Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Examining the Relationship between Cardiorespiratory Fitness and Body Weight Status: Empirical Evidence from a Population-Based Survey of Adults in Taiwan

Background. Cardiovascular disease is the number one cause of death worldwide. Meanwhile, obesity has been recognized as a global epidemic. This study aims to examine the extent to which cardiorespiratory fitness is associated with body mass among adult males and females in Taiwan. Materials and Methods. A nationally representative dataset consisting of 68,175 adults aged 18–60, including 31,743 males and 36,432 females, was used. Several multivariate regression models were used to investigate the relationship between cardiorespiratory fitness and body weight status, after controlling for adults' sociodemographic status. Results. A one-unit increase in the BMI lowered the cardiorespiratory fitness score by 0.316 and 0.368 points for adult males and females, respectively. Among adult males, compared to those of normal weight, adult males who were underweight, overweight, or obese had a lower cardiorespiratory fitness score by 1.287, 0.845, and 3.353 points, respectively. Similar results could be found in female samples. Conclusion. The overweight and obese adults had much lower levels of cardiorespiratory fitness as compared to their normal weight counterparts. Given the upward trend in the prevalence of overweight and obesity, it is important to help overweight and obese people to become more fit and reach their healthy weight.
Population pharmacokinetic analysis of certolizumab pegol in patients with Crohn's disease

Certolizumab pegol (CZP), an anti–tumor necrosis factor α agent, is an effective therapy for Crohn's disease (CD). A population pharmacokinetic (PK) analysis of subcutaneously administered CZP was performed using data from 2157 CD patients from 9 separate studies. The aim was to determine which covariates influence the disposition of CZP. The final CZP population PK model consisted of a baseline, first‐order absorption, and 1‐compartment disposition. CZP antibodies were treated as a structural model covariate and caused apparent clearance (CL/F) to increase from 0.685 to 2.74 L/day. Body surface area (BSA) influenced both CL/F and apparent volume of distribution (V/F) in a linear fashion; both parameters increased by more than 53% and 49%, respectively, across the range of BSA measurements in the data. Albumin influenced CZP CL/F in a nonlinear fashion; CL/F decreased from 1.05 to 0.613 L/day with increasing albumin concentrations in antibody‐negative patients. C‐reactive protein (CRP) had a borderline influence and CL/F increased by more than 20% across the range of CRP measurements in the data set. Race had a minor influence on V/F. The determined covariates' impact on CZP disposition may be of clinical utility in CZP therapy of CD patients when the PK/pharmacodynamic relationship becomes available.
A three month double-blind study of doxazosin as treatment for benign prostatic bladder outlet obstruction.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the efficacy and tolerability of doxazosin in the treatment of bladder outflow obstruction resulting from benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). PATIENTS AND METHODS One-hundred and thirty-five patients with symptomatic urodynamically confirmed obstructive BPH were treated for 12 weeks with either doxazosin (67 patients) or placebo (68 patients) after an initial 2 week baseline evaluation. The main outcome measures were urodynamic and symptomatic evaluation for efficacy. Blood pressure and adverse events were monitored. RESULTS Data were obtained in 122 patients (60 doxazosin, 62 placebo). Doxazosin produced increases in both mean and maximum urinary flow rates of 1.01 ml/s and 3.2 ml/s respectively, compared with 0.21 ml/s and 2.2 ml/s on placebo. The increase in mean flow rate was statistically significant (P = 0.04), while that for maximum flow rate approached significance (P = 0.09). The maximum subtracted voiding pressure was substantially reduced (P = 0.007) and 19 of 53 (36%) patients had an increase in maximum flow rate of 50% or more compared with 9 of 54 (17%) on placebo (P = 0.024). Twelve weeks' therapy with doxazosin resulted in significant improvements (compared with placebo) in: hesitancy (doxazosin 26 of 46, placebo 11 of 43; P = 0.003), impaired urinary stream (doxazosin 31 of 55, placebo 16 of 48; P = 0.019) nocturia (doxazosin 22 of 56, placebo 10 of 54; P = 0.017) and urgency (doxazosin 27 of 45, placebo 16 of 42; P = 0.041). Frequency improved with doxazosin therapy (doxazosin 26 of 59, placebo 15 of 55; P = 0.062). Adverse events, most frequently dizziness and headache, were usually mild and transient and led to a discontinuation of doxazosin therapy in one patient. No clinically significant changes in sexual function or blood pressure were seen. CONCLUSION Doxazosin was well-tolerated and produced both urodynamic and symptomatic improvement in men with BPH, thereby providing a satisfactory alternative to existing drugs with the additional benefit of once daily dosage.
Sealing the intramedullary femoral canal with autologous bone plug in total knee arthroplasty.

