Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Clinical significance of preoperative neutrophil-lymphocyte versus platelet-lymphocyte ratio in patients with operable colorectal cancer

The objective of this study was to clarify whether the neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the platelet-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) are significant prognostic markers in patients with resectable colorectal cancer (CRC). A total of 200 patients who underwent curative resection for CRC were enrolled. The NLR and PLR were positively correlated (p < 0.001). Both the NLR and PLR were shown to be good prognostic biomarkers of overall survival (OS) (p = 0.002 and p = 0.001, respectively). The PLR was an independent prognostic factor of OS based on multivariate analysis (hazard ratio, 1.971; 95% confidence interval, 1.102–3.335; p = 0.021).
Studies on Measles Viral Hemagglutination.∗

Summary Hemagglutination of monkey red cells was demonstrated with a concentrated measles tissue culture antigen. The antigen was destroyed by trypsin and its activity was significantly reduced by ether. Heat inactivation at 60°C for 10 minutes destroyed the infectivity, while hemagglutinating activity was significantly reduced only after one hour. A small non-infectious hemagglutinating unit was also demonstrated. Both hemagglutinating particles are antigenic and their activity was inhibited by specific antiserum. The small particles appeared during viral multiplication in the cell. Receptors on the red cells were of a different nature than those of myxoviruses.
Using CT to diagnose tracheal rupture.

OBJECTIVE A retrospective study was performed to assess CT sensitivity for diagnosing tracheal rupture. Intubated cadaver tracheas were examined to assess endotracheal tube balloon overdistention and deformity and to evaluate the relationship of balloon pressures to tracheal injury. MATERIALS AND METHODS Neck or chest CT scans of 14 patients with tracheal rupture and 41 control trauma patients with pneumomediastinum but without tracheal injury were reviewed and compared to assess the presence and location of extrapulmonary air, whether direct visualization of tracheal wall disruption was possible, the size and shape of endotracheal tube balloon, signs of transtracheal balloon herniation in intubated patients, and the location of the extratracheal endotracheal tube. Intact and experimentally injured cadaver tracheas were used to evaluate tube balloon pressure and configuration. RESULTS All 14 patients with tracheal rupture had deep cervical air and pneumomediastinum. Overdistention of the tube balloon occurred in 71% (5/7) of the intubated patients, and balloon herniation occurred in 29% (2/7). Direct tracheal injury was seen in 71% (10/14) of the patients as a wall defect (n = 8) or deformity (n = 2). Overall, CT was 85% sensitive for detecting tracheal injury. Patients with tracheal injury had a significantly lower incidence of pneumothorax (p = 0.01) than did the control group. The CT appearance of balloon herniation through defects in the cadaver tracheas closely mimicked those of patients with tracheal injury. The amount of balloon pressure required to rupture the intubated trachea was extremely high and rupture was difficult to obtain. CONCLUSION CT can reveal tracheal injury and can be used to select trauma patients with pneumomediastinum for bronchoscopy, leading to early confirmation and treatment.
Genetic control of caudal development

Several lines of evidence suggest that caudal development involves a distinct programme. This is illustrated by the fact that a specific pattern of malformations affects the caudal end of the human embryo. In addition, neurulation, the process leading to the formation of the neural tube, proceeds through different morphogenetic movements caudally. In mammals, as in birds, the caudal neural tube arises from cavitation and not from folding of the neural plate as in more rostral levels. However, recent fate mapping studies have suggested that the two modes of neurulation represent a continuous programme, possibly involving similar cellular or molecular mechanisms. Finally, analyses of mutant mice have shown that T‐box transcription factors and components of the Wnt signalling pathway control cellular migration and the promotion of mesoderm formation in the caudal embryo. In humans, mutation in the HLXB9 transcription factor causes an autosomal dominant form of sacral agenesis. Thus, the combination of classical embryological and molecular genetics approaches has provided critical reference points for the delineation of the developmental programme of the caudal embryo.
[Screening of Active Fractions from Huanglian Jiedu Decoction against Primary Neuron Injury after Oxygen-Glucose Deprivation].

