Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
432 ALDOSTERONE-TO-RENIN RATIO AS A PREDICTOR OF STROKE UNDER CONDITIONS OF HIGH SODIUM INTAKE: THE OHASAMA STUDY

Background: Aldosterone is thought to have deleterious effects on the cardiovascular system. The aldosterone-to-renin ratio (ARR) is more reproducible than aldosterone levels alone and could be an index for inappropriate aldosterone secretion or activity. We previously reported the apparent relation between ARR and hypertension in subjects with high sodium intake. This prospective study investigated the risk of ARR for a first stroke in a general population stratified by sodium intake. Methods: We obtained plasma renin activity (PRA) and plasma aldosterone concentrations (PAC) for 883 participants aged ≥35 years not receiving antihypertensive treatment in the general population of Ohasama (mean age: 59.0 ± 11.3 years; 65.6% women). Results: Over a mean of 10.9 follow-up years, 45 strokes occurred. The median PRA, PAC, and ARR were 1.2 ng/mL/h, 6.4 ng/dL, and 5.3 ng/dL per ng/mL/h, respectively. Using Cox regression, we computed hazard ratios adjusted for sex, age, body mass index, and systolic blood pressure. No association between logARR and stroke was observed in subjects overall. However, in subjects with high sodium intake (≥ median of 4058 mg/day [salt equivalent, 10.5 g/day]), each 1 SD increase in logARR was associated with an increased hazard ratio for stroke (hazard ratio: 1.49, P = 0.04). No significant association was observed in subjects with low sodium intake (P = 0.7). When we repeated all the analyses using logPRA or logPAC, no significant associations were found. Conclusion: These results suggest that high ARR, that is, relative aldosterone excess, is a predictor for stroke under conditions of high sodium intake.
Yin–Yang Regulation of RORγt Protein Complex in Th17 Differentiation

T helper 17 (Th17) cells have been identified as a distinct T helper lineage that mediates tissue inflammation. Retinoic acid receptor-related orphan receptor (ROR) γt has been identified as the master transcription factor (TF) required for Th17 cell lineage commitment. There is an established consensus that TFs never function alone. Thus, RORγt is considered to form protein complexes that mediate Th17 cell differentiation. Given the importance of RORγt complexes in Th17 cell development and function, here, we summarize recent progress in research investigating the interaction of RORγt with potential partners, highlighting detailed mechanisms that direct Th17 cell differentiation and potential therapeutic targets in inflammatory diseases.
Expression of c‐myc Oncogens Product and ras Family Oncogene Products in Various Human Malignant Lymphomas Defined by Immunohistochemical Techniques

The authors studied the expression of c‐myc and ros family oncogene products in 43 cases of malignant lymphoma (ML) using the immunoperoxidase method. Unfixed frozen sections of lymph nodes from four patients with Hodgkin's disease and 39 with non‐Hodgkin's lymphoma, together with normal lymph nodes, were studied by the avidinbiotin‐peroxidase complex (ABC) technique. Two monoclonal antibodies, MYC‐2 raised against recombinant human c‐myc protein (reacting specifically with the c‐myc products P62 and P67) and RASK‐4 (raised against recombinant P21 and reacting specifically with ras‐family product P21) were used. The c‐myc product was detected in nuclei of ML cells and some normal, mainly germinal center, lymphocytes. When the staining intensity shown by normal germinal‐center lymphocytes was graded as positive (+) or weakly positive (±), a very intensely positive reaction (+++ to ++) was observed in 37 cases (86%) of ML, a positive reaction (+) in four cases (93%), and a weakly positive reaction (±) in two cases (4.7%). The ras family oncogene product reaction was intensely positive (++) in two cases (4.7%), positive (+) in 16 cases (37.2%), weakly positive (±) in 13 cases (30.2%), and negative in 12 cases (27.9%). Western blot analysis confirmed an elevated level of c‐myc products in two cases, which showed intense MYC‐2 staining, and of ras family products in one case, which demonstrated intense RASK‐4 staining. The enhanced expression of these gene products may play an important role in lym‐phomagenesis of such cases.
Relation of promoter methylation of mdr-1 gene and histone acetylation status with multidrug resistance in MCF-7/Adr cells.

