Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Hypoglycemia Aggravates Critical Illness–Induced Neurocognitive Dysfunction

OBJECTIVE Tight glycemic control (TGC) in critically ill patients is associated with an increased risk of hypoglycemia. Whether those short episodes of hypoglycemia are associated with adverse morbidity and mortality is a matter of discussion. Using a case-control study design, we investigated whether hypoglycemia under TGC causes permanent neurocognitive dysfunction in patients surviving critical illness. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS From our patient data management system, we identified adult survivors treated for >72 h in our surgical intensive care unit (ICU) between 2004 and 2007 (n = 4,635) without a history of neurocognitive dysfunction or structural brain abnormalities who experienced at least one episode of hypoglycemia during treatment (hypo group) (n = 37). For each hypo group patient, one patient stringently matched for demographic- and disease-related data were identified as a control subject. We performed a battery of neuropsychological tests investigating five areas of cognitive functioning in both groups at least 1 year after ICU discharge. Test results were compared with data from healthy control subjects and between groups. RESULTS Critical illness caused neurocognitive dysfunction in all tested domains in both groups. The dysfunction was aggravated in hypo group patients in one domain, namely that of visuospatial skills (P < 0.01). Besides hypoglycemia, both hyperglycemia (r = −0.322; P = 0.005) and fluctuations of blood glucose (r = −0.309; P = 0.008) were associated with worse test results in this domain. CONCLUSIONS Hypoglycemia was found to aggravate critical illness–induced neurocognitive dysfunction to a limited, but significant, extent; however, an impact of hyperglycemia and fluctuations of blood glucose on neurocognitive function cannot be excluded.
Caspase cleavage of exon 9 deleted presenilin‐1 is an early event in apoptosis induced by calcium ionophore A 23187 in SH‐SY5Y neuroblastoma cells

Presenilins (PSs) are mutated in a majority of familial Alzheimer disease (FAD) cases. Mutated PSs may cause FAD by a number of pro‐apoptotic mechanisms, or by regulating γ‐secretase activity, a protease involved in β‐amyloid precursor protein processing to the neurotoxic β‐amyloid peptide. Besides their normal endoproteolytic processing, PSs are substrates for caspases, being cleaved to alternative N‐terminal and C‐terminal fragments. So far little is known about the role of PSs cleavage in the apoptotic machinery. Here, we used SH‐SY5Y neuroblastoma cells stably transfected with wild‐type or exon 9 deleted presenilin 1 (PS1) in a time‐course study after the exposure to the calcium ionophore A23187. During and after exposure to A 23187, intracellular calcium levels were higher in exon 9 deleted PS1 cells as compared with non‐transfected and wild‐type PS1 transfected cells. Cell death and the enrichment of apoptotic cells after A23187 exposure were increased by overexpression of exon 9 deleted PS1 as compared with the control cell lines. Wild‐type PS1 cells were compared with exon 9 deleted PS1 cells and the temporal relationship between PS1 and other caspase substrates cleavages was analyzed. Exon 9 deleted PS1 cells exhibited a higher caspase‐3 activation and a greater cleavage of PS1 and poly(ADP‐ribose) polymerase (PARP) compared with wild‐type PS1 cells. Exon 9 deleted PS1 cleavage occurred earlier than other caspase substrate cleavages (i.e., PARP and gelsolin), simultaneous with minimum detectable caspase‐3 activation. Therefore, alternative cleavage of PS1 may play an important role for the regulation of the proteolytic cascade activated during apoptosis. J. Neurosci. Res. 66:122–134, 2001. © 2001 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Chapter 2 School Bullying in Different Countries : Prevalence , Risk Factors , and Short-Term Outcomes

