Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Highlighting the importance of metabolic risk factors, obesity, and liver steatosis after pediatric liver transplantation

We thank Drs. Perito and Rosenthal for their interest in our article. We share their concern for the future health of young liver transplant recipients and wish to clarify some issues to all readers. For our study, we defined metabolic syndrome according to the joint statement of the International Diabetes Federation; the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute; the American Heart Association; the World Heart Federation; the International Atherosclerosis Society; and the International Association for the Study of Obesity. This definition includes the same components found in the modified National Cholesterol Education Program definition, which was used in the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study. Thus, our study cohort’s posttransplantation metabolic syndrome (PTMS) prevalence of 14% lies within the range of 11% to 18% found in the general Finnish population. Also, by this same definition, the prevalence of metabolic syndrome in overweight/ obese youth in the general Finnish population was 49.3% (and 38% in our study population). We thus find it appropriate to say that currently the prevalence of PTMS among young liver transplant recipients is similar to that in the general population. However, we believe that the suggested collaboration with the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study Group is worth pursuing to ascertain our results. We agree with Drs. Perito and Rosenthal on the importance of prospective studies. Our study population is comprehensive but small, and we hope to see studies from other centers in the near future. We further agree that the prevalence of PTMS is likely to rise with increasing age because the prevalence of metabolic syndrome overall is increasing and rates among adult liver transplant recipients are much higher than those among our pediatric/young adult population. According to a recent article from the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study, metabolic disturbances (ie, elevated blood pressure and glucose levels and changes in blood lipids) in normal-weight youth increase the risk for developing metabolic syndrome in early adulthood, whereas overweight/obesity even without metabolic changes increases the likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes. Weight and lifestyle management seem especially important in liver transplant recipients to prevent later complications. In addition to general guidelines for the prevention and management of metabolic syndrome, the comprehensive care of these youth could be enhanced by improvements in transitional care and through continued support. We also wish to highlight the association of PTMS and liver steatosis found among young Finnish liver transplant recipients and encourage more studies in this field.
Effects of chronic hypoxia on the whole-body insulin action in rats.

The effect of chronic hypoxia on the whole-body insulin action in rats was investigated. Rats were kept in a hypobaric hypoxia chamber maintained at a simulated altitude of 4000 m for 10 weeks. At the end of the experimental period, the mean body weight of the hypoxic rats was significantly lower than that of the control rats. The muscle weight to body ratio of the quadriceps muscle in hypoxic rats was larger than that in control rats, but those of the gastrocnemius, soleus, and extensor digitorum longus muscles did not differ between the control and hypoxic rats. On the other hand, the epididymal fat pads of hypoxic rats were markedly smaller than those of the control rats. The results of a euglycemic clamp experiment with infusions of 14 and 3.6 mU insulin.kg-1.min-1 indicated that the steady-state glucose infusion rate was not statistically different between hypoxic and control rats. It is suggested that chronic hypoxia did not influence the whole-body insulin action on glucose transport activity.
Design and performance of wireless power transfer with high temperature superconducting resonance antenna

This paper presents the feasibility of technical fusion between WPT system and superconducting technology to enable to apply for electric charging system based on resonance method of contactless power transfer technique since it makes possible a convenient charging system. Fortunately, as superconducting wires keep larger current density and Q value than normal conducting wire, a superconducting resonance antenna can be expected as a reasonable option to deliver large transfer power. Especially, since the high temperature superconducting (HTS) wires can be steadily cooled by liquid nitrogen (77K) or refrigerator, its cooling cost is economical and it is much easier to handle compared with low temperature superconducting (LTS) wire. In this paper, we investigated possibility of technical combination, as well as obtained efficient characteristics between HTS resonance antenna and normal conducting receiver with 370 KHz RF generator within 40 cm. In addition, the cooling cost for HTS antenna is evaluated based on experimental performances.
Calcium and the exportable protein in rat parotid gland. Parallel subcellular distribution and concomitant secretion.

