Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Early Referral for Ablation of Scar-Related Ventricular Tachycardia Is Associated With Improved Acute and Long-Term Outcomes: Results From the Heart Center of Leipzig Ventricular Tachycardia Registry

Background—The effects of time to referral for catheter ablation (CA) of scar-related ventricular tachycardia (VT) on acute success, VT recurrence, and cardiac mortality are unclear. Methods and Results—We investigated 300 patients after CA of sustained VT. CA was performed within 30 days after the first documented VT in 75 (25%) patients (group 1), between 1 month and 1 year in 84 (28%) patients (group 2), and >1 year after the first VT occurrence in 141 (47%) patients (group 3). The end points were noninducibility of any VT after CA (acute success), VT recurrence and cardiac mortality after 2 years. Acute success was achieved in 66 (88%) patients in group 1, 68 (81%) in group 2, and in 99 (70.2%) in group 3 (P=0.008). During the 2-year follow-up period, VT recurred in 28 (37.3%) patients in group 1, 52 (61.9%) patients in group 2, and 91 (64.5%) patients in group 3 (P<0.0001). Recurrence-free survival was higher in group 1, as compared with group 2 (hazard ratio [HR], 1.85; P=0.009) and group 3 (HR, 2.04; P=0.001). No survival difference was observed between groups 1 and 2 (HR, 0.85; P=0.68) and groups 1 and 3 (HR, 1.13; P=0.73). &bgr;-blocker therapy, VT of ischemic origin, and complete success were associated with VT-free survival. VT recurrence (HR, 1.91; P=0.037) predicted cardiac mortality. Conclusions—CA of scar-related VT performed within 30 days after the first documented VT was associated with improved acute and long-term success. VT recurrence, but not the early referral for CA, was associated with cardiovascular mortality.
Developmental exposure of rats to a reconstituted PCB mixture or aroclor 1254: effects on organ weights, aromatase activity, sex hormone levels, and sweet preference behavior.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are lipophilic industrial chemicals which are regularly detected in human breast milk, serum, and tissues. They possess hormone-modulating properties, and, when transferred transplacentally to the developing fetus, PCBs have been shown to induce persistent sex-specific neurobehavioral deficits. Interactions of PCBs with sex steroid-modulated neural differentiation could in part account for such effects. To test this hypothesis, female Long-Evans rats were exposed via food containing 40 mg/kg of either a reconstituted PCB mixture (RM), composed according to the congener-pattern in human breast milk, or the technical PCB mixture Aroclor 1254 (A1254). The exposure period started 50 days prior to mating and was terminated at birth (postnatal day 0: PND 0). Aromatase (CYP 19) activity was determined in hypothalamus/preoptic area (HPOA) brain-sections from newborn male pups. This enzyme converts testosterone (T) to 17beta-estradiol (E(2)) and plays a key role in sexual brain differentiation. Moreover, serum concentrations of T and E(2), physical development, organ weights, exposure levels, and sex-specific behavior were evaluated at different life stages. On PND 0, a reduced aromatase activity was detected in the HPOA of male RM-pups compared to controls. Female RM-weanlings exhibited significantly elevated uterine wet weights on PND 21, which is a marker for estrogenic activity. In the adult stage (PND 170), male offspring with maternal exposure to either PCB mixture showed markedly reduced testes weights and serum testosterone levels, thus demonstrating persistent antiandrogenic effects. On PND 180, male RM-rats exhibited a behavioral feminization in a sweet preference test, suggesting long-lasting changes in neuronal brain organization caused by the perinatally suppressed aromatase activity. The results suggest that maternal exposure to the RM, the pattern of which is similar to the PCB spectrum in human milk, results in more distinct effects on sex steroid-dependent processes and behavior than the technical PCB mixture A1254. PCB levels in brain and adipose tissue of the exposed offspring lay within 1-2 orders of magnitude above background concentrations in humans.
Clinical laboratory evaluation of the Abbott MS-2 automated antimicrobial susceptibility testing system: report of a collaborative study

