Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Percutaneous endoscopic transforaminal discectomy for the treatment of L5-S1 lumbar disc herniation and the influence of iliac crest height on its clinical effects

The present study aimed to explore the clinical effects of percutaneous endoscopic transforaminal discectomy using a transforaminal endoscopic spine system (TESSYS) technique for the treatment of L5-S1 lumbar disc herniation and to analyse the influence of iliac crest height on these clinical effects. The clinical data of 76 patients with L5-S1 single-segment disc herniation treated with TESSYS at The Second Affiliated Hospital and Third Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University between January and December 2016 were retrospectively analysed. Patients were divided into the following three groups according to the positional relation between the highest point of the iliac crest and the L4 and L5 pedicles in the lateral lumbar, as determined by X-ray: Group I, iliac crest height below the upper edge horizontal line of the L5 pedicle (n=42); group II, iliac crest height between the lower edge horizontal line of the L4 pedicle and the upper edge horizontal line of the L5 pedicle (n=29) and group III, iliac crest height above the lower edge horizontal line of the L4 pedicle (n=5). Changes in the postoperative visual analogue scale (VAS) pain score and Oswestry disability index (ODI) of the lower back and lower limbs were observed, and the effects were compared among the three groups. The mean operating time was 86.5±13.5 min. A single patient experienced cerebrospinal fluid leakage due to a mild tear of the dura mater during the operation, which improved after symptomatic treatment. The same operation was repeated in one patient due to the recurrence of disc herniation. In all patients, the VAS pain score and ODI of the lower back and lower limbs at 1 week and 1, 3 and 12 months following the operation were significantly lower than those before the operation (all P<0.05). Furthermore, the postoperative VAS pain score and ODI of the lower back and lower limbs were poorer in group III (L5-S1 lumbar disc herniation complicated with high iliac crest) than in groups I and II (P<0.05). These results suggested that TESSYS was effective in treating lumbar disc herniation. Whether the iliac crest is higher than the lower edge horizontal line of the L4 pedicle is suggested to be one of the factors influencing the outcome of the operation.
Customizing Robot-Assisted Passive Neurorehabilitation Exercise Based on Teaching Training Mechanism

Passive movement is an important mean of rehabilitation for stroke survivors in the early stage or with greater paralysis. The upper extremity robot is required to assist therapists with passive movement during clinical rehabilitation, while customizing is one of the crucial issues for robot-assisted upper extremity training, which fits the patient-centeredness. Robot-assisted teaching training could address the need well. However, the existing control strategies of teaching training are usually commanded by position merely, having trouble to achieve the efficacy of treatment by therapists. And deficiency of flexibility and compliance comes to the training trajectory. This research presents a novel motion control strategy for customized robot-assisted passive neurorehabilitation. The teaching training mechanism is developed to coordinate the movement of the shoulder and elbow, ensuring the training trajectory correspondence with human kinematics. Furthermore, the motion trajectory is adjusted by arm strength to realize dexterity and flexibility. Meanwhile, the torque sensor employed in the human-robot interactive system identifies movement intention of human. The goal-directed games and feedbacks promote the motor positivity of stroke survivors. In addition, functional experiments and clinical experiments are investigated with a healthy adult and five recruited stroke survivors, respectively. The experimental results present that the suggested control strategy not only serves with safety training but also presents rehabilitation efficacy.
Duchesnea indica Extract Attenuates Coal Fly Ash-Induced Inflammation in Murine Alveolar Macrophages through the NF-Kappa B Pathway

