Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Acute Tryptophan Depletion Alters Gastrointestinal and Anxiety Symptoms in Irritable Bowel Syndrome

OBJECTIVES:To assess the effect of acute changes in serotonin (5-HT) synthesis using the acute tryptophan depletion (ATD) paradigm on gastrointestinal (GI) and mood symptoms in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). METHODS:In a randomized double-blind crossover study, 29 subjects (18 patients with ROME II defined IBS and 11 age-matched controls) were studied under ATD and acute tryptophan increase (ATI) conditions. GI symptoms, mood and anxiety ratings, as well as plasma tryptophan concentrations were measured.RESULTS:Total (and free) plasma tryptophan concentrations decreased on the ATD day in patients (73% [82%]) and controls (73% [80%]), and increased on the ATI day in patients (59% [143%]) and controls (61% [381%]). Compared with the ATD day, IBS patients reported more GI symptoms on the ATI day at +210 (p < 0.001) and at +270 (p < 0.05) min post drink. IBS patients also reported less anxiety on the ATI day compared with the ATD day at +270 min (p < 0.001). ATD and ATI did not affect these ratings in control participants. IBS patients had a lower mood compared with controls (p < 0.05), but this did not differ between the ATI and ATD days in either group.CONCLUSIONS:IBS patients' GI and anxiety responses to changes in tryptophan load differ from controls. This suggests a difference in serotonergic functioning between these two groups and provides evidence to support the hypothesis that 5-HT dysfunction is involved in IBS.
Patient and provider perspectives on implementation models of HIV counseling and testing for patients with TB.

SETTING TB clinics in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. OBJECTIVES To identify an acceptable approach to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) counseling and testing (CT) for patients with tuberculosis (TB) from health care worker (HCWs) and patient perspectives. DESIGN A qualitative evaluation was conducted of three models of routine provider-initiated HIV CT: off-site referral to a freestanding voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) center, on-site referral for HIV CT at the primary health care center to which the TB clinic belongs and HIV CT by the TB nurse. RESULTS Incorporating HIV CT into routine TB care was supported by HCWs (96%) and patients (99%). The trusting patient-provider relationship was a primary reason why most HCWs (74%) and patients (68%) preferred the HIV CT by TB nurse model. Patients also cited continuity of care and potential optimisation of the management of HIV co-infected patients as reasons. Some patients and HCWs were concerned about confidentiality issues (HIV status documentation and privacy of counseling) and the potential difficulty of refusing routine HIV CT when it was offered by TB nurses. Some HCWs also expressed worry about the increased workload. CONCLUSION Qualitative data provided insight into reasons for the high uptake observed of routine HIV CT offered by TB nurses and identified potential concerns when implementing this model.
Current-Induced Domain Wall Motion in TbFeCo Wires With Perpendicular Magnetic Anisotropy

Current-induced domain wall motion in TbFeCo wires with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy has been directly observed by Kerr microscope. The moving direction of domain wall is opposite to the current direction, which is in agreement with the spin torque transfer theory. The critical current density found in TbFeCo is lower than 107 A/cm2, which is an order smaller than in other metallic materials reported so far. In addition, the critical current density gets increased with the increase of the pinning potential in TbFeCo thin film, which is also consistent with the theoretical prediction for a pinning dominant mechanism.
Processing, localization, and requirement of human separase for normal anaphase progression

In all eukaryotes, anaphase is triggered by the activation of a protease called separase. Once activated, separase cleaves a subunit of cohesin, a complex that links replicated chromatids before anaphase. Separase and cohesin are conserved from yeasts to humans. Although the machinery for dissolving sister cohesion is conserved, the regulation of this process appears to be more complex in higher eukaryotes than in yeast. Here we report the cloning of full-length human separase cDNA and the characterization of the encoded protein. Human separase was observed at the poles of the mitotic spindle until anaphase, at which time its association with the mitotic spindle was abruptly lost. The dynamic pattern of localization of human separase during cell cycle progression differs from that of fungal separases. Human separase also appears to undergo an autocatalytic processing on anaphase entry. The processed forms of human separase were isolated and the identity of the cleavage sites was determined by N-terminal sequencing and site-directed mutagenesis. The processed catalytic domain was found to be stably associated with the processed N-terminal fragment. Finally, by depletion of endogenous separase with antisense oligonucleotides, we report direct evidence that separase is required for high-fidelity chromosome separation in human cells.
Application of the Operational Research Method to Determine the Optimum Transport Collection Cycle of Municipal Waste in a Predesignated Urban Area

