Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Acute cardiovascular effects of magnesium and their relationship to systemic and myocardial magnesium concentrations after short infusion in awake sheep.

The temporal relationship between the systemic and myocardial concentrations of magnesium and some of its acute cardiovascular effects were examined after short i.v. infusion administration of magnesium (30 mmol over 2 min) in five awake chronically instrumented sheep. Magnesium decreased mean arterial blood pressure and systemic vascular resistance (SVR) by 23 and 41% from baseline, respectively. These hemodynamic changes were consistent with magnesium producing primary reductions in SVR with partial heart rate (HR)-mediated compensation of blood pressure. Cardiac output and HR increased by 38 and 38% from baseline, respectively. Magnesium had little effect on myocardial contractility, but substantially increased myocardial blood flow (MBF, 77% above baseline) primarily due to direct myocardial vasodilation. The peak arterial and coronary sinus serum magnesium concentrations were 6.94 +/- 0.26 (mean +/- S.E.M.) and 6.51 +/- 0.20 mM, respectively, at 2 min. Both arterial and coronary sinus magnesium concentrations at the end of the study were still more than 3 mM, whereas all the cardiovascular effects were back to baseline. The myocardial kinetics of magnesium was consistent with rapid equilibration of magnesium (half-life 0.4 min) with a small distribution volume (71 ml) consistent with the extracellular space of the heart. In conclusion, magnesium was shown to have a rapid equilibration between the plasma/serum concentrations of magnesium and its extracellular concentration in the myocardium. However, the primary cardiovascular effect of magnesium (reductions in SVR) preceded its extracellular concentrations, and was a direct function of its arterial concentration. A "threshold" model for changes in SVR was preferred when linked to the arterial magnesium concentration.
Dietary agents as histone deacetylase inhibitors

In cancer cells, an imbalance often exists between histone acetyltransferase (HAT) and histone deacetylase (HDAC) activities, and various drug companies are actively seeking competitive HDAC inhibitors for chemotherapeutic intervention. Cancer cells appear to be more sensitive than nontransformed cells to HDAC inhibitors, which disrupt the cell cycle and induce apoptosis via derepression of genes such as P21 and BAX. However, in the search for potent HDAC inhibitors with cancer therapeutic potential, a tendency exists to overlook or dismiss weak ligands that could prove effective in cancer prevention. Butyrate, diallyl disulfide (DADS), and sulforaphane (SFN) are three dietary agents that exhibit HDAC inhibitory activity in vitro and/or in vivo, and other such dietary agents probably will be discovered that affect HDAC activity. We make the distinction between ‘pharmacologic’ agents that potently derepress gene expression, during therapeutic intervention, and dietary HDAC inhibitors that, as weak ligands, might subtly regulate the expression of genes involved in cell growth and apoptosis. An important issue for future study is to determine the extent to which dietary HDAC inhibitors, by modulating genes such as p21 and Bax, enable normal, nontransformed cells to respond most effectively to external stimuli and toxic insults. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Pirh 2-interacting protein that activates the NFAT signaling pathway

1 State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institute of Genetics, School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, 220 Handan Rd., Shanghai 200433, PR China, 2 Chinese Academy of Sciences and Max Planck Society (CAS-MPG) Partner Institute for Computational Biology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 320 Yue Yang Rd., Shanghai 200031, PR China, 3 United Gene Bio-Pharma Inc. , 100 Handan Rd., Shanghai 200437, PR China
Recrystallization and grain growth in hot rolling

AbstractThe background physical metallurgy and the data available on recrystallization and grain growth after hot deformation of low-carbon manganese steel are briefly reviewed. The derived structural relationships are then used in a computing procedure which enables the evolution of microstructure during rolling to be predicted as a function of the temperatures, pass reductions, speeds, and times in rolling schedules. Plate rolling is considered as a specific example and it is shown that uncertainties in the basic data do not seriously affect the predictions whereas modifying the rolling schedules leads to major differences in the asrolled microstructures. In particular, there are critical regions in the rolling schedule when recrystallization times are of the order of the interpass times. Where comparisons can be made, the predictions are in agreement with practical observations.
Some Structural Causes of Japan’s Banking Problems

