Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A randomized, double-blind, vehicle-controlled study to assess 5% imiquimod cream for the treatment of multiple actinic keratoses.

BACKGROUND Actinic keratoses (AKs) are precancerous epidermal lesions found most frequently on areas of the skin exposed to the sun. Several case studies published recently have indicated that 5% imiquimod cream, currently licensed for the treatment of genital warts, may be an effective treatment for AK. OBJECTIVE To assess the efficacy and safety of imiquimod for the treatment of AK. DESIGN Patients in this randomized, double-blind, vehicle-controlled study applied 5% imiquimod cream or vehicle to AK lesions 3 times per week for a maximum of 12 weeks or until lesions had resolved. In the event of an adverse reaction, application of imiquimod was reduced to 1 or 2 times per week. Rest periods were also allowed if necessary. SETTING A specialized outpatient dermatology clinic within a state-funded hospital in Germany. PATIENTS The study population was aged 45 to 85 years. Of 52 patients screened, 36 men and women with AK confirmed by histological diagnosis were enrolled. Patients were excluded from the study if they did not have a histological diagnosis for AK, if they were older than 85 years, or if they did not comply with the protocol. All patients had responded to a notice asking for volunteers. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES The number and appearance of lesions were evaluated before, during, and after treatment. All adverse effects were recorded. RESULTS Lesions treated with 5% imiquimod cream were clinically cleared in 21 (84%) of 25 patients and partially cleared in 2 (8%). Clearance was histologically confirmed 2 weeks after the last application of imiquimod in all patients clinically diagnosed as lesion free. Only 10% of patients treated with imiquimod were clinically diagnosed with recurrence 1 year after treatment. No reduction in the size or number of AK lesions was observed in vehicle-treated patients. Adverse effects reported by patients treated with imiquimod included erythema, edema, induration, vesicles, erosion, ulceration, excoriation, and scabbing. However, imiquimod was well tolerated since all patients completed the 12-week treatment. Only a few, mild adverse reactions to the vehicle cream were reported. CONCLUSION Application of 5% imiquimod cream for 12 weeks is an effective and well-tolerated treatment for AK.
Cost of reproduction and offspring quality in the evolution of reproductive effort

Oksanen, Tuula Cost of reproduction and offspring quality in the evolution of reproductive effort Jyvaskyla: University of Jyvaskyla, 2002, 33 p. (Jyvaskyla Studies in Biological and Environmental Science, ISSN 1456-9701; 115) ISBN 951-39-1297-3 Yhteenveto: Lisaantymisen kustannukset ja poikasten laatu lisaantymispanostuksen evoluutiossa Diss. Any organism has a limited amount of resources, which have to be partitioned among several activities such as maintenance, growth and reproduction. Reproductive effort is defined as the proportion of parental resources devoted to fecundity and offspring survival. The extent of reproductive effort is restricted by trade-offs that cancel out the advantages of increasing investment in reproduction. This thesis presents an investigation into the determinants of reproductive effort in the bank vole, Clethrionomys glareolus, focusing mainly on two major life history trade-offs i.e. cost of reproduction and trade-off between offspring number and quality. Insights into other potentially important processes such as maternal effects, density dependent selection and differential allocation of maternal effort are included. The analyses are based on data acquired by several different experimental approaches. Hormonal manipulation of litter size revealed that costs of reproduction are even stronger determinants of reproductive effort than previously recognised. The trade-off between offspring number and quality, however, was not as unambiguous as expected. Simultaneous manipulations of offspring number and size suggested that the effects of offspring number on the future prospects of the offspring were indirect and mediated through offspring body size at birth and the quality of maternal care. The benefits of large body size at birth were dependent on the rearing environment whereas the disadvantages of small body size were related to survival probability and costs of reproduction. The reproductive decisions of females were independent of the population density and the quality of their mate. The results highlight the importance of adopting new aspects in even the most extensively studied topics such as the evolution of life histories.
Pervasive neuroanatomic abnormalities of the brain in three cases of Rett's syndrome

