacteremia. Thus, heparin coating of catheters may reduce thrombosis and infection. This study evaluated whether heparin-coated hemodialysis catheters have fewer infections or greater cumulative survival than noncoated catheters. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, & MEASUREMENTS We retrospectively queried a prospective access database to analyze the outcomes of 175 tunneled dialysis catheters placed in the internal jugular vein, including 89 heparin-coated catheters and 86 noncoated catheters. The primary outcome was cumulative catheter survival, and the secondary outcome was infection-free catheter survival. RESULTS The two patient groups were similar in demographics and clinical and catheter features. Catheter-related bacteremia occurred less frequently with heparin-coated catheters than with noncoated catheters (34 versus 60%, P < 0.001). Cumulative catheter survival was similar in heparin-coated and noncoated catheters (hazard ratio, 0.87; 95% confidence interval, 0.55 to 1.36; P = 0.53). On multiple variable survival analysis including catheter type, age, sex, diabetes, coronary artery disease, peripheral vascular disease, cerebrovascular disease, catheter location, and previous catheter, only catheter location predicted cumulative catheter survival (hazard ratio, 2.03; 95% CI, 1.27 to 3.25, with the right internal jugular location being the reference group, P = 0.003). The frequency of thrombolytic instillation was 1.8 per 1000 catheter-days in both groups. CONCLUSIONS Heparin coating decreases the frequency of catheter-related bacteremia but does not reduce the frequency of catheter malfunction.
The Distinct Roles of Two GPCRs, MrgprC11 and PAR2, in Itch and Hyperalgesia

Sensory neurons perceive itch and heat-induced pain through two different receptors. Itchy and Scratchy, But Not Painful Although some types of itching can be relieved with antihistamines, most are not, such as the itching associated with the antimalarial chloroquine. The peptide SLIGRL is used to study histamine-independent itch and was thought to activate the PAR2 receptor. Liu et al. showed that this peptide instead activated MrgprC11, a member of the family of Mas-related G protein–coupled receptors. In addition, a shorter version of this peptide triggered increased sensitivity to thermal pain through PAR2, but did not elicit scratching. Thus, these findings suggest that MrgprC11 mediates histamine-independent itch, whereas PAR2 signaling evokes increased sensitivity to thermal pain, and clarify the identity of the receptors that should be therapeutically targeted for relief from these sensations. Itch has been defined as an unpleasant skin sensation that triggers the urge to scratch. Primary sensory dorsal root ganglia neurons detect itch stimuli through peripheral axons in the skin, playing an important role in generating itch. Itch is broadly categorized as histaminergic (sensitive to antihistamines) or nonhistaminergic. The peptide Ser-Leu-Ile-Gly-Arg-Leu (SLIGRL) is an itch-inducing agent widely used to study histamine-independent itch. Here, we show that Mrgprs (Mas-related G protein–coupled receptors), particularly MrgprC11, rather than PAR2 (protease-activated receptor 2) as previously thought, mediate this type of itch. A shorter peptide, SLIGR, which specifically activates PAR2 but not MrgprC11, induced thermal pain hypersensitivity in mice but not a scratch response. Therefore, although both Mrgpr and PAR2 are SLIGRL-responsive G protein–coupled receptors present in dorsal root ganglia, each plays a specific role in mediating itch and pain.
Nonlinear geometrical responses in large deflection of un-symmetrically layered piezo-electric plate under initial tension

