Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Contrast-Bath Therapy and Sensation Over the Anterior Talofibular Ligament

Context: It has been suggested that contrast-bath therapy alters sensation and enables patients to return to exercise more quickly. Objective: To determine whether contrast-bath therapy alters sensation of pressure in the ankle. Design: A 2 × 4 × 4 factorial design with repeated measures on 2 factors. Independent variables included gender, time (preapplication and 1, 6, and 11 min postapplication), and treatment (control, cold bath, hot bath, and contrast bath). Setting: Laboratory. Participants: 12 men and 12 women, college track athletes actively engaged in preseason workouts 5-6 days/wk. Interventions: Sensation of pressure was tested preapplication and 1, 6, and 11 min postapplication. Each treatment lasted 20 min. Main Outcome Measure: Sensation of pressure at baseline and 1, 6, and 11 min postapplication over the anterior talofibular ligament of the right ankle. Results: There was no difference between genders. Sensation of pressure was greater for the heat condition than the other 3 conditions at 1.
Prevalence of noncardiac findings on clinical cardiovascular MRI.

OBJECTIVE The purpose of our study was to determine the prevalence and significance of noncardiac findings on clinical cardiovascular MRI and to identify the cardiovascular MRI sequences that most frequently depict noncardiac findings. MATERIALS AND METHODS Images from 495 clinical cardiovascular MRI studies performed during 2006 were reviewed specifically for noncardiac findings by a cardiovascular imaging fellowship-trained radiologist without knowledge of the prior study interpretation. Noncardiac findings were classified as benign (e.g., gynecomastia), indeterminate (e.g., pleural effusion), or worrisome (e.g., lung nodule). The cardiovascular MRI sequences depicting the noncardiac finding were recorded. RESULTS On image review, 295 noncardiac findings were identified in 212 (43%) of 495 studies, including 148 benign, 133 indeterminate, and 14 worrisome noncardiac findings. Of these, 47% of indeterminate and 57% of worrisome noncardiac findings were not previously known. Cardiovascular MRI sequences that most frequently showed noncardiac findings included the single-shot fast steady-state free precession (SSFP) scout images (63% of all noncardiac findings) and axial T1-weighted fast spin-echo thoracic images (60% of all noncardiac findings), with 99% of management-changing noncardiac findings visualized on one of these two sequences. CONCLUSION Noncardiac findings on clinical cardiovascular MRI are common. Although only a small minority of studies contain management-changing noncardiac findings, the vast majority of management-changing noncardiac findings are seen on thoracic SSFP scout and axial T1-weighted thoracic fast spin-echo images.
Criterion validity and clinical usefulness of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Rating Scale IV in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as a function of method and age.

BACKGROUND The aim of this research is to analyze Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Rating Scales IV (ADHD RS-IV) criteria validity and its clinical usefulness for the assessment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) as a function of assessment method and age. METHODOLOGY A sample was obtained from an epidemiological study (n = 1095, 6-16 years). Clinical cases of ADHD (ADHD-CL) were selected by dimensional ADHD RS-IV and later by clinical interview (DSM-IV). ADHD-CL cases were compared with four categorical results of ADHD RS-IV provided by parents (CATPA), teachers (CATPR), either parents or teachers (CATPAOPR) and both parents and teachers (CATPA&PR). Criterion validity and clinical usefulness of the answer modalities to ADHD RS-IV were studied. RESULTS ADHD-CL rate was 6.9% in childhood, 6.2% in preadolescence and 6.9% in adolescence. Alternative methods to the clinical interview led to increased numbers of ADHD cases in all age groups analyzed, in the following sequence: CATPAOPR> CATPRO> CATPA> CATPA&PR> ADHD-CL. CATPA&PR was the procedure with the greatest validity, specificity and clinical usefulness in all three age groups, particularly in the childhood. CONCLUSIONS Isolated use of ADHD RS-IV leads to an increase in ADHD cases compared to clinical interview, and varies depending on the procedure used.
Prevalence of upper digestive endoscopy and gastric histopathology findings in morbidly obese patients.

