Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Serum Levels of Soluble Fas in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients Treated With Infliximab

Background. Anti−TNF−α therapy is effective in certain inflammatory arthritides and inflammatory bowel diseases. The therapeutic effect of TNF−α blockade is associated with both anti−inflammatory potential and interference with cell apoptosis. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is characterized by deregulated apoptosis of synovial cells and peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Objectives. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of a monoclonal chimeric anti−TNF−α antibody, inflix− imab, on the serum levels of soluble Fas, which is able to inhibit Fas−induced apoptosis. Material and Methods. The study group consisted of 18 RA patients treated with infliximab at a dose of 3 mg/kg intravenously according to the standard protocol. Serum samples were obtained before therapy and after infusion at weeks 0, 6, 22, and 30. Patient response to the therapy was evaluated at weeks 6 and 54 using the DAS28 index. Serum sFas levels were measured by a commercial ELISA test. Results. There was a statistically significant decrease in sFas levels after infliximab infusion (p = 0.0089, Wilcoxon test). Patients regarded as responders at week 54 had significantly higher baseline sFas levels than non−responders (sFas 0–1, p = 0.0164, Mann−Whitney test). Serum sFas level at baseline correlated with DAS28 index (Spearman’s correlation coefficient R = 0.747, p < 0.001). Conclusions. Treatment with infliximab resulted in a significant decrease in sFas level, which may exert a thera− peutic effect by removing the soluble inhibitor of cell apoptosis. Pre−treatment serum levels of sFas were signifi− cantly higher in patients who responded to the therapy, which can make it a potential prognostic marker for treat− ment response (Adv Clin Exp Med 2008, 17, 4, 411–414).
Controlling for Acute Caffeine Intake in Cardiovascular Reactivity Research

Academic) Caffeine substantially affects cardiovascular functioning, yet wide variability exists in caffeine control procedures in cardiovascular reactivity (CVR) research. This study was conducted in order to identify a minimal abstention duration in habitual coffee consumers whereby CVR is unconfounded by caffeine; Six hours was hypothesized (average half-life). Thirty nine subjects (mean age: 20.9; 20 Women) completed a repeated measures study involving hand cold pressor (CP) and memory tasks. Caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee were administered. The following CV indices were acquired during baseline, task, and recovery epochs prior to coffee intake, 30 minutes-, and six hours post-intake: Heart rate (HR), high frequency heart rate variability (hfHRV), root mean squared successive differences (RMSSD), systolic and diastolic blood pressures (SBP, DBP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), pre-ejection period (PEP), left ventricular ejection time (LVET), and total peripheral resistance (TPR). Results support the adequacy of a six-hour abstention in controlling for caffeine-elicited CVR changes. The current study contributes to methodological endeavors in psychophysiology. Further investigations are crucial in establishing ideal caffeine controls, which would promote increasingly valid and reliable cross-study results. CONTROLLING CAFFEINE iii Controlling for Acute Caffeine Intake in Cardiovascular Reactivity Research Shara Soyini Grant
Analysis of pilot-in-the-loop oscillations due to position and rate saturations

In this paper we deal with the analysis of category II (nonlinear) pilot-in-the-loop oscillations (PIO). PIO phenomena are originated by a misadaptation between the pilot and the aircraft that causes sustained or uncontrollable oscillations, which especially occur during some tasks where tight closed loop control of the aircraft is required from the pilot. Category II PIO are those oscillations that can strictly be correlated with the activation of rate and position limiter elements in the closed loop pilot-vehicle system. This kind of nonlinearity is unavoidably present in every aircraft, because of physical constraints of elements such as stick/column deflections, actuator position and rate limiters, limiters in the controller software and so on. In this paper we propose an approach, based on the describing function technique, to evaluate the nonlinear effects of the simultaneous presence of position and rate saturations in the control loop. The X-15 landing flare PIO is used as test case to demonstrate the effectiveness of the method.
Metasezgisel Optimizasyon Tekniklerine Spor Tabanlı Yeni Bir Yaklaşım: Lig Şampiyonası Algoritması

