gebhart/patrepeval huggingface dataset:
A prototype document image analysis system for technical journals (1992)

Gobbledoc, a system providing remote access to stored documents, which is based on syntactic document analysis and optical character recognition (OCR), is discussed. In Gobbledoc, image processing, document analysis, and OCR operations take place in batch mode when the documents are acquired. The document image acquisition process and the knowledge base that must be entered into the system to process a family of page images are described. The process by which the X-Y tree data structure converts a 2-D page-segmentation problem into a series of 1-D string-parsing problems that can be tackled using conventional compiler tools is also described. Syntactic analysis is used in Gobbledoc to divide each page into labeled rectangular blocks. Blocks labeled text are converted by OCR to obtain a secondary (ASCII) document representation. Since such symbolic files are better suited for computerized search than for human access to the document content and because too many visual layout clues are lost in the OCR process (including some special characters), Gobbledoc preserves the original block images for human browsing. Storage, networking, and display issues specific to document images are also discussed.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">&gt;</ETX>
[Early prediction of lack of response to treatment with interferon and interferon plus ribavirin using biochemical and virological criteria in patients with chronic hepatitis C]. (1999)

The objectives of this study were the following: 1) to evaluate the predictive value of the detection of RNA-HVC compared to GPT in the third month of treatment in patients with chronic hepatitis C treated with IFN, and at the first and third month in patients treated with IFN and ribavirin for 6 and 12 months. The study included: A) 80/132 patients treated with IFN (3 MU/3 times a week for 6-12 months), and B) 70/110 patients who had previously not responded to IFN, and who were treated with combination therapy (IFN: standard dose, ribavirin: 1200 mg/day) for 6 months (n = 40) and 12 months (n = 30). In group A, the positive predictive value (the probability of predicting the lack of response if the RNA-HVC was positive or if the GPT was elevated at the third month) was greater for RNA-HVC than for GPT (97.9% vs. 94.4%), although the response was not unequivocal (2.3% vs. 10.5%). The negative predictive value was 48.6% vs. 36.2%, respectively. The prediction level (odds ratio) of RNA-HVC and of GPT was 39.7 vs. 8.78 (p <0.000001 vs. p <0.002). The positive predictive value was 97.6% in patients with genotype 1, 4 and 5, and 100% in those with genotype 2 and 3. In group B, the positive predictive value was also greater for RNA-HVC than for GPT at the first month (100% vs. 94.4%) following six months of therapy, the odds ratio being infinite vs. 7.6. The positive predictive value was greater for RNA-HVC at the third month than at the first (100% vs. 91%), whereas it was similar for GPT (100%) with 12 months of therapy, the odds ratio being greater for GPT than for RNA-HVC at the first month (infinite and 7.27). The following was concluded: 1) detection of RNA-HVC at the third month of treatment with IFN predicts in advance a lack of response in patients, with a minimum risk of error; 2) in patients with six months of combined therapy, the detection of RNA-HVC at the first month is extremely reliable in the prediction of a lack of response, whereas after 12 months of combined therapy, elevated GPT values at the first month and the detection of RNA-HVC at the third are highly predictive of a lack of response.
Encapsulated Arrays of Self-Assembled Microtissues: An Alternative to Spherical Microcapsules (2009)

Micro-encapsulation and immuno-isolation of allogenic and xenogenic tissues and cells is a promising method for the treatment of a variety of metabolic disorders. Many years have been spent optimizing spherical microcapsules, yet micro-encapsulation has not achieved its full clinical potential. As an alternative to spherical microcapsules, this study presents an alginate-encapsulated array of self-assembled three-dimensional (3D) microtissues. Monodispersed HepG2 cells were seeded onto a micro-molded agarose gel. Cells settled to the bottom of the mold recesses and self-assembled 3D microtissues (n = 822) within 24 h. This array of densely packed microtissues was encapsulated in situ using alginate. When separated from the agarose micro-mold, the encapsulated array had HepG2 microtissues in close proximity to its surface. This surface could be further modified by a simple dipping process. Microtissue size, viability, and albumin secretion were all controllable by the number of cells seeded onto the original agarose micro-mold, and microtissue shape and spacing were controllable by the design of the micro-mold. This approach to encapsulation and the use of self-assembled/self-packing 3D microtissues offers new design possibilities that may help to address certain limitations of conventional microcapsules.
Breathfinding: A Wireless Network That Monitors and Locates Breathing in a Home (2014)

