Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Optimal collection tubes for plasma glucose determination: confusion reigns supreme

*Corresponding author: Sara Pasqualetti, UOC Patologia Clinica, Ospedale “Luigi Sacco”, ASST Fatebenefratelli-Sacco, Via GB Grassi 74, 20157 Milano, Italy, Phone: +390239042683, Fax: +390239042364, E-mail: sara.pasqualetti@asst-fbf-sacco.it Dominika Szőke, Sarah Birindelli, Alberto Dolci and Mauro Panteghini: UOC Patologia Clinica, Ospedale “Luigi Sacco”, ASST Fatebenefratelli-Sacco, Milan, Italy Letter to the Editor
Mortalité par accident dans les mines de charbon en Belgique aux XIXe-XXe siècles

A l'aide des releves statistiques dresses annuellement par l'Administration des Mines, la mortalite par accident dans les mines belges a pu etre retracee depuis 1821 jusque 1985. Si le temps est a la baisse (de 33 tues pour 10.000 ouvriers en 1851-1855, le taux de mortalite est tombe a 6 en 1981-1985). Cette amelioration de la securite s'est realisee lentement, par etapes, grâce au developpement des techniques et de la legislation. La confrontation des statistiques belges avec celles de la France, de la Grande- Bretagne, de la Prusse et des Etats-Unis, fait apparaitre le retard de ces deux derniers par rapport aux premiers en matiere de securite miniere. La principale explication reside dans l'absence de tradition professionnelle de la main-d'œuvre aux Etats-Unis et en Prusse. Enfin, l'essor des techniques de sauvetage est egalement pris en compte afin d'expliquer la reduction de la mortalite a partir de 1890.
Erlotinib is a viable treatment for tumors with acquired resistance to cetuximab

The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) is a ubiquitously expressed receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) and is recognized as a key mediator of tumorigenesis in many human tumors. Currently there are five EGFR inhibitors used in oncology, two monoclonal antibodies (panitumumab, and cetuximab) and three tyrosine kinase inhibitors (erlotinib, gefitinib, and lapatinib). Both strategies of EGFR inhibition have demonstrated clinical successes, however many tumors remain non-responsive or acquire resistance during therapy. To explore potential molecular mechanisms of acquired resistance to cetuximab we previously established a series of cetuximab-resistant clones by chronically exposing the NCI-H226 NSCLC cell line to escalating doses of cetuximab. Cetuximab-resistant clones exhibited a dramatic increase in steady-state expression of EGFR, HER2, and HER3 receptors as well as increased signaling through the MAPK and AKT pathways. RNAi studies demonstrated dependence of cetuximab-resistant clones on the EGFR signaling network. These findings prompted investigation on whether or not cells with acquired resistance to cetuximab would be sensitive to the EGFR targeted TKI erlotinib. In vitro, erlotinib was able to decrease signaling through the EGFR axis, decrease cellular proliferation, and induce apoptosis. To determine if erlotinib could have therapeutic benefit in vivo, we established cetuximab-resistant NCI-H226 mouse xenografts, and subsequently treated them with erlotinib. Mice harboring cetuximab-resistant tumors treated with erlotinib exhibited either a tumor regression or growth delay as compared to vehicle controls. Analysis of the erlotinib treated tumors demonstrated a decrease in cell proliferation and increase rates of apoptosis. The work presented herein suggests that 1) cells with acquired resistance to cetuximab maintain their dependence on EGFR and 2) tumors developing resistance to cetuximab can benefit from subsequent treatment with erlotinib, providing rationale for its use in the setting of cetuximab resistance.
Damaged reproduction: the most important consequence of iodine deficiency.

