Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The Effect of Nitrous Oxide on the Intraocular Pressure in Patients Undergoing Abdominal Surgery under Sevoflurane and Remifentanil Anesthesia

Introduction: Although inhalational anesthesia and nitrousoxide (N2O) are known to affect the intraocular pressure (IOP), little is known about the effect of nitrousoxide on the IOP during sevoflurane and remifentanil anesthesia. In the present study, we examined the effect of balanced anesthesia on the IOP. Materials and Methods: After obtaining informed consent, the patients undergoing abdominal surgery under general anesthesia were divided into two groups: N2O group (n = 10) and control group (n = 12). General anesthesia was maintained with remifentanil (0.05 - 0.3 μg/kg/min), 33% O2 and 1.2% sevoflurane to keep ETCO2 of 35 - 40 mmHg following tracheal intubation. After baseline measurement of IOP (T0, 20 minutes after injection of anesthesia), the patients in the N2O group received 67% nitrousoxide, and the patients in the control group received air, with O2 and 1.2% sevoflurane. Then, IOP was measured at 1 hour (T1), 2 hours (T2), and 3 hours (T3) after anesthesia induction in the supineposition. Blood pressure and heart rate were recorded at the same time interval. Results: There was no significant difference in the IOP at any period between the two groups. In both groups, the IOP at the T3 was significantly higher than that at T0. Conclusion: These results suggest that N2O does not affect the IOP in patients undergoing abdominal surgery under sevoflurane and remifentanil anesthesia.
Evidence for In Vivo Primed and Expanded Autoreactive T Cells as a Specific Feature of Patients with Type 1 Diabetes1

Identifying β cell autoantigen-reactive T cells that are involved in the pathogenesis of type 1 diabetes has been troublesome for many laboratories. Disease-relevant autoreactive T cells should be in vivo Ag experienced. The aim of this study was to test this hypothesis and then use this principle as a strategy for identifying diabetes-relevant autoreactive T cells. In this study, a CSFE dilution assay was used to detect glutamic acid decarboxylase 65 (GAD65)- and insulin-responsive T cells and HLA-0201*-GAD65114–122 pentamers were used to detect CD8+ GAD-responsive T cells in memory CD45RO+ and naive CD45RO− cell populations from patients with type 1 diabetes and healthy control subjects. T cell proliferative history was evaluated by flow cytometry telomere length measurement. CD4+ and CD8+ T cells specific for GAD65 and insulin were present in patients with type 1 diabetes and control subjects. Within the naive CD45RO− cells, CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses were similar between patients and controls. Within the memory CD45RO+ cells, CD4+ T cell responses against whole GAD65 and insulin and HLA-0201*-GAD65114–122 pentamer-positive CD8+ T cells were found in patients with type 1 diabetes, but not in control subjects (p < 0.05 for all). Responding cells from the CD45RO+ T cell population had substantially shorter telomere lengths than responding cells from the CD45RO− cell population. Diabetes-specific autoreactive T cells in the circulation have uniquely undergone sustained in vivo proliferation and differentiation into memory T cells. Prior selection of these cells is possible and is a way to identify diabetes-relevant target Ags and epitopes.
Density and Kinetics of IKr and IKs in Guinea Pig and Rabbit Ventricular Myocytes Explain Different Efficacy of IKs Blockade at High Heart Rate in Guinea Pig and Rabbit: Implications for Arrhythmogenesis in Humans

