Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Effects of physiologic pacing versus ventricular pacing on the risk of stroke and death due to cardiovascular causes

Background Evidence suggests that physiologic pacing (dual-chamber or atrial) may be superior to single-chamber (ventricular) pacing because it is associated with lower risks of atrial fibrillation, stroke, and death. These benefits have not been evaluated in a large, randomized, controlled trial. Methods At 32 Canadian centers, patients without chronic atrial fibrillation who were scheduled for a first implantation of a pacemaker to treat symptomatic bradycardia were eligible for enrollment. We randomly assigned patients to receive either a ventricular pacemaker or a physiologic pacemaker and followed them for an average of three years. The primary outcome was stroke or death due to cardiovascular causes. Secondary outcomes were death from any cause, atrial fibrillation, and hospitalization for heart failure. Results A total of 1474 patients were randomly assigned to receive a ventricular pacemaker and 1094 to receive a physiologic pacemaker. The annual rate of stroke or death due to cardiovascular cause.
The psychological complex : mental measurement and social administration

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An Immunomics Approach to Schistosome Antigen Discovery: Antibody Signatures of Naturally Resistant and Chronically Infected Individuals from Endemic Areas

Schistosomiasis is a neglected tropical disease that is responsible for almost 300,000 deaths annually. Mass drug administration (MDA) is used worldwide for the control of schistosomiasis, but chemotherapy fails to prevent reinfection with schistosomes, so MDA alone is not sufficient to eliminate the disease, and a prophylactic vaccine is required. Herein, we take advantage of recent advances in systems biology and longitudinal studies in schistosomiasis endemic areas in Brazil to pilot an immunomics approach to the discovery of schistosomiasis vaccine antigens. We selected mostly surface-derived proteins, produced them using an in vitro rapid translation system and then printed them to generate the first protein microarray for a multi-cellular pathogen. Using well-established Brazilian cohorts of putatively resistant (PR) and chronically infected (CI) individuals stratified by the intensity of their S. mansoni infection, we probed arrays for IgG subclass and IgE responses to these antigens to detect antibody signatures that were reflective of protective vs. non-protective immune responses. Moreover, probing for IgE responses allowed us to identify antigens that might induce potentially deleterious hypersensitivity responses if used as subunit vaccines in endemic populations. Using multi-dimensional cluster analysis we showed that PR individuals mounted a distinct and robust IgG1 response to a small set of newly discovered and well-characterized surface (tegument) antigens in contrast to CI individuals who mounted strong IgE and IgG4 responses to many antigens. Herein, we show the utility of a vaccinomics approach that profiles antibody responses of resistant individuals in a high-throughput multiplex approach for the identification of several potentially protective and safe schistosomiasis vaccine antigens.
Signal Transduction Pathways Involved in Phosphorylation and Activation of p70S6K Following Exposure to UVA Irradiation*

Ultraviolet light A (UVA) plays an important role in the etiology of human skin cancer, and UVA-induced signal transduction has a critical role in UVA-induced skin carcinogenesis. The upstream signaling pathways leading to p70S6Kphosphorylation and activation are not well understood. Here, we observed that UVA induces phosphorylation and activation of p70S6K. Further, UVA-stimulated p70S6K activity and phosphorylation at Thr389 were blocked by wortmannin, rapamycin, PD98059, SB202190, and dominant negative mutants of phosphatidylinositol (PI) 3-kinase p85 subunit (DNM-Δp85), ERK2 (DNM-ERK2), p38 kinase (DNM-p38), and JNK1 (DNM-JNK1) and were absent in Jnk1−/− or Jnk2−/− knockout cells. The p70S6K phosphorylation at Ser411 and Thr421/Ser424 was inhibited by rapamycin, PD98059, or DNM-ERK2 but not by wortmannin, SB202190, DNM-Δp85, or DNM-p38. However, Ser411, but not Thr421/Ser424 phosphorylation, was suppressed in DNM-JNK1 and abrogated in Jnk1−/− orJnk2−/− cells. In vitro assays indicated that Ser411 on immunoprecipitated p70S6K proteins is phosphorylated by active JNKs and ERKs, but not p38 kinase, and Thr421/Ser424 is phosphorylated by ERK1, but not ERK2, JNKs, or p38 kinase. Moreover, p70S6Kco-immunoprecipitated with PI 3-kinase and possibly PDK1. The complex possibly possessed a partial basal level of phosphorylation, but not at MAPK sites, which was available for its activation by MAPKs in vitro. Thus, these results suggest that activation of MAPKs, like PI 3-kinase/mTOR, may be involved in UVA-induced phosphorylation and activation of p70S6K.
Left‐To‐Right Shunts

