Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Malnutrition and Dysfunctional Mother-Child Feeding Interactions: Clinical Assessment and Research Implications

Objectives: To evaluate the effects of age and the presence of feeding pathologies on the relational modes during meals in a sample of mother-child pairs (n = 333), comparing groups of children in the first three years of life with normal development (ND-group, n = 211) and clinical groups of children who presented a diagnosis of feeding disorder and failure to thrive (FD-group, n = 122), and to show an association between specific symptomatic characteristics of the mother, of the child and the dysfunctional modes of their relationship during meals in a subgroup of mother-child pairs (n = 50), selected at random from the total clinical sample and paired with a control group chosen for this study. Methods: All mother-child pairs in the sample were observed in twenty-minute video-recordings during a meal, using the procedure of the Feeding Scale in the Italian version. A subgroup of mothers, selected at random from the total clinical sample, and paired with a control group, were given two self-reporting instruments for the evaluation of their psychological symptom status: the Eating Attitude Test and the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised, as well as two instruments for the evaluation of the infant temperament and emotional/behavioral functioning: the Baby and Toddler Behavior Questionnaires (from 1 to 18 months) and the Child Behavior Checklist 1½-5 (from 18 to 36 months). Results: Analysis of variance showed that the FD-group present interactional dysfunctional patterns during feeding and raise higher scores in symptomatic characteristics both of the mother and of the child, compared to ND-group. A set of correlation analyses (Pearson coefficients) showed an association among specific symptomatic characteristics of the mothers (dysfunctional eating attitudes, anxiety, depression, hostility), of their children (in particular, anxiety/depression, somatic complaints and aggressive behavior) and of their dysfunctional relational modes during feeding (p < 0.05). Conclusions: Our study confirms that analysis of the individual characteristics of the child, of the mother and of their relationship during the development of feeding patterns in the first three years of the child’s life is extremely important in the clinical assessment of early feeding disorders, in order to establish a valid diagnostic methodology and formulate strategies for targeted and effective intervention. Furthermore, the results emphasize the clinical utility of our research in early identification of infants and toddlers at risk for feeding problems.
Site of medical care: do racial and ethnic differences persist?

Public and private sector efforts launched since the mid-1960s have greatly reduced racial disparities in access to medical care that were commonplace during most of this nation's history. This study, analyzing data from a nationally representative source, examines whether race/ethnicity persists as a factor affecting where medical care is obtained. The analysis provides strong evidence that race -- independent of insurance coverage -- continues to be associated with the usual sources of medical care used by whites, African Americans, and Latinos. While most Americans across racial groups obtain care in office-based settings, African Americans and Latinos are roughly twice as likely as whites to obtain ambulatory care in a hospital-based setting. This finding holds true for children and adults ages eighteen to sixty-four, regardless of their insurance coverage. For example, 22.8% of African-American and 18.8% of Latino children with Medicaid coverage use hospital-based providers as their usual source of medical care, compared to 9.9% of white children covered by Medicaid. Further work is needed to explore the incentives and disincentives for obtaining care from different health care settings. It will also be important to assess whether racial differences in the major sources of care have implications for the content of care or the nature of the patient-provider relationship in terms of factors such as communications and trust.
Normalisation Revisited: The Effective Use of Technology in Language Education

This article revisits the issue of the normalisation of technology in language education, defined as the stage at which a technology is used in language education without our being consciously aware of its role as a technology, as an effective element in the language learning process Bax, 2003. It draws on the literature relating to the history of sociotechnical innovation Bijker, 1997 to develop the theoretical basis of the concept and examines normalisation in the light of a neo-Vygotskian conceptual framework, in order to establish a set of central principles by which to understand and interpret the normalisation process. It then considers the implications for the language teacher and other change agents, with proposals for how to introduce new technologies into language education settings with maximum impact.
Advances in Bone Tissue Engineering

While bone is inherently capable of regeneration, complications such as excessive bone loss impede healing, necessitating the use of bone grafts. In the United States alone, an estimated 15 million fractures occurs annually, including 1.6 million hospital admissions for traumatic fractures and 2 million osteoporotic fractures, costing over 60 billion dollars and calling for 1.6 million bone grafts each year [1]; a growing demand for bone grafts is similarly observed worldwide. In such applications, autologous bone grafts continue to be regarded as the “gold standard” for bone repair. However, this may not be practicable in cases involving large bone loss. Additionally, patients suffer from significant donor site morbidity, as well as poor outcomes in older patients [2, 3]. Allogeneic bone grafts may alternatively be used, but pose potential risks of immune rejection and pathogen transmission [4]. Additionally, the limited number of donors is unable to cope with the clinical demand. Consequently, alternative approaches to provide efficacious and reliable bone grafts are being actively pursued.
Combined Reporter Gene PET and Iron Oxide MRI for Monitoring Survival and Localization of Transplanted Cells in the Rat Heart