Most of the calcium (>80%) present in rat parotid gland slices was secreted concomitantly with the exportable protein. Detailed kinetics showed that secretion induced by catecholamines and by N6 monobutyryl adenosine 3′:5′-monophosphate proceeded at an approximately constant ratio of calcium to amylase (60 nmoles calcium/mg exported protein). It was calculated that the calcium which is tightly bound to amylase could account for only 11% of the exported calcium. Among the subcellular fractions of the gland, the secretory granules showed the highest calcium/protein ratio which was identical with that found for the material secreted by the slices. Both amylase and calcium were sedimented in a crude granule fraction to the extent of 50% of the total present in the homogenate of the gland. Various treatment that caused release of amylase from the crude secretory granule fraction also caused release of calcium to a similar extent. The calcium in secretory granules was not readily exchangeable when the granules were suspended in a medium containing 45Ca. The possible role of calcium in the aggregation of the exportable proteins in the secretory granules is discussed in view of the information on the presence of relatively high concentrations of bivalent cations in some other gland systems.
The Involvement of Respiration in Free Radical Processes during Loss of Desiccation Tolerance in Germinating Zea mays L. (An Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Study)

When germinating Zea mays L. seeds are rapidly desiccated, free radical-mediated lipid peroxidation and phospholipid de-esterification is accompanied by a desiccation-induced buildup of a stable free radical associated with rapid loss of desiccation tolerance. Comparison of the electron paramagnetic resonance and electron nuclear double resonance properties of this radical with those of the radical in dried, desiccation-intolerant moss showed that the two were identical. At the subcellular level, the radical was associated with the hydrophilic fraction resulting from lipid extraction. Isolated mitochondria subjected to drying were also found to accumulate an identical radical in vitro. When increasing concentrations of cyanide were used, a significant positive correlation was shown between rates of respiration and the accumulation of the radical in desiccation-intolerant tissues. Another positive correlation was found when rates of O2 uptake by radicles at different stages of germination were plotted against free radical content following desiccation. This indicates that free radical production is closely linked to respiration in a process likely to involve the desiccation-induced impairment of the mitochondrial electron transport chain to form thermodynamically favorable conditions to induce accumulation of a stable free radical and peroxidized lipids. Modulation of respiration using a range of inhibitors resulted in broadly similar modulation of the buildup of the stable free radical. One site of radical generation was likely to be the NADH dehydrogenase of complex I and probably as a direct consequence of desiccation-impaired electron flow at or close to the ubiquinone pool.
Seroprevalence and risk factors of toxoplasmosis in pregnant women of district Swabi

Toxoplasmosis is parasitic infection that causes severe abnormalities in newborn babies when transmitted from mothers. The present study was conducted to find the seroprevalence and risk factors of toxoplasmosis among the pregnant women of selected samples taken from maternity ward, District Headquarter Hospital Swabi. Furthermore, the selected samples were scrutinized for toxoplasmosis in relation with gestation period, age factor, total number of pregnancies women carried, socioeconomic factors and the source of contamination through which women can be infected. The sera sample was examined for the presence of IgG/IgM anti-Toxo antibodies. For this purpose OnSiteToxo IgG /IgM Rapid test kit was used according to manufacturing protocol CTK biotech (San Diego USA). Overall prevalence of toxoplasmosis was reported to be 12% among which 05 cases were positive for only IgG and remaining 07 were positive both for IgG and IgM. Regarding gestation period, females at the third trimester of pregnancy were at greater risk and about 20% of cases were screened positive. In relation to age factor, women at the age of 31-36 showed high prevalence (25%) for toxoplasmosis. Examining toxoplasmosis in relation to number of pregnancies women carried, high percentage was recorded in women with their first pregnancy (3.96%). The findings also linked the infection with socioeconomic factors i.e. (36.36%) of cases were reported in pregnant women belonging to lower class. Similarly, in reporting results for toxoplasmosis due to contaminated environment, 30% of the cases of toxoplasmosis were mainly caused by the consumption of raw/improperly cooked meat. Other enormous causes included the interaction of women with cats and contaminated soil i.e. 27% each. Proper screening of women at her each trimester of pregnancy and awareness about the infection by health departments may contribute towards the prevention of congenital Toxoplasmosis.
Electrical Actuation-Induced Droplet Transport on Smooth and Superhydrophobic Surfaces

Electrical control of liquid droplet motion and wettability has wide-ranging applications in the field of MEMS, lab-on-a-chip devices and surface engineering, in view of the resulting enhanced flow control opportunities, low power consumption and the absence of mechanical moving parts. This article summarizes recent progress towards understanding of the fundamentals underlying electrical actuation of droplets on smooth and superhydrophobic surfaces. Electrical actuation of liquid droplets with widely differing electrical properties on smooth surfaces is first discussed. Electromechanical considerations are employed to study the actuation force on a generic liquid droplet across the entire spectrum of electrical actuation regimes. The challenges in understanding the fluid flow and dissipation mechanisms associated with a discrete moving droplet are discussed. The role of electrical voltages, interfacial energies and surface morphology in determining droplet states (nonwetting Cassie state and wetting Wenze.
Nasopharyngeal colonization in Costa Rican children during the first year of life.

