Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Machine Comprehension with Deep Learning on SQuAD dataset

In a world with too much information and not enough time to parse it, humans could greatly benefit from an automated question answering system. End-to-end models that answer questions based on a passage would have profound impact on people inquiring about medical, legal, or technical documents. We choose to address this problem using deep learning techniques, that have recently come onto the scene and vastly outperform traditional machine learning models in language modeling. This project aims to replicate two of the leading papers in the domain of automated question answering and report on the results ([6], [4]).
Screening for cytotoxic compounds in poor-prognostic chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

BACKGROUND/AIM For chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) patients with poor-prognostic genomic aberrations the therapeutic options are limited. We used the Spectrum Collection library to identify compounds with anti-leukemia activity in high-risk CLL. MATERIALS AND METHODS We identified substances with equal high cytotoxic activity in vitro in samples from poor-prognostic CLL (11q-/17p-, n=3) as compared to those from favourable-prognostic CLL (13q-, n=3). Cell survival was measured by fluorometric microculture cytotoxicity assay. RESULTS Out of 2,000 compounds, 65 had a similar effect in both prognostic groups. Fifteen compounds were selected for dose-response experiments in 16 additional CLL samples. Of these compounds, 12 continued to have similar cytotoxicity between prognostic subgroups. Additional experiments demonstrated that in CLL cells with 11q or 17p deletion, 5-azacytidine induced apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner and lipoprotein lipase expression was reduced following orlistat treatment. CONCLUSION Using primary cultures of cells from high-risk CLL patients for compound screening is a feasible approach and that 5-azacytidine and orlistat exemplify substances that exhibit cytotoxicity in poor-risk CLL.
CD4+ AND B LYMPHOCYTES IN TRANSPLANTATION IMMUNITY: II. AUGMENTED REJECTION OF TUMOR ALLOGRAFTS BY MICE LACKING B CELLS

To test the importance of B lymphocytes in immunity to major histocompatibility complex class I alloantigens, B cell-deficient mice were generated by reconstituting severe combined immunodeficiency mice, which lack functional B and T lymphocytes, with T cells or with both T and B cells. The reconstituted mice were challenged with a cancer that expresses an MHC class I alloantigen at a low level and is susceptible to killing by CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes. Tumors grew more slowly in and were rejected more frequently by the mice lacking B cells. Understanding the mechanism by which B cells suppress tumor allograft rejection may lead to new approaches for suppressing immune attack on transplanted tissues.
Demyelinating activity of canine distemper virus isolates in gnotobiotic dogs.

Demyelination was induced in 16 of 35 gnotobiotic dogs by infection with canine distemper virus from a naturally occurring case of demyelinating distemper. In addition, this infection induced absolute lymphopenia, which persisted for several weeks. Two forms of demyelinating disease occurred after infection. Eleven dogs developed neurological signs several weeks after infection and rapidly became moribund. They remained lymphopenic and had thymic atrophy and generalized lymphoid depletion. Hematogenous mononuclear inflammatory cells were not present in the brains of these dogs. In contrast, demyelination associated with nonsuppurative encephalitis was demonstrated in five of 24 dogs that survived the 12-week observation period. Lymphocyte counts were normal in the 24 surviving dogs by eight weeks after infection. A French strain of canine distemper virus induced demyelination in three of 17 gnotobiotic dogs, while no demyelination occurred in eight dogs inoculated with either Snyder-Hill or glial tissue cultureadapted (Lederle) canine distemper virus.
Comparative Costs of Different Renal Replacement Therapies in Lower Middle Income Countries on the Example of Georgia

