Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Usefulness of an app in improving oral hygiene compliance in adolescent orthodontic patients.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the influence of an app-based approach in a protocol for domestic oral hygiene maintenance in a group of adolescent patients wearing fixed multibracket appliances. MATERIALS AND METHODS Eighty adolescent patients scheduled to start an orthodontic multibracket treatment were randomly divided into two groups of 40. Plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), white spots (WS), and caries presence were recorded in all patients, and they were instructed regarding domestic oral hygiene maintenance on the day of braces application (t0) and every 3 months (t1, t2, t3, t4) during the first year of treatment. Study group (SG) patients were enrolled in a WhatsApp chat room-based competition and instructed to share monthly with the other participants two self-photographs (selfies) showing their oral hygiene status. RESULTS SG patient participation in the chat room was regular and active throughout the observation period. At t2, t3, and t4, SG patients had significantly lower values of both PI and GI and a lower incidence of new WS and caries, compared with the control group. CONCLUSION Integration of new "social" technologies in a standard oral hygiene motivation protocol is effective in improving compliance of adolescent patients and in improving their oral health status during orthodontic multibracket treatment.
Computational Docking of Antibody-Antigen Complexes, Opportunities and Pitfalls Illustrated by Influenza Hemagglutinin

Antibodies play an increasingly important role in both basic research and the pharmaceutical industry. Since their efficiency depends, in ultimate analysis, on their atomic interactions with an antigen, studying such interactions is important to understand how they function and, in the long run, to design new molecules with desired properties. Computational docking, the process of predicting the conformation of a complex from its separated components, is emerging as a fast and affordable technique for the structural characterization of antibody-antigen complexes. In this manuscript, we first describe the different computational strategies for the modeling of antibodies and docking of their complexes, and then predict the binding of two antibodies to the stalk region of influenza hemagglutinin, an important pharmaceutical target. The purpose is two-fold: on a general note, we want to illustrate the advantages and pitfalls of computational docking with a practical example, using different approaches and comparing the results to known experimental structures. On a more specific note, we want to assess if docking can be successful in characterizing the binding to the same influenza epitope of other antibodies with unknown structure, which has practical relevance for pharmaceutical and biological research. The paper clearly shows that some of the computational docking predictions can be very accurate, but the algorithm often fails to discriminate them from inaccurate solutions. It is of paramount importance, therefore, to use rapidly obtained experimental data to validate the computational results.
Strategies to improve patient retention on antiretroviral therapy in sub-Saharan Africa

The scale‐up of antiretroviral therapy (ART) has been one of the success stories of sub‐Saharan Africa, where coverage has increased from about 2% in 2003 to more than 40% 5 years later. However, tempering this success is a growing concern about patient retention (the proportion of patients who are alive and remaining on ART in the health system). Based on the personal experience of the authors, 10 key interventions are presented and discussed that might help to improve patient retention. These are (1) the need for simple and standardized monitoring systems to track what is happening, (2) reliable ascertainment of true outcomes of patients lost to follow‐up, (3) implementation of measures to reduce early mortality in patients both before and during ART, (4) ensuring uninterrupted drug supplies, (5) consideration of simple, non‐toxic ART regimens, (6) decentralization of ART care to health centres and the community, (7) a reduction in indirect costs for patients particularly in relation to transport to and from clinics, (8) strengthening links within and between health services and the community, (9) the use of ART clinics to deliver other beneficial patient or family‐orientated packages of care such as insecticide‐treated bed nets, and (10) innovative (thinking ‘out of the box’) interventions. High levels of retention on ART are vital for individual patients, for credibility of programmes and for on‐going resource and financial support.
Meet the "Reading Rangers": Curriculum for Teaching Comprehension Strategies to Urban Third Graders

The need to develop and implement more successful methods to improve the reading comprehension of school age children, particularly those from urban, lower income backgrounds, is pressing. According to the 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a nationally representative sample of fourth graders showed no improvement in reading scores compared to either the 2009 or 2007 assessments. Moreover, the results reveal an achievement gap between children of middleand low-income families that has persisted since NAEP first began examining data by income groups in 2003. In 2011, students who were eligible for free or reduced school lunch, indicators of low family income, had average scores that were 29 and 17 points lower respectively, than students who were not eligible for free/reduced price school lunch. Fifty percent of students eligible for free school lunch could not read at the “Basic” level, compared to 35% of students eligible for reduced school lunch, and only 18% of those who were not eligible for free/reduced lunch (U.S. Department of Education, 2011) .
Prevalence of Antibiotic Resistance Genes in Subjects with Successful and Failing Dental Implants. A Pilot Study

