Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Reproductive health of bass in the Potomac, USA, drainage: Part 1. Exploring the effects of proximity to wastewater treatment plant discharge

Intersex (specifically, testicular oocytes) has been observed in male smallmouth bass (SMB; Micropterus dolomieu) and other centrarchids in the South Branch of the Potomac River, USA, and forks of the Shenandoah River, USA, during the past five years. This condition often is associated with exposure to estrogenic endocrine‐disrupting chemicals in some fish species, but such chemicals and their sources have yet to be identified in the Potomac. In an attempt to better understand the plausible causes of this condition, we investigated the reproductive health of bass sampled up‐ and downstream of wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent point sources on the Potomac River in Maryland, USA. Smallmouth bass were sampled from the Conococheague Creek and the Monocacy River, and largemouth bass (LMB; Micropterus salmoides) were collected near the Blue Plains WWTP on the mainstem of the Potomac River. Chemical analyses of compounds captured in passive samplers at these locations also were conducted. A high prevalence of intersex (82–100%) was identified in male SMB at all sites regardless of collection area. A lower prevalence of intersex (23%) was identified in male LMB collected at the Blue Plains site. When up‐ and downstream fish were compared, significant differences were noted only in fish from the Conococheague. Differences included condition factor, gonadosomatic index, plasma vitellogenin concentration, and estrogen to testosterone ratio. In general, chemicals associated with waste‐water effluent, storm‐water runoff, and agriculture were more prevalent at the downstream sampling sites. An exception was atrazine and its associated metabolites, which were present in greater concentrations at the upstream sites. It appears that proximity to effluent from WWTPs may influence the reproductive health of bass in the Potomac watershed, but inputs from other sources likely contribute to the widespread, high incidence of testicular oocytes.
Rating: how difficult is it?

Netflix.com uses star ratings, Digg.com uses up/down votes and Facebook uses a "like" but not a "dislike" button. Despite the popularity and diversity of these rating scales, research offers little guidance for designers choosing between them. This paper compares four different rating scales: unary ("like it"), binary (thumbs up / thumbs down), five-star, and a 100-point slider. Our analysis draws upon 12,847 movie and product review ratings collected from 348 users through an online survey. We a) measure the time and cognitive load required by each scale, b) study how rating time varies with the rating value assigned by a user, and c) survey users' satisfaction with each scale. Overall, users work harder with more granular rating scales, but these effects are moderated by item domain (product reviews or movies). Given a particular scale, users rating times vary significantly for items they like and dislike. Our findings about users' rating effort and satisfaction suggest guidelines for designers choosing between rating scales.
Efficacy of a two-component acellular pertussis vaccine in infants.

OBJECTIVE This case-control study investigated the protective efficacy against pertussis of three doses of a two-component acellular pertussis vaccine (manufactured by Biken in Japan) combined with diphtheria and tetanus toxoids (manufactured by Connaught Laboratories in the US) in infants. METHODS A case-control study was performed in 63 pediatric practices in Germany. Prospective recruitment of 16,780 infants ages 6 to 17 weeks took place between February, 1993, and July, 1994. According to parental choice infants received either Biken acellular pertussis vaccine combined with diphtheria and tetanus toxoids (DTacP) (74.6%) at approximately 2, 4 and 6 months of age, or a licensed German diphtheria-tetanus toxoids-whole cell pertussis vaccine (10.9%), diphtheria-tetanus toxoids vaccine (12.5%) or no vaccine (2.0%). Prospective surveillance of pertussis cases between February, 1993, and May, 1995, was accomplished by culturing all infants < or =2 years of age presenting with cough > or = 7 days. A pertussis case was defined as any cough of 21 days or longer plus a positive Bordetella pertussis culture or household contact exposure. RESULTS We identified 241 pertussis cases prospectively by 11,017 B. pertussis cultures and 949 controls matched for age were selected from the same pediatric practices. Medical history and demographic and vaccine status data were collected from each case and for four controls. Data were analyzed through conditional logistic regression taking into account individual matching and adjusting for potential confounding variables. DTacP combined with diphtheria and tetanus toxoids vaccine was 82% protective (95% confidence interval, 68 to 90), diphtheria-tetanus toxoids-whole cell pertussis vaccine was 96% protective (95% confidence interval, 78 to 99). Protection against typical B. pertussis infection characterized by paroxysmal cough lasting > or =21 days was 96% (95% confidence interval, 87 to 99) for DTacP and was 97% (95% confidence interval, 79 to 100) for diphtheria-tetanus toxoids-whole cell pertussis vaccine. Adjustment for potentially confounding variables did not change the results significantly. CONCLUSIONS Three doses of the two-component acellular pertussis vaccine protected infants against pertussis disease during the period before the recommended booster vaccination. For typical pertussis disease as defined by the WHO efficacy was high and similar to that of a licensed German diphtheria-tetanus toxoids-whole cell pertussis vaccine.
Pilot Study of Diagnostic Potential of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis Recombinant HBHA Protein in a Vaccinated Population in Finland

