Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
End-stage renal disease (ESRD) after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLTX) using calcineurin-based immunotherapy: risk of development and treatment.

BACKGROUND The calcineurin inhibitors cyclosporine and tacrolimus are both known to be nephrotoxic. Their use in orthotopic liver transplantation (OLTX) has dramatically improved success rates. Recently, however, we have had an increase of patients who are presenting after OLTX with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). This retrospective study examines the incidence and treatment of ESRD and chronic renal failure (CRF) in OLTX patients. METHODS Patients receiving an OLTX only from June 1985 through December of 1994 who survived 6 months postoperatively were studied (n=834). Our prospectively collected database was the source of information. Patients were divided into three groups: Controls, no CRF or ESRD, n=748; CRF, sustained serum creatinine >2.5 mg/dl, n=41; and ESRD, n=45. Groups were compared for preoperative laboratory variables, diagnosis, postoperative variables, survival, type of ESRD therapy, and survival from onset of ESRD. RESULTS At 13 years after OLTX, the incidence of severe renal dysfunction was 18.1% (CRF 8.6% and ESRD 9.5%). Compared with control patients, CRF and ESRD patients had higher preoperative serum creatinine levels, a greater percentage of patients with hepatorenal syndrome, higher percentage requirement for dialysis in the first 3 months postoperatively, and a higher 1-year serum creatinine. Multivariate stepwise logistic regression analysis using preoperative and postoperative variables identified that an increase of serum creatinine compared with average at 1 year, 3 months, and 4 weeks postoperatively were independent risk factors for the development of CRF or ESRD with odds ratios of 2.6, 2.2, and 1.6, respectively. Overall survival from the time of OLTX was not significantly different among groups, but by year 13, the survival of the patients who had ESRD was only 28.2% compared with 54.6% in the control group. Patients developing ESRD had a 6-year survival after onset of ESRD of 27% for the patients receiving hemodialysis versus 71.4% for the patients developing ESRD who subsequently received kidney transplants. CONCLUSIONS Patients who are more than 10 years post-OLTX have CRF and ESRD at a high rate. The development of ESRD decreases survival, particularly in those patients treated with dialysis only. Patients who develop ESRD have a higher preoperative and 1-year serum creatinine and are more likely to have hepatorenal syndrome. However, an increase of serum creatinine at various times postoperatively is more predictive of the development of CRF or ESRD. New strategies for long-term immunosuppression may be needed to decrease this complication.
Facial Sketching Based on Sub-Image Illumination Removal and Multiscale Edge Filtering

In this paper we introduce a method to automatically generate facial sketches from digital color photographs. First, the image is submitted to a sub-band homomorphic filtering for illumination compensation. Then, the result is fed into a multi-scale edge detection process. The homomorphic filter parameters and the optimal scales for the edge detector are acquired by means of a genetic algorithm optimization. An analysis comparing the results of the proposed method and those ones of a plain Canny edge detector is presented. The analysis has been performed considering manually labeled ground truth facial sketches and using three traditional evaluation metrics: Prattpsilas figure of merit (FoM), peak signal to noise ratio (PSNR) and structural similarity (SSIM). Among all metrics, the Prattpsilas FoM metric was the one with best stability. Parameter optimization using FoM rendered promising results to the proposed method. A subjective evaluation is also provided, which emphasizes the strengths of the proposed method.
Research on the Puzzlement of Patent Conversion in Vocational Colleges

Based on the research on the patent transformation content of vocational colleges, through the field investigation of patent transformation work in many vocational colleges across the country, the paper analyzes the confusion in the patent transformation of vocational colleges. The research process uses a large amount of data to analyze the current status of patent transformation in vocational colleges. Systematic analysis of the obstacles encountered in the patent transformation of vocational colleges, such as imperfect patent law and legal policy system, patent conversion service system is not matched. It also proposes to improve the patent transformation of vocational colleges and improve the ability of patent transformation services in vocational colleges. This kind of targeted suggestion promotes the development of patent transformation in vocational colleges in China.
Global configurations in multinational enterprises, duality, and the challenge of LGBT inclusivity in unsympathetic host countries within Africa

