Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Re-Protective Effects of Pre- and Post-Laparoscopy Conditioning, Zinc, Pentoxifylline, and N-acetylcysteine in an Animal Model of Laparoscopy-Induced Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury of the Kidney

Background. Pneumoperitoneum (P) created to facilitate laparoscopy (L) is associated with splanchnic hypoperfusion, ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury, and oxidative stress. Aim. This study investigated the effects of pre- and post-laparoscopic conditioning, zinc, pentoxifylline (PTX), and N-acetylcysteine (NAC) on markers of I/R injury in an animal model. Methods. Sprague-Dawley male rats (n = 56, weight range 300–350 g) were randomly placed in one of seven treatment groups. Except for group C (control group who underwent a sham operation without pneumoperitoneum), pneumoperitoneum was created in all using CO2 insufflation under a pressure of 15 mmHg. Group L (laparoscopy) was subjected to 60 min of pneumoperitoneum. Group Lpre (laparoscopic preconditioning plus laparoscopy) was subjected to 5 min of insufflation and 5 min of desufflation followed by 60 min of pneumoperitoneum. Group Lpost (laparoscopy plus laparoscopic post-conditioning) was subjected to 60 min of pneumoperitoneum and 60 min of desufflation followed by 5 min of insufflation and 5 min of desufflation. The laparoscopy plus zinc (LZ), PTX (LP), and NAC (LNAC) groups received a single intraperitoneal injection of zinc (50 mg/kg), pentoxifylline (50 mg/kg), or N-acetylcysteine (150 mg/kg) 5 min before the desufflation period. Animals were sacrificed at the end of the experiments, and kidney samples were tested for malondialdehyde (MDA), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), and superoxide dismutase (SOD). Results. MDA levels, as an indicator of oxidative stress in kidney tissue samples, were significantly higher in all pneumoperitoneum groups compared to Group C, except for Group Lpre. The pattern of change in tissue levels of SOD, GPX, and catalase was variable in the different treatment groups. Conclusions. In this animal model of renal ischemia/reperfusion injury, laparoscopy caused renal ischemia as evidenced by elevated markers of tissue ischemia-reperfusion injury. This effect was significantly attenuated by post-laparoscopy conditioning, zinc, pentoxifylline, and N-acetylcysteine, but not by pre-laparoscopy conditioning.
Bulles rationnelles et fluctuations de l'activité

Cet article propose de presenter dans un cadre simple, mais unifie, un certain nombre de resultats lies a l'existence et aux fluctuations d'une bulle rationnelle. Nous developpons une economie d'echange a generations imbriquees dans laquelle chaque menage fait un choix de portefeuille entre monnaie, detenue a cause d'une contrainte de liquidite, et un autre actif sans valeur fondamentale. On montre l'existence d'equilibres ou ce deuxieme actif a une valeur positive, c'est-a-dire avec bulle rationnelle pure. Nous exhibons des fluctuations de l'activite et de la bulle, dues a la volatilite des anticipations des agents. Une politique monetaire expansive peut immuniser l'economie contre de telles fluctuations endogenes. La vertu stabilisatrice de la politique monetaire est toutefois moderee par une perte de bien-etre qui verifie la critique de Friedman (1969). Nous montrons egalement les possibilites d'eclatement de cette bulle rationnelle. Enfin, une bulle sur l'encaisse reelle peut apparaitre, de maniere temporaire. Nous montrons que ce phenomene est aussi source de fluctuations auto-entretenues de l'activite. Nous concluons en discutant d'un certain nombre de developpements recents, lies aux imperfections du marche du credit.
The biology of vascular endothelial growth factor.