Duchesnea indica is known as false strawberry, is found in East Asia, and has numerous biological properties. The aim of this study was to investigate the anti-inflammatory effect of Duchesnea indica extract (DIE) on coal fly ash- (CFA-) induced inflammation in murine alveolar macrophages (MH-S). Following the induction of inflammation in MH-S cells by CFA, nitric oxide (NO) was measured to evaluate the anti-inflammatory property of DIE. Cell viability and inflammatory gene expression were analyzed using polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The inflammatory pathway in MH-S cells was determined via western blotting and immunofluorescence (IF) analysis. Finally, the major components of the DIE were identified and separated through ultra-performance liquid chromatography (UPLC) and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) analysis. Our results showed that the DIE dose-dependently inhibited the CFA-induced NO production in MH-S cells. Moreover, the DIE could suppress the CFA-induced proinflammatory mediators, such as cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS). In addition, the inhibitory effect of the DIE on proinflammatory cytokines, including interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-1β, and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), was detected with PCR. Moreover, the effect of the DIE on the nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) pathway in CFA-activated MH-S cells was measured via western blotting. Furthermore, the inhibition of the phosphorylated NF-κB (p-NF-κB) translocation was analyzed using IF assay. The findings of this study indicated that the DIE potentially inhibited the CFA-induced inflammation by blocking the NF-κB inflammatory signaling pathway in MH-S cells and that the DIE might contain favorable anti-inflammatory compounds which may be effective in attenuating lung inflammation.
Nickel Toxicity of Rice Seedlings: Cell Wall Peroxidase, Lignin, and NiSO4-inhibited Root Growth

The effects of various concentrations of NiSO4 (0-60 μM) on the activities of cell-wall peroxidase against ferulic acid (FPOX) or syringaldazine and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) and the content of lignin in root of rice seedlings were investigated. NiSO4 was found to inhibit root growth and this inhibition was pH independent. NiSO4 was also found to increase the activities of FPOX and syringaldazine peroxidase and the content of lignin in roots. However, NiSO4 did not affect the activity of PAL, the first enzyme of phenylpropanoid pathway. Results suggest that cell-wall stiffening and lignifications are the processes that are enhanced by NiSO4 to reduce growth of rice roots.
Effect of Listening Biographies on Frequency Following Response Responses of Vocalists, Violinists, and Non-Musicians to Indian Carnatic Music Stimuli.

Background and Objectives The current study investigates pitch coding using frequency following response (FFR) among vocalists, violinists, and non-musicians for Indian Carnatic transition music stimuli and assesses whether their listening biographies strengthen their F0 neural encoding for these stimuli. Subjects and Methods Three participant groups in the age range of 18-45 years were included in the study. The first group of participants consisted of 20 trained Carnatic vocalists, the second group consisted of 13 trained violinists, and the third group consisted of 22 non-musicians. The stimuli consisted of three Indian Carnatic raga notes (/S-R2-G3/), which was sung by a trained vocalist and played by a trained violinist. For the purposes of this study, the two transitions between the notes T1=/S-R2/ and T2=/R2-G3/ were analyzed, and FFRs were recorded binaurally at 80 dB SPL using neuroscan equipment. Results Overall average responses of the participants were generated. To assess the participants' pitch tracking to the Carnatic music stimuli, stimulus to response correlation (CC), pitch strength (PS), and pitch error (PE) were measured. Results revealed that both the vocalists and violinists had better CC and PS values with lower PE values, as compared to non-musicians, for both vocal and violin T1 and T2 transition stimuli. Between the musician groups, the vocalists were found to perform superiorly to the violinists for both vocal and violin T1 and T2 transition stimuli. Conclusions Listening biographies strengthened F0 neural coding, with respect to the vocalists for vocal stimulus at the brainstem level. The violinists, on the other hand, did not show such preference.
A Comment on and Correction to: Opinion Dynamics in the Presence of Increasing Agreement Pressure

We identify counterexamples to the consensus result given in Semonsen et al. (2018). We resolve the counterexamples by replacing Lemma 5 in the given reference with a novel variation of the Banach fixed-point theorem, which explains both the numerical results in the reference and the counterexample(s) in this note and provides a sufficient condition for consensus in systems with increasing peer-pressure. This work is relevant for other papers that have used the proof technique from Semonsen et al. and establishes the veracity of their claims assuming the new sufficient condition.
Patient-specific hyperparameter learning for optimization-based CT image reconstruction