Abstract MNEs’ HRM practices need to be mindful of the institutional differences between the local context of host countries and that of their home countries. Balancing the localization of HRM practices with the desire for global standardization and integration is a dilemma for MNEs. We examine this tension utilizing a unique perspective, namely by analyzing the HRM challenges that MNEs face with regard to LGBT employees in Africa. We find that MNEs experience difficulty in reconciling their global corporate values and HR policies with local institutions and legislative requirements. Several contributions result. First, by bringing issues of duality to the fore both at the organizational and individual level. Second, we contribute towards the global configuration literature in international HRM as regards global standardization and national differentiation, by focusing on developing countries, where the scale of the cultural or institutional distance between home and host countries are likely to be larger, which allows us to examine the difficulties of the transfer of HR practices to these sites. Third, we embed our analysis of localization within institutional theory, and finally, we integrate these contributions into an analysis of HRM challenges of LGBT employees in hostile contexts and make recommendations.
Local cryotherapy improves adjuvant-induced arthritis through down-regulation of IL-6 / IL-17 pathway but independently of TNFα

Objectives Local cryotherapy is widely and empirically used in the adjuvant setting in rheumatoid arthritis treatment, however its own therapeutic and anti-inflammatory effects are poorly characterized. We aimed to evaluate the effects of local cryotherapy on local and systemic inflammation in Adjuvant-induced arthritis, a murine model of rheumatoid arthritis. Methods The effects of mild hypothermia (30°C for 2 hours) on cytokine protein levels (Multiplex/ELISA) were evaluated in vitro in cultured rat adjuvant-induced arthritis patellae. In vivo, local cryotherapy was applied twice a day for 14 days in arthritic rats (ice: n = 10, cold gas: n = 9, non-treated: n = 10). At day 24 after the induction of arthritis, cytokine expression levels were measured in grinded hind paws (Q-RT-PCR) and in the plasma (Multiplex/ELISA). Results In vitro, punctual mild hypothermia down-regulated IL-6 protein expression. In vivo, ice showed a better efficacy profile on the arthritis score and joint swelling and was better tolerated, while cold gas induced a biphasic response profile with initial, transient arthritis worsening. Local cryotherapy also exerted local and systemic anti-inflammatory effects, both at the gene and the protein levels: IL-6, IL-17A and IL-1β gene expression levels were significantly down-regulated in hind paws. Both techniques decreased plasma IL-17A while ice decreased plasma IL-6 protein levels. By contrast, we observed no effect on local/systemic TNF-α pathway. Conclusions We demonstrated for the first time that sub-chronically applied local cryotherapy (ice and cold gas) is an effective and well-tolerated treatment in adjuvant-induced arthritis. Furthermore, we provided novel insights into the cytokine pathways involved in Local cryotherapy’s local and systemic anti-inflammatory effects, which were mainly IL-6/IL-17A-driven and TNF-α independent in this model.
GH4ZD10 cells expressing rat 5‐HT1A receptors coupled to adenylyl cyclase are a model for the postsynaptic receptors in the rat hippocampus

1 Vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) stimulated adenosine 3′:5′‐cyclic monophosphate (cyclic AMP) production by cultured GH4ZD10 cells with an EC50 value of about 7 nm. The extracellularly recovered cyclic AMP predominated, and was reduced by co‐incubation with 8‐hydroxy‐2‐(di‐n‐propylamino) tetralin (8‐OH‐DPAT) and 5‐hydroxytryptamine (5‐HT), whereas dopamine (0.1–30 μm) did not reduce VIP‐stimulated cyclic AMP production. 2 The responses to 5‐HT and 8‐OH‐DPAT were blocked by (−)‐alprenolol and NAN 190. The antagonism by (−)‐alprenolol was competitive in nature with a pA2 value of 7.0. 3 The responsiveness of the cells to 5‐HT agonists was highly dependent upon the culturing conditions used. Thus, 8‐OH‐DPAT inhibition of VIP (30 nm)‐stimulated cyclic AMP production decreased with increasing passage number of the cells. Reduction of the zinc concentration used to promote expression of the 5‐HT1A receptor gene produced a greater sensitivity of the cells to 5‐HT agonists. 4 Under such conditions, the following efficacies (5‐HT = 100) were found: lisuride 106, (+)‐lysergic‐acid diethylamide 100, 5‐methoxy‐N,N‐dimethyltryptamine 98, RU 24949 98, 5‐carboxamidotryptamine 97, (±)‐8‐OH‐DPAT 90, (+)‐8‐OH‐DPAT 87, 1‐[2‐(4‐aminophenyl)ethyl]‐4‐(3‐trifluoromethylphenyl)‐piperazine 86, flesinoxan 79/88, (−)‐8‐OH‐DPAT 62, buspirone 43/50, ipsapirone 46. Spiroxatrine and spiperone had a low intrinsic activity, but reduced the response to 5‐HT. These efficacies are similar to those reported in the literature for post‐synaptically localized 5‐HT1A receptors in the rat hippocampus. Thus, the GH4ZD10 cells serve as a useful in vitro model system for these receptors.
Agricultural sustainability under emerging climatic variability: the role of climate-smart agriculture and relevant policies in India

