Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Guideline for the Prevention of Surgical Site Infection, 2017

Importance The human and financial costs of treating surgical site infections (SSIs) are increasing. The number of surgical procedures performed in the United States continues to rise, and surgical patients are initially seen with increasingly complex comorbidities. It is estimated that approximately half of SSIs are deemed preventable using evidence-based strategies. Objective To provide new and updated evidence-based recommendations for the prevention of SSI. Evidence Review A targeted systematic review of the literature was conducted in MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, and the Cochrane Library from 1998 through April 2014. A modified Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) approach was used to assess the quality of evidence and the strength of the resulting recommendation and to provide explicit links between them. Of 5759 titles and abstracts screened, 896 underwent full-text review by 2 independent reviewers. After exclusions, 170 studies were extracted into evidence tables, appraised, and synthesized. Findings Before surgery, patients should shower or bathe (full body) with soap (antimicrobial or nonantimicrobial) or an antiseptic agent on at least the night before the operative day. Antimicrobial prophylaxis should be administered only when indicated based on published clinical practice guidelines and timed such that a bactericidal concentration of the agents is established in the serum and tissues when the incision is made. In cesarean section procedures, antimicrobial prophylaxis should be administered before skin incision. Skin preparation in the operating room should be performed using an alcohol-based agent unless contraindicated. For clean and clean-contaminated procedures, additional prophylactic antimicrobial agent doses should not be administered after the surgical incision is closed in the operating room, even in the presence of a drain. Topical antimicrobial agents should not be applied to the surgical incision. During surgery, glycemic control should be implemented using blood glucose target levels less than 200 mg/dL, and normothermia should be maintained in all patients. Increased fraction of inspired oxygen should be administered during surgery and after extubation in the immediate postoperative period for patients with normal pulmonary function undergoing general anesthesia with endotracheal intubation. Transfusion of blood products should not be withheld from surgical patients as a means to prevent SSI. Conclusions and Relevance This guideline is intended to provide new and updated evidence-based recommendations for the prevention of SSI and should be incorporated into comprehensive surgical quality improvement programs to improve patient safety.
The behavioral phenotype of FMR1 mutations

The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the behavioral phenotype of FMR1 mutations, including fragile X syndrome (FXS) in order to better understand the clinical involvement of individuals affected by mutations in this gene. FXS is associated with a wide range of intellectual and behavioral problems, some relatively mild and others quite severe. FXS is the most common cause of inherited intellectual disability and one of the most prevalent genetic causes of autism spectrum disorder. Learning difficulties, attentional problems, anxiety, aggressive behavior, stereotypies, and mood disorders are also frequent in FXS. Recent studies of children and adults have identified associations between FMR1 premutation and many of the same disorders. We examine the neurobehavioral phenotypes of FXS and FMR1 premutation as they manifest across the lifespan of the individual. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Roles for Mating and Environment in C. elegans Sex Determination

In Caenorhabditis elegans the two sexes, hermaphrodites and males, are thought to be irreversibly determined at fertilization by the ratio of X chromosomes to sets of autosomes: XX embryos develop as hermaphrodites and XO embryos as males. We show instead that both sex and genotype of C. elegans can be altered postembryonically and that this flexibility requires sexual reproduction. When grown in specific bacterial metabolites, some XX larvae generated by mating males and hermaphrodites develop as males and lose one X chromosome. However, XX larvae produced by hermaphrodite self-fertilization show no such changes. We propose that sexual reproduction increases developmental flexibility of progeny, allowing for better adaptation to changing environments.
Combined chemotherapy and radiation with selective organ preservation for muscle-invasive bladder carcinoma. A single-institution phase II study.

