Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Postural alterations in children with mouth breathing assessed by computerized biophotogrammetry.

OBJECTIVES To determine and compare the posture of children with obstructive (OMB) and functional mouth breathing (FMB) and children with nasal breathing (NB) using computerized biophotogrammetry, as well as to determine the viability and efficacy of this method. METHODS Evaluative and personalized methods were used for the capture and analysis of angle images obtained from 19 NB, 26 FMB and 17 OMB children of either gender aged 8 to 10 years on anterior, posterior and profile views. The nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis test was applied to analyze the three groups as a whole and the Mann-Whitney test was used for pairwise comparison of the groups (p = 0.05). RESULTS The angle related to the lateral knee condyle, lateral ankle malleolus and 5th metatarsal diaphysis (KAM) was significantly greater in NB than in FMB children. With respect to the angle related to the nasal external acoustic meatus and pogonion (GMM), nasal external acoustic meatus and manubrium (GME), and 2nd cervical vertebra, major cervical curvature point and 7th cervical vertebra (C2C7), significantly higher values were observed for the OMB group compared to NB children. The angle formed by the 2nd thoracic vertebra, the major prominent thoracic point and the 9th thoracic vertebra (T2T9) was significantly greater in FMB than in OMB children. CONCLUSIONS Computerized biophotogrammetry was found to e a safe and reliable technique, allowing comparison between the children analyzed, as well as the detection of postural alterations in mouth breathing children.
A Novel Polymorphic Allele of Human Arylacetamide Deacetylase Leads to Decreased Enzyme Activity

Human arylacetamide deacetylase (AADAC) is responsible for the hydrolysis of clinically used drugs such as flutamide, phenacetin, and rifamycins. Our recent studies suggested that human AADAC is a relevant enzyme pharmacologically and toxicologically. To date, the genetic polymorphisms that affect enzyme activity in AADAC have been unknown. In this study, we found single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the human AADAC gene in a liver sample that showed remarkably low flutamide hydrolase activity. Among them, g.13651G>A (V281I) and g.14008T>C (X400Q) were nonsynonymous. The latter would be predicted to cause a C-terminal one-amino acid (glutamine) extension. The AADAC*2 allele (g.13651G>A) was found in all populations investigated in this study (European American, African American, Korean, and Japanese), at allelic frequencies of 52.6 to 63.5%, whereas the AADAC*3 allele (g.13651G>A/g.14008T>C) was found in European American (1.3%) and African American (2.0%) samples. COS7 cells expressing AADAC.1 (wild-type) exhibited flutamide, phenacetin, and rifampicin hydrolase activities with intrinsic clearance (CLint) values of 1.31 ± 0.06, 1.00 ± 0.02, and 0.39 ± 0.02 μl · min−1 · unit−1, respectively. AADAC.2, which is a protein produced from the AADAC*2 allele, showed moderately lower or similar CLint values, compared with AADAC.1, but AADAC.3 showed substantially lower CLint values (flutamide hydrolase, 0.21 ± 0.02 μl · min−1 · unit−1; phenacetin hydrolase, 0.12 ± 0.00 μl · min−1 · unit−1; rifampicin hydrolase, 0.03 ± 0.01 μl · min−1 · unit−1, respectively). Microsomes from a liver sample genotyped as AADAC*3/AADAC*3 showed decreased enzyme activities, compared with those genotyped as AADAC*1/AADAC*1, AADAC*1/AADAC*2, and AADAC*2/AADAC*2. In conclusion, we found an AADAC allele that yielded decreased enzyme activity. This study should provide useful information on interindividual variations in AADAC enzyme activity.
Post-traumatic stress syndrome in a large sample of older adults: determinants and quality of life