The establishment of a vascular supply is required for organ development and differentiation as well as for tissue repair and reproductive functions in the adult1. Neovascularization (angiogenesis) is also implicated in the pathogenesis of a number of disorders. These include: proliferative retinopathies, age-related macular degeneration, tumors, rheumatoid arthritis, and psoriasis1,2. A strong correlation has been noted between density of microvessels in primary breast cancers and their nodal metastases and patient survival3. Similarly, a correlation has been reported between vascularity and invasive behavior in several other tumors4–6.
Algorithmes sur GPU de visualisation et de calcul pour des maillages non-structurés

De nombreux domaines utilisent a present de nouveaux types de grilles composees de polyedres arbitraires, autrement dit des grilles fortement non-structurees. La problematique de cette these concerne la definition de nouveaux outils de visualisation et de calcul sur de telles grilles. Pour la visualisation, cela pose a la fois le probleme du stockage et de l'adaptativite des algorithmes a une geometrie et une topologie variables. Pour le calcul, cela pose le probleme de la resolution de grands systemes lineaires creux non-structures. Pour aborder ces problemes, l'augmentation incessante de la puissance de calcul parallele des processeurs graphiques nous fournit de nouveaux outils. Toutefois, l'utilisation de ces GPU necessite de definir de nouveaux algorithmes adaptes aux modeles de programmation parallele qui leur sont specifiques. Nos contributions sont les suivantes : (1) Une methode generique de visualisation tirant partie de la puissance de calcul des GPU pour extraire des isosurfaces a partir de grandes grilles fortement non-structurees. (2) Une methode de classification de cellules qui permet d'accelerer l'extraction d'isosurfaces grâce a une pre-selection des seules cellules intersectees. (3) Un algorithme d'interpolation temporelle d'isosurfaces. Celui-ci permet de visualiser de maniere continue dans le temps l'evolution d'isosurfaces. (4) Un algorithme massivement parallele de resolution de grands systemes lineaires non-structures creux sur le GPU. L'originalite de celui-ci concerne son adaptation a des matrices de motif arbitraire, ce qui le rend applicable a n'importe quel systeme creux, dont ceux issus de maillages fortement non-structures
On the technology and ecosystem of 3D / TSV manufacturing

Three-dimensional (3D) die stacking using through silicon viae (TSV) promises significant improvements in performance, power consumption and size over traditional edge-connected die stacking (e.g. wire bonds) or package-on-package (PoP) based approaches. 3D integrated circuits (3D-IC) using TSV will enable new system in package (SiP) applications, especially where ultra-high memory bandwidth at moderate power consumption is needed. This paper describes the technology elements for a successful implementation of TSV in high volume manufacturing (HVM) with special focus on the so-called “TSV mid” integration flow being developed at SEMATECH. The maturity and readiness of each process module for HVM is assessed. In addition to technological feasibility and manufacturing readiness, 3D-IC adoption requires an environment of agreed upon specifications, standards, and tools (3D ecosystem). Progress toward a well defined 3D ecosystem by SEMATECH and many other organizations is described in part III of this paper.
Dexio : A Dynamic Career Skill Matching Visualization

INTRODUCTION For any individual interested in finding a professional career to pursue, one of the most compelling problems they face is considering which potential job best aligns with their skillset. Without a doubt, this knowledge will give an individual a better, more realistic sense of the potential opportunities that they will be well-equipped to pursue. But even beyond gaining a better idea for a set of potential career opportunities, having a clear idea of which skills are desirable for which fields is extremely valuable, especially in a highly competitive job market. That way, individuals can also think about which skills they might like to acquire or better hone in order to make them better suited for certain careers.
The nutritive value of field beans (Vicia faba L.) for laying hens.

