Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Oxytocin secretion is related to measures of energy homeostasis in young amenorrheic athletes.

CONTEXT Oxytocin has been implicated in the modulation of energy metabolism in animals. Oxytocin knockout mice develop obesity without a change in food intake, suggesting that a lack of oxytocin may reduce metabolic rate. Furthermore, administration of oxytocin centrally reduces food intake in rats, an effect reversed by an oxytocin antagonist, implying that oxytocin may regulate appetite and energy intake. We have previously demonstrated that young female athletes (in a higher energy expenditure state than nonathletes) have low nocturnal oxytocin compared with nonathletes. Whether oxytocin is associated with measures of energy homeostasis in athletes is unknown. OBJECTIVE We hypothesized that oxytocin, a signal for energy availability, would be associated with other measures of energy homeostasis in young female athletes. DESIGN AND SETTING We performed a cross-sectional study of 45 females, aged 14-21 years [15 amenorrheic athletes (AA), 15 eumenorrheic athletes, and 15 nonathletes] of comparable body mass index. METHODS Dual x-ray absorptiometry was performed to assess body composition. Indirect calorimetry was used to measure resting energy expenditure (REE). Fasting levels of oxytocin, energy homeostasis hormones irisin and fibroblast growth factor-21, and appetite-regulating hormone peptide YY were obtained. RESULTS In AA, oxytocin secretion was positively correlated with surrogate measures of energy availability, including weight (r = 0.65, P = .009) and body mass index (r = 0.61, P = .016). Furthermore, oxytocin was associated with REE (r = 0.80, P = .0003), independent of lean mass, and with irisin (r = 0.74, P = .002) and fibroblast growth factor-21 (r = 0.58, P = .024). In eumenorrheic athletes, oxytocin was associated with REE (r = 0.59, P = .021), independent of lean mass. In nonathletes, oxytocin secretion was not significantly associated with measures of energy homeostasis. CONCLUSIONS In AA, oxytocin secretion is associated with measures of energy availability and expenditure, suggesting that oxytocin may be involved in regulation of energy balance in energy deficient states. Further studies determining the role of oxytocin in appetite and energy homeostasis in athletes are warranted.
Interspinous and Interlaminar Stabilization / Distraction Devices ( Spacers ) Effective : May 1 , 2017

PLEASE NOTE: Contracts exclude from coverage, among other things, services or procedures that are considered investigational or cosmetic. Providers may bill members for services or procedures that are considered investigational or cosmetic. Providers are encouraged to inform members before rendering such services that the members are likely to be financially responsible for the cost of these services.
Social Media and the Fear of Missing Out: Scale Development and Assessment

For many, viewing social media causes them to relate their own lives to what they are seeing or reading, resulting in feelings that they are somehow missing out. It is suggested that the fear of missing out influences decision making and behavior. The current research explores the measurement of FOMO, focusing on scale development and validation. Using extant scales for inadequacy, irritability, anxiety, and self- esteem, a list of items (n=37), postulated to measure FOMO, was created. In addition to the scale items, questions to assess behavioral and demographic characteristic were included. A pre-test of the survey instrument was conducted (n=30). The final survey was administered electronically, resulting in a useable sample of n=202. Principal components analysis resulted in a 10 item, 3-factor solution explaining 71% of the overall variance. The three factors performed reasonably well all with Cronbach’s alpha above or near Nunnally’s suggested . 70 (Nunnally, 1978). Using the newly created scale, FOMO scores were calculated for each respondent. Results suggest significant differences in social media consumption across levels of FOMO. Results also suggest significant differences in the use of particular social media based on ones level of FOMO. Limitations include the sample and it is suggested that future research, including confirmatory factor analysis, should be conducted.
Towards a Computational Model of Early Syntactic Acquisition

We propose a formal, computational model of early syntactic acquisition, based on stochastic finite-state automata. The model learns from adult and child utterances and generalizes them such that novel utterances can be produced. Unlike much work in computational grammar induction, our model is informed by several well-established psycholinguistic principles, which are implemented as biases in the learning process. Unlike some works in cognitive psycholinguistics, our model is mathematically well-defined and robustly evaluated. We demonstrate the ability of the model to generalize by evaluating it on several corpora of child-adult interac-
Dephosphorylation and Caspase Processing Generate Distinct Nuclear Pools of Histone Deacetylase 4