OBJECTIVE To analyze the mdr-1 gene promoter methylation and histone acetylation status in both MCF-7/Adr and MCF-7 cells and to preliminarily explore the epigenetic mechanism of multidrug resistance in breast cancer. METHODS mdr-1 gene promoter methylation status of the 2 cell lines was detected by methylation-sensitive PCR. mRNA expression of DNA methyltransferases (DNMTs) and histone deacetylases (HDACs) was detected by real-time quantitative PCR. Acetylation level of histone H3 and H4 was examined by optical density assay. RESULTS Promoter hypermethylation of mdr-1 gene was observed in MCF-7 cells whereas hypomethylation was found in MCF-7/Adr cells. Expression of DNMT1, DNMT3a, and DNMT3b mRNA in MCF-7/Adr cells significantly decreased compared with that of MCF-7 cells (P<0.05). H3 and H4 histone acetylation levels of MCF-7/Adr cells were obviously higher than those of the MCF-7 cells (P<0.01). Expression of HDAC1, HDAC2, HDAC7, and Sirtuin type 1 (SIRT1) mRNA in MCF-7/Adr cells was significantly reduced (P<0.05). CONCLUSION Hypomethylation of the promoter region of mdr-1 gene, high H3 and H4 histone acetylation, and low mRNA expression of DNMTs and HDACs may be important epigenetic factors for the development of MDR in MCF-7/ Adr cells.
Design Fiction for Mixed-Reality Performances

Designing for mixed-reality performances is challenging both in terms of technology design, and in terms of understanding the interplay between technology, narration, and (the outcomes of) audience interactions. This complexity also stems from the variety of roles in the creative team often entailing technology designers, artists, directors, producers, set-designers and performers. In this multidisciplinary, one-day workshop, we seek to bring together HCI scholars, designers, artists, and curators to explore the potential provided by Design Fiction as a method to generate ideas for Mixed-Reality Performance (MRP) through various archetypes including scripts, programs, and posters. By drawing attention to novel interactive technologies, such as bio-sensors and environmental IoT, we seek to generate design fiction scenarios capturing the aesthetic and interactive potential for mixed-reality performances, as well as the challenges to gain access to audience members' data -- i.e. physiological states, daily routines, conversations, etc.
Wino Dark Matter in light of the AMS-02 2015 Data

The AMS-02 collaboration has recently reported the antiproton to proton ratio with improved accuracy. In view of uncertainties of the production and the propagation of the cosmic rays, the observed ratio is still consistent with the secondary astrophysical antiproton to proton ratio. However, it is nonetheless enticing to examine whether the observed spectrum can be explained by a strongly motivated dark matter, the wino dark matter. As we will show, the antiproton flux from the wino annihilation can explain the observed spectrum well for its mass range 2.5–3 TeV. The fit to data becomes particularly well compared to the case without the annihilation for the thermal wino dark matter case with a mass about 3 TeV. The ratio is predicted to decrease quickly at the energy several hundreds of GeV, which will be confirmed or ruled out in the near future when the AMS-02 experiment accumulates enough data at this higher energy region.
Proyecto de intervención de las dificultades fonológicas por medio del juego teatral a niños de 4 años que asisten al Centro de Educación Inicial Hernán Malo

La presente investigacion es un estudio cuantitativo, que determino el porcentaje de dificultades fonologicas en 102 ninos de 4 anos que asistieron al centro educativo Hernan Malo; se lo realizo mediante la aplicacion del Test ELCE apartados: - exploracion fonetica y fonologica – organos fono-articulatorios y sus praxias. Los 32 ninos que presentaron dificultades fonologicas fueron divididos al azar en dos grupos, 21 formaron parte del grupo de experimentacion a quienes se les aplico el programa de Juego Teatral durante un periodo de 10 semanas y los restantes formaron parte del grupo control. Finalmente se verifico la validez del programa por medio de la comparacion de los resultados iniciales y finales de las pruebas aplicadas tanto al grupo de control como al grupo de experimentacion.
Multi-layered Vertical Gate NAND Flash overcoming stacking limit for terabit density storage