We propose a hyperparameter learning framework that learns patient-specific hyperparameters for optimization-based image reconstruction problems for x-ray CT applications. The framework consists of two functional modules: (1) a hyperparameter learning module parameterized by a convolutional neural network, (2) an image reconstruction module that takes as inputs both the noisy sinogram and the hyperparameters from (1) and generates the reconstructed images. As a proof-of-concept study, in this work we focus on a subclass of optimization-based image reconstruction problems with exactly computable solutions so that the whole network can be trained end-to-end in an efficient manner. Unlike existing hyperparameter learning methods, our proposed framework generates patient-specific hyperparameters from the sinogram of the same patient. Numerical studies demonstrate the effectiveness of our proposed approach compared to bi-level optimization.
Soil Organic Matter Quality and Zinc and Lead Sorption as Affected by a Sewage Sludge Or a Sewage Sludge Compost Application

Sewage sludge (SS) or sewage sludge compost (SSC) were applied to soil under controlled conditions, at rates of 0 or 200 Mg ha−1, to investigate changes in dissolved organic matter (DOM), humic acids (HA), and Pb and Zn sorption in the soil. Infrared spectroscopy, visible spectrophotometry, and sorption isotherms (mono-metal and competitive sorption systems) methods were used to assess the changer. The E4/E6 ratio (λ at 465 / λ at 665 nm) and the infrared spectra of DOM and HA showed aromatic behaviour in compost-soil (SSC-S); in contrast sewage sludge-soil (SS-S) showed an aliphatic behaviour. Application of either SS or SSC increased the Pb and Zn sorption capacity of soil. The Pb and Zn sorption increased in soil and soil mixtures with a competitive metal system. The metal affinity sequence for soil, SS-S, and SSC-S was compared with the predicted affinity sequences obtained from metal properties. Poor correspondence was observed between the metal affinity sequence and the metal affinity sequence predicted by ionic potential, indicating that metals bonding to soils were not predominantly electrostatic. An affinity sequence based on Pearson's theory agreed with the metal affinity sequences for soils. A statistical analysis showed that the bands assigned to esters (1080 cm−1) of DOM, phenolic OH (1420 cm−1), amide I (1650 cm−1), carboxyl and carbonyl C=O stretches of different nature, C=O stretch of aromatic esters, aliphatic cetone, aldehyde (1720 cm−1), ethers and esters (1230 cm−1), aliphatic alcohols (1125 cm−1), and lignin (1380 cm−1) of HA were correlated with Zn constants of Langmuir adsorption isotherm (P < 0.05).
A Prospective Analysis of PTSD Development in Admitted COVID-19 Patients in Indian Scenario.

This study conducted prospective observational analysis among admitted COVID-19 patients in a dedicated COVID-19 tertiary care centre over a period of one month. Patients were followed up after 14 to 30 days of discharge, either telephonically or follow-up OPD visits, to evaluate development of PTSD symptoms. Patients were also categorized based on the severity of their covid-19 illness as mild, moderate and severe based on ministry of health and family welfare protocols. A total of 320 patients were followed up, out of which 200 patients completed the questionnaire and were included in the study. The results were analyzed to determine severity of impact of the illness as well as to correlate severity of covid-19 disease and severity of PTSD symptoms. Out of 200 patients, 74 were mild cases, 97 were moderate and 29 were of severe category. The average scores in each category were 21, 24, 40 respectively and medians were 21, 22 and 42 respectively. 41% (n=82) patients showed moderate to severe impact on follow-up. Significant correlation was found between increasing severity of Covid-19 illness and development of PTSD. On comparing mild vs moderate category, relative risk (RR) of developing moderate to severe impact on PTSD assessment was found to be 3.5093 (p 0.0074, 95% CI 1.4005 to 8.7935), RR between mild and severe categories was 13.269 (p <0.0001, 95% CI 1.4462 to 9.0679), RR between moderate and severe category was 3.7811 (p <0.0001, 95% CI 2.5915 to 5.5167), RR between nonsevere and severe categories was 5.4754 (p <0.0001, 95% CI 3.8178 to 7.8526). On ROC curve analysis, the area under curve (AUC) was found to be 0.94 suggesting it to be of excellent accuracy.
PREPARATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE POLYPYRROLE-ISOBUTYLATED UREA-FORMALDEHYDE RESIN LATEX