Rett's syndrome (RS) is a clinically defined disorder that appears to be unique to girls and is characterized by apparent cognitive and motor skill loss early in life.We report our findings in the brains of three girls with RS, which were studied in comparison with age-matched controls by means of gapless serial section. Reduced neuronal cell size and increased cell-packing density were present throughout the cortical and subcortical regions of the brain in all cases without evidence of active degeneration. These observations appear to be consistent with a curtailment of development. Further, the degree of abnormality in each case correlates more closely with the clinical presentation of the patient at the time of death than with the age of the patient or duration of symptoms.
UvA-DARE ( Digital Academic Repository ) Nasal polyposis

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Kinetics of eotaxin expression and its relationship to eosinophil accumulation and activation in bronchial biopsies and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) of asthmatic patients after allergen inhalation

We investigated the kinetics of allergen‐induced eotaxin expression and its relationship to eosinophil accumulation and activation in the airways of patients with allergic asthma. Twenty‐four patients with allergic asthma and late asthmatic responses to allergen inhalation were randomly allocated into three groups of eight patients each, who received bronchoscopy with bronchial biopsies and BAL at 2, 4 and 24 h, respectively, after the inhalation of the diluent and the allergen. The expression of eotaxin mRNA and protein and eotaxin release were evaluated by in situ hybridization, immunohistochemistry, immunocytochemistry, and radioimmunoassay. Increased transcription from the eotaxin gene preceded the appearance of the late asthmatic response and the influx of activated eosinophils in bronchial tissue and BAL fluid (BALF). This was followed by increased cell expression of eotaxin protein (P < 0.001) and increased eotaxin release (P < 0.001), which correlated with the numbers of total and activated eosinophils and the level of airflow obstruction at 4 h after allergen exposure (P < 0.05 for all correlations). At 24 h after allergen inhalation, enhanced eotaxin expression declined without a similar reduction in the numbers of eosinophils in bronchial biopsies and when there was a further increase in the number of these cells in BALF (P < 0.05). These results indicate that eotaxin contributes to the early phase of allergen‐induced recruitment of activated eosinophils into the airways of patients with allergic asthma and that other factors are implicated in the persistence of eosinophil infiltration.
[A modified method of laparoscopic side-to-side esophagojejunal anastomosis after laparoscopic total gastrectomy: a report of 12 cases].

OBJECTIVE To explore the method of alimentary reconstruction after laparoscopic total gastrectomy. METHODS The clinical data of 12 patients undergone laparoscopic total gastrectomy and side- to- side esophagojejunal anastomosis from Feb. 2006 to Oct. 2006 were analyzed retrospectively. RESULTS Laparoscopic side- to- side esophagojejunal anastomosis was successfully performed in 12 patients. The mean operation time was (247.0+/- 13.1) min and the anastomosis time was (43.5+/- 10.4) min. Bleeding volume during operation was (107.5+/- 44.9)ml. The distance between anastomosis and proximal margin of tumor was (3.4+/- 1.2)cm. There was no postoperative death, fistula or anastomotic stenosis occurred after short- term follow- up. CONCLUSION The modified laparoscopic side- to- side esophagojejunal anastomosis is a safe, less challenging and more economic method of alimentary reconstruction after laparoscopic total gastrectomy.
Phospholemman Inhibition of the Cardiac Na+/Ca2+ Exchanger

