Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Recent Food Shortage Is Associated with Leprosy Disease in Bangladesh: A Case-Control Study

Background Leprosy is remaining prevalent in the poorest areas of the world. Intensive control programmes with multidrug therapy (MDT) reduced the number of registered cases in these areas, but transmission of Mycobacterium leprae continues in most endemic countries. Socio-economic circumstances are considered to be a major determinant, but uncertainty exists regarding the association between leprosy and poverty. We assessed the association between different socio-economic factors and the risk of acquiring clinical signs of leprosy. Methods and Findings We performed a case-control study in two leprosy endemic districts in northwest Bangladesh. Using interviews with structured questionnaires we compared the socio-economic circumstances of recently diagnosed leprosy patients with a control population from a random cluster sample in the same area. Logistic regression was used to compare cases and controls for their wealth score as calculated with an asset index and other socio-economic factors. The study included 90 patients and 199 controls. A recent period of food shortage and not poverty per se was identified as the only socio-economic factor significantly associated with clinical manifestation of leprosy disease (OR 1.79 (1.06–3.02); p = 0.030). A decreasing trend in leprosy prevalence with an increasing socio-economic status as measured with an asset index is apparent, but not statistically significant (test for a trend: OR 0.85 (0.71–1.02); p = 0.083). Conclusions Recent food shortage is an important poverty related predictor for the clinical manifestation of leprosy disease. Food shortage is seasonal and poverty related in northwest Bangladesh. Targeted nutritional support for high risk groups should be included in leprosy control programmes in endemic areas to reduce risk of disease.
The Cerebellum Generates Motor-to-Auditory Predictions: ERP Lesion Evidence

Forward predictions are crucial in motor action (e.g., catching a ball, or being tickled) but may also apply to sensory or cognitive processes (e.g., listening to distorted speech or to a foreign accent). According to the “internal forward model,” the cerebellum generates predictions about somatosensory consequences of movements. These predictions simulate motor processes and prepare respective cortical areas for anticipated sensory input. Currently, there is very little evidence that a cerebellar forward model also applies to other sensory domains. In the current study, we address this question by examining the role of the cerebellum when auditory stimuli are anticipated as a consequence of a motor act. We applied an N100 suppression paradigm and compared the ERP in response to self-initiated with the ERP response to externally produced sounds. We hypothesized that sensory consequences of self-initiated sounds are precisely predicted and should lead to an N100 suppression compared with externally produced sounds. Moreover, if the cerebellum is involved in the generation of a motor-to-auditory forward model, patients with focal cerebellar lesions should not display an N100 suppression effect. Compared with healthy controls, patients showed a largely attenuated N100 suppression effect. The current results suggest that the cerebellum forms not only motor-to-somatosensory predictions but also motor-to-auditory predictions. This extends the cerebellar forward model to other sensory domains such as audition.
The Q267E mutation in the sodium/iodide symporter (NIS) causes congenital iodide transport defect (ITD) by decreasing the NIS turnover number

The Na+/I- symporter (NIS) is a key plasma membrane glycoprotein that mediates active iodide (I-) transport in the thyroid and other tissues. Since isolation of the cDNA encoding NIS (G. Dai, O. Levy, and N. Carrasco (1996) Nature 379, 458-460), ten mutations in NIS have been identified as causes of congenital iodide transport defect (ITD). Two of these mutations (T354P and G395R) have been thoroughly characterized at the molecular level. Both mutant NIS proteins are inactive but normally expressed and correctly targeted to the plasma membrane. The hydroxyl group at the β-carbon of residue 354 is essential for NIS function, whereas the presence of a charged or large side-chain at position 395 interferes with NIS function. We report the extensive molecular analysis of the Q267E mutation in COS-7 cells transfected with rat or human Q267E NIS cDNA constructs. We used site-directed mutagenesis to engineer various residue substitutions into position 267. In contrast to previous suggestions that Q267E NIS was inactive, possibly because of a trafficking defect, we conclusively show that Q267E NIS is modestly active and properly targeted to the plasma membrane. Q267E NIS exhibited lower Vmax values for I- than wild-type NIS, suggesting that the decreased level of activity of Q267E NIS is due to a lower catalytic rate. That Q267E NIS retains even partial activity sets this ITD-causing mutant apart from T354P and G395R NIS. The presence of charged residues (of any polarity) other than Glu at position 267 rendered NIS inactive without affecting its expression or targeting, but substitution with neutral residues at this position was compatible with partial activity.
Contextualizing Change in Marital Satisfaction During Middle Age