This paper deals with waste management. The aim is to find out whether the number of municipal mixed waste bins can be reduced due to the impact of waste separation and to determine the optimum municipal waste collection cycle within a predesignated area with an existing urban road network. The number of mixed waste bins depends on two factors—household waste volume and household waste composition. Both of these factors have a significant impact on the number of mixed waste bins required, with household waste composition being of particular importance when it comes to calculating the potential reduction in the number of mixed waste bins required due to waste separation. The calculations for the weight and volume of mixed household waste per person and the composition (types) thereof are presented accordingly. The results reveal which types of waste are the most useful in minimising the number of mixed waste bins by up to 30–50%. To determine the optimum waste collection cycle within the predesignated area with a real urban road network, the Nearest Neighbour Search method was applied. In the discussion, the focus is on whether other methods, including the Two-Phase Heuristic approach and the Bellman-Ford Algorithm, could be applied to solve the problem, whereby parameters such as application time and the capacity of the waste collection vehicle are compared.
Diagnosis and growth hormone (GH) therapy in children with GH deficiency: experience in King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, Thailand.

BACKGROUND Diagnosis of growth hormone deficiency (GHD) needs both clinical and biological aspects such as auxological data and GHprovocative tests, and active metabolites of GH including IGF-I and IGFBP-3. In GHD children, rhGH has been used worldwide with minimal serious side effects. The aims of the present study were to describe the experience in King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital regarding diagnosis and treatment with rhGH in GHD children. MATERIAL AND METHOD Clinical data of 173 short children was retrospectively reviewed. Two GH provocative tests used in the present study were insulin tolerance test (ITT) and clonidine test. To make the diagnosis of GHD, the children had to fail both GH provocative tests (peak GH < 10 ng/ml). Baseline clinical data, IGF-I, and IGFBP-3 were compared between the group with true positive test and the group with false positive test. Thirty-five children with GHD, who had been treated with rhGH, were evaluated in terms of growth response, changes of IGF-I SDS and the relationship between these parameters. RESULTS From the present study, ITT could diagnose GHD with true positive 57% and false positive 43% and clonidine could diagnose with true positive 67% and false positive 33%. Clinical data including chronological age, bone age, HtSDS, WtSDS, IGF-I SDS, and IGFBP-3 SDS were not different between the true positive and false positive group. rhGH with a mean dose of 29.3 +/- 4.6 microg/kg/day increased height velocity (HV) from 3.9 +/- 2.5 to 9.3 +/- 2.5, 8.1 +/- 1.5, 7.2 +/- 2.2, 6.8 +/- 2.2, 7.6 +/- 2.4, and 6.5 +/- 1.8 cm/yr after 6 months, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 years after treatment, respectively. This also improved HtSDS during treatment and brought the HtSDS into the target range after 3 years of treatment. At the end of the first year of treatment, the difference of IGF-I SDS (DeltaIGF-I SDS) > or = 1 could predict a good response (DeltaHtSDS > or = 0.5) with sensitivity of 88.9% and specificity of 60% respectively. At the end of the second year, DeltaIGF-I SDS > or = 1 could predict a good response with sensitivity and specificity of 100% and 29%, respectively. CONCLUSION From the present study, the authors demonstrated the investigation and treatment practices of short children with GHD. The growth response is satisfactory even with a lower dose than suggested. In addition, measurement of IGF-I and IGFBP-3 cannot be used in diagnosing GHD but can predict the height outcome at least by the first 2 years of the treatment. However long-term outcome need to be clarified.
Systematic review of follow-up compliance after endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm repair.

