Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Prevalence of candida albicans in dental plaque and caries lesion of early childhood caries (ECC) according to sampling site.

BACKGROUND Candida albicans may have cariogenic potential but its role in caries etiology has not been established. The aim of this study was to determine candida albicans in supragingival dental plaque and infected dentine of cervical and proximal in early childhood caries (ECC). METHODS This cross-sectional study was carried out on 6o children aged 2-5 years, which were divided into 3 groups: children with at least one cervical caries; children with at least one proximal caries and caries-free. The infected dentine was collected from cervical and proximal caries lesions and plaque samples were collected from the three groups in order to compare the frequency of candida albicans in the collected sites. All samples were cultured in Sabouraud and CHROMagar medium and the cases that were positive for candida albicans were cultured in germ tube. Data were collected and analyzed. RESULTS The mean age of the children was 3.9 years. From 100 samples, candida albicans samples were isolated in 55%, mold fungi were found in 29% cases and there was no fungal growth in 16% of the samples. In plaque samples, candida albicans were found in 15% of caries-free samples, 20% of the proximal and 80% of the cervical caries. In samples extracted from the caries, candida albicans were found in 60% of the proximal and 100% of the cervical caries. Mothers with university educational level had children with more cervical decays, caries free and proximal caries, respectively. CONCLUSION The results showed that prevalence of Candida albicans in dental plaque and caries lesions of children with early childhood caries were relatively high and the prevalence was higher in cervical caries group.
Epidemiology of hepatitis B infection in Liberian infants

To provide background for a hepatitis B vaccine efficacy trial, sera were collected from 0- to 4-year-old Liberian infants and their mothers, on two occasions an average of 14.75 months apart, and tested for serological markers of hepatitis B virus infection. The prevalence of the hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) was 2.9% in the 0- to 6-month age group and 23% in infants 3 to 4 years of age. HBsAg persisted for the 14.75-month average follow-up period in 80.8% of the infants tested. The annual incidence of development of HBsAg was 18.9% for infants less than 1 year of age and 13.6% in infants 3 to 4 years of age. Infants born to HBsAg carrier mothers had significantly higher age-specific prevalence and incidence of hepatitis B virus infection. However, it was estimated that only a minor proportion of hepatitis B infections in Liberia are derived by vertical transmission from carrier mothers.
A case for variational geomagnetic data assimilation: insights from a one-dimensional, nonlinear, and sparsely observed MHD system

Secular variations of the geomagnetic field have been measured with a continuously improving accuracy during the last few hundred years, culminating nowadays with satellite data. It is however well known that the dynamics of the magnetic field is linked to that of the velocity field in the core and any attempt to model secular variations will involve a coupled dynamical system for magnetic field and core velocity. Unfortunately, there is no direct observation of the velocity. Independently of the exact nature of the above-mentioned coupled system – some version being currently under construction – the question is debated in this paper whether good knowledge of the magnetic field can be translated into good knowledge of core dynamics. Furthermore, what will be the impact of the most recent and precise geomagnetic data on our knowledge of the geomagnetic field of the past and future? These questions are cast into the language of variational data assimilation, while the dynamical system considered in this paper consists in a set of two oversimplified one-dimensional equations for magnetic and velocity fields. This toy model retains important features inherited from the induction and Navier-Stokes equations: non-linear magnetic and momentum terms are present and its linear response to small disturbances contains Alfven waves. It is concluded that variational data assimilation is indeed appropriate in principle, even though the velocity field remains hidden at all times; it allows us to recover the entire evolution of both fields from partial and irregularly distributed information on the magnetic field. This work constitutes a first step on the way toward the reassimilation of historical geomagnetic data and geomagnetic forecast.
Qualitative differences in manifest object representations: implications for a multidimensional model of psychological functioning.