This paper reviews corporate finance literature which explains some of the long-term causes of the Japanese banking sector’s poor performance in the early 1990s. It concentrates on the ideas that an adverse selection problem developed in the bank lending market during the 1980s, and that banks had strong incentives to seek out borrowers which were of lower quality and which had greater exposure to adverse movements in asset prices. Possible links between these hypotheses and the macroeconomic environment are also considered.
Flow rate, syringe size and architecture are critical to start‐up performance of syringe pumps

Background and objective: Significant start‐up delays are inherent to syringe infusion pumps, particularly at low infusion rates, as routinely used in children's anaesthesia and intensive care. Such delays are mainly the result of engagement of gears in the mechanical drive or compliance of the syringe assembly. The purpose of the present study was to determine the effect of flow rate, syringe size and syringe architecture on fluid delivery during infusion start‐up. Methods: Elapsed time from infusion start to achievement of steady‐state flow was gravimetrically determined for various infusion rates (0.1, 0.5, 1 mL h−1), different syringe sizes (10‐, 20‐, 30‐, 50‐mL) and syringes of two different brands (BD and Codan). Four measurements for each condition were performed with two identical Alaris® AsenaTM GH syringe infusion pumps (total of eight experiments). Statistical analysis was done by two‐way ANOVA with Bonferroni's post‐test; P < 0.05 was considered significant. Results: Start‐up time was from 3.6 ± 0.9 min (BD 10‐mL syringe, 1.0 mL h−1) to 74.5 ± 26.6 min (BD 50‐mL syringe, 0.1 mL h−1). Overall, the start‐up time markedly increased with lower flow rate (0.1 mL h−1 vs. 1 mL h−1; P < 0.0001), larger syringe size (50 mL vs. 10 mL; P < 0.01), and the BD brand in comparison with the Codan syringes (P < 0.01). Conclusions: Highest possible flow rate, smaller sized syringes and syringe plungers with reduced compressibility should be preferred in order to avoid significant start‐up delays in fluid delivery.
Near-infrared indocyanine green video angiography in aneurysm surgery.

The most important goal of a vascular neurosurgeon during an intracranial aneurysm clipping is achieving complete exclusion of the aneurysm from the circulation with preservation of blood flow distal to the aneurysm. Occlusion of the parent vessel or distal branches due to improper clip application has been a significant factor in the poor outcome. Similarly, incomplete clipping of an aneurysm has been associated with aneurysmal growth and potential for future rupture. In the literature, partial aneurysm clipping with residual neck has been cited in 4-19% of cases while in an equally significant population (0.3-12%) inadvertent occlusion of the major vessels occurs. Though in the latter group, surgery has been often performed to reposition the clip, there has been questionable improvement in the overall outcome.
Rapamycin prevents the onset of insulin‐dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) in NOD mice

The effect of the immunosuppressive agent rapamycin (RAPA) was assessed in the non‐obese diabetic (NOD) mouse which is an autoimmune model of IDDM. RAPA was prepared in a vehicle of 8% cremophor EL/2% ethanol and investigated in two studies. NOD/MrK female mice (six per group, study no. 1; 10 per group, study no. 2) were dosed three times per week p.o. by gavage from 56 to 170 days of age (study no. 1) or from 64 to 176 days or age (study no. 2). Mice treated with RAPA at 06 mg/kg, 6 mg/kg, or 12 mg/kg maintained normal plasma glucose through 170 or 176 days of age with 10%, 0%, and 0% incidence of diabetes respectively. In contrast, naive, vehicle‐treated, or RAPA 0.06 mg/kg‐treated mice exhibited elevated plasma glucose and disease incidence typical for female NOD mice. Mice which became diabetic had elevated levels of β‐hydroxybutyrate, triglycerides and cholesterol. These plasma lipid concentrations were positively correlated with the duration of hyperglycaemia (r= 0.85, 0.87 and 0.84 respectively). Outside of its ability to prevent diabetes, RAPA itself did not affect the lipid profile of the mice. Intervention therapy with RAFA was ineffective at reversing the course of disease after IDDM onset under these experimental conditions. Finally, we report here that prophylactic treatment with RAPA was able to protect against IDDM development in some RAPA‐treated mice 41 weeks after cessation of treatment. These data show that orally administered RAPA is effective in preventing onset of disease in the NOD mouse, a relevant model of autoimmune type I diabetes in man.
Patients’ Ratings of Family Physician Practices on the Internet: Usage and Associations With Conventional Measures of Quality in the English National Health Service

