Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Digital Relief of the Mental Foramen for a CAD/CAM‐Fabricated Mandibular Denture

Relief of the intaglio surface of a denture base is conventionally performed using thin wax and soft metal foil attached to the master cast. The following report highlights a new relief procedure for the mental foramen using a CT double scan technique on the CAD/CAM dentures fabricated for the patient with paresthesia of the left lower lip and chin during mastication.
Indications and Outcome of Tracheostomy in Ilorin, North Central Nigeria: 10 Years Review

Background: The study aims to highlight common indications as well as outcome of treatment among patients with tracheostomy in Ilorin, North-Central Nigeria. Methods: A review of clinical records of all patients with tracheostomy over a period of ten years (2002-2011), using the Theatre, Ward, ICU and the emergency register after approval from the ethical review committee. Data retrieved included; demographic profile, primary diagnosis, indication for tracheostomy, surgical technique, hospital admission and care outcome of management. All information retrieved input and analysed using an SPSS version 17.0 and data analyzed descriptively. Results: Seventy-six patients had complete data for analysis, age range from 1-89yrs, and mean age of 41.9yrs. There are 48males and 28 females with M:F ratio of 1.6:1. Majority of the patients were in the 3rd–5th decade. About 47.4% had temporary tracheostomy. The commonest indication for tracheostomy is upper airway obstruction secondary to aerodigestive tract tumors in 60.5%, then trauma in 26.3%. The complications are higher among the under tens'. Out of the 36 temporary tracheostomy only 18 were successfully decannulated. The mean hospital stay was 22±2days. Overall 15% mortality was recorded. Conclusion: Common reason for tracheostomy is essentially same earlier documentation in developing countries, common among males, emergency type still most common, neoplasm, prolonged intubation and trauma are the commonest indications, its complication is still high among the under tens'. The outcome is good with 15% mortality due to the primary disease and not from tracheostomy.
Role of interleukin 33 in chronic rhinosinusitis

Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a heterogenous airways disease characterised by inflammation of the upper airways and sinuses that persists for at least 12 weeks. CRS is frequently divided into two endotypes based on the presence or absence of nasal polyps (NPs): CRS with NPs (CRSwNP) and CRS without NPs (CRSsNP). Inflammatory patterns in the two groups are different and studies indicate that CRSsNP is dominated by a type 1 inflammatory profile associated with increased interferon (INF)-γ and tumour necrosis factor (TGF)-β expression and neutrophilic inflammation.1 By comparison, type 2 inflammatory responses characterised by interleukin (IL) 4, IL-5, IL-13 cytokine expression and eosinophilic inflammation are features of CRSwNP.1 This categorisation may, however, be oversimplified as recent studies show that this may be subject to racial and regional differences.2 ,3 While the majority of Caucasian patients sampled in the USA and Europe have a pronounced infiltration of eosinophils and expression of IL-5 in the NPs, patients with CRSwNP in East Asian countries including Japan, Korea and China, exhibit a mixed inflammatory profile. About half the Asian patients with CRSwNP exhibit an eosinophilic chronic rhinosinusitis (ECRS) while the rest have a non-eosinophilic more neutrophilic or mixed inflammatory chronic rhinosinusitis (non-ECRS) characterised by type 1 dominant inflammation. Although a number of hypotheses have been proposed regarding the pathogenesis of CRSwNP, the precise molecular mechanisms remain unclear and likely lie beyond rudimentary clinical classifications of CRS. An emphasis on defining CRS endotypes based on distinct functional or pathobiological mechanisms of disease may be more effective at identifying patient groups that would respond to therapeutic interventions targeting specific proinflammatory mediators or infectious agents that trigger the disease pathology. The inflammatory profile of CRSsNP is largely type 1, although there are discrepancies over which isoforms of TGF-β are increased per se and in what …
Elastic constants and internal friction of polycrystalline copper