INTRODUCTION Lifelong surveillance after endovascular aortic aneurysm repair (EVAR) is recommended to monitor the effectiveness and durability of the treatment. The aim of this study was to assess patients' compliance with the follow-up imaging protocol, the presence of any factors associated with compliance and the potential influence of imaging-protocol adherence on outcomes. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane Central databases and key references were searched. EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS One multicenter observational study (registry) and nine retrospective studies were identified reporting on EVAR surveillance compliance. The studies included 36,119 patients with mean age of 76±3.1 years under mean follow-up ranging from 25 to 73 months. Most of them were males (51-89%), white (51-97.7%) and the majority of them were living over 100 miles from the treatment center. The data were too heterogeneous to perform a meta-analysis. Incomplete follow-up and complete loss of follow-up were ranging from 15% to 65% and 22% to 56%, respectively. Advanced age, symptomatic or ruptured aneurysm, history of chronic diseases, and social-economic factors were associated with poor follow-up compliance. Five studies suggested that complete follow-up did not offer any survival benefit, while only one study suggested that incomplete follow-up was associated with higher fatal complication rates. CONCLUSIONS Patients' compliance with follow-up protocol after EVAR is about 50%. Several factors have been associated with this poor compliance, however there is lack of solid evidence to show that this poor compliance results in worse outcomes. Prospective studies focusing on follow-up adherence are needed in order to evaluate its impact on the outcomes.
The nonlinear characteristics of Chinese stock index futures yield volatility

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to consider that the model of volatility characteristics is more reasonable and the description of volatility is more explanatory. Design/methodology/approach This paper analyzes the basic characteristics of market yield volatility based on the five-minute trading data of the Chinese CSI300 stock index futures from 2012 to 2017 by Hurst index and GPH test, A-J and J-O Jumping test and Realized-EGARCH model, respectively. The results show that the yield fluctuation rate of CSI300 stock index futures market has obvious non-linear characteristics including long memory, jumpy and asymmetry. Findings This paper finds that the LHAR-RV-CJ model has a better prediction effect on the volatility of CSI300 stock index futures. The research shows that CSI300 stock index futures market is heterogeneous, means that long-term investors are focused on long-term market fluctuations rather than short-term fluctuations; the influence of the short-term jumping component on the market volatility is limited, and the long jump has a greater negative influence on market fluctuation; the negative impact of long-period yield is limited to short-term market fluctuation, while, with the period extending, the negative influence of long-period impact is gradually increased. Research limitations/implications This paper has research limitations in variable measurement and data selection. Practical implications This study is based on the high-frequency data or the application number of financial modeling analysis, especially in the study of asset price volatility. It makes full use of all kinds of information contained in high-frequency data, compared to low-frequency data such as day, weekly or monthly data. High-frequency data can be more accurate, better guide financial asset pricing and risk management, and result in effective configuration. Originality/value The existing research on the futures market volatility of high frequency data, mainly focus on single feature analysis, and the comprehensive comparative analysis on the volatility characteristics of study is less, at the same time in setting up the model for the forecast of volatility, based on the model research on the basic characteristics is less, so the construction of a model is relatively subjective, in this paper, considering the fluctuation characteristics of the model is more reasonable, characterization of volatility will also be more explanatory power. The difference between this paper and the existing literature lies in that this paper establishes a prediction model based on the basic characteristics of market return volatility, and conducts a description and prediction study on volatility.
XYZ-ZXY: A minimal routing algorithm for dynamic thermal management in 3D NoCs