Background Patients are increasingly rating their family physicians on the Internet in the same way as they might rate a hotel on TripAdvisor or a seller on eBay, despite physicians’ concerns about this process. Objective This study aims to examine the usage of NHS Choices, a government website that encourages patients to rate the quality of family practices in England, and associations between web-based patient ratings and conventional measures of patient experience and clinical quality in primary care. Methods We obtained all (16,952) ratings of family practices posted on NHS Choices between October 2009 and December 2010. We examined associations between patient ratings and family practice and population characteristics. Associations between ratings and survey measures of patient experience and clinical outcomes were examined. Results 61% of the 8089 family practices in England were rated, and 69% of ratings would recommend their family practice. Practices serving younger, less deprived, and more densely populated areas were more likely to be rated. There were moderate associations with survey measures of patient experience (Spearman ρ 0.37−0.48, P<.001 for all 5 variables), but only weak associations with measures of clinical process and outcome (Spearman ρ less than ±0.18, P<.001 for 6 of 7 variables). Conclusion The frequency of patients rating their family physicians on the Internet is variable in England, but the ratings are generally positive and are moderately associated with other measures of patient experience and weakly associated with clinical quality. Although potentially flawed, patient ratings on the Internet may provide an opportunity for organizational learning and, as it becomes more common, another lens to look at the quality of primary care.
Weight lifting in women with breast-cancer-related lymphedema.

BACKGROUND Weight lifting has generally been proscribed for women with breast-cancer-related lymphedema, preventing them from obtaining the well-established health benefits of weight lifting, including increases in bone density. METHODS We performed a randomized, controlled trial of twice-weekly progressive weight lifting involving 141 breast-cancer survivors with stable lymphedema of the arm. The primary outcome was the change in arm and hand swelling at 1 year, as measured through displaced water volume of the affected and unaffected limbs. Secondary outcomes included the incidence of exacerbations of lymphedema, number and severity of lymphedema symptoms, and muscle strength. Participants were required to wear a well-fitted compression garment while weight lifting. RESULTS The proportion of women who had an increase of 5% or more in limb swelling was similar in the weight-lifting group (11%) and the control group (12%) (cumulative incidence ratio, 1.00; 95% confidence interval, 0.88 to 1.13). As compared with the control group, the weight-lifting group had greater improvements in self-reported severity of lymphedema symptoms (P=0.03) and upper- and lower-body strength (P<0.001 for both comparisons) and a lower incidence of lymphedema exacerbations as assessed by a certified lymphedema specialist (14% vs. 29%, P=0.04). There were no serious adverse events related to the intervention. CONCLUSIONS In breast-cancer survivors with lymphedema, slowly progressive weight lifting had no significant effect on limb swelling and resulted in a decreased incidence of exacerbations of lymphedema, reduced symptoms, and increased strength. (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00194363.)
Morpho-Syntactic Study of Errors from Speech Recognition System

The study provides an original standpoint of the speech transcription errors by focusing on the morpho-syntactic features of the erroneous chunks and of the surrounding left and right context. The typology concerns the forms, the lemmas and the POS involved in erroneous chunks, and in the surrounding contexts. Comparison with error free contexts are also provided. The study is conducted on French. Morpho-syntactic analysis underlines that three main classes are particularly represented in the erroneous chunks: (i) grammatical words (to, of, the), (ii) auxiliary verbs (has, is), and (iii) modal verbs (should, must). Such items are widely encountered in the ASR outputs as frequent candidates to transcription errors. The analysis of the context points out that some left 3-grams contexts (e.g., repetitions, that is disfluencies, bracketing formulas such as “cest”, etc.) may be better predictors than others. Finally, the surface analysis conducted through a Levensthein distance analysis, highlighted that the most common distance is of 2 characters and mainly involves differences between inflected forms of a unique item.
A statin-regulated microRNA represses human c-Myc expression and function