et al., 1957; Bruce and John, 1957; Swan, Marshall, and Wood, 1958; Stephens, Shafter, and Bliss, 1964), but some uncertainty remains about the conclusions. Since any attempt to understand the disability of such patients depends on these, we have attempted a further investigation into the changes occurring during exercise. This paper deals with the hemodynamics, and a following communication is concerned with ventilatory and metabolic aspects (Gazetopoulos and Davies, 1966).
A Systematic Review of Older Adult Anxiety Measures and the Clinical Effectiveness of Group Psychoeducational CBT for Mixed Anxiety and Depression in Older Adults

iv Acknowledgements. vi Section 1: The Psychometric Properties of Older Adult Self-Report Anxiety Measures: A Systematic Review Abstract. 2. 2 Introduction. 3 Method. 4 Results. 10 Discussion. 23 Conclusions. 34 References. 46 Section 2: The Clinical Effectiveness of Group Psychoeducational Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Mixed Anxiety and Depression in Older Adults: A
The promoting adult resilience (PAR) program : the effectiveness of the second, shorter pilot of a workplace prevention program

This article details the second, successful pilot of the Promoting Adult Resilience (PAR) program in the human-services departments of a local government organization. The PAR program is a strengths-based resilience building program that integrates Interpersonal and CBT perspectives and this pilot use a shorter, 7-week version of the program. Pre, post and follow-up measures on PAR participants from a resource-sector company were compared with a non-intervention matched comparison group. Post-test, PAR participants reported greater self-efficacy, more family satisfaction, greater f\work-life fit and balance and less negative family to work spillover than the comparison group. At the 6-month follow-up, these gains were maintained to a lesser degree, although work-life balance was strengthened, and negative spillover in both directions reduced. Participants also reported greater optimism for the future, greater work satisfaction and promisingly for human service workers, exhaustion was reduced and more vigour, important for human services as burnout, exhaustion is part of this is a serious work hazard
Action to language via the mirror neuron system

Preface Part I. Two Perspectives: 1. The mirror system hypothesis on the linkage of action and languages Michael Arbib 2. The origin and evolution of language: a plausible, strong-AI account Jerry Hobbs Part II. Brain, Evolution and Comparative Analysis: 3. Cognition, imitation and culture in the great apes Craig Stanford 4. The signer as an embodied mirror neuron: neural systems underlying sign language and action Karen Emmorey 5. Neural homologies and the grounding of neurolinguistics Michael Arbib and Mihail Bota Part III. Dynamical Systems in Action and Language: 6. Dynamical systems: brain, body and imitation Stefan Schaal 7. The role of vocal tract gestural action units in understanding the evolution of phonology Louis Goldstein, Dani Byrd and Elliot Saltzman 8. Lending a helping hand to hearing: a motor theory of speech perception Jeremy I. Skipper, Howard C. Nusbaum and Steven L. Small Part IV. From Mirror System to Syntax and Theory of Mind: 9. Attention and the minimal subscene Laurent Itti and Michael Arbib 10. Action verbs, argument structure constructions, and the mirror neuron system David Kemmerer 11. Linguistic corpora and theory of mind Andrew Gordon Part V. Development of Action and Language: 12. The development of grasping and the mirror system Erhan Oztop, Nina Bradley and Michael Arbib 13. Development of goal-directed imitation, object manipulation and language in humans and robots Iona D. Goga and Aude Billard 14. Affordances, effectivities and the mirror system in child development Patricia Zukow-Goldring 15. Implications of mirror neurons for the ontogeny and phylogeny of cultural processes: the examples of tools and language Patricia Greenfield.
Communication compartments in the gastrulating mouse embryo

