Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) screening mild cognitive impairment in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) pre-dialysis.

INTRODUCTION Individuals with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are at higher risk of developing cognitive impairment (CI), initially mild (MCI), potentially identifiable, but still poorly diagnosed and treated. The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) has been indicated for MCI screening in CKD. OBJECTIVE To assess MCI in patients with CKD not yet on dialysis. METHODS Study conducted in 72 non-elderly subjects with pre-dialysis CKD. The neuropsychological assessment included: The global cognitive assessment test MoCA; the clock drawing (CD); the digit span forward (DSF) and reverse (DSR); phonemic verbal (VF) fluency (FAS) and semantics (animals); the fist-edge-palm (FEP); and the memory 10 pictures. RESULTS The average age of the participants was 56.74 ± 7.63 years, with predominance of male sex (55.6%), mainly with ≥ 4 years of education (84.3%), with CKD cathegories 1, 2 and 3a and 3b (67.6%), hypertension (93.1%) and diabetes mellitus (52.1%). MCI (MoCA ≤ 24) was observed in 73.6% of the patients. We did not find association among MCI with demographic and clinical variables, but a tendency to association with age (p = 0.07), educational level (p= 0.06) and diabetes (0.06). The executive function tests CD, DS-reverse and FEP, individually were able to identify CI with good sensibility and negative predictive value compared to MoCA and together, showed the same capability to identify MCI when compared to MoCA. CONCLUSION The MCI is common in non-elderly patients with CKD not yet on dialysis. Together, the CD, DSR and FEP showed similar performance in identify MCI in this population when compared to MoCA, suggesting impairment of executive functions.
Bivariate linkage scan for reading disability and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder localizes pleiotropic loci.

BACKGROUND There is a growing interest in the study of the genetic origins of comorbidity, a direct consequence of the recent findings of genetic loci that are seemingly linked to more than one disorder. There are several potential causes for these shared regions of linkage, but one possibility is that these loci may harbor genes with manifold effects. The established genetic correlation between reading disability (RD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) suggests that their comorbidity is due at least in part to genes that have an impact on several phenotypes, a phenomenon known as pleiotropy. METHODS We employ a bivariate linkage test for selected samples that could help identify these pleiotropic loci. This linkage method was employed to carry out the first bivariate genome-wide analysis for RD and ADHD, in a selected sample of 182 sibling pairs. RESULTS We found evidence for a novel locus at chromosome 14q32 (multipoint LOD=2.5; singlepoint LOD=3.9) with a pleiotropic effect on RD and ADHD. Another locus at 13q32, which had been implicated in previous univariate scans of RD and ADHD, seems to have a pleiotropic effect on both disorders. 20q11 is also suggested as a pleiotropic locus. Other loci previously implicated in RD or ADHD did not exhibit bivariate linkage. CONCLUSIONS Some loci are suggested as having pleiotropic effects on RD and ADHD, while others might have unique effects. These results highlight the utility of this bivariate linkage method to study pleiotropy.
Eating alone or together? Commensality among Ghanaians in London

Eating together, or commensality, signifies unity and sharing in most cultural contexts. The concern for the fate of meals is associated with the apparent descent of shared family meals as a central element of family life, around which family is reproduced, suggesting a loosening of family ties and an upheaval of social life in general. Yet, latest research into and writing about commensality has been mainly on Western populations. This paper broadens the perspective by examining the social context of eating in a diasporic West African community. It compares eating arrangements among Ghanaians in London with their past practices prior to migration. While commensality is of essence among many ethnic minority communities, the Ghanaian family meal is possible without company, and in line with kinship and household structures and patterns in Ghana. The lack of concern for shared family meals enables the unity of family and community in the diasporic community. The notion of the ‘family meal’ appears to be ethnocentrically Western.
Tissue-Specific and Inducer-Specific Differential Induction of ISG56 and ISG54 in Mice