School bullying is a specific kind of aggression in which students display frequent and long-term aggressive behavior toward their peers. This aggressive behavior is intentionally perpetrated on a student who cannot easily defend himself or herself and, therefore, there is an imbalance of power between the two (Smith and Brain 2000). It has been pointed out that, with time, this complex psychosocial phenomenon includes also a dominance–submission scheme in which students assume certain behaviors as perpetrators or victims and that this occurs under the “law of silence” (Ortega 2010). This means that there are many students who know about bullying in their school, but do not report this to teachers or parents because they feel afraid of becoming victims themselves or think that reporting is not the right thing to do. This book is concerned specifically with school bullying, not with school violence or peer aggression in general. Research on bullying focuses on different roles of students. The most salient roles are bullies and victims. The former are the children or adolescents who display aggressive behaviors toward others and the latter are the students who persistently suffer harm. Some students are both victims and perpetrators, usually described as bully/victims. Nevertheless, bullying is not only a dyadic interaction between two students or groups. Less salient but equally important, there is also a group of bystanders who witness the phenomenon and play an important role in its nature and dynamics. Salmivalli et al. (1996) stated that some of them act as defenders, that is, they help the victim; others are outsiders, that is, they do not intervene and withdraw from this situation. There are also reinforcers of the bullies who respond to their aggressive behavior in a positive way such as cheering or laughing and assistants of the bullies who join them in the perpetration. Bystanders and not involved children are very important, taking into account that bullies have been described as children who are motivated by the possibility of achieving high status in the peer group by means of their aggressive behaviors. Thus, it is the whole peer
[Transforming growth factor beta 1 and interleukin 6 mRNA expression in wound tissues of patients with diabetic ulcers].

OBJECTIVE To study the relationship between the changes of mRNA expression in wound tissues of diabetic ulcers and tissue repair. METHODS The mRNA expression of TGF-beta 1 and IL-6 in eight bioptic samples of diabetic ulcers were detected by RT-PCR and pathologic methods, and the surrounding normal skins from the same patients were measured as control group. RESULTS The mRNA expression levels of TGF-beta 1 were markedly decreased in the diabetic ulcers compared with control group, while the mRNA expression levels of IL-6 were increased at the same reaction conditions. CONCLUSION The different changes of mRNA expression level of TGF-beta 1 and IL-6 in wound tissue result in low production and decreased activity of TGF-beta 1 and IL-6, which lower the reparative ability of wound tissue.
Estimation of Seismic Deformation Demands of Tall Buildings with Symmetric Setbacks

Abstract—This study estimates the seismic demands of tall buildings with central symmetric setbacks by using nonlinear time history analysis. Three setback structures, all 60-story high with setback in three levels, are used for evaluation. The effects of irregularities occurred by setback are evaluated by determination of global-drift, story-displacement and story drift. Story-displacement is modified by roof displacement and first story displacement and story drift is modified by global drift. All results are calculated at the center of mass and in x and y direction. Also the absolute values of these quantities are determined. The results show that increasing of vertical irregularities increases the global drift of the structure and enlarges the deformations in the height of the structure. It is also observed that the effects of geometry irregularity in the seismic deformations of setback structures are higher than those of mass irregularity.
Modeling the Determinants of College Readiness for Historically Underrepresented Students at 4-Year Colleges and Universities

College readiness is a national policy priority in the United States, yet relatively little is known from large national samples about the factors and experiences that determine college readiness for historically underrepresented minorities at 4-year colleges and universities. The purpose of this study is to identify the factors and experiences that influence various measures of college readiness for historically underrepresented or underserved minorities (URMs) at 4-year colleges and universities using data from the Education Longitudinal Study (ELS:2002). Using multivariate statistics and hierarchical linear regression techniques, the author examines the following questions: (a) Are there differences among historically underrepresented groups in their level of college readiness? and (b) What factors significantly predict URMs’ college readiness as measured by high school GPA, 12th grade National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) standardized math score, and 12th grade highest math level? Implications for future policy, practice, and research are highlighted.
C/EBPγ Suppresses Senescence and Inflammatory Gene Expression by Heterodimerizing with C/EBPβ

