Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Successful Treatment of Essential Palatal Tremor Lasting Over a Long Term with a Rare Application of Botulinum Toxin in a Child

Objective Essential Palatal Tremor (PT) is a disorder in which radiological brain images appear normal but the clicking noise caused by peritubal, palatal muscle contractions remains the main complaint of patients. The condition occurs rarely in childhood. This paper demonstrates such a rare case with bilateral presentation of essential PT in a 12-yr-old girl could successfully be treated with botulinum toxin therapy at Otorhinolaryngology Department in 2013, as she was still asymptomatic after 16 months. Besides, being minimally invasive with negligible side effects, this choice of treatment with botulinum toxin A (BTA) leads to a long-term symptom free outcome from essential PT.
An Evolutionary Multiagent Diffusion Approach to Optimization

This article proposes a novel multiagent approach to optimization inspired by diffusion in nature called Evolutionary Multiagent Diffusion (EMD). Each agent in EMD makes the decision to diffuse based on the information shared between its parent and its siblings. The behavior of EMD is analyzed and its relation to similar search algorithms is discussed.
Use of Ophiocordyceps sinensis (syn. Cordyceps sinensis) combined with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEI)/angiotensin receptor blockers (ARB) versus ACEI/ARB alone in the treatment of diabetic kidney disease: a meta-analysis

Abstract Ophiocordyceps sinensis (O. sinensis; syn. Cordyceps sinensis) has been used in clinical therapy for diabetic kidney disease (DKD) for more than 15 years. O. sinensis is a household name in china and it is available even in supermarket. However, the precise role of O. sinensis has not been fully elucidated with meta-analysis. The aim of this study was to review existing evidence on the effectiveness of O. sinensis for the treatment of DKD. We identified 60 trials involving 4288 participants. Overall, O. sinensis combined with ACEI/ARB had a better effect when compared to ACEI/ARB alone on 24 h UP (MD = −0.23 g/d, 95% CI: − 0.28 to −0.19, p < 0.00001), UAER (MD = −19.71 μg/min, 95% CI: −22.76 to −16.66, p < 0.00001), MAU (MD = −45.09 mg/d, 95% CI: −55.68 to −34.50, p < 0.00001), BUN (MD = −0.70 mmol/L, 95% CI: −1.02 to −0.39, p < 0.0001), SCr (MD = −8.37 μmol/L, 95% CI: −12.41 to −4.32, p < 0.0001), CRP (MD = −1.32 mg/L; 95% CI: −1.78 to −0.86; p < 0.00001), TG (MD = −0.51 mmol/L; 95% CI: −0.69 to −0.34, p < 0.00001), TC (MD = −0.64 mmol/L; 95% CI: −0.91 to −0.37, p < 0.00001), and SBP (MD = −2.01 mmHg; 95% CI: −3.45 to −0.58, p = 0.006). However, no effects were found for DBP, FBG, and HbA1C. This meta-analysis suggested that use of O. sinensis combined with ACEI/ARB may have a more beneficial effect on the proteinuria, inflammatory, dyslipidemia status as compared to ACEI/ARB alone in DKD III–IV stage patients, while there is no evidence that O. sinensis could improve the hyperglycemia status. However, with regard to low-quality and significant heterogeneity of included trials, to further verify the current results from this meta-analysis, long-term and well-designed RCTs with high-quality study are warranted to ascertain the long-term efficacy of O. sinensis.
American Sign Language syntactic and narrative comprehension in skilled and less skilled readers: Bilingual and bimodal evidence for the linguistic basis of reading

