Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Six-Step Recanalization Manual Therapy

Background: Plugged ducts are a common, painful condition in lactating women, but no standard treatment is currently available. Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the clinical efficacy of a newly established 6-step recanalization manual therapy (SSRMT) for treating plugged ducts. Methods: This observational study included 3497 lactating women with plugged ducts. The SSRMT comprised the following well-defined steps: (1) preparation, (2) clearing the plugged duct outlets, (3) nipple manipulation, (4) pushing and pressing the areola, (5) pushing and kneading the breast, and (6) checking for residual milk stasis. The response to the treatment was graded as I (complete resolution), II (marked improvement), III (improvement), or IV (no response). Results: Of the 3497 patients, the mean age was 26.7 years and 3284 (93.9%) patients were primiparas. Fever was present in 1231 (35.2%) patients. After a single SSRMT treatment, 3189 (91.2%), 173 (4.9%), and 83 (2.4%) patients achieved grade I, II, and III responses, respectively, with only 52 (1.5%) showing unresponsiveness. For the 308 (8.8% of total) non-grade I patients, a second SSRMT given 3 days later resulted in grade I, II, and III responses in 267 (7.6% of total), 28 (0.8% of total), and 13 (0.4% of total) patients, respectively, and none were absolutely unresponsive. No complications with clinical significance were observed. Conclusion: Based on this large-scale clinical observation, SSRMT appears to be a useful, safe, low-cost treatment for postpartum plugged milk ducts.
Role for Calnexin and N-Linked Glycosylation in the Assembly and Secretion of Hepatitis B Virus Middle Envelope Protein Particles

ABSTRACT Unlike those of the S and the L envelope proteins, the functional role of the related M protein in the life cycle of the hepatitis B virus (HBV) is less understood. We now demonstrate that a single N glycan, specific for M, is required for efficient secretion of M empty envelope particles. Moreover, this glycan mediates specific association of M with the chaperone calnexin. Conversely, the N glycan, common to all three envelope proteins, is involved neither in calnexin binding nor in subviral particle release. As proper folding and trafficking of M need the assistance of the chaperone, the glycan-dependent association of M with calnexin may thus play a crucial role in the assembly of HBV. Beyond being modified by N glycosylation, M is modified by O glycosylation occurring within its amino acid sequence at positions 27 to 47. The O glycans, however, were found to be dispensable for secretion of M but may rather support viral infectivity. Surprisingly, nonglycosylated M localizes exclusively to the cytosol, either for degradation or for a yet-unknown function.
Predicting institutional behavior in youthful offenders: The role of individual and family factors in risk assessment.

A vigorous debate persists in the literature about the efficacy of clinical judgment and actuarial models of risk assessment. This study was designed to augment those commonly used methods by integrating a variety of factors that produce risk and protective effects among 101 youthful offenders. Adolescents and young adults in a maximum-security facility were interviewed with the Psychopathy Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV), and completed self-reports of psychopathy, impulsivity, and perceived parental care and protection. This selection of empirically-supported predictors was enhanced by criminal history and family information obtained through extensive file review. Markedly different prediction models emerged based on age. ADHD and PCL Factor 2 predicted adolescents' institutional maladjustment. In contrast, young adults' institutional behavior was influenced by impulsivity, family substance abuse, and gang membership. Treatment progress also differed depending on age; the absence of certain risk factors predicted success for adolescents, while academic achievement and intelligence facilitated young adults' advancement. Importantly, support was demonstrated for the moderating effects of protective factors on violence. Finally, the predictive validity of newly-developed psychopathy self-reports was examined in relation to the PCL:YV. Both the SALE PS-24 and the APSD were modestly effective at differentiating between high and low levels of psychopathy.
Brain Tumor Stem Cell Multipotency Correlates with Nanog Expression and Extent of Passaging in Human Glioblastoma Xenografts