Synopsis In experiments carried out in three successive years an assessment has been made of the feeding value of field beans (Vicia faba L.) as a protein supplement in laying rations. When 15% beans were fed in a cereal‐based diet without methionine fortification, egg production was depressed significantly below that attainable with a diet containing fish meal as a protein supplement. When 0.1 % DL‐methionine was added to the diet, production was raised significantly to a level which in most cases was not significantly different from that supported by the fish meal diet. Whether or not methionine was added to the diets, the inclusion of bean meal at levels of 25 to 33% gave rise to lower egg production than did a level of 15%. Culling losses during the experiments tended to be higher on the bean diets. It is concluded that field beans supplemented with methionine can be a useful source of dietary protein for laying hens but the rate of inclusion should not exceed 15% until more is known of factors which .
Andhra Pradesh Eye Disease Study – Visual Function Questionnaire: Further Improvements in Psychometric Properties using Rasch Analysis

Purpose: Previous Rasch analysis of the Andhra Pradesh Eye Disease Study-Visual Function Questionnaire (APEDS-VFQ) lacked comprehensiveness, specifically, dimensionality (whether it measures single/multiple constructs). Therefore, using the Rasch model this study provides a detailed assessment of psychometric properties of the APEDS-VFQ. Methods: A total of 351 visually impaired adults (mean age, 43.3 years) were verbally administered the APEDS-VFQ. Rasch analysis was used to assess the psychometric properties of the instrument. Results: Participants could distinguish only three categories of difficulty, so response categories were reduced from five to three. A single item (“reading small prints in newspaper/magazines”, infit mean square 1.54) misfit the model. The overall pattern of fit statistics for item and person measures suggested that the underlying construct (visual ability) is not unidimensional. When the items were grouped into subsets based on functional requirements (resolution, contrast sensitivity, illumination and peripheral vision) and separate person measures were estimated for each of these domains, the first principal component contained the visual ability and accounted for 72% of the variance. Item measure distributions could be divided into 18 strata, and item-separation reliability was 0.99. Person measures could be divided into three statistically distinct strata and the person-separation reliability was 0.81. Conclusions: The APEDS-VFQ is a precise measure of visual ability in visually impaired adults in India. Similar to other visual function questionnaires developed for the Western population, our results demonstrate that visual ability is a two-factor composite latent variable; one dimension heavily influences reading and the other most heavily influences peripheral vision (mobility).
On the relative and absolute transmissibility of a vibration isolation system subjected to base excitation

In this paper a one-degree of freedom passive vibration isolator system which is subject to harmonic base excitation is analyzed. The isolator is modellled as a parallel combination of a stiffness and damping element with cubic non-linearity. The method of averaging is used to obtain the steady-state harmonic response. A parametric analysis is conducted in order to investigate the influence of the system parameters on the relative and absolute transmissibility of the system from the viewpoint of possible improvement of the transmissibility of a system with linear viscous damping.
An improved random forest approach for detection of hidden web search interfaces

Search interface detection is an essential technique for extracting information from the hidden Web. The challenge for this task is search interface data that is represented in high dimensional and sparse features with many missing values. This paper presents a new multi-classifier ensemble approach to solving this problem. In this approach, we have extended the random forest algorithm with a weighted feature selection method to build individual classifiers. With this improved random forest algorithm (IRFA), each classifier can be learnt from a weighted subset of the feature space so that the ensemble of decision trees can fully exploit the useful features of search interface patterns. We have compared our ensemble approach with other well-known classification algorithms, such as SVM and C4.5. The experimental results have shown that our method is more effective in detecting search interfaces of the hidden Web.
Modèle d’acquisition des signifiés du langage

On propose un modele selon lequel les signifies du langage sont acquis a partir de representations produites de facon intrinseque par un « generateur de representations » de type darwinien. Ces representations sont constituees de formants de base qui, lorsqu’ils sont repris dans la formation de signifies, correspondent a des traits semantiques ou semes. Ces representations interieurement generees s’ajustent aux realites par des processus de selection sur la base de tests empiriques et sociaux geres par trois fonctions psychiques fondamentales qui sont la perception, l’evaluation et l’action. Elles acquierent le statut de representations semantiques par association avec les signifiants, principalement par le jeu de tests sociaux. Au plan semantique, chacune des trois fonctions psychiques commande des groupements differencies de semes. Ceux regis par la fonction de perception possedent des semes de type « substance » (et correspondent dans le vocabulaire principalement aux noms); ceux regis par l’evaluation possedent des semes de type « valeur » (et correspondent principalement aux adjectifs et aux adverbes); ceux regis par l’action possedent des semes de type « proces » (et correspondent principalement aux verbes). Ces trois sortes de groupements semantiques sont disjonctifs. Ils sont combinables a des niveaux surordonnes et sont utilises dans les calculs du systeme cognitif. Au total, on suggere que le langage, nouveau venu dans la phylogenese, emprunte des mecanismes et fonctions qui l’y ont precede.
Impact of Audit and Feedback and Pay-for-Performance Interventions on Pediatric Hospitalist Discharge Communication With Primary Care Providers