Vertical Gate NAND (VG-NAND) Flash array with multi-active layers has been successfully integrated for the first time. VG-NAND confirmed stable operations of program, body erase, and read. There is no aggravation on program disturbance with increased number of layers due to an architecture of VG-NAND with vertical blocks.
Sudden Cardiac Death in Children and Adolescents: Introduction and Overview

Various retrospective reviews have been undertaken in order to determine the frequency of SCD in children and adolescents. It should be noted that the reported frequency is variable and has been reported anywhere from 0.8 to 6.2 per 100,000 per year.1–5 This is in contrast to the much higher incidence of SCD in adults, reported to be 1 in 1,000 per year. Recent studies suggest that the frequency of SCD in children and adolescents is actually increasing.6,7 The reasons for this increase in frequency are not entirely clear. Currently, there is no mandatory centralized reporting registry for sudden cardiac arrest in children and adolescents. Therefore, absolute ascertainment of the incidence as well as other key data is not possible. In 1985 Driscoll and Edwards2 reviewed the death certificates of all residents of Olmstead County, Minnesota, between 1 and 22 years of age from January 1950 to October 1982. Of the 515 certificates reviewed, deaths in 12 (2.3%) were sudden and unexpected, resulting in an overall incidence of 1.3 per 100,000 patient years. Seven of the 12 deaths were either cardiac-related or probably cardiac-related. Three of the 12 patients had a history of syncope, two of the three had syncope with exercise and both died while exercising. Maron et al. reported in 1986 that hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) was the most common cause of SCD in young competitive athletes less than 35 years of age, accounting for about half of the sudden cardiac deaths in the United States.8 He also noted that other cardiovascular abnormalities that are less frequent but important causes of SCD in young athletes include congen-
Letters to the editor: Chelated bismuth as a stain in electron microscopy.

Salts of heavy metals have been employed widely in biologic electron microscopy to enhance specimen contrast, although specificity and binding mechanism in many instances remain obscure (see reference 1 1 for a review). Among the most commonly used are lead (7) and uranium (10) salts applied either to thin sections, or, as in the case of uranium, to tissue blocks (4). Bismuth was employed by Albersheim and Killias (3) as an en bloc stain for nucleic acids; these investigators were unsuccessful in staining Epon thin sections. Bismuth iodide was found useful as an impregnating agent following glutaraldehyde fixation in studies of the synaptic cleft by Pfenninger et at. (6); these investigators reported that poststaining sections of bismuth-impregnated tissue with uranium and lead promoted electron contrast in nervous tissue. Also, Ainsworth and Karnovsky have demonstrated the usefulness of bismuth chelated with tartrate in increasing the visible size and electron opacity of ferritin in thin sections (2) and, with Ito (1), have used bismuth as the final reaction product in the ultrastructural demonstration of periodate-reactive sites. These investigators reported some increase in contrast in tissue sections treated with bismuth alone, and mentioned briefly that uranium and lead treatment of sections following bismuth gave adequate contrast to tissues studied. Most recently, alkaline bismuth stain has been used by Schwartz and Venkatachalam (8) to identify ferritin-injected blood vessels in the inner medulla of the rat kidney; however, these investigators did not comment upon concomitant enhancement of tissue contrast. Shinji et al. (9) have also investigated the use of alkaline bismuth reagent in demonstrating 1,2-glycol groups. However, none of the above investigators explored combining bismuth-, uraniumand lead-staining procedures with respect to obtaining optimal tissue contrast. This study reports our observations on the use of bismuth as a routine stain for electron microscopy, employing chelated bismuth as the staining reagent in thin sections, both alone and in combination with uranium and lead.
Tumor stroma-derived factors skew monocyte to dendritic cell differentiation toward a suppressive CD14+ PD-L1+ phenotype in prostate cancer