To address the need for longitudinal marital research that takes contextual factors into account, we investigated change in women's marital satisfaction over 18 years of middle age. We examined not only whether marital satisfaction changed, but also why and how it changed. Marital satisfaction increased in middle age, and increased marital, but not life, satisfaction was linked to the transition to an empty nest. More specifically, the transition to an empty nest increased marital satisfaction via an increase in women's enjoyment of time with their partners, but not via an increase in the quantity of that time with partners. Also, increasing marital satisfaction was not attributable to changing partners. Taken together, these findings support the utility of applying a contextualized approach focused on major life transitions to the study of long-term change in marital satisfaction.
Solar Plane Propulsion Motors With Precompressed Aluminum Stator Windings

This paper reports a propulsion motor for a solar-powered aircraft. The motor uses precompressed aluminum stator windings, with a fill factor of greater than 75%, in a permanent magnet synchronous machine. The motor performance is compared empirically to an identical machine with conventionally wound copper windings. It is shown that there are many advantages to using compressed aluminum windings in terms of weight reduction, thermal improvement, and lower cost, for the same loss and electromagnetic performance, provided a sufficiently high slot fill factor can be achieved. The design and manufacture of the compressed coils is also discussed. A modular stator arrangement is used, in the form of a solid coreback with keyed teeth to allow easy assembly of the compressed windings. It is noted that the electromagnetic performance of the machine is unaffected by the modular nature of the magnetic core. Two prototype motors, one wound with conventional copper and the other with precompressed aluminum windings, are constructed and tested.
Frequency of the HIV-protective CC chemokine receptor 5-Delta32/Delta32 genotype is increased in hepatitis C.

BACKGROUND & AIMS A homozygous 32-base pair deletion in the CCR5 gene (CCR5-Delta32) protects against human immunodeficiency virus infection (HIV). However, the role of this mutation in other infections, such as hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, has not been defined. METHODS We determined the frequency of the CCR5-Delta32 mutation by polymerase chain reaction in anti-HCV(+) (n = 153), anti-HIV(+) (n = 102), and anti-HCV(+)/HIV(+) (n = 130) white patients as well as in 102 healthy blood donors. Then, HIV and HCV loads, aminotransferases, and CD4 and CD8 cell counts were compared between the resulting subsets of CCR5-Delta32/wild-type heterozygotes, CCR5-Delta32, and wild-type homozygotes, respectively. RESULTS Twelve of 153 (7.8%) anti-HCV-seropositive patients and 1 of 102 (1.0%) healthy blood donors were CCR5-Delta32 homozygous, whereas CCR5-Delta32 homozygosity was absent in anti-HIV(+) and anti-HCV(+)/HIV(+) patients (P < 0.001). The frequency of the CCR5-Delta32 allele was higher in the anti-HCV(+) (16.0%, P < 0.05) and anti-HCV(+)/HIV(+) (12.7%, NS) patients than in healthy blood donors (8.3%) and anti-HIV(+) patients (9.3%), respectively. Anti-HCV(+) CCR5-Delta32 homozygotes occurred 3 times more frequently than expected from the Hardy-Weinberg equation (P < 0.0001) and had significantly higher HCV loads than wild-type patients (P = 0.045). CONCLUSIONS The increased prevalence of CCR5-Delta32 homozygosity associated with increased viral loads in patients with chronic hepatitis C suggests that the CCR5-Delta32 mutation may be an adverse host factor in hepatitis C.
Reproductive endocrinology of the mink (Mustela vison).

