Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The efficacy of a computer-assisted preoperative tutorial for clinical clerks.

OBJECTIVE To assess the effectiveness of computer-assisted preoperative tutorials on human anatomy in improving the operating-room learning experience for clinical clerks. DESIGN Crossover trials with immediate assessment and approximately 1-week delay between trials. SETTING General surgery operating room of a university teaching hospital. SUBJECTS Eight 4th-year clinical clerks on a single 8-week surgical rotation. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES The senior surgeon's assessment of the clerk's knowledge and understanding of the operation, according to a six-item questionnaire, and the clerk's own assessment of the experience in the operating room, according to an eight-item questionnaire. RESULTS Surgeons rated the clerks' performances in the operating room as better when they had received the preoperative tutorial (mean [and standard deviation], 3.7 [0.4]) than when they had not received the preoperative tutorial (3.0 [0.3]). The difference (0.7 [0.6]) was statistically significant (t7 = 3.3, p < 0.01). Similarly, clerks rated their own experience more positively when they had received the tutorial (4.0 [0.2]) than when they had not (3.1 [0.3]), with the difference (0.9 [0.5]) being statistically significant (t7 = 4.9, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS Short, preoperative, computer-assisted tutorials on human anatomy can have a positive impact on the clerk's level of knowledge and confidence in the operating room. Further research is warranted into the extent to which students spontaneously make use of these tutorials.
Degree of previous cutting in explaining the differences in diameter distributions between mature managed and natural Norway spruce forests

The degree of naturalness was assessed in 37 mature (stand age 80−198 yrs) Norway spruce dominated stands located in southern Finland by measuring the number (0−610 ha–1) and basal area (0−33 m2ha–1) of cut stumps. The Johnson’s SB distribution was fitted for living spruce trees to describe the dbh-frequency and basal area-dbh distributions. Regression models were constructed for predicting the parameters of the SB distribution using traditional stand parameters (median diameter, basal area, stem number) and the cut stump variables (number, basal area). Stump variables improved the models and enabled to explain the differences in diameter distributions between stands with varying intensity of past cutting. Model for basal area-dbh distribution was more accurate than dbh-frequency model in terms of regression statistics, but less accurate in terms of generated stand variables. The number and basal area of cut stumps seem to be useful and simple measures of stand naturalness which have potential uses in stand modelling and biodiversity-oriented forestry planning.
Study on Architectures for Chinese POS Tagging and Parsing

How to deal with part of speech (POS) tagging is a very important problem when we build a syntactic parsing system. We could preprocess the text with a POS tagger before perform parsing in a pipelined approach. Alterna- tively, we could perform POS tagging and parsing simultaneously in an inte- grated approach. Few, if any, comparisons have been made on such architecture issues for Chinese parsing. This paper presents an in-depth study on this prob- lem. According to comparison experiments, we find that integrated approach can make significantly better performance both on Chinese parsing and un- known words POS tagging than the pipelined approach. As for known words POS tagging, we find that the two approaches get similar tagging accuracy, but the tagging results of integrated approach do lead to much better parsing per- formance. We also analyze the reasons account for the performance difference.
The European collaborative study on mosaicism in chorionic villus sampling: Data from 1986 to 1987

Data on a total of 11 855 diagnostic chorionic villus samples obtained in the years 1986 and 1987 were compiled from a questionnaire filled in by 36 European cytogenetic centres. Mosaicism was reported in 141 cases. The cytogenetic findings were followed by induced abortion in 24 cases. Spontaneous abortion was observed in nine mosaic pregnancies, a rate not significantly different from that observed for CVS in total. Mosaicism was found in 1.2 per cent of analyses by direct analysis/short‐term culture, in contrast to the 0.6 per cent found after long‐term culture. Evidence for fetal non‐mosaicism was found in 99 of the 141 cases. The finding of mosaicism in first‐trimester CVS should always elicit further analyses, preferably after amniocentesis, to substantiate the suspected fetal chromosome aberration.
Neuropeptides: mediators of inflammation and tissue repair?