Objectives : To investigate the prevalence of the bacterial genes encoding resistance to beta-lactams, tetracyclines and metronidazole respectively, in subjects with successful and failing dental implants and to assess the presence of Staphylococcus aureus and the mecA gene encoding for Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in the same samples. Materials and Methodology: The subject sample included 20 participants with clinically healthy osseointegrated implants and 20 participants with implants exhibiting peri-implantitis. Clinical parameters were assessed with an automated probe, samples were collected from the peri-implant sulcus or pocket and analyzed with Polymerase Chain Reaction for blaTEM, tetM, tetQ and nim genes, S. aureus and MRSA using primers and conditions previously described in the literature. Results: Findings have shown high frequencies of detection for both groups for the tetracycline resistance genes tetM (>30%), tetQ (>65%) with no statistical differences between them (z-test with Bonferroni corrections, p<0.05). The blaTEM gene, which encodes resistance to beta-lactams, was detected in <15% of the samples. The nim gene, which encodes resistance to metronidazole, S.aureus and the mecA gene encoding for MRSA were not detected in any of the analyzed samples. Conclusions: Healthy peri-implant sulci and peri-implantitis cases often harbor bacterial genes encoding for resistance to the tetracyclines and less often for beta-lactams. Thus, the antimicrobial activity of the tetracyclines and to a lower extent to beta-lactams, might be compromised for treatment of peri-implantitis. Since no metronidazole resistance genes were detected in the present study, its clinical use is supported by the current findings. S.aureus may not participate in peri-implant pathology.
SPKM : A novel graph drawing based algorithm for application mapping onto coarse-grained reconfigurable architectures

Recently coarse-grained reconfigurable architectures (CGRAs) have drawn increasing attention due to their efficiency and flexibility. While many CGRAs have demonstrated impressive performance improvements, the effectiveness of CGRA platforms ultimately hinges on the compiler. Existing CGRA compilers do not model the details of the CGRA architecture, due to which they are, i) unable to map applications, even though a mapping exists, and ii) use too many PEs to map an application. In this paper, we model several CGRA details in our compiler and develop a graph mapping based approach (SPKM) for mapping applications onto CGRAs. On randomly generated graphs our technique can map on average 4.5times more applications than the previous approaches, while using fewer CGRA rows 62% times, without any penalty in mapping time. We observe similar results on a suite of benchmarks collected from Livermore Loops, Multimedia and DSPStone benchmarks.
Vacuuming the Periplasm

Ever since their discovery multidrug resistance (MDR) transporters have provided a plethora of fascinating and challenging topics for fundamental and applied research. Recognized first as a cause of resistance of tumor cells to anticancer agents (reviewed in reference 5), they were later discovered in all living organisms, from bacteria to humans. In bacteria the expression of MDR transporters can raise antibiotic resistance by several orders of magnitude, rendering some antibiotics clinically useless, especially against gram-negative pathogens (reviewed in reference 30). The structural diversity of substrates for some MDR pumps is striking: a single efflux system may accommodate positively or negatively charged compounds, as well as compounds that are neutral or zwitterionic (reviewed in reference 20). Establishing the basis for multidrug recognition and transport, which provides a single protein with both broad specificity and high selectivity, is a fundamentally intriguing challenge. Aside from being intellectually rewarding, unraveling the mechanistic details will greatly facilitate the fight to combat antibiotic resistance. The results of the study by Aires and Nikaido published in this issue of the Journal of Bacteriology (1a), demonstrating that MDR transporter AcrD could capture its substrates directly from the periplasm and extrude them into the external medium, bring us one step closer to elucidation of this fascinating biochemical process.
Serum levels of Lp(a) are related to waist circumference in NAFLD patients with low prevalence of co-morbidities