OBJECTIVE To assess in a phase II trial the effectiveness and toxicity of combined chemotherapy and radiation with selective bladder preservation by response in the treatment of muscle-invasive bladder carcinoma. PATIENTS AND METHODS Fifty-six eligible patients with T2-4 M0 transitional cell bladder cancer suitable for radical surgery and multi-agent chemotherapy received two courses of methotrexate, cisplatin and vinblastine, followed by 40 Gy of pelvic radiotherapy in 1.8 Gy fractions with concomitant cisplatin. Tumour response was evaluated by cystoscopy and biopsy. Those responding completely were given a 24 Gy bladder boost plus cisplatin; patients with residual tumour were assigned to immediate cystectomy. RESULTS After induction therapy, 28 patients (50%) responded completely; 22 operable patients with residual tumour underwent immediate cystectomy, while 34 patients were consolidated with cisplatin and radiation. Bladder relapses developed in 16 patients; seven had successful endovesical therapy for superficial disease and salvage cystectomy was possible in four of nine cases with invasive recurrence. Distant metastases occurred in 22 cases (39%). After a median follow-up of 46 months, the 5-year actuarial disease-specific survival was 59%, disease-free survival 54% and local control without cystectomy (bladder preservation) 41%. There were no treatment-related deaths; grade 3 late complications occurred in two patients. CONCLUSION This combined chemotherapy-radiotherapy regimen with selective organ preservation should be considered as an option for muscle-invasive bladder carcinoma. The initial results suggest the possibility of retaining a functioning bladder in many patients, without compromising survival, compared with elective cystectomy approaches. A longer follow-up and quality-of-life assessment remain essential for a better definition of selection criteria and long-term results of this combined modality.
Speech intelligibility benefits of hearing AIDS at various input levels.

BACKGROUND Although the benefits of hearing aids are generally recognized for soft- and conversational-level sounds, most studies have reported negative benefits (i.e., poorer aided than unaided performance) at high noise inputs. Advances in digital signal processing such as compression, noise reduction, and directional microphone could improve speech perception at high input levels. This could alter our view on the efficacy of hearing aids in loud, noisy situations. PURPOSE The current study compared the aided versus the unaided speech intelligibility performance of hearing-impaired (HI) listeners at various input levels (from 50-100 dB SPL) and signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs; quiet, +6, +3, and -3 dB) in order to document the benefits of modern hearing aids. In addition, subjective preference between aided and unaided sounds (speech and music) at various input levels was also compared. RESEARCH DESIGN The experiment used a factorial repeated-measures design. STUDY SAMPLE A total of 10 HI adults with symmetrical moderate to severe hearing losses served as test participants. In addition, speech intelligibility scores of five normal-hearing (NH) listeners were also measured for comparison. INTERVENTION Speech perception was studied at 50 and 65 dB SPL input levels in quiet and also in noise at levels of 65, 85, and 100 dB SPL with SNRs of +6, +3, and -3 dB. This was done for all participants (HI and NH). In addition, the HI participants compared subjective preference between the aided and unaided presentations of speech and music stimuli at 50, 65, 85, and 100 dB SPL in quiet. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS The data were analyzed with repeated-measures analysis of variance. RESULTS The results showed a decrease in aided benefits as input levels increased. However, even at the two highest input levels (i.e., 85 and 100 dB SPL), aided speech scores were still higher than the unaided speech scores. Furthermore, NH listeners and HI listeners in the aided condition showed stable speech-in-noise performance between 65 and 100 dB SPL input levels, except that the absolute performance of the NH listeners was higher than that of the HI listeners. Subjective preference for the unaided sounds versus the aided sounds increased as input level increased, with a crossover intensity at approximately 75 dB SPL for speech and 80 dB SPL for music. CONCLUSIONS The results supported the hypothesis that the study hearing aid can provide aided speech-in-noise benefit at very high noise inputs in a controlled environment.
Translational control by 80S formation and 60S availability: The central role of eIF6, a rate limiting factor in cell cycle progression and tumorigenesis