Introduction THE MINK (Mustela vison) is a seasonally breeding, semiaquatic animal that is a delayed implanter belonging to the mammalian order Carnivora. It is not a traditional laboratory animal; nevertheless it is of great importance because it is a valuable fur-bearing animal bred and raised in captivity in significant numbers [25.9 million pelts produced 1982/1983 in the world (1)]. The animal has a short life cycle in that the period of time from breeding (early March) to pelting (late November and early December) is roughly 9 months. Few reviews exist on reproduction and endocrinology of the mink (2–5), although some books and book chapters have been written about their breeding (6–22). This review will, therefore, focus on the current knowledge on the reproductive endocrinology of mink. Endocrinology of Mink Reproduction The hypothalamic-pituitary unit Anatomy. As in other animals, the mink hypothalamus and pituitary gland form a close anatomical and functional unit (23–26) in which the hypothalam.
Enc1 expression in the chick telencephalon at intermediate and late stages of development

In this work we studied the regional expression pattern of the Enc1 gene in the chick embryo telencephalon at intermediate and late stages of development, bearing on architectonic groupings and boundaries of current interest. In general, the Enc1 signal shows a markedly heterogeneous areal pattern of expression throughout the telencephalon; this corroborates data on new pallial and subpallial structures defined recently in the stereotaxic chick brain atlas of Puelles et al. ( 2007 . The chick brain in stereotaxic coodinates. San Diego, CA: Academic Press). For example: a periventricular/central domain is Enc1‐negative in the ventral pallium or nidopallium; core and shell nuclei appear in the mesopallium; the redefined caudodorsolateral area shows a characteristic pattern; the limits of the densocellular hyperpallium in the dorsal pallium are illuminated; and the postulated entorhinal cortex area is distinct at the posterior telencephalic pole. Interestingly, Enc1 transcripts are distinctly present in the piriform cortex at the surface of the ventral pallium throughout its longitudinal extent, as well as in the most rostral part of the lateral pallium, implying a layout of this cortex more similar to the situation in mammals than was assumed previously. Separate corticoid superficial strata are labeled by the Enc1 probe in the lateral and dorsal pallial regions. In the subpallium, the expression of Enc1 agrees with the new radial subdivisions defined by Puelles et al. ( 2007 ). J. Comp. Neurol. 517:564–580, 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
High-risk alcohol use and associated socio-demographic, health and psychosocial factors in patients with HIV infection in three primary health care clinics in South Africa

Alcohol use may have a negative impact on the course of HIV disease and the effectiveness of its treatment. We studied patients with HIV who use alcohol and associated socio-demographic, health and psychosocial factors. Outcomes from this study may help in selecting patients from clinical practice with high-risk alcohol use and who are likely to benefit most from alcohol reduction interventions. In a cross sectional study in three primary health care clinics in Pretoria, South Africa, from January 2012 to June 2012, patients with HIV infection were interviewed and patients’ medical files were reviewed to obtain data on levels of alcohol use (Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test), patients’ socio-demographic characteristics, HIV-related information, health related quality of life (WHOQoL-HIVBref), internalized AIDS stigma, symptoms of depression and adherence to antiretroviral therapy. Analyses consisted of descriptive statistics, bi- and multivariate logistic regression models. A total of 2230 patients (1483 [66.5%] female) were included. The median age was 37 years (interquartile range 31–43), 99.5% were black Africans, 1975 (88.6%) had started ART and the median time on ART was 22 months (interquartile range 9–40). No alcohol was used by 64% of patients, 8.9% were low risk drinkers, 25.1% of patients were hazardous or harmful drinkers and 2.0% had possible alcohol dependence. In multivariate analysis high-risk drinking was positively associated with male gender, never being married, tobacco use, a higher score for the ‘level of independence’-domain measured with the WHOQoL-HIVBref questionnaire, and with more depressive symptoms compared to low-risk drinking. This study shows a high prevalence of hazardous or harmful drinking in patients with HIV infection (especially men) attending primary health care clinics in South Africa. Routine screening for alcohol use should be introduced in these clinics and harm reduction interventions should be evaluated, taking into account associated factors.
KGF prevents oxygen-mediated damage in ARPE-19 cells.