ABSTRACT C/EBPβ is an important regulator of oncogene-induced senescence (OIS). Here, we show that C/EBPγ, a heterodimeric partner of C/EBPβ whose biological functions are not well understood, inhibits cellular senescence. Cebpg−/− mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) proliferated poorly, entered senescence prematurely, and expressed a proinflammatory gene signature, including elevated levels of senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) genes whose induction by oncogenic stress requires C/EBPβ. The senescence-suppressing activity of C/EBPγ required its ability to heterodimerize with C/EBPβ. Covalently linked C/EBPβ homodimers (β∼β) inhibited the proliferation and tumorigenicity of RasV12-transformed NIH 3T3 cells, activated SASP gene expression, and recruited the CBP coactivator in a Ras-dependent manner, whereas γ∼β heterodimers lacked these capabilities and efficiently rescued proliferation of Cebpg−/− MEFs. C/EBPβ depletion partially restored growth of C/EBPγ-deficient cells, indicating that the increased levels of C/EBPβ homodimers in Cebpg−/− MEFs inhibit proliferation. The proliferative functions of C/EBPγ are not restricted to fibroblasts, as hematopoietic progenitors from Cebpg−/− bone marrow also displayed impaired growth. Furthermore, high CEBPG expression correlated with poorer clinical prognoses in several human cancers, and C/EBPγ depletion decreased proliferation and induced senescence in lung tumor cells. Our findings demonstrate that C/EBPγ neutralizes the cytostatic activity of C/EBPβ through heterodimerization, which prevents senescence and suppresses basal transcription of SASP genes.
Participation and family education in school: Successful educational actions

Abstract The research INCLUD-ED, Strategies for Inclusion and Social Cohesion in Europe from Education (2006–11) identified several forms of family participation that contribute to the improvement of school performance and living together in schools: participation in decision-making processes, participation in the evaluation of educational processes and participation in educational activities addressed to the students and their families. This article aims to present these forms of family participation studying in depth family education from a transformative approach. Finally, it describes the functioning of one of the actions on family education that is having relevant impact into education: the dialogic literary gatherings.
Theorizing a child–dog encounter in the slums of La Paz using post-humanistic approaches in order to disrupt universalisms in current ‘child in nature’ debates

This paper theorizes children's interspecies relation with dogs in La Paz Bolivia utilizing post-humanism and new materialism as its approach. This approach allows for the deconstructing of human–nature binaries found in discourses central to the children in nature movement. Questioning the universalizing of children's experience in nature the paper considers three propositions. Firstly, what if children were viewed as nature rather than outside of it. Secondly, can the objects or ‘things’ of nature be viewed as animated. And finally, how sensitive is the contemporary imperative to reconnect children to a romanticized more natured life, to children's diverse worldly experiences. I explore these propositions drawing on a study where I have adopted a materialist ontology and theorized using the work of [Barad, Karen. 2007. Meeting the Universe Halfway: Quantum Physics and the Entanglement of Matter and Meaning. Durham, NC: Duke University Press] and her concept of intra-action as adopted by Rautio [2013a. “Children Who Carry Stones in Their Pockets: On Autotelic Material Practices in Everyday Life. ” Children's Geographies 11 (4): 394–408]. Based on my child–dog interspecies exploration, I will conclude by re-addressing the three propositions.
Graph Fourier transform based on directed Laplacian

In this paper, we redefine the graph Fourier transform (GFT) under the DSPG framework. We consider the Jordan eigenvectors of the directed Laplacian matrix as graph harmonics and the corresponding eigenvalues as the graph frequencies. For this purpose, we propose a shift operator based on the directed Laplacian of a graph. Based on our shift operator, we then define total variation of graph signals, which is used for frequency ordering. We achieve natural frequency ordering as well as interpretation via the proposed definition of GFT. Moreover, we show that our proposed shift operator makes linear shift invariant (LSI) filters under DSPG to become polynomials in the directed Laplacian.
Leptin as a Potential Target for Estrogen Receptor-Positive Breast Cancer