ABSTRACT From the nucleus, histone deacetylase 4 (HDAC4) regulates a variety of cellular processes, including growth, differentiation, and survival, by orchestrating transcriptional changes. Extracellular signals control its repressive influence mostly through regulating its nuclear-cytoplasmic shuttling. In particular, specific posttranslational modifications such as phosphorylation and caspase-mediated proteolytic processing operate on HDAC4 to promote its nuclear accumulation or export. To understand the signaling properties of this deacetylase, we investigated its cell death-promoting activity and the transcriptional repression potential of different mutants that accumulate in the nucleus. Here we show that, compared to that of other nuclear forms of HDAC4, a caspase-generated nuclear fragment exhibits a stronger cell death-promoting activity coupled with increased repressive effect on Runx2- or SRF-dependent transcription. However, this mutant displays reduced repressive action on MEF2C-driven transcription. Photobleaching experiments and quantitative analysis of the raw data, based on a two-binding-state compartmental model, demonstrate the existence of two nuclear pools of HDAC4 with different chromatin-binding properties. The caspase-generated fragment is weakly bound to chromatin, whereas an HDAC4 mutant defective in 14-3-3 binding or the wild-type HDAC5 protein forms a more stable complex. The tightly bound species show an impaired ability to induce cell death and repress Runx2- or SRF-dependent transcription less efficiently. We propose that, through specific posttranslation modifications, extracellular signals control two distinct nuclear pools of HDAC4 to differentially dictate cell death and differentiation. These two nuclear pools of HDAC4 are characterized by different repression potentials and divergent dynamics of chromatin interaction.
Analysis of a Randomized Trial to Prevent Vertical Transmission of HIV-1

Abstract We analyze data from a randomized trial of breastfeeding versus formula feeding in HIV-1-infected mothers and their infants. Estimates of infant HIV-1-free survival and the timing of vertical transmission of HIV-1 are complicated by the fact that the infants' HIV-1 status at death may be unknown, the time of HIV-1 infection may be interval censored, and the tests used to detect HIV-1 infection in the infants may be less than 100% sensitive or specific. To address these problems we develop nonparametric and semiparametric approaches to estimating the joint distribution of HIV-1 infection time and death time. The nonparametric estimator is based on a self-consistency algorithm and, in the current application, provides a unique estimate of the HIV-1-free survival at 24 months old. However, the estimate of the cumulative probability of HIV-1 infection over time is nonunique. To resolve the nonuniqueness of the nonparametric estimator a semiparametric approach is proposed in which the joint distribution of HIV-1 infection time and death time is decomposed into the marginal distribution of death time, f(t), and the conditional distribution of HIV-1 infection time given the death time, g(s\t). f(t) is estimated nonparametrically while a Weibull distribution is used to model g(s\t). The parameters of the Weibull distribution are allowed to vary slowly in t using splines. The two approaches are shown to be complimentary. Using these methods we find that the probability of HIV-1 infection is significantly lower and the 24-month HIV-1–free survival is significantly higher in the formula-feeding group.
Trait Anxiety Is Associated with Negative Interpretations When Resolving Valence Ambiguity of Surprised Faces

The current research examines whether trait anxiety is associated with negative interpretation bias when resolving valence ambiguity of surprised faces. To further isolate the neuro-cognitive mechanism, we presented angry, happy, and surprised faces at broad spatial frequency (BSF), high spatial frequency (HSF), and low spatial frequency (LSF) and asked participants to determine the valence of each face. High trait anxiety was associated with more negative interpretations of BSF (i.e., intact) surprised faces. However, the modulation of trait anxiety on the negative interpretation of surprised faces disappeared at HSF and LSF. The current study provides evidence that trait anxiety modulates negative interpretations of BSF surprised faces. However, the negative interpretation of LSF surprised faces appears to be a robust default response that occurs regardless of individual differences in trait anxiety.
Validación Argentina del Cuestionario MOS de Apoyo Social Percibido

MOS scale is integrated by 20 items. Item number 1 refers to the Social Network size and the other 19 to for dimensions of functional social support: emotional, instrumental, positive social interaction and affective support. MOS Social Support Scale can be considered a completely valid and reliable instrument to measure social support and it can be used to detect situations of social risk, specially in population exposed to traumatic situations, due to the fact that the importance of perception of social support in the prevention of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder has been broadly validated.
Developmental morphology of limb reduction in hemiergis (squamata: scincidae): chondrogenesis, osteogenesis, and heterochrony

Digit loss is a common theme in tetrapod evolution that may involve changes in several developmental processes. The skink genus Hemiergis provides an ideal model to study these processes in closely related taxa: within three Western Australian Hemiergis species, digit quantity ranges between two and five. For three consecutive reproductive seasons, gravid females of Hemiergis were collected in the field and their embryos prepared for histological analysis of limb skeletal development (chondrogenesis and osteogenesis). Comparative studies of skeletal developmental morphology demonstrate that limbs with fewer than five digits do not result from a simple truncation of a putative ancestral (five‐digit) developmental program. The developmental and adult morphologies in two‐, three‐, and four‐digit Hemiergis are neither predicted nor explained by a simple model of heterochrony involving either chondrogenesis or osteogenesis. In postnatal Hemiergis, digit number and relative limb length do not correlate in a simple linear fashion. Instead, limb size and digit reduction may correlate with substrate conditions and burrowing behavior. J. Morphol. 254:211–231, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Prediction of Successful Defibrillation in Human Victims of Out-of-Hospital cArdiac Arrest: A Retrospective Electrocardiographic Analysis