The present study examined human representations produced in Rorschach protocols and in manifest dream recall obtained from 55 severely disturbed inpatients of a small private psychiatric hospital. Subjects were grouped according to specifically defined diagnostic criteria as (a) obsessive/paranoid borderline (23 subjects), (b) hysterical/impulsive borderline (17 subjects), or (c) nonparanoid, undifferentiated schizophrenic disorders (15 subjects). Transcripts of verbatim Rorschach and dream recall records were each quantitatively scored on the Blatt et al. structural scale of human percepts and the Krohn et al. thematic/affective scale. It was predicted that the obsessive/paranoid borderlines would present structurally more advanced percepts than either of the other two groups and that the hysterical/impulsive borderlines would present affectively more advanced percepts. Manifest object representations were different in the three groups. The results support the clinical and theoretical usefulness of a multidimensional perspective in the assessment of borderline and schizophrenic disorders that contrasts an overall health dimension with other dimensions related to structural and affective functioning within the individual's character style.
Gastric emptying of a solid–liquid meal measured with 13C octanoic acid breath test and real-time ultrasonography: a comparative study

OBJECTIVES:The 13C octanoic acid breath test (OBT) has been proposed as a reliable noninvasive test to measure gastric emptying. OBT has been compared with scintigraphy; however, there are no data comparing it with gastric emptying measured with real-time ultrasonography (RUS) The aim of the study was to correlate gastric emptying of a solid–liquid meal, with OBT and RUS simultaneously evaluated in a group of normal volunteers.METHODS:A total of 14 normal subjects ingested a standard test meal (one scrambled egg with two slices of white bread, 10 g of butter, and 300 ml of tap water). The egg yolk was mixed with 0.1 ml of 13C octanoic acid. Breath samples for 13CO2 analysis were collected in breath bags and were analyzed by means of isotope-selective nondispersive infrared spectrometry (IRIS). RUS was simultaneously performed by calculating the antral area following a previous validated method. Breath samples and antral area were taken at baseline and every 15 min after the meal during the first 2 h and every 30 min for another 2 h. Lag time (Tlag) and gastric half emptying time (T1/2) were calculated for OBT and RUS. Data were analyzed by the Student's t test for paired data, correlation coefficient, and regression line.RESULTS:The results show a statistically significant longer Tlag and T1/2 for OBT in comparison with RUS (p < 0.001). A significant correlation and positive regression line was computed between OBT and RUS for Tlag and for T1/2.CONCLUSIONS:Our results show that OBT overestimates gastric emptying parameters of a solid–liquid meal in comparison with RUS. However, both techniques give data in good correlation. Because OBT is less operator-dependent than RUS, it may be useful in comparative gastric emptying studies.
Gabapentin as an adjuvant for postoperative pain management in dogs undergoing mastectomy

This study aimed to evaluate the analgesic efficacy of gabapentin as an adjuvant for postoperative pain management in dogs. Twenty dogs undergoing mastectomy were randomized to receive perioperative oral placebo or gabapentin (10 mg/kg). All dogs were premedicated with intramuscular acepromazine (0.03 mg/kg) and morphine (0.3 mg/ kg). Anesthesia was induced with propofol (4 mg/kg) intravenously and maintained with isoflurane. Intravenous meloxicam (0.2 mg/kg) was administered preoperatively. Postoperative analgesia was evaluated for 72 hr. Rescue analgesia was provided with intramuscular morphine (0.5 mg/kg). Dogs in the Placebo group received significantly more morphine doses than the Gabapentin group (P=0.021), despite no significant differences in pain scores. Perioperative gabapentin reduced the postoperative morphine requirements in dogs after mastectomy.
PARALYSIS IN A DOG SIMULATING POLIOMYELITIS

A pet dog developed a form of paralysis simulating the paralysis of epidemic poliomyelitis. The autopsy showed changes in the spinal cord and intervertebral ganglia, resembling, but not identical with, the lesions of poliomyelitis in man. Inoculation of the affected spinal cord into the nervous system of young dogs and Macacus rhesus monkeys was not followed by the production of paralysis or other obvious symptom of disease.
Smoking Cessation and Socioeconomic Status: An Update of Existing Evidence from a National Evaluation of English Stop Smoking Services