We have demonstrated previously that phospholemman (PLM), a 15-kDa integral sarcolemmal phosphoprotein, inhibits the cardiac Na+/Ca2+ exchanger (NCX1). In addition, protein kinase A phosphorylates serine 68, whereas protein kinase C phosphorylates both serine 63 and serine 68 of PLM. Using human embryonic kidney 293 cells that are devoid of both endogenous PLM and NCX1, we first demonstrated that the exogenous NCX1 current (INaCa) was increased by phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) but not by forskolin. When co-expressed with NCX1, PLM resulted in: (i) decreases in INaCa, (ii) attenuation of the increase in INaCa by PMA, and (iii) additional reduction in INaCa in cells treated with forskolin. Mutating serine 63 to alanine (S63A) preserved the sensitivity of PLM to forskolin in terms of suppression of INaCa, whereas mutating serine 68 to alanine (S68A) abolished the inhibitory effect of PLM on INaCa. Mutating serine 68 to glutamic acid (phosphomimetic) resulted in additional suppression of INaCa as compared with wild-type PLM. These results suggest that PLM phosphorylated at serine 68 inhibited INaCa. The physiological significance of inhibition of NCX1 by phosphorylated PLM was evaluated in PLM-knock-out (KO) mice. When compared with wild-type myocytes, INaCa was significant larger in PLM-KO myocytes. In addition, the PMA-induced increase in INaCa was significantly higher in PLM-KO myocytes. By contrast, forskolin had no effect on INaCa in wild-type myocytes. We conclude that PLM, when phosphorylated at serine 68, inhibits Na+/Ca2+ exchange in the heart.
Minimum cuticular conductance and cuticle features of Picea abies and Pinus cembra needles along an altitudinal gradient in the Dolomites (NE Italian Alps).

Winter desiccation is believed to contribute to stress in coniferous trees growing at the treeline because cuticular conductance increases with altitude. To test whether winter desiccation occurs in high-altitude conifers of the Dolomites (NE Italian Alps), we measured minimum cuticular conductance (g(min)), needle wettability (contact angle) and cuticle thickness in Picea abies (L.) Karst. and Pinus cembra L. needles from December to August. Samples were collected from adult trees along an altitudinal gradient from valley bottom (1050 m a.s.l.) to the treeline (2170 m a.s.l.). The treeline site is one of the highest in the area and is characterized by a generally low wind exposure. Altitude had no effect on g(min) in either species. In P. abies, large seasonal variations in g(min) were recorded but no changes were related to needle age class. Pinus cembra had a low g(min) and appeared to be efficient in reducing needle water losses. There was a significant increase in g(min) with needle aging in P. cembra growing at low altitude that could be related to a shorter needle longevity compared with P. abies. High contact angles (> 110-120 ) suggested the presence of tubular epicuticular waxes on needles of both species. Contact angles were higher (low wettability) in high-altitude needles than in low-altitude needles. By the end of winter, there was no difference in contact angles between needles in the windward and leeward positions. Wax structures transformed toward planar shapes as demonstrated by the decrease in contact angle from winter to summer. In both species, the cuticle was thicker in needles of high-altitude trees than in needles of low-altitude trees and there was no correlation between g(min) and cuticle thickness. Because desiccation resistance did not decrease with altitude in either species, we conclude that they are not susceptible to winter desiccation at the tree line.
Socioeconomic status and the occurrence of fatal and nonfatal injury in the United States.

OBJECTIVES This study examined the contribution of socioeconomic status (SES) to the risk of injury mortality and morbidity among working-age adults. METHODS The sample consisted of respondents to the National Health Interview Survey (1987-1994), and separate analyses were conducted for injury deaths to respondents by linking to the National Death Index. Proportional hazards regression models were used to analyze mortality. Logistic regression models were used to analyze morbidity. RESULTS The effects of SES varied substantially by cause of injury mortality and indicator of SES. In the multivariate models, blue-collar workers were at significantly increased odds of nonfatal injury. Education was unrelated to total injury morbidity, although associations were observed after stratification of the outcome by severity and place of occurrence. Black persons were at increased risk for homicide, and Black and Hispanic persons were at decreased risk for suicide and nonfatal injuries, after adjustment for SES. CONCLUSIONS SES is an important determinant of injury, although the effect depends on the indicator of SES and the cause and severity of injury.
Hardware Supported Task Scheduling on Dynamically Reconfigurable SoC Architectures