Background In recent years T cell based interferon gamma release assays (IGRA) have been developed for immunodiagnosis of M. tuberculosis infection. At present these assays do not discriminate between disease and latency. Therefore, more promising antigens and diagnostic tools are continuously being searched for tuberculosis immunodiagnostics. The heparin binding hemagglutinin (HBHA) is a surface protein of M. tuberculosis which promotes bacterial aggregation and adhesion to non-phagocytic cells. It has been previously assumed that native, methylated form of this protein would be a promising antigen to discriminate latent from active infection. Methodology and Principal Findings We performed a pilot investigation to study humoral and T-cell mediated immunological responses to recombinant HBHA produced in M. smegmatis or to synthetic peptides in patients with recent or past tuberculosis, with atypical mycobacteriosis, or in healthy vaccinated individuals. The T cell reactivities to HBHA were compared to the respective reactivities towards Purified Protein Derivative (PPD) and two surface secreted proteins, ie. Early Secretory Antigen Target-6 (ESAT-6) and Culture Filtrate Protein-10 (CFP-10). Our pilot results indicate that methylated recombinant HBHA induced a strong T cell mediated immune response and the production of IgG and IgM-class antibodies in all patient groups, most surprisingly in young Finnish vaccinees, as well. We observed a positive correlation between the reactivities to HBHA and non-specific PPD among all studied subjects. As expected, ESAT-6 and CFP-10 were the most powerful antigens to discriminate disease from immunity caused by vaccination. Conclusions On the basis of results of this exploratory investigation we raise concerns that in countries like Finland, where BCG vaccination was routinely used, HBHA utility might not be sufficient for diagnostics because of inability to explicitly discriminate tuberculosis infection from immunoreactivity caused by previous BCG vaccination.
Translating research findings to clinical nursing practice

Aims and objectives To describe the importance of, and methods for, successfully conducting and translating research into clinical practice. Background There is universal acknowledgement that the clinical care provided to individuals should be informed on the best available evidence. Knowledge and evidence derived from robust scholarly methods should drive our clinical practice, decisions and change to improve the way we deliver care. Translating research evidence to clinical practice is essential to safe, transparent, effective and efficient healthcare provision and meeting the expectations of patients, families and society. Despite its importance, translating research into clinical practice is challenging. There are more nurses in the frontline of health care than any other healthcare profession. As such, nurse‐led research is increasingly recognised as a critical pathway to practical and effective ways of improving patient outcomes. However, there are well‐established barriers to the conduct and translation of research evidence into practice. Design This clinical practice discussion paper interprets the knowledge translation literature for clinicians interested in translating research into practice. Methods This paper is informed by the scientific literature around knowledge translation, implementation science and clinician behaviour change, and presented from the nurse clinician perspective. We provide practical, evidence‐informed suggestions to overcome the barriers and facilitate enablers of knowledge translation. Examples of nurse‐led research incorporating the principles of knowledge translation in their study design that have resulted in improvements in patient outcomes are presented in conjunction with supporting evidence. Conclusions Translation should be considered in research design, including the end users and an evaluation of the research implementation. The success of research implementation in health care is dependent on clinician/consumer behaviour change and it is critical that implementation strategy includes this. Relevance to practice Translating best research evidence can make for a more transparent and sustainable healthcare service, to which nurses are central.
Religion and health in African Americans: the role of religious coping.