ABSTRACT The interferon-stimulated genes (ISGs) ISG56 and ISG54 are strongly induced in cultured cells by type I interferons (IFNs), viruses, and double-stranded RNA (dsRNA), which activate their transcription by various signaling pathways. Here we studied the stimulus-dependent induction of both genes in vivo. dsRNA, which is generated during virus infection, induced the expression of both genes in all organs examined. Induction was not seen in STAT1-deficient mice, indicating that dsRNA-induced gene expression requires endogenous IFN. We further examined the regulation of these ISGs in several organs from mice injected with dsRNA or IFN-β. Both ISG56 and ISG54 were widely expressed and at comparable levels. However, in organs isolated from mice injected with IFN-α the expression of ISG54 was reduced and more restricted in distribution compared with the expression level and distribution of ISG56. When we began to study specific cell types, splenic B cells showed ISG54 but not ISG56 expression in response to all agonists. Finally, in livers isolated from mice infected with vesicular stomatitis virus, the expression of ISG56, but not ISG54, was induced; this difference was observed at both protein and mRNA levels. These studies have revealed unexpected complexity in IFN-stimulated gene induction in vivo. For the first time we showed that the two closely related genes are expressed in a tissue-specific and inducer-specific manner. Furthermore, our findings provide the first evidence of a differential pattern of expression of ISG54 and ISG56 genes by IFN-α and IFN-β.
Effect of HBM Rehabilitation Exercises on Depression, Anxiety and Health Belief in Elderly Patients with Osteoporotic Fracture.

BACKGROUND Guided by the health belief model (HBM), this study provided elderly patients with osteoporotic fracture with health education concerning osteoporosis (OP) prevention, carried out rehabilitation exercises based on HBM, and evaluated the intervention effect of HBM rehabilitation exercises, to offer a scientific basis for improving the prognosis of elderly patients with OP fracture. SUBJECTS AND METHODS A total of 162 elderly patients with OP fracture treated in three third-grade general hospitals of Jiangsu Province from January 2016 to September 2016 participated in this study. According to the minimization random allocation method, the patients were divided into two groups: the conventional rehabilitation group and the HBM rehabilitation group, with 81 patients in each group. After three months of intervention, the two groups were compared in terms of anxiety, depression, OP knowledge, and OP health belief. RESULTS After 3 months of intervention, the anxiety and depression scores decreased in both groups. Both anxiety and depression scores of the HBM rehabilitation group were higher than those of the conventional rehabilitation group, with statistically significant differences (P<0.001). The increases in the OP knowledge score and OP health belief score of the HBM rehabilitation group were higher than those of the conventional rehabilitation group, with statistically significant differences (P<0.001). CONCLUSIONS HBM-based rehabilitation exercises alleviate negative emotions in elderly patients with osteoporotic fracture and improve their OP knowledge and health belief scores.
Variables predictoras de la lectura y la escritura en castellano

Resumen La posibilidad de predecir el aprendizaje de la lectura y la escritura ha sido objeto de numerosas investigaciones. Las habilidades de procesamiento fonológico y velocidad de denominación aparecen entre los mejores predictores en la mayor parte de los estudios. Sin embargo, muchos de los resultados se han obtenido en lenguas diferentes del castellano y con estudios que evalúan esas capacidades cuando los niños ya saben leer, por tanto la relación de la lectura y escritura con otras habilidades podría ser fruto del aprendizaje. El objetivo de este estudio fue determinar qué variables permiten predecir la adquisición de la lectura mecánica, así como de la escritura, en castellano. Se aplicaron tareas de conciencia fonémica, repetición de pseudopalabras, amplitud de memoria, fluidez verbal y denominación rápida y automatizada, a un grupo de 50 niños prelectores. Dieciocho meses después, cuando ya sabían leer y escribir, se les evaluó en lectura y escritura. Con los datos obtenidos, se realizaron análisis de correlación de Pearson, análisis factorial y análisis de regresión lineal. La conciencia fonológica fue la variable que mejor predijo la exactitud lectora y la escritura, mientras que la denominación rápida de dibujos predijo la velocidad lectora. Estos datos indican que es posible pronosticar la adquisición de la lectura y escritura antes de su enseñanza. Así mismo, nos sugieren que es posible intervenir tempranamente, especialmente en aquellos niños que presenten riesgo de dificultades de aprendizaje.
Clinical anatomy related to the hepatic veins for right lobe living donor liver transplantation