This paper proposes and evaluates an efficient routing algorithm for dynamic thermal management in 3D NoCs. The proposed routing algorithm conducts packets toward routers which either have lower traffic or have more cooling efficiency. To do this, the proposed routing algorithm utilizes the horizontal and the vertical traffic distribution techniques to uniformly distribute generated heat over the chip area. In the first technique, i.e., the horizontal technique, packets are routed by XY or YX routing algorithm to conduct packets to the borders of the chip to generate more uniform heat density. The second technique selects one of XYZ or ZYX routing algorithms for a packet to divert the packet form the overheated layers of the chip. The proposed routing algorithm is analyzed by turn model to achieve deadlock freedom without requiring any hardware support in NoC routers. Traffic-thermal co-simulation platform is used to evaluate the performance/thermal behavior of the proposed routing algorithm in a wide range of working conditions. Results show that the proposed routing algorithm 1) relieves at least 60% of overheated routers, 2) improves the temperature variance by at least 38% and 3) improves the traffic variance by at least 25%. These are achieved at the cost of at most 37% overhead in the average packet latency in the network.
Muscle glycogen degradation during simulation of a fatiguing soccer match in elite soccer players examined noninvasively by 13C-MRS.

PURPOSE The purpose of this research project was to noninvasively determine individual muscle glycogen [Gly] degradation during a test intended to predict individual fatigue in intense soccer matches. METHODS The [Gly] of the calf muscles of 17 elite soccer players [age = 17.4 +/- 0.8 (SD)] were measured with 13C-MRS before and after an alternating velocity test to exhaustion. Blood samples were taken before and 3 min after the test for determination of blood metabolites. RESULTS Average muscle [Gly] was 135 +/- 53 mmol x (kg wet weight)(-1) before and 87 +/- 27 mmol x (kg wet weight)(-1) (P < 0.001) after exhaustion (42 +/- 25 min). There was a high correlation (r = 0.87, P < 0.0001) between muscle [Gly] at rest and net muscle [Gly] utilized. There was also a more moderate correlation (r = 0.62, P < 0.01) between net muscle [Gly] used and time to exhaustion during the soccer-specific test. There was some evidence of correlation (r = 0.42, P = 0.09) between resting [Gly] and time to exhaustion. Plasma lactate increased (P < 0.001) from 0.8 +/- 0.4 before the test to 2.5 +/- 1.0 mmol x L(-1) at exhaustion, whereas ammonia was raised (P < 0.0001) from 44.1 +/- 10.3 to 89.7 +/- 14.9 micromol x L(-1). Similarly, plasma free fatty acids were elevated (P < 0.0001) from 148 +/- 106 to 797 +/- 401 micromol x L(-1), and glycerol was increased (P < 0.0001) from 48.3 +/- 17.7 to 182.2 +/- 61.8 micromol x L(-1). Insulin levels (11.9 +/- 3.7 vs 11.7 +/- 4.8 microU x mL(-1)) remained the same. Creatine kinase levels increased (P < 0.0001) from 486 +/- 501 to 640 +/- 548 micromol x L(-1) after the test. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that exhaustion during soccer-specific performance is related to the capacity to utilize muscle [Gly]. The results underline the importance of dietary counseling (glycogen loading and resynthesis strategies) and proper training to enhance the glycogen levels and glycogenolytic capacity of the players.
P2J-4 The Effect of Fiber Orientation on Lamb Wave Propagation in Layered Anisotropic Composite Plates

Ultrasonic Lamb wave nondestructive evaluation (NDE) is one useful mean to insure the structure integrity of fiber-reinforced composites. In order to take full advantage of the information contained in Lamb wave testing, it is very helpful to have a clear understanding on Lamb wave propagation characteristics in the nondestructive evaluation of these structures or in the analysis of their dynamic vibrations. In this work, a global matrix model is developed based on Nayfeh's transfer matrix technique. The method provides an alternative to the transfer matrix technique and can be used on plate systems of any numbers of layers of different materials and thickness. This study concentrates on the effect of fiber orientation on Lamb wave propagation in layered anisotropic composites plates because plate structures with various degrees of macroscopic anisotropy are often encountered in the study of composite materials. The calculated dispersion curves for various fiber orientations are presented together with plots of the through-thickness particle stress component amplitudes for two fundamental modes a0 and s0. These numerical examples provide the rich characteristics of Lamb waves in anisotropic layered plates
Morphological connectivity correlates with trait impulsivity in healthy adults