In the present study we sought to examine the efficacy of an electrocardiographic parameter, ‘amplitude spectrum area’ (AMSA), to predict the likelihood that any one electrical shock would restore a perfusing rhythm during cardiopulmonary resuscitation in human victims of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. AMSA analysis is not invalidated by artefacts produced by chest compression and thus it can be performed during CPR, avoiding detrimental interruptions of chest compression and ventilation. We hypothesised that a threshold value of AMSA could be identified as an indicator of successful defibrillation in human victims of cardiac arrest. Analysis was performed on a database of electrocardiographic records, representing lead 2 equivalent recordings from automated external defibrillators including 210 defibrillation attempts from 90 victims of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. A 4.1 second interval of ventricular fibrillation or ventricular tachycardia, recorded immediately preceding the delivery of the shock, was analysed using the AMSA algorithm. AMSA represents a numerical value based on the sum of the magnitude of the weighted frequency spectrum between two and 48 Hz. AMSA values were significantly greater in successful defibrillation (restoration of a perfusing rhythm), compared to unsuccessful defibrillation (P <0.0001). An AMSA value of 12 mV-Hz was able to predict the success of each defibrillation attempt with a sensitivity of 0.91 and a specificity of 0.97. In conclusion, AMSA analysis represents a clinically applicable method, which provides a realtime prediction of the success of defibrillation attempts. AMSA may minimise the delivery of futile and detrimental electrical shocks, reducing thereby postresuscitation myocardial injury.
Objectively-Measured Sedentary Behavior with Sleep Duration and Daytime Sleepiness Among U.S. Adults -

Background: Limited research has examined the association between sedentary behavior, sleep duration, and daytime sleepiness. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine these associations, and see if these associations were independent of physical activity (which is known to influence nighttime sleep and daytime tiredness). Methods: Data from the 2005-2006 NHANES were used. Sedentary behavior was measured via accelerometry with sleep-parameters measured via questionnaire. Results: After adjustments, and for every 60 minute increase in sedentary behavior, participants were 16% more likely to almost always feel unrested during the day and 22% more likely to almost always feel overly sleepy during the day. Sedentary behavior was not associated with sleep duration at night (β = -0.0002; 95% CI: -0.0008 to 0.0003; p = 0.40). Conclusion: To reduce perceptions of tiredness during the day, a sensible strategy may be to increase the frequency of sedentary breaks.
Minimum internal ribosome entry site required for poliovirus infectivity

Translation initiation by internal ribosome binding is a recently discovered mechanism of eukaryotic viral and cellular protein synthesis in which ribosome subunits interact with the mRNAs at internal sites in the 5' untranslated RNA sequences and not with the 5' methylguanosine cap structure present at the extreme 5' ends of mRNA molecules. Uncapped poliovirus mRNAs harbor internal ribosome entry sites (IRES) in their long and highly structured 5' noncoding regions. Such IRES sequences are required for viral protein synthesis. In this study, a novel poliovirus was isolated whose genomic RNA contains two gross deletions removing approximately 100 nucleotides from the predicted IRES sequences within the 5' noncoding region. The deletions originated from previously in vivo-selected viral revertants displaying non-temperature-sensitive phenotypes. Each revertant had a different predicted stem-loop structure within the 5' noncoding region of their genomic RNAs deleted. The mutant poliovirus (Se1-5NC-delta DG) described in this study contains both stem-loop deletions in a single RNA genome, thereby creating a minimum IRES. Se1-5NC-delta DG exhibited slow growth and a pinpoint plaque phenotype following infection of HeLa cells, delayed onset of protein synthesis in vivo, and defective initiation during in vitro translation of the mutated poliovirus mRNAs. Interestingly, the peak levels of viral RNA synthesis in cells infected with Se1-5NC-delta DG occurred at slightly later times in infection than those achieved by wild-type poliovirus, but these mutant virus RNAs accumulated in the host cells during the late phases of virus infection. UV cross-linking assays with the 5' noncoding regions of wild-type and mutated RNAs were carried out in cytoplasmic extracts from HeLa cells and neuronal cells and in reticulocyte lysates to identify the cellular factors that interact with the putative IRES elements. The cellular proteins that were cross-linked to the minimum IRES may represent factors playing an essential role in internal translation initiation of poliovirus mRNAs.
NADPH‐diaphorase histochemistry reveals heterogeneity in the distribution of nitric oxide synthase‐expressing interneurons between olfactory glomeruli in two mouse strains

