Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Dietary fat composition influences glomerular and proximal convoluted tubule cell structure and autophagic processes in kidneys from calorie‐restricted mice

Calorie restriction (CR) has been repeatedly shown to prevent cancer, diabetes, hypertension, and other age‐related diseases in a wide range of animals, including non‐human primates and humans. In rodents, CR also increases lifespan and is a powerful tool for studying the aging process. Recently, it has been reported in mice that dietary fat plays an important role in determining lifespan extension with 40% CR. In these conditions, animals fed lard as dietary fat showed an increased longevity compared with mice fed soybean or fish oils. In this paper, we study the effect of these dietary fats on structural and physiological parameters of kidney from mice maintained on 40% CR for 6 and 18 months. Analyses were performed using quantitative electron microcopy techniques and protein expression in Western blots. CR mitigated most of the analyzed age‐related parameters in kidney, such as glomerular basement membrane thickness, mitochondrial mass in convoluted proximal tubules and autophagic markers in renal homogenates. The lard group showed improved preservation of several renal structures with aging when compared to the other CR diet groups. These results indicate that dietary fat modulates renal structure and function in CR mice and plays an essential role in the determination of health span in rodents.
Social support, type A behavior, and coronary artery disease.

&NA; The interaction of Type A behavior and social support in relation to the degree of coronary artery disease (CAD) severity was investigated. One hundred thirteen patients undergoing diagnostic coronary angiography received the Type A structured interview (SI) and completed a battery of psychometric tests, including the Perceived Social Support Scale (PSSS). Statistical analyses revealed a Type by social support interaction, such that the probability of significant CAD was inversely related to the level of social support for Type As but not Type Bs. Type As with low levels of social support had more severe CAD than Type As with high levels of social support. On the other hand, this relationship was not present for Type Bs. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that social support moderates the long‐term health consequences of the Type A behavior pattern.
Nocturnal Desaturation in the Stroke Unit Is Associated With Wake-Up Ischemic Stroke

Background and Purpose— Wake-up stroke (WUS) represents a quarter of all ischemic strokes and may be a specific subgroup. Nocturnal desaturation secondary to sleep-disordered breathing is an independent risk factor for stroke, but the association between nocturnal desaturation and WUS remains unclear. We investigated the relationship between nocturnal desaturation using oxygen desaturation index and WUS in patients with acute stroke in the stroke unit. Methods— A total of 298 patients admitted for acute ischemic stroke to the stroke unit between July 2013 and May 2015 were enrolled. The oxygen desaturation index was calculated using pulse oximetry data sampled every 1 minute during 9 hours on the first night (10:00 PM–7:00 AM) of the stroke unit admission, and nocturnal desaturation was defined as an oxygen desaturation index of 5 at least per hour. We compared the clinical characteristics and nocturnal desaturations between patients with and without WUS. Results— Among all patients (age, 67.7±12.6 years; male, 54.4%), 26.5% patients had WUS. The proportion of nocturnal desaturation was significantly greater in patients admitted with WUS (29.1% versus 12.3%, P=0.001). The age, sex, risk factors except for hyperlipidemia, stroke severity, and stroke mechanisms were similar between the 2 groups. After adjustment for covariates, it was found that nocturnal desaturation was significantly more common in the WUS group (odds ratio, 3.25; 95% confidence interval, 1.63–6.46). Conclusions— Nocturnal desaturation was more frequently observed in patients admitted with WUS during the first night in the stroke unit. This suggests that nocturnal desaturation is a possible modifiable risk factor for the occurrence of WUS.
Influence of ration composition on nutritive and digestive variables in captive giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis) indicating the appropriateness of feeding practice