The study team sought to improve hospitalist communication with primary care providers (PCPs) at discharge through interventions consisting of (a) audit and feedback and (b) inclusion of a discharge communication measure in the incentive compensation for pediatric hospitalists. The setting was a 16-physician pediatric hospitalist group within a tertiary pediatric hospital. Discharge summaries were selected randomly for documentation of communication with PCPs. At baseline, 57% of charts had documented communication with PCPs, increasing to 84% during the audit and feedback period. Following the addition of a financial incentive, documentation of communication with PCPs increased to 93% and was sustained during the combined intervention period. The number of physicians meeting the study’s performance goal increased from 1 to 14 by the end of the study period. A financial incentive coupled with an audit and feedback tool was effective at modifying physician behavior, achieving focused, measurable quality improvement gains.
Acionamento vetorial de motores de indução trifásicos com enfraquecimento de campo e maximização do conjugado por ampère

This work investigates the operation of three phase induction motors in field weakening and high speed regions. Maximum torque per ampère is imposed by using an indirect vector control strategy. Mathematical models that accounts for magnetic saturation is used for simulations and adjustment of controllers used in control algorithm. The driving structure is characterized by the use of VSI static converter with sinusoidal PWM switching strategy and a vector control technique based on orthogonal components. Investigations resulted in the development of a digital simulation using discrete models that turned out generic and reliable, and an experimental system using a low cost fixed point DSP platform. Simulated and experimental results are included and shown the robustness and efficiency of the proposed control system under different operating conditions.
Severe necrotizing pneumonia in a child with pandemic (H1N1) influenza

In the midst of pandemic (H1N1) 2009 in our region, a five-year-old girl with mild asthma presented to the emergency department of a children’s hospital in acute respiratory distress. She had an 11-day history of cough, rhinorrhea and progressive chest discomfort. She was otherwise healthy, with
The internal secretion of salivary gland.

This communication presents a resume of a series of investigations on the internal secretion of the salivary gland, which were carried out mostly in the Department of Pathology, Tokyo University, since the year 1928 under my supervision. The substance of the conclusion summarized here was given to my students in a farewell address, on March 18, 1943 on the occasion of my retirement from active service(Ogata, T. 1943). The story of this research begins with the work of my associates in the Department of Pathology on the possible endocrine function of the salivary gland with special reference to the role of the internal secretion in diabetes(Hiki, et al. 1929, 1930, 1933, 1934. Ogata, T. 1931). The results of studies in my department at that time have convinced me that the salivary gland might be an organ of internal secretion related to the metabolism of carbohydrates. A new group of investigators were added my study group in 1934, and our attention was directed to the relation of the salivary secretion to the nutrition and development of the skeletal system(Takizawa, et al. 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939). There new studies have since clearly brought out the existence of a close relation between them and new knowledge regarding the true function of the internal secretion of the salivary gland has been added. These new observations have led us further to investigation of the nutrition and development of another hard tissue, namely, the tooth. This again has revealed the fact that there is a similarly close relation between them, as evidenced by a striking change in the incisor teeth of rats and mice following the deficiency of the internal secretion of the salivary gland(Fukushima, 1940, 1942). With the assurance that these experimental animals, in which the effect of the salivary hormone manifested in a relatively short period of observation, could be utilized for isolating the active principle, I enlisted the cooperation of Akira Ogata, who was then professor of the Hormone Chemistry in Tokyo University for the isolation of the salivary hormone. The material prepared by him was then injected into young rats and the changes produced in the dental tissues were histologically followed by Ishii(1944)in the Department of Pathology. It was further observed by A. Ogata that the injection of the same fraction, which accelerated the growth of hard tissues, caused also a marked diminution in the
The viral superantigen Mls‐1a induces interferon‐γ secretion by specifically primed CD8+ cells but fails to trigger cytotoxicity