The MS-2 system (Abbott Diagnostics, Division of Abbott Laboratories, Dallas, Tex.) was evaluated for its efficacy in determining the susceptibilities of both clinical and selected challenge (nonfastidious, facultative, and aerobic) isolates. The MS-2 results were compared with standard Kirby-Bauer disk diffusion and microdilution results by using fresh clinical isolates. For gram-positive isolates other than enterococci, overall agreement between MS-2 and reference results was 93 to 98%. With enterococci, MS-2 agreement with disk diffusion was 68% but with microdilution was 86% (agreement between disk diffusion and microdilution was 73%). The main discrepancies with enterococci were with cephalothin, penicillin, gentamicin, and kanamycin. With clinical gram-negative isolates, the overall agreement was 91 to 93%, with most discrepancies occurring with Enterobacter spp. and beta-lactam antibiotics (MS-2 versus disk diffusion, 84%; MS-2 versus microdilution, 84%; disk diffusion versus microdilution, 87%) and with Serratia spp. and colistin (false-susceptible results). The agreement of MS-2 results with established reference antibiograms of a special collection of challenge strains was 91 to 97% for the gram-positive cocci and 86 to 98% for the gram-negative strains. (With Enterobacter spp., agreement was 86%, but was greater than 90% for all other organism groups.) Of the 98 finite MS-2 minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) that could be directly compared with microdilution MICs, 77 (79%) were within +/- 1 well of the geometric mean microdilution MIC. MS-2 analysis time ranged from 2.8 to 6.5 h (mean, 4.2 h). On the basis of these results, we conclude that the MS-2 can be expected to yield rapid and accurate results with most nonfastidious, facultative, and aerobic pathogens.
Effects of Alprazolam on Respiratory Drive, Anxiety, and Dyspnea in Chronic Airflow Obstruction: A Case Study

Alprazolam, an anxiolytic benzodiazepine, has a pharmacologic profile similar to that of diazepam. An intermediate half‐life of 10–12 hours and a comparatively brief duration of activity relative to other anxiolytic benzodiazepines justified evaluation of a 0.5–mg test dose in an anxious patient with chronic obstructive lung disease. Subjective indexes, breath‐by‐breath respiratory drive response to hypercapnia, and blood alprazolam concentrations were determined before and after dosing. Subjective testing included a visual analog dyspnea scale, the state anxiety inventory, and subjective feelings visual analog scales (represented by alertness, calmness, and level of contentment). After dosing, the patient was better able to tolerate the rebreathing study technique. Statistically significant improvements in dyspnea (t — 10.20; p0.0005), anxiety (t — 45.85; p < 0.0001), alertness (t — 13.04; p < 0.0001), cententedness (t — 12.27; p < 0.0001), and calmness (t — 8.05; p < 0.0001) occurred after alprazolam administration. Drive to breathe, as determined by mouth occlusion pressure and minute ventilation, was not statistically different before and after dosing. No adverse effects were reported or observed. Further study is warranted.
Comparison of the Molecular Forms of the Cholinesterases in Tissues of Normal and Dystrophic Chickens

Abstract: The levels and molecular forms of acetylcholinesterase (AChE, EC 3.1.1.7) and pseudocholinesterase (ΦChE, EC 3.1.1.8) were examined in various skeletal muscles, cardiac muscles, and neural tissues from normal and dystrophic chickens. The relative amount of the heavy (Hc) form of AChE in mixed‐fibre‐type twitch muscles varies in proportion to the percentage of glycolytic fast‐twitch fibres. Conversely, muscles with higher levels of oxidative fibres (i.e., slow‐tonic, oxidative‐glycolytic fast‐twitch, or oxidative slow‐twitch) have higher proportions of the light (L) form of AChE. The effects of dystrophy on AChE and ΦChE are more severe in muscles richer in glycolytic fast‐twitch fibres (e.g., pectoral or posterior latissimus dorsi, PLD); there is no alteration of AChE or ΦChE in a slow‐tonic muscle. In the pectoral or PLD muscles from older dystrophic chickens, however, the AChE forms revert to a normal distribution while the ΦChE pattern remains abnormal. Muscle ΦChE is sensitive to collagenase in a similar way as is AChE, thus apparently having a similar tailed structure. Unlike skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle has very high levels of ΦChE, present mainly as the L form; AChE is present mainly as the medium (M) form, with smaller amounts of L and Hc. The latter pattern of AChE forms resembles that seen in several neural tissues examined. No alterations in AChE or ΦChE were found in cardiac or neural tissues from dystrophic chickens.
Revisiting Finance and Growth in Transition Economies - A Panel Causality Approach