The nutrition of captive giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis), a browsing ruminant, is challenging because browse availability is limited in zoos and rations need to be composed of compensatory feeds. In this study, ration composition for giraffes in 12 German zoos was documented and linked to animal variables that indicate suitability of nutrition. Rations differed in proportion of ration items and chemical composition resulting in various grades of accordance with feeding recommendations. An estimated daily metabolisable energy (ME) intake (MEI; mean ± SD) of 0.61 MJ ME/kg0.75 body weight (BW; ±0.1) was sufficient to cover estimated energy requirements. Daily dry matter (DM) intake (DMI) was 61 g DM/kg0.75 BW (±10) and correlated negatively to dietary ME content (p = .009; r = -.596). Apparently, feed intake was regulated by energetic satiety and not by physical properties of forage. A negative correlation between produce proportion and DMI (p = .002; r = -.676) led to the assumption of a low ruminal pH in giraffes fed high proportions of produce. Increasing dietary forage proportions led to an increasing duration of feed intake (p = .045; r = .477) and decreasing occurrence of oral stereotypies (p = .047; r = -.474). The weighted average faecal particle size was larger than reported for free-ranging giraffes, but no relation to ration characteristics among the facilities existed. The abrasiveness of rations was not excessive, as contents of silicate in faeces were similar to values from the wild. Body condition was generally acceptable, but there was no evident relation to ration characteristics. The capacity to self-regulate DM and ME intakes with lucerne hay may work at higher forage proportions than often assumed for captive giraffes. Rations with less energetic density can result in a greater DMI, including maximisation of forage intake and reduction of oral stereotypies.
Association between psoriasis and asthma risk: A meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND Psoriasis has been shown to be related to an increased risk of asthma, although the results remain inconclusive. Therefore, we performed a meta-analysis to determine whether psoriasis increases the risk of asthma. METHODS A comprehensive search of medical literature data bases was conducted through May 2017. The pooled odds ratios (OR) and corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated. RESULTS A total of six studies with 66,772 psoriasis cases and 577,415 controls were included. Our meta-analysis showed that psoriasis was significantly associated with the increased risk of asthma (OR 1.32 [95% CI, 1.20-1.46]). The older age patients with psoriasis (≥50 years) (OR 1.64 [95% CI, 1.44-1.88]) had a higher risk of asthma susceptibility compared with the younger patients (20-49 years old) (OR 1.25 [95% CI 1.09-1.44]). Subgroup analysis by ethnicity indicated a significant increase in asthma risk in both Asian populations (OR 1.35 [95% CI, 1.18-1.54]) and white populations (OR 1.27 [95% CI, 1.05-1.54]) with psoriasis compared with those without psoriasis. CONCLUSION Results of this meta-analysis indicated that the patients with psoriasis had a higher risk of asthma susceptibility, especially among the older patients with psoriasis.
Deleterious Oral Habits among School Going Children - A Cross-Sectional Study

Aim: The present study was conducted to access the prevalence of deleterious oral habits among school going children as these practices have a great impact on the dental hard and soft tissues. Methodology: This study was conducted among children aged between 7 to 13 years. The sample was selected from urban and rural schools. A closed-ended questionnaire was used in the survey for collecting the information like age, gender, area of residence and presence of deleterious oral habits. These questions were asked to parents for the habits like bruxism, tongue thrusting, digital sucking, mouth breathing, nail biting and lip biting. Chi-square test compared the frequency of oral habits in relation to age, sex and area. Statistical tests were used at a significance level of p<0.05. Results: It was noticed that bruxism (14.4%) was most common habit followed by mouth breathing (12.6%), digital sucking (9.2%), nail biting (8.3%), lip biting (8.1%) and tongue thrusting (7.2%). Bruxism (4.7%) and tongue thrusting (3.4%) had the highest occurrence in (9 to 11 years) group. Digital sucking (3.6%) and mouth breathing (6.3%) was mostly observed among younger age group (7 to 9 years). However nail biting (4.3%) and lip biting (4.7%) was commonly noticed in older sample. Conclusion: The study observed that bruxism was most frequent habit among children. There was also a variation in the occurrence of oral habits in relation to age.
ECSIT Bridges RIG-I-Like Receptors to VISA in Signaling Events of Innate Antiviral Responses