Global demand for agricultural products continues to grow while production resources are diminishing. Increasing climatic variability poses further challenges. Therefore, ensuring agricultural sustainability necessitates a transformation of the production system to make it more productive, inputefficient and to lower the environmental footprint. Such a transformation requires system-wide actions and considerable changes in governance, policies, and institutions. On this pretext, we examined if existing climate-smart agriculture (CSA) can enhance adaptation to and mitigation of climate change and overall food security in India. We found that CSA can substantially contribute towards climate change adaptation, mitigation, and food security. Mainstreaming CSA practices into development planning through CSVs would create mutual benefits by generating evidences based on CSAs at local level, thereby contributing to the design of local adaptation plans of action (LAPA) and further feed information into state and national action plans on climate change. Thus, we propose to mainstream CSA into development planning.
Place attachment and post-disaster decision-making in a second home context: a conceptual framework

ABSTRACT As a result of global climate change, natural disasters are becoming more common. However, to date, there has been almost no discussion on second homeowners and disasters, even though second homes are often found in areas that are more prone to natural hazards, i.e. mountainous and coastal regions. In order to develop suitable disaster planning, it is necessary to understand how the impacted individuals respond to disasters. To address this issue, this work presents a conceptual framework that emphasizes the importance of place attachment to the post-disaster decision-making process of second homeowners. Due to the absence of literature on this specific topic as well as on second homes and disasters in general, a comprehensive review of the literature from a variety of fields, including tourism, environmental psychology, housing studies, and disaster studies, has been utilized to develop this framework. The resulting framework highlights the centrality of place attachment in this process with its interactions with risk awareness and external factors resulting in three potential final decisions: relocate, return, or return and adapt. As second homeowners can be an integral part of the local and regional economy, an understanding of this process is essential to ensure they are adequately supported post-disaster.
Comparative analyses of the proteomes of leaves and flowers at various stages of development reveal organ‐specific functional differentiation of proteins in soybean

The functional differentiation of protein networks in individual organs and tissues of soybean at various developmental stages was investigated by proteomic approach. Protein extraction by Mg/NP‐40 buffer followed by alkaline phenol‐based method was optimized for proteomic analysis. Proteome analyses of leaves at various developmental stages showed 26 differentially expressed proteins, wherein proteins in translocon at the outer/inner envelope membrane of chloroplast protein‐transport machineries increased significantly at the first trifoliate. Immunoblot analysis showed chaperonin‐60 expressed abundantly in young leaves, whereas HSP 70 and ATP‐synthase β were constitutively expressed in all tissues. The net photosynthesis rate and chlorophyll content showed an age‐dependent correlation in leaves. These results suggest that proteins involved in carbon assimilation, folding and assembly, and energy may work synchronously and show a linear correlation to photosynthesis at developmental stages of leaves. Comparison of flower bud and flower proteome reveals 29 differentially expressed proteins, wherein proteins involved in mitochondrial protein transport and assembly, secondary metabolism, and pollen‐tube growth were up‐regulated during flower development. Together, these results suggest that during developmental stages, each type of tissue is associated with a specific group of proteins; wherein proteins involved in energy, sugar metabolism, and folding, assembly, and destination may play pivotal roles in the maturation process of each organ or tissue.
The patient's perception of recovery after maxillary sinus augmentation: a prospective study.