PURPOSE Oxidative stress has been implicated in a variety of diseases of the eye. In several other tissues, keratinocyte growth factor (KGF) has been shown to prevent negative cellular changes associated with oxidative insult, such as permeability increases and nuclear DNA damage. In this study, we looked at whether KGF provided these same protective effects to cultured human retinal pigmented epithelial (RPE) cells (ARPE-19). METHODS Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using a published primer pair sequence followed by restriction endonuclease digestion with AvaI and HincII was used to look for the KGF receptor message in ARPE-19 cells. Cellular response to KGF was verified through proliferation assays and Western blot analysis for mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK). Single-cell gel electrophoresis was used to assess DNA damage, Western blot analysis was used to assay actin cytoskeletal changes, and electrical resistance and tracer experiments with Transwell tissue plates were used to assess permeability changes. Immunostaining was used to verify the existence of the tight junction protein occludin. RESULTS It was verified through RT-PCR that the ARPE-19 cell line exhibited the message for FGFR2-IIIb, otherwise known as KGFR. KGF was also shown to increase cellular proliferation and activated the MAPK p44/p42 cascade. KGF ameliorated nuclear DNA damage and cytoskeletal rearrangement caused by oxidative stress through the addition of exogenous hydrogen peroxide but was unable to prevent permeability changes. CONCLUSIONS KGF was shown to significantly reduce DNA damage and cytoskeletal rearrangement caused by oxidative stress in cultured ARPE-19 cells. This result may be useful in targeting future therapies to combat a multitude of diseases of the eye that result from increases in reactive oxygen species.
Glock's Model of Religious Commitment: Assessing Some Different Approaches and Results

Ten components of religious commitment were derived by superimposing a liberalconservative distinction on Glock's five dimensions. Data concerning the ten components were obtained from Baptist and Methodist church members. The relationships among the components permit a reassessment of some conflicting assumptions and findings in the two major types of research which have flowed from Glock's model. Some suggestions for further research also are offered. The purpose of this paper is to assess some apparent conflicts in two types of research which have flowed from Glock's (1962) five dimensional conceptualization of religious commitment. ' The apparent conflicts center on the different approaches researchers have taken to the dimension themselves and on the different findings which have been reported concerning the relationships among the dimensions. The analysis of these issues will include data from Baptist and Methodist church members concerning the relationships among ten components of religious commitment (two within each of Glock's five dimensions). The findings suggest ways of resolving some of the different findings that now exist in the liter-
Early-onset hypoparathyroidism and chronic keratitis revealing APECED

Early diagnosis of potentially life‐threatening autoimmune polyendocrinopathy‐candidiasis‐ectodermal dystrophy (APECED) is crucial, but is often delayed due to the clinical heterogeneity of the disorder. Even in the absence of the classic disease triad of chronic mucocutaneous candidiasis, hypoparathyroidism, and adrenocortical insufficiency, a diagnosis of APECED should be considered in children who have hypoparathyroidism and chronic keratitis, with a past medical history showing a mild and transient Candida infection.
There is a 60% probability, but I am 70% certain: communicative consequences of external and internal expressions of uncertainty

ABSTRACT Current theories of probability recognise a distinction between external (un)certainty (frequentistic probabilities) and internal (un)certainty (degrees of belief). The present studies investigated this distinction in lay people's judgements of probability statements formulated to suggest either an internal (“I am X% certain”) or an external (“It is X% certain” or “There is an X% probability”) interpretation. These subtle differences in wording influenced participants' perceptions and endorsements of such statements, and their impressions of the speaker. External expressions were seen to signal more reliable task duration estimates, and a lower degree of external than internal certainty was deemed necessary to advise a course of action. In conversations about football, internal expressions were perceived as signalling more personal interest, and were expected to be on the average 10% higher than corresponding external probabilities. Finally, people who reported their outcome expectations for two major sports events let their degree of interest in these events influence their internal but not their external certainty. These results have implications for the communication of uncertainty and probability.
Worldwide Governance Indicators Project: Answering the Critics