Upon binding to RNA structures from invading viruses, RIG-I and MDA5 are recruited to mitochondria to interact with VISA and initiate antiviral type I interferon (IFN) responses. How this process is mediated is less understood. In this report, we demonstrate that ECSIT is an essential scaffolding protein that mediates the association of VISA and RIG-I or MDA5. Overexpression of ECSIT potentiated virus-triggered activation of IFN-regulatory factor 3 (IRF3) and expression of IFNB1, whereas knockdown of ECSIT impaired viral infection-induced activation of IRF3 and expression of IFNB1 as well as cellular antiviral responses. Mechanistically, ECSIT was associated with VISA on mitochondria and important for bridging RIG-I and MDA5 to VISA. Our findings suggest that ECSIT mediates virus-triggered type I IFN induction by bridging RIG-I and MDA5 to the VISA complex, and provide new insights into the molecular events of innate antiviral immune responses.
A longitudinal network analysis of social dynamics in rooks corvus frugilegus: repeated group modifications do not affect social network in captive rooks

Abstract Numerous studies have investigated the remarkable variation of social features and the resulting structures across species. Indeed, relationships are dynamic and vary in time according to various factors such as environmental conditions or individuals attributes. However, few studies have investigated the processes that stabilize the structures within a given species, and the behavioral mechanisms that ensure their coherence and continuity across time. Here, we used a dynamic actor-based model, RSiena, to investigate the consistency of the temporal dynamic of relationships of a group of captive rooks facing recurrent modifications in group composition (i.e., the loss and introduction of individuals). We found that changes in relationships (i.e., formation and removal) followed consistent patterns regardless of group composition and sex-ratio. Rooks preferentially interacted with paired congeners (i.e., unpopular attachment) and were more likely to form relationships with individuals bonded to a current social partner (i.e., “friends of friends”, or triadic closure). The sex of individuals had no effect on the dynamic of relationships. This robust behavioral mechanisms formed the basis of inter-connected networks, composed of sub-structures of individuals emerging from the enmeshment of dyadic and triadic motifs. Overall, the present study reveals crucial aspects of the behavioral mechanisms shaping rooks social structure, suggesting that rooks live in a well-integrated society, going far beyond the unique monogamous pair-bond.
Impact of Initial Diffusion-Weighted Imaging Lesion Growth Rate on the Success of Endovascular Reperfusion Therapy

Background and Purpose— Initial diffusion-weighted imaging lesion growth rate (IGR) assessed by diffusion-weighted imaging lesion volume divided by the delay from onset to magnetic resonance imaging offers an estimate of early brain infarction progression. We investigated the impact of IGR on the rate of favorable outcome according to the occurrence of a successful endovascular revascularization within 6 hours after onset in patients experiencing an acute brain infarction complicating internal carotid artery terminus/middle cerebral artery M1 occlusion. Methods— The primary study end point was a favorable outcome defined by a modified Rankin Scale score of ⩽2, 90 days after onset. A Thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction score 2b/3 defined a successful recanalization. Results— A total of 166 patients were included. Median IGR was 7 mL/h (interquartile range, 2–26). Sixty-eight patients (41%) experienced a favorable outcome. After adjustment on age, systolic blood pressure, vessel site occlusion, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale, and antithrombotic medication, increase in IGR was associated with a decreased occurrence of favorable outcome with an odds ratio per SD increase of 0.60 (95% confidence interval, 0.38–0.94; P=0.03). A successful recanalization was achieved among 56% of the patients after a median delay of 251 minutes (interquartile range, 211–291 minutes). Increasing IGR was associated with a decreased favorable outcome only when a successful recanalization was not achieved (adjusted odds ratio, 0.32; 95% confidence interval, 0.12–0.85; P=0.02). Conclusions— Proximal internal carotid artery/M1 occlusion did result into a wide range of IGR within 6 hours after onset. Increasing IGR was associated with a lower rate of favorable outcome after endovascular treatment overall and when a successful recanalization was not achieved.
Fluid Creep: The Pendulum Hasn't Swung Back Yet!