ABSTRACT We tested the hypothesis that syntactic and narrative comprehension of a natural sign language can serve as the linguistic basis for skilled reading. Thirty-one adults who were deaf from birth and used American Sign Language (ASL) were classified as skilled or less skilled readers using an eighth-grade criterion. Proficiency with ASL syntax, and narrative comprehension of ASL and Manually Coded English (MCE) were measured in conjunction with variables including exposure to print, nonverbal IQ, and hearing and speech ability. Skilled readers showed high levels of ASL syntatic ability and narrative comprehension whereas less skilled readers did not. Regression analyses showed ASL syntactic ability to contribute unique variance in English reading performance when the effects of nonverbal IQ, exposure to print, and MCE comprehension were controlled. A reciprocal relationship between print exposure and sign language proficiency was further found. The results indicate that the linguistic basis of reading, and the reciprocal relationship between print exposure and “through the air” language, can be bimodal, as in being a sign language or a spoken language, and bilingual, as in being ASL and English.
The pen is mightier: understanding stylus behaviour while inking on tablets

Although pens and paper are pervasive in the analog world, their digital counterparts, styli and tablets, have yet to achieve the same adoption and frequency of use. To date, little research has identified why inking experiences differ so greatly between analog and digital media or quantified the varied experiences that exist with stylus-enabled tablets. By observing quantitative and behavioural data in addition to querying preferential opinions, the experimentation reaffirmed the significance of accuracy, latency, and unintended touch, whilst uncovering the importance of friction, aesthetics, and stroke beautification to users. The observed participant behaviour and recommended tangible goals should enhance the development and evaluation of future systems.
Malonylation of Glucosylated N-Lauroylethanolamine

N-Acylethanolamines (NAEs) are bioactive fatty acid derivatives present in trace amounts in many eukaryotes. Although NAEs have signaling and physiological roles in animals, little is known about their metabolic fate in plants. Our previous microarray analyses showed that inhibition of Arabidopsis thaliana seedling growth by exogenous N-lauroylethanolamine (NAE 12:0) was accompanied by the differential expression of multiple genes encoding small molecule-modifying enzymes. We focused on the gene At5g39050, which encodes a phenolic glucoside malonyltransferase 1 (PMAT1), to better understand the biological significance of NAE 12:0-induced gene expression changes. PMAT1 expression was induced 3–5-fold by exogenous NAE 12:0. PMAT1 knockouts (pmat1) had reduced sensitivity to the growth-inhibitory effects of NAE 12:0 compared with wild type leading to the hypothesis that PMAT1 might be a previously uncharacterized regulator of NAE metabolism in plants. To test this hypothesis, metabolic profiling of wild-type and pmat1 seedlings treated with NAE 12:0 was conducted. Wild-type seedlings treated with NAE 12:0 accumulated glucosylated and malonylated forms of this NAE species, and structures were confirmed using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. By contrast, only the peak corresponding to NAE 12:0-glucoside was detected in pmat1. Recombinant PMAT1 catalyzed the reaction converting NAE 12:0-glucoside to NAE 12:0-mono- or -dimalonylglucosides providing direct evidence that this enzyme is involved in NAE 12:0-glucose malonylation. Taken together, our results indicate that glucosylation of NAE 12:0 by a yet to be determined glucosyltransferase and its subsequent malonylation by PMAT1 could represent a mechanism for modulating the biological activities of NAEs in plants.
Gut microbial regulation of bile acid metabolism and signaling

The collection of microbes in our gastrointestinal tract, the gut microbiota, is an environmental factor that has profound impact on host health and disease. Bile acids are endogenous cholesterol-derived molecules that can be modified by the gut microbiota and function as signaling molecules in regulation of host metabolic processes. This thesis investigates the role of the gut microbiota on bile acid metabolism and signaling by comparing mice that lack microbiota with their conventionally-raised counterparts. We found that the gut microbiota regulates bile acid metabolism at several levels, including proportionalities of individual bile acid species and expression of genes involved in bile acid homeostasis. Specifically, the gut microbiota decreased levels of mouse primary bile acid tauro-beta-muricholic acid (T-βMCA), which we identified as an antagonist of the nuclear receptor farnesoid-x-receptor (FXR). FXR mediates negative feedback regulation of bile acid homeostasis, as well as regulation of several physiological processes. Hence, we identified the molecular mechanism behind microbial regulation of bile acid homeostasis as T-βMCA mediated inhibition of FXR activity. Since humans lack T-βMCA, this thesis plays an important role in explaining the existing discrepancies between mouse and human studies targeting FXR for treating gastrointestinal diseases. Furthermore, in order to better understand the effect of the microbiota on FXR signaling, we rederived mice that lacked functional FXR as germ-free and mapped microbial regulation of genes through FXR. We found that the microbiota can regulate expression of FXR target genes through direct FXR binding to promoters in the intestine, while protein-protein interactions between FXR and other coregulators are likely regulated in the liver. In conclusion, this study establishes the microbiota as a key player in bile acid metabolism and FXR signaling in the liver and the intestine. The findings from this thesis implicate the microbiota as an important factor that needs to be taken into consideration in treating gastrointestinal diseases by targeting bile-acid mediated FXR signaling.
Influence Of Delta-Aminolevulinic Acid Dehydratase Gene Polymorphism on Selected Lead Exposure Biomarkers in a Cohort of Ex-Smelter Workers