There is a need for in vivo monitoring of cell engraftment and survival after cardiac cell transplantation therapy. This study assessed the feasibility and usefulness of combined PET and MRI for monitoring cell engraftment and survival after cell transplantation. Methods: Human endothelial progenitor cells (HEPCs), derived from CD34+ mononuclear cells of umbilical cord blood, were retrovirally transduced with the sodium iodide symporter (NIS) gene for reporter gene imaging by 124I-PET and labeled with iron oxides for visualization by MRI. Imaging and histologic analysis were performed on 3 groups of nude rats on days 1, 3, and 7 after intramyocardial injection of 4 million HEPCs. Results: In vitro studies demonstrated stable expression of functional NIS protein and normal viability of HEPCs after transduction. On day 1, after intramyocardial transplantation, iron- and NIS-labeled HEPCs were visualized successfully on MRI as a regional signal void in the healthy myocardium and on PET as 124I accumulation. The 124I uptake decreased on day 3 and was undetectable on day 7, and the MRI signal remained unchanged throughout the follow-up period. Histologic analysis with CD31 and CD68 antibodies confirmed the presence of either labeled or nonlabeled control transplanted HEPCs at the site of injection on day 1 but not on day 7, when only iron-loaded macrophages were seen. Furthermore, deoxyuride-5′-triphosphate biotin nick end labeling showed extensive apoptosis at the site of transplantation. Conclusion: The combination of MRI and PET allows imaging of localization and survival of transplanted HEPCs together with morphologic information about the heart. Although iron labeling rapidly loses specificity for cell viability because of phagocytosis of iron particles released from dead cells, reporter gene expression provided specific information on the number of surviving cells. This multimodality approach allows complementary analysis of cell localization and viability.
Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor 1 (EGFR1) and Its Variant EGFRvIII Regulate TATA-Binding Protein Expression through Distinct Pathways

ABSTRACT The epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) family regulates essential biological processes. Various epithelial tumors are linked to EGFR overexpression or expression of variant forms, such as the EGFR1 variant, EGFRvIII. Perturbations in expression of the transcription initiation factor, TATA-binding protein (TBP), alter cellular growth properties. Here we demonstrate that EGFR1 and EGFRvIII, but not HER2, induce TBP expression at a transcriptional level through distinct mechanisms. EGFR1 enhances the phosphorylation and function of Elk-1, recruiting it to the TBP promoter. In contrast, EGFRvIII robustly induces c-jun expression, stimulating recruitment of c-fos/c-jun to an overlapping AP-1 site. Enhancing c-jun expression alone induces TBP promoter activity through the AP-1 site. To determine the underlying mechanism for differences in Elk-1 function and c-jun expression by these receptors, we inhibited the internalization of EGFR1. Persistent EGFR1 cell surface occupancy mimics EGFRvIII-mediated effects on Elk-1 and c-jun and switches the requirement of Elk-1 to AP-1 for TBP promoter induction. Together, these studies define a new molecular mechanism for the regulation of TBP expression. In addition, we identify distinct molecular targets of EGFR1 and EGFRvIII and demonstrate the importance of receptor internalization in distinguishing their specific functions.
Assembly of Arenavirus Envelope Glycoprotein GPC in Detergent-Soluble Membrane Microdomains

ABSTRACT The family Arenaviridae includes a number of highly pathogenic viruses that are responsible for acute hemorrhagic fevers in humans. Genetic diversity among arenavirus species in their respective rodent hosts supports the continued emergence of new pathogens. In the absence of available vaccines or therapeutic agents, the hemorrhagic fever arenaviruses remain a serious public health and biodefense concern. Arenaviruses are enveloped virions that assemble and bud from the plasma membrane. In this study, we have characterized the microdomain organization of the virus envelope glycoprotein (GPC) on the cell surface by using immunogold electron microscopy. We find that Junín virus (JUNV) GPC clusters into discrete microdomains of 120 to 160 nm in diameter and that this property of GPC is independent of its myristoylation and of coexpression with the virus matrix protein Z. In cells infected with the Candid#1 strain of JUNV, and in purified Candid#1 virions, these GPC microdomains are soluble in cold Triton X-100 detergent and are thus distinct from conventional lipid rafts, which are utilized by numerous other viruses for assembly. Virion morphogenesis ultimately requires colocalization of viral components, yet our dual-label immunogold staining studies failed to reveal a spatial association of Z with GPC microdomains. This observation may reflect either rapid Z-dependent budding of virus-like particles upon coassociation or a requirement for additional viral components in the assembly process. Together, these results provide new insight into the molecular basis for arenavirus morphogenesis.
Ethics in dentistry.