Fluid creep was recognized nearly a decade ago. Although many burn centers are now aware of fluid creep, it is not clear whether any reversal of this phenomenon has occurred. The purpose of this study was to examine whether we have made any headway in reversing fluid creep at our facility. This is a retrospective review of the first 48 hours of fluid resuscitation using the Parkland formula among patients with ≥15% TBSA burns admitted to our adult regional burn centre (BC) between January 1, 2000, and May 30, 2008. All values are reported as the mean ± SD. There were 196 consecutive resuscitations available for analysis. Group characteristics were age 46 ± 18 years, burn size 31% ± 15% (range 15–81%), and full-thickness burn size 13% ± 16%, with a 26% incidence of inhalation injury. The delay between injury and BC admission was 4.5 ± 2.6 hours. During this time, a total crystalloid volume of 1.5 ± 1.0 ml/kg/%burn, or nearly 40% of the recommended 24-hour Parkland volume, was administered. Total crystalloids given in the first 24 hours (prior to and within the BC) were 6.3 ± 2.9 ml/kg/%TBSA, with 76% of all resuscitations receiving >4.3 ml/kg/%burn (the upper limit predicted by Baxter). Hourly urine output (UO) in the first 24 hours postburn was 1.2 ± 0.7 ml/kg/h. There were minimal insignificant downward trends in the volume of resuscitation fluids and the mean hourly UO of the 194 cases over the 8-year period of the study. In contrast, use of colloids (5% albumin) and formal measurement of intraabdominal pressures increased during the same time period. Despite awareness of fluid creep, we have not substantially reversed this phenomenon, primarily because of failure to titrate down fluid infusion rates and by accepting higher than recommended UO. Excessive pre-BC fluid also continues to be a contributing factor.
Influence of immunogenetics, sex and body condition on the cutaneous microbial communities of two giant salamanders

The complex association between hosts and microbial symbionts requires the implementation of multiple approaches to evaluate variation in host physiology. Within amphibians, heterogeneity in immunogenetic traits and cutaneous microbiota is associated with variation in disease resistance. Ozark (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis bishopi) and eastern hellbenders (C. a. alleganiensis) provide a model system to assess variation in host traits and microbial communities. Ozark hellbenders have experienced declines throughout their range, are federally endangered and experience wound retardation that is absent in the eastern subspecies. Previous microbial investigations indicate differentiation in the composition of the skin microbiota of both hellbender subspecies, but it is not clear whether these patterns are concurrent with diversity in the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes. We characterized the MHC IIB and the skin microbiota of hellbenders in Missouri, where both subspecies co‐occur though not sympatric. We compared the microbiota composition and MHC diversity between both subspecies and investigated whether individual‐level MHC diversity, sex and body condition were associated with microbiota composition. Overall, MHC IIB diversity was lower in Ozark hellbenders compared to the eastern subspecies. Multivariate statistical comparisons identified microbiota differentiation between Ozark and eastern hellbenders. MHC IIB allele presence/absence, allele divergence, body composition and sex defined grouping of hellbender microbiotas within populations. Differentiation of the cutaneous microbiotas and MHC IIB genes between eastern and Ozark hellbenders suggests that differences exist in immunity between the two subspecies. This study demonstrates how simultaneous assessments of host genetic traits and microbiotas can inform patterns of microbial community structure in natural systems.
Encoded recoupling and decoupling: An alternative to quantum error-correcting codes applied to trapped-ion quantum computation

A recently developed theory for eliminating decoherence and design constraints in quantum computers, 'encoded recoupling and decoupling', is shown to be fully compatible with a promising proposal for an architecture enabling scalable ion-trap quantum computation [D. Kielpinski et al., Nature (London) 417, 709 (2002)]. Logical qubits are encoded into pairs of ions. Logic gates are implemented using the Soerensen-Moelmer (SM) scheme applied to pairs of ions at a time. The encoding offers continuous protection against collective dephasing. Decoupling pulses, that are also implemented using the SM scheme directly to the encoded qubits, are capable of further reducing various other sources of qubit decoherence, such as due to differential dephasing and due to decohered vibrational modes. The feasibility of using the relatively slow SM pulses in a decoupling scheme quenching the latter source of decoherence follows from the observed 1/f spectrum of the vibrational bath.
The distribution of littoral caprellids (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Caprellidea) along the Pacific coast of continental Chile