Introduction Extensive research has been done over the last 30 years concerning conducting polymers. Among these, polypyrrole (PPY), polyaniline and polythiophene have been studied most widely (Aldissi, 1993; Nalwa, 1997; Skotheim et.al. 1998). These polymers have various potential applications, such as composite materials (Rodriguez et.al. 1997; Gangopadhyay, 2000) biomedical tests (Miksa & Slomkowski, 1995; Pope et.al 1996; Chehimi et.al.) and corrosion control of metal (Tallman et.al. 2000; Ferreira et.al. 2001). PPY, a heterocyclic polymer is one of the most promising conducting polymers because under certain circumstances it may have high electrical conductivity (Katihir, 1999) and good environmental stability (Omastova et.al. 1996) and is easily synthesized. However some factors currently limiting the applications of PPY including its poor mechanical strength and thus low processability, on the one hand, and high casts, on the other hand. Improvement of these material properties can be achieved, for example, by forming hybrid organic/inorganic PPY (nano) composites (Meda & Armes, 1993; Perruchot et.al. 2000). PPY blends with some commercially available insulating polymers such as poly (alkyl methacrylates) (Armes & Vincent, 1987), PPY– coated polymer latex particles ((Chehimi et.al.; Yassar et.al. 1987; Wiersma et.al. 1995; Khan & Armes, 2000) or polymer powder . All of these approaches are well documented and the results from several laboratories indicate improvement of processability and conductivity. In order to improve the processability of polypyrrole, efforts have been made to obtain soluble conducting polymers or composites which contain both polypyrrole and non-conducting polymers. The preparation of a conducting polymer as latex dispersion seemed to be an excellent approach towards process ability. Armes et al. indicated that polypyrrole colloids can be obtained through sterically stabilizing polypyrrole particles by physical adsorption of water soluble polymers, such as methyl cellulose , poly (vinyl alcohol–co– vinyl acetate) (Armes et.al. 1987; Zunli Mo et.al. 2007; Sun Hee Cho et. al. 2005; Sihem & Smain, 2005; Smain et. al. 2004; Radhakrishnan & Santosh, 2007; Kun Ae Noh & Dong Wonkim, 2003) or polyvinyl pyrrolidone (Armes & Vincent, 1987). Mechanical blending is an old method for preparing composites. However the percolation thresholds of conductivity for the composites were higher. There are also chemical methods or in-situ polymerization methods to obtain PPY composites. One method includes formation of a substrate film mixed with oxidant first, followed by adding the monomer to the film. The second method is to polymerize pyrrole by means of an oxidant in the presence of a polymer with an emulsifier or a steric stabilizer, followed by precipitation, drying and molding into various shapes . This paper deals with two kinds of conductive PPY composites, prepared through polymerization pyrrole in the presence of urea–formaldehyde resin iso– butylated (70%) latex, along with either span–80( Archive of SID
Dynamic modeling of the secondary drying stage of freeze drying reveals distinct desorption kinetics for bound water

ABSTRACT In freeze drying, the desorption step for reaching a low target moisture content may take a significant fraction of the total process duration. Because the long-term stability of freeze-dried biological products strongly depends on the current moisture content, modeling the desorption process may help safely optimize the secondary drying step. Most published models assume a first-order desorption kinetic, but experimental evidence shows that strongly bound water in the monolayer takes a much longer time to be desorbed than less bound water in multilayer. The proposed model for desorption of freeze-dried lactic acid bacteria preparation accounts for monolayer and multilayer water state in the solid matrix, with very different desorption kinetics. Results showed that the ratio of characteristic desorption times (monolayer/multilayer) was almost 30. Temperature dependence was adequately described by an Arrhenius law in the range of 15 to 40°C. Model parameter identification used simultaneously gravimetric measurements with high time resolution and direct Karl-Fisher titration, from several experiments at different, time-varying temperatures.
Biomarkers of Recent Cannabis Use in Blood, Oral Fluid and Breath.