Background—Class III antiarrhythmic agents commonly exhibit reverse frequency-dependent prolongation of the action potential duration (APD). This is undesirable because of the danger of bradycardia-related arrhythmias and the limited protection against ventricular tachyarrhythmias. The effects of blockade of separate components of delayed rectifier K+ current (IK) may help to develop agents effective at high heart rate. Methods and Results—We assessed the density and kinetics of the 2 components of the delayed rectifier K+ current, IKr and IKs, in rabbit and guinea pig ventricular myocytes. The effects of their specific blockers (chromanol 293B for IKs and E-4031 for IKr) on the action potential was studied at different heart rates by use of whole-cell patch-clamp techniques. In guinea pig ventricular myocytes only, blockade of IKs causes APD prolongation in a frequency-independent manner, whereas blockade of IKs in rabbit ventricular myocytes shows reverse frequency dependence, as does blockade of IKr in both species. This result can be explained primarily by the higher density of IKs in guinea pig ventricle and by its slow deactivation kinetics, which allows IKs to accumulate at high heart rate because little time is available for complete deactivation of it during diastole. Conclusions—Density and kinetics of components of IK explain why blockade of IKs is more effective at high heart rate in the guinea pig ventricle than in the rabbit ventricle, without adverse effects at low heart rate.
Trophic ecology of marine birds and pelagic fishes from Reunion Island as determined by stable isotope analysis

Stable nitrogen and carbon isotopes were used to investigate trophic ecology in tropical marine bird and fish communities from Reunion Island, western Indian Ocean. Firstly, isotope signa- tures in the liver of Barau's petrels Pterodroma baraui, Audubon's shearwaters Puffinus lherminieri bailloni, and white-tailed tropicbirds Phaethon lepturus were used to compare their trophic levels and determine whether they forage in the same areas while breeding on Reunion Island. Spatial and trophic segregations were noted among these seabirds. Barau's petrels seem to feed on prey of higher trophic levels than Audubon's shearwaters. Different isotopic signatures in adults and juveniles of these species suggest that these chick-rearing Procellariiformes adopt a dual food-provisioning strat- egy, making separate foraging trips to feed their fledglings and for their own maintenance. Satellite tracking should be undertaken to verify this hypothesis. Furthermore, novel data were obtained on the seabirds' interbreeding period by analyzing feather signatures. White-tailed tropicbirds are thought to change foraging areas during this season, although none of the birds seemed to shift diets. Secondly, isotopic signatures in the muscle of yellowfin tuna Thunnus albacares, skipjack tuna Katsuwonus pelamis, and common dolphinfish Coryphaena hippurus were used to gather informa- tion on their feeding behaviors in Reunion Island waters. Spatial and trophic segregations were also observed, particularly between common dolphinfish and the tuna species, where the former fed more on low trophic level coastal organisms under fish aggregating devices than did the latter. Finally, trophic interactions in bird and fish communities were investigated. Seabirds appear to be trophically more structured than fish, foraging in a wider range of areas. Our results confirmed feeding associa- tions between Audubon's shearwaters and yellowfin tuna.
Hairy black holes, horizon mass and solitons

Properties of the horizon mass of hairy black holes are discussed with emphasis on certain subtle and initially unexpected features. A key property suggests that hairy black holes may be regarded as `bound states' of ordinary black holes (without hair) and coloured solitons. This model is then used to predict the qualitative behaviour of the horizon properties of hairy black holes, to provide a physical `explanation' of their instability and to put qualitative constraints on the end-point configurations that result from this instability. The available numerical calculations support these predictions. Furthermore, the physical arguments are robust and should also be applicable in more complicated situations where detailed numerical work is yet to be carried out.
Brief Comprehensive Quality of Life Assessment After Stroke: The Assessment of Quality of Life Instrument in the North East Melbourne Stroke Incidence Study (NEMESIS)