In 1998, over one third of the world’s population lived in areas of iodine deficiency (1). Most countries, including many in western Europe, are involved. Iodine is an essential component of thyroid hormones, and its importance stems from that role. The most obvious consequence of iodine deficiency is goiter. This adaptive response, mediated principally by TSH, attempts to cope with a shortage of the raw material (iodine) needed for hormone synthesis. If the iodine deficiency is not too severe and the response is adequate, the affected individual has no apparent consequence, except an enlarged thyroid. In the past, the disease entity was labeled “endemic goiter,” and although recognized as a significant public health issue, it received much less attention than other pressing needs, such as infectious diseases. Cretinism was known to be associated with endemic goiter, but the existence of a continuum from mild mental retardation to gross neurological impairment has only been widely appreciated in the last several decades (review in Ref. 2). The term “iodine deficiency disorders” serves to emphasize the many other consequences of iodine deficiency (3). Of these, damage to reproductive function and to the developing fetus and infant is the most severe and is the focus of this commentary. Aspects of this topic have been reviewed in detail elsewhere (4–6), and Smallridge et al. (7) discuss the related issue of hypothyroidism in pregnancy in this issue of the journal.
Hypolipidemic and Antiatherogenic Effects of Dietary Chitosan and Wheatbran in High Fat- High Cholesterol Fed Rats.

Background: Dietary modification contributes significantly in reducing cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors including lowering cholesterol and atherosclerosis. Aims: The purpose of this study was to examine the efficiency of using either chitosan or wheat bran or a mixture of equal amounts of chitosan and wheat bran on the prevention of hyperlipidemia, hypercholesterolemia - induced in rats fed high fat, high cholesterol diets. Materials and Methods: 80 male albino rats were divided into eight groups: (1) normal control; animals in groups 2, 3 and 4 were fed on basal diet supplemented with chitosan or wheat bran or chitosan and wheat bran at equal amounts (5%), respectively, (5) control hypercholesterolemic-hyperlipidemic rats, fed the balanced diet supplemented with cholesterol and fats at a dose level of 1 g and 20g/100 g diet respectively; then the other three groups of animals fed the same previous hypercholesterolemic diet supplemented with chitosan (6) or wheat bran(7) or chitosan and wheat bran at the same level (5%)(8). Results The present study showed that 1% cholesterol and 20% fat administration caused a significant increase in total cholesterol, total lipids, and triacylglycerols in both serum and liver. Serum phospholipids, LDL-C, and atherogenic index (AI) also significantly increased compared to normal control group. Cholesterol-enriched diet significantly increased fecal total total lipids, total cholesterol and triacylglycerol levels as well as significantly increased serum malondialdehyde and significantly decreased blood glutathione, glutathione peroxidase and liver nitric oxide compared to healthy control. Consumption of chitosan, wheat bran or a combination mixture of them by healthy and hyperlipidemic hypercholesterolemic rats resulted in a significantly decrement in lipid parameters in serum and liver and significant improvement antioxidant enzymes as compared with their corresponding control rats. Conclusion: These results suggest that both chitosan and wheat bran had anti-atherogenic hypolipidemic and reduced oxidative stress via inhibition of reactive oxygen species and lipid peroxidation as well as increment of antioxidant enzymes.
Characterization of Acid Phosphatase in the Promastigotes of Three Isolates of Leishmania major

Background: Acid phosphatase (ACP) is suggested to be one of the virulence factors in leishmania and a correlation has been reported between Leishmanial acid phosphatase (ACP) activity and the severity of the disease in all types of leishmaniasis including zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL), which is a polymorphic disease. Objective: Characterization of leishmania and its correlation with the severity of the skin lesions in zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis. Methods: Promastigotes were isolated from 30 patients with scaly flat ulcers (LP1), volcano-shaped lesions (LP2) and papular forms (LP3) of ZCL. The Km and Vmax values of ACP in the supernatant of lysed promastigotes were calculated in presence and absence of the enzyme inhibitors, fluoride, tartarate, phosphate and salicylate. Results: The Michaelis-Menten substrate saturation kinetics exhibited Km values of 12.5, 16.0, 26.6 mM and Vmax values of 8.78, 5.26 and 1.51 mM/min/mg protein for LP1, LP2 and LP3, respectively. In all isolates, the ACP was inhibited by all four inhibitors but the percentage inhibition was different and each inhibitor showed a particular inhibition pattern for each promastigote preparation. ACP content of LP1 was more sensitive to all four inhibitors and fluoride was more potent inhibitor of the enzyme in three isolates. Conclusion: The differences in ACP kinetics may be interpreted as being consistent with the severity of the skin lesions in Leishmania major infection.
Transport of cytochrome c derivatives by the bacterial Tat protein translocation system