Purpose Leptin is a potent adipokine that plays a significant role in tumor development and the progression of breast cancer. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether leptin affects the response to tamoxifen treatment in estrogen receptor (ER)-positive breast cancer cells. Methods Leptin, leptin receptor (Ob-R), and activation of signaling pathways were studied by Western immunoblotting. The effects of leptin on tamoxifen-dependent growth inhibition were studied in MCF-7 and T-47D cells. Results Leptin was expressed in MCF-7 and T-47D and had a proliferative effect on MCF-7 cells. Leptin significantly inhibited the antiestrogenic effect of tamoxifen in both cells only under β-estradiol (E2) (20 nM) conditions. In MCF-7, the inhibitory effect against tamoxifen was a result from the activation of the ERK1/2 and STAT3 signal transduction pathway. Conclusion Leptin interferes with the effects of tamoxifen under E2 stimulated conditions in ER-positive breast cancer cells. These results imply that inhibition of leptin is expected to enhance the response to tamoxifen in ER-positive breast cancer cells, and, therefore, could be a promising way to overcome endocrine resistance.
The Circumplex of Personality Metatraits: A Synthesizing Model of Personality Based on the Big Five

The Big Five model describes the structure of personality as 5 orthogonal and universal dimensions. Although the model has gained significant empirical support both in the psycholexical and questionnaire approaches, it is not free of criticism. The controversies concern the main assumptions regarding the structure of personality, among others the number of basic traits and their orthogonality. It turns out that 2 higher-order factors (also called metatraits) Alpha and Beta, or even 1 General Factor of Personality (GFP) are located above the 5 traits and account for systematical intercorrelations between these basic dimensions. The present article describes the Circumplex of Personality Metatraits (CPM), a proposal based on the knowledge gathered in the Big Five research tradition and solving some problems raised both in psycholexical and psychometric approaches. According to the model, metatraits can be described within a circumplex that is organized by 2 orthogonal dimensions: Alpha and Beta. Furthermore, we also introduce to the model 2 other metatraits: Gamma and Delta. On one hand these correspond to the personality types, and on the other they resolve the controversies related to the GFP. The main advantage of the CPM model is that it provides foundations for wide-ranging theoretical integration: (a) of the trait (disposition) approach to personality with those personality theories that make use of dynamic and explanatory theoretical constructs; (b) of various models of personality, temperament, emotion, motivation, and psychopathology; and (c) of the traditions of personality description in terms of traits and in terms of types.
Sh3pxd2b Mice Are a Model for Craniofacial Dysmorphology and Otitis Media

Craniofacial defects that occur through gene mutation during development increase vulnerability to eustachian tube dysfunction. These defects can lead to an increased incidence of otitis media. We examined the effects of a mutation in the Sh3pxd2b gene (Sh3pxd2bnee) on the progression of otitis media and hearing impairment at various developmental stages. We found that all mice that had the Sh3pxd2bnee mutation went on to develop craniofacial dysmorphologies and subsequently otitis media, by as early as 11 days of age. We found noteworthy changes in cilia and goblet cells of the middle ear mucosa in Sh3pxd2bnee mutant mice using scanning electronic microscopy. By measuring craniofacial dimensions, we determined for the first time in an animal model that this mouse has altered eustachian tube morphology consistent with a more horizontal position of the eustachian tube. All mutants were found to have hearing impairment. Expression of TNF-α and TLR2, which correlates with inflammation in otitis media, was up-regulated in the ears of mutant mice when examined by immunohistochemistry and semi-quantitative RT-PCR. The mouse model with a mutation in the Sh3pxd2b gene (Sh3pxd2bnee) mirrors craniofacial dysmorphology and otitis media in humans.
Moxibustion for Primary Dysmenorrhea at Different Interventional Times: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Primary dysmenorrhea (PD) is one of the most common diseases in gynecology at present. Some clinical trials have reported the effects of moxibustion and confirmed temporal factors are the important elements influencing the efficacy of moxibustion. However, no systematic review has yet been conducted. In this study, we assessed the effects of moxibustion in patients with PD enrolled in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and the difference among different intervention times to start moxibustion. We extracted data for studies searched from 10 electronic databases and evaluated the methodological quality of the included studies. We discussed three outcomes: effective rate, pain remission, and the level of PGF2α in serum. Current clinical researches showed that, compared with nonmoxibustion treatments for PD, moxibustion leads to higher effective rate and lower level of PGF2α in serum. However, there was no difference in using moxibustion to treat PD at different intervention times. Based on the theory of Chinese medicine and the results of this study, choosing 5 ± 2 days before menstruation to start moxibustion can achieve good efficacy for PD patients. However, more high-quality RCTs are needed to confirm the conclusions.
Surgery for brain metastases