Abstract Background: Novel evidence suggests a relationship between circulating Lp(a) levels and the presence of cardiovascular events independently from the cardio-metabolic profile. Methods and results: The purpose of this study was to investigate serum Lp(a) concentrations in relation to carotid intima-media thickness (IMT), anthropometric measures, lipid profile, assessment of insulin resistance, and other parameters conventionally used to predict CVD risk, in obese patients suffering from hepatic steatosis (HS), the well-known nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Evidencing the key-points of this research, firstly, serum Lp(a) concentrations were not associated with carotid IMT in this selected population or, consequently, with early atherosclerosis, at least as evaluated by IMT. Secondly, carotid IMT was not predicted by HS severity, as evaluated by ultrasound. Finally, in the adjusted model, Lp(a) was positively predicted by waist circumference (WC) (β = 0.25, t = 2.3, p = 0.02) and negatively by central adiposity, assessed as visceral adipose tissue at US (β = −0.33, t = −3.0, p = 0.003). Conclusion: Serum Lp(a) values may not play a direct role in increasing IMT, albeit associated with WC.
Functional Additive Models

In commonly used functional regression models, the regression of a scalar or functional response on the functional predictor is assumed to be linear. This means that the response is a linear function of the functional principal component scores of the predictor process. We relax the linearity assumption and propose to replace it by an additive structure, leading to a more widely applicable and much more flexible framework for functional regression models. The proposed functional additive regression models are suitable for both scalar and functional responses. The regularization needed for effective estimation of the regression parameter function is implemented through a projection on the eigenbasis of the covariance operator of the functional components in the model. The use of functional principal components in an additive rather than linear way leads to substantial broadening of the scope of functional regression models and emerges as a natural approach, because the uncorrelatedness of the functional principal components is shown to lead to a straightforward implementation of the functional additive model, based solely on a sequence of one-dimensional smoothing steps and without the need for backfitting. This facilitates the theoretical analysis, and we establish the asymptotic consistency of the estimates of the components of the functional additive model. We illustrate the empirical performance of the proposed modeling framework and estimation methods through simulation studies and in applications to gene expression time course data.
Diagnosis of childhood tuberculosis and host RNA expression in Africa.

BACKGROUND Improved diagnostic tests for tuberculosis in children are needed. We hypothesized that transcriptional signatures of host blood could be used to distinguish tuberculosis from other diseases in African children who either were or were not infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). METHODS The study population comprised prospective cohorts of children who were undergoing evaluation for suspected tuberculosis in South Africa (655 children), Malawi (701 children), and Kenya (1599 children). Patients were assigned to groups according to whether the diagnosis was culture-confirmed tuberculosis, culture-negative tuberculosis, diseases other than tuberculosis, or latent tuberculosis infection. Diagnostic signatures distinguishing tuberculosis from other diseases and from latent tuberculosis infection were identified from genomewide analysis of RNA expression in host blood. RESULTS We identified a 51-transcript signature distinguishing tuberculosis from other diseases in the South African and Malawian children (the discovery cohort). In the Kenyan children (the validation cohort), a risk score based on the signature for tuberculosis and for diseases other than tuberculosis showed a sensitivity of 82.9% (95% confidence interval [CI], 68.6 to 94.3) and a specificity of 83.6% (95% CI, 74.6 to 92.7) for the diagnosis of culture-confirmed tuberculosis. Among patients with cultures negative for Mycobacterium tuberculosis who were treated for tuberculosis (those with highly probable, probable, or possible cases of tuberculosis), the estimated sensitivity was 62.5 to 82.3%, 42.1 to 80.8%, and 35.3 to 79.6%, respectively, for different estimates of actual tuberculosis in the groups. In comparison, the sensitivity of the Xpert MTB/RIF assay for molecular detection of M. tuberculosis DNA in cases of culture-confirmed tuberculosis was 54.3% (95% CI, 37.1 to 68.6), and the sensitivity in highly probable, probable, or possible cases was an estimated 25.0 to 35.7%, 5.3 to 13.3%, and 0%, respectively; the specificity of the assay was 100%. CONCLUSIONS RNA expression signatures provided data that helped distinguish tuberculosis from other diseases in African children with and those without HIV infection. (Funded by the European Union Action for Diseases of Poverty Program and others).
Enhanced fidelity to treatment for bipolar disorder: results from a randomized controlled implementation trial.