OBJECTIVES To test a model of the religion-health connection to determine whether religious coping plays a mediating role in health behaviors in a national sample of African Americans. METHODS Participants completed a telephone survey (N = 2370) assessing religious involvement, religious coping, health behaviors, and demographics. RESULTS Religious beliefs were associated with greater vegetable consumption, which may be due to the role of positive and negative religious coping. Negative religious coping played a role in the relationship between religious beliefs and alcohol consumption. There was no evidence of mediation for fruit consumption, alcohol use in the past 30 days, or smoking. CONCLUSIONS Findings have implications for theory and health promotion activities for African Americans.
A Mathematical Model of CR3/TLR2 Crosstalk in the Context of Francisella tularensis Infection

Complement Receptor 3 (CR3) and Toll-like Receptor 2 (TLR2) are pattern recognition receptors expressed on the surface of human macrophages. Although these receptors are essential components for recognition by the innate immune system, pathogen coordinated crosstalk between them can suppress the production of protective cytokines and promote infection. Recognition of the virulent Schu S4 strain of the intracellular pathogen Francisella tularensis by host macrophages involves CR3/TLR2 crosstalk. Although experimental data provide evidence that Lyn kinase and PI3K are essential components of the CR3 pathway that influences TLR2 activity, additional responsible upstream signaling components remain unknown. In this paper we construct a mathematical model of CR3 and TLR2 signaling in response to F. tularensis. After demonstrating that the model is consistent with experimental results we perform numerical simulations to evaluate the contributions that Akt and Ras-GAP make to ERK inhibition. The model confirms that phagocytosis-associated changes in the composition of the cell membrane can inhibit ERK activity and predicts that Akt and Ras-GAP synergize to inhibit ERK.
Lung volume reduction surgery in preterm infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia. A case report

A preterm infant at the age of 9 months with severe bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) and large lobar emphysema, compromising ventilation into adjacent lobes with respiratory failure under maximal conservative treatment and pulmonary arterial hypertension recovered initially well after bilateral lung volume reduction surgery, but progressed 2 years later into respiratory failure. The initial imaging with Magnetic‐Resonance‐Imaging (MRI)‐Angiography and decision‐making was difficult and interdisciplinary treatment was essential.
Plantas visitadas por Apis mellifera L. no vale do rio Paraguaçu, Município de Castro Alves, Bahia

o45’S e 39 o 26’W), valley of the Paraguacu River, were identified from January of 1994 to February of 1995. The community of apicultural plants was characterised by frequency indexes, constancy, abundance, diversity, uniformity and dominance, in relation to the number of bees collected on each plant species. A total of 48 species and 28 families were visited by A. mellifera during the observation period and the main species were Cissus simsiana Roem. & Schult. (Vitaceae), Melochia tomentosa L. (Sterculiaceae) and Portulaca elatior Mart. (Portulacaceae). RESUMO - (Plantas visitadas por Apis mellifera L. no vale do rio Paraguacu, Municipio de Castro Alves, Bahia). As especies vegetais visitadas por Apis mellifera no municipio de Castro Alves-BA (12 o 45’S e 39 o 26’W), regiao do vale do rio Paraguacu, foram identificadas entre janeiro de 1994 a fevereiro de 1995. A comunidade de plantas apicolas foi caracterizada mediante o emprego dos indices de frequencia, constância, abundância, diversidade, uniformidade e dominância, baseando-se no numero de abelhas coletadas em cada especie vegetal. Um total de 48 especies e 28 familias de plantas foram visitadas por A. mellifera durante o periodo estudado e as principais especies da flora apicola na area estudada foram Cissus simsiana Roem. & Schult. (Vitaceae), Melochia tomentosa L. (Sterculiaceae) e Portulaca elatior Mart. (Portulacaceae).
THE ‘LAW OF BONE TRANSFORMATION’: A CASE OF CRYING WOLFF?