Objectives: The aims of this study are to assess in a sample of older adults consulting in primary care practices the determinants and quality of life associated with post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSS). Method: Data used came from a large sample of 1765 community-dwelling older adults who were waiting to receive health services in primary care clinics in the province of Quebec. PTSS was measured with the PTSS scale. Socio-demographic and clinical characteristics were used as potential determinants of PTSS. Quality of life was measured with the EuroQol-5D-3L (EQ-5D-3L) EQ-Visual Analog Scale and the Satisfaction With Your Life Scale. Multivariate logistic and linear regression models were used to study the presence of PTSS and different measures of health-related quality of life and quality of life as a function of study variables. Results: The six-month prevalence of PTSS was 11.0%. PTSS was associated with age, marital status, number of chronic disorders and the presence of an anxiety disorder. PTSS was also associated with the EQ-5D-3L and the Satisfaction with Your Life Scale. Conclusion: PTSS is prevalent in patients consulting in primary care practices. Primary care physicians should be aware that PTSS is also associated with a decrease in quality of life, which can further negatively impact health status.
Shaped metal deposition of 300M steel

A component prepared by shaped metal deposition (SMD) using 300M steel wire is studied to reveal structure and material properties. The component exhibits a bainitic microstructure changing from distinct sheaves to homogenous from top to bottom. This change in microstructure is reflected by a step-like increase of the volume fraction of austenite towards the bottom of the component, and a step-like decrease of the microhardness. A certain deviation of the general change in the morphology of bainite from top to bottom appears at the very bottom of the component, caused by the influence of the base plate. Tensile tests show a very high ultimate tensile strength of about 1500 MPa and an elastic modulus of 200 GPa, which is comparable to that of material in cast condition.
TRF1 is a dimer and bends telomeric DNA

TRF1 is a mammalian telomeric protein that binds to the duplex array of TTAGGG repeats at chromosome ends. TRF1 has homology to the DNA‐binding domain of the Myb family of transcription factors but, unlike most Myb‐related proteins, TRF1 carries one rather than multiple Myb‐type DNA‐binding motifs. Here we show that TRF1 binds DNA as a dimer using a large conserved domain near the N‐terminus of the protein for TRF1–TRF1 interactions. Dimerization was observed both in a complex with DNA and in the yeast two‐hybrid assay. TRF1 dimers were found to require both Myb repeats for the formation of a stable complex with DNA, indicating a parallel between the DNA‐binding mode of TRF1 and other Myb‐related proteins. TRF1 was found to have a number of biochemical similarities to Rap1p, a distantly related DNA‐binding protein that functions at telomeres in yeast. Rap1p and TRF1 both require two Myb motifs for DNA binding and both factors bind along their cognate telomeric sequences without showing strong cooperative interactions between adjacent proteins. Furthermore, TRF1 was found to bend its telomeric site to an angle of ∼120°. Since Rap1p similarly distorts telomeric DNA, we propose that DNA bending is important for the function of telomeres in yeast and mammals.
Detection and quantification of human immunodeficiency virus RNA in patient serum by use of the polymerase chain reaction.

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) RNA was detected and quantified in the serum of HIV-seropositive individuals using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and a nonisotopic enzyme-linked affinity assay. Of 55 HIV-infected patients who were not receiving therapy, serum HIV RNA was detected in 9 of 19 who were asymptomatic, 11 of 16 with AIDS-related complex (ARC), and 18 of 20 with AIDS, with copy numbers ranging from 10(2) to greater than or equal to 5 x 10(4) 200 microliters of serum based on a relationship between absorbance and known copy number of gag gene RNA. Linear regression analysis demonstrated a correlation between infectious titer in 42 patient sera cocultured with donor peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) and PCR product absorbance (r = .70, P less than .01). Serum HIV RNA detected by PCR also correlated with serum p24 antigen positivity, CD4 counts less than 400/mm3, and the presence of HIV-related symptoms or disease. Quantification of infectious HIV RNA in cell-free serum by PCR may be useful as a marker for for disease progression or in monitoring antiviral therapy.
High-energy cosmic antiprotons from Kaluza–Klein dark matter