Bilinen metasezgisel yontemlerin cogu biyoloji ve fizik tabanlidir. Yakin zamanda, spor tabanli bir arama ve optimizasyon algoritmasi olan Lig Şampiyonasi Algoritmasi (LŞA) onerilmistir. LŞA, genel optimizasyon icin birkac haftalik yapay bir ligde oynayan yapay takimlar icerisindeki bir sampiyonayi taklit eden populasyon tabanli meta sezgisel optimizasyon algoritmasidir. Bu algoritmada, lig programina gore haftalik olarak mucadele edecek takim ciftlerine numara verilir ve oyunun sonucu kazanan veya kaybeden olarak belirlenir. Bir takimin oyunu kazanip veya kaybetmesi Oyun Gucu ile yakindan iliskilidir. Takimlar ileri haftalarda gerceklesecek olan oyunlari kazanabilmek icin mevcut takim olusumlarini tum sezonlar boyunca gelistirmeyi amaclarlar. Bu calismada, LŞA detayli olarak aciklanmis ve secilen kalite testi fonksiyonlarindaki performansi karsilastirmali olarak incelenmistir.
Kindergarten Robotics: Using Robotics to Motivate Math, Science, and Engineering Literacy in Elementary School*

Robotics naturally lends itself to teaching math, science, technology and engineering in the K–12 classroom. LEGO Mindstorms makes it easy for students even in kindergarten to design and build their own robotic creations. However, the key to bringing engineering into K–12 through robotics is educating teachers on the content, how to use the materials, and how open-ended design problems can be effective in the classroom. This paper details the Tufts University Center for Engineering Educational Outreach’s theoretical framework, motivations, and efforts involved in bringing engineering via LEGO robotics into every kindergarten through fifth-grade classroom in one school through the Systemic School Change in Engineering Project. Preliminary results and recommendations are presented.
A small humanoid robot SDR-4X for entertainment applications

In this paper we describe a new small humanoid type robot, SDR-4X, for entertainment purpose. Comparing the previous version of SDR-3X, we further expand its ability of human interaction and robust adaptability in home environment. The main technical feature of SDR-4X is four folds: (1) a Real-time Integrated Adaptive Motion Control, (2) the "SDR Motion Creator ", for development of SDR's attractive motion performances, (3) "Real-time real-world Space Perception", and (4) "Multimodal Human Robot Interaction". Overview of these technologies and its performance are presented in this paper.
State synchronous modeling of audio-visual information for bi-modal speech recognition

There has been a higher demand recently for automatic speech recognition (ASR) systems able to operate robustly in acoustically noisy environments. This paper proposes a method to integrate audio and visual information effectively in audio-visual (bi-modal) ASR systems. Such integration inevitably necessitates modeling of the synchronization of the audio and visual information. To address the time lag and correlation problems in individual features between speech and lip movements, we introduce a type of integrated HMM modeling of audio-visual information based on HMM composition. The proposed model can represent state synchronicity, not only within a phoneme, but also between phonemes. Evaluation experiments show that the proposed method improves the recognition accuracy for noisy speech.
Comparative Evaluation of Cocoa Bean Husk, Ginger and Chlorhexidine Mouth Washes in the Reduction of Steptococcus Mutans and Lactobacillus Count in Saliva: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Introduction Dental caries is a ubiquitous bacterial infection that has afflicted people for years. Streptococci mutans (S. mutans) are markers of dental caries and the population of S. mutans in the saliva is directly related to the number of surfaces colonized by them. Any intervention that can inhibit their growth and survival will negatively impact the initiation and progress of caries. Various antimicrobial agents have been tested against these microorganisms. The goal of this study was to assess the efficacy of cocoa bean husk, ginger, and chlorhexidine mouth rinse on S. mutans and Lactobacillus. Materials and methods We conducted a randomized controlled trial involving patients aged 18 to 25 years from July to September 2018. The study population was allocated into three groups. Each group received either cocoa bean, ginger, or chlorhexidine mouth rinses. The study followed a Latin square design. Study participants were instructed to use the assigned mouth rinse once daily for seven days. We collected saliva samples to measure S. mutans and Lactobacillus populations. Results Cocoa bean husk and chlorhexidine rinses produced a significant reduction of S. mutans (p < 0.05). The ginger-based rinse significantly reduced the Lactobacillus population (p < 0.05). Conclusion Our findings indicate these natural mouth rinses offer promising anticariogenic and antiplaque efficacy as cost-effective alternatives to traditional mouth rinses.
SMART START: RITUXIMAB, LENALIDOMIDE, AND IBRUTINIB ALONE PRIOR TO COMBINATION WITH CHEMOTHERAPY FOR PATIENTS WITH NEWLY DIAGNOSED DIFFUSE LARGE B‐CELL LYMPHOMA