This paper explores using RSS measurements on the links between commercial wireless devices to locate where a breathing person is located and to estimate their breathing rate, in a home, while the person is sitting, lying down, standing, or sleeping. Prior RSS-based device-free localization methods required calibration measurements to be able to locate stationary people, or did not require calibration but only located people who moved. We collect RSS measurements multiple short (3-7 minute) tests and during a longer 66 minute test, and show the location of the breathing person can be estimated, to within about 2 m average error. We describe a detector that distinguishes between sample times during which a person is moving and sample times during which a person is breathing but otherwise motionless. This detector enables removal of motion interference, i.e., RSS changes due to movements other than a person's breathing, and more accurately estimate a person's breathing rate. Being able to locate and monitor a breathing person, without calibration, is important for applications in search and rescue, health care, and security.
The Encephalomyocarditis Virus Internal Ribosome Entry Site Allows Efficient Coexpression of Two Genes from a Recombinant Provirus in Cultured Cells and in Embryos (1991)

Rous sarcoma virus-based retroviral vectors were constructed to compare three different approaches for coexpressing two genes in individual infected cells. All vectors expressed the upstream gene (lacZ) from the Rous sarcoma virus long terminal repeat, while the downstream gene (the chloramphenicol acetyltransferase gene [cat] or v-src) was expressed in one of three ways: from a subgenomic mRNA generated by regulated splicing, from a strong internal promoter, or from the encephalomyocarditis virus internal ribosome entry site (IRES). Both biochemical and immunohistochemical assays of cultured cells showed that the encephalomyocarditis virus IRES provided the most efficient means for coexpressing two genes from a single provirus. Most importantly, most cells infected by a LacZ-IRES-CAT virus expressed both LacZ and CAT, whereas most cells infected by internal promoter or regulated splicing vectors expressed either LacZ or CAT but not both. In addition, viral titers were highest with IRES vectors. Presumably, use of the IRES avoids transcriptional controls and RNA processing steps that differentially affect expression of multiple genes from internal promoter and regulated splicing vectors. Finally, we injected a LacZ-IRES-v-Src virus into chicken embryos and then identified the progeny of infected cells with a histochemical stain for LacZ. LacZ-positive cells in both skin and mesenchyme displayed morphological abnormalities attributable to expression of v-src. Thus, IRES vectors can be used to coexpress a reporter gene and a bioactive gene in vivo.
Escherichia coli K-12 clones that overproduce dam methylase are hypermutable. (1981)

A strain of Escherichia coli K-12 that overproduces dam methylase 50-fold was found to be hypermutable, and mutations which resulted in loss of excess methylase activity restored mutation frequencies to wild-type levels. These results are consistent with involvement of this deoxyribonucleic acid methylase in mismatch correction.
Sibutramine and fat distribution: is there a role for pharmacotherapy in abdominal/visceral fat reduction? (1998)

Visceral adiposity has a strong and independent association with obesity and its related co-morbidities, particularly metabolic complications such as cardiovascular disease and type II diabetes. Waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) are both secondary indicators of visceral obesity. This paper examines the effect of sibutramine, a new serotonin and noradrenaline re-uptake inhibitor, on weight reduction and changes in fat distribution. A meta-analysis of four long-term, placebo-controlled, double-blind studies showed significantly greater mean decreases in waist circumference in sibutramine-treated subjects compared with placebo (P < 0.001). Similar results were seen for WHR, with 15 mg sibutramine daily producing a significant reduction of 0.02 compared with placebo (P < 0.02). Changes in fat distribution have been examined using computerised tomography (CT) scans as part of the Sibutramine Trial of Obesity Reduction and Maintenance (STORM). Preliminary results showed a mean weight loss from baseline of 11.2 +/- 6.3 kg after 6 months of 10 mg sibutramine treatment. Decreases in total abdominal fat (18%), total subcutaneous fat (17%) and total visceral fat (22%) were observed, and there was a significant increase in the subcutaneous-to-visceral fat ratio (P = 0.04). These changes in fat levels and distribution were associated with improvements in related risk factors such as fasting blood glucose and insulin levels, and blood pressure. In conclusion, sibutramine produces statistically and clinically significant decreases in waist circumference and WHR, and preferentially reduces visceral fat levels.
Molecular cloning, functional properties, and distribution of rat brain alpha 7: a nicotinic cation channel highly permeable to calcium (1993)