Tumor-associated stromal myofibroblasts are essential for the progression and metastatic spread of solid tumors. Corresponding myeloid cell infiltration into primary tumors is a negative prognostic factor in some malignancies. The aim of this study was to define the exact role of stromal myofibroblasts and stromal factors in early prostate carcinoma (PCa) regulating monocyte infiltration and differentiation into dendritic cells (DCs). Epithelial and stromal primary cultures were generated from PCa biopsies and their purity confirmed. Stromal cells produced significantly more of the (C‒C) motif chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2), interleukin 6 (IL-6) and transforming growth factor β (TGFβ) than epithelial cells. Monocyte chemoattraction was predominantly due to stromal-derived factors, mainly CCL2. DCs generated in the presence of stromal (but not epithelial) factors upregulated CD209, but failed to downregulate the monocyte marker CD14 in a signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3)-dependent manner. Monocytes exposed to stromal factors did not produce detectable amounts of IL-10, however, upon lipopolysaccharide stimulation, stromal factor generated dendritic cells (sDC) produced significantly more IL-10 and less IL-12 than their conventional DC counterparts. sDC failed to cross-present tumor-antigen to CD8+ T cells and suppressed T-cell proliferation. Most importantly, sDC expressed significantly elevated levels of programmed cell death ligand-1 (PD-L1) in a primarily STAT3 and IL-6-dependent manner. In parallel with our findings in vitro, tumor-infiltrating CD14+ cells in situ were found to express both PD-L1 and CD209, and a higher percentage of tumor-associated CD3+ T cells expressed programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) molecules compared to T cells in blood. These results demonstrate a hitherto undescribed, fundamental contribution of tumor-associated stromal myofibroblasts to the development of an immunosuppressive microenvironment in early PCa.
Comparing Apples and Oranges: Query Trade-off in Submodular Maximization

Fast algorithms for submodular maximization problems have a vast potential use in applicative settings, such as machine learning, social networks, and economics. Though fast algorithms were known for some special cases, only recently Badanidiyuru and Vondrak [4] were the first to explicitly look for such algorithms in the general case of maximizing a monotone submodular function subject to a matroid independence constraint. The algorithm of Badanidiyuru and Vondrak matches the best possible approximation guarantee, while trying to reduce the number of value oracle queries the algorithm performs. Our main result is a new algorithm for this general case which establishes a surprising tradeoff between two seemingly unrelated quantities: the number of value oracle queries and the number of matroid independence queries performed by the algorithm. Specifically, one can decrease the former by increasing the latter and vice versa, while maintaining the best possible approximation guarantee. Such a tradeoff is very useful since various applications might incur significantly different costs in querying the value and matroid independence oracles. Furthermore, in case the rank of the matroid is O(nc), where n is the size of the ground set and c is an absolute constant smaller than 1, the total number of oracle queries our algorithm uses can be made to have a smaller magnitude compared to that needed by [4]. We also provide even faster algorithms for the well studied special cases of a cardinality constraint and a partition matroid independence constraint, both of which capture many real-world applications and have been widely studied both theorically and in practice.
Robust analysis and synthesis for uncertain negative-imaginary systems

Negative-imaginary systems are broadly speaking stable and square (equal number of inputs and outputs) systems whose Nyquist plot lies underneath (never touches for strictly negative-imaginary systems) the real axis when the frequency varies in the open interval $0$ to $\infty$. This class of systems appear quite often in engineering applications,for example, in lightly damped flexible structures with collocatedposition sensors and force actuators, multi-link robots, DC machines, active filters, etc. In this thesis, robustness analysis and controller synthesis methods for uncertain negative-imaginary systems are explored.Two new reformulation techniques are proposed that facilitate both the robustness analysis and controller synthesis for uncertain negative-imaginary systems. These reformulations are based on the transformation from negative-imaginary systems to a bounded-real framework via the positive-real property. In the presence of strictly negative-imaginary uncertainty, the robust stabilization problem is posed in an equivalent $\mathcal{H}_{\infty}$ control framework; similarly, a negative-imaginary robust performance analysis problem is cast into an equivalent $\mu$-framework. The latter framework also allows robust stability analysis when the perturbations are a mixture of bounded-real and negative-imaginary uncertainties. The proposed two techniques pave the way for existing $\mathcal{H}_{\infty}$ control and $\mu$ theory to be applied to robustness analysis and controller synthesis for negative-imaginary systems.In addition, a static state-feedback synthesis method is proposed to achieve robust stability of a system in the presence ofstrictly negative-imaginary uncertainties. The method is developed in the LMI framework, which can be solved efficiently using convex optimization techniques. The controller synthesis method is based on the negative-imaginary stability theorem: A positive feedback interconnection of two negative-imaginary systems is internally stable if and only if the DC loop gain is contractive and at least one of the systems in the interconnected loop is strictly negative-imaginary. Also, in order to handle non-strict negative-imaginary uncertainties, a strongly strictly negative-imaginary lemma is proposed that helps to ensure the strictly negative-imaginary property of the nominal closed-loop system for robustness. To this end, a state-space characterization for strictly negative-imaginary property is given for non-minimal systems where the conditions are convex and hence numerically attractive.The results in this thesis hence facilitate both the robustness analysis and controller synthesis for negative-imaginary systems that quite often arise in practical scenarios. In addition, they can be applied to quantify the worse-case performance for this class of systems. Therefore, the proposed results have important implications in controller synthesis for uncertain negative-imaginary systems that achieve not only robust stabilization but also robust performance.
Daytime Circulating Melatonin Levels in Smokers

