Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dynamic three-dimensional model of the coronary circulation

A realistic numerical three-dimensional (3D) model of the dynamics of human coronary arteries has been developed. High- resolution 3D images of the coronary arteries of an excised human heart were obtained using a C-arm based computed tomography (CT) system. Cine bi-plane coronary angiograms were then acquired from a patient with similar coronary anatomy. These angiograms were used to determine the vessel motion, which was applied to the static 3D coronary tree. Corresponding arterial bifurcations were identified in the 3D CT image and in the 2D angiograms. The 3D positions of the angiographic landmarks, which were known throughout the cardiac cycle, were used to warp the 3D image via a non-linear thin-plate spline algorithm. The result was a set or 30 dynamic volumetric images sampling a complete cardiac cycle. To the best of our knowledge, the model presented here is the first dynamic 3D model that provides a true representation of both the geometry and motion of a human coronary artery tree. In the future, similar models can be generated to represent different coronary anatomy and motion. Such models are expected to become an invaluable tool during the development of dynamic imaging techniques such as MRI, multi-slice CT and 3D angiography.
Interhemispheric Ice-Sheet Synchronicity During the Last Glacial Maximum

Part of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet advanced and retreated in synchrony with Northern Hemispheric ice sheets. The timing of the last maximum extent of the Antarctic ice sheets relative to those in the Northern Hemisphere remains poorly understood. We develop a chronology for the Weddell Sea sector of the East Antarctic Ice Sheet that, combined with ages from other Antarctic ice-sheet sectors, indicates that the advance to and retreat from their maximum extent was within dating uncertainties synchronous with most sectors of Northern Hemisphere ice sheets. Surface climate forcing of Antarctic mass balance would probably cause an opposite response, whereby a warming climate would increase accumulation but not surface melting. Our new data support teleconnections involving sea-level forcing from Northern Hemisphere ice sheets and changes in North Atlantic deep-water formation and attendant heat flux to Antarctic grounding lines to synchronize the hemispheric ice sheets.
Neurodevelopmental delay in small babies at term: a systematic review

Being small for gestational age (SGA) or having fetal growth restriction (FGR) may be associated with poorer neurodevelopmental outcomes compared to being appropriate for gestational age (AGA). The aim of this paper was to evaluate the existence and magnitude of decrease in neurodevelopmental scores in SGA and FGR infants born at term from a systematic review of the existing literature.
Pathophysiology and Treatment of Urinary Tract Infections

From the Department of Pharmacy Practice, College of Pharmacy, The University of Toledo, and Department of Pharmacy Services, The Toledo Hospital, Toledo, OH. Address reprint requests to Randy D. Pryka, PharmD, Department of Pharmacy Practice, The Uninersity of Toledo, 2801 W Bancroft St, Toledo, OH 43606-3390. Copyright © 1991 by W.B. Saunders Company 0897-1900/91/0404-0002$5.00/0 B ACTERIAL INFECTIONS of the urinary tract are encountered by health care practitioners in most disciplines. Accounting for more than 5 million office visits per year in the United States and 40% of nosocomial infec-
Metabolismo do glicogênio muscular durante o exercício físico: mecanismos de regulação

A large number of studies have been conducted to understand muscle glycogen metabolism during exercise. Classical studies demonstrated a relationship between the pre-exercise muscle glycogen content and duration of exercise. Muscle glycogen declines in a semilogarithmic manner in function of time, but glycogen concentration does not reach zero, which suggests that other fatigue mechanisms participate in the interruption of prolonged exercise. In this type of activity, glycogen depletion occurs first in slow twitch fibers followed by fast twitch fibers. The decrease in the rate of muscle glycogen utilization is synchronized with an increased rate of fat uptake, but the physiological mechanism is not well understood. Recent studies suggest that the decline of insulin during exercise could be a limiting factor of glucose transport through the plasma membrane, which increases the uptake of fatty acids. Others studies have also demonstrated that the structure of muscle glycogen itself can regulate the cellular uptake of free fatty acids via protein kinase. Physically, the glycogen molecule has two forms, one with a smaller molecular structure (approximately 4.105 Da, proglycogen) and another one with a larger molecular structure (approximately 107 Da, macroglycogen). Apparently, the proglycogen form is more metabolically active during exercise and the macroglycogen form is more susceptible to increase with supercompensation diets. Higher concentrations of hypoxanthines and ammonia during exercise with muscle glycogen depletion have been reported, but studies that control exercise intensity better are necessary to help shed light on this issue.
Recent Synchronous Radiation of a Living Fossil