A full-length clone coding for the rat alpha 7 nicotinic receptor subunit was isolated from an adult brain cDNA library and expressed in Xenopus oocytes. A significant proportion of the current through alpha 7-channels is carried by Ca2+. This Ca2+ influx then activates a Ca(2+)-dependent Cl- conductance, which is blocked by the chloride channel blockers niflumic and fluflenamic acid. Increasing the external NaCl concentration caused the reversal potentials for the alpha 7-channels and the Ca(2+)-dependent Cl- channels to be shifted in opposite directions. Under these conditions, agonist application activates a biphasic current with an initial inward current through alpha 7-channels followed by a niflumic acid- and fluflenamic acid-blockable outward current through Ca(2+)-dependent Cl- channels. A relative measure of the Ca2+ permeability was made by measuring the shift in the reversal potential caused by adding 10 mM Ca2+ to the external solution. Measurements made in the absence of Cl-, to avoid artifactual current through Ca(2+)-activated Cl- channels, indicate that alpha 7-homooligomeric channels have a greater relative Ca2+ permeability than the other nicotinic ACh receptors. Furthermore, alpha 7-channels have an even greater relative Ca2+ permeability than the NMDA subtype of glutamate receptors. High levels of alpha 7-transcripts were localized by in situ hybridization in the olfactory areas, the hippocampus, the hypothalamus, the amygdala, and the cerebral cortex. These results imply that alpha 7-containing receptors may play a role in activating calcium-dependent mechanisms in specific neuronal populations of the adult rat limbic system.
PD-1 as an emerging therapeutic target in renal cell carcinoma: current evidence (2014)

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common primary malignant tumor of the kidney in adults, representing approximately 4% of all adult cancers in the United States. Metastatic RCC is poorly responsive to conventional cytotoxic chemotherapies but can be sensitive to T-cell-directed immunotherapies such as interferon-α or interleukin-2. Despite recent progress in the application of antiangiogenic "targeted therapies" for metastatic RCC, high-dose interleukin-2 remains an appropriate first-line therapy for select patients and is associated with durable complete remissions in a small fraction of treated patients. Thus, advanced RCC provides a unique opportunity to investigate the requirements for effective antitumor immunotherapy. Accumulating evidence suggests that resistance mechanisms exploited by RCC and other tumor types may play a dominant role in limiting the effectiveness of tumor-reactive adaptive immune responses. Expression of the inhibitory coreceptor programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) on tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes within RCC tumors, as well as the expression of the PD-1 ligand (PD-L1) on RCC tumor cells, are strong negative prognostic markers for disease-specific death in RCC patients. Monoclonal antibodies targeting either PD-1 or PD-L1 have now entered clinic trials and have demonstrated promising antitumor effects for refractory metastatic RCC. This review summarizes the results of published and reported studies of PD-1- and PD-L1-targeted therapies enrolling patients with advanced RCC, focusing on key safety, toxicity, and efficacy end points. Prospects for advanced phase clinical testing and novel therapy combinations with PD-1- and PD-L1-targeted agents are discussed.
Contributions of ischemia and reperfusion to mucosal lesion formation (1986)