The expression of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in the olfactory bulb was compared between two mouse strains, CD‐1 and BALB/c, that differ in the connectivity within their olfactory glomeruli, their content of tyrosine hydroxylase, and their response to olfactory deafferentation. Labelled cells were qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed by both immunohistochemistry for NOS and histochemistry for nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH)‐diaphorase (ND). Both periglomerular cells and short‐axon cells were observed with both techniques employed, and their colocalization in the same neurons demonstrated that ND is a reliable marker for NOS‐expressing cells in the mouse olfactory bulb (OB). The histochemical technique differentiates two types of glomeruli: ND‐positive and ND‐negative. Olfactory glomeruli in the CD‐1 strain were about 7% larger than those in the BALB/c animals. While the density of NOS/ND‐containing periglomerular cells was similar between both strains studied, more NOS/ND‐labelled cells were observed in the ND‐positive glomeruli (P = 0.002). Since periglomerular cells in the BALB/c strain do not receive direct olfactory receptors synapses, the present results indicate that such inputs do not regulate the expression of NOS and ND activity in the periglomerular cells. The different densities of NOS/ND‐expressing periglomerular cells may indicate that nitric oxide is implicated in a differential modulation of the odor response within both types of chemically distinct glomeruli in the mouse olfactory bulb. J. Neurosci. Res. 53:239–250, 1998. © 1998 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Quality of Life Varies with Pain during Treatment in Adolescents with Cancer

Pain is one of the most feared problems for adolescents with cancer. Pain produces stress with negative physiological and psychological effects. Therefore, effective pain management during cancer treatment may influence the outcome. This study investigates variations in pain and quality of life during treatment in adolescents with cancer, and whether there is a co-variation between the two. In a prospective longitudinal questionnaire investigation, quality of life in eight adolescents with cancer was assessed with the psychological general well-being index (PGWB) and compared with the patients’ experiences of pain according to repeated structured interviews. Pain troubled the adolescents most in the beginning and in the end of the treatment period, but troubled them less in-between. During treatment, quality of life was low in the beginning, higher in the middle and lower in the end. Pain co-varied inversely with quality of life and the adolescents thus seemed to have higher quality of life when pain-relieved. This finding emphasizes the importance of pain management in children and adolescents with cancer.
Belongingness: a pivotal precursor to optimising the learning of nursing students in the clinical environment

Research Doctorate - Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)%%%%The phenomenon of belongingness has intuitive appeal. Empirical literature from the disciplines of social science and psychology reveals that the need to belong exerts a powerful influence on cognitive processes, emotional patterns, behavioural responses, health and wellbeing, and that failure to satisfy this need can have devastating consequences. There are assertions that people who are deprived of belongingness are more likely to experience diminished self-esteem, increased stress and anxiety, depression, a decrease in general wellbeing and happiness, impaired cognition and an increase in affiliative behaviours, such as compliance and conformity. In the nursing literature, while there is paucity of studies about this salient issue, there are inferences that diminished belongingness may impede students' motivation for learning and influence the degree to which they are willing to conform rather than adopt a questioning approach to clinical practice. These findings are of concern to a profession that seeks to prepare innovative, confident, competent professionals with a commitment to self-directed learning; and they require careful investigation. This study set out to identify the relationship between belongingness and the clinical placement experiences of pre-registration nursing students by measuring the extent to which students experience belongingness related to their clinical placements, and by exploring the factors that impact on and are consequences of that experience. Third-year students were recruited from two Australian universities-one in New South Wales and one in Queensland-and from one university in the south of England. This was a mixed-method case study where 362 students participated in an anonymous online survey termed the Belongingness Scale-Clinical Placement Experience (BES-CPE), and 18 of those students participated in in-depth semi-structured interviews. The quantitative data from the survey were subjected to descriptive and inferential statistical analysis. In comparing the extent to which nursing students experience belongingness, it was determined that the mean BES-CPE scores of participants from the university in England were statistically higher than participants from either of the Australian universities. This finding may be partly explained by differences in the duration of clinical placements and the mentorship models in use at the three universities. Of the demographic variables analysed, previous or concurrent nursing experience, family members with nursing experience, gender and country of birth were not a strong influence on students' experience of belongingness. The effects of age and English as a first language were less certain. The qualitative interview data were thematically analysed. The experiences and perspectives of the participants from each of the three sites were remarkably similar in many respects. They described placement experiences that spanned a continuum from those that promoted a high degree of belongingness to…