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common primary brain tumor, with a median survival of only 15 months. A subpopulation of cells, the brain tumor stem cells (BTSCs), may be responsible for the malignancy of this disease. Xenografts have proven to be a robust model of human BTSCs, but the effects of long-term passaging have yet to be determined. Here we present a study detailing changes in BTSC multipotency, invasive migration, and proliferation after serial passaging of human GBM xenografts. Immunocytochemistry and tumorsphere formation assays demonstrated the presence of BTSCs in both early generation (EG-BTSCs; <15 passages) and late generation (LG-BTSCs; >24 passages) xenografts. The EG-BTSCs upregulated expression of lineage markers for neurons and oligodendrocytes upon differentiation, indicating multipotency. In contrast, the LG-BTSCs were restricted to an astrocytic differentiation. Quantitative migration and proliferation assays showed that EG-BTSCs are more migratory and proliferative than LG-BTSCs. However, both populations respond similarly to the chemokine SDF-1 by increasing invasive migration. These differences between the EG- and LG-BTSCs were correlated with a significant decrease in nanog expression as determined by qRT-PCR. Mice implanted intracranially with EG-BTSCs showed shorter survival when compared to LG-BTSCs. Moreover, differentiation prior to implantation of EG-BTSCs, but not LG-BTSCs, led to increased survival. Thus, nanog may identify multipotent BTSCs. Furthermore, limited passaging of xenografts preserves these multipotent BTSCs, which may be an essential underlying feature of GBM lethality.
Use of transferrin-iron enterobactin complexes as the source of iron by serum-exposed bacteria

Two smooth and six rough strains of Salmonella typhimurium with progressively smaller amounts of sugar and protein in their outer membrane were tested for degree of virulence in normal and iron-injected mice and for ability to acquire iron in mammalian sera. The rate of mortality showed that bacterial virulence for mice was lowered with progressive decrease of outer-membrane sugar and protein. Iron injections increased the rate of mortality in mice infected either with smooth strains or with superficially rough strains but were without effect in mice infected with deep rough strains. In in vitro experiments, iron promoted with equal effectiveness the growth of all serum-exposed bacterial strains, whereas enterobactin (E) was much more effective in promoting the growth of smooth and superficial rough than in promoting that of deep rough strains. Various experiments showed that deep rough strains cannot grow in E-supplemented serum because they are not able to use the transferrin-iron-E complexes that E forms with transferrin-iron. This failure to use transferrin-iron-E complexes by deep rough strains was found to be due to the inability of these strains to absorb iron containing complexes to their outer membrane. Adsorption studies with chemically treated bacteria showed that the receptor of transferrin-iron-E or E-iron complexes is a protein of the outer membrane of bacterial cells.
Nitrogen and Phosphorus Limitation over Long-Term Ecosystem Development in Terrestrial Ecosystems

Nutrient limitation to net primary production (NPP) displays a diversity of patterns as ecosystems develop over a range of timescales. For example, some ecosystems transition from N limitation on young soils to P limitation on geologically old soils, whereas others appear to remain N limited. Under what conditions should N limitation and P limitation prevail? When do transitions between N and P limitation occur? We analyzed transient dynamics of multiple timescales in an ecosystem model to investigate these questions. Post-disturbance dynamics in our model are controlled by a cascade of rates, from plant uptake (very fast) to litter turnover (fast) to plant mortality (intermediate) to plant-unavailable nutrient loss (slow) to weathering (very slow). Young ecosystems are N limited when symbiotic N fixation (SNF) is constrained and P weathering inputs are high relative to atmospheric N deposition and plant N:P demand, but P limited under opposite conditions. In the absence of SNF, N limitation is likely to worsen through succession (decades to centuries) because P is mineralized faster than N. Over long timescales (centuries and longer) this preferential P mineralization increases the N:P ratio of soil organic matter, leading to greater losses of plant-unavailable N versus P relative to plant N:P demand. These loss dynamics favor N limitation on older soils despite the rising organic matter N:P ratio. However, weathering depletion favors P limitation on older soils when continual P inputs (e.g., dust deposition) are low, so nutrient limitation at the terminal equilibrium depends on the balance of these input and loss effects. If NPP switches from N to P limitation over long time periods, the transition time depends most strongly on the P weathering rate. At all timescales SNF has the capacity to overcome N limitation, so nutrient limitation depends critically on limits to SNF.
Association of tooth loss with hypertension.