Two theories have been proposed to account for the mucosal injury associated with intestinal ischemia, hypoxia-countercurrent exchange, and oxygen free radicals. The countercurrent mechanism suggests that mucosal injury should occur predominately during the ischemic period, whereas the oxygen free radical hypothesis predicts that the majority of mucosal injury results from reperfusion of ischemic tissue. Histological specimens obtained during the ischemic period and following reperfusion allowed a systematic evaluation of the time course of development of mucosal lesions in a regional ischemia model. Reperfusion after 3 h of regional hypotension reduced mean mucosal thickness from 1,022.2 +/- 6.3 to 503.6 +/- 10.0 microns. The decrease in mucosal thickness was largely due to a reduction in villus height, inasmuch as the reduction in crypt depth was statistically insignificant. A significantly smaller change in mucosal thickness was observed when the bowel was subjected to 3 h ischemia without reperfusion. The mucosal injury produced by 3 h ischemia and 1 h reperfusion was more severe than that produced by 4 h ischemia without reperfusion. The results of this study suggest that most of the tissue damage produced by the widely employed regional hypotension model occurs at the time of reperfusion.
Cough, airway inflammation, and mild asthma exacerbation (2002)

In mild asthma exacerbations, eosinophilic inflammation is dominant. In asthmatic children who cough as a dominant symptom, cough heralds the onset of an exacerbation and increased eosinophilic inflammation, but cough scores and CRS do not reflect eosinophilic airway inflammation.
Lethal graft-versus-host disease after bone marrow transplantation across minor histocompatibility barriers in mice. Prevention by removing mature T cells from marrow. (1978)

In two situations, transfer of normal unsensitized bone marrow cells into heavily irradiated H-2-identical allogeneic mice caused a high incidence of lethal chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), i.e. mortality occuring between days of 20 and 80 postirradiation. Minor histocompatibility determinants appeared to be the main target for eliciting GVHD. Removing mature T cells from the marrow with anti-Thy 1.2 serum and complement before injection prevented GVHD. On the basis of adding purified T cells to T-cell-depleted marrow cells, it was concluded that contamination of the marrow with as few as 0.3% T cells was sufficient to cause a high incidence of lethal GVHD in certain situations. No GVHD was found with the injection of non-T cells (Thy 1.2-negative cells) or with tolerant T cells. Irradiated recipients of T-cell-depleted marrow cells remained in good health for prolonged periods. These mice showed extensive chimerism with respect to the donor marrow, normal numbers of T and B cells and were immunocompetent. The data provide no support for the view that chronic GVHD developing after bone marrow transplantation in man is the result of an attack by the progeny of the donor stem cells. The results imply that mature T cells contaminating marrow inocula are probably the main cause of GVHD seen in the clinical situation.
Aberrant expression of BAFF in T cells of systemic lupus erythematosus, which is recapitulated by a human T cell line, Loucy (2006)

B cell-activating factor of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) family, or BAFF, is mainly produced in monocytes and dendritic cells, and indispensable for proliferation, differentiation and survival of B cells. BAFF is a type II membrane-bound protein and the extracellular C-terminal fragment is released from the cells as soluble BAFF (sBAFF), which binds to specific receptors on B cells. Accumulating evidence suggests that BAFF plays an important role in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases, such as systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). In this study, we developed a sensitive sandwich ELISA system to quantify the amount of sBAFF using our own mAb. Treatment of peripheral T cells of SLE patients with an anti-CD3 antibody triggered robust expression of BAFF and subsequent release of sBAFF from the cells. On the other hand, the stimulus induced only marginal elevation of sBAFF from normal T cells. These data indicate that BAFF is expressed in T cells upon stimulation at least under pathological conditions. Expression of BAFF was also largely induced in a human T cell line, Loucy (American Type Tissue Collection CRL-2629), in response to several stimuli, while other T cell lines so far examined produced the cytokine almost constitutively. These data suggest that Loucy recapitulates some of the characteristics of SLE T cells. Investigation of molecular and cellular mechanisms of production of BAFF in Loucy demonstrated that expression of BAFF was regulated through a signal transduction pathway which involves c-jun NH2-terminal kinase and p38, and that shedding of BAFF was catalyzed by a membrane-bound protease, furin.
AQ4N: a new approach to hypoxia-activated cancer chemotherapy (2000)