CONTEXT The prevalence of obesity has been increasing in modern society. Roux-en-y gastric bypass is a bariatric surgery that involves the exclusion of significant part of the stomach. Atrophy, intestinal metaplasia and gastric cancer have been associated with infection by Helicobacter pylori. OBJECTIVES To evaluate the presence of endoscopy findings and histological changes in morbid obese patients for the presence of inflammatory cells, inflammatory activity, lymphoid hyperplasia, H. pylori infection, atrophy and intestinal metaplasia in the gastric mucosa. METHODS Upper digestive endoscopy and gastric histopathological were studied in 126 obese patients in the preoperative evaluation for bariatric surgery. RESULTS Upper digestive endoscopy abnormalities were diagnosed in 73/126 (57.9%) patients. In three patients (2.4%) the upper gastrointestinal endoscopy diagnosed gastric ulcer and one patient (0.8%) had duodenal ulcer. The histopathological from gastric biopsies of these obese patients showed 65.1% of mucosa inflammation, inflammatory activity in 50.0%, infection by H. pylori in 53.2%, lymphoid hyperplasia in 50.0% and atrophy and/or intestinal metaplasia in 16.7%. CONCLUSIONS In present study, with routine preoperative upper gastrointestinal endoscopy and histopathological examination, were detected 57.9% patients with endoscopy abnormalities, high prevalence of infection by H. pylori (53%) and 16.7% of gastric atrophy and/or intestinal metaplasia.
RSV Mediates Pseudomonas aeruginosa Binding to Cystic Fibrosis and Normal Epithelial Cells

Cystic fibrosis lung disease typically has a course of exacerbations and remissions, suggesting that external factors like viral infections can influence this course. Clinical data suggest synergism between respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections and Pseudomonas aeruginosa in cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease. We studied the influence of RSV infection on adherence of P. aeruginosa to IB3-1, HEp-2, and A549 epithelial cell monolayers in vitro. RSV infection of epithelial cells as well as simultaneous addition of RSV and P. aeruginosa to noninfected cells both strongly enhanced the pseudomonal adherence to epithelial cells. The increased adherence varied from 1.2- to 8.2-fold in case of previous RSV infection, and from 1.7- to 16.1-fold in case of simultaneous addition. We observed direct binding of RSV to P. aeruginosa, and blocking of RSV with heparin eliminated the effect on increased adherence. This suggests that RSV possibly acts as a coupling agent between P. aeruginosa and epithelial cells. In conclusion, RSV enhances P. aeruginosa infection of respiratory epithelial cells. It suggests a role of specific viral–bacterial interactions in exacerbations of CF lung disease, which could have important implications on prevention and treatment.
Automatic Composition of Motion Capture Animation for Music Synchronization

To enrich the music experience, automatic generation of a CG music visualizer is attracting more and more attention, where 3D animation is composed to synchronize with the music using motion capture data. In this paper, we present a novel approach for the above purpose, where both beat and intensity are employed to synchronize the motion with the music. We extend the conventional unstructured motion graphs to structured motion graphs (called weighted motion graphs ) using motion beat and intensity, where a best path is searched by dynamic programming to obtain beat-level synchronization. Our objective function is designed for the following three aspects: motion quality, cost from beat synchronization, and cost from intensity synchronization. Our experiments with a user study demonstrate that the proposed approach can effectively generate attractive animations for music synchronization with much less computational cost than the state-of-the-art alternative.
Novel Adjunct Drugs Reverse Endothelial Glycocalyx Damage After Hemorrhagic Shock in Rats