The complexity of liver reconstruction has limited partial right lobe living donor liver transplantation. It is largely due to the difficulty of dealing with the middle hepatic vein. We sought to define the anatomic features of hepatic veins. Forty‐one fresh adult livers, 43 formalin‐fixed adult cadaver livers, and 91 adult liver corrosion casts were used for the study. We determined the number of branches, the maximum diameter, the whole length, the extrahepatic length of the hepatic veins, and the deviation of the middle hepatic vein from the main portal fissure. Nakamura and Tsuzuki's classification of hepatic vein types was used. Type A, B, and C accounted for 59.4, 27.8, and 12.8% of all specimens in this study, respectively. The middle and left hepatic veins formed a common trunk in 60.3% of the specimens, and the length of the common trunk was 1.12 ± 0.62 cm. The degree of deviation to the right of the middle hepatic vein from the main portal fissure was 14.11° ± 12.65°. The frequency of hepatic vein types and the degree of deviation to the right of the middle hepatic vein in this study is markedly different from that reported in other literature. The anatomic features of the hepatic veins in this study suggest that right lobe living donor liver transplantation is more suitable for Chinese. Clin. Anat. 2013. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Evaluation Methodology in Organization Development: An Analysis and Critique

The purpose of this analysis is to present a detailed overview of the current state of evaluation methodology in organization development. A detailed search procedure yielded 35 empirical studies in the OD field for the period 1959 to mid-1975. Each study was analyzed according to (a) research design, (b) data collection procedures, (c) subject characteristics, (d) treatment dimensions, and (e) data analysis approaches. Findings show that the overall quality of OD research methodology was spotty. Research designs were relatively strong with a large percentage of investigators using quasi-experimental designs. An excessive reliance on questionnaires as the sole data collection approach exists. Only a small percentage of studies report using other quantified approaches. Most studies were conducted in one organization or in situations where the N's for units of analysis larger than the individual were small (< 10). The heavy use of laboratory training intervention techniques was noted, although a strong shift from process to task orientation has occurred in recent years. Over 75% of the studies reported the use of statistical tests of significance. Although data analysis procedures are becoming more sophisticated, the vast majority of studies used very simple analytical techniques. Based on this analysis, a series of suggestions for improvement of methodological approaches to OD research is presented.
Two Factors Contributing to Elementary School Teachers' Predictions of Students' Scores on the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test, Level D

The prediction by 13 elementary school teachers of 214 students' achievement in Grades 4 to 6 on the Gates-MacGinitie Reading Test, Level D was examined. Although teachers were generally good predictors of students' achievement in reading, predictions were affected by various factors related to students and teachers. Female teachers, but not male teachers, tended to overestimate the number of correct responses by girls and underestimate that by boys. A similar trend was evident for inexperienced teachers. When they overestimated, male teachers and inexperienced teachers tended to overestimate more.
Regulation of enterobacterial cephalosporinase production: the role of a membrane‐bound sensory transducer

In clinical isolates of Enterobacter cloacae, resistance to the newer β‐lactam antibiotics often results from overproduction of a cephalosporinase encoded by the β‐lactam‐inducible ampC gene. Regulation of ampC is controlled by the divergently expressed activator gene, ampR, and a second unlinked locus. In this presentation we show that although Escherichia coli has IQst its ampR gene it has retained the second regulatory locus and that this comprises the bicistronic ampDE operon. Genetic and biochemical studies define the ampD gene as encoding a repressor for amp C transcription whereas the ampE gene product is a cytoplasmic membrane protein. Inactivation of the AmpD protein by mutation causes massive overproduction of cephalosporinase which, in E. cloacae, can terminate in therapeutic failure. In contrast, toss of AmpE results in a total block in induction, despite the presence of the activator, AmpR.
Wideband LTCC 60-GHz Antenna Array With a Dual-Resonant Slot and Patch Structure