OBJECTIVE Hypertension may result from changes in dietary quality and nutrient intake. We therefore sought to determine the epidemiological association between tooth loss and hypertension in South African adults. METHODS This is a secondary data analysis of a cross-sectional survey of a nationally representative sample of adults aged 25 - 70 years who participated in the South African Demographic and Health Survey during 1998 (N = 9 098). The primary data were collected using a validated questionnaire, which included information on past experience of tooth loss (partial or complete), use of dental services, tobacco use and other known risk factors for hypertension. Hypertension was defined as having a measured average blood pressure (BP) > or = 160/95 mmHg and/or taking antihypertensive medication. RESULTS The prevalences of hypertension, any tooth loss and complete edentulousness were 18.1%, 72.2% and 9.4% respectively. Tooth loss was more common among overweight/obese respondents than among those with a normal body mass index (76.7% v. 66.7%; p < 0.01). Compared with the fully dentate respondents, the completely edentulous respondents had mean systolic and diastolic BPs that were respectively 12 mmHg and 5 mmHg higher. After adjusting for known risk factors for hypertension in a multiple logistic regression model, being completely edentulous remained significantly associated with hypertension (odds ratio 1.35, 95% confidence interval 1.02 - 1.78). The estimated population-attributable fraction of hypertension resulting from complete edentulousness was 10%. CONCLUSIONS The findings suggest that complete edentulousness is a risk indicator for hypertension in South Africa and highlights the importance of primary care practitioner involvement in oral health promotion.
Identification of Diarrheagenic Escherichia coli Strains from Avian Organic Fertilizers

The Brazilian poultry industry generates large amounts of organic waste, such as chicken litter, which is often used in agriculture. Among the bacteria present in organic fertilizer are members of the Enterobacteriaceae family. The objective of this study was to detect the presence of diarrheagenic Escherichia coli (DEC) strains in avian organic fertilizer, and assess the potential damage they can cause in humans due to antimicrobial resistance. The presence of DEC pathotypes and phylogenetic groups were detected by multiplex-PCR. Phenotypic assays, such as tests for adhesion, cytotoxicity activity, biofilm formation and especially antimicrobial susceptibility, were performed. Fifteen DEC strains from 64 E. coli were isolated. Among these, four strains were classified as enteropathogenic (EPEC; 6.2%), three strains as Shiga toxin-producing (STEC; 4.7%), 10 strains as enteroaggregative (EAEC; 12.5%), but two of these harbored the eaeA gene too. The low number of isolated strains was most likely due to the composting process, which reduces the number of microorganisms. These strains were able to adhere to HEp-2 and HeLa cells and produce Shiga-toxins and biofilms; in addition, some of the strains showed antimicrobial resistance, which indicates a risk of the transfer of resistance genes to human E. coli. These results showed that DEC strains isolated from avian organic fertilizers can cause human infections.
Spectroscopic & Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging of First and Multiple Episode Depressed Patients