Despite their ancient origin, the majority of extant cycad species radiated within the past 10 million years. Modern survivors of previously more diverse lineages are regarded as living fossils, particularly when characterized by morphological stasis. Cycads are often cited as a classic example, reaching their greatest diversity during the Jurassic–Cretaceous (199.6 to 65.5 million years ago) then dwindling to their present diversity of ~300 species as flowering plants rose to dominance. Using fossil-calibrated molecular phylogenies, we show that cycads underwent a near synchronous global rediversification beginning in the late Miocene, followed by a slowdown toward the Recent. Although the cycad lineage is ancient, our timetrees indicate that living cycad species are not much older than ~12 million years. These data reject the hypothesized role of dinosaurs in generating extant diversity and the designation of today’s cycad species as living fossils.
Focus on Practice: Tourette Syndrome: a Training Day for Teachers

Recent research indicates that Tourette syndrome is more prevalent than was once thought and that teachers in most mainstream schools are likely to encounter pupils displaying the characteristics of Tourette syndrome. Research also indicates that these characteristics, and the range of responses that may be appropriate, are not well understood by school staff. In this article, Dr Uttom Chowdhury, Consultant Child Psychiatrist at the CAMHS Academic Unit in Dunstable and Honorary Child Psychiatrist at the Neurodevelopmental Disorders Clinic at Great Ormond Street Hospital, London, and Dr Deborah Christie, Consultant Clinical Psychologist and Honorary Senior Lecturer at the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychological Services at University College London and Middlesex Hospitals, describe a training day for teachers facilitated by members of the Tic Disorders Clinic at Great Ormond Street Hospital. The day provided a mix of information–giving and discussion of current practice. Uttom Chowdhury and Deborah Christie relate the outcomes of the day to their own professional knowledge and experience and offer an interesting agenda for further developments.
The Adjuvant Effects of Antibodies

The positive aspects of a negative immune receptor provide a new understanding of immune-boosting antibodies. Monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are perhaps the most exciting, specific, and flexible vehicle for treating cancer. Major leaps in the engineering of mAbs over the past three decades have improved their effectiveness against target antigens. CD40, a member of the tumor necrosis factor receptor (TNFR) superfamily expressed on antigen-presenting cells, is one such target, but so far the clinical efficacy of a mAb against this molecule in cancer patients has been limited. On page 1030 of this issue, Li and Ravetch (1) demonstrate that a mAb to CD40, with enhanced binding to another protein on antigen-presenting cells, increases activation of the antigen-presenting cells and thereby promotes an adaptive immune response. This has implications for the design of other therapeutic mAbs.
Torsional Carbon Nanotube Artificial Muscles

Carbon nanotube yarns are used to make fast, multirotational torsional actuators. Rotary motors of conventional design can be rather complex and are therefore difficult to miniaturize; previous carbon nanotube artificial muscles provide contraction and bending, but not rotation. We show that an electrolyte-filled twist-spun carbon nanotube yarn, much thinner than a human hair, functions as a torsional artificial muscle in a simple three-electrode electrochemical system, providing a reversible 15,000° rotation and 590 revolutions per minute. A hydrostatic actuation mechanism, as seen in muscular hydrostats in nature, explains the simultaneous occurrence of lengthwise contraction and torsional rotation during the yarn volume increase caused by electrochemical double-layer charge injection. The use of a torsional yarn muscle as a mixer for a fluidic chip is demonstrated.
Mouse B-Type Lamins Are Required for Proper Organogenesis But Not by Embryonic Stem Cells