This paper presents a wideband 60-GHz antenna array with a dual-resonant slot-patch structure. A multilayered low-temperature co-fired ceramic substrate was used for antenna fabrication. A half-wavelength resonant slot was designed with a backed substrate-integrated waveguide (SIW) cavity to enhance the front radiation. The inverted microstrip center-fed structure was designed for easy signal excitation and superior impedance matching. A parasitic patch was also applied to enhance for bandwidth and gain enhancement. The effects of the SIW cavity-backed slot antenna with and without parasitic patches were empirically examined. The simulated results show that adding parasitic patches increased the resonance of the poles and improved antenna gain by 1.85 dB and bandwidth by 9%. A 2 × 2 dual-resonant slot-patch antenna array was designed to further enhance the gain and bandwidth. The equipment setup for on-chip measurements of gain and radiation patterns was established. The measured S11 showed a wide bandwidth of 23%. The measured gain for the four-element antenna array was 9 dBi with slight fluctuations over the 57-64-GHz frequency range.
Phylogenetic analysis of avian paramyxovirus serotype-1 in pigeons in Japan

To understand the epidemiology of Avian paramyxovirus serotype-1 (APMV-1) in pigeons in Japan, phylogenetic analysis was comprehensively conducted based on partial fusion protein gene using isolate from the surveillance of this virus with previously known Japanese pigeon strains. This surveillance was conducted using feces obtained from domestic pigeons collected in 40 prefectures throughout Japan from June 2011 to March 2013. From a total of 1,021 samples, a single virus (APMV1/pigeon/Japan/Kanagawa/2013: JP/Kanagawa-pg/2013) was isolated. All Japanese pigeon APMV-1 strains were clustered into a single genetic lineage, which was termed VIb/1 by phylogenetic analysis based on the F gene including the sequence of the cleavage site. These APMV-1 strains were further subdivided into four subgroups identified over 4 separate timeframes: 1984–1995 (group 1), 1995–2000 (group 2), 2001–2007 (group 3) and the novel subgroup isolated in 2013 (group 4). Each subgroup has specific amino acid motifs at a cleavage site of the F protein, namely, 112GRQKR-F117(except for one strain), 112RRKKR-F117, 112RRQKR-F117 and 112RRQKR-F117, respectively. Our data suggest that Japanese APMV-1 strains from pigeons were diverse and reinforced the possibility that there were multiple introduction routes from foreign countries into Japan.
Haematological side effects of clozapine: patient characteristics.

AIM To determine the prevalence of neutropenia and agranulocytosis in patients taking clozapine since its introduction into New Zealand in April 1988. METHOD Data was collected by Sandoz Pharma (NZ) Ltd on blood counts from all patients prescribed clozapine as part of its worldwide monitoring programme for this drug. The data was analysed by one of the authors (AEC). Case histories to illustrate the principal ways in which falls in white cells present. RESULTS A total of 693 patients have been exposed to clozapine between April 1988 and June 1995. The cumulative agranulocytosis rate for the first 7 years of use was 1.15%. There were eight cases of agranulocytosis and no deaths. An additional 14 cases neutropenia were reported (2.02%). CONCLUSIONS The agranulocytosis and neutropenia rates reported from New Zealand compare favourably with those from larger overseas studies though the exposed patient base is modest.
Understanding Voltage Gating of Providencia stuartii Porins at Atomic Level