The nonlinear geometrical responses in large deflection of an un-symmetrically piezo-electric layered plate under initial tension are studied. von Karman plate theory for large deflection is utilized and extended to an un-symmetrically layered plate including a piezoelectric layer. The nonlinear governing equations are derived, first, in a non-dimensional form in terms of lateral slope and radial force resultant. These equations are solved u sin g a numerical finite difference method with the aid of the clamped-ended boundary conditions of the problem and an iteration procedure, by taking the associated linear analytical solution of lateral slope as the initial guess. For an early monolithic plate under a very low applied voltage, the results agree well with available solutions for a single-layered case due to uniform lateral load in literature and thus the present approach is validated. For a two-layered un-symmetric plate made of typical silicon-based materials, the results show that piezoelectric effect seems to be apparent only up to a moderate initial tension and a moderate lateral pressure. Under this circumstance, the higher the applied voltage, the greater the central deflection; and hence the plate may transit to a membrane in a relatively low pretension condition. For a relatively high pretension or a severe lateral load, however, the piezoelectric effect becomes insignificant. Moreover, the effects of initial tension and lateral load may merge to become dominant, yielding nearly the same responses, regardless of the magnitude of the applied voltage.
Spider-Venom Peptides as Therapeutics

Spiders are the most successful venomous animals and the most abundant terrestrial predators. Their remarkable success is due in large part to their ingenious exploitation of silk and the evolution of pharmacologically complex venoms that ensure rapid subjugation of prey. Most spider venoms are dominated by disulfide-rich peptides that typically have high affinity and specificity for particular subtypes of ion channels and receptors. Spider venoms are conservatively predicted to contain more than 10 million bioactive peptides, making them a valuable resource for drug discovery. Here we review the structure and pharmacology of spider-venom peptides that are being used as leads for the development of therapeutics against a wide range of pathophysiological conditions including cardiovascular disorders, chronic pain, inflammation, and erectile dysfunction.
Evaluating Contractor Financial Status Using a Hybrid Fuzzy Instance Based Classifier: Case Study in the Construction Industry

Construction firms are vulnerable to bankruptcy due to the complex nature of the industry, high competitions, the high risk involved, and considerable economic fluctuations. Thus, evaluating financial status and predicting business failures of construction companies are crucial for owners, general contractors, investors, banks, insurance firms, and creditors. The prediction results can be used to select qualified contractors capable of accomplishing the projects. In this study, a hybrid fuzzy instance-based classifier for contractor default prediction (FICDP) is proposed. The new approach is constructed by incorporating the fuzzy K-nearest neighbor classifier (FKNC), the synthetic minority over-sampling technique (SMOTE), and the firefly algorithm (FA). In this hybrid paradigm, the FKNC is utilized to classify the contractors into two groups (“default” and “nondefault”) based on their past financial performances. Since the “nondefault” samples dominate the historical database, the SMOTE algorithm is employed to create synthetic samples of the minority class and therefore alleviates the between-class imbalance problem. Moreover, the FA is employed to determine an appropriate set of model parameters. Experimental results have shown that the proposed FICDP can outperform other benchmark methods.
An adaptive retransmission and active drop mechanism based on fuzzy logic

An adaptive link layer retransmission and active drop mechanism is designed based on fuzzy logic. The mechanism is simpler than the classical RED (random early discarding) queue management algorithm. Simulation results show that it is also superior to fixed number retransmission with RED and FIFO queue management in improving the TCP traffic performance over 3G links.
Comparison Between Bulk and FDSOI POM Flash Cell: A Multiscale Simulation Study

In this brief, we present a multiscale simulation study of a fully depleted silicon-on-insulator (FDSOI) nonvolatile memory cell based on polyoxometalates (POMs) inorganic molecular clusters used as a storage media embedded in the gate dielectric of flash cells. In particular, we focus our discussion on the threshold voltage variability introduced by random discrete dopants (random dopant fluctuation) and by fluctuations in the distribution of the POM molecules in the storage media (POM fluctuation). To highlight the advantages of the FDSOI POM flash cell, we provide a comparison with an equivalent cell based on conventional (BULK) transistors. The presented simulation framework and methodology is transferrable to flash cells based on alternative molecules used as a storage media.
A disproportionate role for mtDNA in Dobzhansky–Muller incompatibilities?