Successful repair of injured tissues requires diverse interactions between cells, biochemical mediators, and the cellular microenvironment. Much has been learned about the individual events that are involved in this process, but their integration is clearly far more complex than has been imagined, and the important role of neurogenic stimuli is only recently being recognized.
Effects of Acute Endotoxemia on Production of Cytokines and Nitric Oxide by Pulmonary Alveolar and Interstitial Macrophages

The lung is highly sensitive to damage induced by endotoxin. ' This major component of the gram-negative bacterial cell wall is normally confined to the gastrointestinal tract and is effectively removed from the portal circulation by the Kupffer cells of the liver? If this route of elimination fails or if infection occurs outside the portohepatic circulation, lung macrophages may become exposed to circulating endotoxin. Alveolar macrophages are known to be activated in vitro by lipopolysaccharide, the primary component of endotoxin, to release mediators such as tumor necrosis factor alpha? (TNFa) and nitric oxide; which are involved in inflammation and have been implicated in tissue injury. The role of pulmonary interstitial macrophages in these processes is unknown. The present studies were designed to analyze the response of interstitial and alveolar macrophages to in vivo exposure to lipopolysaccharide. Alveolar macrophages were obtained by lavage of perfused lungs 48 hours after treatment of rats with lipopolysaccharide (5 mgkg iv) or control. Lung tissue was then digested with collagenase (175 U/ml) and the resulting cell population enriched for interstitial macrophages by adherence to tissue culture dishes: The release of TNFa by alveolar and interstitial macrophages was quantified by measuring the ability of supernatants from cultured macrophages to lyse actinomycin D-sensitized L929 cells. Both macrophage subpopulations were found to produce TNFa (TABLE 1). Treatment of rats with lipopolysaccharide resulted in a decrease in TNFa production by interstitial macrophages, but had no effect on alveolar macrophages. Nitric oxide was quantified by the accumulation of nitrite in the medium using a modified Greiss reagent.5 Macrophages cultured overnight were treated with various concentrations of lipopolysaccharide andor rat gamma interferon (IFNy). After 48 hours of incubation supernatants were collected and analyzed for nitric oxide. Both cell types produced nitric oxide in response to IFNy and lipopolysaccharide. Alveolar macrophages produced more of this mediator than did interstitial macrophages. Production of nitric oxide was dependent on L-arginine and inhibited by the nitric oxide synthase inhibitor N-monomethyl-L-arginine. Although treatment of rats with lipopolysaccharide had no effect on nitrite accumulation by either alveolar or interstitial macrophages, Western blot analysis revealed increased inducible nitric oxide synthase in these
Molecular Determinants of β1 Subunit-Induced Gating Modulation in Voltage-Dependent Na+ Channels

Recombinant brain, skeletal muscle, and heart voltage-gated Na+ channel α subunits differ in their functional responses to an accessory β1 subunit when coexpressed inXenopus oocytes. We exploited the distinct β1 subunit responses observed for the human heart (hH1) and human skeletal muscle (hSkM1) isoforms to identify determinants of this response. Chimeric α subunits were constructed by exchanging the S5–S6 interhelical loops of each domain between hH1 and hSkM1 and then examined for effects on inactivation induced by coexpressed β1 subunit in oocytes. Substitution of single S5–S6 loops in either domain 1 (D1/S5–S6) or domain 4 (D4/S5–S6) of hSkM1 by the corresponding segments of hH1 produced channels that exhibited an attenuated response to coexpressed β1 subunit. Substitutions of both D1/S5–S6 and D4/S5–S6 in hSkM1 by the corresponding loops from hH1 completely abolished the effects of the β1 subunit on inactivation. The reciprocal chimera in which both D1/S5–S6 and D4/S5–S6 from hSkM1 were transplanted into hH1 exhibited significant β1 responsiveness (accelerated inactivation). The region within D4/S5–S6 that conferred β1 responsiveness was determined to reside primarily within an extracellular loop between the putative pore-forming segment SS2 and D4/S6. Gating modulation was also demonstrated using a chimeric β subunit consisting of the extracellular domains of β1and the transmembrane and C-terminal domains of the rat brain β2 subunit. These results suggest that the D1/S5–S6 and D4/S5–S6 loops in the α subunit and the extracellular domain of the β1 subunit are important determinants of the β1 subunit-induced gating modulation in Na+channels.
Endothelin-1-induced Prostaglandin E2-EP2, EP4 Signaling Regulates Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Production and Ovarian Carcinoma Cell Invasion*