Smokers from lower socioeconomic groups are less likely to be successful in stopping smoking than more affluent smokers, even after accessing cessation programmes. Data were analysed from 3057 clients of nine services. Routine monitoring data were expanded with CO validated smoking status at 52-week follow-up. Backwards logistic regression modelling was used to consider which factors were most important in explaining the relationship between SES and quitting. The odds ratio of stopping smoking among more affluent clients, compared with more disadvantaged clients, after taking into account design variables only, was 1.85 (95% CI 1.44 to 2.37) which declined to 1.44 (1.11 to 1.87) when all controls were included. The factors that explained more than 10% of the decline in the odds ratio were age, proportion of friends and family who smoked, nicotine dependence, and taking varenicline. A range of factors contribute to lower cessation rates for disadvantaged smokers. Some of these can be modified by improved smoking cessation service provision, but others require contributions from wider efforts to improve material, human, and social capital.
Interspecific variation in egg testosterone levels: implications for the evolution of bird song

Although interspecific variation in maternal effects via testosterone levels can be mediated by natural selection, little is known about the evolutionary consequences of egg testosterone for sexual selection. However, two nonexclusive evolutionary hypotheses predict an interspecific relationship between egg testosterone levels and the elaboration of sexual traits. First, maternal investment may be particularly enhanced in sexually selected species, which should generate a positive relationship. Secondly, high prenatal testosterone levels may constrain the development of sexual characters, which should result in a negative relationship. Here we investigated these hypotheses by exploring the relationship between yolk testosterone levels and features of song in a phylogenetic study of 36 passerine species. We found that song duration and syllable repertoire size were significantly negatively related to testosterone levels in the egg, even if potentially confounding factors were held constant. These relationships imply that high testosterone levels during early development of songs may be detrimental, thus supporting the developmental constraints hypothesis. By contrast, we found significant evidence that song‐post exposure relative to the height of the vegetation is positively related to egg testosterone levels. These results support the hypothesis that high levels of maternal testosterone have evolved in species with intense sexual selection acting on the location of song‐posts. We found nonsignificant effects for intersong interval and song type repertoire size, which may suggest that none of the above hypothesis apply to these traits, or they act simultaneously and have opposing effects.
How neuroscience will change our view on consciousness

Is there consciousness in machines? Or in animals? What happens to consciousness when we are asleep, or in vegetative state? These are just a few examples of the many questions about consciousness that are troubling scientists and laypersons alike. Moreover, these questions share a striking feature: They seem to have been around forever, yet neither science nor philosophy has been able to provide an answer. Why is that? In my view, the main reason is that the study of consciousness is dominated by what we know from introspection and behavior. This has fooled us into thinking that we know what we are conscious of. The scientific equivalent of this is Global Workspace theory. But in fact we don't know what we are conscious of, as I will explain from a simple experiment in visual perception. Once we acknowledge that, it is clear that we need other evidence about the presence or absence of a conscious sensation than introspection or behavior. Assuming the brain has something to do with it, I will demonstrate how arguments from neuroscience, together with theoretical and ontological arguments, can help us resolve what the exact nature of our conscious sensation is. It turns out that we see much more than we think, and that Global Workspace theory is all about access but not about seeing. The exercise is an example of how neuroscience will move us away from psychological intuitions about consciousness, and hence depict a notion of consciousness that may go against our deepest conviction: “My consciousness is mine, and mine alone. ” It's not.
Relationships Between Depressive Symptoms and Perceived Social Support, Self-Esteem, & Optimism in a Sample of Rural Adolescents

