Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Míranos! Look at us, we are healthy! An environmental approach to early childhood obesity prevention.

BACKGROUND Obesity prevention research is sparse in young children at risk for obesity. This study tested the effectiveness of a culturally tailored, multicomponent prevention intervention to promote healthy weight gain and gross motor development in low-income preschool age children. METHODS Study participants were predominantly Mexican-American children (n = 423; mean age = 4.1; 62% in normal weight range) enrolled in Head Start. The study was conducted using a quasi-experimental pretest/posttest design with two treatment groups and a comparison group. A center-based intervention included an age-appropriate gross motor program with structured outdoor play, supplemental classroom activities, and staff development. A combined center- and home-based intervention added peer-led parent education to create a broad supportive environment in the center and at home. Primary outcomes were weight-based z-scores and raw scores of gross motor skills of the Learning Achievement Profile Version 3. RESULTS Favorable changes occurred in z-scores for weight (one-tailed p < 0.04) for age and gender among children in the combined center- and home-based intervention compared to comparison children at posttest. Higher gains of gross motor skills were found in children in the combined center- and home-based (p < 0.001) and the center-based intervention (p < 0.01). Children in both intervention groups showed increases in outdoor physical activity and consumption of healthy food. Process evaluation data showed high levels of protocol implementation fidelity and program participation of children, Head Start staff, and parents. CONCLUSION The study demonstrated great promise in creating a health-conducive environment that positively impacts weight and gross motor skill development in children at risk for obesity. Program efficacy should be tested in a randomized trial.
Rescue of the embryonic lethal hematopoietic defect reveals a critical role for GATA‐2 in urogenital development

Mutations resulting in embryonic or early postnatal lethality could mask the activities of any gene in unrelated and temporally distinct developmental pathways. Targeted inactivation of the transcription factor GATA‐2 gene leads to mid‐gestational death as a consequence of hematopoietic failure. We show here that a 250 kbp GATA‐2 yeast artificial chromosome (YAC) is expressed strongly in both the primitive and definitive hematopoietic compartments, while two smaller YACs are not. This largest YAC also rescues hematopoiesis in vitro and in vivo, thereby localizing the hematopoietic regulatory cis element(s) to between 100 and 150 kbp 5′ to the GATA‐2 structural gene. Introducing the YAC transgene into the GATA‐2−/− genetic background allows the embryos to complete gestation; however, newborn rescued pups quickly succumb to lethal hydroureternephrosis, and display a complex array of genitourinary abnormalities. These findings reveal that GATA‐2 plays equally vital roles in urogenital and hematopoietic development.
Requirement of an E1A-sensitive Coactivator for Long-range Transactivation by the β-Globin Locus Control Region*

Four erythroid-specific DNase I-hypersensitive sites at the 5′-end of the β-globin locus confer high-level transcription to the β-globin genes. To identify coactivators that mediate long-range transactivation by this locus control region (LCR), we assessed the influence of E1A, an inhibitor of the CBP/p300 histone acetylase, on LCR function. E1A strongly inhibited transactivation of Aγ- and β-globin promoters by the HS2, HS2-HS3, and HS1-HS4 subregions of the LCR in human K562 and mouse erythroleukemia cells. Short- and long-range transactivation mediated by the LCR were equally sensitive to E1A. The E1A sensitivity was apparent in transient and stable transfection assays, and E1A inhibited expression of the endogenous γ-globin genes. Only sites for NF-E2 within HS2 were required for E1A sensitivity in K562 cells, and E1A abolished transactivation mediated by the activation domain of NF-E2. E1A mutants defective in CBP/p300 binding only weakly inhibited HS2-mediated transactivation, whereas a mutant defective in retinoblastoma protein binding strongly inhibited transactivation. Expression of CBP/p300 potentiated HS2-mediated transactivation. Moreover, expression of GAL4-CBP strongly increased transactivation of a reporter containing HS2 with a GAL4 site substituted for the NF-E2 sites. Thus, we propose that a CBP/p300-containing coactivator complex is the E1A-sensitive factor important for LCR function.
Radium-223 chloride impact on skeletal-related events in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer (CRPC) with bone metastases: A phase III randomized trial (ALSYMPCA).