Aims and background Melatonin secretion is required to be a potential inhibitor of the development and growth of tumors, and cigarette smoking is a well established risk factor for cancer at various sites. Methods Circulating melatonin levels of 20 smokers and 20 non smokers (controls), sampled at the same hour from awaking in order to obtain a comparable circadian synchronization, were compared. Results Our data showed higher melatonin circulating levels in smokers (17.44 ±1.8 pg/ml) than in nonsmokers (9.77 ± 1.4 pg/ml). Conclusions The causes, mechanism and meaning of this phenomenon are still unknown. The most actractive hypothesis considers higher melatonin levels in smokers as an attempt to counterbalance cellular growth stimulus, a natural “brake” mechanism to restrain the proliferation of normally differentiated tissues: smoke is a prominent risk factor for several different tumors.
Cardiovascular manifestations of HIV infection in children

Background HIV infection in children is now considered as a chronic condition, in which various non-infectious complications may occur, including those affecting the developing cardiovascular system. As children are expected to survive well into adulthood, understanding childhood as well as potential future cardiovascular complications is of major importance. Methods and results We reviewed published literature on childhood cardiac manifestations and longer term effects of pediatric HIV infection on the cardiovascular system. Evidence gaps that should be prioritized in research are highlighted. Through poorly understood mechanisms, HIV infection may cause various cardiac complications already manifesting in childhood, such as structural and functional myocardial derangements, pulmonary hypertension, pericardial effusion and possibly endocarditis. Evidence indicates that HIV infection in children also has unfavorable effects on the vasculature and cardiovascular biomarkers, such as increased intima-media thickness and decreased flow-mediated dilation, a marker of endothelial function. However, studies are small and predominantly include antiretroviral therapy-treated children, so that it is difficult to differentiate between effects of HIV infection per se and antiretroviral therapy treatment, reported in adults to have cardiovascular side effects. Conclusions HIV infection in children may greatly impact the cardiovascular system, including effects on the heart, which tend to manifest early in childhood, and on the vasculature. The underlying mechanisms, essential for targeted prevention, are poorly understood. Current evidence largely stems from research in adults. However, as modes of infection, immune maturity, growth and development, and treatment are markedly different in children, specific pediatric research, accounting for the complex interplay of normal growth and development, HIV infection and treatment, is clearly warranted.
Exercise and Type 2 Diabetes

Although physical activity (PA) is a key element in the prevention and management of type 2 diabetes, many with this chronic disease do not become or remain regularly active. High-quality studies establishing the importance of exercise and fitness in diabetes were lacking until recently, but it is now well established that participation in regular PA improves blood glucose control and can prevent or delay type 2 diabetes, along with positively affecting lipids, blood pressure, cardiovascular events, mortality, and quality of life. Structured interventions combining PA and modest weight loss have been shown to lower type 2 diabetes risk by up to 58% in high-risk populations. Most benefits of PA on diabetes management are realized through acute and chronic improvements in insulin action, accomplished with both aerobic and resistance training. The benefits of physical training are discussed, along with recommendations for varying activities, PA-associated blood glucose management, diabetes prevention, gestational diabetes mellitus, and safe and effective practices for PA with diabetes-related complications.