c‐Myc dysregulation is one of the most common abnormalities found in human cancer. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are functionally intertwined with the c‐Myc network as multiple miRNAs are regulated by c‐Myc, while others directly suppress c‐Myc expression. In this work, we identified miR‐33b as a primate‐specific negative regulator of c‐Myc. The human miR‐33b gene is located at 17p11.2, a genomic locus frequently lost in medulloblastomas, of which a subset displays c‐Myc overproduction. Through a small‐scale screening with drugs approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), we found that lovastatin upregulated miR‐33b expression, reduced cell proliferation and impaired c‐Myc expression and function in miR‐33b‐positive medulloblastoma cells. In addition, a low dose of lovastatin treatment at a level comparable to approved human oral use reduced tumour growth in mice orthotopically xenografted with cells carrying miR‐33b, but not with cells lacking miR‐33b. This work presents a highly promising therapeutic option, using drug repurposing and a miRNA as a biomarker, against cancers that overexpress c‐Myc.
Biphasic Time Course of the Changes in Aldosterone Biosynthesis Under High-Salt Conditions in Dahl Salt-Sensitive Rats

Objective—The comorbidity of excess salt and elevated plasma aldosterone has deleterious effects in cardiovascular disease. We evaluated the mechanisms behind the paradoxical increase in aldosterone biosynthesis in relation to dietary intake of salt. Methods and Results—Dahl salt-sensitive (Dahl-S) and salt-resistant (Dahl-R) rats were fed a high-salt diet, and plasma and tissue levels of aldosterone in the adrenal gland and heart were quantified by liquid chromatography–electrospray ionization–tandem mass spectrometry. In Dahl-S rats, we found that the delayed and paradoxical increase in aldosterone biosynthesis after the initial and appropriate response to high salt. The late rise in aldosterone biosynthesis was accompanied by upregulation of CYP11B2 expression in the zona glomerulosa and increased adrenal angiotensin II levels and renin-angiotensin system components. It preceded the appearance of left ventricular systolic dysfunction and renal insufficiency. Blockade of angiotensin AT1 receptors reversed the paradoxical increase in aldosterone biosynthesis. In contrast, Dahl-R rats maintained the initial suppression of aldosterone biosynthesis. Aldosterone levels in the heart closely paralleled those in the plasma and adrenal gland and disappeared after bilateral adrenalectomy. Conclusion—Chronic salt overload in Dahl-S rats stimulates aberrant aldosterone production via activation of the local renin-angiotensin system in the adrenal gland, thereby creating the comorbidity of excess salt and elevated plasma aldosterone.
Persisting Mixed Cryoglobulinemia in Chikungunya Infection

Background Chikungunya virus (CHIKV), an arbovirus, is responsible for a two-stage disabling disease, consisting of an acute febrile polyarthritis for the first 10 days, frequently followed by chronic rheumatisms, sometimes lasting for years. Up to now, the pathophysiology of the chronic stage has been elusive. Considering the existence of occasional peripheral vascular disorders and some unexpected seronegativity during the chronic stage of the disease, we hypothesized the role of cryoglobulins. Methods From April 2005 to May 2007, all travelers with suspected CHIKV infection were prospectively recorded in our hospital department. Demographic, clinical and laboratory findings (anti-CHIKV IgM and IgG, cryoglobulin) were registered at the first consultation or hospitalization and during follow-up. Results Among the 66 travelers with clinical suspicion of CHIKV infection, 51 presented anti-CHIKV IgM. There were 45 positive with the serological assay tested at room temperature, and six more, which first tested negative when sera were kept at 4°C until analysis, became positive after a 2-hour incubation of the sera at 37°C. Forty-eight of the 51 CHIKV-seropositive patients were screened for cryoglobulinemia; 94% were positive at least once during their follow-up. Over 90% of the CHIKV-infected patients had concomitant arthralgias and cryoglobulinemia. Cryoglobulin prevalence and level drop with time as patients recover, spontaneously or after short-term corticotherapy. In some patients cryoglobulins remained positive after 1 year. Conclusion Prevalence of mixed cryoglobulinemia was high in CHIKV-infected travelers with long-lasting symptoms. No significant association between cryoglobulinemia and clinical manifestations could be evidenced. The exact prognostic value of cryoglobulin levels has yet to be determined. Responsibility of cryoglobulinemia was suspected in unexpected false negativity of serological assays at room temperature, leading us to recommend performing serology on pre-warmed sera.
Underweight and overweight men have greater exercise-induced dyspnoea than normal weight men