Evolution in allopatric populations can lead to incompatibilities that result in reduced hybrid fitness and ultimately reproductive isolation upon secondary contact. The Dobzhansky–Muller (DM) model nicely accounts for the evolution of such incompatibilities. Although DM incompatibilities were originally conceived as resulting of interactions between nuclear genes, recent studies have documented cases where incompatibilities have arisen between nuclear and mitochondrial genomes (mtDNA). Although mtDNA comprises only a tiny component (typically ≪0.01%) of an organism's genetic material, several features of mtDNA may lead to a disproportionate contribution to the evolution of hybrid incompatibilities: (i) essentially all functions of mtDNA require interaction with nuclear gene products. All mtDNA‐encoded proteins are components of the oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) system and all mtDNA‐encoded RNAs are part of the mitochondrial protein synthetic machinery; both processes require interaction with nuclear‐encoded proteins for function. (ii) Transcription and replication of mtDNA also involve mitonuclear interactions as nuclear‐encoded proteins must bind to regulatory motifs in the mtDNA to initiate these processes. (iii) Although features of mtDNA vary amongst taxa, metazoan mtDNA is typically characterized by high nucleotide substitution rates, lack of recombination and reduced effective population sizes that collectively lead to increased chance fixation of mildly deleterious mutations. Combined, these features create an evolutionary dynamic where rapid mtDNA evolution favours compensatory nuclear gene evolution, ultimately leading to co‐adaptation of mitochondrial and nuclear genomes. When previously isolated lineages hybridize in nature or in the lab, intergenomic co‐adaptation is disrupted and hybrid breakdown is observed; the role of intergenomic co‐adaptation in hybrid breakdown and speciation will generally be most pronounced when rates of mtDNA evolution are high or when restricted gene flow results in significant population differentiation.
UMLS Semantic Network as a UML Metamodel for Improving Biomedical Ontology and Application Modeling

In the domain of biomedical and health informatics, ontologies are widely used to capture knowledge ranging from bioinformatics such as gene, protein, protein interactions, etc. to clinical/healthcare informatics knowledge such as diseases, symptoms, treatment, medication, etc. Currently, one medical knowledge source that encapsulates a broad spectrum of medical knowledge is the Unified Medical Language System UMLS, which can be defined as a compendium of diverse medical ontological standards. The primary components of the UMLS are: Semantic Network UMLS-SN-designed by interconnecting well-defined semantic types with semantic relationships, and Metathesaurus UMLS-META-the base of UMLS system that is comprised of millions of medical concepts from diverse medical standards. However, within the biomedical and health informatics community, the concepts of software engineering and domain modeling using meta-models such as ERD, UML, and XML are very successful in designing and implementing biomedical/health domain application models. In the current status, the UMLS-SN is primarily employed for classification of medical concepts in UMLS-META, but UMLS-SN knowledge can't be viewed or employed as a modeling framework for designing ontological models and is restricted to the UMLS environment. Thus, the impact of the biomedical semantics captured by UMLS-SN might be minimal in medical facilities, research and healthcare organizations that are highly influenced by software engineering, meta-models and domain model-based practices. In order fill this gap, the authors propose a meta-modeling framework for UMLS-SN based on the UML Profile built using UML meta-model that will result in a customized domain specific meta-model. This specialized meta-model that encapsulates the medical knowledge semantics of UMLS-SN can then be employed for designing ontological models or relevant healthcare application models and simultaneously be coherent with software meta-models and domain modeling practices.
Congenital Hypothyroidism in Young-Simpson Syndrome

We describe a patient with the clinical spectrum of Young-Simpson syndrome. This rare genetic disorder is characterized by congenital hypothyroidism, mental retardation and blepharophimosis. Young-Simpson syndrome is, at present, poorly known to endocrinologists and pediatricians, and should be included in the differential diagnosis of congenital hypothyroidism. It is important to underline that the association of congenital hypothyroidism, blepharophimosis and ptosis allows an exact clinical diagnosis, since the majority of other clinical aspects are common to other disorders.
Successful treatment of cyclosporine‐induced sebaceous hyperplasia with oral isotretinoin in two renal transplant recipients