tional immunochemotherapy treatment administered every 14 (RCHOP14) or 21 days (R-CHOP21) in two cohorts (testing and validation sets) of DLBCL patients. Here, we report results of the testing set. Methods: The testing set included 141 DLBCL patients treated with R-CHOP14 in the prospective SAKK38/07 study with available baseline PET/CT data. The lymphoma lesions were segmented by a fixed threshold algorithm, with a 2.5 SUVmax value as cut-off to estimate the metabolic tumor volume (MTV). Maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax), and total lesion glycolysis (TLG) were estimated. MH was also measured using the area under the curve of cumulative SUVvolume histogram (AUC-CSH). The optimal MTV cut off values to discriminate subgroups with different progression free (PFS) and overall survival (OS) have been defined by ROC curves analysis. Cell of origin was determined by immunohistochemistry (Hans algorithm). Results: After a median follow-up of 63 months, 30 progressions and 23 deaths were recorded. Among quantitative PET parameters baseline MTV was the most powerful predictor of outcome (Cox model p< 0.001 for PFS and OS). At 5 years, PFS was 83% for patients with low MTV vs. 59% for those with high MTV (log-rank test, p=0.0005). OS was 91% vs. 64%, respectively (log-rank test, p=0.0001). High MTV values predicted shorter PFS only in patients with non-germinal center B (GCB) subtype (n = 84) but not in patients with GCB subtype (n = 29) (log-rank test p = 0.006 vs. 0.7). In patients with high MTV, the presence of high MH increased the prognostic discrimination and the combined analysis of MTV and MH demonstrated that increased values of these two parameters might be used to identify patients with different risk of progression (Figure 1). Patients with both high MTV and high MH had a 5-years PFS of 42%, while those with both low MTV and low MH had a 5-year PFS of 83% (log-rank p< 0.0001). Conclusions: Baseline MTV is a powerful predictor of clinical outcomes in patients with DLBCL treated with R-CHOP. High MTV values predict a worse response to treatment especially in patients with non-GCB subtype. A prognostic model based on the combination of MTV and MH may allow the early identification of patients at high risk of disease progression following conventional treatment. The validation of these results in an independent retrospective cohort of patients treated with R-CHOP21 is ongoing and full data will be presented.
Acute phase markers in rheumatology practice

Ç›kar çak›flmas› / Conflicts of interest: Ç›kar çak›flmas› bulunmad›¤› belirtilmifltir. / No conflicts declared. www.romatolojidergisi. org doi:10.2399/raed.19. 42714 Karekod / QR code: ‹nsan vücudunun enfeksiyonlar, inflamatuvar romatolojik hastal›klar, alerjik ilaç reaksiyonlar›, cerrahi giriflimler ya da travmalar sonras›nda verdi¤i yan›ta akut faz yan›t› ad› verilir. Bu yan›t s›ras›nda kanda düzeyi artan ya da azalan kimyasallara akut faz proteinleri (AFP) ad› verilir. Akut faz yan›t›n›n birçok komponenti ve farkl› kontrol mekanizmalar› vard›r. ‹nflamatuar uyar› sonucu geliflen akut faz yan›t› ile do¤al ve adaptif immun sistem aktive olur. AFP’nin büyük ço¤unlu¤u IL-1, IL-6 ve TNF gibi sitokinlerin uyar›s›yla hepatositlerden sal›n›r. AFP’yi kandaki düzeylerine göre pozitif AFP (düzeyi artan) ve negatif AFP (düzeyi azalan) olarak ikiye ay›rabiliriz. Akut faz yan›t› s›ras›nda kanda düzeyi artan en önemli AFP’ler; CRP, fibrinojen, alfa1 antitripsin, haptoglobulin, seruloplazmin, serum amiloid A (SAA) ve kompleman 3’tür. Eritrosit sedimentasyon h›z› (ESH) inflamasyonu dolayl› yoldan gösteren bir belirteçtir. CRP, SAA ve prokalsitonin inflamasyonu tespit etmek için kullan›lan daha spesifik testlerdir. Prokalsitonin özellikle bakteriyel enfeksiyonlar›n takibinde enfeksiyon hastal›klar› kliniklerinde s›k olarak kullan›lmaktad›r. SAA, CRP gibi inflamasyonu saptamada oldukça spesifik olsa da pahal› olmas› nedeniyle rutin pratikte öncelikle tercih edilmemektedir. Akut faz belirteçleri, her ne kadar akut belirteç olarak isimlendirilseler de hem akut hem de kronik inflamasyonda yükselme gösterirler. Klinik pratikte kolay ulafl›labildikleri ve ucuz olduklar› için en s›k kullan›lan akut faz yan›t› belirteçleri ESH ve CRP’dir.
An instrument to measure the dimensions of skin wounds