The Worldwide Governance Indicators, reporting estimates of six dimensions of governance for over 200 countries between 1996 and 2005, have become widely used among policymakers and academics. They have also attracted some explicit written criticisms. In this short paper the authors synthesize 11 critiques offered by four recent papers. They then refute them as either conceptually incorrect or empirically unsubstantiated.
Make Me Laugh: The Effects of Laughter and Power on Social Impressions

Laughter is an innate and universal expression that serves social functions. The current study was conducted to investigate the social implication of laughter in varying power situations. Previous research suggests that subordinate laughter increases when an authority figure is present, but little is known concerning why. It was hypothesized that high-power participants would more positively evaluate the confederate who laughed during the activity than the confederate who didn’t laugh. Participants were partnered with a laughing or non-laughing confederate during the experiment. No significant difference was found between highand low-power participants in their evaluations. Further research would be beneficial in understanding how ingratiation using laughter influences social impressions.
Pancreatic β Cells From db/db Mice Show Cell-specific [Ca2+]i and NADH Responses to Glucose but Not to α-Ketoisocaproic Acid

Objective: We recently showed that timing and magnitude of the glucose-induced cytoplasmic calcium [Ca2+]i response are reproducible and specific for the individual β cell. We now wanted to identify which step(s) of stimulus-secretion coupling determine the cell specificity of the [Ca2+]i response and whether cell specificity is lost in β-cells from diabetic animals. Besides glucose, we studied the effects of glyceraldehyde, a glycolytic intermediate, and α-ketoisocaproic acid (KIC), a mitochondrial substrate. Methods: Early [Ca2+]i changes were studied stimulations in fura-2-labeled dispersed β cells from lean, ob/ob, and db/db mice. Lag time and peak height were compared during 2 consecutive stimulations with the same stimulator. Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) responses to glucose and KIC were studied as a measure of metabolic flux. Results: Both glyceraldehyde and KIC induced cell-specific temporal responses in lean mouse β cells with a correlation between lag times for [Ca2+]i rise during the first and second stimulation. β Cells from ob/ob and db/db mice showed cell-specific temporal [Ca2+]i responses to glucose and glyceraldehyde but not to KIC. Glucose induced cell-specific NADH responses in all 3 models, but KIC did so only in lean mouse β cells. Conclusions: A cell-specific response may be induced at several steps of β-cell stimulus-secretion coupling. Mitochondrial metabolism generates a cell-specific response in normal β cells but not in db/db and ob/ob mouse β cells.
Aggregate Productivity Growth: Lessons from Microeconomic Evidence

In this paper, we exploit establishment-level data to examine the relationship between microeconomic productivity dynamics and aggregate productivity growth. After synthesizing the evidence from recent studies, we conduct our own analysis using establishment-level data for U.S. manufacturing establishments as well for selected service industries. The use of longitudinal micro data on service sector establishments is one of the novel features of our analysis. Our main findings are summarized as follows: (i) the contribution of reallocation of outputs and inputs from less productive to more productive establishments plays a significant role in accounting for aggregate productivity growth; (ii) for the selected service industries considered, the contribution of net entry (more productive entering establishments displacing less productive exiting establishments) is dominant; (iii) the contribution of net entry to aggregate productivity growth is disproportionate and is increasing in the horizon over which the changes are measured since longer horizon yields greater differentials from selection and learning effects; (iv) the contribution of reallocation to aggregate productivity growth varies over time (e.g. is cyclically sensitive) and industries and is somewhat sensitive to subtle differences in measurement and decomposition methodologies.