Using ultrasonic-resonance spectroscopy (URS), we measured the elastic constant C and companion internal friction Q ^−1 of isotropic polycrystalline copper. The annealed material was 0.9999 pure with equiaxed heavily twinned grains averaging about 75 μm diameter. The URS method offers the principal advantage of point contact or loose coupling, thus there was no contribution from a transducer-specimen bond and only small contributions from transducers and fixture. A second advantage is one measurement for all elastic constants and all associated internal frictions. The C ’s agree with established values. The Q ^−1’s are much lower than pulse-echo-method values. Comparison of measured Q ^−1 with the Koehler-Granato-Lücke model permits estimating an effective dislocation-loop length. Q ^−1 (shear) exceeds Q ^−1 (longitudinal) by a factor of about 1.5.
Basal and Dynamic Leptin Secretion: Association with Cardiometabolic Risk and Body Weight Trajectories in African-Americans and European-Americans

Background Fasting plasma leptin levels reflect fat mass, but dynamic leptin responses to secretagogues, and the influence of race/ethnicity, have not been well studied. Here, we compared basal and stimulated leptin levels in relation to cardiometabolic risk and weight trajectories in black and white subjects. Subjects and methods We studied 254 (127 black and 127 white) normoglycemic adults enrolled in the Pathobiology of Prediabetes in a Biracial Cohort (POP-ABC) study. At baseline and annually, POP-ABC participants underwent physical examination, oral glucose tolerance test, and measurements of body fat (dual energy X-ray absorptiometry), fasting plasma leptin, insulin, cortisol, lipids, and leptin secretory response to single-dose (2 mg) dexamethasone (dex). The interactions among basal and stimulated leptin and changes in adiposity/cardiometabolic measures during the ensuing year were then analyzed. Results The mean (±SD) fasting leptin level (50.6 ± 47.7 vs. 39.5 ± 37.6 ng/mL, P = 0.004) and body mass index (BMI) (31.9 ± 7.14 vs. 29.0 ± 7.66 kg/m2, P = 0.0043) were higher in black women vs. white women, but similar in black men vs. white men (leptin: 12.4 ± 2.07 vs. 11.1 ± 1.40 ng/mL; BMI: 29.4 ± 7.68 vs. 28.1 ± 4.23 kg/m2). The peak leptin response to dex (~200% baseline) did not differ significantly by gender or race. Total body fat correlated positively with fasting leptin (r = 0.81, P < 0.0001) and inversely stimulated leptin levels (r = −0.26, P < 0.0001). Fasting leptin was unrelated to 1-year change in weight or fat mass, whereas stimulated leptin levels were significantly associated with 1-year trajectories in weight (P = 0.0016) and total fat mass (P = 0.0035). Stimulated leptin levels also had significant interactions with insulin sensitivity (homeostasis model of insulin resistance, P = 0.01), triglycerides (P = 0.0078), fasting glucose (P = 0.027), systolic blood pressure (P = 0.037), and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (P = 0.027). Conclusion We found no significant ethnic disparities in basal or dynamic leptin secretion in relation to adiposity. Fasting leptin levels were not associated with 1-year weight change, while stimulated levels showed weak though significant association with 1-year weight change.
Time perception: the bad news and the good

Time perception is fundamental and heavily researched, but the field faces a number of obstacles to theoretical progress. In this advanced review, we focus on three pieces of ‘bad news’ for time perception research: temporal perception is highly labile across changes in experimental context and task; there are pronounced individual differences not just in overall performance but in the use of different timing strategies and the effect of key variables; and laboratory studies typically bear little relation to timing in the ‘real world’. We describe recent examples of these issues and in each case offer some ‘good news’ by showing how new research is addressing these challenges to provide rich insights into the neural and information-processing bases of timing and time perception.
Estrogen modulates the growth-associated protein GAP-43 (Neuromodulin) mRNA in the rat preoptic area and basal hypothalamus.

