Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Failure of metronidazole to prevent preterm delivery among pregnant women with asymptomatic Trichomonas vaginalis infection.

BACKGROUND Infection with Trichomonas vaginalis during pregnancy has been associated with preterm delivery. It is uncertain whether treatment of asymptomatic trichomoniasis in pregnant women reduces the occurrence of preterm delivery. METHODS We screened pregnant women for trichomoniasis by culture of vaginal secretions. We randomly assigned 617 women with asymptomatic trichomoniasis who were 16 to 23 weeks pregnant to receive two 2-g doses of metronidazole (320 women) or placebo (297 women) 48 hours apart. We treated women again with the same two-dose regimen at 24 to 29 weeks of gestation. The primary outcome was delivery before 37 weeks of gestation. RESULTS Between randomization and follow-up, trichomoniasis resolved in 249 of 269 women for whom follow-up cultures were available in the metronidazole group (92.6 percent) and 92 of 260 women with follow-up cultures in the placebo group (35.4 percent). Data on the time and characteristics of delivery were available for 315 women in the metronidazole group and 289 women in the placebo group. Delivery occurred before 37 weeks of gestation in 60 women in the metronidazole group (19.0 percent) and 31 women in the placebo group (10.7 percent) (relative risk, 1.8; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.2 to 2.7; P=0.004). The difference was attributable primarily to an increase in preterm delivery resulting from spontaneous preterm labor (10.2 percent vs. 3.5 percent; relative risk, 3.0; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.5 to 5.9). CONCLUSIONS Treatment of pregnant women with asymptomatic trichomoniasis does not prevent preterm delivery. Routine screening and treatment of asymptomatic pregnant women for this condition cannot be recommended.
Redundancy of angular speed sensors in a double induction machine rear drive for EV

This paper focuses on the redundancy of angular speed sensors in an electric vehicle with two independent single wheel drives at the rear axle. Operation of both drives with a single angular speed sensor, e.g. in case of a sensor fault, is investigated. By applying a speed-sensorless control algorithm, operation of the faulty single wheel drive is still possible. Although speed-sensorless control of induction machines is state of the art and has been demonstrated by a variety of publications, stable operation at zero and very low speed is still not reliably possible. In this paper, a stable approach for speed-sensorless control at low and zero speed is proposed, which uses the speed sensor information of the other single wheel drive and the overall vehicle physics. Based on a detailed mechanical drive train model, the influence of the induction machine control strategy and the different road surfaces on the drive dynamics and the resulting torsional vibrations are investigated.
Skin cancer and (pre)malignancies of the female genital tract in renal transplant recipients

Immunosuppressive therapy in renal transplant recipients (RTRs) is associated with an increased risk for the development of (pre)malignancies involving the skin and the female lower genital tract. We assessed whether yearly cervical screening was performed and evaluated the development of skin cancer and gynaecological (pre)malignancies in RTRs. Female RTRs (n = 224), transplanted between 1991 and 1995, were analysed retrospectively. Sociodemographic patient characteristics, frequency and results of cervical smears and prevalence of cutaneous, cervical, vaginal or vulvar (pre)malignancies were investigated and compared with that in the general population. A mean of 0.2 cervical smears per patient per year was found to have been performed in RTRs, which is significantly less than the recommended screening ratio of 1.0 for female RTRs (P < 0.001). The risk for RTRs to develop malignancies of the female lower genital tract was increased: twofold to sixfold for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia, threefold for cervical carcinoma and 50‐fold for vulvar carcinoma. Cervical screening is not performed in accordance with the advised yearly intervals, and the risk for RTRs to develop vulvar and cervical (pre)malignancies is increased. More attention should be paid to the vulvar and cervical surveillance of RTRs by both medical specialists and general physicians.
Capital Accumulation, Trade Liberalization, and Rising Wage Inequality: The Case of Argentina

Capital accumulation can modify the relative productivity between skilled and unskilled workers, leading to changes in the wage structure. In particular, if capital goods are relatively more complementary to skilled workers, a positive correlation between investment in physical capital and the wage premium would be expected. In this article, we present evidence for this hypothesis by taking advantage of the variability in wage premia and capital investment across industries in Argentina’s manufacturing sector. We conclude that the wage premium for skilled workers increased more in those industries with higher investment in machinery and equipment. The overall evidence seems to indicate that industry affiliation is an important determinant of earnings differentials by skill group.
[Body mass and body length of warsaw's newborns].