9 Background: Radium-223 chloride (Ra-223) is a 1st-in-class alpha-pharmaceutical targeting bone metastases (mets) with high-energy alpha-particles of short range (<100 μm). ALSYMPCA, a phase III, double-blind, randomized, multinational study, compared Ra-223 plus best standard of care (BSC) vs placebo (pbo) plus BSC in patients (pts) with bone mets in CRPC. The primary endpoint was OS; secondary endpoints included skeletal-related events (SREs). METHODS Eligible pts had progressive, symptomatic CRPC with ≥ 2 bone mets on scintigraphy and no known visceral mets; were receiving BSC; and either previously received docetaxel, were docetaxel ineligible, or refused docetaxel. Pts were randomized 2:1 to receive 6 injections of Ra-223 (50 kBq/kg IV) q4 wks or matching pbo and stratified by prior docetaxel use, baseline alkaline phosphatase level, and current bisphosphonate use. RESULTS 922 pts (Ra-223, n = 615; pbo, n = 307) were randomized from 6/2008-2/2011. Based on data from a planned interim analysis (n = 809), unblinded June 2011, Ra-223 significantly improved OS in pts with CRPC with bone mets vs pbo (median OS 14.0 vs 11.2 mo, respectively; two-sided P = 0.00185; HR = 0.695; 95% CI, 0.552-0.875). SREs were lower in the Ra-223 vs pbo group, and time to 1st SRE was significantly delayed (median time to SRE 13.6 mo vs 8.4 mo, respectively; P = .00046; HR = .610; 95% CI, .461-.807). CONCLUSIONS Ra-223 significantly delayed time to 1st SRE and SRE components, except surgical intervention. These reductions in SREs, particularly SCC, are noteworthy. Ra-223 is an effective therapy with a highly favorable safety profile and may provide a new standard of care for treatment of CRPC pts with bone mets. [Table: see text].
3D Tissue Doppler imaging with ultra high frame rate

High frame rate TDI, may be used to study propagation of mechanical waves. In this paper we present a 3D TDI modality which gives ~500 FPS. The high frame rate was achieved by using few transmit beams, plane wave, and packet size 1 on transmit. ECG trigged acquisition was used to acquire 3D B-mode in one cardiac cycle and 3D TDI in the next. Normal acquisition was used for 3D B-mode. Recording both 3D B-mode and 3D TDI allows us to produce a left ventricle mesh, by using GE 4D Auto LVQ, and map the calculated velocities onto the mesh. A feasibility study, where we compared with GE tri-plane TVI, was performed. Peak velocities from 6 positions in the base of the left ventricle were measured. Data from 5 normal subjects was recorded. Our results show that the differences between 3D TDI and the first tri-plane recording were comparable to the differences between the two tri-plane recordings.
Cat Basis Purrsuit

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Simulation of the Brushless DC Motor Drive Based on PWM

The brushless dc motor has a permanent-magnet rotor, and the stator windings are wound such that the back electro motive force(EMF) is trapezoidal. The paper develops a phase variable model of the BDCM and uses it to examine the performance of a BDCM speed servo drive system when fed by hysteresis and pulse width modulated (PWM) current controllers. Particular attention is paid to the motor torque pulsations. Some experimental verification is given.
Dietary Sources of Protein and Chronic Kidney Disease Progression: The Proof May Be in the Pattern.

The medieval philosopher Moses Maimonides (Spain, 1135-1204) wrote that “No disease that can be treated by diet should be treated with any other means. ” Not so long ago, before we had the means of dialysis therapy, and still today in many parts of the world, diet represents the sole management strategy in end-stage kidney disease (ESKD).
Positional kinematics of humanoid arms