Transformation der Knochen, describing in full his understanding of the link between mechanical loading and bone form, developed from many years of investigation (Wolff, 1868, 1869, 1870, 1874, 1884a, b, 1891, 1892). T h e basis of the work was Wolff's general theory of bone transformation : Every change in the. function of a bone. is followed by certain definite changes in. internal structure and external conformation in accordance with mathematical laws. (Treharne, 198 I ) .
Pre‐ and postsynaptic modulation of monosynaptic reflex by GABAA receptors on turtle spinal cord

There is growing evidence that activation of high affinity extrasynaptic GABAA receptors in the brain, cerebellum and spinal cord substantia gelatinosa results in a tonic inhibition controlling postsynaptic excitability. The aim of the present study was to determine if GABAA receptors mediating tonic inhibition participate in the modulation of monosynaptic reflex (MSR) in the vertebrate spinal cord. Using an in vitro turtle lumbar spinal cord preparation, we show that conditioning stimulation of a dorsal root depressed the test monosynaptic reflex (MSR) at long condition–test intervals. This long duration inhibition is similar to the one seen in mammalian spinal cord and it is dependent on GABAA as it was completely blocked by 20 μm picrotoxin (PTX) or bicuculline (BIC) or 1 μm gabazine, simultaneously depressing the dorsal root potential (DRP) without MSR facilitation. Interestingly 100 μm picrotoxin or BIC potentiated the MSR, depressed the DRP, and produced a long lasting motoneurone after‐discharge. Furosemide, a selective antagonist of extrasynaptic GABAA receptors, affects receptor subtypes with α4/6 subunits, and in a similar way to higher concentrations of PTX or BIC, also potentiated the MSR but did not affect the DRP, suggesting the presence of α4/6 GABAA receptors at motoneurones. Our results suggest that (1) the turtle spinal cord has a GABAA mediated long duration inhibition similar to presynaptic inhibition observed in mammals, (2) GABAA receptors located at the motoneurones and primary afferents might produce tonic inhibition of monosynaptic reflex, and (3) GABAA receptors modulate motoneurone excitability reducing the probability of spurious and inappropriate activation.
Rab18 Dynamics in Adipocytes in Relation to Lipogenesis, Lipolysis and Obesity

Lipid droplets (LDs) are organelles that coordinate lipid storage and mobilization, both processes being especially important in cells specialized in managing fat, the adipocytes. Proteomic analyses of LDs have consistently identified the small GTPase Rab18 as a component of the LD coat. However, the specific contribution of Rab18 to adipocyte function remains to be elucidated. Herein, we have analyzed Rab18 expression, intracellular localization and function in relation to the metabolic status of adipocytes. We show that Rab18 production increases during adipogenic differentiation of 3T3-L1 cells. In addition, our data show that insulin induces, via phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), the recruitment of Rab18 to the surface of LDs. Furthermore, Rab18 overexpression increased basal lipogenesis and Rab18 silencing impaired the lipogenic response to insulin, thereby suggesting that this GTPase promotes fat accumulation in adipocytes. On the other hand, studies of the β-adrenergic receptor agonist isoproterenol confirmed and extended previous evidence for the participation of Rab18 in lipolysis. Together, our data support the view that Rab18 is a common mediator of lipolysis and lipogenesis and suggests that the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the link that enables Rab18 action on these two processes. Finally, we describe, for the first time, the presence of Rab18 in human adipose tissue, wherein the expression of this GTPase exhibits sex- and depot-specific differences and is correlated to obesity. Taken together, these findings indicate that Rab18 is involved in insulin-mediated lipogenesis, as well as in β-adrenergic-induced lipolysis, likely facilitating interaction of LDs with ER membranes and the exchange of lipids between these compartments. A role for Rab18 in the regulation of adipocyte biology under both normal and pathological conditions is proposed.
Homeobox Transcription Factors Are Required for Conidiation and Appressorium Development in the Rice Blast Fungus Magnaporthe oryzae