End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) represents one of the most challenging social and medical problems mainly due to substantial treatment-associated costs. The chronic nature of the disease needs expensive continuous care that majority of the patients cannot afford. Therefore, in many countries expenses associated with the ESRD treatment is paid by state government. These treatment options include: hemodialysis, peritoneal dialysis and kidney transplantation. Multiple studies have been conducted throughout the world to assess cost-effectiveness of these treatment modalities. The studies suggest that kidney transplantation not only reduces mortality and morbidity but improves a quality of life of ESRD patients. Furthermore, it is the most cost-effective treatment for the ESRD at least in high-income countries. The goal of our study was to determine whether above-mentioned is true for lower middle income countries, where the cost of the ESRD treatment is substantially lower. Despite the low dialysis costs, transplantation remains the cheapest form of renal replacement therapy RRT in lower income countries like Georgia. Our results reveal, that kidney transplantation is most expensive modality of Renal Replacement Therapy (RRT) at month 1, but count of costs reveals that after the 10th month of treatment, the cumulative cost of transplantation is less than the cumulative cost of peritoneal dialysis and after the 23rd month, cumulative cost of hemodialysis also surpasses the cumulative cost of transplantation-related treatment and this cost comparison is in line with global data from upper-middle and high income countries.
Modelling self-confidence in users of a computer-based system showing unrepresentative design

While a great deal of research has demonstrated that users' self-efficacy beliefs have a major impact upon both their attitudes to technology and their performance, a related construct, self-confidence, has been largely ignored within the domain of human? computer interaction. This is surprising given the vast literature on the calibration of confidence which can be found within the judgment and decision literature. In this study, 60 participants were asked to complete a novel computer-based task, and to provide measures of self-confidence in terms of their anticipated performance at each stage of the task. Users' confidence judgements showed sensitivity to their rate of improvement on the task, but were poorly calibrated with actual performance at each stage. Furthermore, confidence judgements were insensitive to the complexity of the individual task components, even though these different components led to very different levels of performance. The style of computer interface was also found to affect anticipated performance independently of actual performance. The ability of existing models of confidence judgement to deal with these data is discussed.
What's so meaningful about meaningful use?

The 2009 Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act aims to promote the use of electronic health records by providing over $27 billion in financial incentives for eligible health care providers who become “meaningful users” of them. The goal of increased “meaningful” electronic health record adoption is to create a more efficient, patient-centered health care system by lowering providers’ administrative costs, improving coordination of care among multiple providers, and increasing patients’ participation in and responsibility for their own care. Recently published data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Center for Health Statistics indicate that the HITECH Act's passage has led to a significant increase in electronic health record use among physicians. However, everyone involved in the conversations surrounding the HITECH Act—health care analysts, policy-makers, and providers alike—must recognize that “meaningful use” of electronic health records can only be authentically meaningful to both clinicians and patients when certain structural issues are also addressed.
Incidence of Aplastic Anemia in a Defined Subpopulation from Mexico City

Abstract Aplastic anemia (AA) is a hematological disease characterized by the deficient production of blood cells. The incidence of AA worldwide is low (1-5 new cases per 106 individuals per year). In contrast to other countries, no current reports exist on the incidence of this disorder in Mexico. In the present study, we have determined the incidence of AA in a defined subpopulation from Mexico City during the period 1996-2000. For the purpose of this study, we focused on the experience from a single medical institution: the Mexican Institute of Social Security (IMSS), which covers around 50% of Mexico's population. The incidence of AA was determined based on the actual number of patients diagnosed with this disease at the IMSS in Mexico City in a given year and the total number of individuals registered at the IMSS in Mexico City in the same year. Considering the IMSS population as a whole, the annual incidence of AA was 3.9 new cases per 106 individuals per year. In the pediatric population, the annual incidence was 4.2 new cases per 106 individuals per year, whereas in people 15-years-old and older the incidence was 3.8 new cases per 106 individuals per year. These incidences were higher than those reported in most studies from the USA, Europe and Israel. Compared to the incidence in Thailand, the incidence we observed in children was considerably higher, whereas the one in adults was similar to the one in that country. The results of the present study suggest that the incidence of AA in Mexico City is one of the highest worldwide, particularly in terms of the pediatric population; however, these results must be taken with caution since this study comprises only a subpopulation from Mexico City and not the entire population. Thus, further studies including a broader population, both in Mexico City and other urban and rural areas of this country, will be necessary in order to obtain better and more complete estimates of the actual incidence of AA in Mexico.
Mammalian CAP 1 ( adenylyl Cyclase-Associated Protein 1 ) Regulates Cofilin Function , the Actin Cytoskeleton and Cell Adhesion