Introduction: There is interest in the small-volume therapeutic use of adjunct drugs for treating hemorrhagic shock (HS). However, critical information is only partially available on mechanisms of action of promising compounds such as adenosine-lidocaine-magnesium (ALM), beta-hydroxybutyrate plus melatonin (BHB/M), and poloxamer 188 (P-188). Therefore, we tested the hypothesis that these adjuncts would reverse HS-induced damage to microvascular endothelial glycocalyx and hemodynamics. Methods: After baseline, 40% of total blood volume was removed from 44 anesthetized Sprague–Dawley male rats. One hour after hemorrhage, animals were resuscitated using ALM, BHB/M, or P-188 followed by lactated Ringer's (LR, 15 mL/kg). Control animals were not treated (SHAM) or received LR alone. Sampled blood was used to quantify shed syndecan-1 in plasma; multiple systemic physiological parameters were recorded. In vivo glycocalyx thickness, microvascular permeability, and microhemodynamics were evaluated in >200 cremaster venules using intravital videomicroscopy. Results: Compared with baseline, resuscitation using adjuncts was associated with glycocalyx restoration of 97 ± 9% (ALM), 75 ± 8% (BHB/M), and 85 ± 5% (P-188): significantly higher than LR-only (56 ± 4%). Significantly better permeability, similar to SHAM values, was measured after ALM and P-188, and low plasma syndecan-1 levels were measured after resuscitation with all adjuncts. Microhemodynamic changes were relatively small while systemic parameters such as mean arterial pressure and lactate improved but remained below or above the baseline, respectively, as expected from this hypotensive resuscitation model. Conclusion: The drugs ALM, BHB/M, and P-188 provide beneficial effects as adjuncts to hypotensive resuscitation in this HS model by mechanisms involving changes at the microvascular level including the glycocalyx.
Mitotic arrest caused by the amino terminus of Xenopus cyclin B2

Progression through mitosis requires the inactivation of the protein kinase activity of the p34cdc2-cyclin complex by a mechanism involving the degradation of cyclin. We have examined the stability in Xenopus egg extracts of radiolabeled Xenopus or sea urchin B-type cyclins synthesized in reticulocyte lysates. Xenopus cyclin B2 and sea urchin cyclin B were stable in metaphase extracts from unfertilized eggs but were specifically degraded following addition of Ca2+ to the extracts. The degradation of either cyclin was inhibited by the addition of an excess of unlabeled Xenopus cyclin B2 but not by the addition of a number of control proteins. A truncated protein containing only the amino terminus of Xenopus cyclin B2, including sequences known to be essential for cyclin degradation in other species, also inhibited cyclin degradation, even though the truncated protein was stable in extracts following Ca2+ addition. The addition of the truncated protein did not stimulate histone H1 kinase activity in extracts but prevented the loss of H1 kinase activity that normally follows Ca2+ addition to metaphase extracts. When the amino-terminal fragment was added to extracts capable of several cell cycles in vitro, progression through the first mitosis was inhibited and elevated histone H1 kinase activity was maintained. These results indicate that although the amino terminus of cyclin does not contain all of the information necessary for cyclin destruction, it is capable of interacting with components of the cyclin destruction pathway and thereby preventing the degradation of full-length cyclins.
Multimodal visual-inertial odometry for navigation in cold and low contrast environment

Multispectral setups have a great potential to tackle problems such as collision avoidance or pedestrian detection. However, multispectral odometry is nowadays less precise than most stereo visible setups, so there is a need to improve such systems. With this work, we investigate the fusion of inertial data with visual information to improve the performance of multispectral setups. Inertial data are included in the process model of an extended Kalman filter to estimate the pose of a vehicle. But inertial measurement units drift rapidly when integrated for a certain period of time. Visual odometry is used to correct the predicted pose and reduce this drift. IMU data are also used to provide a pose estimation when images are too noisy to compute a motion (e.g. motion blur or low contrast). Therefore, we present a new multispectral (visible/LWIR) navigation system able to cope with fast motions and to operate in cold environments, where the contrast of infrared images is reduced. We demonstrate the robustness of the setup on a series of semi-urban datasets acquired from a car. An average error inferior to 3% of the distance traveled between the estimated trajectory and the GPS track is achieved on all the datasets.
Comparative transduction mechanisms of hair cells in the bullfrog utriculus. I. Responses to intracellular current.