Mice lacking critical structural components of the nucleus, lamin-B intermediate filament proteins, remain viable until birth. B-type lamins, the major components of the nuclear lamina, are believed to be essential for cell proliferation and survival. We found that mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) do not need any lamins for self-renewal and pluripotency. Although genome-wide lamin-B binding profiles correlate with reduced gene expression, such binding is not directly required for gene silencing in ESCs or trophectoderm cells. However, B-type lamins are required for proper organogenesis. Defects in spindle orientation in neural progenitor cells and migration of neurons probably cause brain disorganizations found in lamin-B null mice. Thus, our studies not only disprove several prevailing views of lamin-Bs but also establish a foundation for redefining the function of the nuclear lamina in the context of tissue building and homeostasis.
Pathogen Effectors Target Arabidopsis EDS1 and Alter Its Interactions with Immune Regulators

Coordination of different defense pathways across cell compartments produces a fully effective innate immune response. Plant resistance proteins detect the presence of specific pathogen effectors and initiate effector-triggered immunity. Few immune regulators downstream of resistance proteins have been identified, none of which are known virulence targets of effectors. We show that Arabidopsis ENHANCED DISEASE SUSCEPTIBILITY1 (EDS1), a positive regulator of basal resistance and of effector-triggered immunity specifically mediated by Toll–interleukin-1 receptor–nucleotide binding–leucine-rich repeat (TIR-NB-LRR) resistance proteins, forms protein complexes with the TIR-NB-LRR disease resistance proteins RPS4 and RPS6 and with the negative immune regulator SRFR1 at a cytoplasmic membrane. Further, the cognate bacterial effectors AvrRps4 and HopA1 disrupt these EDS1 complexes. Tight association of EDS1 with TIR-NB-LRR–mediated immunity may therefore derive mainly from being guarded by TIR-NB-LRR proteins, and activation of this branch of effector-triggered immunity may directly connect to the basal resistance signaling pathway via EDS1.
Food Insecurity and Health Care Utilization Among Older Adults

This study examined the relationship between food insecurity and health care utilization (physician, inpatient, emergency room, and home health visits) among older adults. Survey data collected from Georgia Advanced Performance Outcomes Measures Project 6 linked to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (GA Advanced POMP6-CMS) data 2008 (N = 957) were analyzed. Nearly one half of the sample (48.3%) was food insecure. Food insecure individuals were significantly less likely than food secure individuals to have any physician (69.7% vs. 80.2%) and home health visits (24.9% vs. 32.3%) during 2008. However, there were no significant differences in levels of health care utilization by food secure and food insecure older adults. Food secure and food insecure older adults utilized comparable levels of health care services. Public assistance programs such as Medicare and meal services targeted toward older adults may enable economically constrained, food insecure older adults to access needed health care services.
Silica-Like Malleable Materials from Permanent Organic Networks

A polymer shows thermoset-like stability while displaying melt processability like that of a thermopolymer. Permanently cross-linked materials have outstanding mechanical properties and solvent resistance, but they cannot be processed and reshaped once synthesized. Non–cross-linked polymers and those with reversible cross-links are processable, but they are soluble. We designed epoxy networks that can rearrange their topology by exchange reactions without depolymerization and showed that they are insoluble and processable. Unlike organic compounds and polymers whose viscosity varies abruptly near the glass transition, these networks show Arrhenius-like gradual viscosity variations like those of vitreous silica. Like silica, the materials can be wrought and welded to make complex objects by local heating without the use of molds. The concept of a glass made by reversible topology freezing in epoxy networks can be readily scaled up for applications and generalized to other chemistries.
A New Histone Code for Clocks?