OBJECTIVE To observe the protective effect of active fractions of Huanglian Jiedu Decoction (HJD) on primary cortical neuron injury after oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD)/reperfusion (R) injury. Methods Using macroporous resin method, HJDFE30, HJDFE50, HJDFE75, and HJDFE95 with 30%, 50%, 75%, and 95% alcohol were respectively prepared. Then the content of active components in different HJD fractions was determined with reverse phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC). The OGD/R injury model was induced by sodium dithionite on primary cortical neurons in neonate rats. MTT assay was used to observe the effect of four fractions (HJDFE30, HJDFE50, HJDFE75, and HJDFE95) and seven index components of HJD on the neuron viability. RESULTS RP-HPLC showed active component(s) contained in HJDFE30 was geniposide; baicalin, palmatine, berberine, and wogonside contained in HJDFE50; baicalin, berberine, baicalein, and wogonin contained in HJDFE75. The neuron viability was decreased after OGD for 20 min and reperfusion for 1 h, (P <0. 01), and significantly increased after administered with HJD, HJDFE30, HJDFE50, and HJDFE75 (P <0. 05, P <0. 01). Geniposide, baicalin, baicalein, palmatine, wogonside, and wogonin could increase the cortical neuron viability (P <0. 05, P <0. 01). CONCLUSIONS HJDFE30, HJDFE50, and HJDFE75, as active fractions of HJD, had protective effect on primary cortical neuron injury after OGD/R. Furthermore, geniposide, baicalin, and baicalein were main active components of HJD.
Zebrafish myelopoiesis and blood cell development

The zebrafish (Danio rerio) animal model offers a unique opportunity to discover novel genes required for the control of normal vertebrate myeloid cell development. It is well suited for both developmental and genetic analyses:eg, genome-wide chemical mutagenesis screens have led to the identification of specific new genes affecting vertebrate erythropoiesis. Mutants defective in one or more hematopoietic functions will be useful as models of human disease and will assist in the elucidation of lineage-specific developmental programs. By using a combination of forward genetic mutagenesis screens and emerging strategies based on transgenic and antisense knockdown approaches, it should be possible to dissect the genetic programs that lead to myeloproliferative/myelodysplastic syndromes and to acute myeloid leukemia.
Comparison of Decision Tree, Neural Network, Statistic Learning, and k-NN Algorithms in Data Mining of Thyroid Disease Datasets

Massive information contained in medical datasets presents challenge to the practitioners in diagnosing diseases or determining health status of patients. Data mining is therefore required to help users obtaining valuable information from a very complex data collection. In this study, we explored several methods of data mining in order to improve the quality of a dataset which is related to diagnosis of thyroid disease. Several classifiers were trained on the dataset and compared to previous study by Akbaş et al (2013). The performance improvement was examined in order to determine the best classifier that can be executed. Findings revealed that decision tree (J48) algorithm outperformed all other algorithms in terms of accuracy, Kappa, Matthew’s correlation coefficient (MCC), and receiver operating characteristics (ROC) with respective values of 0.994, 0.951, 0.953, and 0.987. Classification using J48 was found to be better than those conducted by Akbaş et al. In contrast, IBK algorithm showed the poorest performance, particularly Kappa and MCC. The size of tree generated from J48 and Logistic Model Tree (LMT) varied greatly. Integration of single classifier with AdaBoost classifier mostly resulted in higher accuracy. However, AdaBoost did not improve the performance of NaïveBayes, IBK and RandomForest algorithms. These results were consistent with the previous study using AdaBoost-based ensemble classifier.
Women's views of antidepressants in the treatment of postnatal depression