We present two cases of cyclosporine‐induced sebaceous hyperplasia in renal transplant recipients, successfully treated with isotretinoin. Both patients tolerated isotretinoin well, with no alteration in graft function. These cases provide support for the safe and effective use of oral isotretinoin in the treatment of cyclosporine‐induced sebaceous hyperplasia in the kidney transplant population.
The Business Model Concept and Information Systems Strategy: developing a heuristic tool for exploring knowledge-based SMEs

In the evolving information economy, a theoretical limitation in the analysis of information systems strategy (ISS) amongst small -to-medium enterprises (SMEs) has been an over reliance on resource-based strategic management models of competitive advantage. This has hampered the development of information systems strategy theory and is problematic in at least two ways. Firstly, preliminary analysis of knowledge -based SMEs (KSMEs) in the Australian biotechnology industry highlight that resource-based models are inadequate to account for competitive advantage sourced by these firms through inter-firm relationships and industry-structures. Secondly, at the broadest level, recent research on competitive advantage has revealed problems with relying on any single framework to fully explain the range of sources of competitive advantage now being acquired by firms. This paper aims to make a contribution to ISS theory by presenting an integrated framework for analysing ISS amongst KSMEs in the Australian biotechnology industry. This framework is an adaption of Amit and Zott’s (2001) integrated business model concept for exploring sources of value creation. The adapted framework is presented as heuristic tool to be utilised in future research exploring the role of ISS amongst these KSMEs to source competitive advantage, at organisational, relational-based and industry structure levels.
Application of Individual Pitch Controller for Flicker Reduction on Variable Speed Wind Turbines

This article reviews the design of algorithms for individual pitch control in the case of variable speed turbines. The aim of the designed control algorithm is to improve the power quality and to reduce voltage flicker. A simulation model of variable speed wind turbine was developed with the simulation tool of PSCAD/EMTDC. This article compared the individual pitch action and the collective pitch action, which is the same for all three blades, is calculated by means of a standard classical PI-based controller. The simulation result indicates that compared with the flicker coefficient of PI controlled wind turbine, the variable-speed wind turbines equipped with individual pitch controller, exhibit good behavior with respect to output power and voltage flicker, especially for 3P frequency reduction. Thereby, the variable-speed wind turbine with individual pitch controller will produce lower voltage flicker.
Comparing student performance between traditional and technologically enhanced programming course

Educational technology can potentially be used to engage students deeper into learning process, and hence improve the motivation and the learning results. In this paper, we present a study, where an introductory programming course was renewed by using a collaborative learning tool called ViLLE holistically throughout the course. The redesign was done in three main areas: first, half of the lectures were replaced with tutorial sessions, where students completed automatically assessed tasks in collaboration with other students. Second, remaining lectures were accompanied with a group of exercises designed to emphasize the topics introduced. We also collected feedback via short survey after each lecture to find out which topics or issues needed to be addressed again later. Third, the exam was changed into electronic version with automatically assessed programming tasks and questions. When the results of the redesigned course were compared to earlier, traditional instance of the course, we found out, that the pass rates increased significantly, while the average grade remained the same. The results are even more remarkable since the exam in the technologically enhanced course was more complicated than in the earlier instance. Hence, we can conclude that engaging students into active and collaborative learning process has highly positive effect on pass rates, although individual factors cannot be isolated with this many changes in the course design.
Algunas relaciones entre la Economía Ecológica y la Ecología Política en América Latina