After completing this course, the reader should be able to:  Explain the significance of social contract, fiduciary responsibility, and therapeutic relationship in dental ethics.  List the five core principles of ethics described in the American Dental Association (ADA) Code.  Define and provide an example of a dual or multiple relationship.  List three requirements for representing scope of practice according to ADA guidelines.  Describe the ethical obligations of dentists regarding emergency treatment of an individual who is not a patient.  Provide an example of fee splitting that is prohibited by the ADA.  Explain how the ADA Code is organized and what is contained in each of its three main sections.  Compare and contrast not-for-profit referral services with commercial referral services.  Identify the three necessary elements of informed consent.
Young people negotiating embodied subjectivities through (dis)engagement in physical education

The purpose of this study was to engage with a group of students from a diverse school environment about how they construct value or status in their own and others bodies in physical education (PE) and sport. This study was premised on the notion that young people s constructions of bodies that have value affect both their sense of self and their (dis)engagement with physical activity in and out of school. Sport, physical activity and education are not value-free in their purpose or practices, and constitute arenas in which young people learn about what those values are and how they apply to their own bodies. Learning more about how young people make embodied decisions to engage in physical activity can aid in understanding how best to create inclusive, positive experiences within PE and youth sport. The feminist / poststructuralist theoretical framework that this research draws upon focuses attention on the constructions of embodied subjectivities through an individual s subject positions amongst multiple discourses. These discourses are (re)produced but shift as individuals take up and negotiate positions through the multiple narratives available to them. By linking these notions to that of physical capital, this study explores how individuals practices affect how they might be seen as valued. This study pays particular attention to gendered and racialised constructions of bodies in PE and sport, as literature identifies concerns about equity in participation and representation. Data were generated over one school year with a cohort of students in Year 9 of an ethnically diverse secondary school in the East Midlands, UK. Fourteen boys and eleven girls volunteered to take part in a collaborative visual ethnographic project consisting of a fortnight s photo diary and the sharing of participant-produced images in group interviews. Taped group interviews, participants photographs, field notes from observations of the participants PE lessons and researcher s photographs of the school notice boards were collated and analysed using a combination of thematic, discourse and content analyses. Findings indicated that the participants constructed as valued bodies those that are good at PE : meaning competency, strength and a desire and ability to win. Alongside this, students also valued fit, not fat bodies, and the display of effort or trying one s best. These constructions were often tied to their potential to perform convincingly. The students took up positions in relation to these notions of status, sometimes investing in practices that would develop their bodies in these ways. Participants fluid subjectivities as they negotiated different activities, physical cultures, and assumptions about gendered and racialised bodies affected their choices not just whether to engage but in what ways they would engage in physical activity.
A novel homozygous ERCC5 truncating mutation in a family with prenatal arthrogryposis—Further evidence of genotype–phenotype correlation

We report on a family with five fetuses conceived to first cousin parents presenting with abnormal ultrasound findings including contractures and microcephaly. Cerebellar hypoplasia and ventriculomegaly were also present in two and fetal edema developed in the one fetus that survived beyond 24 weeks of gestation. Linkage studies of 15 members of the family, including four affecteds, were undertaken followed by exome sequencing of one affected individual and their parents. Analysis of exome data was restricted to the 9.3 Mb largest shared region of homozygosity identified by linkage; a single novel homozygous mutation in the proband that was heterozygous in the parents (ERCC5 c.2766dupA, p.Leu923ThrfsX7) was identified. This segregated with disease. ERCC5 is a component of the nucleotide excision repair machinery and biallelic mutations in the gene have previously been associated with xeroderma pigmentosum (group G), Cockayne syndrome and the more severe cerebrooculofacioskeletal syndrome. The phenotype in the family we report on is consistent with a severe manifestation of cerebrooculofacioskeletal syndrome. Our data broaden the reported clinical spectrum of ERCC5 mutations and provide further evidence of genotype–phenotype correlation with truncating mutations being associated with severe phenotypes. They also demonstrate the molecular diagnostic power of a combined approach of linkage studies and exome sequencing in families with rare, genetically heterogeneous disorders and a well described pedigree. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The Contribution of Social Behaviour to the Transmission of Influenza A in a Human Population