In a prospective study of 262 consecutive patients with total knee arthroplasty, we compared the postoperative suction drainage and transfusion requirement in cases in which the defect made by the femoral intramedullary rod was either unplugged (n = 134) or plugged (n = 128). All operations were performed with a single surgical approach and technique. Inflammatory arthritis and lateral releases were excluded. Blood loss was recorded at 24, 48, and 72 hours. The difference in postoperative suction drainage was not statistically significant. The hemoglobin decrease in the unplugged group (3.5 g/dL) was different from that in the plugged group (2.3 g/dL) (P<.05). Of patients, 64.4% (n = 85) in the unplugged group and 35.9% (n = 46) in the plugged group required transfusion (P<.05). Sealing the femoral canal is effective in reducing hemoglobin decrease and blood transfusion in total knee arthroplasty.
Invasion and Intracellular Development of the Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis Agent in Tick Cell Culture

ABSTRACT Human granulocytotropic ehrlichias are tick-borne bacterial pathogens that cause an acute, life-threatening illness, human granulocytic ehrlichiosis (HGE). Ehrlichias within neutrophil granulocytes that invade tick bite sites are likely ingested by the vector, to be transmitted to another mammalian host during the tick’s next blood meal. Thus, the cycle of replication and development in the vector is prerequisite to mammalian infection, and yet these events have not been described. We report tick cell culture isolation of two strains of the HGE agent directly from an infected horse and a dog and have also established a human isolate from HL60 culture in tick cells, proving that the blood stages of the HGE agent are infectious for tick cells, as are those replicating in the human cell line HL60. This required changes to the culture system, including a new tick cell line. In tick cell layers, the HGE agent induced foci of infection that caused necrotic plaques and eventual destruction of the culture. Using the human isolate and electron microscopy, we monitored adhesion, internalization, and replication in vector tick cells. Both electron-lucent and -dense forms adhered to and entered cells by a mechanism reminiscent of phagocytosis. Ehrlichial cell division was initiated soon after, resulting in endosomes filled with numerous ehrlichias. During early development, pale ehrlichias with a tight cell wall dominated, but by day 2, individual bacteria condensed into dark forms with a rippled membrane. These may become compacted into clumps where individual organisms are barely discernible. Whether these are part of an ehrlichia life cycle or are degenerating is unknown.
A ONE-DIMENSIONAL

Algorithms based on statistical models compete favorably with other global optimization algorithms as shown by extensive testing results. A theoretical inadequacy of previously used statistical models for smooth ob-jective functions was eliminated by the authors who in a recent paper have constructed a P-algorithm for a statistical model of smooth functions. In the present note a modiﬁcation of that P-algorithm with an improved convergence rate is described.
The effects of climate change on the reproductive development of Theobroma cacao L.

Cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) is widely farmed throughout the humid tropics where it is an important crop to smallholder farmers. Climate change projections suggest increased temperatures and altered rainfall patterns in these regions. The effects of two key climate change variables; elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations and water deficit were investigated on the reproductive development of six genotypes of cacao (CL19/10, ICS 1, IMC 47, Pound 7/B, SCA 6, and SPEC 54/1). Genotypes showed variability in their response to treatments; however general observations were also made. At elevated CO2 (700ppm) the mean length of pollen tubes decreased and the degree of fluctuation in flowering intensity increased over time without any overall reduction in flower production. Final pod size and maximum rate of growth increased in response to elevated CO2 in the second year of study. Additionally in the second year there was an increase in husk weight and thickness, and individual bean weight. There was no increase in bean number or shell percentage. Total cocoa butter content and percentage unsaturated fat was lower under elevated CO2 along with reductions in stearic, oleic and linoleic fatty acid content; however these responses varied between genotypes and sampling period. Final woody biomass increased under elevated CO2 whereas leaf biomass was unaffected. Water deficit stress had no observed effect on pollen performance, flowering behaviour, or cocoa butter content and composition. Final pod size and rate of growth was reduced under water stress in the first year of study only. The reduced pod size was reflected in reduced husk and bean weights. Final wood and leaf biomass were both reduced in response to the water stress treatment. Across all parameters measured, no evidence of interaction between elevated CO2 and water deficit stress was observed. Overall, these results demonstrate the potential for yield improvement in cacao through breeding in preparation for future climate scenarios.
The development of a urinary tract infection is associated with increased mortality in trauma patients.

BACKGROUND In October 2008, Medicare and Medicaid stopped paying for care associated with catheter-related urinary tract infections (UTIs). Although most clinicians agree UTIs are detrimental, there are little data to support this belief. METHODS This is a retrospective review of trauma registry data from a Level I trauma center between 2003 and 2008. Two proportional hazards regressions were used for analyses. The first predicted acquisition of UTI as a function of indwelling urinary catheter use, adjusting for age, diabetes, gender, and injury severity. The second predicted hospital mortality as a function of UTI, covarying for age, gender, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, congestive heart failure, hypertension, diabetes, pneumonia, and injury severity. RESULTS After excluding patients who stayed in the hospital <3 days and those with a UTI on arrival, 5,736 patients were included in the study. Of these patients, 680 (11.9%) met criteria for a UTI, with 487 (71.6%) indwelling urinary catheter-related infections. Predictors of UTI included the interaction between age and gender (p = 0.0018), Injury Severity Score (p = 0.0021), and indwelling urinary catheter use (p < 0.001). The development of a UTI predicted the risk of in-hospital death as a patient's age increased (p = 0.002). Similar results were seen when only catheter-associated UTIs are included in the analysis. CONCLUSIONS Indwelling urinary catheter use is connected to the development of UTIs, and these infections are associated with a greater mortality as the age of a trauma patients increases.
Effect of low calorie diet with rice bran oil on cardiovascular risk factors in hyperlipidemic patients

Background: Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of death and disability in industrialized and developing countries. The aim of this research was to determine the effect of rice bran oil, with a low-calorie diet, on lipid profiles, in hyperlipidemic patients. Materials and Methods: This study was a parallel groups’ randomized clinical trial with a pre- and post-test design. Fifty hyperlipidemic patients of both sexes and age range of 25 – 65 years had participated. The patients received a low-calorie diet based on 1400 kcal energy, 17% protein, 26% fat, and 57% carbohydrate per day for four weeks. The treatment group received a low-calorie diet including rice bran oil (30 g / day). Blood samples were obtained after an overnight (12 hours) fasting period before the study and on the last day of the intervention period. Anthropometric indices and levels of serum triacylglycerol, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein, and high-density lipoprotein were measured before and after the intervention. Results: In both groups, weight, body mass index, waist, and hip circumferences were significantly reduced (P < 0.05) after four weeks. In comparison with the control group, the results of treatment with rice bran oil, with a low-calorie diet, showed that at the end of the fourth week, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein, and atherogenic ratio of total cholesterol / high-density lipoprotein were significantly decreased (P < 0.05). Conclusions: The results confirm that rice bran oil, when consumed as part of a healthy diet, is effective in improving risk factors for cardiovascular disease.
Reducing Underage and Young Adult Drinking