El objetivo de la Ecologia Politica, como campo de estudio, es analizar los conflictos socio-ambientales (o, lo que es lo mismo, los conflictos ecologico-distributivos). El objetivo practico no es resolver tales conflictos sino solucionar problemas como la perdida de biodiversidad, el cambio climatico o las contaminaciones locales. A veces, la agudizacion o exacerbacion de conflictos puede llevar a solucionar problemas. Es recomendable emplear metodos gandhianos de resistencia civica, como enseno el movimiento de Justicia Ambiental en EE.UU. desde 1982 en el incidente de Warren County en North Carolina en su lucha contra el “racismo ambiental”, inspirada por el movimiento de los derechos civiles de Martin Luther King.
Procesamiento sensorial de menores institucionalizados frente a menores que viven con sus familias. Efectos de la institución en el desarrollo del menor

La presente investigacion determina si el desarrollo sensorial de los ninos que viven en instituciones de proteccion, y por lo tanto dentro de un ambiente no familiar, presentan un procesamiento y consecuentemente un perfil sensorial diferente del que manifiestan los ninos que se desarrollan dentro de un ambiente familiar. Para ello se seleccionaron 51 menores pertenecientes a centros de proteccion de menores portugueses y 87 que vivian con sus familias, todos ellos en el entorno de los 4 anos de edad. Por lo tanto, la muestra total estuvo compuesta por 138 personas. Dada la temprana edad de los ninos, no respondian por si mismos los cuestionarios, sino que eran los adultos correspondientes los que facilitaban dicha informacion, los educadores en el caso de los menores de los centros, y los padres en el caso de los menores de las familias. Ademas, en todos los casos, los educadores de los centros de ensenanza tambien respondieron a los cuestionarios. Se utilizo como instrumento el Sensory Processing Measurede Parham, Ecker, Kuhaneck, Henry y Glennon. Los resultados indican la fiabilidad del instrumento utilizado, asi como que los menores institucionalizados se situan dentro de posiciones de normalidad en todas las escalas en el contexto de la casa o institucion, ya que ante la mayoria de las preguntas sus respuestas son normales; pero respecto a lo que se refiere al contexto escolar, se manifiestan problemas en la participacion social, tacto, y planificacion de ideas. Se discuten los resultados y se propone la creacion de programas que potencien el desarrollo adecuado de los menores institucionalizados en los ambientes escolares.
Analyzing visual enjoyment of color: using female nude digital Image as example

This research adopts three primary colors and their three mixed colors as main color hue variances by changing the background of a female nude digital image. The color saturation variation is selected to 9S as high saturation and 3S as low saturation of PCCS. And the color tone elements are adopted in 3.5 as low brightness, 5.5 as medium brightness for primary color, and 7.5 as low brightness. The water-color brush stroke used for two female body digital images which consisting of a visual pleasant image with elegant posture and another unpleasant image with stiff body language, is to add the visual intimacy. Results show the brightness of color is the main factor impacting visual enjoyment, followed by saturation. Explicitly, high-brightness with high saturation gains the highest rate of enjoyment, high-saturation medium brightness (primary color) the second, and high-brightness with low saturation the third, and low-brightness with low saturation the least.
Transformer-Feedback Dual-Band Neutralization Technique

A dual-band neutralization technique based on the transformer feedback between the drain and the gate of a transistor is presented. The drain and gate bias lines of the transistor are realized as multiorder <inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$LC$</tex-math></inline-formula> networks. Transformer coupling between the inductors of the two networks can be used to concurrently neutralize the gate–drain capacitance of the transistor at multiple frequencies. Moreover, these frequencies can be placed close together to achieve wideband neutralization. A proof-of-concept dual-band 27/33-GHz amplifier is designed and implemented in a 0.1-<inline-formula><tex-math notation="LaTeX">$\mu\text{m}$</tex-math></inline-formula> GaAs pseudomorphic high-electron mobility transistor process. The maximum gain of the transistor at the two frequency bands is improved by more than 6 dB using the neutralization technique. The amplifier exhibits a gain of 16/15 dB and a reverse isolation of 60/50 dB at the lower/upper frequency band. It consumes 24 mA from a 1-V supply.