A new instrument based on the principle of color-coded structured light has been developed to measure the area, volume, and color of skin ulcers and pressure sores. A set of parallel stripes of alternating colors is projected onto the ulcerated skin and recorded by a CCD camera. The color, width, distance, and coding of the stripes have been adjusted to maximize the precision of the instrument. Algorithms have been developed to extract the stripes and determine their centers to better than 0.1 mm, even under circumstances where the skin reflectivity varies widely over short distances. A depth map for the ulcerated skin is calculated by triangulation. The volume of the ulcer is that sandwiched between the base of the lesion and the original healthy skin, which is simulated by a cubic spline interpolation between the surrounding areas of healthy skin. The instrument measures the ulcer's volume with a precision of about 5% provided the ratio of the ulcer's volume to area is greater than 0.4 cm. The technique has been used in hospital clinics for a wide variety of wounds. >
The effectiveness of group trauma management therapy on the reduction of traumatic bereavement symptoms in bereaved female senior high school students

Background and aims: One of the important issues that bereaved students are faced with is the symptoms that they experience after the death of their loved one. Consequently, this can reduce their performance in various aspects of life, including education. The present study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of group trauma management therapy (GTMT) in reducing the traumatic bereavement symptoms of bereaved female students. Methods: This study was an experimental research with pretest-posttest control group design. The statistical population of the present study included all the bereaved senior high school female students of Iranshahr in the school year of 2016-2017. Forty subjects were selected among the whole population using the simple random sampling method. After conducting a clinical interview, to confirm the symptoms of bereavement, the selected individuals were randomly assigned to two experimental group (n=20) and control group (n=20). The Hogan Grief Reaction Checklist (HGRC) was used to collect the data. To analyze the obtained data, the descriptive statistics and multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) tests were applied using SPSS software. Results: The results indicated the effectiveness of trauma management therapy (TMT) in decreasing despair (P<0.001), panic (P<0.001), anger and blame (P<0.001), detachment (P<0.001), disorganization (P<0.001), and personal growth (P<0.001). Conclusion: Considering the effect of GTMT on the reduction of traumatic bereavement symptoms among bereaved students, this method can be used as an effective treatment for relieving and reducing the traumatic bereavement symptoms.
Hemodialysis as a Risk Factor for Ceftriaxone‐Associated Pseudolithiasis in Adults

Ceftriaxone‐associated biliary pseudolithiasis is common among children; however, there are only a few reports of pseudolithiasis in adult patients on HD. This retrospective cohort study included 278 adult patients on ceftriaxone therapy from 1 February 2016 to 1 September 2018. Pseudolithiasis was defined as a new development of sludge or stones in the gallbladder within 60 days of ceftriaxone therapy. After excluding patients with preexisting gallstones and a history of cholecystectomy, 113 patients on maintenance HD, and another 98 patients were enrolled as the HD and control group, respectively. Thirteen patients developed pseudolithiasis. Its incidence was significantly higher in the HD group than that in the control group. Multivariate logistic regression analyses showed that development of pseudolithiasis was significantly associated with HD and ceftriaxone dose. Therefore, HD in patients receiving ceftriaxone therapy appears to be associated with a risk of pseudolithiasis. These findings highlight the need for careful follow‐up.
STUDY OF BODY COMPOSITION AMONG MALE AND FEMALE SOFTBALL PLAYERS