We characterized the pattern of gap junctional communication in the 7.5- d mouse embryo (at the primitive streak or gastrulation stage). First we examined the pattern of dye coupling by injecting the fluorescent tracers, Lucifer Yellow or carboxyfluorescein, and monitoring the extent of dye spread. These studies revealed that cells within all three germ layers are well coupled, as the injected dye usually spread rapidly from the site of impalement into the neighboring cells. The dye spread, however, appeared to be restricted at specific regions of the embryo. Further thick section histological analysis revealed little or no dye transfer between germ layers, indicating that each is a separate communication compartment. The pattern of dye movement within the embryonic ectoderm and mesoderm further suggested that cells in each of these germ layers may be subdivided into smaller communication compartments, the most striking of which are a number of "box-like" domains. Such compartments, unlike the restrictions observed between germ layers, are consistently only partially restrictive. In light of these results, we further monitored ionic coupling to determine if some coupling might nevertheless persist between germ layers. For these studies, Lucifer Yellow was coinjected while ionic coupling was monitored. The injected Lucifer Yellow facilitated the identification of the impalement sites, both in the live specimen and in thick sections in the subsequent histological analysis. By using this approach, all three germ layers were shown to be ionically coupled, indicating that gap junctional communication is maintained across the otherwise dye-uncoupled "germ layer compartments. " Thus our results demonstrate that partially restrictive communication compartments are associated with the delamination of germ layers in the gastrulating mouse embryo. The spatial distribution of these compartments are consistent with a possible role in the underlying development.
Female Listeners’ Autonomic Responses to Dramatic Shifts Between Loud and Soft Music/Sound Passages: A Study of Heavy Metal Songs

Although music and the emotion it conveys unfold over time, little is known about how listeners respond to shifts in musical emotions. A special technique in heavy metal music utilizes dramatic shifts between loud and soft passages. Loud passages are penetrated by distorted sounds conveying aggression, whereas soft passages are often characterized by a clean, calm singing voice and light accompaniment. The present study used heavy metal songs and soft sea sounds to examine how female listeners’ respiration rates and heart rates responded to the arousal changes associated with auditory stimuli. The high-frequency power of heart rate variability (HF-HRV) was used to assess cardiac parasympathetic activity. The results showed that the soft passages of heavy metal songs and soft sea sounds expressed lower arousal and induced significantly higher HF-HRVs than the loud passages of heavy metal songs. Listeners’ respiration rate was determined by the arousal level of the present music passage, whereas the heart rate was dependent on both the present and preceding passages. Compared with soft sea sounds, the loud music passage led to greater deceleration of the heart rate at the beginning of the following soft music passage. The sea sounds delayed the heart rate acceleration evoked by the following loud music passage. The data provide evidence that sound-induced parasympathetic activity affects listeners’ heart rate in response to the following music passage. These findings have potential implications for future research on the temporal dynamics of musical emotions.
Compartmentalized cAMP responses to prostaglandin EP2 receptor activation in human airway smooth muscle cells

Previous studies indicate that prostaglandin EP2 receptors selectively couple to AC2 in non‐lipid raft domains of airway smooth muscle (ASM) cells, where they regulate specific cAMP‐dependent responses. The goal of the present study was to identify the cellular microdomains where EP2 receptors stimulate cAMP production.
Healthy and harmful adolescent attachment, conflict, and anger