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a common affective disorder associated with persistent states of negative mood and selective cognitive impairments. Fronto­ temporal dysregulation in MDD patients is thought to contribute to the symptoms seen in these patients. Based on prior evidence of structural and functional alterations in the hippocampus (He) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) in MDD patients, we were interested in examining the changes in cerebral function that underlie the cognitive dysfunction seen in two different MDD populations. We studied psychotropically naive depressed patients experiencing their first treated episode (FTE) of depression, MDD patients who had experienced multiple past treated episodes (MTE) ofMDD and healthy controls. Two functional magnetic resonance imaging studies (fMRI) were conducted. The first study used an He dependent process dissociation task to examine He activation during recollection memory. The second fMRI study examined the activation in the PFC during reward and punishment conditions of a reversal-learning paradigm. Finally, we conducted magnetic resonance spectroscopy scans to measure levels of metabolites indicative of neuronal and glial cell integrity in the He of depressed patients and controls. We observed differing results across all three studies in our FTE and MTE depression groups. Our studies examining the He suggest that MTE patients have decreased activation in this region as well as corresponding memory errors during recollection memory. Additionally, these patients have smaller He volume and signs of increased neuronal membrane turnover. Conversely, our FTE patients displayed
Aging, empathy, and prosociality.

OBJECTIVES Although empathy is a well-established motivation in younger adults for helping others, it is not known whether this extends to aging. Prioritization of socioemotional goals with age may increase the salience of helping others (i.e., prosocial behavior), but older adults also experience decreased cognitive empathy. Thus, we investigated age-related differences in relationships among empathy and prosocial behavior. METHOD Participants were 24 younger (M = 19.8 years) and 24 older (M = 77.9 years) healthy adults. Whereas participants believed the study involved playing the dictator game, in reality, state emotional empathy was induced implicitly through a note from an opponent describing their experience with cancer. Prosocial behavior was measured by participants' monetary offers to that opponent. RESULTS Older adults showed greater prosocial behavior due to the empathy induction than younger adults. There was a positive association between state emotional empathy ratings and prosocial behavior in older, but not in younger adults, and preliminary evidence for higher state emotional empathy levels in older adults with higher trait cognitive empathy. DISCUSSION This suggests that in contexts relevant to socioemotional goals, older adults may be more motivated than younger adults to help others and state emotional empathy may be a potential mechanism for greater prosocial behavior in aging.
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2011 with Funding from Orking Paper Department of Economics Efficient Wage Dispersion

In market economies, identical workers receive very different wages, violating the Walrasian 'law of one price'. We argue that in the absence of a Walrasian auctioneer to coordinate trade, wage dispersion among identical workers is an equilibrium phenomenon. Moreover, wage dispersion is necessary for an economy to function efficiently. In the absence of wage dispersion, workers have little incentive to gather information, effectively giving monopsony power to firms. This depresses wages and leads to excessive entry of firms and worker nonparticipation. Adding to these inefficiencies, firms curtail irreversible capital investments in these tight labor market conditions, and so the quality of jobs is excessively low. Finally, our theory predicts that if ex ante homogeneous firms can choose their production technology, those that offer higher wages will choose better technologies. Therefore, in contrast to previous explanations of wage dispersion based on exogenous technology differences, our approach explains technology dispersion among firms as a result of endogenous wage dispersion and suggests that both of these phenomena may be efficient from a third-best viewpoint.
İLKÖĞRETİM 4-5. SINIF ÖĞRENCİLERİNİN SOSYAL BİLGİLER DERSİNE YÖNELİK

Bu arastirmanin amaci, ilkogretim okullarinin dort ve besinci siniflarinda okuyan ogrencilerin, Sosyal Bilgiler dersine yonelik tutumlarinin derecesini saptamaktir. Bu amacla, 1997-1998 ogretim yilinda, Istanbul'un Kadikoy, Şisli, Eminonu ve Kucukcekmece ilcelerindeki okullarda okuyan 190'ni kiz, 204'u erkek toplam 394 ogrenciye arastirmacilar tarafindan gelistirilen anket ile tutum olcegi uygulanmistir. Elde edilen verilerden, degiskenlerin durumuna gore, t testi ve varyans analizleri sonuclari cikarilmistir. Arastirmanin sonucunda bu derste basarili, ogretmenleriyle iyi iletisim kurabilen ve derste ogretmeninden daha cok faydalanan ve siniflarinda duz anlatim, kitap calismasi ve gezigozlem etkinlikleri haric, ogretim etkinlikleri sik kullanilan ogrencilerin daha olumlu tutuma sahip oldugu gorulmustur.
A Spatial and Temporal Sentiment Analysis Approach Applied to Twitter Microtexts