We present the positional abilities of a humanoid manipulator based on an improved kinematical model of the human arm. This was synthesized from electro-optical measurements of healthy female and male subjects. The model possesses three joints: inner shoulder joint, outer shoulder joint and elbow joint. The first functions as the human sternoclavicular joint, the second functions as the human glenohumeral joint, and the last replicates the human humeroulnar rotation. There are three links included, the forearm and the upper arm link which are of a constant length, and the shoulder link which is expandable. Mathematical interrelations between the joint coordinates are also taken into consideration. We determined the reachability of a humanoid arm, treated its orienting redundancy in the shoulder complex and the positional redundancy in the shoulder-elbow complexes, and discussed optimum configurations in executing different tasks. The results are important for the design and control of humanoid robots, in medicine and sports.
Imaging in Graves’ Orbitopathy

In patients with Graves’ orbitopathy, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a useful tool to distinguish the acute inflammatory active disease in demonstrating interstitial edema within the extraocular muscles on coronal TIRM-sequences from fibrotic, inactive endstage disease. MRI is the modality of choice to identify active inflammatory changes in order to decide on possible immunomodulatory treatment response. However, MRI should be considered in atypical cases as in asymmetrical orbital involvement, to exclude other orbital pathologies and to confirm the clinical suspicion of apical optic nerve compression in Graves’ orbitopathy. Computed tomography (CT) provides precise imaging of the osseous periorbital structures and does not reveal information on the disease activity in most cases. It is therefore the method of choice to plan CT-guided orbital decompression surgery in the inactive phase of disease.
Convex constrained meshes for superpixel segmentations of images

Abstract. We consider the problem of splitting a pixel-based image into convex polygons with vertices at a subpixel resolution. The edges of the resulting polygonal superpixels can have any direction and should adhere well to object boundaries. We introduce a convex constrained mesh that accepts any straight line segments and outputs a complete mesh of convex polygons without small angles and with approximation guarantees for the given lines. Experiments on the Berkeley segmentation dataset BSD500 show that the resulting meshes of polygonal superpixels outperform other polygonal meshes on boundary recall and pixel-based simple linear iterative clustering and superpixels extracted via energy-driven sampling superpixels on undersegmentation errors.
Effects of fatigue on muscle stiffness and intermittent sprinting during cycling.

PURPOSE It was recently demonstrated that musculoarticular (MA) stiffness is related to sprint cycling performance in nonfatigued conditions. This study examined whether relatively stiffer cyclists were more effective at sprinting under fatigued conditions, as occurs during endurance cycling competitions. METHODS MA stiffness of the quadriceps was assessed in 21 trained male cyclists (28.7 ± 9.5 yr, 1.74 ± 0.08 m, 67.5 ± 7.2 kg). Participants also performed a maximal 6-s sprint on a cycle ergometer to assess peak power output (POpeak), peak crank torque (CTpeak), and peak rate of crank torque development (RCTDpeak). A cycling fatigue protocol then required cyclists to pedal at 30%, 35%, and 40% of POpeak and sprint at the end of each stage. Surface EMG was recorded from vastus lateralis during each sprint and analyzed in the time domain as integrated EMG (iEMG) and in the frequency domain as instantaneous median frequency (MDF) adopting a continuous wavelet transform. Participants were then retested for MA stiffness. RESULTS MA stiffness (-12%) was significantly reduced after the cycling protocol. Further, POpeak, CTpeak, RCTDpeak, and iEMG were reduced by 20%, 15%, 13%, and 20%, respectively, after the fatigue protocol (P<0.05). When the cyclists were divided into relatively stiff (SG) and relatively compliant groups (CG), only SG exhibited significant decreases in MA stiffness, CTpeak, RCTDpeak (P<0.05), and instantaneous MDF (R=0.705). CONCLUSIONS Whereas neuromechanical parameters were generally reduced under conditions of fatigue, stiff and compliant cyclists were affected differently, with the sprint abilities of SG decreased to the level of CG. It seems important for endurance cyclists to incorporate training strategies to maintain MA stiffness during competition to offset declines in sprint performance.
Implication that potassium flux and increase in intracellular calcium are necessary for the initiation of sperm motility in salmonid fishes