Growth-associated protein GAP-43 is a membrane-bound phosphoprotein which has been implicated in axonal elongation and synaptogenesis. GAP-43 has been detected in the developing and adult preoptic area and basal hypothalamus. Since estrogen is thought to influence neuronal connectivity and synaptic remodeling in the hypothalamus, the present study investigated estrogen modulation of GAP-43 mRNA in the preoptic area and ventromedial nucleus of the adult hypothalamus. Female rats were bilaterally ovariectomized for 14 days and then treated for 96 h with sesame oil or 10 micrograms/100 g body weight of estradiol valerate. Treated animals as well as intact female and male rats were sacrificed, brains removed and coronal cryostat sections collected. Section-mounted slides were processed and hybridized with an antisense 35S-labeled riboprobe complementary to GAP-43 mRNA. Additional slides were hybridized with an antisense 35S-labeled riboprobe complementary to estrogen receptor mRNA. The slides were stringently washed, apposed to X-ray film and then dipped in liquid nuclear emulsion. Evaluation of film and slide autoradiograms revealed that GAP-43 and estrogen receptor mRNA are localized in similar regions of the medial preoptic area, arcuate nucleus and ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus. Quantitative assessment of GAP-43 mRNA in the medical preoptic area revealed that levels were elevated in the intact female, attenuated after ovariectomy and elevated in estrogen-treated ovariectomized animals. GAP-43 mRNA hybridization signal in the ventromedial nucleus of intact diestrus females and ovariectomized animals did not differ, but was augmented by estrogen treatment of ovariectomized females. (ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Uplink Performance of Multi-Antenna Cellular Networks With Co-Operative Base Stations and User-Centric Clustering

We consider a user-centric co-operative cellular network, where base stations (BSs) close to a mobile co-operate to detect its signal using a (joint) linear minimum-mean-square-error receiver. The BSs are at arbitrary positions and mobiles are modeled as a planar Poisson point process (PPP). Combining stochastic geometry and infinite-random-matrix theory, we derive a simple expression for the spectral efficiency of this complex system as the number of antennas grows large. This framework is applied to BS locations from PPPs and hexagonal grids and is validated through Monte Carlo simulations. The results reveal the influence of tangible system parameters, such as mobile and BS densities, number of antennas per BS, and number of co-operating BSs on achievable spectral efficiencies. Among other insights, we find that for a given BS density and a constraint on the total number of co-operating antennas, all co-operating antennas should be located at a single BS. On the other hand, in our asymptotic regime, for the same number of co-operating antennas, if the network is limited by the area density of antennas, then the number of co-operating BSs should be increased with a fewer antennas per BS.
The Impact of the Transcendental Meditation Program on Government Payments to Physicians in Quebec: An Update

Purpose. To determine whether practice of the Transcendental Meditation (TM) technique can affect medical expenses. Design. The evaluation was a quasi experimental, longitudinal, cost-minimization study. Setting. Province of Quebec, Canada. Subjects. This study involved 1418 Quebec health insurance enrollees who practiced the TM technique compared with 1418 subjects who were randomly selected from enrollees of the same age, sex, and region. TM subjects had chosen to begin the technique prior to learning about and choosing to enter the study. Measures. This 14-year, pre- and postintervention study retrospectively assessed government payments to physicians for treating the TM and comparison groups. Other medical expense data for individuals were unavailable. Data were inflation-adjusted. For each subject, least squares regression slopes were calculated to estimate pre- and postintervention annual rates of change in payments. We compared the groups' means and 1%, 5%, and 10% trimmed means (robust estimators) of the slopes. Results. Before starting meditation, the yearly rate of increase in payments between groups was not significantly different (p > .17). After commencing meditation, the TM group's mean payments declined 1% to 2% annually. The comparison group's payments increased up to 11. 73% annually over 6 years. There was a 13. 78% mean annual difference (p = .0017). Conclusions. The results suggest that the TM technique reduced payments to physicians between 5 % and 13 % annually relative to comparison subjects over 6 years. Randomized studies are recommended.
Diet Quality of Breast Cancer Survivors after a Six-Month Weight Management Intervention: Improvements and Association with Weight Loss