Wstęp. Według ekspertów WHO normy rozwoju somatycznego, opracowane na podstawie przeprowadzonych w latach 1997–2003 wieloośrodkowych badań nad wskaźnikami referencyjnymi rozwoju fizycznego dzieci (WHO Multicentre Growth Reference Study, WHO MGRS lub WHO-GS), są uniwersalne i stanowią narzędzie do oceny somatycznego stanu i rozwoju noworodków. Stwierdzenie to było podstawą zalecenia przez wspomnianą grupę sygnatariuszy stosowania w Polsce standardów WHO, określających jaki powinien być rozwój dzieci. Cel pracy. Opracowanie dla noworodków z warszawskich szpitali norm masy ciała względem długości ciała, a także skonfrontowanie pomiarów noworodków z normami WHO MGRS. Materiał i metody. W badaniach wykorzystano pomiary długości i masy ciała warszawskich noworodków obu płci, urodzonych z ciąż pojedynczych między majem a grudniem 2013 r. Łącznie badaniami objęto 3052 noworodki płci męskiej i 2825 żeńskiej z 13 warszawskich szpitali. Wyniki. Ustalono, że ok. 88% dziewczynek i ok. 91% chłopców znajduje się poniżej 3 centyla wagowo-długościowych siatek centylowych WHO. Odnosząc wyniki pomiarów do opracowanych przez nas siatek centylowych, stwierdzono, że urodzeniowe pomiary mieszczą się w przedziale od 3 do 97 centyla, a odsetki wartości poniżej 3 i powyżej 97 centyla są zgodne z oczekiwanymi. Wykazano jednak znamienne zróżnicowanie pomiędzy niektórymi szpitalami u noworodków płci męskiej i żeńskiej zarówno w długości ciała, jak i w masie ciała odniesionej do długości ciała, nie było natomiast znamiennych różnic w masie ciała. Wnioski. W celu poprawnej oceny stanu noworodka należałoby najpierw ujednolicić w krajowych oddziałach położniczych metodę pomiarów urodzeniowych wymiarów ciała, a następnie wprowadzić do użytku klinicznego w całej Polsce jedno wybrane narzędzie do oceny stanu noworodka, np. standardy WHO MGRS.
Immunolocalization of the mitogen‐activated protein kinases p42MAPK and JNK1, and their regulatory kinases MEK1 and MEK4, in adult rat central nervous system

Cell survival, death, and stress signals are transduced from the cell surface to the cytoplasm and nucleus via a cascade of phosphorylation events involving the mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPK) family. We compared the distribution of p42 mitogen‐activated protein kinase (p42MAPK) and its activator MAPK or ERK kinase (MEK1; involved in transduction of growth and differentiation signals), with c‐Jun N‐terminal kinase (JNK1) and its activator MEK4 (involved in transduction of stress and death signals) in the adult rat central nervous system. All four kinases were present in the cytoplasm, dendrites, and axons of neurons. The presence of p42MAPK and JNK1 in dendrites and axons, as well as in cell bodies, suggests a role for these kinases in phosphorylation and regulation of cytoplasmic targets. A high degree of correspondence was found between the regional distribution of MEK1 and p42MAPK. Immunostaining for MEK1 and p42MAPK was intense in olfactory structures, neocortex, hippocampus, striatum, midline, and interlaminar thalamic nuclei, hypothalamus, brainstem, Purkinje cells, and spinal cord. In addition to neurons, p42MAPK was also present in oligodendrocytes. Whereas MEK4 was ubiquitously distributed, JNK1 was more selective. Immunostaining for MEK4 and JNK1 was intense in the olfactory bulb, lower cortical layers, the cholinergic basal forebrain, most nuclei of the thalamus, medial habenula, and cranial motor nuclei. The distribution of MEK1 and p42MAPK proteins only partially overlapped with that of MEK4 and JNK1. This suggests that the growth /differentiation and death /stress pathways affected by these kinases may not necessarily act to counterbalance each other in response to extracellular stimuli. The differential distribution of these kinases may control the specificity of neuronal function to extracellular signals. J. Comp. Neurol. 398:373–392, 1998. © 1998 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Implementation of a DEVS-JavaBean simulation environment