The major focus of this study was to investigate the association between adolescent attachment styles and types of parent-adolescent conflict and anger. The study used adolescent respondents (n=214, females=136, males=78), 95% of whom were aged 14 or 15. The methodology was a one-off survey design. An adapted adult attachment scale with two dimensions, anxiety and avoidance, measured attachment. This scale was used to form four adolescent attachment styles, secure, preoccupied, fearful and dismissive. Family conflict was assessed in a range of ways, including general measures of self-reported family conflict and abuse at home. Also measured were general anger-proneness and depression-proneness. As well, adolescents responded to four specific, hypothetical parent-adolescent conflict scenarios. The responses to these vignettes included their reported emotions, conflict resolution strategies, expected endings and post-conflict coping/risk behaviours. Results indicated the presence of one major healthy and functional conflict-anger pattern associated with a secure attachment style, and two major types of harmful and dysfunctional conflict-anger patterns. Healthy conflict and anger involved secure adolescents reporting they would experience negative emotions in conflict but would still expect the conflict to be resolved well for everyone. Secure adolescents were also less anger-prone and depression-prone generally than other adolescents, possibly indicating their ability to regulate their negative emotions. The first harmful conflict pattern, associated with preoccupied and fearful attachment styles, included relatively higher levels of family conflict involving poor conflict endings, and even moderate levels of violence. Preoccupied and fearful adolescents may have poor emotional regulation, as indicated by their higher levels of general anger-proneness and depression-proneness. The second harmful conflict-anger pattern was associated with a dismissive attachment style and involved conflict with emotional distance and coolness in the family, as well as lower levels of reported problem solving strategies and good conflict endings. Results are discussed in terms of adolescent attachment style profiles and the need to distinguish and assess attachment styles in families in order to devise appropriate and effective interventions. Examples of primary, secondary and tertiary preventative interventions are described to assist mildly to severely conflicted, distressed or disengaged families.
Performance analysis of SNR estimators in digital receivers

The performances of the maximum likelihood (ML) signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) estimators developed in a companion paper [NC Beaulieu et al, 2005] are examined. Approximations to the probability density functions of the ML SNR estimates in a sampled signal processing receiver as well as a continuous time signal processing receiver are derived. Two measures of signal-to-noise ratio are studied in detail. The results are general and apply to both static additive white Gaussian noise channels and slowly fading channels.
Combined Effects of Attention and Motivation on Visual Task Performance: Transient and Sustained Motivational Effects

We investigated how the brain integrates motivational and attentional signals by using a neuroimaging paradigm that provided separate estimates for transient cue- and target-related signals, in addition to sustained block-related responses. Participants performed a Posner-type task in which an endogenous cue predicted target location on 70% of trials, while motivation was manipulated by varying magnitude and valence of a cash incentive linked to task performance. Our findings revealed increased detection performance (d′) as a function of incentive value. In parallel, brain signals revealed that increases in absolute incentive magnitude led to cue- and target-specific response modulations that were independent of sustained state effects across visual cortex, fronto-parietal regions, and subcortical regions. Interestingly, state-like effects of incentive were observed in several of these brain regions, too, suggesting that both transient and sustained fMRI signals may contribute to task performance. For both cue and block periods, the effects of administering incentives were correlated with individual trait measures of reward sensitivity. Taken together, our findings support the notion that motivation improves behavioral performance in a demanding attention task by enhancing evoked responses across a distributed set of anatomical sites, many of which have been previously implicated in attentional processing. However, the effect of motivation was not simply additive as the impact of absolute incentive was greater during invalid than valid trials in several brain regions, possibly because motivation had a larger effect on reorienting than orienting attentional mechanisms at these sites.
Antibody-Mediated Growth Inhibition of Plasmodium falciparum: Relationship to Age and Protection from Parasitemia in Kenyan Children and Adults