The use of surgery in the treatment of brain metastases is controversial. Patients who present certain clinical characteristics may experience prolonged survival with resection compared with radiation therapy. Thus, for patients with a single metastatic lesion in the setting of well-controlled systemic cancer, surgery is highly indicated. Stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) alone can provide a similar survival advantage, but when used as postoperative adjuvant therapy, patients experience extended survival times. Furthermore, surgery remains the only treatment option for patients with life-threatening neurological symptoms, who require immediate tumor debulking. Treatment of brain metastases requires a careful clinical assessment of individual patients, as different prognostic factors may indicate various modes or combinations of therapy. Since surgery is an effective method for achieving tumor management in particular cases, it remains an important consideration in the treatment algorithm for brain metastases.
An Audit of the Statistical Validity of Conclusions of Clinical Superiority in Anaesthesia Journals

Making a statistically valid conclusion of the superiority of a clinical intervention in a clinical trial requires not only a statistically significant P value, but also adequate a priori power and an observed effect size larger than the clinically important value specified in the sample size calculation. We scrutinised the five most highly cited clinical trials reporting one or more conclusions of clinical superiority published in Anesthesiology, the British Journal of Anaesthesia, Anaesthesia, Anesthesia and Analgesia and Anaesthesia and Intensive Care in 2011 or 2012 to determine how many met all three requisite criteria. In the 25 articles, there were a total of 36 unconditional conclusions of the superiority of a clinical intervention. All were supported by a statistically significant P value. However, only 15 (41.6%) met all three requisite statistical criteria to support clinical superiority. The remainder included secondary outcomes without specific reference to their observational nature, and primary outcomes whose observed effect size was smaller than the clinically important value specified in the sample size calculation. These findings indicate that clinicians should closely scrutinise conclusions of clinical superiority in anaesthesia journals. Many will be ‘hypothesis-generating observations’ without adequate statistical support for a conclusion of clinical superiority in their own right.
Characterization and Performance of Soy-Based Adhesives Cured with Epoxy Resin

Soy-based adhesives have attracted much attention recently because they are environmentally safe, low cost, and readily available. To improve the gluability and water resistance of soy-based adhesives, we prepared an enzyme-treated soy-based adhesive modified with an epoxy resin. We investigated the wet shear strength of plywood bonded with the modified adhesive using the boiling-water test. Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and 1H nuclear magnetic resonance analysis were used to characterize the reaction between epoxy groups and –NH2 groups in the modified soy-based adhesives. FTIR analysis confirmed the cross-linking structure in the cured adhesives. Viscosity and the solid content of soy-based adhesives gradually increased with the increasing amount of epoxy resin, but had little effect on its operability. Wet shear strength of plywood samples increased as the amount of epoxy resin was increased, whereas the inverse trend was observed regarding the water absorption of cured adhesives. Compared to an unmodified adhesive, the addition of 30% of epoxy resin increased the wet shear strength of plywood samples by 58.3% (0.95 MPa), meeting the requirement of the Chinese National Standard for exterior plywood. Differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis showed the improved thermostability of the cured adhesives after curing at 160 °C. These results suggest that epoxy resin could effectively improve the performance of enzyme-treated soy-based adhesives, which might provide a new option for the preparation of soy-based adhesives with high gluability and water resistance.