Little research has been carried out on the treatment of postnatal depression and clinicians must currently rely on general recommendations for the use of antidepressants. Antidepressant medication as the main treatment for depression in general practice has been shown to be effective when used as prescribed. However, research has shown that depressed patients consistently receive either no medication or consistently low doses of medication. This study will investigate women's experiences of taking antidepressant medication for postnatal depression. Thirty-five women with a clinical diagnosis of postnatal depression who had been prescribed antidepressant medication completed a questionnaire detailing their experiences of taking medication. Four open-ended questions and responses were discussed with the women. Of the 35 women who were prescribed medication, 4 chose not to take it because they were breast-feeding. Twenty of the women described finding medication helpful. Although only 4 women directly reported not taking antidepressants as prescribed, the comments made by a further 9 women suggest that compliance may have been poor. This study suggests a need to improve information about medication for postnatal depression. If this information is not provided, women are likely to continue to self-manage medication at a dosage that may be clinically ineffective.
Personal Network Characteristics of Youth in Substance Use Treatment: Motivation for and Perceived Difficulty of Positive Network Change

Background Among youth in substance use treatment, peer substance use consistently predicts worse treatment outcomes. This study characterized personal (egocentric) networks of treated youth and examined predictors of adolescents’ motivation and perceived difficulty in making changes in the peer network to support recovery. Methods Adolescents (aged 14–18; N = 155) recruited from substance use treatment reported on substance use severity, motivation to abstain from substance use, abstinence goals such as “temporary abstinence,” motivation and perceived difficulty in reducing contact with substance-using peers, and personal network characteristics. Personal network variables included composition (proportion of abstinent peers) and structure (number of network members, extent of ties among members) for household and nonhousehold (peer) members. Results Although a majority of peer network members were perceived as using alcohol or marijuana, youth in treatment had relatively high motivation to abstain from substance use. However, treated youths’ motivation to reduce contact with substance-using peers was relatively low. In particular, a goal of temporary abstinence was associated with lower motivation to change the peer network. For marijuana, specifically, network composition features (proportion of abstinent peers) were associated with motivation and perceived difficulty to change the peer network. For marijuana, in particular, network structural variables (extent of ties among members) were associated only with perceived difficulty of changing the peer network. Conclusions Despite high motivation to abstain from substance use during treatment, adolescents reported low motivation to reduce contact with substance-using peers. Personal motivation to abstain and abstinence goal predicted motivation to reduce contact with substance-using peers. In contrast, particularly for marijuana, network structure predicted perceived difficulty of network change. Results highlight the potential utility of addressing motivation and perceived difficulty to change the peer network as part of youth network-based interventions.
Anterior Knee Pain After Intramedullary Nailing of a Tibial Shaft Fracture: An Ultrasound Study of the Patellar Tendons of 36 Patients

Objectives: Chronic anterior knee pain is a common complication following intramedullary nailing of a tibial shaft fracture. The etiology of pain is often not known. This study sonographically examined the patellar tendons of patients with a nailed tibial shaft fracture. Design: Prospective study. Setting: University hospital. Patients: Fifty consecutive patients with a nailed tibial shaft fracture were initially included in the study. Thirty-six of them could be measured at an average of 2.5 ± 0.5 years after nail insertion (1.0 ± 0.3 years after nail extraction). Intervention: Reamed intramedullary nailing with 2 interlocking bolts at both ends of the nail (Grosse-Kempf-nail, Howmedica). Main Outcome Measurements: The ultrasound investigation of the patellar tendons of the 36 patients. Results: Twelve (33%) patients were painless and 24 (67%) patients had anterior knee pain at follow-up. With the reference to the mean difference in the thickness of the distal part of the patellar tendon in the operated limb versus nonoperated limb, the result was 1.4 ± 1.1 mm in the chronic pain group and 2.6 ± 2.5 mm in the painless group (P = 0.135, [95% confidence interval for the group difference = −0.4-2.8]). The corresponding values for the proximal part of the patellar tendon was 1.4 ± 1.3 mm in the chronic pain group and 2.3 ± 2.3 mm in the painless group (P = 0.251, [95% confidence interval for the group difference = −0.7-2.4]). There were no statistically significantly differences between study groups in the blood circulation of the patellar tendon or at the entry point, calcification of the patellar tendon, granulation tissue at the entry point, or occurrence of low echo areas in the patellar tendon. Conclusion: After intramedullary nailing of a tibial shaft fracture, patients with or without anterior knee pain show similar changes in the ultrasound investigation of their patellar tendons. Based on those findings, it does not appear to make any difference as to the approach used (paratendinous or transtendinous) for intramedullary nailing of the tibia.
Anomaly Detection Guidelines for Data Streams in Big Data