Ribosome biogenesis and translation can be simplified as the processes of generating ribosomes and their use for decoding mRNA into a protein. Ribosome biogenesis has been efficiently studied in unicellular organisms like the budding yeast, allowing us a deep and basic knowledge of this process in growing cells. Translation has been modeled in vitro and in unicellular organisms. These studies have given us an important insight into the mechanisms and evolutionarily conserved aspects of ribosome biology. However, we advocate the need of the direct study of these processes in multicellular organisms. Analysis of ribosome biogenesis and translation in vivo in Metazoa and mammalian models is emerging and unveils the unexpected consequences of perturbed ribosome biogenesis and translation. Here, we will describe how one factor, eIF6, plays a crucial role both in the generation of the large ribosomal subunit and its availability for translation. From there, we will make specific conclusions on the physiological relevance of eIF6 in 80S formation, cell cycle progression and disease, raising the point that the control of gene expression may occur at the unexpected level of the large ribosomal subunit. In the future, the modulation of eIF6 binding to the 60S may be pharmacologically exploited to reduce the growth of cancer cells or ameliorate the phenotype of SDS syndrome.
Optimizing visual-to-auditory delay for multimodal BCI speller

Multimodal spellers combining visual and auditory stimulation have recently gained more attention in ERP-based Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs). Most studies found an improved efficiency compared to unimodal paradigms while few have explored the effect of the visual-to-auditory delays on the spelling performance. Here, we study five conditions with different visual-to-auditory delays, in order to find the paradigm that provides the best overall BCI performance. We compared the temporal and spatial binary classification accuracy as well as the grand-averaged classification accuracies over repetitions. Results show that long delays may cause better performance in early time intervals corresponding to negative ERP components, but better overall performance is achieved with short visual-to-auditory delays.
Interleaved SEPIC PFC converter using coupled inductors in PEV battery charging applications

In ac/dc power factor correction (PFC) applications, where a wide range dc link voltage is required, boost derived topologies are no longer the most suitable circuit topologies for universal grids. In this paper, an interleaved SEPIC PFC converter, capable of providing a wide range dc link voltage, is investigated for onboard isolated battery chargers for plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) applications. The proposed converter is well adapted to achieve the maximum efficiency point tracking of the second stage LLC topology of an onboard isolated charger. Coupled inductors are utilized to reduce the component count and to bring the benefits of reduced input ripple current, lower switching losses, less total harmonic distortion (THD), and resistance to duty cycle mismatch. A 3.3 kW interleaved and coupled SEPIC converter, generating 200V-420V dc link voltages from the universal grid, is designed and simulated to verify the proof of concept.
Distributed wireless energy scheduling for wireless powered sensor networks

A wireless powered communication network is a potential application of wireless energy harvesting to improve convenience and flexibility. However, wireless energy transfer from a wireless energy source has to be scheduled to minimize energy usage while meeting quality of service (QoS) requirements of sensor nodes in the network. In this paper, we consider wireless powered sensor network whose sensor nodes have auxiliary energy sources in addition to dedicated wireless energy transfer. We propose a distributed wireless energy transfer scheduling to achieve the aforementioned objective and meet the requirements. We formulate a constrained stochastic game model to obtain a multi-policy constrained Nash equilibrium of wireless energy transfer request. This equilibrium instructs the sensor node to request for wireless energy transfer based on its local state. The performance evaluation shows that the analytical model is well verified by numerical simulations.
Influence of slaughter weight and sex on yield and quality grades of Hanwoo (Korean native cattle) carcasses.