This article provides new evidence on the relationship between financial development and economic growth in 15 Eastern European countries between 1994 and 2014. The analysis employs a panel Granger causality framework that is based on seemingly unrelated regression systems and Wald tests with country-specific bootstrap critical values. By relying on several financial development indicators, we find that finance primarily follows GDP per capita in transition economies, supporting a demand-driven hypothesis. In contrast, financial development in the form of financial monetization and credit extension exerts in the majority of countries a negative impact on economic growth. Moreover, a strong foreign bank presence seems to positively impact growth, presumably driven by more efficiency and prudential lending behavior.
Nitrous oxide emission by aquatic macrofauna

A large variety of aquatic animals was found to emit the potent greenhouse gas nitrous oxide when nitrate was present in the environment. The emission was ascribed to denitrification by ingested bacteria in the anoxic animal gut, and the exceptionally high N2O-to-N2 production ratio suggested delayed induction of the last step of denitrification. Filter- and deposit-feeding animal species showed the highest rates of nitrous oxide emission and predators the lowest, probably reflecting the different amounts of denitrifying bacteria in the diet. We estimate that nitrous oxide emission by aquatic animals is quantitatively important in nitrate-rich aquatic environments like freshwater, coastal marine, and deep-sea ecosystems. The contribution of this source to overall nitrous oxide emission from aquatic environments might further increase because of the projected increase of nitrate availability in tropical regions and the numeric dominance of filter- and deposit-feeders in eutrophic ecosystems.
Pathogenicity and protective activity in pregnant goats of a Brucella melitensis Deltaomp25 deletion mutant.

The Brucella melitensis mutant BM 25, which lacks the major 25 kDa outer membrane protein Omp25, has previously been found to be attenuated in the murine brucellosis model. In the present study, the capacity of the Deltaomp25 mutant to colonise and cause abortions in the caprine host was evaluated. The vaccine potential of BM 25 was also investigated in goats. Inoculation of nine pregnant goats in late gestation with the B. melitensis mutant resulted in 0/9 abortions, while the virulent parental strain, B. melitensis 16M, induced 6/6 dams to abort (P<0.001, n=6). BM 25 also colonised fewer adults (P<0.05, n=6) and kids (P<0.01, n=6) than strain 16M. The Deltaomp25 mutant was found capable of transient in vivo colonisation of non-pregnant goats for two weeks post-infection. Owing to the ability of BM 25 to colonise both non-pregnant and pregnant adults without inducing abortions, a vaccine efficacy study was performed. Vaccination of goats prior to breeding with either BM 25 or the current caprine vaccine B. melitensis strain Rev. 1 resulted in 100 per cent protection against abortion following challenge in late gestation with virulent strain 16M (P<0.05, n=7). However, unlike strain Rev. 1, BM 25 does not appear to cause abortions in late gestation based on this study with a small number of animals. The B. melitensis Deltaomp25 mutant, BM 25, may be a safe and efficacious alternative to strain Rev. 1 when dealing with goat herds of mixed age and pregnancy status.
An Ergot Alkaloid Biosynthesis Gene and Clustered Hypothetical Genes from Aspergillus fumigatus

ABSTRACT The ergot alkaloids are a family of indole-derived mycotoxins with a variety of significant biological activities. Aspergillus fumigatus, a common airborne fungus and opportunistic human pathogen, and several fungi in the relatively distant taxon Clavicipitaceae (clavicipitaceous fungi) produce different sets of ergot alkaloids. The ergot alkaloids of these divergent fungi share a four-member ergoline ring but differ in the number, type, and position of the side chains. Several genes required for ergot alkaloid production are known in the clavicipitaceous fungi, and these genes are clustered in the genome of the ergot fungus Claviceps purpurea. We investigated whether the ergot alkaloids of A. fumigatus have a common biosynthetic and genetic origin with those of the clavicipitaceous fungi. A homolog of dmaW, the gene controlling the determinant step in the ergot alkaloid pathway of clavicipitaceous fungi, was identified in the A. fumigatus genome. Knockout of dmaW eliminated all known ergot alkaloids from A. fumigatus, and complementation of the mutation restored ergot alkaloid production. Clustered with dmaW in the A. fumigatus genome are sequences corresponding to five genes previously proposed to encode steps in the ergot alkaloid pathway of C. purpurea, as well as additional sequences whose deduced protein products are consistent with their involvement in the ergot alkaloid pathway. The corresponding genes have similarities in their nucleotide sequences, but the orientations and positions within the cluster of several of these genes differ. The data indicate that the ergot alkaloid biosynthetic capabilities in A. fumigatus and the clavicipitaceous fungi had a common origin.
Changing epidemiology of measles in Africa.