The lightest Kaluza–Klein particle (LKP) in models with universal extra dimensions is an interesting dark matter candidate that has recently received great attention. Here, we investigate the antiproton flux from LKP annihilations in the galactic halo. In our analysis we include different halo density profiles and allow for part of the dark matter to be concentrated in ‘clumps’ rather than being distributed homogeneously. After re-analysing the observational bounds on the allowed amount of clumpiness, we find that LKP annihilations may well give a significant contribution to the antiproton flux at energies higher than about 10 GeV, while for energies above around 500 GeV the conventional background is expected to dominate again. The shortly upcoming PAMELA satellite will already be able to measure part of this high-energy window, while planned experiments like AMS-02 will have access to the full energy range of interest.
Optimizing the Distribution of Resources between Enzymes of Carbon Metabolism Can Dramatically Increase Photosynthetic Rate: A Numerical Simulation Using an Evolutionary Algorithm1[W][OA]

The distribution of resources between enzymes of photosynthetic carbon metabolism might be assumed to have been optimized by natural selection. However, natural selection for survival and fecundity does not necessarily select for maximal photosynthetic productivity. Further, the concentration of a key substrate, atmospheric CO2, has changed more over the past 100 years than the past 25 million years, with the likelihood that natural selection has had inadequate time to reoptimize resource partitioning for this change. Could photosynthetic rate be increased by altered partitioning of resources among the enzymes of carbon metabolism? This question is addressed using an “evolutionary” algorithm to progressively search for multiple alterations in partitioning that increase photosynthetic rate. To do this, we extended existing metabolic models of C3 photosynthesis by including the photorespiratory pathway (PCOP) and metabolism to starch and sucrose to develop a complete dynamic model of photosynthetic carbon metabolism. The model consists of linked differential equations, each representing the change of concentration of one metabolite. Initial concentrations of metabolites and maximal activities of enzymes were extracted from the literature. The dynamics of CO2 fixation and metabolite concentrations were realistically simulated by numerical integration, such that the model could mimic well-established physiological phenomena. For example, a realistic steady-state rate of CO2 uptake was attained and then reattained after perturbing O2 concentration. Using an evolutionary algorithm, partitioning of a fixed total amount of protein-nitrogen between enzymes was allowed to vary. The individual with the higher light-saturated photosynthetic rate was selected and used to seed the next generation. After 1,500 generations, photosynthesis was increased substantially. This suggests that the “typical” partitioning in C3 leaves might be suboptimal for maximizing the light-saturated rate of photosynthesis. An overinvestment in PCOP enzymes and underinvestment in Rubisco, sedoheptulose-1,7-bisphosphatase, and fructose-1,6-bisphosphate aldolase were indicated. Increase in sink capacity, such as increase in ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase, was also indicated to lead to increased CO2 uptake rate. These results suggest that manipulation of partitioning could greatly increase carbon gain without any increase in the total protein-nitrogen investment in the apparatus for photosynthetic carbon metabolism.
Anticholinergic Burden and the Risk of Falls Among Elderly Psychiatric Inpatients: A 4-Year Case-Control Study

Objective: Falls are an everyday risk for the elderly and their etiology is multifactorial. Because there are little data focusing on falls among elderly psychiatric inpatients, we aimed to retrospectively assess the characteristics of inpatients that had sustained a fall during hospitalization. Methods: Over 4 years, all adverse-event reports of falls were reviewed. Inclusion criteria were age > 65 years and intact cognition. The control group consisted of the previous and next admission of an elderly patient to the same ward. Anti-cholinergic score was calculated for each patient. Results: Of 414 admissions of elderly patients, 34 (8.2%) patients had had a fall. The control group (n = 68) did not differ in mean age, distribution of diagnoses, or use of benzodiazepines, antidepressants, or antipsychotics. Two variables were significantly associated with falls: female gender (68% vs. 39%, p < .05) and anticholinergic burden score (ABS) (mean: 3.7 vs. 2.1, p < .05). Conclusions: Our results support reported findings of higher rates of falls among elderly women and suggest that ABS may be a risk factor for falls.
Rheological properties of collagen/hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (COL/HPMC) blended solutions

Collagen/HPMC blends with different HPMC content (HC) were investigated by dynamic responses, creep recovery, thixotropy, and morphological observation. Storage modulus, loss modulus, complex viscosity, and activation energy decreased with the increased HC, while the flow behavior index increased with the increased HC and the dynamic denaturation temperature reached the maximum as HC increased to 50%, indicating that the flowability and thermal stability of collagen solution were improved by the addition of HPMC. However, the blends with higher HC tended to have a relatively lower recovery capacity, and the hysteresis loop areas of the blends were lower than that of collagen (especially when HC > 50%). Additionally, the morphology of collagen/HPMC was examined by both of atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. By combining with these results, it seemed that the rheological and structural properties of collagen/HPMC were related to the hydrogen-bond interaction and compatibility between collagen and HPMC molecules. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014, 131, 40042.
Perspectives of board certified pediatric dentists on adding a pediatric oral health therapist to the dental team.