Cyclooxygenase (COX)-1- and COX-2-derived prostaglandins are implicated in the development and progression of several malignancies. We have recently demonstrated that treatment of ovarian carcinoma cells with endothelin-1 (ET-1) induces expression of both COX-1 and COX-2, which contributes to vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) production. In this study, we show that in HEY and OVCA 433 ovarian carcinoma cells, ET-1, through the binding with ETA receptor (ETAR), induces prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production, as the more represented PG types, and increases the expression of PGE2 receptor type 2 (EP2) and type 4 (EP4). The use of pharmacological EP agonists and antagonists indicates that ET-1 and PGE2 stimulate VEGF production principally through EP2 and EP4 receptors. At the mechanistic level, we prove that the induction of PGE2 and VEGF by ET-1 involves Src-mediated epidermal growth factor receptor transactivation. Finally, we demonstrate that ETAR-mediated activation of PGE2-dependent signaling participates in the regulation of the invasive behavior of ovarian carcinoma cells by activating tumor-associated matrix metalloproteinase. These results implicate EP2 and EP4 receptors in the induction of VEGF expression and cell invasiveness by ET-1 and provide a mechanism by which ETAR/ET-1 can promote and interact with PGE2-dependent machinery to amplify its proangiogenic and invasive phenotype in ovarian carcinoma cells. Pharmacological blockade of ETAR can therefore represent an additional strategy to control PGE2 signaling, which has been associated with ovarian carcinoma progression.
An Availability Model of a Virtual TMR System with Applications in Cloud/Cluster Computing

Three important factors in dependable computing are cost, error correction and high availability. In this paper we will focus on assessing a proposed model that encapsulates all three important factors and a virtual architecture that can be implemented in the IaaS layer of cloud computing. The proposed model will be assessed against a popular existing architecture (Triple Modular Redundant System TMR) and the availability analysis done with Fault-Trees combined with Markov Chains. These experiments will demonstrate that the virtualization of the TMR system using the architecture that we have proposed, will achieve almost the same level of availability/reliability and cost, along with the inherent advantages of virtual systems. Advantages include faster system restart, efficient use of resources and migration.
A clinicopathologic study of a peculiar foveomacular dystrophy.

THIS REPORT CONCERNS A PECULIAR CENTRAL MACULAR DYSTROPHY IN PATIENTS with the following clinical features: 1) visually asymptomatic or visual blurring and metamorphopsia in one or both eyes, usually with the onset between ages of 30 and 50 years; 2) symmetrical, one-third-disc-diameter-size, round or oval, slightly elevated, yellow subretinal lesions with a central pigmented spot in the foveal area of each eye; 3) small drusen may or may not be present in the paracentral region; 4) slow progression ofvisual loss with most patients maintaining reading vision in at least one eye throughout life; 5) normal or slightly to moderately subnormal electro-oculographic findings; and, 6) normal electroretino-graphic findings and color vision. The disease is probably dominantly inherited. The histopathologic findings in one patient suggest that the disease affects primarily the retinal pigment epithelium and that it may be related to dominantly inherited drusen. angiography in the right eye revealed a ring-shaped area of intense fluorescence surrounded by smaller irregular areas of fluorescence. The pattern of fluorescence remained the same throughout the study. In the left eye the early angiogram showed hypofluorescence in the area of the central yellow lesion and irregular areas of hyperfluorescence surrounding the central lesion. Late angiograms showed evidence of staining ofthe yellow lesion in the left foveal area except in its center. Follow-up examination one year later revealed that no change had occurred.
The surgical treatment of central giant cell granuloma of the mandible.