Background Impulsivity is one crucial personality trait associated with various maladaptive behavior and many mental disorders. In the study reported here, we investigated the relationship between impulsivity and morphological connectivity (MC) between human brain regions, a newly proposed measure for brain coordination through the development and learning. Method Twenty-four participants’ T1-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images and their self-reported impulsivity scores, measured by the Barratt impulsiveness scale (BIS), were retrieved from the OpenfMRI project. First, we assessed the MC by quantifying the similarity of probability density function of local morphological features between the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), one of the most crucial hubs in the neural network modulating cognitive control, and other association cortices in each participant. Then, we correlated the MC to impulsivity scores across participants. Results The BIS total score was found to correlate with the MCs between the ACC and two other brain regions in the right hemisphere: the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), a well-established structure for inhibition control; the inferior temporal gyrus (ITG), which has been previously shown to be associated with hyperactive/impulsivity symptoms. Furthermore, the ACC-IFG MC was mainly correlated with motor impulsivity, and the ACC-ITG MC was mainly correlated with attentional impulsivity. Discussion Together, these findings provide evidence that the ACC, IFG, and ITG in the right hemisphere are involved neural networks modulating impulsivity. Also, the current findings highlight the utility of MC analyses in facilitating our understanding of neural correlates of behavioral and personality traits.
Early and Long-term Oncological Outcomes After Laparoscopic Resection for Colorectal Liver Metastases: A Propensity Score-based Analysis.

OBJECTIVE To compare early and long-term outcomes in patients undergoing resection for colorectal liver metastases (CLM) by either a laparoscopic (LA) or an open (OA) approach. BACKGROUND The LA is still a matter of debate regarding the surgical management of CLM. METHODS Data of all patients from 32 French surgical centers who underwent liver resection for CLM from January 2006 to December 2013 were collected. Aiming to obtain 2 well-balanced cohorts for available variables influencing early outcome and survival, the LA group was matched 1:1 with the OA group by using a propensity score (PS)-based method. RESULTS The unmatched initial cohort consisted of 2620 patients (LA: 176, OA: 2444). In the matched cohort for operative risk factors (LA: 153, OA: 153), the LA group had shorter hospitalization stays [11.1 (±9) days vs 13.9 (±10) days; P = 0.01] and was associated with lower rates of grade III to V complications [odds ratio (OR): 0.27, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.14-0.51; P = 0.0002] and inhospital transfusions (OR: 0.33 95% CI 0.18-0.59; P < 0.0001). On a prognostic factors well-balanced population (LA: 73, OA: 73), the LA group and the OA group experienced similar overall (OS) and disease-free (DFS) survival rates [OS rates of 88% and 78% vs 84% and 75% at 3 and 5 years, respectively (P = 0.72) and DFS rates of 40% and 32% vs 52% and 36% at 3 and 5 years, respectively (P = 0.60)]. CONCLUSIONS In the patients who are suitable for LA, laparoscopy yields better operative outcomes without impairing long-term survival.
Machine Learning based criminal short listing using Modus Operandi features

One of the most challenging problems faced by crime analysts is identifying sets of crimes committed by the same individual or group. Amount of criminal records piling up daily has made it cumbersome to manually process connections between crimes. These Crime series' possess certain attributes that are characteristic of the criminal(s) involved in them, which are useful in defining their modus operandi (MO). After a careful study in the grave crime category of House breaking and Theft in Sri Lanka, we have identified certain MO attributes which we have used to collect from past crime scene data from police records. Then we have explored whether it is possible to group suspects who have similar MO patterns through a machine learning approach and give a short list for a new crime from the existing data. The evaluation of the research presented an accuracy above 75% which proved that Machine Learning is capable of short listing criminals based on their Modus Operandi features.