Real time data analysis in data streams is a highly challenging area in big data. The surge in big data techniques has recently attracted considerable interest to the detection of significant changes or anomalies in data streams. There is a variety of literature across a number of fields relevant to anomaly detection. The growing number of techniques, from seemingly disconnected areas, prevents a comprehensive review. Many interesting techniques may therefore remain largely unknown to the anomaly detection community at large. The survey presents a compact, but comprehensive overview of diverse strategies for anomaly detection in evolving data streams. A number of recommendations based performance and applicability to use cases are provided. We expect that our classification and recommendations will provide useful guidelines to practitioners in this rapidly evolving field.
Fecundability following the discontinuation of IUD use among Taiwanese women

Summary This paper examines the antifertility effects of an IUD (Lippes Loop) subsequent to the discontinuation of its use. The experiences of 4449 urban Taiwanese women who discontinued the use of the Lippes Loop initially inserted during the period July 1962 to May 1965 are analysed. These women were followed annually for 6 to 9 years through clinic visits and home interviews. The effect of duration of IUD use on average fecundability and sterility is examined after controlling for women's age at discontinuation of use of the IUD. The results indicate that, among Taiwanese women, the level of sterility increases and the average fecundability decreases with the increase in the duration of IUD use. These differentials are quite substantial and are mainly observed among those women who were at least 30 years of age at the discontinuation of IUD use. Various implications of this finding are discussed. The results refer only to the Lippes Loop and cannot be generalized for other types of IUD.
Effect of Atmospheric Attenuation on Laser Communications for Visible and Infrared Wavelengths

A theoretical study and analysis of the effect of some weather parameters on the laser light source of optical signal in free space (FSO), were discussed. The effect of these parameters on attenuation coefficient of the laser beam was calculation at wavelengths (650, 785 and 1550) nm. The attenuation coefficient was (0.698, 0.546 and 0.225) dB/km for wavelengths (650, 785 and 1550) nm respectively at a visibility of 20 km. We studied as well the receiver optical power, data transfer rate and link margin under the influence of the weather conditions. It was found that weather conditions such as (clear, haze, thin fog, light fog, heavy fog) effect on those wavelength at different ways. It is feasible to enhance the system performance such as link range and data transfer rate by increasing transmitting power and decreasing laser beam divergence angle.
On the dynamic range improvement and robustness against branch imbalance of mode- multiplexing LINC amplifiers

In this paper a comparative study of LINC based amplifiers and LINC-like amplifiers designated herein as Mode- Multiplexing amplifiers is briefly reported. The latter technique uses a novel signal decomposition algorithm to enhance the power efficiency of the system. In addition it offers greater robustness to branch's imbalance, which results into an extension of the dynamic range of the system. Computer simulation based on an analytical formulation as well experimental validation were carried out to demonstrate the superiority of the proposed method in comparison to standard LINC technique.
Modified Space-Vector-Modulation Technique for Common Mode Currents Reduction and Full Utilization of the DC Bus

Unless overmodulation is adopted, utilization of DC bus of the Modified Space Vector Modulation (MSVM) is a drawback that has severely limited the applicability of this modulation technique. This paper presents some solutions that, looking for a good compromise between increasing the use of DC bus and reducing common mode currents, allow to apply MSVM to most electrical drives on the market. Furthermore, the choice of the switching patterns is performed according to the sign of the load currents thus reducing the common mode voltage variations to a single pulse per switching period in presence of large dead-times. Experimental results are presented in order to confirm the feasibility of the proposed approach.
Energetic stability and photocatalytic activity of SrTiO3 nanowires: ab initio simulations