ABSTRACT Purpose: Obesity and diet quality are two distinct lifestyle factors associated with morbidity and mortality among breast cancer survivors. The purposes of this study were to examine diet quality changes during a weight loss intervention among breast cancer survivors and to examine whether diet quality change was an important factor related to weight loss. Methods: Participants were overweight/obese breast cancer survivors (n = 180) participating in a weight loss intervention. Diet quality scores were calculated using the Healthy Eating Index (HEI)-2010. Paired sample t-tests were run to examine change in diet quality, and a latent difference model was constructed to examine whether change in diet quality was associated with weight change. Results: Participants significantly improved diet quality (P = 0.001) and lost 13.2 ± 5.8% (mean ± SD) of their weight (P = 0.001). Six-month HEI score was significantly associated with weight loss, controlling for baseline BMI (P = 0.003). Improvement in diet quality was also significantly associated with weight loss (P = 0.01). Conclusion: Our findings indicate that a weight loss intervention can result in both clinically significant weight loss and improvement in diet quality, and that improved diet quality is predictive of weight loss. Both weight loss and diet quality are implicated in longevity and quality of life for breast cancer survivors.
Independent evaluation of a FOXM1-based quantitative malignancy diagnostic system (qMIDS) on head and neck squamous cell carcinomas

The forkhead box M1 (FOXM1) transcription factor gene has been implicated in almost all human cancer types. It would be an ideal biomarker for cancer detection but, to date, its translation into a cancer diagnostic tool is yet to materialise. The quantitative Malignancy Index Diagnostic System (qMIDS) was the first FOXM1 oncogene-based diagnostic test developed for quantifying squamous cell carcinoma aggressiveness. The test was originally validated using head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (HNSCC) from European patients. The HNSCC gene expression signature across geographical and ethnic differences is unknown. This is the first study evaluated the FOXM1-based qMIDS test using HNSCC specimens donated by ethnic Chinese patients. We tested 50 Chinese HNSCC patients and 18 healthy subjects donated 68 tissues in total. qMIDS scores from the Chinese cohort were compared with the European datasets (n = 228). The median ± SD scores for the Chinese cohort were 1.13 ± 0.66, 4.02 ± 1.66 and 5.83 ± 3.13 in healthy oral tissues, adjacent tumour margin and HNSCC core tissue, respectively. Diagnostic test efficiency between the Chinese and European datasets was almost identical. Consistent with previous European data, qMIDS scores for HNSCC samples were not influenced by gender or age. The degree of HNSCC differentiation, clinical stage and lymphatic metastasis status were found to be correlated with qMIDS scores. This study provided the first evidence that the pathophysiology of HNSCC was molecularly indistinguishable between the Chinese and European specimens. The qMIDS test robustly quantifies a universal FOXM1-driven oncogenic program, at least in HNSCC, which transcends ethnicity, age, gender and geographic origins.
Distal Substrate Interactions Enhance Plasmepsin Activity*

Plasmepsin II (PM II) is an aspartic protease active in hemoglobin (Hb) degradation in the protozoan parasite Plasmodium falciparum. A fluorescence-quenched octapeptide substrate based on the initial hemoglobin cleavage site is recognized well by PM II. C-terminal extension of this peptide has little effect, but N-terminal extension results in higher maximal velocity and dramatic concentration-dependent substrate inhibition. This inhibition, but not the rate stimulation, depends on the presence of a DABCYL group on the peptide N terminus. Using site-directed mutagenesis, we have identified PM II residues that interact with N-terminal amino acids of peptide substrates. The same residues influence degradation of Hb by PM II. Cathepsin E (CatE), a related mammalian aspartic protease, is also stimulated by N-terminally extended substrates. This suggests that distal substrate interactions as far out as P6 may be a general property of aspartic proteases and may be important in substrate and inhibitor recognition. Although PM II and CatE are similar in their ability to cleave Hb-based peptides and Hb α-chains, CatE is not able to degrade native Hb, which is a substrate for PM II. Based on these results, we propose that PM II may have the special feature of being a Hb denaturase.
Systematic evaluation of the impact of stimulation intensity on neuroplastic after‐effects induced by transcranial direct current stimulation