CAP (adenylyl Cyclase-Associated Protein) was first identified in yeast as a protein that regulates both the actin cytoskeleton and the Ras/cAMP pathway. Whereas the role in Ras signaling does not extend beyond yeast, evidence supports that CAP regulates the actin cytoskeleton in all eukaryotes including mammals. In vitro actin polymerization assays show that both mammalian and yeast CAP homologues facilitate cofilin-driven actin filament turnover. We generated HeLa cells with stable CAP1 knockdown using RNA Interference. Depletion of CAP1 led to larger cell size, remarkably developed lamellipodia as well as accumulation of filamentous actin (F-actin). Moreover, we found that CAP1 depletion also led to changes in cofilin phosphorylation and localization as well as activation of FAK (Focal Adhesion Kinase) and enhanced cell spreading. CAP1 forms complexes with the adhesion molecules FAK and Talin, which likely underlie the cell adhesion phenotypes through inside-out activation of integrin signaling. CAP1-depleted HeLa cells also had substantially elevated cell motility as well as invasion through Matrigel. In summary, in addition to generating in vitro and in vivo evidence further establishing the role of mammalian CAP1 in actin dynamics, we identified a novel cellular function for CAP1 in regulating
Orientation and patching of the latent infection membrane protein encoded by Epstein-Barr virus

Epstein-Barr virus is known to encode three nuclear proteins and one membrane protein (LMP) in latently infected growth-transformed cells. Studies of the plasma membrane localization and orientation of LMP by protease digestion of live cells and by immunofluorescence indicated the following. (i) At least 30% of LMP is in the plasma membrane, as opposed to other cytoplasmic membranes. (ii) A small LMP domain which corresponds to a previously proposed outer reverse turn between the first two transmembrane domains is exposed on the outer cell surface (and two other proposed outer-reverse-turn domains may be exposed), whereas all or almost all of the rest of the protein is not exposed on the outer cell surface. (iii) LMP is present in patches in the cell plasma membrane.
Resonance Theory of Stationary Longitudinal Structures in the Boundary Layer

On the basis of resonance theory the possibility of the longitudinal structures generation was fixed in the compressible boundary layer by an external vorticity. It takes place under a condition when parameters of externally vortex wave become the close to parameters of eigen stationary perturbations of a boundary layer. Researches are conducted as in case of subsonic numbers of the Mach, and in case of a supersonic flow at M=2. Data of the resonance theory agree with direct calculations of an interaction external vorticity with boundary layer satisfactorily. Parameters of two-dimensional stationary perturbations of a subsonic boundary layer completely match with data of Grosch C. E. , Jackson T. L. , Kapila A. K. (1992). In particular, the infinite set of eigen functions is installed, which are damped by a power law of the longitudinal coordinate, x^(-λκ). Researches of three-dimensional perturbations showed, that the damping degree of perturbations down a flow depends on a wave number in the lateral direction poorly. However, there are the optimal values of the wave number in the lateral direction, in which perturbations damped down by a stream the most poorly. If in case of subsonic speeds decrements of perturbations of the first mode doesn't depend neither on a Reynolds number, nor on value of a lateral wave number, then in case of M=2 the nature of a perturbations reduction on longitudinal coordinate depends both on a wave number, and on a Reynolds number.
Retrovirus Biology and Human Disease

