Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Special Issue of Intelligent Automation and Soft Computing - Intelligent Information Processing And System Optimization

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The Existential Fragment of Third Order Logic and Third Order Relational Machines

We introduce a new sub logic of third order logic (TO), the logic TO, as a semantic restriction of TO. We focus on the existential fragment of TO, which we denote Σ 1 , and we study its relational complexity by introducing a variation of the non deterministic relational machine, which we denote 3-NRM, where we allow third order relations in the relational store of the machine. We then prove that Σ 1 characterizes exactly NEXPTIME3,r.
Fast Parametric Active Contour to Improve 3D Segmentation of Tubular Structures

Segmentation of three dimensional (3D) image data is an important task in medical imaging. The segmentation of tubular structures like e.g. colons, blood vessels or bronchioli is, thereby, an important subtask. Qualitative segmentation of subpleural alveoli in microscopic videos (time as the third dimension) is the objective of the present study. The proposed approach attempts to improve a given segmentation that was obtained by a two dimensional parametric active contour algorithm with an additional smoothness criterion for the third dimension. Compared to 2D segmentation alone, the developed approach decreased the high-frequency noise and resolved problems due to the ambiguity of image-features.
The Expansion and Clarification of Feeding and Eating Disorders in the DSM-5

The fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) introduced a chapter titled “Feeding and Eating Disorders,” which takes a life-span approach to diagnosing eating disorders and contains all related diagnoses. Rather than appearing throughout the text, all eating disorders are now contained within their own chapter for ease of review and comparison. Changes to the feeding and eating disorders include diagnostic revisions and the addition of several new disorders, including avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder and bingeeating disorder. While pica and rumination disorder remain unchanged, anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa experience some criteria changes. There is now a system for classifying the severity of several eating disorders (mild, moderate and severe) and an emphasis on body mass index for the diagnosis of anorexia nervosa. The DSM5 also attempted to address the number of cases of eating disorders that did not meet criteria in any one category (e.g., eating disorder not otherwise specified), and the authors discuss the result of this attempt in examining two new disorders. This paper examines these changes and addresses clinical implications, while alerting counselors to important diagnostic information.
Novel Contrasting and Labeling Procedures for Correlative Microscopy of Thawed Cryosections

One of the major challenges for correlative microscopy is the preparation of the sample; the protocols for transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and fluorescence microscopy (FM) often prove to be incompatible. Here, we introduce 2+Staining: an improved contrasting procedure for Tokuyasu sections that yields both excellent positive membrane contrast in the TEM and bright fluorescence of the probe labeled on the section. 2+Staining involves the contrasting of the immunolabeled sections with 1% osmium tetroxide, 2% uranyl acetate and lead citrate in sequential steps, followed by embedding in 1.8% methyl cellulose. In addition, we demonstrate an amplification of the fluorescent signal by introducing additional antibody incubation steps to the immunolabeling procedure. The methods were validated using the integrated laser and electron microscope (iLEM), a novel tool for correlative microscopy combining FM and TEM in a single setup. The approaches were tested on HL-60 cells labeled for lysosomal-associated membrane protein 2 (LAMP-2) and on sections of muscle from a facioscapulohumeral dystrophy mouse model. Yielding excellent results and greatly expediting the workflow, the methods are of great value for those working in the field of correlative microscopy and indispensible for future users of integrated correlative microscopy.
Riqueza y abundancia de la avifauna silvestre en fragmentos de bosque nativo y plantaciones de pino en la comunidad de Punilla

La investigacion se realizo en los meses comprendidos entre Julio y Octubre del 2009, en Bosque natural de quewinas (Polylepisspp) y plantaciones forestales de Pino (Pinustometella) y Eucaliptos (Eucalipthusglobulus) ubicado en la comunidad de Punilla perteneciente al municipio de Sucre, con el objetivo de �\Determinar la Riqueza y Abundancia de aves silvestres asociados a fragmentos de Bosque nativo y plantaciones de pino. , y asi compararlas entre los dos habitats para determinar cual habitat tiene mas riqueza y abundancia. Para el conteo de aves se utilizo el metodo de Puntos de Conteo con radio fijo propuesto por Wunderle (1994). Para el Bosque nativo se detectaron 16 especies de aves y para las plantaciones forestales de Pino & Eucalipto se detectaron 7 especies de aves quedando muy claro que los bosques naturales tienen mayor Riqueza de especies de aves que las plantaciones forestales. En cuanto a la abundancia de aves se ve mas actividad en los bosques nativos que en las plantaciones forestales. Llegando a la conclusion de que es necesaria la conservacion de parches de bosque nativo para mantener y asegurar la diversidad de aves del area, ya que este habitat es el que alberga el mayor numero de especies de la zona.
Identifying stable fixed order systems from time and frequency response data