Lead (Pb) body burden and toxicity may be influenced by genetic polymorphisms. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of G177C delta-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (ALAD) polymorphism (rs1800435) on selected Pb exposure biomarkers in a population of workers highly exposed to this metal in the past. A cross-sectional survey was conducted between 2007 and 2009 within the cohort of ex-employees of a smelter in the north of France that closed down in 2003. A questionnaire was completed by each participant and blood samples enabled determination of Pb levels and ALAD polymorphism. Five parameters estimating the Pb body burden and its variations were studied: last blood lead level (BLL) during activity, cumulative blood Pb index, BLL at the time of the study, and absolute and percent changes in BLL after cessation of metal exposure. Multiple regression models were used to evaluate links between ALAD polymorphism and the selected Pb exposure biomarkers. Two hundred and four men were included. At the time of inclusion, the median age was 53.5 yr. The median duration of Pb exposure was 25 yr and the median latency since end of exposure was 5.6 yr. The frequency of ALAD-2 allele was 9.3%, with 34 subjects being heterozygous (ALAD1-2) and 2 homozygous (ALAD2-2). According to genotype, there was no significant difference for any of the five selected Pb exposure biomarkers. These results lend support to the notion that ALAD polymorphism exerts no marked impact on Pb body burden.
Abnormal vitamin B6 metabolism in alkaline phosphatase knock‐out mice causes multiple abnormalities, but not the impaired bone mineralization

The tissue non‐specific alkaline phosphatase (TNAP) knock‐out mouse is a model of infantile hypophosphatasia displaying impaired bone mineralization, epileptic seizures, apnoea, abnormal apoptosis in the thymus, abnormal lumbar nerve roots, and postnatal death. Administration of vitamin B6 suppresses the epileptic seizures in TNAP−/− mice. This paper examines to what extent the diverse abnormalities seen in these mice are due to impaired utilization of vitamin B6, using two complementary approaches: administration of vitamin B6 to TNAP null mice and deprivation of vitamin B6 in wild‐type and TNAP heterozygous mice. Administration of exogenous pyridoxal HCl delayed the onset of epileptic attacks and increased the life span of TNAP−/− mice. The episodes of apnoea ceased and the appearance of lumbar nerve roots improved, but hypomineralization and accumulation of osteoid continued to worsen with age. Control mice fed a vitamin B6‐depleted diet developed epileptic seizures indistinguishable from those observed in TNAP−/− mice, abnormal apoptosis in the thymus, and thinning of the nerve roots, but showed no evidence of bone mineralization abnormalities. Depletion of vitamin B6 did not affect the ability of primary cultures of osteoblasts to deposit bone mineral in vitro. While abnormal metabolism of vitamin B6 explains many of the abnormalities in this mouse model of infantile hypophosphatasia, it is not the basis of the abnormal mineralization that characterizes this disease. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
StudyCaster : A Tool for Automatic and Anonymized Recording of Online User Studies