Proving driving under the influence of cannabis (DUIC) is difficult. Establishing a biomarker of recent use to supplement behavioral observations may be a useful alternative strategy. We determined whether cannabinoid concentrations in blood, oral fluid (OF), or breath could identify use within 3h, likely the period of greatest impairment. In a randomized trial, 191 frequent (≥4/week) and occasional (<4/week) cannabis users smoked one cannabis (placebo [0.02%], 5.9% or 13.4% THC) cigarette ad libitum. Blood, OF and breath samples were collected prior to and up to 6h after smoking. Samples were analyzed for 10 cannabinoids in OF, 8 in blood, and THC in breath. Frequent users had more residual THC in blood and were categorized as "recently used" prior to smoking; this did not occur in OF. Per se limits ranging from undetectable to 5 ng/mL THC in blood offered limited usefulness as biomarkers of recent use. Cannabinol (CBN, cutoff=1 ng/mL) in blood offered 100% specificity but only 31.4% sensitivity, resulting in 100% PPV and 94.0% NPV at 4.3% prevalence; but CBN may vary by cannabis chemovar. A 10 ng/mL THC cutoff in OF exhibited the overall highest performance to detect use within 3h (99.7% specificity, 82.4% sensitivity, 92.5% PPV, 99.2% NPV) but was still detectable in 23.2% of participants ~4.4h post smoking limiting specificity at later time points. OF THC may be a helpful indicator of recent cannabis intake, but this does not equate to impairment. Behavioral assessment of impairment is still required to determine DUIC. This study only involved cannabis inhalation and additional research evaluating alternative routes of ingestion (i.e., oral) is needed.
Effect of acetabular morphological parameters applied in proximal femoral varus osteotomy on the treatment of developmental dysplasia of the hip in children

Background The study was carried out based on the background that though proximal femoral varus osteotomy is one of the most effective methods in treating developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH), its surgical efficiency and effect need to be improved. Methods The neck shaft angle and acetabular morphological parameters were measured before and after operation and during clinical follow-up. The Severin criteria and McKay criteria were both adopted to score the measurements. The distance from the center of the femoral head to the medial cutting bone (expressed as C value) and the shortened lengths of the proximal femur (expressed as Δ S) calculated by formula and obtained by actual measurement were compared. Results The neck shaft angle and acetabular morphological parameters after operation and during clinical follow-up were significantly lower than those before operation (P<0.05). The proportion of children with McKay scores of I, II, III, and IV after operation was 50.00%, 41.67%, 8.33%, and 0.00%, respectively; while the proportion of children with Severin scores of I, II, III, and IV was 55.00%, 38.33%, 6.67%, and 0.00%, respectively. There were no significant differences in the C value and Δ S obtained after formula calculation and actual measurement (P>0.05). Conclusions The acetabular morphological parameters applied in proximal femoral varus osteotomy are of great value for the treatment of DDH in children.
Influenza Virus Infects and Depletes Activated Adaptive Immune Responders

Influenza infections cause several million cases of severe respiratory illness, hospitalizations, and hundreds of thousands of deaths globally. Secondary infections are a leading cause of influenza's high morbidity and mortality, and significantly factored into the severity of the 1918, 1968, and 2009 pandemics. Furthermore, there is an increased incidence of other respiratory infections even in vaccinated individuals during influenza season. Putative mechanisms responsible for vaccine failures against influenza as well as other respiratory infections during influenza season are investigated. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) are used from influenza vaccinated individuals to assess antigen‐specific responses to influenza, measles, and varicella. The observations made in humans to a mouse model to unravel the mechanism is confirmed and extended. Infection with influenza virus suppresses an ongoing adaptive response to vaccination against influenza as well as other respiratory pathogens, i.e., Adenovirus and Streptococcus pneumoniae by preferentially infecting and killing activated lymphocytes which express elevated levels of sialic acid receptors. These findings propose a new mechanism for the high incidence of secondary respiratory infections due to bacteria and other viruses as well as vaccine failures to influenza and other respiratory pathogens even in immune individuals due to influenza viral infections.