Background Antibodies that impair Plasmodium falciparum merozoite invasion and intraerythrocytic development are one of several mechanisms that mediate naturally acquired immunity to malaria. Attempts to correlate anti-malaria antibodies with risk of infection and morbidity have yielded inconsistent results. Growth inhibition assays (GIA) offer a convenient method to quantify functional antibody activity against blood stage malaria. Methods A treatment-time-to-infection study was conducted over 12-weeks in a malaria holoendemic area of Kenya. Plasma collected from healthy individuals (98 children and 99 adults) before artemether-lumefantrine treatment was tested by GIA in three separate laboratories. Results Median GIA levels varied with P. falciparum line (D10, 8.8%; 3D7, 34.9%; FVO, 51.4% inhibition). The magnitude of growth inhibition decreased with age in all P. falciparum lines tested with the highest median levels among children <4 years compared to adults (e.g. 3D7, 45.4% vs. 30.0% respectively, p = 0.0003). Time-to-infection measured by weekly blood smears was significantly associated with level of GIA controlling for age. Upper quartile inhibition activity was associated with less risk of infection compared to individuals with lower levels (e.g. 3D7, hazard ratio = 1.535, 95% CI = 1.012–2.329; p = 0.0438). Various GIA methodologies had little effect on measured parasite growth inhibition. Conclusion Plasma antibody-mediated growth inhibition of blood stage P. falciparum decreases with age in residents of a malaria holoendemic area. Growth inhibition assay may be a useful surrogate of protection against infection when outcome is controlled for age.
Insulin resistance and its consequences in chronic hepatitis C

Chronic hepatitis C (CHC) is generally a slowly progressive disease, but some factors associated with rapid progression have been identified. Hepatitis C virus (HCV) may contribute to a broad spectrum of metabolic disturbances – namely, steatosis, insulin resistance (IR), increased prevalence of impaired glucose tolerance, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), lipid metabolism abnormalities and atherosclerosis. HCV can directly or indirectly cause both IR and steatosis, but it is still not resolved whether this viral impact bears the same prognostic value as the metabolic counterparts. As the population exposed to HCV ages, the morbidity due to this disease is increasing. The rising epidemic of obesity contributes to higher prevalence of IR and T2DM. Our understanding of the mutual association between both disease states continues to grow, but is still far from complete. This review briefly discusses the most probable mechanisms involved in IR development in the course of CHC. Molecular mechanisms for the direct and indirect influence of HCV on intracellular insulin signaling are described. Subsequently, the consequences of IR/T2DM for disease progression and management are summarized.
Cellular actors, Toll-like receptors, and local cytokine profile in acute coronary syndromes.

AIMS Inflammation plays a key role in acute coronary syndromes (ACS). Toll-like receptors (TLR) on leucocytes mediate inflammation and immune responses. We characterized leucocytes and TLR expression within coronary thrombi and compared cytokine levels from the site of coronary occlusion with aortic blood (AB) in ACS patients. METHODS AND RESULTS In 18 ACS patients, thrombi were collected by aspiration during primary percutaneous coronary intervention. Thrombi and AB from these patients as well as AB from 10 age-matched controls without coronary artery disease were assessed by FACS analysis for cellular distribution and TLR expression. For further discrimination of ACS specificity, seven non-coronary intravascular thrombi and eight thrombi generated in vitro were analysed. In 17 additional patients, cytokine levels were determined in blood samples from the site of coronary occlusion under distal occlusion and compared with AB. In coronary thrombi from ACS, the percentage of monocytes related to the total leucocyte count was greater than in AB (47 vs. 20%, P = 0.0002). In thrombi, TLR-4 and TLR-2 were overexpressed on CD14-labelled monocytes, and TLR-2 was increased on CD66b-labelled granulocytes, in comparison with leucocytes in AB. In contrast, in vitro and non-coronary thrombi exhibited no overexpression of TLR-4. Local blood samples taken under distal occlusion revealed elevated concentrations of chemokines (IL-8, MCP-1, eotaxin, MIP-1alpha, and IP-10) and cytokines (IL-1ra, IL-6, IL-7, IL-12, IL-17, IFN-alpha, and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor) regulating both innate and adaptive immunity (all P < 0.05). CONCLUSION In ACS patients, monocytes accumulate within thrombi and specifically overexpress TLR-4. Together with the local expression patterns of chemokines and cytokines, the increase of TLR-4 reflects a concerted activation of this inflammatory pathway at the site of coronary occlusion in ACS.