Background and Purpose— Generic utility health-related quality of life instruments are useful in assessing stroke outcome because they facilitate a broader description of the disease and outcomes, allow comparisons between diseases, and can be used in cost-benefit analysis. The aim of this study was to validate the Assessment of Quality of Life (AQoL) instrument in a stroke population. Methods— Ninety-three patients recruited from the community-based North East Melbourne Stroke Incidence Study between July 13, 1996, and April 30, 1997, were interviewed 3 months after stroke. Validity of the AQoL was assessed by examining associations between the AQoL and comparator instruments: the Medical Outcomes Short-Form Health Survey (SF-36); London Handicap Scale; Barthel Index; National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale; and Irritability, Depression, Anxiety scale. Sensitivity of the AQoL was assessed by comparing AQoL scores from groups of patients categorized by severity of impairment and disability and with total anterior circulation syndrome (TACS) versus non-TACS. Predictive validity was assessed by examining the association between 3-month AQoL scores and outcomes of death or institutionalization 12 months after stroke. Results— Overall AQoL utility scores and individual dimension scores were most highly correlated with relevant scales on the comparator instruments. AQoL scores clearly differentiated between patients in categories of severity of impairment and disability and between patients with TACS and non-TACS. AQoL scores at 3 months after stroke predicted death and institutionalization at 12 months. Conclusions— The AQoL demonstrated strong psychometric properties and appears to be a valid and sensitive measure of health-related QoL after stroke.
The research questions and methodological adequacy of clinical studies of the voice and larynx published in Brazilian and international journals.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the methodological adequacy of voice and laryngeal study designs published in speech-language pathology and otorhinolaryngology journals indexed for the ISI Web of Knowledge (ISI Web) and the MEDLINE database. METHODS A cross-sectional study conducted at the Universidade Federal de São Paulo (Federal University of São Paulo). Two Brazilian speech-language pathology and otorhinolaryngology journals (Pró-Fono and Revista Brasileira de Otorrinolaringologia) and two international speech-language pathology and otorhinolaryngology journals (Journal of Voice, Laryngoscope), all dated between 2000 and 2004, were hand-searched by specialists. Subsequently, voice and larynx publications were separated, and a speech-language pathologist and otorhinolaryngologist classified 374 articles from the four journals according to objective and study design. RESULTS The predominant objective contained in the articles was that of primary diagnostic evaluation (27%), and the most frequent study design was case series (33.7%). A mere 7.8% of the studies were designed adequately with respect to the stated objectives. There was no statistical difference in the methodological quality of studies indexed for the ISI Web and the MEDLINE database. CONCLUSION The studies published in both national journals, indexed for the MEDLINE database, and international journals, indexed for the ISI Web, demonstrate weak methodology, with research poorly designed to meet the proposed objectives. There is much scientific work to be done in order to decrease uncertainty in the field analysed.
Mu opioid receptors: cellular action and tolerance development.

Opioids are some of the most effective pain-relieving drugs used in the clinical management of pain (Gilman et al. 1990). In addition to their analgesic effect, opioid peptides and alkaloids also affect a number of physiological functions including hormone secretion, neurotransmitter release, feeding, gastrointestinal motility, and respiratory activity (Pasternak 1988). Extensive physiological, behavioral, and pharma-cological studies have defined at least three major types of opioid receptors designated mu, kappa, and delta (Corbett et al. 1993; Goldstein 1987; Wood and Iyengar 1988). Although there is substantial overlap in their tissue distribution and pharmacological profiles, each opioid receptor type maintains a unique pattern of expression while displaying characteristic binding affinities for various subtype-selective ligands. The delta receptors that bind the enkephalin peptides are expressed most predominantly in the basal ganglia, striatum, and cerebral cortex (Mansour et al. 1988; Wood 1988). Although delta receptors have been implicated in spinal analgesia (Porreca et al. 1984; Yaksh 1981), recently it has been suggested that specific delta receptor subtypes may also be involved in supraspinal analgesia (Pasternak 1993). The kappa receptors are most highly expressed in cortex, striatum, and hypothalamus (Mansour et al. 1987), with various subtypes identified by autoradiography using subtype-selective ligands (Nock et al. 1988; Unterwald et al. 1991). With the development of more highly subtype-selective ligands, these receptors have been shown to mediate both spinal and supraspinal analgesia (Pasternak 1993).
Applications of Game Theory in Linguistics

The article gives a brief overview over the budding field of game theoretic linguistics, by focusing on game theoretic pragmatics on the one hand, and the usage of evolutionary game theory to model cultural language evolution on the other hand. Two specific applications are discussed in detail: the derivation of scalar implicatures via rational reasoning over communicative strategies, and the predictive potential of an evolutionary interpretation of exemplar dynamics in phonetics.
An Externally Accessible Linker Region in the Sodium-Coupled Phosphate Transporter PiT-1 (SLC20A1) is Important for Transport Function