Abstract Introduction. Persons with high or low body mass index (BMI), involved in clinical or mechanistic trials involving exercise testing, might estimate dyspnoea differently from persons with a normal BMI. Aims. Our objective was to investigate the relationship between BMI and dyspnoea during exercise in normal subjects with varying BMI. Material and methods. A total of 37 subjects undertook progressive exercise testing. Subjects were divided into three groups: underweight (UW), normal weight (NW), and overweight (OW). Dyspnoea was estimated using the visual analogue scale (VAS). Spirometry, maximum voluntary ventilation (MVV), and respiratory muscle strength (RMS) were measured. Results and discussion. The intercept of the VAS/ventilation relationship was significantly higher in NW subjects compared to UW (P = 0.029) and OW subjects (P = 0.040). Relative to the OW group, FVC (P = 0.020), FEV1 (P = 0.024), MVV (P = 0.019), and RMS (P = 0.003) were significantly decreased in the UW group. The greater levels of dyspnoea in UW subjects could possibly be due to decreased RMS. Healthy persons should aim to achieve an optimum BMI range to have the lowest exercise-induced dyspnoea.
Rates of Mental Illness and Addiction among High-Cost Users of Medical Services in Ontario

Objective: To quantify the burden of mental illness and addiction among high-costing users of medical services (HCUs) using population-level data from Ontario, and compare to a referent group of nonusers. Method: We conducted a population-level cohort study using health administrative data from fiscal year 2011-2012 for all Ontarians with valid health insurance as of April 1, 2011 (N = 10,909,351). Individuals were grouped based on medical costs for hospital, emergency, home, complex continuing, and rehabilitation care in 2011-2012: top 1%, top 2% to 5%, top 6% to 50%, bottom 50%, and a zero-cost nonuser group. The rate of diagnosed psychotic, major mood, and substance use disorders in each group was compared to the zero-cost referent group with adjusted odds ratios (AORs) for age, sex, and socioeconomic status. A sensitivity analysis included anxiety and other disorders. Results: Mental illness and addiction rates increased across cost groups affecting 17.0% of the top 1% of users versus 5.7% of the zero-cost group (AOR, 3.70; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.59 to 3.81). This finding was most pronounced for psychotic disorders (3.7% vs. 0.7%; AOR, 5.07; 95% CI, 4.77 to 5.38) and persisted for mood disorders (10.0% vs. 3.3%; AOR, 3.52; 95% CI, 3.39 to 3.66) and substance use disorders (7.0% vs. 2.3%; AOR, 3.82; 95% CI, 3.66 to 3.99). When anxiety and other disorders were included, the rate of mental illness was 39.3% in the top 1% compared to 21.3% (AOR, 2.39; 95% CI, 2.34 to 2.45). Conclusions: A high burden of mental illness and addiction among HCUs warrants its consideration in the design and delivery of services targeting HCUs.
The Development of Self-Control in Late Adolescence: An Analysis of Trajectories and Predictors of Change Within Trajectories

Gottfredson and Hirschi argue that parenting is the primary source of self-control. Research on the etiology of self-control has provided partial support for this proposition. Studies have shown parenting is an important determinant of self-control; however, research has also shown that other social and biological/genetic factors also influence the development of self-control. The current study contributes to the literature by examining the possibility that sources of self-control may vary across subgroups, which exhibit different developmental patterns of self-control. Analyses are based on 6-year panel data from a sample of South Korean youths. The results indicate that youths are clustered into three subgroups showing stable, increasing, and decreasing levels of self-control over time. Similarities/differences in the relationships among family, school, peer, and community variables and self-control appeared across the subgroups. Theoretical and policy implications are discussed.