In this paper, we address the problem of identifying fixed order stable SISO systems from time and frequency domain data. Given measurements of time and frequency response corrupted by process and measurement noise, we aim at finding a fixed order stable plant whose response matches the data collected (within the noise bounds) and whose H∞ norm is below a prescribed level. It is shown the problem can be solved by finding a point in a set defined by polynomial inequalities and the sparse structure of the polynomials is exploited to develop an efficient system identification algorithm. Further computational improvements are obtained by reformulating the problem as a rank constrained one and using efficient convex relaxations of rank minimization. Numerical examples are provided to illustrate the efficiency of the proposed algorithms.
A time-domain equalizer minimizing intersymbol and intercarrier interference in DMT systems

Discrete multitone modulation allows for a simple receiver structure if the impulse response of the communication channel is shorter than the cyclic prefix. In ADSL, a time-domain equalizer (TEQ) is used to fulfil this requirement. Without a TEQ, unwanted intercarrier interference (ICI) and intersymbol interference (ISI) occur. In this paper, quadratic forms are developed to calculate the contributions of ICI and ISI to the desired signal. Based on these expressions, a new method for calculating the TEQ coefficients, which minimizes the effects of ICI, ISI, and additive noise, is derived. Simulations in the context of ADSL compare the performance of this new algorithm with one that is state of the art.
A major role for the protein tyrosine kinase JAK1 in the JAK/STAT signal transduction pathway in response to interleukin‐6.

The protein tyrosine kinases JAK1, JAK2 and Tyk2 and STATs (signal transducers and activators of transcription) 1 and 3 are activated in response to interleukin‐6 (IL‐6) in human fibrosarcoma cells. In mutant cells lacking JAK1, JAK2 or Tyk2, the absence of one kinase does not prevent activation of the others; activation does not, therefore, involve a sequential three‐kinase cascade. In the absence of JAK1, the phosphorylation of the gp130 subunit of the IL‐6 receptor and the activation of STATs 1 and 3 are greatly reduced. JAK1 is also necessary for the induction of IRF1 mRNA, thus establishing a requirement for the JAK/STAT pathway in the IL‐6 response. JAK2 and Tyk2 although activated cannot, in the absence of JAK1, efficiently mediate activation of STATs 1 and 3. A kinase‐negative mutant of JAK2 can, however, inhibit such activation, and ancillary roles for JAK2 and Tyk2 are not excluded. A major role for JAK1 and the nonequivalence of JAK1 and JAK2 in the IL‐6 response pathway are, nevertheless, clearly established for these cells.
Left ventricular dysfunction: a clue to cognitive impairment in older patients with heart failure

OBJECTIVES Cognitive impairment has been reported in middle aged patients with end stage heart failure. This cross sectional study assessed the prevalence and determinants of cognitive dysfunction in older patients with mild to moderate heart failure. METHODS 57 consecutive patients (mean age 76.7 years) with chronic heart failure underwent physical examination, blood chemistry, urinalysis, chest radiography ECG, Doppler echocardiography, and the mini mental state examination (MMSE), mental deterioration battery, depression scale of the Center for Epidemiological Studies (CES-D), Katz activities of daily living, and instrumental activities of daily living 24 hours before hospital discharge. RESULTS MMSE scores <24 were found in 53% of participants. The MMSE score was associated with left ventricular ejection fraction according to a non-linear correlation, so that cognitive performance was significantly lower in subjects with left ventricular ejection fraction ⩽30%. The same pattern of correlation was evidenced between left ventricular ejection fraction and both the attention sub-item of MMSE and the Raven test score. In a multivariate linear regression model, after adjusting for age, sex, and a series of clinical data and objective tests, both age (β=−0.30; P=0.038) and the natural log of left ventricular ejection fraction (β=0.58; P=0.001) were associated with the MMSE score. CONCLUSION Cognitive impairment in older patients with chronic heart failure is common, and independently associated with lower left ventricular ejection fraction. Given the overwhelming incidence and prevalence of heart failure in older populations, early detection of cognitive impairment in these subjects with prompt, intensive treatment of left ventricular systolic dysfunction may prevent or delay a remarkable proportion of dementia in advanced age.
Digital watermarking : 4th International Workshop, IWDW 2005, Siena, Italy, September 15-17, 2005 : proceedings