PURPOSE The objective of this study was to report and evaluate our experience in the surgical treatment of mandibular central giant cell granuloma by resection without continuity defect and peripheral ostectomy. METHODS A retrospective analysis was conducted of patients with central giant cell granuloma of the mandible who were treated between 1991 and 2000, in the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Unit at Jordan University of Science and Technology. A uniform surgical technique was used in all cases. The compact bone composed of the lower border of the mandible and/or posterior border of the ascending ramus, together with the nutrient periosteum attached to it, was preserved. All soft tissues in contact with or overlying the lesion and a margin of cancellous bone related to the lesion were excised. All patients were reviewed annually for a follow-up period of 1 to 9 years (mean, 3.9 years). RESULTS Eighteen patients with central giant cell granuloma were included, (9 males and 9 females). Their age ranged from 10 to 46 years, with 89% younger than 40 years. Five (28%) lesions were in the incisor-canine region, 2 (11%) were confined to the premolar region, 4 (22%) were in the premolar-molar region, and 7 (39%) were in the molar-ramus region. All patients had aggressive central giant cell granulomas with pain, tooth mobility, and rapidly enlarging swelling. The initial diameter of lesions ranged from 2.7 to 10 cm. During the follow-up period, there was 1 case of recurrence, 2 (11%) patients had permanent lower lip paraesthesia, and no patient had obvious facial deformity. CONCLUSION Our results suggest that resection without a continuity defect and peripheral ostectomy is a satisfactory method in the treatment of central giant cell granuloma of the mandible, with no or a very low recurrence rate and favorable postoperative function.
Fas expression on peripheral blood lymphocytes in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE): relation to lymphocyte activation and disease activity

Levels of apoptotic lymphocytes have been found to be increased in SLE and persistence of apoptotic cells has been associated with autoantibody production. Increased lymphocyte Fas (CD95) expression due to lymphocyte activation may account for increased susceptibility to Fasmediated apoptosis in SLE. Flowcytometry was performed to evaluate membrane expression of Fas in combination with the activation markers CD25, HLA-DR and CD38 on, respectively, CD4+, CD8+ and CD19+ lymphocytes of SLE patients with inactive (n = 20) and with active disease (n = 13). SLEDAI-scores were calculated. Healthy volunteers (n = 14) served as controls. Percentages of CD4+ T-cells expressing CD25 and CD19+ B-cells expressing CD38 were increased in patients with active disease compared to controls (P = 0.03, P = 0.04, respectively). In contrast to CD4+ and CD8+ cells, percentages of CD19+ cells expressing Fas were increased in SLE patients with active disease (P = 0.0002 vs controls). In these patients percentages of cells double positive for both CD38 and Fas were increased compared to patients with inactive disease (P = 0.006) and controls (P = 0.0007). Percentages of CD19+ cells expressing Fas correlated with SLEDAI-scores. In SLE patients, percentages of Fas-expressing B-lymphocytes are increased, are related to the state of lymphocyte activation, and correlate to disease activity. Increased Fas expression results in a higher susceptibility for Fas-mediated apoptosis, which might contribute to the increased levels of apoptoticlymphocytes in SLE patients.
Cytotoxic potential of few Indian fruit peels through 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay on HepG2 cells

Objective: To investigate in vitro anticancer activity of a few Indian fruit peels through 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay against HepG2 cells. Materials and Methods: Hydroalcoholic extracts were prepared of five fruit peels, i.e., banana, lemon, guava, orange, and papaya by maceration and thereafter subjected for MTT assay to evaluate anticancer potential on HepG2 cells. Plant extract showed best activity was further fractionated with petroleum ether, chloroform, and ethyl acetate successively and screened again. Phytochemical analysis was then carried out to find out responsible components for the observed activity. Results: Out of the 40 samples from five fruit peel extracts with rich folklore usage, papaya extract showed maximum activity with least inhibitory concentration50 (IC50) value of 18.5 μg/ml. Further analysis after fractionation of the papaya peel extract, aqueous fraction showed the maximum inhibitory activity with least IC50 value of 17.3 μg/ml. Phytochemical analysis of the aqueous fraction of papaya peel extract revealed the presence of flavonoids and glycosides. Total flavonoid content found to be 72.25 mg/g. Conclusion: Papaya fruit extract demonstrated the best activity against MTT assay which may be due to the presence of flavonoids.
European Developmental Biology Congress. Abstracts. Southampton 2-8 September 1984.