Muchas especies de caprelidos del litoral presentan una amplia distribucion, algunas han sido citadas a lo largo de todo el mundo. La distribucion cosmopolita de muchas especies de caprelidos podria deberse al hecho de que se asocian frecuentemente a las comunidades "fouling" en objetos flotantes, que presentan una capacidad importante de dispersion a largas distancias. Esta capacidad de dispersion puede tener implicaciones en la distribucion de caprelidos a escala local y regional. En este estudio, nosotros examinamos la distribucion de las especies de caprelidos litorales en dos escalas espaciales, local (decenas de kilometros) y regional (cientos de kilometros), a lo largo de la costa Pacifico de Chile continental. A escala local se estudio la fauna de caprelidos en distintos habitats (bolones intermareales, praderas de algas y fanerogamas marinas, comunidades "fouling" de boyas y cuerdas); a escala regional el estudio se centro solamente en los caprelidos asociados a boyas y cuerdas. Se encontraron un total de seis especies de caprelidos, algunos de los cuales fueron muy abundantes a escala local y regional. A escala local, existio una diferencia entre los tres tipos de habitat con respecto a la fauna de caprelidos, algunos de los cuales estuvieron presentes en mas de un habitat. Los valores mas altos de riqueza especifica y abundancia se encontraron en la comunidad "fouling" asociada a boyas y cuerdas ancladas. A escala regional, los caprelidos fueron mas abundantes y diversos en las comunidades "fouling" de la region norte (n de 30° S), mientras que la abundancia y riqueza de especies disminuyeron en la region central (30-37° S). No se encontraron caprelidos en la region sur del area de estudio (37-42° S). Este patron coincide con la distribucion global de especies de caprelidos litorales, mostrando los valores mas altos de abundancia y riqueza de especies en las bajas latitudes y los valores mas bajos en las altas latitudes. Boyas desprendidas desde sus amarras y encontradas a varios km de la costa albergaron asociaciones de caprelidos (incluyendo hembras ovigeras) similares a las de las boyas fijadas, sugiriendo que las boyas y otros sustratos flotantes pueden facilitar la dispersion de caprelidos (y otra epifauna) a lo largo de la costa Pacifico de Chile. Teniendo en cuenta que los sustratos flotantes naturales y artificiales son tambien abundantes en altas latitudes se infiere que la baja diversidad de caprelidos litorales en altas latitudes no se debe a la falta de vectores dispersantes sino a otros factores
Socioeconomic differences in hearing among middle-aged and older adults: cross-sectional analyses using the Health Survey for England

Background Hearing loss impacts on cognitive, social and physical functioning. Both hearing loss and hearing aid use vary across population subgroups. We examined whether hearing loss, and reported current hearing aid use among persons with hearing loss, were associated with different markers of socioeconomic status (SES) in a nationally representative sample of community-dwelling middle-aged and older adults. Methods Hearing was measured using an audiometric screening device in the Health Survey for England 2014 (3292 participants aged 45 years and over). Hearing loss was defined as >35 dB HL at 3.0 kHz in the better-hearing ear. Using sex-specific logistic regression modelling, we evaluated the associations between SES and hearing after adjustment for potential confounders. Results 26% of men and 20% of women aged 45 years and over had hearing loss. Hearing loss was higher among men in the lowest SES groups. For example, the multivariable-adjusted odds of hearing loss were almost two times as high for those in the lowest versus the highest income tertile (OR 1.77, 95% CI 1.15 to 2.74). Among those with hearing loss, 30% of men and 27% of women were currently using a hearing aid. Compared with men in the highest income tertile, the multivariable-adjusted odds of using a hearing aid nowadays were lower for men in the middle (OR 0.50, 95% CI 0.25 to 0.99) and the lowest (OR 0.47, 95% CI 0.23 to 0.97) income tertiles. Associations between SES and hearing were weaker or null among women. Conclusions While the burden of hearing loss fell highest among men in the lowest SES groups, current hearing aid use was demonstrably lower. Initiatives to detect hearing loss early and increase the uptake and the use of hearing aids may provide substantial public health benefits and reduce socioeconomic inequalities in health.