Flux of K+ and changes in intracellular Ca2+ in the sperm of salmonid fishes were measured with spectrophotometry, ion electrode, microscopic fluorometry, and radioisotope accumulation. Release of K+ occurred at the initiation of sperm motility which is induced by decrease in external K+ and the K+ efflux and sperm motility were inhibited by K+ channel blockers. Intracellular Ca2+ increased within a short period in K+‐ free condition, and the accumulation of 45Ca in sperm cells was higher in motile sperm than that in immotile sperm. The efflux of K+ and the increase in intracellular Ca2+ were suppressed when external K+ concentration increased, i.e., sperm remained immotile. These results suggest that efflux of K+ through K+ channel and subseqent increase in intracellular Ca2+ are prerequisite for the initiation of sperm motility. © 1994 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Effectiveness of Visualization for Information Retrieval through Ontologies with Entity Evolution: The Impact of Ontology Modeling

Incorporating digital tools in the business and scientific research workflows is at the moment an on-going process, challenging and demanding as every domain has its own needs in terms of data models and information retrieval methods. The information in some domains involves entity evolution, a characteristic that introduces additional tasks, such as finding all evolution stages of an entity, and poses additional requirements for the information retrieval process. In this paper, we present a user study aiming to investigate how the different aspects of ontology modelling affect the performance and effectiveness of users regarding information retrieval tasks that are carried out using visualization methods. The results of the user study are analyzed and guidelines for ontology design are offered.
Overlapping Sites of Tetratricopeptide Repeat Protein Binding and Chaperone Activity in Heat Shock Protein 90*

The sequential binding of different tetratricopeptide repeat (TPR) proteins to heat shock protein 90 (hsp90) is essential to its chaperone function in vivo. We have previously shown that three basic residues in the TPR domain of PP5 are required for binding to the acidic C-terminal domain of hsp90. We have now tested which acidic residues in this C-terminal domain are required for binding to three different TPR proteins as follows: PP5, FKBP52, and Hop. Mutation of Glu-729, Glu-730, and Asp-732 at the C terminus of hsp90 interfered with binding of all three TPR proteins. Mutation of Glu-720, Asp-722, Asp-723, and Asp-724 inhibited binding of FKBP52 and PP5 but not of Hop. Mutation of Glu-651 and Asp-653 did not affect binding of FKBP52 or PP5 but inhibited both Hop binding and hsp90 chaperone activity. We also found that a conserved Lys residue required for PP5 binding to hsp90 was critical for the binding of FKBP52 but not for the binding of Hop to hsp90. These results suggest distinct but overlapping binding sites on hsp90 for different TPR proteins and indicate that the binding site for Hop, which is associated with hsp90 in intermediate stages of protein folding, overlaps with a site of chaperone activity.
Optimization of an Accelerometer and Gyroscope-Based Fall Detection Algorithm

Falling is a common and significant cause of injury in elderly adults (>65 yrs old), often leading to disability and death. In the USA, one in three of the elderly suffers from fall injuries annually. This study’s purpose is to develop, optimize, and assess the efficacy of a falls detection algorithm based upon a wireless, wearable sensor system (WSS) comprised of a 3-axis accelerometer and gyroscope. For this study, the WSS is placed at the chest center to collect real-time motion data of various simulated daily activities (i.e., walking, running, stepping, and falling). Tests were conducted on 36 human subjects with a total of 702 different movements collected in a laboratory setting. Half of the dataset was used for development of the fall detection algorithm including investigations of critical sensor thresholds and the remaining dataset was used for assessment of algorithm sensitivity and specificity. Experimental results show that the algorithm detects falls compared to other daily movements with a sensitivity and specificity of 96.3% and 96.2%, respectively. The addition of gyroscope information enhances sensitivity dramatically from results in the literature as angular velocity changes provide further delineation of a fall event from other activities that may also experience high acceleration peaks.
Long-term clinical outcome in patients with glutathione synthetase deficiency.