Forty years ago, when the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) was founded, alcoholism was considered an adult disease driven principally by physiological determinants. As NIAAA expanded its research portfolio, new data and insights were obtained that led to an increased focus on underage and young adult drinking. Fostered by interdisciplinary research, etiologic models were developed that recognized the multiplicity of relevant genetic and environmental influences. This shift in conceptualizing alcohol use disorders also was based on findings from large-scale, national studies indicating that late adolescence and early young adulthood were peak periods for the development of alcohol dependence and that early initiation of alcohol use (i.e., before age 15) was associated with a fourfold increase in the probability of subsequently developing alcohol dependence. In recent years, developmental studies and models of the initiation, escalation, and adverse consequences of underage and early young adult drinking have helped us to understand how alcohol use may influence, and be influenced by, developmental transitions or turning points. Major risk and protective factors are being identified and integrated into screening, prevention, and treatment programs to optimize interventions designed to reduce drinking problems among adolescents and young adults. In addition, regulatory policies, such as the minimum drinking age and zero-tolerance laws, are being implemented and evaluated for their impact on public health.
Cost effectiveness of adjuvant trastuzumab in human epidermal growth factor receptor 2-positive breast cancer.

PURPOSE To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of 12-month adjuvant trastuzumab therapy in women with high-risk human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) -positive early breast cancer. METHODS A Markov model tracked quarterly patients' transitions between five health states: disease free, local relapse, disease free after local relapse, metastatic disease, and death. Patients were allowed to incur symptomatic or asymptomatic transient cardiac dysfunction during trastuzumab administration. Probabilities were derived mainly from the combined report of the National Surgical Adjuvant Breast and Bowel Project B-31 and the North Central Cancer Treatment Group N9831 trials (95% node positive) and a meta-analysis by the Early Breast Cancer Trialists' Collaborative Group. Costs were estimated from the perspective of the Italian and US health care systems. The analysis was run during a 15-year time horizon. A 3% yearly discount rate was applied to both costs and life-years. Second-order Monte-Carlo and probabilistic sensitivity analyses were performed. RESULTS Adjuvant trastuzumab increases life expectancy by 1.54 (1.18 discounted) quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs). At a cost of 675 euros and 767 dollars per weekly dose in the Italian and US setting, respectively, trastuzumab achieves its clinical benefit at a cost of 14,861 euros (95% CI, 3,917 euros to 44,028 euros) and 18,970 dollars (95% CI, 6,014 dollars to 45,621 dollars) per QALY saved. The incremental cost effectiveness was higher than 50,000 euros/QALY (or 60,000 dollars/QALY) at time horizons shorter than 7.8 years and for patients older than 76 years or with a 10-year risk of relapse lower than 15%. The results confirmed the cost effectiveness when simulating a Herceptin Adjuvant Trial (HERA) -like scenario at multiway sensitivity analysis. CONCLUSION In a long-term horizon, adjuvant trastuzumab is a cost-effective therapy for patients with HER2-positive, high-risk, early breast cancer.
Physiological and immunopathological consequences of active immunization of spontaneously hypertensive and normotensive rats against murine renin.

Spontaneously hypertensive Okamoto-strain rats (SHR) and normotensive Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats were actively immunized with mouse renin to investigate the effect on blood pressure of blocking the renin-angiotensinogen reaction. Ten male SHR and 10 male WKY rats were immunized with purified mouse submandibular gland renin. Control rats were immunized with bovine serum albumin. Antirenin antibodies were produced by both SHR and WKY rats, but renin-immunized SHR had higher titers of circulating renin antibodies after three injections. The increase in renin antibody in renin-immunized SHR was associated with a significant drop in blood pressure (tail-cuff method) that became similar to that of the WKY control rats after four injections. The blockade by antirenin immunoglobulins of the renin-angiotensinogen reaction also decreased the blood pressure of normotensive rats. Perfusion of renin-immunized rats with mouse submandibular renin (10 micrograms) in vivo caused no increase in blood pressure. Perfusion of renin-immunized, salt-depleted SHR with converting enzyme inhibitor caused no further decrease in blood pressure but significantly decreased blood pressure in salt-depleted control rats. The presence of circulating renin antibodies was associated with low plasma renin activity (0.31 +/- 0.23 ng angiotensin I [Ang I]/ml/hr). Plasma renin activity was unchanged in control animals (13.1 +/- 3.9 ng Ang I/ml/hr in control SHR, 13.9 +/- 3.2 ng Ang I/ml/hr in control WKY rats). Renin antibody-rich serum produced a dose-dependent inhibition of rat renin enzymatic activity in vitro. The chronic blockade of the renin-angiotensinogen reaction in renin-immunized SHR produced an almost-complete disappearance of Ang II (0.8 %/- 7 fmol/ml; control SHR, 30.6 +/- 15.7 fmol/ml) and a 50% reduction in urinary aldosterone. Renin immunization was never associated with a detectable loss of sodium after either 10 or 24 weeks. The glomerular filtration rate was not decreased 10 weeks after renin immunization, whereas blood pressure was significantly decreased, plasma renin activity was blocked, and renal plasma flow was increased. The ratio of left ventricular weight to body weight after 24 weeks was significantly below control levels in renin-immunized WKY rats and SHR. Histological examination of the kidney of renin-immunized SHR showed a chronic autoimmune interstitial nephritis characterized by the presence of immunoglobulins, mononuclear cell infiltration, and fibrosis around the juxtaglomerular apparatus. These experiments demonstrate that chronic specific blockade of renin decreases blood pressure in a genetic model of hypertension in which the renin-angiotensin system is not directly involved. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)
The dynamics of a changing arctic ocean