Variability in the risk of transmission for respiratory pathogens can result from several factors, including the intrinsic properties of the pathogen, the immune state of the host and the host's behaviour. It has been proposed that self-reported social mixing patterns can explain the behavioural component of this variability, with simulated intervention studies based on these data used routinely to inform public health policy. However, in the absence of robust studies with biological endpoints for individuals, it is unclear how age and social behaviour contribute to infection risk. To examine how the structure and nature of social contacts influenced infection risk over the course of a single epidemic, we designed a flexible disease modelling framework: the population was divided into a series of increasingly detailed age and social contact classes, with the transmissibility of each age-contact class determined by the average contacts of that class. Fitting the models to serologically confirmed infection data from the 2009 Hong Kong influenza A/H1N1p pandemic, we found that an individual's risk of infection was influenced strongly by the average reported social mixing behaviour of their age group, rather than by their personal reported contacts. We also identified the resolution of social mixing that shaped transmission: epidemic dynamics were driven by intense contacts between children, a post-childhood drop in risky contacts and a subsequent rise in contacts for individuals aged 35–50. Our results demonstrate that self-reported social contact surveys can account for age-associated heterogeneity in the transmission of a respiratory pathogen in humans, and show robustly how these individual-level behaviours manifest themselves through assortative age groups. Our results suggest it is possible to profile the social structure of different populations and to use these aggregated data to predict their inherent transmission potential.
Chandipura virus perturbs cholesterol homeostasis leading to neuronal apoptosis

Chandipura virus (CHPV; genus Vesiculovirus, family Rhabdoviridae) induces neuronal death through the Fas‐mediated extrinsic apoptosis pathway. What propels this apoptosis remains unclear, although oxysterols have been reported to be key players in neurodegeneration. In our study of CHPV‐infected brain samples, we observed over‐expression of genes such as apolipoprotein E, Cyp46a1, Srebf‐1 and Nsdhl. This backs up the hypothesis that CHPV replication demands cholesterol that is supplied by apolipoprotein E through low density lipid receptors, lipid metabolism being pivotal for viral replication. We were able to illustrate this with over‐expression of low density lipid receptors in CHPV‐infected neurons. An upsurge of cholesterol concentration has been observed in neurons, triggering the expression of Cyp46a1 enzyme and culminating into the conversion of cholesterol to 24(S)‐hydroxycholesterol. Increased 24(S)‐hydroxycholesterol concentration is toxic to neurons, propelling neuronal apoptosis through the Fas‐mediated extrinsic apoptosis pathway. For the first time, perturbation of cholesterol homeostasis in brain is shown to be utilized by the viruses for both maturation and the release of its matured virions outside the cells for continuous neuropathogenesis.
Amplification of the Insulin-Like Growth Factor 1 Receptor Gene Is a Rare Event in Adrenocortical Adenocarcinomas: Searching for Potential Mechanisms of Overexpression

Context. IGF1R overexpression appears to be a prognostic biomarker of metastatic pediatric adrenocortical tumors. However, the molecular mechanisms that are implicated in its upregulation remain unknown. Aim. To investigate the potential mechanisms involved in IGF1R overexpression. Patients and Methods. We studied 64 adrenocortical tumors. IGF1R copy number variation was determined in all patients using MLPA and confirmed using real time PCR. In a subgroup of 32 patients, automatic sequencing was used to identify IGF1R allelic variants and the expression of microRNAs involved in IGF1R regulation by real time PCR. Results. IGF1R amplification was detected in an adrenocortical carcinoma that was diagnosed in a 46-year-old woman with Cushing's syndrome and virilization. IGF1R overexpression was demonstrated in this case. In addition, gene amplification of other loci was identified in this adrenocortical malignant tumor, but no IGF1R copy number variation was evidenced in the remaining cases. Automatic sequencing revealed three known polymorphisms but they did not correlate with its expression. Expression of miR-100, miR-145, miR-375, and miR-126 did not correlate with IGF1R expression. Conclusion. We demonstrated amplification and overexpression of IGF1R gene in only one adrenocortical carcinoma, suggesting that these combined events are uncommon. In addition, IGF1R polymorphisms and abnormal microRNA expression did not correlate with IGF1R upregulation in adrenocortical tumors.
Lean manufacturing: implementation and assessment in the Lebanese pharmaceutical industry

Lebanese industries are growing so fast and expanding their businesses while managing their time, inventory, labor, quality and other production factors in order to increase productivity and output while reducing waste. For that, lean manufacturing aims to reduce the inventory and gain more profits while getting a better quality of the goods delivered to the customers. The aim of this Article is to assess and explain, through a survey, to which extent lean tools are implemented in a Lebanese pharmaceutical industry and to find out if there is any relationship between the application of these tools (Kaizen, JIT, TPM and standardization) and the effectiveness of lean on the productivity.
Blue-green algae (Arthrospira platensis) as an ingredient in pasta: free radical scavenging activity, sensory and cooking characteristics evaluation

The effects of semolina enrichment with blue-green algae (Arthrospira platensis) at three different levels (1, 2 and 3 g/100 g of semolina) on the colour, cooking properties, firmness, free radical scavenging activity and sensory characteristics of pasta are reported. Microalgae addition resulted in higher swelling index and lower cooking loss than the control sample. A significant increase in pasta firmness was evidenced with an increase of added microalgae due to structural reinforcement. In addition to colouring, the use of A. platensis (2 g/100 g of semolina) can enhance the sensory quality and nutraceutical potential as evaluated by free radical scavenging activity of pasta.