Superantigens can be operationally defined by their ability to stimulate CD4+ and CD8+ T cells via the T cell receptor β chain variable domain (TcR Vβ). We show here that effector functions of CD8+ T cells specific for superantigens differ depending upon the nature of the superantigen involved. Hence, activated CD8+ T cells bearing TcR Vβ specific for the superantigen Mls‐1a [encoded in the open reading frame of the 3′ long terminal repeat of endogenous mouse mammary tumor virus (MMTV)] are unable to lyse Mls‐1a‐bearing target cells despite the fact that they release interferon‐γ (IFN‐γ) upon Mls‐1a stimulation. In contrast CD8+ T cells specific for the exogenous superantigen staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) readily mediate both lysis and IFN‐γ secretion when exposed to SEB‐bearing target cells. This dissociation between lysis and IFN‐γ production by Mls‐1a‐specific CD8+ T cells is independent of the initial stimulus used for activation and appears not to be simply explained by a low Mls‐1a determinant density. We suggest that this phenomenon reflects differing TcR affinity thresholds for lymphokine secretion and cytolysis. Such differences may be exploited by retroviruses such as MMTV in order to escape immunosurveillance.
Confounding in ( non-) randomized comparison studies FES

Introduction The term confounding is commonly used in epidemiologic research. However, the use of this term sometimes leads to confusion. In the literature confounding is defined according to at least two different underlying concepts. We will review these two concepts and as a reference will commence with the underlying concept and formalization of confounding based on the notion of comparability. This comparability concept matches the common understanding about confounding of epidemiologists. We will argue that it is not always a proper way to define confounding according to the comparability concept and check the existence of it using the noncollapsibility approach as often mentioned in standard textbooks. Implications for regression models will be discussed and adjustments based on propensity scores as a promising method to adjust for confounding (as defined according to the comparability concept) will be mentioned briefly. Conclusion According to the comparability concept, balancing the comparison groups based on propensity scores seems a promising method and preferably should be included as part of the curriculum for statistics education.
Semaphorin 3E and Plexin-D1 Control Vascular Pattern Independently of Neuropilins

The development of a patterned vasculature is essential for normal organogenesis. We found that signaling by semaphorin 3E (Sema3E) and its receptor plexin-D1 controls endothelial cell positioning and the patterning of the developing vasculature in the mouse. Sema3E is highly expressed in developing somites, where it acts as a repulsive cue for plexin-D1–expressing endothelial cells of adjacent intersomitic vessels. Sema3E–plexin-D1 signaling did not require neuropilins, which were previously presumed to be obligate Sema3 coreceptors. Moreover, genetic ablation of Sema3E or plexin-D1 but not neuropilin-mediated Sema3 signaling disrupted vascular patterning. These findings reveal an unexpected semaphorin signaling pathway and define a mechanism for controlling vascular patterning.
Recent advances in the mechanism of action of cyclosporine and FK506

The immunosuppressants cyclosporine and FK506 (tacrolimus) are extremely potent inhibitors of T-lymphocyte activation. Recent studies have shown that these agents are actually prodrugs that become active only when bound to specific members of the cyclophilin or FK506 binding protein receptor gene families. The cyclosporine-cyclophilin or FK506-FK506 binding protein receptor complexes interact with a key component of the T-cell antigen receptor signal transduction pathway, the calcium-calmodulin-dependent phosphoprotein phosphatase calcineurin. The drug-receptor complexes inhibit the phosphatase activity of calcineurin and thereby prevent transcriptional activation of the interleukin-2 gene.