BACKGROUND Little information is available that documents a patient's perception of recovery after sinus-floor augmentation. The aim of the present prospective study was to evaluate the patient's perception of immediate postoperative recovery after sinus-floor augmentation. METHODS Seventy-six patients (41 males and 35 females) who had been scheduled for sinus-floor augmentation were asked to enroll in a prospective clinical study. A health-related quality-of-life questionnaire was given to the patient, which was designed to assess patient perception of recovery in four main areas: pain, oral function, general activity, and other symptoms. The questionnaire was compared to the surgical chart that described the surgery details and its outcome. RESULTS Average pain peaked on postoperative day (POD) 1 and improved on POD 5. Maximal pain peaked on POD 1 and improved on POD 4. Difficulty in mouth opening peaked on POD 1 and improved on POD 3. Work attendance, on POD 1 to POD 3, most of the patients did not go to work, and most of the patients returned to work on POD 4. Swelling was greatest on POD 2 and improved on POD 5. CONCLUSIONS The average patient undergoing sinus-floor augmentation should expect, in general, recovery within 5 days. Patients whose recovery is predicted to be worst, especially young women, might require additional counseling and more attentive post-surgery care than others.
Polymorphisms of the angiotensin converting enzyme gene in early-onset and late-onset pre-eclampsia

Objective. The aim of this study was to investigate differences in maternal and infant ACE genotypes in early-onset and later-onset pre-eclampsia/toxemia (PET). Methods. We conducted a case–control study of 22 cases of early-onset pre-eclampsia (before 34 weeks gestation), 38 cases of later-onset pre-eclampsia (after 34 weeks gestation), and 108 healthy controls delivered at term (38–40 weeks gestation) within a stable Caucasian population. Maternal venous blood and cord bloods were obtained for serum angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) activity, ACE genotype, and acid–base status. Results. Mothers who developed early-onset PET were more likely to be homozygous for the deletion allele of the ACE genotype (DD) than mothers with late-onset PET or uncomplicated pregnancies (12/22 (55%) vs. 7/38 (18%) vs. 22/105 (21%), respectively; OR 2.96 [95% confidence intervals (CI) 1.37–6.31]. Infants of mothers with early-onset PET were more likely to be homozygous for the DD genotype than infants of mothers with late-onset PET or controls (7/19 (37%) vs. 9/36 (25%) vs. 11/78 (14%); OR 2.51 (95% CI 1.12–5.61). There were no differences in maternal or infant ACE activities in relation to onset of pre-eclampsia. Conclusions. Our findings suggest an association between the DD genotype of the ACE gene and early-onset but not later-onset pre-eclampsia which may give a partial explanation for the higher recurrence risk with early-onset pre-eclampsia.
Stability of hybrid Lévy systems

Continuous-time stochastic systems have attracted a lot of attention recently, due to their wide-spread use in finance for modelling price-dynamics. More recently models taking into accounts shocks have been developed by assuming that the return process is an infinitesimal Lévy process. Lévy processes are also used to model the traffic in a telecommunication network. In this paper we focus on a particular technical problem: stability of time-varying stochastic systems driven or modulated by a Lévy process with discrete time interventions, such as parameter or state resetting. Such systems will be called hybrid Lévy systems. They are hybrid in the sense that jumps both in the dynamics may occur. The peculiarity of our systems is that the jump-times are defined by a more or less arbitrary point process, but there exists an asymmetry in the system dynamics. The novelty of our model relative to the theory of switching stochastic systems is two-fold. First, we allow slow time variation of the parameters, in a stochastic sense, without any statistical pattern, in the spirit of the classical stability result of Desoer, see [2]. Secondly, we allow certain jumps (resetting) in the system parameters almost without any a priori condition.
Prevalence of metastasis in T1b esophageal squamous cell carcinoma: a retrospective analysis of 258 Chinese patients.