with the details of individual relationships to provide a complete view of the system. Because many of the chapters were previously published in other books and journals, some seem out of context; however, chapters original to the book serve to integrate the different studies and ameliorate this problem. Dissatisfaction among physicians practicing medicine is becoming nearly ubiquitous. Many of these problems stem from the lack of autonomy experienced by many physicians as a result of increasing budgetary constraints. If physicians are to continue to derive pleasure from their work and to preserve the quality of health care, they must become actively involved in shaping health care policies-but discussion of personal experience is not enough. Without a language and theoretical framework to explain the dilemma, including its possible negative repercussions for patients and physicians alike, those making policy will continue to regard monetary issues as more urgent. This book provides one sociologist's view of the system and his proposals for reforms and is an excellent place to begin to formulate one's own ideas about future health care policy.
The specificity of collagen cross-links as markers of bone and connective tissue degradation.

The availability of a specific and convenient biochemical assay for quantifying bone turnover would aid in the clinical management of osteoporosis and other metabolic bone diseases. Recently, several immunoassays for bone metabolites have been reported in the research literature, with data suggesting that certain of them may now have the required specificity and responsiveness to bone cell activity and convenience for routine clinical use. Biochemical assays for monitoring bone metabolism usually target enzymes or other proteins synthesized by osteoblasts or osteoclasts that can be found in serum, or degradation products of the organic fabric of the resorbed bone that are excreted in urine (1,2). The most convincing current markers of bone formation are serum levels of skeletal alkaline phosphatase and osteocalcin. These markers usually show a lag period of several months in responding to natural and therapeutically induced changes in bone turnover rate (3), consistent with the concept that formation is coupled to but lags behind resorption at remodeling sites. Most bone resorption markers, in contrast, rely on the measurement of metabolites of collagen generated by osteoclasts in the process of degrading bone. Urinary hydroxyproline is a traditional indicator, but newer and more convenient immunoassays have focused on collagen cross-linking metabolites which offer greater specificity to bone collagen than hydroxyproline.
Intelligent control system for efficient energy management in commercial buildings

Increase in energy demand in almost all areas necessitates careful and properly managed use of energy. Conventional energy sources alone cannot meet all the energy requirements and the requirements of the power system. Renewable energy sources are solution to this problem. Increased energy demand in commercial buildings is associated with a lot of energy wastage. Energy efficiency of such buildings can be increased by properly managing the energy. An intelligent Energy Management System (EMS) can serve the purpose. It can improve the environment within the building and thus can ensure customers' comfort. The intelligent Energy Management control system for such a building minimizes the power consumption without compromising the customers' comfort. This is a multi-agent control system for energy and comfort management in the smart buildings. The energy management system, its control and the simulation results are presented in this paper.
Prediction of neurodevelopmental outcome in infants with and without bronchopulmonary dysplasia.

In a group of 236 very low birth weight (VLBW) surviving infants, 60 had developed bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in the nursery. When compared with the 176 infants without BPD, infants with BPD were smaller, more immature, with lower one- and five-minute Apgar scores. Infants with BPD had a greater incidence of cardio-pulmonary and central nervous system (CNS) complications in the nursery. On follow-up, 25 (42%) of these infants were abnormal developmentally compared to 7% of infants without BPD (p less than .001). When comparisons were made within the group of infants with BPD, very few differences were found in maternal or infant risk factors between the normal and abnormal infants. The infants with BPD who had poor outcome more often had seizures and severe intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH). The infants with BPD who had good outcome were more often small for gestational age (SGA) and resuscitated with intubation at birth. They had apnea in the nursery more frequently than did abnormal infants with BPD. We conclude that VLBW infants with BPD are at greater risk for poor neurodevelopmental outcome than those without BPD. The risk for the infant with BPD relates to CNS complications rather than to chronic lung disease.
Rolling Soft Membrane-Driven Tensegrity Robots