BACKGROUND In Africa before the introduction of measles vaccination, measles primarily affected young children. To describe measles epidemiology in Africa since the start of accelerated measles control activities in 2001, we analyzed regional measles case-based surveillance data for 2002-2009. METHODS Country-years were grouped by 10-year moving average of routine measles vaccination coverage (aMCV1). Age was log transformed, and pair-wise comparisons of means were made. A χ(2) test was used to assess association between coverage and age groups. Cumulative percent curves and percentiles of age, dot plots with Loess curve, and Spearman rank correlation coefficient were calculated. RESULTS Of 180,284 suspected cases, 73,009 (41%) were confirmed as measles. Of these, the mean age was 79 months (median, 36 months; interquartile range, 16-96 months) and significantly younger in country-years with <50% aMCV1 than those with 50%-74% aMCV1 (P=.03) and ≥75% (P=.02). With increasing coverage, there was a slight decrease in age in the 10th and 25th and moderate increase in age in the 50th, 75th, and 90th percentiles. CONCLUSIONS During 2002-2009, the median age of confirmed measles was 36 months. In countries with ≥50% aMCV1 coverage compared with low-coverage countries, age shifted to older children and young adults; for infants, age decreased slightly with higher coverage.
Dapper 1 Antagonizes Wnt Signaling by Promoting Dishevelled Degradation*

Wnt signaling plays pivotal roles in the regulation of embryogenesis and cancer development. Xenopus Dapper (Dpr) was identified as an interacting protein for Dishevelled (Dvl), a Wnt signaling mediator, and modulates Wnt signaling. However, it is largely unclear how Dpr regulates Wnt signaling. Here, we present evidence that human Dpr1, the ortholog of Xenopus Dpr, inhibits Wnt signaling. We have identified the regions responsible for the Dpr-Dvl interaction in both proteins and found that the interaction interface is formed between the DEP (Dishevelled, Egl-10, and pleckstrin) domain of Dvl and the central and the C-terminal regions of Dpr1. The inhibitory function of human Dpr1 requires both its N and C terminus. Overexpression of the C-terminal region corresponding to the last 225 amino acids of Dpr1, in contrast to wild-type Dpr1, enhances Wnt signaling, suggesting a dominant negative function of this region. Furthermore, we have shown that Dpr1 induces Dvl degradation via a lysosome inhibitor-sensitive and proteasome inhibitor-insensitive mechanism. Knockdown of Dpr1 by RNA interference up-regulates endogenous Dvl2 protein. Taken together, our data indicate that the inhibitory activity of Dpr on Wnt signaling is conserved from Xenopus to human and that Dpr1 antagonizes Wnt signaling by inducing Dvl degradation.
CollegeCare: A location-based game for university maintenance

Leveraging the game-changer concept of crowdsourcing during the recent years has been fueled a broad range of scientific and operational disciplines to introduce more efficient solutions. Principally, in this approach wisdom of crowds are taken as a comprehensive and widely-accepted solution for a specific problem. In this regard, employing such a (partly collaborative) model can lead to increased participants' satisfactory level in some application area. Besides its context-specific and usually computational applications, one of the interesting scenarios to benefiting from crowdsourcing is to collect opinions, insights and knowledge of individuals within a system, e.g. a city, in order to manage and maintenance of that. When it comes to urban planning and related domains, such type of knowledge usually referred to as Citizen Science. Following this experienced approach, in this paper a location-based game, entitled CollegeCare, with the aim of attracting participation of students for maintenance and repair of (their) university facilities is introduced. According to the best practices and initial experiment, the authors believe that by using this approach, it is possible to solve university planning and management issues in a collaborative and efficient manner.
Te Inclusions in CZT Detectors: New Method for Correcting Their Adverse Effects

Both Te inclusions and point defects can trap the charge carriers generated by ionizing particles in CdZnTe (CZT) detectors. The amount of charge trapped by point defects is proportional to the carriers' drift time and can be corrected electronically. In the case of Te inclusions, the charge loss depends upon their random locations with respect to the electron cloud. Consequently, inclusions introduce fluctuations in the charge signals, which cannot be easily corrected. In this paper, we describe direct measurements of the cumulative effect of Te inclusions and its influence on the response of CZT detectors of different thicknesses and different sizes and concentrations of Te inclusions. We also discuss a means of partially correcting their adverse effects.
Motion planning via optimization of risk quantified by collision velocity accompanied with AEB activation