To assess the effects of slaughter weight and sex on APGS (Animal Products Grading Service) quality and APGS yield grade of Korean Hanwoo (n = 20,881) cattle, data were collected from cow, bull, and steer carcasses during a 1-yr period. Factors used to determine quality grade (marbling, meat color, fat color, texture, and overall maturity score) and yield grade (cold carcass weight, adjusted fat thickness, and longissimus muscle area) by the Korean grading system were recorded. Both yield and quality grades were improved (P < 0.01) with heavier slaughter weight, but there was no difference in yield grade for Hanwoo cattle classes heavier than 551 kg (P > 0.01). Longissimus muscle area, adjusted fat thickness, and marbling score increased (P < 0.01) with carcass weight. Bull carcasses showed higher yield but lower quality than those of cows or steers (P < 0.01). The quality grade of steer carcasses was higher (P < 0.01) than that of cow carcasses due to higher marbling scores, lower maturity scores, and heavier carcass weights. Hanwoo carcasses with larger longissimus muscle areas in relation to their carcass weight had lower APGS quality grades. The APGS quality grades were different between yield grade A and B carcasses (P < 0.01), but quality grade was not improved by increased fat thickness beyond the point of yield grade B. Adjusted fat thickness and marbling score showed significant (P < 0.01) differences among all yield grade classes, and this resulted in increased quality grade as yield grade decreased. Adjusted fat thickness showed the strongest correlation (r = -0.63) with yield grade, whereas marbling score had the strongest correlation (r = 0.81) with quality grade. Results showed a negative effect of castration on yield but a positive effect on quality. Also, data showed that Hanwoo carcasses with heavier weights had higher quality grades than those of lighter weight.
Airway mast cells and eosinophils correlate with clinical severity and airway hyperresponsiveness in corticosteroid-treated asthma.

BACKGROUND The relationship between airway inflammation and asthma severity in corticosteroid-treated asthma is unclear. OBJECTIVES Our purpose was to characterize the inflammatory cell profile of the airway lumen and epithelium in corticosteroid-treated asthma and to relate these findings to clinical and physiologic markers of asthma severity. METHODS Adults (n = 20) with asthma received standardized high-dose inhaled corticosteroid therapy with beclomethasone 2000 microgram per day for 8 weeks. Airway responsiveness to methacholine and hypertonic (4.5%) saline solution was then assessed, followed by sputum induction and, 1 week later, bronchoscopy with bronchoalveolar lavage and bronchial brush biopsy to assess inflammatory cells. RESULTS Clinical asthma severity was associated with airway hyperresponsiveness. Metachromatic cells were the main granulocyte present in bronchial brush biopsy specimens and correlated with airway responsiveness to saline solution (r = -0.75), methacholine (r = -0.74), peak flow variability (r = 0.59), and clinical asthma severity (r = 0.57). Eosinophils were the main granulocyte present in sputum and correlated with airway responsiveness to saline solution (r = -0.63) but not with other clinical markers of asthma severity. Bronchoalveolar lavage cell counts were not related to clinical asthma severity. CONCLUSIONS In asthmatic patients treated with cortico-steroids, the dominant inflammatory effector cell in the epithelium is the metachromatic cell, and in sputum it is the eosinophil. These cells correlate with the degree of airway hyperresponsiveness. Clinical asthma severity correlates with airway responsiveness and epithelial metachromatic cells. Induced sputum eosinophils and airway responsiveness to hypertonic saline solution may be useful markers of airway inflammation for clinical practice.
Non-Invasive Pneumococcal Pneumonia in Portugal—Serotype Distribution and Antimicrobial Resistance

There is limited information on the serotypes causing non-invasive pneumococcal pneumonia (NIPP). Our aim was to characterize pneumococci causing NIPP in adults to determine recent changes in serotype prevalence, the potential coverage of pneumococcal vaccines and changes in antimicrobial resistance. Serotypes and antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of a sample of 1300 isolates recovered from adult patients (≥18 yrs) between 1999 and 2011 (13 years) were determined. Serotype 3 was the most frequent cause of NIPP accounting for 18% of the isolates. The other most common serotypes were 11A (7%), 19F (7%), 19A (5%), 14 (4%), 22F (4%), 23F (4%) and 9N (4%). Between 1999 and 2011, there were significant changes in the proportion of isolates expressing vaccine serotypes, with a steady decline of the serotypes included in the 7-valent conjugate vaccine from 31% (1999–2003) to 11% (2011) (P<0.001). Taking together the most recent study years (2009–2011), the potential coverage of the 13-valent conjugate vaccine was 44% and of the 23-valent polysaccharide vaccine was 66%. While erythromycin resistance increased from 8% in 1999–2003 to 18% in 2011 (P<0.001), no significant trend was identified for penicillin non-susceptibility, which had an average value of 18.5%. The serotype distribution found in this study for NIPP was very different from the one previously described for IPD, with only two serotypes in common to the ones responsible for half of each presentation in 2009–2011 – serotypes 3 and 19A. In spite of these differences, the overall prevalence of resistant isolates was similar in NIPP and in IPD.
Enhancing Touch Screen Games Through a Cable-driven Force Feedback Device