A histone-modifying protein drives circadian clocks in an unexpected way. The DNA of eukaryotic cells is wrapped around proteins, mainly histones, in a complex called chromatin. According to the famous histone code hypothesis of Allis and colleagues, posttranslational modifications of these histone proteins serve not necessarily to change the stability of chromatin structure, but rather as combinatorial recognition sites for the binding of other proteins that either modify chromatin or directly modulate transcription (1). Several recent articles (2–8), including that by DiTacchio et al. on page 1881 of this issue (9), show that the circadian clock that governs diurnal rhythms of physiology and behavior uses this histone code extensively. But how?
Host Proteasomal Degradation Generates Amino Acids Essential for Intracellular Bacterial Growth

The bacterial pathogen Legionella pneumophila ensures amino acid supplies by promoting degradation of target host proteins. Legionella pneumophila proliferates in environmental amoeba and human cells within the Legionella-containing vacuole (LCV). The exported AnkB F-box effector of L. pneumophila is anchored into the LCV membrane by host-mediated farnesylation. Here, we report that host proteasomal degradation of Lys48-linked polyubiquitinated proteins, assembled on the LCV by AnkB, generates amino acids required for intracellular bacterial proliferation. The severe defect of the ankB null mutant in proliferation within amoeba and human cells is rescued by supplementation of a mixture of amino acids or cysteine, serine, pyruvate, or citrate, similar to rescue by genetic complementation. Defect of the ankB mutant in intrapulmonary proliferation in mice is rescued upon injection of a mixture of amino acids or cysteine. Therefore, Legionella promotes eukaryotic proteasomal degradation to generate amino acids needed as carbon and energy sources for bacterial proliferation within evolutionarily distant hosts.
The Molecular Diversity of Adaptive Convergence

Natural Selection Caught in the Act Understanding how new functions evolve has been of long-standing interest. However, the number of mutations needed to evolve a key innovation is rarely known, or whether other sets of mutations would also suffice, whether the intermediate steps are driven by natural selection, or how contingent the outcome is on steps along the way. Meyer et al. (p. 428; see the Perspective by Thompson) answer these questions for a case in which phage lambda evolved the ability to infect its host Escherichia coli through a novel receptor. This shift required four mutations, which accumulated under natural selection in concert with coevolution of the host. However, when Tenaillon et al. (p. 457) exposed 115 lines of E. coli to high temperature and sequenced them, adaptation occurred through many different genetic paths, showing parallelism at the level of genes and interacting protein complexes, but only rarely at the nucleotide level. Thus, epistasis—nonadditive genetic interaction—is likely to play an important part in the process of adaptation to this environment. Replicate Escherichia coli lines show multiple convergent adaptations via different mutations in response to high temperature. To estimate the number and diversity of beneficial mutations, we experimentally evolved 115 populations of Escherichia coli to 42.2°C for 2000 generations and sequenced one genome from each population. We identified 1331 total mutations, affecting more than 600 different sites. Few mutations were shared among replicates, but a strong pattern of convergence emerged at the level of genes, operons, and functional complexes. Our experiment uncovered a set of primary functional targets of high temperature, but we estimate that many other beneficial mutations could contribute to similar adaptive outcomes. We inferred the pervasive presence of epistasis among beneficial mutations, which shaped adaptive trajectories into at least two distinct pathways involving mutations either in the RNA polymerase complex or the termination factor rho.
An integrated ultrasound transducer driver for HIFU applications

This paper presents for the first time an MRI-compatible integrated CMOS amplifier capable of directly driving a piezoelectric ultrasound transducer for High Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) applications. The amplifier operates in class DE mode loaded with a piezoelectric ultrasound transducer connected in parallel with a shunt capacitor. There is no need for external inductors. The integrated amplifier is implemented with the Teledyne-DALSA 0.8 μm CMOS process. Modeling of the piezoelectric transducer and amplifier design considerations are presented, followed by simulation results obtained using the Spectre simulator. The proposed design achieves over 80% efficiency with 1 W of output power at 1 MHz and an acceptable third harmonic level. The estimated die area of the amplifier is 2 mm2.
High performance silicon based Rotman lens for automotive radar applications