Risk predictive driving is essential to maintain safety while passing a parked vehicle, which is one of typical high risk traffic situations because a pedestrian might suddenly dart out from behind the parked vehicle. Aiming at generating a vehicle motion for risk predictive driving, first, a novel risk quantification method based on collision velocity accompanied with AEB (Automatic Emergency Braking) is presented via a simulated pedestrian darting out from behind the parked vehicle. Next, a preliminary investigation is conducted to show the effectiveness of the presented risk quantification on motion planning for risk predictive driving. The generated motion shows good consistency with actual safe driving data measured in same situations.
[Abnormal epithelial differentiation and tear film alteration in pterygium].

OBJECTIVE To investigate the differentiation and proliferation of the conjunctival epithelium and tear film function in pterygia. METHODS It was a retrospective study. Fifteen patients (15 eyes) who underwent excision for pterygium were enrolled in this study. Immunostaining for K10, K14, K19, MUC5AC, K16, Ki67 and P63 was performed on the pterygial epithelium and normal conjunctival epithelium. Schirmer I test was performed, and the tear film break-up time (BUT) was evaluated just prior to and 6 months after surgery. Multi-factor regression analysis was assessed to observe if there is a correlation between pterygial growth and tear film function. RESULTS The average absorbency of K19 and MUC5AC immuno-staining all significantly changed (3727.86 ± 2544.73 vs. 25 528.00 ± 12 901.06, 2080.48 ± 2340.17 vs. 7182.51 ± 3069.20, t = 9.261,3.538, P < 0.05), and increased in K10 and K14 in patients with pterygia compared with normal conjunctivae keratin (2017.51 ± 2114.3 vs. 0, 6027.5 ± 1058.32 vs. 2123.28 ± 1249.09, t = -6.151, P < 0.05). Furthermore, pterygial epithelium showed activated proliferation, evidenced by significantly up-regulated expression of K16, P63 and Ki67 compared to normal control. The Schirmer I test did not indicate any significant differences pre- and post-operatively. However, the BUT was significantly prolonged 1 month post surgery compared to pre-surgery (t = -4.222, P < 0.05). CONCLUSION This study indicates that abnormal epithelial differentiation and proliferation are present in pterygium , which is characterized by squamous metaplasia, accompanied with instability of tear film and normal basic tear secretion.
Réseaux et territoires au rythme des mutations technologiques : une modélisation géoéconomique simple

Les grands systemes en reseaux sujets a un progres technique soutenu, comme les reseaux de communication electronique fixes et mobiles, donnent lieu, avec une periodicite d’une ou quelques dizaines d’annees, a une succession de generations, chacune se substituant a la precedente, telle la generation nG de telephonie mobile a la generation (n-1)G, ou la fibre optique au cuivre dans le reseau de telephonie fixe. Ce phenomene affecte en realite de nombreux reseaux, notamment de transport et d’energie, pour peu qu’on les observe sur une echelle de temps adaptee, par exemple seculaire. Cet article vise a developper une modelisation geoeconomique simple de l’impact socioeconomique que la transition d’une generation technologique a la suivante exerce sur : (i) l’accessibilite fournie a la population dans diverses zones du territoire differenciees selon leur densite demographique ; (ii) la fracture sociotechnique separant les accedants a la generation la plus recente des non-accedants ; (iii) la dependance systemique creee par l’irreversibilite de la transition. Prenant en compte la variation spatiale des couts de connexion, le modele revele en particulier que la planification optimale du deploiement d’une technologie nouvelle peut conduire a ne pas installer celle-ci dans les zones les plus reculees du territoire, si la technologie preexistante y est suffisamment resiliente ou ameliorable, ou encore si elle est remplacable par une technologie tierce dont le cout de mise en œuvre est peu dependant de la distance, tel le satellite dans le domaine des communications electroniques. L’originalite de notre approche reside en un mariage des concepts economiques et geographiques, en vue de construire une maquette stylisee qui eclaire les enjeux d’une action conjointe des ingenieurs et des amenageurs au cours d’un cycle de renouvellement technologique.