S SOUTHAMPTON UK 2 7 SEPTEMBER 1984 Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd Volume 82 Supplement September 1984 EUROPEAN DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY CONGRESS Journal of Embryology and Experimental Morphology ISSN: 0022 0752 JEEM CONGRESS SUPPLEMENT 1 1984 EUROPEAN DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY CONGRESS ABSTRACTS SOUTHAMPTON 2-8 SEPTEMBER 1984 ORGANISED BY THE BRITISH SOCIETY FOR DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY Printed and published by The Company of Biologists Limited, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ © The Company of Biologists Limited 1984
In Vitro Intersubtype Recombinants of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1: Comparison to Recent and Circulating In Vivo Recombinant Forms

ABSTRACT The increased prevalence of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) intersubtype recombinants (ISRs) is shaping HIV-1 evolution throughout the world and will have an impact on both therapeutic and vaccine strategies. This study was designed to generate and compare in vitro ISRs to those isolated from HIV-infected individuals throughout the world. Human peripheral blood mononuclear cells were dually infected with seven pairs of HIV-1 isolates from different subtypes (i.e., A to F). Recombinant crossover sites were mapped to specific regions in the envelope (env) gene by using a cloning-hybridization technique and subtype-specific probes. In vitro intersubtype recombination was at least twofold more frequent in the V1-to-V3 region than in any other env fragment, i.e., C1 to V1, V3 to V5, or V5 to gp41. Sequence and recombination site analyses suggested the C2 env domain as a “hot region” for recombination and selection of replication-competent ISRs during the 15-day incubation. In addition to these regional preferences for env recombination, homopolymeric nucleotide tracts, i.e., sequences known to pause reverse transcriptase and promote template switching, were found in most in vitro crossover sites. ISRs, originating from recent dual infections and limited transmission events, partly retained this in vitro regional or sequence preference for recombination sites. However, a shift to crossover sites flanking the gp120-coding sequence was evident in the stable circulating recombinant forms of HIV-1. Based on these findings, HIV-1 recombinants generated from these dual infections may be used as a model for in vivo intersubtype recombination and for the design of various diagnostic assays and vaccine constructs.
Deltoid muscle fiber characteristics in adolescent and adult wrestlers.

AIM The aim of the present study was to examine the adaptation of myosin heavy chain (MHC) isoforms, capillary density and fiber cross sectional area (CSA) of deltoid muscle in adolescent and adult elite Greco-Roman wrestlers. METHODS Eighteen Greco-Roman wrestlers were divided into two groups: adolescents included 10 athletes (group A) between 14-18 years of age (15.4+/-1.3 yrs) and adults included 8 athletes (group B) between 20-27 years (23.5+/-2.6 yrs). Histochemical analyses were used to determine the muscle fiber type distribution and the muscle fiber cross sectional area. MHC isoform composition was determined with protein electrophoresis, while capillary density (capillary to fiber ratio and capillaries per mm2) analysis was performed with a-amylase Periodic and Schiff staining. RESULTS Adolescents demonstrated a significantly higher percentage of type I fibers (P<0.05) and type I fiber area (P<0.05) compared to the adults. The percentage of type IIa fiber area were significantly higher in adult wrestlers (P<0.05). MHC I isoforms was significantly higher in adolescents (P<0.05), whereas the MHC isoforms of IIa and IIx did not differ between groups. The capillary density (mm2) were significantly higher (P<0.05) in adolescents compared to adults. CONCLUSION Our findings suggest that the observed muscle fiber profile in the deltoid muscle of wrestlers may represent an adaptation based on the mechanical and biochemical demands of the long-term training. Such adaptations are linked to the specific characteristics of the training program, the level and the previous training experience of the wrestlers.