In recent years, online crowdsourcing markets like oDesk and Amazon Mechanical Turk have made it easy to recruit human subjects for online user studies, anonymously and in large numbers. A major limitation of online user studies lies in the difficulty of actually observing the actions of the subject as he or she solves the tasks presented, and much work may be necessary on the part of the experimenter in order to instrument the system under test or develop questionnaires that can shed light on the subject’s approach to the problem at hand. In this note, we present StudyCaster, a Java-based tool that allows subjects to stream complete recordings of their computer screens to an experimenter’s server with a minimum of effort. A novel and crucial feature is anonymization, which blurs any window on the screen that does not match predefined criteria. ACM Classification
Architecting Microservices

Inspired by Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), and from the convergence of Cloud Computing and Web 2.0, Microservice Architecture (MSA) has recently emerged as an architectural style particularly suitable to the cloud infrastructures. The MSA style is an approach to developing a single application as a suite of small services, each running in its own process and communicating with lightweight mechanisms. Although the set of MSA principles aim for high degree of flexibility, modularity and evolution, adopting, operating and maintaining microservice architectures in practice is challenging and time consuming. This paper reports on a PhD research project addressing three different challenges concerning MSA: (i) the identification of the key properties of microservice architectures, (ii) the identification and investigation on a description language for designing and analyzing architectures, (iii) the identification of the factors that impact the process of migrating existing applications towards MSA. The initial contributions of this project are: (i) a systematic mapping study on architecting microservices performed in order to understand the state of the research and the possible gaps in the area, (ii) an approach for architecture recovery of microservice-based systems named MicroART, and (iii) the implementation of the MicroART first prototype.
Excitable properties of olfactory receptor neurons

Action potential-generating properties of olfactory receptor neurons in the olfactory epithelium of the salamander, Ambystoma tigrinum, were studied in control animals, and 2 and 4 weeks after olfactory nerve transection. The threshold for impulse generation in response to injected current was extremely low (74 +/- 46 pA). In addition, the discharge frequencies of the receptor neurons were exquisitely sensitive to small increments of injected current. These high sensitivities may be characteristic of small neurons and stand in contrast to the much lower sensitivities reported for large neurons. The high sensitivity has important implications for the input-output functions of this cell. After nerve transection, both the threshold and the frequency sensitivity decreased. These changes appear to be associated with increased potassium conductance, suggested by prominent membrane rectification and reduced amplitudes of later membrane action potentials in the spike trains. The olfactory receptor neuron appears to be a favorable model for exploring these properties.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Pelvic Floor - Possibilities and Present Status

MRI has had both an increasing availability and fuctionality during the last 5’10 years. In diagnosing problems of the pelvic floor, it has been shown to have a potential, but is at present not to be considered a routine examination. Today’s use of MRI of the pelvis includes anatomical/topographical images of high quality, but to make it a valuable diagnostic tool, functional imaging is mandatory. Functional MRI with a potential of simultaneously examining defecation, micturition, bladder motion and pelvic floor muscles, seems promising, but with having practical problems. The use of open MRI systems reduce the practical problems, but does not give the optimum image quality. In the future it is likely that MRI will have an increasing importance concerning diagnoses of the pelvic floor. However, clinical research is needed to evaluate the possible diagnostic gains, and maybe even open for more use of MRI.
Effect of caffeine on aortic elastic properties and wave reflection

Objective Caffeine is the most widely used pharmacologically active substance. Aortic elastic properties and arterial wave reflection are important factors for the efficient performance of the cardiovascular system, as well as prognosticators of cardiovascular risk. We investigated the effect of caffeine on aortic elastic properties and wave reflection. Design We studied the effect of caffeine (250 mg) in 20 healthy subjects according to a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, cross-over design. Methods Aortic stiffness was evaluated with carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity and wave reflection with augmentation index of the aortic pressure waveform. Results Pulse wave velocity increased (by 0.51 m/s, P < 0.001) denoting an increase in aortic stiffness. Augmentation index and augmented pressure increased (by 6.8%, and by 4.4 mmHg, respectively, P < 0.001 for both) denoting increased wave reflections. Concurrently, both radial and aortic systolic, diastolic and pulse pressure increased significantly. However, this increase was 20 and 9% larger for aortic systolic pressure (at 30 and 60 min, P < 0.001 and P < 0.05, respectively) and 56% larger for aortic pulse pressure (at 30 min, P < 0.001) compared with the corresponding upper limb values. This indicates that peripheral pressure measurements are not an accurate guide for the pressor effect of caffeine in central arteries. Conclusions Caffeine affects unfavorably aortic stiffness and enhances wave reflections. This finding has implications for the impact of caffeine consumption on cardiovascular risk.
Wideband Modeling of Temperature and Substrate Effects in RF Inductors on Silicon for 3.1-10.6 GHz UWB System Applications