Background/Aims: Members of the SLC20 cotransporter family (PiT-1, PiT-2) are ubiquitously expressed in mammalian tissue and are thought to perform housekeeping functions for intracellular Pi homeostasis as well as being implicated in vascular calcification and renal Pi reabsorption. The aims of this study were to investigate the topology of a linker region in PiT-1 between the predicted 2nd and 3rd transmembrane domains and to investigate the functional consequences of cysteine substitutions in this region. Methods: Cysteines were substituted at 18 sites in the Xenopus PiT-1 isoform and the mutants were expressed in Xenopus laevis oocytes. Transport function of the mutants was investigated by 32P tracer or two electrode voltage clamp before and after thiol modification of the novel Cys. Results: Exposure to the thiol reactive reagent resulted in diminished transport function for 7 mutants. The apparent accessibility of 5 of the mutated sites, estimated from the rate of functional thiol modification, was site-dependent. Cysteine substitution at some sites also altered the apparent affinity for Pi and cation (Na+/Li+) and substrate (phosphate/arsenate) selectivity, further underscoring the importance of this linker in defining PiT-1 transport characteristics. Conclusions: The external accessibility of a linker in PiT-1 was confirmed and sites were identified that determine substrate selectivity and transport function.
Molar Incisor Hypomineralization: Morphological, Aetiological, Epidemiological and Clinical Considerations

The prevalence of dental caries has been reduced over the years due to increased access of fluorides, such as fluoride tooth paste, to dental services and to oral health education on the great part of the population. However, a significant portion of the same population still remains undertreated and show dental cavities as after-effects of this oral disease. In spite of dental caries is strongly influenced by social, economic, cultural, religious and environmental factors, its severity may be increased by structural changes of enamel/dentin such those observed in cases of molar incisor hypomineralization (MIH). In a Brazilian survey, children with MIH showed higher caries experience in the permanent dentition than the general population of similar age. (da Costa-Silva et al., 2010) The MIH increases the dental caries risk as consequence of affected teeth because they are not only soft and porous enamel teeth but also very sensitive to stimuli making effective oral hygiene difficult. (Kilpatrick, 2009) Several aetiological factors are mentioned as the cause of MIH (Alaluusua, 2010, Lygidakis et al., 2010, Crombie et al., 2009, Brook, 2009) and they are frequently associated with childhood diseases or nutritional conditions during the first three years of life. (Fagrell et al., 2011)
Effects of Candesartan on the Development of a New Diagnosis of Diabetes Mellitus in Patients With Heart Failure

Background—Diabetes is a risk factor for heart failure, and both conditions are increasing. Identifying treatments that prevent both conditions will be clinically important. We previously reported that candesartan (an angiotensin receptor blocker) reduces cardiovascular mortality and heart failure hospitalizations in heart failure patients (CHARM: Candesartan in Heart Failure—Assessment of Reduction in Mortality and Morbidity Program). Methods and Results—We assessed the impact of candesartan versus placebo on the development of diabetes, a predefined secondary outcome in a randomized, controlled, double-blind study involving 5436 of the 7601 patients with heart failure, irrespective of ejection fraction, who did not have a diagnosis of diabetes at entry into the trial. Patients received candesartan (target of 32 mg once daily) or matching placebo for 2 to 4 years. One hundred sixty-three (6.0%) individuals in the candesartan group developed diabetes, as compared with 202 (7.4%) in the placebo group (hazard ratio [HR], 0.78 with a 95% confidence interval [CI] of 0.64 to 0.96; P=0.020). The composite end point of death or diabetes occurred in 692 (25.2%) and 779 (28.6%), respectively, in the candesartan and placebo groups (HR, 0.86; 95% CI, 0.78 to 0.95; P=0.004). The results were not statistically heterogeneous in the various subgroups examined, although the apparent magnitude of benefit appeared to be smaller among those treated concomitantly with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors at trial entry (HR, 0.88; 95% CI, 0.65 to 1.20) compared with those not receiving these drugs (HR, 0.71; 95% CI, 0.53 to 0.93; P for heterogeneity, 0.28). Conclusions—The angiotensin receptor blocker candesartan appears to prevent diabetes in heart failure patients, suggesting that the renin-angiotensin axis is implicated in glucose regulation.
Quantum criticality and black holes