Preclinical studies demonstrate that in vivo AQ4N enhances the anti-tumour effects of radiation and chemotherapeutic agents with a dose-modifying factor of approximately 2.0. With careful scheduling no, or very little, additional normal tissue toxicity should be observed. AQ4N is a bioreductive prodrug of a potent, stable, reduction product which binds non-covalently to DNA, facilitating antitumour activity in both hypoxic and proximate oxic tumour cells. AQ4N is clearly different in both its mechanism of action and potential bystander effect compared to previously identified bioreductive drugs. In particular AQ4N is the only bioreductive prodrug topoisomerase II inhibitor to enter clinical trials. Targeting this enzyme, which is crucial to cell division, may help sensitize tumours to repeated (fractionated) courses of radiotherapy. This is because in principle, the bioreduction product of AQ4N can inhibit the topoisomerase activity of hypoxic cells as they attempt to re-enter the cell cycle.
Voltage Multiplier Cells Applied to Non-Isolated DC–DC Converters (2008)

This paper introduces the use of the voltage multiplier technique applied to the classical non-isolated dc-dc converters in order to obtain high step-up static gain, reduction of the maximum switch voltage, zero current switching turn-on. The diodes reverse recovery current problem is minimized and the voltage multiplier also operates as a regenerative clamping circuit, reducing the problems with layout and the EMI generation. These characteristics allows the operation with high static again and high efficiency, making possible to design a compact circuit for applications where the isolation is not required. The operation principle, the design procedure and practical results obtained from the implemented prototypes are presented for the single-phase and multiphase dc-dc converters. A boost converter was tested with the single-phase technique, for an application requiring an output power of 100 W, operating with 12 V input voltage and 100 V output voltage, obtaining efficiency equal to 93%. The multiphase technique was tested with a boost interleaved converter operating with an output power equal to 400 W, 24 V input voltage and 400 V output voltage, obtaining efficiency equal to 95%.
Modes of phase-locked diode-laser arrays of closely spaced antiguides (1988)

A uniform, ten-element array of closely spaced (1–3 μm) realindex depressions (antiguides), with lasing suppressed in the positive-index regions between antiguides, supports ten lasing eigenmodes. Near-field amplitude profiles and radiation losses are presented and discussed. Radiation losses of inphase and out-of-phase array modes are negligible in comparison with the radiation loss of one array element taken separately.
Progenitors of dorsal commissural interneurons are defined by MATH1 expression (1998)

MATH1 is a neural-specific basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor. Members of this family of transcription factors are involved in the development of specific subsets of neurons in the developing vertebrate nervous system. Here we examine the cells expressing MATH1 with respect to their proliferative state and co-expression of cell-type-specific differentiation markers. We localize the MATH1 protein to the nucleus of cells in the dorsal neural tube and the external germinal layer (EGL) of the developing cerebellum. Using double-label immunofluorescence, we demonstrate that MATH1-expressing cells span both the proliferating and the differentiating zones within the dorsal neural tube, but within the EGL of the cerebellum are restricted to the proliferating zone. The early differentiating MATH1-expressing cells in the dorsal neural tube co-express TAG-1, DCC-1 and LH2, markers of dorsal commissural interneurons. In addition, transgenic mice with lacZ under the transcriptional control of MATH1-flanking DNA sequences express beta-galactosidase specifically in the developing nervous system, in a manner that mimics subsets of the MATH1-expression pattern, including the dorsal spinal neural tube. Expression of the MATH1/lacZ transgene persists in differentiated dorsal commissural interneurons. Taken together, we demonstrate MATH1 expression in a differentiating population of neuronal precursors in the dorsal neural tube that appear to give rise specifically to dorsal commissural interneurons.
Interaction of divalent antibody with cell surface antigens (1979)

This paper presents a thermodynamic description of the interaction between divalent protein in solution and monovalent ligand attached to a cell membrane, but freely mobile therein. The intrinsic differences between this system and interaction which takes place in a uniform bulk solution are discussed. Specific problems which are addressed include the determination of the number of ligand sites on a specific cell system, comparison of several cell systems in terms of common antigenic components, comparison of different antibody preparations, and attempts to study solubilized cell-surface antigens using established serological methodology.