An experimental system developed previously for the heterologous expression of c‐type cytochromes in Escherichia coliQ1has been adapted to monitor protein transfer across the bacteria's cytoplasmic membrane. Apocytochrome, lacking the haem cofactor and probably in an unfolded state, was readily transferred across the cytoplasmic membrane when fused to a Sec‐specific signal peptide. Furthermore, cytochrome fused to a signal peptide regarded as specific for the twin arginine transport (Tat) system was translocated in an unfolded state by the Sec apparatus. After maturation and folding in the cytoplasm, Tat‐mediated transfer of holocytochrome to the periplasm occurred. We conclude that, in addition to the nature of the specific signal peptide, the folding state of a particular protein also governs its acceptance by a given transport system.
The role of human visual models in image processing

The mechanisms are discussed by which the human eye forms a neural image of the outside world for transmission along the optic nerve. Mathematical models of these mechanisms which can be exploited for engineering purposes are presented and their usefulness and limitatious are discussed. Three areas in which human vision models have been successfully applied are image bandwidth compression, image quality assessment, and image enhancement; results from these areas are summarized and some example results are given. Some future directions are suggested.
Tibialis posterior dysfunction: a common and treatable cause of adult acquired flatfoot

Adults with an acquired flatfoot deformity may present not with foot deformity but almost uniformly with medial foot pain and decreased function of the affected foot (for a list of causes of an acquired flatfoot deformity in adults, see box 1). 1 Patients whose acquired flatfoot is associated with a more generalised medical problem tend to receive their diagnosis and are referred appropriately. However, in patients whose “adult acquired flatfoot deformity” is a result of damage to the structures supporting the medial longitudinal arch, the diagnosis is often not made early.2 These patients are often otherwise healthier and tend to be relatively more affected by the loss of function resulting from an acquired flatfoot deformity. The most common cause of an acquired flatfoot deformity in an otherwise healthy adult is dysfunction of the tibialis posterior tendon, and this review provides an outline to its diagnosis and treatment. We seached PubMed for publications by using the keywords “flatfoot” and “tibialis posterior dysfunction”. ### Tibialis posterior dysfunction: a common condition Tibialis posterior dysfunction is well recognised by orthopaedic surgeons specialising in foot and ankle surgery and by podiatrists. However, greater general awareness of this condition is required,2 as most patients presenting to a general practitioner receive a diagnosis of ankle sprain or arthritis. By the time most patients present to a specialist foot and ankle clinic they have had the condition for several years and have consulted numerous doctors.3 Even general orthopaedic surgeons and physiotherapists often miss the diagnosis.3 However, tibialis posterior dysfunction need not remain a “specialist diagnosis” as it is usually diagnosed without any investigations, from a history and physical examination.2 Many patients benefit from relatively simple treatment, such as orthotic devices.4 Population based studies to identify the prevalence of tibialis posterior dysfunction are under way. In elderly people the condition …
View‐centralized multi‐atlas classification for Alzheimer's disease diagnosis

Multi‐atlas based methods have been recently used for classification of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and its prodromal stage, that is, mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Compared with traditional single‐atlas based methods, multiatlas based methods adopt multiple predefined atlases and thus are less biased by a certain atlas. However, most existing multiatlas based methods simply average or concatenate the features from multiple atlases, which may ignore the potentially important diagnosis information related to the anatomical differences among different atlases. In this paper, we propose a novel view (i.e., atlas) centralized multi‐atlas classification method, which can better exploit useful information in multiple feature representations from different atlases. Specifically, all brain images are registered onto multiple atlases individually, to extract feature representations in each atlas space. Then, the proposed view‐centralized multi‐atlas feature selection method is used to select the most discriminative features from each atlas with extra guidance from other atlases. Next, we design a support vector machine (SVM) classifier using the selected features in each atlas space. Finally, we combine multiple SVM classifiers for multiple atlases through a classifier ensemble strategy for making a final decision. We have evaluated our method on 459 subjects [including 97 AD, 117 progressive MCI (p‐MCI), 117 stable MCI (s‐MCI), and 128 normal controls (NC)] from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative database, and achieved an accuracy of 92.51% for AD versus NC classification and an accuracy of 78.88% for p‐MCI versus s‐MCI classification. These results demonstrate that the proposed method can significantly outperform the previous multi‐atlas based classification methods. Hum Brain Mapp 36:1847–1865, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Dates as Data: An Examination of the Peruvian Preceramic Radiocarbon Record