Stress, developmental changes and social adjustment problems can be significant in rural teens. Screening for psychosocial problems by teachers and other school personnel is infrequent but can be a useful health promotion strategy. We used a cross-sectional survey descriptive design to examine the inter-relationships between depressive symptoms and perceived social support, self-esteem, and optimism in a sample of rural school-based adolescents. Depressive symptoms were negatively correlated with peer social support, family social support, self-esteem, and optimism. Findings underscore the importance for teachers and other school staff to provide health education. Results can be used as the basis for education to improve optimism, self-esteem, social supports and, thus, depression symptoms of teens.
Machine Learning-based Dependency Analyzer for Chinese

In this paper, we present a deterministic dependency structure analyzer for Chinese. This analyzer implements two algorithms – Yamada and Nivre algorithms – and two sorts of classifiers – Support Vector Machines and Maximum Entropy models. We compare the performance of these 2x2 combinations. We evaluate the methods on a dependency tagged corpus derived from the CKIP Treebank corpus. Then, we analyze the errors in the experiments and found that some errors are caused by mistakes of nominal compound analysis. Therefore we adopt a noun phrase chunker to overcome this problem.
Neural Evidence Linking Visual Object Enumeration and Attention

Visual object enumeration is rapid and accurate for four or fewer items but slow and error-prone for over four items. This dichotomy has recently been linked to visual attentional phenomena by findings suggesting that subitizing of small sets of objects is preattentive whereas counting of over four items demands spatial shifts of attention. We evaluated this link at a neural level, using H215O positron emission tomography to measure changes in regional cerebral blood flow while subjects enumerated the number of target vertical bars that popped outof a 16-bar visual display consisting of both horizontal and vertical bars. Relative to a condition with a single target, subitizing (one to four targets) activated foci in the occipital extras-triate cortex, consistent with involvement of early, preattentive visual processes. Relative to subitizing, counting (five to eight targets) activated a widespread network of brain regions, including multiple foci implicated in shifting visual attention large regions of the superior parietal cortex bilaterally and a focus in the right inferior frontal cortex. These results offer the first direct neural support for mapping the subitizing-counting dichotomy onto separable processes mediating preattentive vision and shifts of visual attention.
Late foliar diseases in wheat crops decrease nitrogen yield through N uptake rather than through variations in N remobilization.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS French wheat grains may be of little value on world markets because they have low and highly variable grain protein concentrations (GPC). This nitrogen-yield to yield ratio depends on crop nitrogen (N) fertilization as well as on crop capacity to use N, which is known to vary with climate and disease severity. Here an examination is made of the respective roles that N remobilization and post-anthesis N uptake play in N yield variations; in particular, when wheat crops (Triticum aestivum) are affected by leaf rust (Puccinia triticina) and Septoria tritici blotch (teleomorph Mycosphaerella graminicola). METHODS Data from a 4-year field experiment was used to analyse N yield variations in wheat crops grown either with a third or no late N fertilization. Natural aerial epidemics ensured a range of disease severity, and fungicide ensured disease-free control plots. The data set of Gooding et al. (2005, Journal of Agricultural Science 143: 503-518) was incorporated in order to enlarge the range of conditions. KEY RESULTS Post-anthesis N uptake accounted for a third of N yield whilst N remobilization accounted for two-thirds in all crops whether affected by diseases or not. However, variations in N yield were highly correlated with post-anthesis N uptake, more than with N remobilization, in diseased and also healthy crops. Furthermore, N remobilization did not significantly correlate with N yield in healthy crops. These findings matched data from studies using various wheat genotypes under various management and climatic conditions. Leaf area duration (LAD) accurately predicted N remobilization whether or not crops were diseased; in diseased crops, LAD also accurately predicted N uptake. CONCLUSIONS Under the experimental conditions, N yield variations were closely associated with post-anthesis N uptake in diseased but also in healthy crops. Understanding the respective roles of N uptake and N remobilization in the case of diseased and healthy crops holds the promise of better modelling of variations in N yield, and thus in GPC.
Viral and Other Cell-Penetrating Peptides as Vectors of Therapeutic Agents in Medicine