Session I: Steganography and Steganalysis. - A New Approach to Estimating Hidden Message Length in Stochastic Modulation Steganography. - Information Transmission and Steganography. - On the Existence of Perfect Stegosystems. - Towards Multi-class Blind Steganalyzer for JPEG Images. - Session II: Fingerprinting. - An Efficient Fingerprinting Scheme with Symmetric and Commutative Encryption. - Collusion Secure Convolutional Spread Spectrum Fingerprinting. - Performance Study on Multimedia Fingerprinting Employing Traceability Codes. - Regular Simplex Fingerprints and Their Optimality Properties. - Session III: Watermarking I. - A Robust Multi-bit Image Watermarking Algorithm Based on HMM in Wavelet Domain. - Robust Detection of Transform Domain Additive Watermarks. - Multi-band Wavelet Based Digital Watermarking Using Principal Component Analysis. - Session IV: Attacks. - A New Inter-frame Collusion Attack and a Countermeasure. - Effectiveness of ST-DM Watermarking Against Intra-video Collusion. - Oracle Attacks and Covert Channels. - Security of DM Quantization Watermarking Schemes: A Practical Study for Digital Images. - Session V: Special Session on Watermarking Security. - A Survey of Watermarking Security. - Countermeasures for Collusion Attacks Exploiting Host Signal Redundancy. - Fingerprinting Schemes. Identifying the Guilty Sources Using Side Information. - Practical Data-Hiding: Additive Attacks Performance Analysis. - The Return of the Sensitivity Attack. - Session VI: Watermarking of Unconventional Media. - Look Up Table(LUT) Method for Halftone Image Watermarking. - New Public-Key Authentication Watermarking for JBIG2 Resistant to Parity Attacks. - Software Watermarking as a Proof of Identity: A Study of Zero Knowledge Proof Based Software Watermarking. - Watermarking of 3D Irregular Meshes Based on Wavelet Multiresolution Analysis. - Session VII: Channel Coding and Watermarking. - Digital Watermarking Robustness and Fragility Characteristics: New Modelling and Coding Influence. - New Geometric Analysis of Spread-Spectrum Data Hiding with Repetition Coding, with Implications for Side-Informed Schemes. - Trellis-Coded Rational Dither Modulation for Digital Watermarking. - Session VIII: Theory. - Closed-Form Formulas for Private Watermarking Capacities of Laplacian Sources with the Magnitude-Error Distortion Measure and Under Additive Attacks. - Improved QIM Strategies for Gaussian Watermarking. - On the Achievable Rate of Side Informed Embedding Techniques with Steganographic Constraints. - Performance Lower Bounds for Existing and New Uncoded Digital Watermarking Modulation Techniques. - Session IX: Watermarking II. - Evaluation of Feature Extraction Techniques for Robust Watermarking. - Perceptual Video Watermarking in the 3D-DWT Domain Using a Multiplicative Approach. - Robustness Enhancement of Content-Based Watermarks Using Entropy Masking Effect. - Session X: Applications. - Secure Mutual Distrust Transaction Tracking Using Cryptographic Elements. - ViWiD : Visible Watermarking Based Defense Against Phishing.
Identification of Burkholderia spp. in the Clinical Microbiology Laboratory: Comparison of Conventional and Molecular Methods

ABSTRACT Cystic fibrosis (CF) predisposes patients to bacterial colonization and infection of the lower airways. Several species belonging to the genus Burkholderia are potential CF-related pathogens, but microbiological identification may be complicated. This situation is not in the least due to the poorly defined taxonomic status of these bacteria, and further validation of the available diagnostic assays is required. A total of 114 geographically diverse bacterial isolates, previously identified in reference laboratories as Burkholderia cepacia (n = 51), B. gladioli(n = 14), Ralstonia pickettii(n = 6), B. multivorans(n = 2), Stenotrophomonas maltophilia(n = 3), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa(n = 11), were collected from environmental, clinical, and reference sources. In addition, 27 clinical isolates putatively identified as Burkholderia spp. were recovered from the sputum of Dutch CF patients. All isolates were used to evaluate the accuracy of two selective growth media, four systems for biochemical identification (API 20NE, Vitek GNI, Vitek NFC, and MicroScan), and three different PCR-based assays. The PCR assays amplify different parts of the ribosomal DNA operon, either alone or in combination with cleavage by various restriction enzymes (PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism [RFLP] analysis). The best system for the biochemical identification of B. cepacia appeared to be the API 20NE test. None of the biochemical assays successfully grouped theB. gladioli strains. The PCR-RFLP method appeared to be the optimal method for accurate nucleic acid-mediated identification of the different Burkholderia spp. With this method, B. gladioli was also reliably classified in a separate group. For the laboratory diagnosis of B. cepacia, we recommend parallel cultures on blood agar medium and selective agar plates. Further identification of colonies with a Burkholderiaphenotype should be performed with the API 20NE test. For final confirmation of species identities, PCR amplification of the small-subunit rRNA gene followed by RFLP analysis with various enzymes is recommended.
Agreement between clinical and radiological methods of diagnosing knee osteoarthritis