Many condensed matter experiments explore the finite temperature dynamics of systems near quantum critical points. Often, there are no well-defined quasiparticle excitations, and so quantum kinetic equations do not describe the transport properties completely. The theory shows that the transport coefficients are not proportional to a mean free scattering time (as is the case in the Boltzmann theory of quasiparticles), but are completely determined by the absolute temperature and by equilibrium thermodynamic observables. Recently, explicit solutions of this quantum critical dynamics have become possible via the anti-de Sitter/conformal field theory duality discovered in string theory. This shows that the quantum critical theory provides a holographic description of the quantum theory of black holes in a negatively curved anti-de Sitter space, and relates its transport coefficients to properties of the Hawking radiation from the black hole. We review how insights from this connection have led to new results for experimental systems: (i) the vicinity of the superfluid–insulator transition in the presence of an applied magnetic field, and its possible application to measurements of the Nernst effect in the cuprates, (ii) the magnetohydrodynamics of the plasma of Dirac electrons in graphene and the prediction of a hydrodynamic cyclotron resonance.
New Approach to Estimate Tidal Climatology From Ground‐ and Space‐Based Observations

This paper proposes a new approach to obtain seasonal variations of global tides for the horizontal winds in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere region, based on daily tides derived from the global coverage of the TIMED Doppler Interferometer (TIDI) and the local‐time coverage of a meteor radar chain. The daily variations of different mesosphere and lower thermosphere tides are obtained taking advantage of empirical tidal mode (ETM), which is first derived from Global Scale Wave Model using empirical orthogonal function analysis. ETM displays latitudinal and vertical features of each tidal component in a realistic background atmosphere with dissipation effects. After fitting the observations by ETM day by day, the monthly mean of daily fitted results is then used to describe tidal monthly features. Seasonal variations of three major tidal components were found: DW1 in both zonal and meridional winds usually has two maxima around equinoxes, DE3 in zonal winds achieves their maximum in September, while that in meridional winds becomes strongest in February and November. SW2 in zonal winds reaches largest amplitudes in May in the southern hemisphere, and meridional winds has minor peaks in February and November in the northern hemisphere. At last, we superpose each tidal component with the same frequency to reconstruct the global diurnal and semidiurnal tidal winds. Comparing them with both of TIDI 60‐day average winds and outputs of Global Scale Wave Model model, similar characteristics and magnitudes indicate their consistency and confirm the reliability and feasibility of this new approach.
Mild Blast Events Alter Anxiety, Memory, and Neural Activity Patterns in the Anterior Cingulate Cortex

There is a general interest in understanding of whether and how exposure to emotionally traumatizing events can alter memory function and anxiety behaviors. Here we have developed a novel laboratory-version of mild blast exposure comprised of high decibel bomb explosion sound coupled with strong air blast to mice. This model allows us to isolate the effects of emotionally fearful components from those of traumatic brain injury or bodily injury typical associated with bomb blasts. We demonstrate that this mild blast exposure is capable of impairing object recognition memory, increasing anxiety in elevated O-maze test, and resulting contextual generalization. Our in vivo neural ensemble recording reveal that such mild blast exposures produced diverse firing changes in the anterior cingulate cortex, a region processing emotional memory and inhibitory control. Moreover, we show that these real-time neural ensemble patterns underwent post-event reverberations, indicating rapid consolidation of those fearful experiences. Identification of blast-induced neural activity changes in the frontal brain may allow us to better understand how mild blast experiences result in abnormal changes in memory functions and excessive fear generalization related to post-traumatic stress disorder.