A component-based simulation technology is brought up. This component-based simulation environment is based on the DEVS (Discrete Event System Specification) formalism and Sun's JavaBean technology. The DEVS provides a means of specifying a mathematical object called a system. JavaBean technology allows the modelers to drag and drop the software components visually and to combine specific JavaBean components to build their software systems. This paper introduces the DEVS-JavaBean simulation environment that contains basic JavaBean components of DEVS so that a modeler can visually change bean properties and relationships between JavaBeans. The reusability of components saves modelers in model development time. In addition, the convenience of JavaBean components such as drag-and-drop and visual modeling makes our simulation environment easy to learn and use.
Imbalance Learning Machine-Based Power System Short-Term Voltage Stability Assessment

In terms of machine learning-based power system dynamic stability assessment, it is feasible to collect learning data from massive synchrophasor measurements in practice. However, the fact that instability events rarely occur would lead to a challenging class imbalance problem. Besides, short-term feature extraction from scarce instability seems extremely difficult for conventional learning machines. Faced with such a dilemma, this paper develops a systematic imbalance learning machine for online short-term voltage stability assessment. A powerful time series shapelet (discriminative subsequence) classification method is embedded into the machine for sequential transient feature mining. A forecasting-based nonlinear synthetic minority oversampling technique is proposed to mitigate the distortion of class distribution. Cost-sensitive learning is employed to intensify bias toward those scarce yet valuable unstable cases. Furthermore, an incremental learning strategy is put forward for online monitoring, contributing to adaptability and reliability enhancement along with time. Simulation results on the Nordic test system illustrate the high performance of the proposed learning machine and of the assessment scheme.
Adverse effects of maternal exposure to bisphenol F on the anxiety- and depression-like behavior of offspring

Bisphenol A (BPA), a well-known endocrine disruptor, is metabolized and eliminated rapidly from the body in adult animals. However, many authors have reported that perinatal BPA exposure alters development of the brain, reproductive system and behavior in the next generation. Recently, BPA substitutes, especially bisphenol F (BPF), have been used because of concerns about the influence of BPA on children, although the actual effects on the next generation are unknown. In this study, we observed behavioral adverse effects of the offspring of mice exposed to BPA or BPF in fetal period. Female C57BL/6 mice were given oral BPA or BPF (0 or 10 mg/kg body weight) daily from gestational day 11.5 to 18.5. The open field test, the elevated plus maze test and the forced swim test were performed at postnatal week 10. BPF exposure altered offspring behavior significantly, resulting in increases in anxiety and depressive state. The influence of BPF was stronger than that of BPA. We demonstrated novel evidence that BPF influences the behavior of offspring.
The role of eicosanoids in the control of mesangial function.

Cycloand lipo-oxygenation of arachidonic acid (AA), a polyunsaturated fatty acid released from cell membrane phosphoglycerides, yields respectively prostaglandins (PG) and leukotrienes (LT), two groups of eicosanoids (i.e. lipids with 20 carbon atoms) with potent cellular actions. The identification of PG and LT synthesis by renal cells, as well as the presence of specific binding sites within the kidney, have stimulated investigation of their role in physiology and in settings of increased local synthesis, as in glomerular inflammation (1, 2). Different classes of PG have opposite vasoactive effects when infused into the kidney. PGE2 is a vasodilator, while the unstable endoperoxides, PGG2 and PGH2, and thromboxane A2 (TxA2) are potent vasoconstrictors, markedly reducing renal blood flow (RBF) and glomerular filtration rate (GFR) (3, 4). TxA2 is also released by blood-borne cells (leukocytes and platelets) infiltrating the glomerulus, and has been implicated in the impairment of renal function in various disease models (5, 6, 7). PGF2a has no evident vascular actions, despite its relative abundance (3). LTC4 and LTD4 have marked renal vasoconstrictor effects when administered in vivo to the rat, reducing RBF and GFR by nearly 50% (8). Similar effects have also been reported in the isolated and perfused kidney (9, 10). LTB4 has potent chemotactic effects, which may trigger infiltration and adhesion of leukocytes in immune-mediated renal disease, therefore enhancing the local release of AA metabolites (11). The effects ofPG and LT on glomerular hemodynamics are most likely mediated by smooth muscle contraction or relaxation at the level of the afferent and efferent arterioles (1) and possibly at other sites within the glomerulus, where contractile cells have been identified. One such site could be the glomerular mesangium, an intercapillary array of cells rich in contractile proteins, closely resembling smooth muscle. Volumetric
Biohybrid actuators for robotics: A review of devices actuated by living cells