In this paper, we analyze the effects of temperature (from -50°C to 200°C), substrate impedance, and substrate thickness on the noise figure (NF) and quality factor (Q-factor) performances of monolithic RF inductors on silicon. A 0.45 dB (from 0.6 dB to 0.15 dB) reduction in minimum NF (NFmin) at 10 GHz, a 308% (from 11.6 to 47.3) increase in Q-factor at 10 GHz, and a 4% (from 20 GHz to 20.8 GHz) improvement in self-resonant frequency (fSR) were obtained if post-process of proton implantation had been done. In addition, a 0.36 dB reduction (from 0.6 dB to 0.24 dB) in NFminat 10 GHz, a 176% (from 11.6 to 32) increase in Q-factor at 10 GHz, and a 30% (from 20 GHz to 26 GHz) improvement in fSRwere achieved if the silicon substrate was thinned down from 750 μm to 20 μm. This means both the proton implantation and the silicon substrate thinning are effective in improving the NF and Q-factor performances of monolithic RF inductors on silicon. The present analyses are helpful for RF designers to design high-performance fully on-chip LNAs and VCOs for single-chip receiver front-end or 3.1-10.6 GHz ultra-wide-band (UWB) system applications.
Sequence analysis identifies TTRAP, a protein that associates with CD40 and TNF receptor-associated factors, as a member of a superfamily of divalent cation-dependent phosphodiesterases.

CD40 is a member of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) receptor family. CD40-mediated signal transduction involves the recruitment of several cytoplasmic proteins and induces expression of a large number of genes. TTRAP, a novel protein that interacts with the cytoplasmic domain of CD40 and with TNF-receptor associated factors (TRAFs), has been cloned and shown to inhibit nuclear factor-kappaB activation (NF-kappaB). By using various bioinformatics-based sequence and structure analyses of proteins involved in signaling by the TNF receptor family, we found that TTRAP is a member of a superfamily of Mg(2+)/Mn(2+)-dependent phosphodiesterases. More precisely, our results suggest that TTRAP is related to the human APE1, a Mg(2+)-dependent endonuclease. This potential novel function of TTRAP raises the intriguing possibility for a role of APE1-like DNA-repair endonucleases in TNF receptor family-mediated signaling and functions.
Markers of Alzheimer's Disease in Primary Visual Cortex in Normal Aging in Mice

Aging is the principal risk factor for the development of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The hallmarks of AD are accumulation of the amyloid-β peptide 1–42 (Aβ42) and abnormal hyperphosphorylation of Tau (p-Tau) protein in different areas of the brain and, more recently reported, in the visual cortex. Recently, Aβ42 peptide overproduction has been involved in visual loss. Similar to AD, in normal aging, there is a significant amyloid deposition related to the overactivation of the aforementioned mechanisms. However, the mechanisms associated with visual loss secondary to age-induced visual cortex affectation are not completely understood. Young and aged mice were used as model to analyze the presence of Aβ42, p-Tau, glial-acidic fibrillary protein (GFAP), and presenilin-2, one of the main enzymes involved in Aβ42 production. Our results show a significant increase of Aβ42 deposition in aged mice in the following cells and/or tissues: endothelial cells and blood vessels and neurons of the visual cortex; they also show an increase of the expression of GFAP and presenilin-2 in this region. These results provide a comprehensive framework for the role of Aβ42 in visual loss due to inflammation present with aging and offer some clues for fruitful avenues for the study of healthy aging.