Radiocarbon dates can provide an effective overview of regional trends in non-complex societies when treated in a quantitative manner. In spite of intervening biases, numbers of radiocarbon dates should reflect the patterns of occupation across time. Using the date record of preceramic Perú, I illustrate very different radiocarbon trends for highland and coastal zones. These suggest exponential growth, equilibrium, and altitude shift for the occupations of coastal, puna, and highland valley regions. Biases caused by variation in temporal and geographic investigation, and the effects of sea-level rise are considered, but I argue that general occupational patterns overshadow distortions of the date record.
Mechanisms of Negativity Bias: An Empirical Exploration of App Reviews In Apple's App Store

Researchers in many diverse areas have consistently found that we are unduly influenced by negative information. In electronic commerce, this negativity bias is evident in the effect of product reviews on consumer behavior in the information systems literature. While the negativity bias is well documented, there has been little systematic and empirical research on its underlying causes. Utilizing a novel data set collected from Apple’s App Store, we examine three probable causes of the negativity bias: that negative reviews are more specific, that they have higher surprise value, and that they increase our ability to avoid losses. The empirical analysis revealed that while all three mechanisms contribute to the negativity bias, the ‘surprise’ factor and the ability to avoid losses play a more prominent role when consumers process and integrate positive and negative review information. Our findings also carry important practical implications for review platforms and online companies.
Generation and Selective Retrieval of Micro Droplets in an Array for Micro-PCR using a Glass-Silicon-Glass Chip

In this study, we fabricate a glass-silicon-glass chip for the generation of a water-droplet array. Using this array, we succeeded in performing polymerase chain reaction (PCR) within the hundreds of trapped water droplets. Then, we selectively retrieve a specific PCR droplet with a bubble formed by heating an aluminum micro pad with an infrared laser.
RNN-LDA Clustering for Feature Based DNN Adaptation

Model based deep neural network (DNN) adaptation approaches often require multi-pass decoding in test time. Input feature based DNN adaptation, for example, based on latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA) clustering, provide a more efficient alternative. In conventional LDA clustering, the transition and correlation between neighboring clusters is ignored. In order to address this issue, a recurrent neural network (RNN) based clustering scheme is proposed to learn both the standard LDA cluster labels and their natural correlation over time in this paper. In addition to directly using the resulting RNN-LDA as input features during DNN adaptation, a range of techniques were investigated to condition the DNN hidden layer parameters or activation outputs on the RNN-LDA features. On a DARPA Gale Mandarin Chinese broadcast speech transcription task, the proposed RNN-LDA cluster features adapted DNN system outperformed both the baseline un-adapted DNN system and conventional LDA features adapted DNN system by 8% relative on the most difficult Phoenix TV subset. Consistent improvements were also obtained after further combination with model based adaptation approaches.
Effect of dietary supplementation with fructo-oligosaccharides on fecal flora of healthy cats.

OBJECTIVE To investigate changes in the fecal flora of healthy cats after dietary supplementation with fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS). ANIMALS 12 healthy, barrier-maintained, specific-pathogen-free-derived adult cats. PROCEDURE Fresh fecal samples for quantitative and qualitative bacteriologic examination were collected from each cat after ingestion of a replete dry (basal) diet for a minimum of 8 weeks. The diet was then supplemented with 0.75% FOS, and another fecal sample was collected after 12 weeks. RESULTS Mean +/- SD fecal aerobic, anaerobic, and total bacterial counts (log10 colony-forming units per gram of feces [CFU/g]) did not differ significantly between diets (8.3 +/- 0.8, 9.2 +/- 0.6, 9.4 +/- 0.4, respectively, for the basal diet; and 8.4 +/- 0.8, 9.7 +/- 0.7, and 9.8 +/- 0.7, respectively, for the FOS diet), although there was a trend for higher numbers of anaerobes and total bacteria associated with the FOS diet. Members of the genus Bacteroides, Clostridium perfringens, Escherichia coli, lactobacilli, and Plesiomonas shigeloides were the most prevalent bacteria isolated. Compared with samples from cats fed basal diet, there was a trend for increased mean counts of lactobacilli (P = 0.02) and Bacteroides spp (P = 0.05) after FOS supplementation, and a trend for decreased mean numbers of Escherichia coli (P = 0.03) and Clostridium perfringens (P = 0.08) to be associated with the FOS diet. Supplementation of FOS resulted in a median 164-fold increase in numbers of lactobacilli, 13.2-fold increase in Bacteroides spp, 98% reduction in numbers of C perfringens, and 75% reduction in numbers of E coli. CONCLUSIONS Supplementation of the diet with FOS resulted in alteration of the fecal flora of cats.
Dry Matter Yields of Cool-Season Grass Monocultures and Grass–Alfalfa Binary Mixtures