The Arctic Ocean is undergoing a period of rapid transition, and many different aspects of its environment (ocean, sea ice, and atmosphere) are changing faster than has ever previously been observed. Motivated by the role that the Arctic plays in the global climate and ocean circulation, the aim of this thesis is to investigate how the changing environment is affecting the dynamics and circulation of the Arctic Ocean. Observations show that freshwater accumulation in the Beaufort Gyre of the western Arctic Ocean has accelerated over the past decade. First, a simple process model and idealised perturbations to the annual cycle in ocean surface stress are used to show that the decline in Arctic sea ice cover and an increase in the annual mean momentum flux can explain this accelerated accumulation. The adjustment timescale and quantity of freshwater accumulated are determined by a balance between Ekman pumping and an eddy-induced volume flux, highlighting the importance of eddies in the changing Arctic. Sea ice decline may also drive periodic increases in vertical mixing. Using a 1D model of the Arctic Ocean water column, the competing effects of elevated vertical mixing and enhanced freshwater input on the stratification, the stability of the cold halocline, and the sea ice cover at the surface are explored. An elevated diffusive heat flux driven by stronger vertical mixing has little effect on the sea ice. Instead, the erosion of the cold halocline, which isolates the sea ice from the warm Atlantic water, represents the most important feedback for ongoing sea ice melt. The changing Arctic Ocean will further affect the freshwater export to either side of Greenland; however, local dynamics will also be important. In this chapter, the vertical structure of the tides in Nares Strait in the Canadian Arctic Archipelago are explored, as tidal turbulence may represent an important frictional constraint for the freshwater flow in this region. The tides propagate as either standing or progressive waves, and the vertical structure is set by the proximity of the semi-diurnal critical latitude, the requirement of no normal flow through the coast, and the strong stratification at the surface. There is little temporal variability in the vertical structure, and tidal dissipation is comparable in magnitude to that over the highly dissipative region of the northwest European Shelf.
Spatial and temporal distributions of the late Mesozoic volcanic successions and their controlling effects on the Changling fault depression of the Songliao Basin, northeast China

Volcanic successions, including their spatial, temporal, tectonic, and geochemical attributes, were identified based on well data, 2D and 3D seismic data, U–Pb isotopic ages, and major and trace element data from the Changling fault depression of the Songliao Basin in northeastern China. Three eruption cycles developed in the Changling fault depression: K1h (Huoshiling Formation) (124–118 Ma), K1yc1 (first member of the Yingcheng Formation) (115–106 Ma), and K1yc3 (third member of the Yingcheng Formation) (106–102 Ma). These three eruption cycles comprised seven eruption stages. The volcanic successions in every eruption cycle were bimodal and evolved from basic to acidic. The magma of the basic and intermediate rocks in these cycles was derived from partial melting of the asthenosphere. In K1yc1 and K1yc3, partial melting of the newly formed basic rocks in the lower crust formed the high-SiO2 acidic magma. In addition, fractional crystallization of basic magma formed the small-scale intermediate–acidic m.