BACKGROUND There is controversy regarding the impact of different depths of submucosal invasion on lymph node metastasis (LNM) and overall survival (OS). We evaluated the impact of depth of submucosal invasion on the presence of metastatic lymphadenopathy and survival in a Chinese population with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). METHODS A total of 258 patients who underwent esophagectomy from November 2009 to March 2014 were studied. Demographics of patients, tumor characteristics, and surgical information were retrospectively collected through medical records. Submucosal invasion was equally categorized into inner one-third (sm1), middle one-third (sm2), and deep one-third (sm3) invasion by pathologists. The patients were observed at the outpatient department in accordance with appointed time and recurrence, and deaths were recorded. The median follow-up duration was 26 months and the deadline was April 2015. Cancer characteristics and its association with LNM and OS were analyzed. RESULTS The study included 75 (29.1%) sm1, 73 (28.3%) sm2, and 110 (42.6%) sm3 patients, and the rates of LNM were 12% (9/75), 11% (8/73), and 20.9% (23/110), respectively. sm3 might be associated with regional LNM (univariate analysis, P=0.041). Tumor volume >1.856 cm(3) (P=0.022) and lymphovascular invasion (LVI) (P=0.004) predicted LNM using multivariate analysis. No significant differences in distant metastases were observed according to the depth of invasion. Only metastatic lymph nodes predicted OS (P<0.001) rather than the depth of invasion. CONCLUSIONS Submucosal ESCC showed a substantial rate of LNM. In T1b ESCC, after adjusting for possible covariates, depth of invasion does not predict LNM or OS.
Evaluating the proximate determinants framework for HIV infection in rural Zimbabwe

Background: Risk factors for HIV infection can act at one of several causal levels, making interpretation of results problematic. One suggested solution has been a proximate determinants framework, in which risk factors are grouped into “underlying”, “proximate” and “biological” determinants. Methods: A baseline, cross-sectional survey of HIV serostatus and potential risk factors was carried out among 9480 adults in Zimbabwe. Associations were assessed separately for men and women using logistic regression models; data were only included for those who reported sexual debut. The predictive ability of proximate determinants describing both individual and partnership characteristics was assessed along with that of the underlying determinants. The significance of the underlying determinants once adjusted for proximate determinants was then evaluated. Finally, the relationship between the underlying determinants and some of the key proximate determinants was explored. Results: The two most important proximate determinants for men and women were lifetime number of sexual partners and symptoms of sexually transmitted infections (p<0.001). After adjustment for all proximate determinants, some underlying determinants were still significant, particularly age group, marital status and community (p<0.001). Conclusions: Although proximate determinants could explain the action of many underlying determinants, several of the latter remained significant after adjustment for the proximate determinants. Hence, the proximate determinants were probably not measured completely. An important determinant of an individual’s risk of HIV infection is the HIV status of their sexual partners. This was not measured in this survey, and may be related to the individual’s age (as a predictor for the age of the partner), marital status and community prevalence. However, it will be measured in a subsequent survey of this cohort.
LKB1 regulates polarity remodeling and adherens junction formation in the Drosophila eye

The serine–threonine kinase LKB1 regulates cell polarity from Caenorhabditis elegans to man. Loss of lkb1 leads to a cancer predisposition, known as Peutz–Jeghers Syndrome. Biochemical analysis indicates that LKB1 can phosphorylate and activate a family of AMPK- like kinases, however, the precise contribution of these kinases to the establishment and maintenance of cell polarity is still unclear. Recent studies propose that LKB1 acts primarily through the AMP kinase to establish and/or maintain cell polarity. To determine whether this simple model of how LKB1 regulates cell polarity has relevance to complex tissues, we examined lkb1 mutants in the Drosophila eye. We show that adherens junctions expand and apical, junctional, and basolateral domains mix in lkb1 mutants. Surprisingly, we find LKB1 does not act primarily through AMPK to regulate cell polarity in the retina. Unlike lkb1 mutants, ampk retinas do not show elongated rhabdomeres or expansion of apical and junctional markers into the basolateral domain. In addition, nutrient deprivation does not reveal a more dramatic polarity phenotype in lkb1 photoreceptors. These data suggest that AMPK is not the primary target of LKB1 during eye development. Instead, we find that a number of other AMPK-like kinase, such as SIK, NUAK, Par-1, KP78a, and KP78b show phenotypes similar to weak lkb1 loss of function in the eye. These data suggest that in complex tissues, LKB1 acts on an array of targets to regulate cell polarity.