Cultivars used in grass-alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) mixtures for hay production in the semiarid Northern Great Plains have often lacked long-term productivity. This study was conducted to compare dry matter (DM) yields of grass monocultures and grass-alfalfa binary mixtures receiving annual applications of 0 and 50 kg N ha -1 over a 5-yr period. Reliant' and Manska' intermediate wheatgrass [Thino-pyrum intermedium (Host) Barkw. and Dewey], Lincoln' smooth bromegrass (Bromus inermis Leyss.), Nordan' crested wheatgrass [Agropyron desertorum (Fisch.) Schult. ], Lodorm' green needlegrass (Stipa viridula Trin.), and Dacotah' switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) were seeded in monoculture and in binary mixtures with Rangelander' alfalfa [Medicago sativa subsp. x varia (Martyn) Arcang. ] on a Parshall fine sandy loam (coarse-loamy, mixed, superactive, frigid, Pachic Haplustolls) near Mandan, ND. Plant stands of green needlegrass and switchgrass were inadequate, and yields were not measured. Total seasonal DM yields from two cuttings averaged 8.74 and 2.71 Mg ha -1 , respectively, for grass-alfalfa mixtures and grass monocultures at 0 kg N ha -1 . At 50 kg N ha -1 , grass-alfalfa mixtures and grass monocultures averaged 8.72 and 5.04 Mg ha -1 DM yield, respectively. Yields of the grass component of first cut grass-alfalfa mixtures averaged 35% of total yield for intermediate wheatgrass, 33% of total yield for smooth bromegrass, and 30% of total yield for crested wheatgrass in the fifth production year. Cultivars included in this study, except those of green needlegrass and switchgrass, would be suited for use in binary grass-alfalfa mixtures for dryland hay production in the Northern Great Plains.
Class II restorations with margins below the CEJ.

INTRODUCTION Historically, Class II restorations using resin composite with margins below the dentino-enamel junction (dej) have fared poorly in investigations, exhibiting significant dye penetration along the marginal interfaces. In all reports located by the authors the gingival margins of sub-CEJ restorations have been finished, even though in actual practice this is not feasible in the vast majority of cases. PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of finishing on gingival margins located below the cemento-enamel junction of Class II resin composite restorations. MATERIALS AND METHODS Class II resin composite restorations with margins below the dej were placed in 40 extracted human molars using a dentin-enamel adhesive, a flowable resin composite, and a universal microhybrid resin composite restorative material. In all groups the adhesive was light activated for ten seconds and the restorative resin composite was light activated for ten seconds. The flowable increments were 1 mm in thickness and the restorative resin composite increments were 2 mm in thickness. In groups 1, 3, and 4 the flowable was light activated for ten seconds while in group 2 the flowable was light activated for 40 seconds. In groups 1, 2, and 4 the sub-CEJ margins were finished with finishing discs while in group 3 the sub-CEJ margins were unfinished. In group 4 the dentin adhesive was reapplied following finishing procedures. All groups were immersed in dye for 24 hours. RESULTS The two groups in which the margins were finished exhibited varying degrees of dye penetration. There was no dye penetration in the unfinished and the resealed groups. CONCLUSIONS It was concluded that the finishing procedure itself causes damage to the resin-dentin interface, which allows dye penetration to occur. This could potentially explain why resin adhesive materials have fared so poorly in Class II in vitro investigations, which is not the common clinical experience.