Biohybrid systems exploit the unique features of living cells or tissues for actuating artificial devices. Actuation is essential for artificial machines to interact with their surrounding environment and to accomplish the functions for which they are designed. Over the past few decades, there has been considerable progress in developing new actuation technologies. However, controlled motion still represents a considerable bottleneck for many applications and hampers the development of advanced robots, especially at small length scales. Nature has solved this problem using molecular motors that, through living cells, are assembled into multiscale ensembles with integrated control systems. These systems can scale force production from piconewtons up to kilonewtons. By leveraging the performance of living cells and tissues and directly interfacing them with artificial components, it should be possible to exploit the intricacy and metabolic efficiency of biological actuation within artificial machines. We provide a survey of important advances in this biohybrid actuation paradigm.
Clinical presentations and diagnostic issues in dual diagnosis disorders

Purpose of review The co-occurrence of mental disorders and substance use disorders (SUDs) is very common, and associated with substantial psychiatric morbidity, functional and quality of life impairments, and societal costs. However, dual disorders are often underdetected, misdiagnosed and inadequately treated in both substance abuse and mental health settings. Recent findings Individuals with dual or multiple disorders generally have worse clinical features and long-term outcomes than those with single disorders. However, findings can vary depending on factors such as type(s) of psychiatric disorder(s) and substance(s) involved, and whether the mental disorder is primary or secondary, or substance-induced or independent. Underdiagnosis or misdiagnosis of dual disorders may occur due, in part, to the use of measurement instruments and diagnostic approaches that have uncertain clinical utility. Summary Routine, thorough, and integrated screening and diagnosis of dual disorders are needed to facilitate implementation of appropriate treatment. Results suggest that forthcoming revisions to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and International Classification of Diseases should categorize and define mental and SUDs such that clinicians can more readily detect and diagnose all types of substance use and mental health comorbid conditions. Adoption and widespread use of appropriate screening, assessment and diagnostic instruments, and more thorough diagnostic (clinimetric) approaches are recommended.
An Improved Distributed Secondary Control Method for DC Microgrids With Enhanced Dynamic Current Sharing Performance

This paper proposes an improved distributed secondary control scheme for dc microgrids (MGs), aiming at overcoming the drawbacks of conventional droop control method. The proposed secondary control scheme can remove the dc voltage deviation and improve the current sharing accuracy by using voltage-shifting and slope-adjusting approaches simultaneously. Meanwhile, the average value of droop coefficients is calculated, and then it is controlled by an additional controller included in the distributed secondary control layer to ensure that each droop coefficient converges at a reasonable value. Hence, by adjusting the droop coefficient, each participating converter has equal output impedance, and the accurate proportional load current sharing can be achieved with different line resistances. Furthermore, the current sharing performance in steady and transient states can be enhanced by using the proposed method. The effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by detailed experimental tests based on a 3 × 1 kW prototype with three interface converters.
Do we belittle epilepsy by calling it a disorder rather than a disease?