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to determine the perspectives of board certified pediatric dentists regarding adding a pediatric oral health therapist/dental therapist to the dental team. METHODS A 27-item online survey was e-mailed to all diplomates of the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry Questions assessed knowledge and opinions regarding the concept of a pediatric oral health therapist, as well as perspectives on the parameters under which such a person could practice. Survey results were tabulated and frequency distributions calculated. RESULTS Seventy-five percent of respondents had limited or no knowledge regarding the concept of a pediatric oral health therapist; 79% had limited or no knowledge regarding the use of dental therapists in Alaska. Seventy-one percent disagreed with adding a therapist to the dental team. Pediatric dentists practicing in the public sector were more knowledgeable and supportive. Sixty-six percent indicated they treated children with Medicaid/CHIP insurance. Of those, most disagreed that therapists would enable them to care far more children. CONCLUSIONS Pediatric dentists are generally not knowledgeable regarding the role of therapists internationally Nevertheless, the majority oppose adding such an individual to the dental team in the United States.
Gas field ion source and liquid metal ion source charged particle material interaction study for semiconductor nanomachining applications

Semiconductor manufacturing technology nodes will evolve to the 22, 15, and 11 nm generations in the next few years. For semiconductor nanomachining applications, further beam spot size scaling is required beyond what is capable by present generation Ga+ focused ion beam technology. As a result, continued Ga+ beam scaling and/or alternative beam technology innovations will be required. In this work, several alternative ion beam technologies are explored and compared to Ga+ beam for key nanomachining and substrate interaction attributes. First, thorough Monte Carlo simulations were conducted with various ion species incident on silicon and copper. Additionally, silicon and copper substrates were experimentally exposed to ion beams of helium, neon, and gallium. These substrates were subsequently analyzed to determine the sputter yields and subsurface damage.
Levels of organisation in ontology verbalisation

The SWAT Tools ontology verbaliser generates a hierarchically organised hypertext designed for easy comprehension and navigation. The document structure, inspired by encyclopedias and glossaries, is organised at a number of levels. At the top level, a heading is generated for every concept in the ontology; at the next level, each entry is subdivided into logically-based headings like 'Definition' and 'Examples'; at the next, sentences are aggregated when they have parts in common; at the lowest level, phrases are hyperlinked to concept headings. One consequence of this organisation is that some statements are repeated because they are relevant to more than one entry; this means that the text is longer than one in which statements are simply listed. This trade-off between organisation and brevity is investigated in a user study.
Hardware Support for Prescient Instruction Prefetch

This paper proposes and evaluates hardware mechanisms for supporting prescient instruction prefetch — an approach to improving single-threaded application performance by using helper threads to perform instruction prefetch. We demonstrate the need for enabling store-to-load communication and selective instruction execution when directly pre-executing future regions of an application that suffer I-cache misses. Two novel hardware mechanisms, safe-store and YAT-bits, are introduced that help satisfy these requirements. This paper also proposes and evaluates . nite state machine recall, a technique for limiting pre-execution to branches that are hard to predict by leveraging a counted I-prefetch mechanism. On a research Itanium®SMT processor with next line and streaming I-prefetch mechanisms that incurs latencies representative of next generation processors, prescient instruction prefetch can improve performance by an average of 10.0% to 22% on a set of SPEC 2000 benchmarks that suffer significant I-cache misses. Prescient instruction prefetch is found to be competitive against even the most aggressive research hardware instruction prefetch technique: fetch directed instruction prefetch.
Dissecting the nascent human transcriptome by analysing the RNA content of transcription factories