First principles periodic calculations based on the density functional theory within the localized atomic orbital approach (DFT-LCAO) using the hybrid exchange–correlation potential PBE0 have been performed in order to simulate the structural and electronic properties of both stoichiometric and nonstoichiometric [001]-oriented four-faceted SrTiO3 (STO) nanowires (NW) of cubic structure. Their diameters have been varied from 0.3 up to 2.4 nm with a corresponding consequent change of NW cross-section from 2 � 2t o 5� 5 extension of the lattice constant in bulk. Energetic stability of STO NW (both stoichiometric and non-stoichiometric) has been found to increase with the decrease of their formation energies together with the increase of NW diameter. The electronic structure calculations have shown that the width of the band gap changes in STO NWs of different structural types as compared to that in bulk being consequently reduced with the growth of NW diameter although the character of such a decrease depends on the morphology of the nanowire. Analysis of these changes shows that stoichiometric and non-stoichiometric TiO2-terminated strontium titanate nanowires can be quite promising candidates for further applications in photocatalytic processes under solar irradiation whereas SrO-terminated NWs are rather not suitable for this purpose.
Advanced induction heating appliances using high-voltage GaN gate injection transistors

Induction heating is a contactless highly-efficient technology with a major social and economic impact due to its benefits in terms of performance, efficiency, safety and control. In order to further develop this technology, advances in power conversion, digital control and magnetic component design are pursued. This paper proposes the use of GaN devices which perfectly matches the voltage and current levels required by home appliances. The recently developed high-voltage gate injection transistors are evaluated with promising results and, unlike other wide bandgap technologies, a potential cost-effective implementation.
Common-Mode Filter Design for a Transformerless ZVS Full-Bridge Inverter

The zero voltage switching (ZVS) full-bridge inverter can achieve high efficiency using ZVS sinusoidal pulsewidth modulation (ZVS SPWM) and superjunction MOSFET. For further application in a photovoltaic (PV) system, the leakage current problem of a ZVS full-bridge inverter is investigated. First, the common-mode model of the ZVS full-bridge inverter is presented. The common-mode voltage with the ZVS SPWM is found changing with high frequency and leakage current with such frequency is generated. In order to suppress the leakage current below safety standards, the common-mode filter composed of common-mode inductor and bypass capacitor is applied. The impedance of the common-mode path is analyzed, and the parameters of a common-mode filter are designed based on the common-mode model. With a small common-mode inductor and bypass capacitors, the leakage current of the ZVS full-bridge inverter is remarkably reduced, and the method is verified by the experiment.
The action of muscles in swimming fish

This review will focus on the mechanical performance of the trunk muscles of fish in relation to their important role in the generation of lateral undulations during swimming. In most fish, the different muscle fibre types are located in separate regions in the trunk (e.g. Boddeke, Slijper & Van der Stelt, 1959). This makes fish muscle particularly suitable for investigating how different fibre types are used during locomotion. Not only can the activity of homogeneous fibre bundles be detected fairly easily by electromyography (e.g. Bone, 1966), but bundles of fibres of the same type may also be isolated for mechanical experiments which mimic the in vivo activation and strain variation (e.g. Altringham & Johnston, 1990a). The following questions will be addressed in particular. First, a swimming fish produces waves of curvature along its trunk with its muscles. What is the nature of the associated net bending moments along the trunk and how much power is produced along the trunk (section 2)? Second, what are the mechanical properties of muscle fibres of fish and what is their efficiency (sections 3 and 4)? How are the muscle fibres at different positions in the trunk of a swimming fish recruited during various swimming modes? What is their in vivo work and power output (section 5)? Space limits do not allow consideration of the structural design of the myomeres, nor the complex innervation patterns of fish muscles.