essential services, personnel, and facilities in specialized epilepsy centers. Available at: http://www.naec-epilepsy.org/spec_care/ documents/FinalGuidelines.pdf. National Institute for Clinical Excellence. (2004) The diagnosis and care of children and adults with epilepsy. Available at: http://www.nice. org.uk/nicemedia/pdf/CG020publicinfoenglish.pdf. NIH Consensus Development Program. (1990) Surgery for epilepsy. NIH consensus development conference statement. Available at: http:// consensus.nih. gov/1990/1990SurgeryEpilepsy077html.htm. Scottish Intercollegiate Network. (2003) Diagnosis and management of epilepsy in adults: a national clinical guideline. Available at http:// www.sign. ac.uk/pdf/sign70.pdf. Singapore Ministry of Health. (2007) MOH clinical practice guidelines 1/2007: epilepsy in adults. Available at: https://www.moh. gov.sg/ mohcorp/publications.aspx? id=16276. Stokes T, Shaw EJ, Juarez-Garcia A, Camosso-Stefinovic J, Baker R (2004) Clinical guidelines and evidence review for the epilepsies: diagnosis and management in adults and children in primary and secondary care. Royal College of General Practitioners, London. Available at: http://www.nice. org.uk/guidance/index.jsp? action= download&o=29533 (October 2004 guidelines pdf format dated March 2010).
Small RNAs endow a transcriptional activator with essential repressor functions for single-tier control of a global stress regulon

The Escherichia coli σE envelope stress response monitors and repairs the outer membrane, a function central to the life of Gram-negative bacteria. The σE stress response was characterized as a single-tier activation network comprised of ∼100 genes, including the MicA and RybB noncoding sRNAs. These highly expressed sRNAs were thought to carry out the specialized function of halting de novo synthesis of several abundant porins when envelope homeostasis was perturbed. Using a systematic target profiling and validation approach we discovered that MicA and RybB are each global mRNA repressors of both distinct and shared targets, and that the two sRNAs constitute a posttranscriptional repression arm whose regulatory scope rivals that of the protein-based σE activation arm. Intriguingly, porin mRNAs constitute only ∼1/3 of all targets and new nonporin targets predict roles for MicA and RybB in crosstalk with other regulatory responses. This work also provides an example of evolutionarily unrelated sRNAs that are coinduced and bind the same targets, but at different sites. Our finding that expression of either MicA or RybB sRNA protects the cell from the loss of viability experienced when σE activity is inadequate illustrates the importance of the posttranscriptional repression arm of the response. σE is a paradigm of a single-tier stress response with a clear division of labor in which highly expressed noncoding RNAs (MicA, RybB) endow a transcriptional factor intrinsically restricted to gene activation (σE) with the opposite repressor function.
Optimising Health Informatics Outcomes – Getting Good Evidence to Where it Matters

Summary This editorial is part of a For-Discussion-Section of Methods of Information in Medicine about the paper “Evidence-based Health informatics: How do we know what we know? ”, written by Elske Ammenwerth [1]. Health informatics uses and applications have crept up on health systems over half a century, starting as simple automation of large-scale calculations, but now manifesting in many cases as rule- and algorithm-based creation of composite clinical analyses and ‘black box’ computation of clinical aspects, as well as enablement of increasingly complex care delivery modes and consumer health access. In this process health informatics has very largely bypassed the rules of precaution, proof of effectiveness, and assessment of safety applicable to all other health sciences and clinical support systems. Evaluation of informatics applications, compilation and recognition of the importance of evidence, and normalisation of Evidence Based Health Informatics, are now long overdue on grounds of efficiency and safety. Ammenwerth has now produced a rigorous analysis of the current position on evidence, and evaluation as its lifeblood, which demands careful study then active promulgation. Decisions based on political aspirations, ‘modernisation’ hopes, and unsupported commercial claims must cease – poor decisions are wasteful and bad systems can kill. Evidence Based Health Informatics should be promoted, and expected by users, as rigorously as Cochrane promoted Effectiveness and Efficiency, and Sackett promoted Evidence Based Medicine – both of which also were introduced retrospectively to challenge the less robust and partially unsafe traditional ‘wisdom’ in vogue. Ammenwerth’s analysis gives the necessary material to promote that mission.
Prevalence of overweight among children in Europe

Estimates of the prevalence of childhood overweight and obesity have been made in several European countries during the last decade. The methods used and the assessment criteria differ from survey to survey. The present paper reports the prevalence data from 21 surveys in Europe using a single, internationally accepted definition of overweight in childhood, allowing direct comparisons to be made. A tendency for a higher prevalence of overweight among children in western and especially southern Europe is shown and some possible reasons for this are discussed.