Bacterial porins are water-filled β-barrel channels that allow translocation of solutes across the outer membrane. They feature a constriction zone, contributed by the plunging of extracellular loop 3 (L3) into the channel lumen. Porins are generally in the open state, but undergo gating in response to external voltages. To date the underlying mechanism is unclear. Here we report results from molecular dynamics simulations on the two porins of Providenica stuartii, Omp-Pst1 and Omp-Pst2, which display distinct voltage sensitivities. Voltage gating was observed in Omp-Pst2, where the binding of cations in-between L3 and the barrel wall results in exposing a conserved aromatic residue in the channel lumen, thereby halting ion permeation. Comparison of Omp-Pst1 and Omp-Pst2 structures and trajectories suggests that their sensitivity to voltage is encoded in the hydrogen-bonding network anchoring L3 onto the barrel wall, as we observed that it is the strength of this network that governs the probability of cations binding behind L3. That Omp-Pst2 gating is observed only when ions flow against the electrostatic potential gradient of the channel furthermore suggests a possible role for this porin in the regulation of charge distribution across the outer membrane and bacterial homeostasis.
Insights Into Interface Treatments in p-Channel Organic Thin-Film Transistors Based on a Novel Molecular Semiconductor

Organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) were fabricated using a novel small molecule, C6-NTTN, as the semiconductor layer in several different architectures. The C6-NTTN layer was deposited via both vacuum evaporation at different substrate temperatures and via solution-processing, which yield maximum hole mobilities of 0.16 and 0.05 cm2/ ${\mathrm{ V}}\cdot {\mathrm{ s}}$ , respectively. Surface treatments of the substrate, insulator, and metal contacts used for OTFT fabrication employing polymer films and different self-assembled monolayers were investigated. In particular, in bottom-gate devices, the insulator surface hydrophobicity was optimized by the deposition of poly(methyl methacrylate) or hexamethyldisilazane, while in the top-gate geometry, pentafluorobenzenethiol was efficiently used to modify the substrate surface energy and to change the contact work function. Atomic force microscopy analysis was exploited to understand the relationship between the semiconductor thin-film morphology and the device electrical performance. The results shown here indicate an inverse proportionality between the mobility and the interface trap density, with parameters depending especially on semiconductor–insulator interfacial properties, and a correlation between the threshold voltage and the characteristics of the semiconductor–metal interface.
Is K-ras Gene Mutation a Prognostic Factor for Colorectal Cancer: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

BACKGROUND:The K-ras gene is one of the commonly mutated oncogenes associated with colorectal cancer. However, its prognostic significance for patients with colorectal cancer remains inconclusive. OBJECTIVE:To derive a more precise estimation of the prognostic significance of K-ras gene mutations, a systematic review and meta-analysis were performed. DATA SOURCES:We searched PubMed, Embase, and the Cochrane databases from January 1992 to November 2011. STUDY SELECTION:The prognostic value of K-ras gene mutations was examined in patients with colorectal cancer who did not receive preoperative chemotherapy or radiation. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:The effect of K-ras gene mutations on the overall survival was measured by the HR and 95% CIs. RESULTS:The pooled HR for the association between K-ras gene mutations and overall survival in patients with colorectal cancer was 1.04 (95% CI: 0.99–1.10, p = 0.11). Subgroup analysis showed significant reductions in the overall survival associated with mutations at K-ras codon 12, the articles that reported HR directly, and the studies published before and after 2005, although publication bias was present. All the associations disappeared after adjustment with the trim-and-fill method. The pooled HR of 3 studies examining mutations at K-ras codon 13 was 1.47 (95% CI: 1.09–1.97, p = 0.02), and no publication bias was observed. No significant association was observed in different study regions. LIMITATIONS:The heterogeneity in the study populations is a potential problem, the use of different staging systems or small groups of different stages may contribute to heterogeneity, and residual confounding may have influenced the results in those studies that did not completely adjust for other factors. CONCLUSIONS:Overall K-ras gene mutations seem not to correlate with the prognosis of patients with colorectal cancer. The association remains to be confirmed with a more precise analysis of a large sample.