BACKGROUND The establishment of the nasopharyngeal flora was followed in Costa Rican children from birth to 1 year of age. METHODS Nasopharyngeal cultures were obtained at 1 (n = 413), 3 (n = 393), 6 (n = 376) and 12 months (n = 356) of age from children representative of the population in the Puriscal district. Weekly cultures were obtained from a subcohort of these children (n = 101). Mother-infant diads (n = 95) and preschool children (n = 208) attending day-care centers were also studied. RESULTS The estimated proportion of colonized children in the population differed markedly depending on the frequency of culture. Quarterly cultures showed a slow increase in carrier rates from 3.9% for Haemophilus influenzae, 3.1% for Streptococcus pneumoniae and 6.5% for Moraxella catarrhalis at 1 month of age to 10.1% carrying H. influenzae and 19.4% carrying S. pneumoniae by the end of the first year. By quarterly culture the proportion of children colonized at least once was 36% for S. pneumoniae, 26% for H. influenzae and 28% for M. catarrhalis. In contrast weekly sampling showed that 95 to 100% of the children were colonized at least once during the first year of life with H. influenzae, S. pneumoniae or M. catarrhalis. Nasopharyngeal carriage of H. influenzae, S. pneumoniae and M. catarrhalis was low in the mothers, and very few mother-infant pairs carried identical bacteria at the same time. In contrast carrier rates were high in the siblings attending day care (H. influenzae 27.9%, S. pneumoniae 39.4%, both organisms 26.6%). Infants with siblings had significantly higher bacterial carriage at all ages than infants without siblings. CONCLUSIONS Quarterly nasopharyngeal cultures showed that Costa Rican infants acquire their nasopharyngeal flora at a rate comparable with that for infants in developed countries and that siblings are an important source of the bacteria. Weekly samplings showed that virtually all children were colonized at least once during the first year of life.
Distributed control design for underwater vehicles

The vast majority of control applications are based on non-interacting decentralized control designs. Because of their single-loop structure, these controllers cannot suppress interactions of the system. It would be useful to tackle the undesirable effects of the interactions at the design stage. A novel model predictive control scheme based on Nash optimality is presented to achieve this goal. In this algorithm, the control problem is decomposed into that of several small-coupled mixed integer optimisation problems. The relevant computational convergence, closed-loop performance and the effect of communication failures on the closed-loop behaviour are analysed. Simulation results are presented to illustrate the effectiveness and practicality of the proposed control algorithm.
Revision Lateral Ankle Reconstruction

Background: Symptomatic lateral ankle instability is a common source of disability in an active population. While most incidences are successfully treated by conservative measures, some individuals require lateral ankle reconstruction. A commonly performed procedure is the Gould modification of the Broström lateral ankle reconstruction. Despite its success, some individuals experience recurrent instability through reinjury. Revision surgery often involves nonanatomic reconstruction using tendon grafts that may restrict normal ankle and subtalar motion and can result in persistent postoperative pain and disability. The purpose of this study was to demonstrate an equivalent success rate using a more anatomic revision lateral ankle reconstruction based on the Gould modification of the Broström concept. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 15 consecutive patients who had a revision lateral ankle reconstruction between 1992 and 2000. All procedures were done by a single surgeon (FGL). Patients who exhibited hindfoot varus and dynamic heel rollout had a valgus calcaneal osteotomy. Patients were asked to complete a 100-point questionnaire postoperatively. Results: All patients reported improvement in ankle function, decreased pain, and no episodes of instability compared to preoperative assessments. Excellent results were achieved in 12 of 15 patients which was consistent with published data from index Broström reconstructions. Four patients who had fixed hindfoot varus and dynamic ankle rollout had valgus calcaneal osteotomies. All patients returned to an active lifestyles including sports and military service. Conclusion: Our findings suggest that a revision anatomic lateral ankle reconstruction is an effective option. A thorough clinical evaluation was mandatory to assess hindfoot valgus with dynamic ankle rollout for which a valgus calcaneal osteotomy was included in the procedure. We believe that tendon sacrificing procedures can be avoided in most patients, but soft-tissue structures must be assessed intraoperatively and the surgical approach planned to allow for conversion if necessary.
Treatment of patients with disseminated intravascular coagulation by protein C

The therapeutic effect of highly purified protein C (PC) or activated protein C (APC) on three patients with disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC) was tested. In two out of three cases, although therapeutic dose of heparin was not effective, PC or APC administration significantly improved the hypercoagulable state. In one case with acute leukemia who developed DIC with the severe gastrointestinal bleeding, APC corrected the hypercoagulable state without aggravating bleeding. These findings suggested that PC and/or APC might be effective in correcting hypercoagulable state without any adverse effect.
Enhancing the selectivity of frequency selective surfaces for terahertz sensing applications