Dynamically reconfigurable system-on-a-chip (RSoC) technology features embedded microprocessors that are dispersed on the same die with significant amounts of programmable logic fabric. In this paper, we present a strategy to solve the recently emerging problem of how to utilize the flexible but still limited RSoC resources in an effective manner for a multi-task application. The major contribution of this paper is the development of a dynamic task scheduling algorithm that can be implemented in fixed or reconfigurable hardware that will perform the online scheduling of task systems onto the RSoC type architecture. The results from extensive simulations demonstrate the benefits of the proposed dynamic scheduling approach as compared with that of other static scheduling techniques taken from the technical literature.
Morphological changes of Vibrio cholerae organisms in glucose saline.

SUMMARY: Morphological changes in Vibrio cholerae harvested from 18 hr growth on nutrient agar surface and incubated in glucose saline at 37° have been studied by electron microscopy using metal shadowing, uranyl staining and thin sectioning techniques. Within the 6 hr incubation period, a vacuolar region has been found to separate the cell wall from the protoplasmic body presumably at one polar end. Subsequently such separation has been found all round the periphery of the protoplasmic body, which assumes a round form of average dimension 0.4 ± 0.05 μ. Within the 24 hr incubation period, majority of the cells (60 to 70 %) are rounded and of these a significant fraction (15 to 20 %) contained bodies limited by one single membrane. It is suggested that these bodies represent the protoplasts of V. cholerae.
Exposure Geometry and Spectral Environment Determine Photobiological Effects on the Human Eye¶, †

Abstract Photobiological effects upon the human retina, cornea and lens are highly dependent on the optical exposure geometry as well as spectral characteristics of the exposure. The organ of sight is exquisitely sensitive to light because it performs well in very low nighttime illumination levels and yet it also must adapt to extremely bright environments where light exposures are greater by many orders of magnitude. The eye has evolved to protect itself reasonably well against excessive exposure in bright environments. The retina is minimally exposed in extremely bright environments and the cornea and lens are surprisingly well protected in harsh environments. Although these protective mechanisms are good, they are not perfect and adverse changes from both acute and chronic exposures to sunlight still exist. The geometrical protective factors must be understood and appreciated whenever assessing potential adverse effects of environmental UV radiation and light on ocular structures. These natural ocular protective factors also work with the ever-changing spectrum of sunlight and the different spectral distribution of light and UV radiation across the eye's field of view. Spectral characteristics of the ocular media are also important. One can visualize a series of intraocular color filters that progressively filter shorter wavelengths and thereby aid in color vision, reduce the impact of chromatic aberrations and significantly reduce the optical radiation hazards to the lens and retina.
The Impact of Terrorism on the Economic Sustainable Tourism Development of the Island of Crete

Terrorism is a significant threat to the tourism and travel industry, a major sector of the Greek economy contributing 18% of the overall GDP and employing nearly one million people. The purpose of this paper is to identify the impacts of terrorism on economic Greek sustainable tourism development, especially on the Greek island of Crete, the largest island in the Mediterranean. Political, safety and security issues have adversely affected tourism in competing Mediterranean countries such as Turkey and France. The impact of this on Greek tourism economic development is investigated. This paper provides an analysis of how terrorism in competing Mediterranean countries affects development of sustainable tourism development and can facilitate economic growth in Greece while overcoming the economic crisis. The methodology employed is based on case study analysis focusing on Crete, the country’s most recognized touristic island famous both for exceptional beaches and cultural significance. Statistics collected within the last 3 years and contributing to the study are based on interviews and an online survey of people working in tourism and hospitality industries. Analysis supports the conclusion that terrorism adversely affecting France and Turkey will have a positive effect on the economic sustainability of tourism in Crete.
Gross motor skills of premature, very low-birthweight Chinese children