Design and fabrication of a silicon based microstrip Rotman lens for use in automotive collision avoidance applications is presented. The lens has 3 beam ports, 5 array ports, 16 dummy ports, and beam steering angles of ±10 degrees. 3-D full wave simulation using XFDTD™ shows better than 8 dB return loss, less than 0.5 degrees beam to array phase error and sidelobes level of less than -12 dB. The lens is fabricated on a 200 μm thick high resistivity silicon wafer. A functional test of the lens is conducted in a 77 GHz radar setup and the test results show that the lens is working fine as designed.
Transportation and Aging: An Updated Research Agenda for Advancing Safe Mobility

This article discusses what is currently known about three important topics related to older driver safety and mobility: screening and evaluation, education and training interventions, and in-vehicle technology. Progress is being made to improve the safe mobility of older adults in these key areas; however, significant research gaps remain. This article advances the state of knowledge by identifying these gaps, and proposing further research topics will improve the lives of older adults. In addition, we discuss several themes that emerged from the review, including the need for multidisciplinary, community-wide solutions; large-scale, longitudinal studies; improved education/training for both older adults themselves and the variety of stakeholders involved in older adult transportation; and programs and interventions that are flexible and responsive to individual needs and differences.
A novel memristor based integrate-and-fire neuron implementation using material implication logic

Neural network computing philosophy is proposed to model the major features of human brain and to apply neurons functionality to build Computers capable of simulating features of the brain. Memristor is a new device that stores data as memory element and perform logic operations as a computational element with low surface area and power consumption features. These characteristics of memristors have introduced them as a brilliant candidate for neural networks realization. In this paper, a threshold Integrate-and-Fire memristor based neuron is presented and is implemented by IMPLY logic with two 4-bits inputs, which is easily extendable to higher dimensions in terms of network scale and/or precision. Corresponding calculations are performed using adders and comparators, which requires 30 memristors in 131 computational steps.
Crystal Structure of the Human K2P TRAAK, a Lipid- and Mechano-Sensitive K+ Ion Channel

Potassium Permeation Two–pore domain potassium (K2P) channels conduct K+ ions across the plasma membrane of eukaryotic cells. They help to maintain the cellular resting potential and their modulation can tune cellular excitability (see the Perspective by Poulsen and Nissen). Miller and Long (p. 432) describe a high-resolution crystal structure of the human K2P channel K2P1 (TWIK-1) and Brohawn et al. (p. 436) present a high-resolution structure of the lipid and mechanosensitive human channel TRAAK. In both structures an extracellular domain constricts the channel entrance so that K+ ions reach the selectivity filter through side portals. Openings in the transmembrane region expose the central cavity to the lipid bilayer and a helix is kinked so that its C-terminal part lies in the cytosol-membrane interface. The structural features explain K2P conductance and gating and give insight into how the channels are regulated by diverse stimuli. Structural features provide a basis for understanding gating and ion conduction of these channels. TRAAK channels, members of the two–pore domain K+ (potassium ion) channel family K2P, are expressed almost exclusively in the nervous system and control the resting membrane potential. Their gating is sensitive to polyunsaturated fatty acids, mechanical deformation of the membrane, and temperature changes. Physiologically, these channels appear to control the noxious input threshold for temperature and pressure sensitivity in dorsal root ganglia neurons. We present the crystal structure of human TRAAK at a resolution of 3.8 angstroms. The channel comprises two protomers, each containing two distinct pore domains, which create a two-fold symmetric K+ channel. The extracellular surface features a helical cap, 35 angstroms tall, that creates a bifurcated pore entryway and accounts for the insensitivity of two–pore domain K+ channels to inhibitory toxins. Two diagonally opposed gate-forming inner helices form membrane-interacting structures that may underlie this channel’s sensitivity to chemical and mechanical properties of the cell membrane.