OBJECTIVE The objective was to determine the long-term clinical outcome and the effects of treatment of patients with glutathione synthetase (GS) deficiency (n = 28). METHODS The diagnosis was based on demonstration of a marked decrease in GS activity in erythrocytes or cultured fibroblasts in all patients and was supported by finding a decrease in erythrocyte or fibroblast glutathione, presence of 5-oxoprolinuria, or both. The treatment varied but usually included correction of acidosis and supplementation with vitamins C and/or E. RESULTS Sixteen patients were severely affected with neurologic symptoms such as seizures and psychomotor retardation; 7 had died at the time of the study. None of the severely affected patients had been treated with both vitamins C and E from the neonatal period. No significant difference was found in GS activity between patients with or without neurologic symptoms or in erythrocyte or fibroblast glutathione levels. Five patients had recurrent bacterial infections. CONCLUSION On the basis of clinical symptoms, patients with GS deficiency can be classified into 3 phenotypes: mild, moderate, and severe. Our results indicate that early supplementation with vitamins C and E may improve the long-term clinical outcome.
[In vitro study on the cytotoxicity of strontium substituted hydroxyapatite].

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the cytotoxicity of strontium substituted hydroxyapatite. METHODS Cell Relative Growth Rate(RGR) method, MTT assay and Flow Cytometry(FCM) method were used, and the strontium substituted hydroxyapatite contained different strontium concentration(0%,1%,5%,10%,100%). RESULTS It was found that there's no apparent cytotoxicity of all the strontium substituted hydroxyapatite,but the cytotoxicity increased as the strontium concentration raised. As the FCM method appeared, there was no apparent difference between the pure hydroxyapatite and 1%,5% strontium substituted hydroxyapatite. CONCLUSION Strontium substituted hydroxyapatite has good biocompatibility, and 10%,100% strontium substituted hydroxyapatite has weak cytotoxicity.
OF OPTICAL MICROCAVITY WHISPERING-GALLERY-MODE RESONATORS

In the past decade, optical microcavity whispering-gallery mode (WGM) resonators have received increasing attention for applications in optical communications and nanotechnology. In this paper, the theory for describing radiation transfer and heat transfer in the micro/nanoscale devices is presented first. Then the characteristics of waveguide-microdisk coupling WGM miniature resonators are numerically studied. Focus is placed on the parametric studies over a broad range of resonator configuration parameters including the microcavity size and the gap separating the microdisk and waveguide. The finite element method is used for solving Maxwell’s equations which govern the propagation of electromagnetic field and the radiation energy transport in the micro/nanoscale devices. The EM field and the radiation energy distributions are obtained and compared between the on-resonance and off-resonance cases. A very brilliant ring with strong EM field and high radiation intensity is found inward the periphery of the microdisk under resonances and high energy storage is achieved. The microdisk size affects significantly the resonant frequencies and their intervals. The scattering spectra for three different microcavity sizes are obtained. The gap obviously influences the qualify factor, the full width at half maximum, and the finesse of the resonant modes as well as the capability of energy storage.
Listeria monocytogenes-Infected Human Dendritic Cells: Uptake and Host Cell Response

ABSTRACT Dendritic cells (DCs) are potent antigen-presenting cells and play a crucial role in initiation and modulation of specific immune responses. Various pathogens are able to persist inside DCs. However, internalization of the gram-positive bacterium Listeria monocytogenes into human DCs has not yet been shown. In the present study, we demonstrate that human monocyte-derived immature DCs can efficiently phagocytose L. monocytogenes. This uptake is independent of listerial adhesion factors internalin A and internalin B but requires cytoskeletal motion and factors present in human plasma. A major portion of internalized bacteria is found in membrane-bound phagosomes and is rarely free in the cytosol, as shown by transmission electron microscopy and by using an L. monocytogenes strain expressing green fluorescent protein when in the host cell cytosol. The infection caused maturation of the immature DCs into mature DCs displaying high levels of CD83, CD25, major histocompatibility complex class II, and the CD86 costimulator molecule. This effect appeared to be largely mediated by listerial lipoteichoic acid. Although L. monocytogenes infection is known to induce death in other cell types, infection of human DCs was found to induce necrotic but not apoptotic death in fewer than 20% of DCs. Therefore, the ability of DCs to act as effective antigen-presenting cells for listerial immunity is probably enhanced by their resistance to cell death, as well as their ability to rapidly differentiate into mature, immunostimulatory DCs upon encountering bacteria.