This paper introduces a new technique for enhancing the selectivity (or the quality factor, Q-factor) of frequency selective surfaces (FSS) for sensing applications. The proposed FSS functions as a free-space bandpass resonator, designed to sense the changing dielectric properties of minute amount of materials loaded on the FSS. The Q-enhancement technique is mainly based on two concepts; enhancing the field concentration in a given area and introducing transmission zeros in the FSS response. Two designs based on a modified complementary split-ring resonator (CSRR) at 300 GHz have been proposed. The first one is composed of complementary triple-split ring resonators. The splits divided the structure into arcs of different lengths. As a result, the transmission zero is obtained in the passband due to a destructive coupling. This produces a resonance Q-factor of 41. By controlling the orientation of the three splits, higher Q-factor of 84 is attainable. The second structure is designed using concentric triple-split rings. The added electromagnetic coupling between the concentric rings makes the transmission response steeper as compared with the single triple-split ring, and the quality factor increases from 41 to 90. By reducing the interspacing distance by three times, the Q-factor can be further increased to 256. The parameter studies of the FSS structures based on full-wave simulations have been presented.
A mobile location service demonstrator based on power measurements

Coupled with the unprecedented development of mobile communications, location services have been under study for a number of years. In this paper, a GSM mobile location service demonstrator based on power measurements is presented. The choice of this procedure is justified because the main interest here was to minimise the impact of the service deployment on the operator's network. The procedure has been tested under real GSM networks in different environments and some accuracy measurements have been obtained.
Collective Action and Informal Institutions : The Case of Agropastoralists of Eastern Ethiopia

An increasing scarcity of water for crop farming and livestock watering among agropastoralists of Mieso in Eastern Ethiopia has largely disrupted their livelihoods. Indigenous water well maintenance and government initiated rainwater harvesting are two important collective actions common among these communities. With the aim of examining collective action institutions in both cases, we collected data from different stakeholders and individual members. Theoretically, low level of physical assets (action resource) limits participation of an individual in collective action. In our case, other factors such as environmental uncertainty and lower level of dependence on the resource have been found to be more significant in limiting membership than limitation of assets. Poor agropastoralists depend on their informal networks to have access to other assets. This enables them to maintain their membership. Moreover, there is a difference between self-organized and imposed collective action in terms of rule enforcement and sanctioning. Institutions also produce different incentives in that free riding leads to automatic exclusion in water harvesting, whereas poor members who continue free riding can benefit from the water well. In evaluating the success, we conclude that technical capacity of members in benefiting from their collective action is limited and deserves more attention than their ability to develop effective collective action institutions. Technical capacity development of user groups needs to be central in policy and programs addressing this.
Short course therapy with cefuroxime axetil for group A streptococcal tonsillopharyngitis in children.

BACKGROUND Tonsillopharyngitis caused by group A beta-hemolytic streptococci (GABHS) is common in pediatric clinical practice. Standard penicillin therapy may be associated with poor compliance, penicillin tolerance in GABHS and microbial copathogenicity. Alternative treatments are available (e.g. oral cephalosporins), and data suggest that shorter courses of these agents may be effective. OBJECTIVE This open, randomized, multicenter study compared a conventional 10-day course of the broad spectrum oral cephalosporin, cefuroxime axetil, with a shorter 5-day course. METHODS Cefuroxime axetil suspension, 10 mg/kg, was given twice daily to children (ages 3 to 13 years) screened for GABHS tonsillopharyngitis. Patients were assessed clinically and bacteriologically 4 to 7 days after completing the course and followed up at 21 to 28 days. Among 651 patients recruited 520 had throat cultures positive for GABHS and were randomized to treatment. RESULTS In the 406 patients with microbiologically confirmed GABHS infection, eradication of the initial pathogen was recorded in 177 of 201 (88%) and 189 of 205 (92%) of patients in the 5- and 10-day groups, respectively, at posttreatment. At follow-up, 137 of 162 (85%) of patients in the 5-day group and 145 of 167 (87%) in the 10-day group maintained bacteriologic eradication. All posttreatment isolates of GABHS were susceptible to cefuroxime, and reinfection with a different serotype of GABHS was rare (< or =2%) in both groups. The rates of recurrence of the pretreatment serotype were 10 and 7% in the 5- and 10-day groups, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Short course therapy with cefuroxime axetil suspension may offer an effective alternative treatment to conventional regimens, with potential for better compliance and reduced costs.