While mapping total and poly-adenylated human transcriptomes has now become routine, characterizing nascent transcripts remains challenging, largely because nascent RNAs have such short half-lives. Here, we describe a simple, fast and cost-effective method to isolate RNA associated with transcription factories, the sites responsible for the majority of nuclear transcription. Following stimulation of human endothelial cells with the pro-inflammatory cytokine TNFα, we isolate and analyse the RNA content of factories by sequencing. Comparison with total, poly(A)+ and chromatin RNA fractions reveals that sequencing of purified factory RNA maps the complete nascent transcriptome; it is rich in intronic unprocessed transcript, as well as long intergenic non-coding (lincRNAs) and enhancer-associated RNAs (eRNAs), micro-RNA precursors and repeat-derived RNAs. Hence, we verify that transcription factories produce most nascent RNA and confer a regulatory role via their association with a set of specifically-retained non-coding transcripts.
Optimising stroke volume and oxygen delivery in abdominal aortic surgery: a randomised controlled trial

Post‐operative complications after open elective abdominal aortic surgery are common, and individualised goal‐directed therapy may improve outcome in high‐risk surgery. We hypothesised that individualised goal‐directed therapy, targeting stroke volume and oxygen delivery, can reduce complications and minimise length of stay in intensive care unit and hospital following open elective abdominal aortic surgery.
Positive pressure ventilation at neonatal resuscitation: review of equipment and international survey of practice

Background: The equipment used to provide positive pressure ventilation to newborns needing resuscitation at delivery varies between institutions. Devices were reviewed and their use surveyed in a sample of neonatal centres worldwide. Aim: To determine which equipment is used to resuscitate newborns at delivery in a sample of teaching hospitals around the world. Methods: A questionnaire was sent via e‐mail to a neonatologist at each of 46 NICUs in 23 countries on five continents, asking which resuscitation equipment they used. If it was not returned, follow‐up was by e‐mail. Results: Data were obtained from 40 (87%) centres representing 19 countries. Round face masks are used at 34 (85%) centres, anatomically shaped masks are used exclusively at six (15%) and a mixture of types are used at 11 (28%). Straight endotracheal tubes are used exclusively at 36 (90%) centres; shouldered tubes are used infrequently at three of the four centres that have them. The self‐inflating bag is the most commonly used manual ventilation device (used at 33 (83%) centres), the Laerdal Infant Resuscitator± the most popular model. Flow‐inflating bags are used at 10 (25%) centres. The Neopuff Infant Resuscitator± is used at 12 (30%) centres. Varying oxygen concentrations are provided during neonatal resuscitation at half of the centres, while 100% oxygen is routinely used at the other half.
Early predictors of multiple sclerosis after a typical clinically isolated syndrome

Background: The 2010 McDonald criteria allow diagnosing multiple sclerosis (MS) with one magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan. Nevertheless, not all patients at risk fulfil criteria at baseline. Other predictive factors (PFs) are: age ≤40 years, positive oligoclonal bands (OBs), and ≥3 periventricular lesions. Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the 2010 McDonald criteria performance and to assess other PFs in patients without dissemination in space (DIS). Methods: Patients with clinically isolated syndrome (CIS) underwent baseline MRI and OB determination with clinical and radiological follow-up. Adjusted hazard ratios (aHRs) for clinically definite MS were estimated for DIS, dissemination in time (DIT), and DIS+DIT. Diagnostic properties at two years were calculated. In cases without DIS, combinations of ≥2 PFs were assessed. Results: A total of 652 patients were recruited; aHRs were 3.8 (2.5–5.8) for DIS, 4.2 (1.9–9.2) for DIT, and 8.6 (5.4–13.8) for DIS+DIT. Sensitivities were 69.6%, 42.3%, and 36.4%, and specificities were 67.3%, 87.9%, and 90.2%, respectively. In patients without DIS, aHRs varied between 2.7–5.5 and specificities ranged from 73.5–89.7% for PF combinations. Conclusion: The high specificity of the 2010 McDonald criteria is confirmed. In patients without DIS, PF combinations could be helpful in identifying those at risk for MS.