The widespread of social communication media in the Web has produced a large volume of opinionated textual data stored in digital format. Social media constitutes a rich source for sentiment analysis and understanding of the opinions spontaneously expressed. Many scientific proposals have arisen in the last years aiming to deal with sentiment analysis issues. However, most of them do not address both spatial and temporal dimensions that enable a more accurate analysis and a better understanding of the mood of people when using social media. In this context, we rely on Geographical Information Retrieval techniques in order to infer geographical locations mentioned in Twitter microtexts (tweets). We propose an approach based on two well-known classification algorithms for detecting the sentiment polarity on tweets considering both spatial and temporal information. Our approach differs from related work since it does not rely on Part-Of-Speech (POS)Taggers. The proposed approach is evaluated through a case study using a dataset of Portuguese Twitter microtexts harvested during a big event which took place in Brazil. The achieved results not only outperformed related work as they have shown which is possible to perform sentiment analysis with a good accuracy even without relying on POS-Taggers.
Resonant elastic soft x-ray scattering

Resonant (elastic) soft x-ray scattering (RSXS) offers a unique element, site and valence specific probe to study spatial modulations of charge, spin and orbital degrees of freedom in solids on the nanoscopic length scale. It is not only used to investigate single-crystalline materials. This method also enables one to examine electronic ordering phenomena in thin films and to zoom into electronic properties emerging at buried interfaces in artificial heterostructures. During the last 20 years, this technique, which combines x-ray scattering with x-ray absorption spectroscopy, has developed into a powerful probe to study electronic ordering phenomena in complex materials and furthermore delivers important information on the electronic structure of condensed matter. This review provides an introduction to the technique, covers the progress in experimental equipment, and gives a survey on recent RSXS studies of ordering in correlated electron systems and at interfaces.
Treatment strategy for guided tissue regeneration in various class II furcation defect: Case series

Periodontal regeneration is a main aspect in the treatment of teeth affected by periodontitis. Periodontal regeneration in furcation areas is quite challenging, especially when it is in interproximal region. There are several techniques used alone or in combination considered to achieve periodontal regeneration, including the bone grafts or substitutes, guided tissue regeneration (GTR), root surface modification, and biological mediators. Many factors may account for variability in response to regenerative therapy in class II furcation. This case series describes the management of class II furcation defect in a mesial interproximal region of a maxillary tooth and other with a buccal class II furcation of mandibular tooth, with the help of surgical intervention including the GTR membrane and bone graft materials. This combined treatment resulted in healthy periodontium with a radiographic evidence of alveolar bone gain in both cases. This case series demonstrates that proper diagnosis, followed by removal of etiological factors and utilizing the combined treatment modalities will restore health and function of the tooth with the severe attachment loss.
An offline cursive handwritten word recognition system

This paper describes an offline cursive handwritten word recognition system that combines hidden Markov models (HMM) and neural networks (NN). Using a fast left-right slicing method, we generate a segmentation graph that describes all possible ways to segment a word into letters. The NN computes the observation probabilities for each letter hypothesis in the segmentation graph. Then, the HMM compute the likelihood for each word in the lexicon by summing the probabilities over all possible paths through the graph. We present the preprocessing and the recognition process as well as the training procedure for the NN-HMM hybrid system. Another recognition system based on discrete HMM is also presented for performance comparison. The latter is also used for bootstrapping the NN-HMM hybrid system. Recognition performances of the two recognition systems using two image databases of French isolated words are presented. This paper is one of the first publications using the IRONOFF database, and thus can be used as a reference for future work on this database.