Objective: To determine the agreement between clinical diagnosis and different radiological grading scales of knee osteoarthritis (OA) in an epidemiological study. Methods: Health 2000 Survey is an extensive population study focusing on major health problems in a representative sample of 8028 Finns over 30 years of age. In the survey, physicians diagnosed knee OA on the basis of physical status, symptoms, and medical history. A total of 130 participants (mean age 60 years, 68% female) were re‐examined 1 year later (Kuopio OA 2000 Study) to determine the agreement between clinical and radiological diagnosis as well as between three different radiological grading scales (Kellgren and Lawrence, Ahlbäck, and Piperno). Weight‐bearing knee radiographs were taken and graded by a radiologist in Kuopio University Hospital. The history of knee symptoms was obtained using the Western Ontario MacMaster (WOMAC) and Lequesne questionnaires. Results: Knee OA was diagnosed clinically in 17.7% and radiologically in 24.6–30% of participants. The strength of agreement was moderate (κ values 0.34–0.54) between the clinical and the radiological diagnosis and substantial (0.62–0.78) between the different radiological scales. Those subjects identified by any diagnostic method as having OA in either knee reported significantly more symptoms and disability than the other subjects. Conclusion: The agreement between the clinical diagnosis performed in a large population study and radiological grading scales was only moderate. By contrast, the agreement between different radiological scales was substantial.
Ductal carcinoma in situ of the breast. Histologic categorization and its relationship to ploidy and immunohistochemical expression of hormone receptors, p53, and c‐erbB‐2 protein

Background. Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) of the breast has been diagnosed increasingly since the advent of mammography. However, the natural history of these lesions remains uncertain. Ductal carcinoma in situ of the breast does not represent a single entity but a heterogeneous group with histologic and clinical differences. The histologic subtype of DCIS seems to have an influence on its biologic behavior, but there are few studies correlating subtype with biologic markers.
Reconsidering Contact Precautions for Endemic Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus

BACKGROUND Whether contact precautions (CP) are required to control the endemic transmission of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) or vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE) in acute care hospitals is controversial in light of improvements in hand hygiene, MRSA decolonization, environmental cleaning and disinfection, fomite elimination, and chlorhexidine bathing. OBJECTIVE To provide a framework for decision making around use of CP for endemic MRSA and VRE based on a summary of evidence related to use of CP, including impact on patients and patient care processes, and current practices in use of CP for MRSA and VRE in US hospitals. DESIGN A literature review, a survey of Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America Research Network members on use of CP, and a detailed examination of the experience of a convenience sample of hospitals not using CP for MRSA or VRE. PARTICIPANTS Hospital epidemiologists and infection prevention experts. RESULTS No high quality data support or reject use of CP for endemic MRSA or VRE. Our survey found more than 90% of responding hospitals currently use CP for MRSA and VRE, but approximately 60% are interested in using CP in a different manner. More than 30 US hospitals do not use CP for control of endemic MRSA or VRE. CONCLUSIONS Higher quality research on the benefits and harms of CP in the control of endemic MRSA and VRE is needed. Until more definitive data are available, the use of CP for endemic MRSA or VRE in acute care hospitals should be guided by local needs and resources. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2015;36(10):1163–1172
Niche contributions to oncogenesis: emerging concepts and implications for the hematopoietic system

The field of hematopoietic oncology has traditionally focused on the study of hematopoietic cell autonomous genetic events in an effort to understand malignant transformation and develop therapeutics. Although highly rewarding in both aspects, this cell autonomous approach has failed to fully satisfy our need to understand tumor cell behavior and related clinical observations. In recent years, it has been increasingly recognized that the tumor microenvironment plays a pivotal role in cancer initiation and progression. This review will discuss recent experimental evidence in support of this view derived from investigations in both epithelial and hematopoietic systems. Based on this, conceptual views and therapeutic implications will be provided on the emerging role of the bone marrow microenvironment in leukemogenesis.
Effects of Cyclophosphamide on the Pathogenesis of Cytomegalovirus-Induced Labyrinthitis

Cyclophosphamide was used in this study to define the contribution of the inflammatory response relative to direct cytopathic effects of guinea pig cytomegalovirus (GPCMV) in inducing sensorineural hearing loss in the guinea pig. The eighth nerve compound action potential (CAP) threshold on day 7 after inoculation of GPCMV into the scala tympani was an average of 35 dB greater for control animals than for those that were immunosuppressed with daily intraperitoneal injections of cyclophosphamide (20 mg/kg body weight). The amount of GPCMV antigen in the cochlea, detected immunohistochemically, did not correlate with the CAP threshold. However, the greater the inflammatory response to GPCMV in the cochlea, the higher the CAP threshold and thus the greater the hearing loss. This study demonstrates that the inflammatory response to GPCMV may be more important than direct cytopathic effects of the virus in producing sensorineural hearing loss in GPCMV-induced labyrinthitis.