Abstract We investigated whether premature, very low-birthweight (VLBW) Asian children without major handicap had poor motor skills compared with their normal birthweight counterparts. We compared a cohort of 42 preterm babies with birthweights <1500 g who participated in a developmental stimulation programme with 69 children of normal birthweight matched for age, gender and paternal education. VLBW children participated in the programme for 3 years and were followed to the age of 5-7 years. The VLBW cohort had significantly lower scores in B- and C-rated skills of the Peabody Developmental Motor Scales. Their total score was also significantly lower. This is in agreement with studies in other populations that found that VLBW children had lower motor scores and that early interventions failed to ameliorate this motor disadvantage.
DIETARY LIPID FORM AND FUNCTION 18

Lipids are a diverse group of chemical compounds that share the common characteristic of being insoluble in water but soluble in organic solvents. The term lipid encompasses triglycerides, the most abundant lipid in the body, and their constituent fatty acids as well as cholesterol, phospholipids, and sterols. This review will focus upon fats and oils, which are the most significant dietary lipids. Lipids that are solid at room temperature are known as fats, and those that are liquid at room temperature are known as oils, although they are also generically referred to as fats. The fatty acid molecule, which is common to most lipids, consists of a chain of carbon atoms (C3-C24). At one end of the molecule, designated the alpha end, is a carboxyl group (COOH), and at the other end, the omega end, there is a methyl group. When all of the bonds between the carbon atoms are single bonds, the fatty acid is said to be saturated (e.g., stearic acid). In contrast, when one or more of the carbon to carbon (C-C) bonds is a double bond, it is said to be unsaturated. While a fatty acid molecule with a single double bond is known as a monounsaturated fatty acid (e.g., oleic acid), one with two or more double bonds is said to be a polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) (e.g., linoleic acid). Fats and oils are not made up from a single type or category of fatty acid but are complex mixtures of many different fatty acids. Fatty acids combine with glycerol to form triglycerides (three fatty acids plus one glycerol), which are the main component of both fats and oils. Fats are usually high in triglycerides containing predominantly saturated fatty acids and are less affected by heat, so they tend to be solid at room temperature. In contrast, oils are usually high in triglycerides, containing predominantly monounsaturated or polyunsaturated fatty acids. Oils are susceptible to the effects of heat and, as a result, are usually liquid at room temperature. Saturated fatty acids have a very ordered, straight-chain structure, which allows them to pack together very tightly; unsaturated fatty acids tend to be less orderly and only loosely packed. This arrangement makes the latter more susceptible to the effects of heat, so they tend to become liquid or melt at lower temperatures. The other factor that affects the characteristics of fat, which contains predominantly saturated fatty acids, is C-C chain length. Long-chain saturated fatty acids tend to produce fats that are solid at room temperature, yet those containing a predominance of medium(C6–C10) or short-chain (up to C6) fatty acids prove to be the exceptions, remaining liquid at room temperature.
A Situational Methodology for Addressing the Pragmatic Quality of Web Applications by Integration of Patterns

The development and evolution of Web Applications is viewed from an engineering perspective. A Pattern-Oriented Web Engineering Methodology (POWEM) for deploying patterns as means for assuring the quality of Web Applications is presented. POWEM consists of a sequence of steps including setting goals, identifying stakeholder types, following a suitable development process model, identifying relevant quality attributes, and acquiring, selecting and applying suitable patterns. The feasibility issues involved in each step are examined. The use of patterns during macro- and micro-architecture design of a Web Application is illustrated. Finally, some directions for future research, including extensions to POWEM, are outlined.
A Novel Similarity Metric for Retinal Images based Authentication

In biometrics the identity of an individual is verified using some physiologic or behavioural feature. In a typical authentication process involving some biometric trait, the biometric pattern for the user is extracted (a set of feature landmarks, a characteristic vector etc.). A similarity score is calculated between these patterns to determine if they belong to the same individual or not. This work presents an analysis of similarity metrics for an authentication system in which retinal vessel feature points are used as biometric pattern. The VARIA database of retinal images is used. A new metric is defined weighting the matched points information with the previously defined metrics. The obtained results show a large stretchment of the confidence gap between the matching scores of patterns from the same individual and the matching scores of patterns from different ones.