We present a methodology for designing, fabricating, and controlling rolling membrane-driven tensegrity robots. This methodology is enabled by pneumatic membrane actuators and a generalized path planning algorithm for rolling polyhedra. Membrane actuators are planar, assembled in a scalable fashion, and amenable to arbitrary geometries. Their deformation trajectories can be tuned by varying the stacking sequence and orientation of layers of unidirectional lamina placed on their surfaces. We demonstrate the application of the same set of membrane actuators consisting of polygonal faces of Platonic Solids to create polyhedral tensegrity variants. Three specific tensegrities in the forms of cube, dodecahedron, and rhombicuboctahedron are chosen to demonstrate the path planning algorithm, though the algorithm is generalizable to any uniform or non-uniform $n$-sided polyhedra. The membrane-driven tensegrities are able to roll in unique trajectories and circumvent obstacles contingent on the distribution and types of polygons which constitute their faces.
Sevoflurane Preconditioning Limits Intracellular/Mitochondrial Ca2+ in Ischemic Newborn Myocardium

Sevoflurane preconditioning (SPC) in adult hearts reduces myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury, an effect that may be mediated by reductions in intracellular Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) and/or mitochondrial Ca2+ ([Ca2+]m) accumulation during ischemia and reperfusion. Because the physiology, pharmacology, and metabolic responses of the newborn differ from adults, we tested the hypothesis that SPC protects newborn myocardium by limiting [Ca2+]i and [Ca2+]m by a KATP channel-dependent mechanism. Fluorescence spectrofluorometry and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy were used to measure [Ca2+]i, [Ca2+]m, and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) in 4- to 7-day-old Langendorff-perfused rabbit hearts. Three experimental groups were used to study the effect of SPC on [Ca2+]m/[Ca2+]i, ATP, as well as hemodynamics and ischemic injury. The role of mitochondrial KATP channels was assessed by exposing the SPC hearts to the mitochondrial KATP channel blocker 5-hydroxydecanoic acid. Our results show that SPC significantly decreased [Ca2+]i and [Ca2+]m during I/R, as well as decreased creatine kinase release during reperfusion and resulted in higher ATP. 5-Hydroxydecanoic acid abolished the effect of SPC on [Ca2+], hemodynamics, ATP, and creatine kinase release. In conclusion, decreased [Ca2+]i and [Ca2+]m observed with SPC is associated with greater ATP recovery as well as diminished cell injury. Mitochondrial KATP channel blockade attenuates the SPC effect during I/R, suggesting that these channels are involved in the protective effects of SPC in the newborn.
WAVELENGTH DEPENDENCE AND DOSE‐RATE INDEPENDENCE OF UV RADIATION‐INDUCED IMMUNOLOGIC UNRESPONSIVENESS OF MICE TO A UV‐INDUCED FIBROSARCOMA

Irradiation of BALB/c mice with FS40 sunlamps induces susceptibility to challenge with syngeneic UV‐induced fibrosarcomas that otherwise would be rejected immunologically. Plastic filters were used to remove various wavelengths from the radiation source to identify the active waveband. Wavelengths above 315 nm (those transmitted through a mylar filter) were ineffective in producing tumor susceptibility, even when the total amount of energy applied was the same as that emitted by the unfiltered FS40 sunlamps. Removal of wavelengths below 275 nm (with a polystyrene filter) did not reduce the activity of the radiation. Alteration of the dose‐rate of the radiation by as much as a factor of 10. by irradiating animals through neutral density filters, did not change the proportion of tumor‐susceptible mice, suggesting that there is reciprocity with regard to dose‐rate and time of UV exposure. Cell transfer studies were used to test whether similar immunologic mechanisms were responsible for the equal susceptibility to tumor challenge of mice given continuous UV exposure (one 12‐h treatment) or fractionated exposures (twelve 1‐h treatments). With both treatment regimens, tumor susceptibility could be transferred to X‐irradiated recipients with lymphoid cells, provided that sufficient time had elapsed after the single treatment.