The purpose of this study was to examine body composition components among softball players and to compare body composition components among male and female softball players. Total 150 male and 150 female softball players from the various states and universities of India were selected to participate in the study. Height of the players was measured with the anthropometric rod. Portable weighing machine was used to measure the weight of the players. Harpenden skinfold caliper was used to assess the skinfold thicknesses. The results revealed that the female softball players had significantly higher percent body fat (p < 0.05) total body fat (p < 0.05) as compared to male softball players whereas the male softball players had significantly greater lean body mass (p < 0.05) than the female softball players. In conclusion, female softball players possess higher amount of body fat as compared to their male counterparts. Article visualizations:
Nutrition in Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic inflammatory autoimmune disease of unknown etiology, resulting in the progressive destruction of cartilage and bone resulting in structural destruction and functional impotence Purpose: The purpose of this work is to highlight the contribution of diet to rheumatoid arthritis. Methodology: The material in the study was articles on the subject that were found mainly in electronic databases such as Medline, PubMed, Google Scholar, and the Hellenic Academic Libraries Association (HEAL-Link). Results: Nutrition can play an important role in preventing the onset of the disease as it is directly related to improving bone mass and maintaining bone and joints. Of particular importance are the contribution of various nutrients, vitamins and antioxidants to reducing the risk of fractures, inflammation and pain and energy consumption. Conclusions: Proper information of patients on the disease and the available therapeutic methods can make a significant contribution to their activation and activation for participation in various therapies that will contribute significantly to the control of the disease with as few consequences as possible.
Efficient keyboard layouts for sequential access in augmentative and alternative communication

The study evaluated the efficiency, measured in typing speed (duration/character) and communication rate (sentence completion time and words/minute), of eight different keyboard layouts using a sequential scanning access method. The two 12-key keyboards tested contained three characters on each key with the second and third characters accessed with a two-key combination. Simulated conversational utterances were used as input to the keyboards and a custom computer program calculated the time and keystroke requirements of each keyboard for each sentence. The 43-key letter-frequency-based arrangement was the most efficient among the keyboards tested, followed closely by 12-key letter-frequency, 43-key alphabetical, and 12- key alphabetical keyboards. The modified QWERTY keyboards were, in comparison, grossly less efficient. The results also show that row-column scanning is nearly twice as fast as linear scanning for all keyboards. Implications of these findings for clinicians and for augmentative and alterna.
Customer satisfaction using website functionality, perceived usability and perceived usefulness towards online shopping in India

The purpose of this research is to understand and analyze the role of perceived usability and perceived usefulness influencing customer satisfaction towards online shopping in India. Findings of the study reveal that website functionality has a significant and positive impact on perceived usability. Additionally, perceived usefulness and perceived usability has a positive impact on customer satisfaction. The scale has been extended to include satisfaction with the ‘Cash-on-delivery’ mode of payment being adopted by Asian countries. This paper builds a foundation for researchers to extend online retailing research in developing countries where the switch over to Internet shopping is more of a recent phenomenon as compared to its adoption by developed countries.
BK Virus Viremia in the First Days After Bone Marrow Transplantation: A Case-Control Study

Background: Reactivation of BK virus (BKV), viremia is a major clinical complication in transplant recipients. There are many studies of BKV infection among tissue transplant recipients, especially renal-transplant recipients. Although the presence of BKV in patients’ urine occurs frequently, the detection of BKV in the blood of transplant recipients, especially after bone marrow transplantation (BMT), is less studied. Objectives: The aim of this study was to detect BKV in 54 blood samples of BMT recipients in the first days after transplantation. Methods: This case-control study was performed in a university-affiliated hospital, Tehran, Iran, from October 2017 to October 2018. Blood samples were collected from 54 hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients, and 54 healthy subjects without any tissue transplantation, and tested daily for BKV DNA using the quantitative real-time PCR technique. Results: In this study, two patients (3.7%) developed BK viremia at a median of 10 days (range: 1 10 days) after BMT, while none of the control subjects was positive for BKV in blood samples. The analysis of data showed no significant difference between the case and control groups (CI: 0.986 1.094, P < 0.153). Conclusions: Our data suggest that BKV viremia involved in active infection may not occur in the first days after BMT. This finding can affect controlling and managing BMT patients.