The appropriate development of conidia and appressoria is critical in the disease cycle of many fungal pathogens, including Magnaporthe oryzae. A total of eight genes (MoHOX1 to MoHOX8) encoding putative homeobox transcription factors (TFs) were identified from the M. oryzae genome. Knockout mutants for each MoHOX gene were obtained via homology-dependent gene replacement. Two mutants, ΔMohox3 and ΔMohox5, exhibited no difference to wild-type in growth, conidiation, conidium size, conidial germination, appressorium formation, and pathogenicity. However, the ΔMohox1 showed a dramatic reduction in hyphal growth and increase in melanin pigmentation, compared to those in wild-type. ΔMohox4 and ΔMohox6 showed significantly reduced conidium size and hyphal growth, respectively. ΔMohox8 formed normal appressoria, but failed in pathogenicity, probably due to defects in the development of penetration peg and invasive growth. It is most notable that asexual reproduction was completely abolished in ΔMohox2, in which no conidia formed. ΔMohox2 was still pathogenic through hypha-driven appressoria in a manner similar to that of the wild-type. However, ΔMohox7 was unable to form appressoria either on conidial germ tubes, or at hyphal tips, being non-pathogenic. These factors indicate that M. oryzae is able to cause foliar disease via hyphal appressorium-mediated penetration, and MoHOX7 is mutually required to drive appressorium formation from hyphae and germ tubes. Transcriptional analyses suggest that the functioning of M. oryzae homeobox TFs is mediated through the regulation of gene expression and is affected by cAMP and Ca2+ signaling and/or MAPK pathways. The divergent roles of this gene set may help reveal how the genome and regulatory pathways evolved within the rice blast pathogen and close relatives.
How Good is Growth?

This paper argues that the use of different methodologies for characterizing the well-being of the poor can lead to totally different views about the relationship between economic growth and poverty. The paper focuses on “general means”, which are well-known income standards that place greater weight on lower incomes. In contrast to results obtained using the “mean income of the bottom 20 percent of the distribution”, the paper finds that growth is good for the poor, but not necessarily as good as for other sectors of the population.
Metrics-based analysis of thread behavior using an aspect-oriented programming approach

Understanding thread behavior makes multi-threaded programming easier. Thread behavior can be observed by calculating metrics that are driven from thread state changes and time durations spent in those states. This paper presents the design and implementation of a new thread profiler that builds on aspect-oriented programming (AOP) approach and its use on multi-threaded applications. The new profiler differs from existing profilers in that it adopts a metrics based approach, calculating certain metrics for threads profiled. Also presented is a method to retrieve exact time information at the machine level from the JVM context. The paper concludes with a description of results obtained for thread profiling and metric calculations and a comparison of the overhead the profiler introduces with that of other profilers.
Ventromedial and Orbital Prefrontal Neurons Differentially Encode Internally and Externally Driven Motivational Values in Monkeys

The value of events that predict future rewards, thereby driving behavior, is sensitive to information arising from external (environmental) and internal factors. The ventral prefrontal cortex, an anatomically heterogeneous area, has information related to this value. We designed experiments to compare the contribution of two distinct subregions, orbital and ventromedial, of the ventral prefrontal cortex to the encoding of internal and external factors controlling the perceived motivational value. We recorded the activity of single neurons in both regions in monkeys while manipulating internal and external factors that should affect the perceived value of task events. Neurons in both regions encoded the value of task events, with orbitofrontal neurons being more sensitive to external factors such as visual cues and ventromedial neurons being more sensitive to internal factors such as satiety. Thus, the orbitofrontal cortex emphasizes signals for evaluating environment-centered, externally driven motivational processes, whereas ventromedial prefrontal cortex emphasizes signals more suited for subject-centered, internally driven motivational processes.