An increasing number of touch screen interfaces have promoted plenty of applications. A great part of the applications is game. However, the lack of haptic feedback on touch screens also degrades the enjoyment of touch screen games. We present the design of a new cable-driven force feedback touch screen to enhance touch interactions especially in games. The implementation and principle of the force feedback touch screen are presented. We evaluate our design in a Mole Attack game. A lateral force was applied when the user tapped on a mole. The finger acceleration was measured when tapping on the force feedback touch screen as well as stroking on a physical button. The magnitude of the force feedback was adjusted accordingly to simulate the physical interaction. Players reported that the force feedback enhanced tapping was similar to that on a physical button and they preferred the haptic enhanced game which brought them more fun.
The effect of schedule, protein binding and growth factors on the activity of suramin

Suramin has been shown to have antiproliferative activity, either by blocking the binding of growth factors to their receptors or by inhibiting critical cellular enzymes. In 6 different cell lines from 5 tumour types (MCF‐7, MCF‐7/ADRR, PC3, HT‐29, UM‐SCC‐IIB and SW‐1573/1R500), we studied the effect of scheduling of suramin, of FCS and of human serum albumin (HSA), of epidermal growth factor (EGF) and of the addition of growth factors in serum‐free medium on the activity of suramin. The concentration of suramin which gave 50% growth inhibition (IC50) varied from 45 μM in SW‐I573/IR500 to 153 μM in PC3 cells grown in medium supplemented with 5% FCS, after 6 days of continuous exposure. Exposure for more than 4 days did not enhance the sensitivity to suramin, except in PC3. At exposure to suramin for 1 day followed by 5 days recovery, high IC50 values (>0.5 mM) were observed in MCF‐7 cells. In medium with 1% and 0.5% FCS these values were 3 to 8 and 14 to 26 times lower respectively. Addition of HSA increased the IC50 in PC3 and MCF‐7 cells. Suramin binding to protein was dependent on the concentration of protein and of suramin. Excess of EGF in medium with different FCS concentrations did not change the IC50 values of suramin in PC3 and MCF‐7 cells. Addition of EGF, fibroblast growth factor or platelet‐derived growth factor in PC3 cells cultured in serum‐free medium did not increase the IC50 values. Suramin was active against these 6 cell lines at clinically achievable concentrations. This activity varied depending on the cell line, exposure time and suramin concentration. The most significant factor interfering with sensitivity to suramin was the amount of protein present in the culture medium.
The neostriatal mosaic. I. compartmental organization of projections from the striatum to the substantia nigra in the rat

Combined neuroanatomical techniques were used to examine the organization of the striatal projection to the substantia nigra in the rat. Both double anterograde axonal tracing methods (Phaseolus vulgaris leuco‐agglutinin (PHA‐L) and 3H‐amino acid tract tracing) and double fluorescent retrograde axonal transport tracing methods were used to examine the relationship among striatal neurons projecting to separate areas of the substantia nigra. Additionally, the distributions of retrogradely labeled striatonigral projection neurons were charted relative to the neurochemically distinct striatal “patch” compartment, identified by substance P‐or leuenkephalin‐like immunoreactivity, and the complementary “matrix” compartment, identified by somatostatin‐like immunoreactive fibers.