Applications of transcranial direct current stimulation to modulate human neuroplasticity have increased in research and clinical settings. However, the need for longer‐lasting effects, combined with marked inter‐individual variability, necessitates a deeper understanding of the relationship between stimulation parameters and physiological effects. We systematically investigated the full DC intensity range (0.5–2.0 mA) for both anodal and cathodal tDCS in a sham‐controlled repeated measures design, monitoring changes in motor‐cortical excitability via transcranial magnetic stimulation up to 2 h after stimulation. For both tDCS polarities, the excitability after‐effects did not linearly correlate with increasing DC intensity; effects of lower intensities (0.5, 1.0 mA) showed equal, if not greater effects in motor‐cortical excitability. Further, while intra‐individual responses showed good reliability, inter‐individual sensitivity to TMS accounted for a modest percentage of the variance in the early after‐effects of 1.0 mA anodal tDCS, which may be of practical relevance for future optimizations.
Tailored Silica Macrocellular Foams: Combining Limited Coalescence‐Based Pickering Emulsion and Sol–Gel Process

Solid‐sate monolithic macrocellular foams are synthesized by mineralizing the continuous phase of oil‐in‐water Pickering emulsions, used as templates, with the sol–gel process. For the first time, taking advantage of the limited coalescence phenomenon occurring in emulsions stabilized by solid particles, concentrated emulsions with calibrated drop size are produced, leading to the synthesis of monolithic foams with nearly monodisperse macroscopic voids. Such a strategy allows independent tuning of the macrocellular void diameters from 20 to 800 μm and the diameter of the windows connecting adjacent cells. The obtained macrocellular foams also bear micro‐ and mesoporosity, leading to Brunauer, Emmet and Teller (BET) surface area values between 700 and 900 m2 g−1 with a good mesopores monodispersity.
Light color acclimation is a key process in the global ocean distribution of Synechococcus cyanobacteria

Significance Understanding the functional diversity of specific microbial groups at the global scale is critical yet poorly developed. By combining the considerable knowledge accumulated through recent years on the molecular bases of photosynthetic pigment diversity in marine Synechococcus, a major phytoplanktonic organism, with the wealth of metagenomic data provided by the Tara Oceans expedition, we have been able to reliably quantify all known pigment types along its transect and provide a global distribution map. Unexpectedly, cells able to dynamically change their pigment content to match the ambient light color were ubiquitous and predominated in many environments. Altogether, our results unveiled the role of adaptation to light quality on niche partitioning in a key primary producer. Marine Synechococcus cyanobacteria are major contributors to global oceanic primary production and exhibit a unique diversity of photosynthetic pigments, allowing them to exploit a wide range of light niches. However, the relationship between pigment content and niche partitioning has remained largely undetermined due to the lack of a single-genetic marker resolving all pigment types (PTs). Here, we developed and employed a robust method based on three distinct marker genes (cpcBA, mpeBA, and mpeW) to estimate the relative abundance of all known Synechococcus PTs from metagenomes. Analysis of the Tara Oceans dataset allowed us to reveal the global distribution of Synechococcus PTs and to define their environmental niches. Green-light specialists (PT 3a) dominated in warm, green equatorial waters, whereas blue-light specialists (PT 3c) were particularly abundant in oligotrophic areas. Type IV chromatic acclimaters (CA4-A/B), which are able to dynamically modify their light absorption properties to maximally absorb green or blue light, were unexpectedly the most abundant PT in our dataset and predominated at depth and high latitudes. We also identified populations in which CA4 might be nonfunctional due to the lack of specific CA4 genes, notably in warm high-nutrient low-chlorophyll areas. Major ecotypes within clades I–IV and CRD1 were preferentially associated with a particular PT, while others exhibited a wide range of PTs. Altogether, this study provides important insights into the ecology of Synechococcus and highlights the complex interactions between vertical phylogeny, pigmentation, and environmental parameters that shape Synechococcus community structure and evolution.