1. Hair cells in whole-mount in vitro preparations of the utricular macula of the bullfrog (Rana catesbeiana) were selected according to their macular location and hair bundle morphology. The voltage responses of selected hair cells to intracellular current steps and sinusoids in the frequency range of 0.5-200 Hz were studied with conventional intracellular recordings. 2. The utricular macula is divided into medial and lateral parts by the striola, a 75- to 100-microns zone that runs for nearly the entire length of the sensory macula near its lateral border. The striola is distinguished from flanking extrastriolar regions by the elevated height of its apical surface and the wider spacing of its hair cells. A line dividing hair cells of opposing polarities, located near the lateral border of the striola, separates it into medial and lateral parts. On average, the striola consists of five to seven medial and two to three lateral rows of hair cells. 3. Utricular hair cells were classified into four types on the basis of hair bundle morphology. Type B cells, the predominant hair cell type in the utricular macula, are small cells with short sterocilia and kinocilia 2-6 times as long as their longest stereocilia. These hair cells were found throughout the extrastriola and, more rarely, in the striolar region. Three other hair cell types were restricted to the striolar region. Type C cells, found primarily in the outer striolar rows, resemble enlarged versions of Type B hair cells. Type F cells have kinocilia approximately equal in length to their longest stereocilia and are restricted to the middle striolar rows. Type E cells, found only in the innermost striolar rows, have short kinocilia with prominent kinociliary bulbs. 4. The resting potential of 99 hair cells was -58.0 +/- 7.6 (SD) mV and did not vary significantly for hair cells in differing macular locations or with differing hair bundle morphology. The RN of hair cells, measured from the voltage response to current steps, varied from 200 to > 2,000 M omega and was not well correlated with cell size. On average, Type B cells had the highest RN, followed by Type F, Type E, and Type C cells. When normalized to their surface area, the membrane resistance of hair cells ranged from < 1,000 to > 10,000 k omega.cm2. The input capacitance of hair cells ranged from < 3 to > 15 pA, corresponding on average to a membrane capacitance of 0.8 +/- 0.2 pA/cm2. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
Evidence for widespread Wolbachia infection in isopod crustaceans: molecular identification and host feminization

Wolbachia are maternally inherited, intracellular, alpha proteobacteria that infect a wide range of arthropods. They cause three kinds of reproductive alterations in their hosts: cytoplasmic incompatibility, parthenogenesis and feminization. There have been many studies of the distribution of Wolbachia in arthropods, but very few crustacean species are known to be infected. We investigated the prevalence of Wolbachia in 85 species from five crustacean orders. Twenty–two isopod species were found to carry these bacteria. The bacteria were found mainly in terrestrial species suggesting that Wolbachia came from a continental environment. The evolutionary relationships between these Wolbachia strains were determined by sequencing bacterial genes and by interspecific transfers. All the bacteria associated with isopods belonged to the wolbachiae B group, based on 16S rDNA sequence data. All the terrestrial isopod symbionts in this group except one formed an independent clade. The results of interspecific transfers show evidence of specialization of Wolbachia symbionts to their isopod hosts. They also suggest that host species plays a more important role than bacterial phylogeny in determining the phenotype induced by Wolbachia infection.
Evolution of HIV Resistance Mutations in Patients Maintained on a Stable Treatment Regimen After Virologic Failure

Objective:We compared the rate of emergence of thymidine analogue mutations (TAMs) and major protease inhibitor mutations in adherent patients who remained on stable treatment with a thymidine analogue and/or protease inhibitor after the onset of virologic failure. Design:Follow-up genotypic resistance testing was done using archived plasma obtained from patients having 0 or 1 TAM and/or 0 or 1 major protease inhibitor resistance mutation at the onset of virologic failure. Results:The median duration of observed failure was 691 days. There were 41 thymidine analogue regimens and 34 protease inhibitor regimens; concomitant ritonavir was used 4 times. New major protease inhibitor mutations emerged more rapidly than did new TAMs (P = 0.0019); new TAMs emerged more rapidly in thymidine analogue regimens that did not include lamivudine (P = 0.0073). The emergence of TAMs and major protease inhibitor mutations did not differ if lamivudine was not part of the thymidine analogue regimen. The evolution of CD4+ cell counts and plasma viral loads (pVLs) during virologic failure was similar regardless of whether or not a new TAM or major protease inhibitor mutations emerged or, for thymidine analogue-containing regimens, whether lamivudine was or was not used. Conclusions:Major protease inhibitor mutations arose more frequently and rapidly than did TAMs in patients with sustained virologic failure who received lamivudine.
Persistent environmental reservoirs on farms as risk factors for Campylobacter in commercial poultry