Efficient delivery of heterologous molecules for treatment of cells is a great challenge in modern medicine and pharmacology. Cell-penetrating peptides (CPPs) may improve efficient delivery of a wide range of macromolecular cargos, including plasmid DNA, small interfering RNA, drugs, nanoparticulate pharmaceutical carriers, and anticancer drugs. In this paper, we present the history of CPPs’ discovery with special attention drawn to sequences of viral origin. We also describe different CPP families with regard to their physicochemical properties and numerous mechanisms of CPP cell uptake by direct penetration and endocytotic pathways. A detailed description is focused on formation of carrier-cargo complexes, which are needed for practical use of CPPs in medicine and biotechnology. Examples of successful application of CPPs in treatment of human diseases are also presented, including decreased tumor growth and induction of cancer cell death. Finally, we review modern design approaches to novel CPPs and prediction of their activity. To sum up, the current review presents a thorough and up-to-date knowledge of CPPs and may be a valuable source of information for researchers in pharmacology designing new therapeutic agents.
Video force microscopy reveals the mechanics of ventral furrow invagination in Drosophila

The absence of tools for mapping the forces that drive morphogenetic movements in embryos has impeded our understanding of animal development. Here we describe a unique approach, video force microscopy (VFM), that allows detailed, dynamic force maps to be produced from time-lapse images. The forces at work in an embryo are considered to be decomposed into active and passive elements, where active forces originate from contributions (e.g., actomyosin contraction) that do mechanical work to the system and passive ones (e.g., viscous cytoplasm) that dissipate energy. In the present analysis, the effects of all passive components are considered to be subsumed by an effective cytoplasmic viscosity, and the driving forces are resolved into equivalent forces along the edges of the polygonal boundaries into which the region of interest is divided. Advanced mathematical inverse methods are used to determine these driving forces. When applied to multiphoton sections of wild-type and mutant Drosophila melanogaster embryos, VFM is able to calculate the equivalent driving forces acting along individual cell edges and to do so with subminute temporal resolution. In the wild type, forces along the apical surface of the presumptive mesoderm are found to be large and to vary parabolically with time and angular position, whereas forces along the basal surface of the ectoderm, for example, are found to be smaller and nearly uniform with position. VFM shows that in mutants with reduced junction integrity and myosin II activity, the driving forces are reduced, thus accounting for ventral furrow failure.
Quid est Clea helena? Evidence for a previously unrecognized radiation of assassin snails (Gastropoda: Buccinoidea: Nassariidae)

The genus Clea from SE Asia is from one of only two unrelated families among the megadiverse predatory marine Neogastropoda to have successfully conquered continental waters. While little is known about their anatomy, life history and ecology, interest has grown exponentially in recent years owing to their increasing popularity as aquarium pets. However, the systematic affinities of the genus and the validity of the included species have not been robustly explored. Differences in shell, operculum and radula characters support separation of Clea as presently defined into two distinct genera: Clea, for the type species Clea nigricans and its allies, and Anentome for Clea helena and allies. A five-gene mitochondrial (COI, 16S, 12S) and nuclear (H3, 28S) gene dataset confirms the placement of Anentome as a somewhat isolated offshoot of the family Nassariidae and sister to the estuarine Nassodonta. Anatomical data corroborate this grouping and, in conjunction with their phylogenetic placement, support their recognition as a new subfamily, the Anentominae. The assassin snail Anentome helena, a popular import through the aquarium trade so named for their voracious appetite for other snails, is found to comprise a complex of at least four species. None of these likely represents true Anentome helena described from Java, including a specimen purchased through the aquarium trade under this name in the US and one that was recently found introduced in Singapore, both of which were supported as conspecific with a species from Thailand. The introduction of Anentome “helena” through the aquarium trade constitutes a significant threat to native aquatic snail faunas which are often already highly imperiled. Comprehensive systematic revision of this previously unrecognized species complex is urgently needed to facilitate communication and manage this emerging threat.