SUMMARY Campylobacter is the most common known source of human bacterial enteritis in the developed world and poultry is considered the main source. Broilers often become colonized with Campylobacter during rearing, and then contaminate the farm environment. The objective of this study was to identify Campylobacter-positive environmental reservoirs on farms, as these pose a risk to broiler flocks becoming colonized with Campylobacter. We considered the temporal aspects of exposure and colonization. A longitudinal study monitored six conventional rearing farms over 2 years. The broiler flocks, catchers' equipment, vehicles, shed surrounds, shed entrance, other equipment, farm entrance, other animals, puddles, dead birds, mains water and drinkers were systematically sampled 2–4 times per flock. A multivariable generalized estimating equation model was used to assess associations between contaminated environmental sites and colonized broiler flocks. The associations were adjusted for confounders and other known risk factors. To further assess temporality of contamination, the sequence of contamination of the different environmental sites and the flocks was established. Contaminated shed entrances and anterooms, contaminated drinkers and shedding of Campylobacter by other animals such as cattle, dogs, wildlife and rodents were significantly associated with positive flocks. The reservoir of ‘other animals’ was also the reservoir most commonly positive before the flock became colonized. The other sites usually became contaminated after the flock was colonized.
Measuring Patients’ Medical Care Preferences: Care Seeking versus Self-Treating

The objectives of this study were (1) to develop a scale to measure patient preferences for using medical care, (2) to assess the reliability and validity of the scale, and (3) to examine factors predicting preferences. Preferences were defined along a continuum, anchored by self-treating preferences and care-seeking preferences. A nine-item scale was developed and mailed to a random sample of 3500 Wisconsin consumers age 50 and older. Ordinary least squares regression was used to examine whether preferences were predicted by demographic and health status variables. A 56.9% usable response rate was obtained. The Medical Care Preference Scale was unidimensional and had a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.879. Younger individuals, women, individuals in better health, and individuals from rural areas had significantly stronger self-treating preferences. Significant correlations between the preference scale and two measures of health care utilization provided evidence of predictive validity. Individuals with care-seeking preferences used an average of 1.98 more prescription drugs and had 0.50 more physician visits in the past month than individuals with self-treating preferences. The Medical Care Preference Scale should be a useful tool for research on health care utilization.
Chronic Exposure to Ambient Ozone and Lung Function in Young Adults

Background: Tropospheric ozone (O3) is an oxidant, outdoor air pollutant. Chronic exposure has been associated with decreased lung function in children and adolescents. This study investigated the effects of long-term exposure to O3 on lung function in college freshmen. Methods: We recruited University of California, Berkeley students (n = 255) who were lifelong residents of the Los Angeles and San Francisco Bay areas and who never smoked. Lifetime exposures to O3, small particulate matter (PM10), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2) were based on spatial interpolation of compliance monitor measurements to all residences at which students lived. Spirometry was performed between February and May, times when students would not have had recent exposure to increased levels of O3. Results: Lifetime exposure to O3 was associated with decreased levels of measures of small airways (<2 mm) function (FEF75 and FEF25–75). There was an interaction with the FEF25–75/FVC ratio, a measure of intrinsic airway size. Subjects with a large ratio were less likely to have decreases in FEF75 and FEF25–75 for a given estimated lifetime exposure to O3. This association was not altered by history of chronic respiratory disease, allergy, second-hand exposure to environmental tobacco smoke, exposure to PM10 and NO2, or measurement errors in exposure assessment. Conclusions: A history of increased level of lifetime exposure to ambient O3 is associated with decreased function of airways in which O3 deposition in the lungs is the greatest. Adolescents with intrinsically smaller airways appear to be at greatest risk. Any environmental or genetic factors that lead to reduced airway size may lead to increased susceptibility to the adverse effects of ambient ozone.