OBJECTIVE The authors compared fidelity to bipolar disorder treatment at community practices that received a standard or enhanced version of a novel implementation intervention called Replicating Effective Programs (REP). METHODS Five community practices in Michigan and Colorado were assigned at random to receive enhanced (N=3) or standard (N=2) REP to help implement Life Goals Collaborative Care (LGCC), a psychosocial intervention consisting of four self-management support group sessions, ongoing care management contacts by phone, and dissemination of guidelines to providers. Standard REP includes an intervention package consisting of an outline, a treatment manual and implementation guide, a standard training program, and as-needed technical assistance. Enhanced REP added customization of the treatment manual and ongoing, proactive technical assistance from internal and external facilitators. Multiple and logistic regression analyses determined the impact of enhanced versus standard REP on patient-level fidelity. RESULTS The participants (N=384) had a mean age of 42 years; 67% were women, and 30% were nonwhite. Participants attended an average of three group sessions and had an average of four care management contacts. After adjustment for patient factors, enhanced REP was associated with 2.6 (p<.001) times more total sessions and contacts than standard REP, which was driven by 2.5 (p<.01) times more care management contacts. Women and participants with a history of homelessness had fewer total sessions and contacts. CONCLUSIONS Enhanced REP was associated with improved LGCC fidelity, primarily for care management contacts. Additional customization of interventions such as LGCC may be needed to ensure adequate treatment fidelity for vulnerable populations.
Attenuation of myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury by superinduction of inducible nitric oxide synthase.

BACKGROUND Nitric oxide (NO) has been implicated as a mediator in myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury, but its functional properties have been conflicting. We investigated whether NO has a protective role against I/R injury. METHODS AND RESULTS Using endothelial NO synthase knockout (eNOS KO) mice, inducible NOS KO mice, the NO donor S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine (SNAP), and the NOS inhibitor N-iminoethyl-L-ornithine (L-NIO), we performed studies of isolated perfused hearts subjected to 30 minutes of global ischemia followed by reperfusion. After 60 minutes of reperfusion, nitrite levels in the coronary effluent in the SNAP and eNOS KO groups were significantly elevated compared with other groups. Immunoblot and immunohistochemistry showed that iNOS was markedly induced in the eNOS KO hearts. Under spontaneous beating conditions during reperfusion, increased NO activity was correlated with a prevention of the hyperdynamic contractile response and enhanced myocardial protection, as evidenced by a reduction in myocardial injury and infarct size. During prolonged reperfusion, SNAP-treated hearts were able to preserve contractile functions for 180 minutes, whereas L-NIO-treated hearts showed a sustained deterioration in contractility. CONCLUSIONS NO protects against I/R injury by preventing the hyperdynamic response of isolated perfused hearts during early reperfusion. In the eNOS KO hearts, a paradoxical increase in NO production was seen, accompanied by a superinduction of iNOS, possibly due to an adaptive mechanism.
Control of Stress-Dependent Cardiac Growth and Gene Expression by a MicroRNA

The heart responds to diverse forms of stress by hypertrophic growth accompanied by fibrosis and eventual diminution of contractility, which results from down-regulation of α–myosin heavy chain (αMHC) and up-regulation of βMHC, the primary contractile proteins of the heart. We found that a cardiac-specific microRNA (miR-208) encoded by an intron of the αMHC gene is required for cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, fibrosis, and expression of βMHC in response to stress and hypothyroidism. Thus, the αMHC gene, in addition to encoding a major cardiac contractile protein, regulates cardiac growth and gene expression in response to stress and hormonal signaling through miR-208.
Creeping sparks:stroboscopic imaging of surface streamers

In order to gain a better understanding of how to prevent sparks creeping along dielectric surfaces the most common cause of failure in high voltage devices we have studied the propagation of the preceding streamers along dielectric surfaces. We applied a voltage pulse to a needle a small distance above a dielectric sample a thin vertically positioned plate in low-pressure air, and imaged the resulting streamers using a stroboscopic ICCD camera which was positioned so that it imaged the thin side of the sample. We have investigated the chance of at least one streamer branch propagating along the sample surface, as a function of a number of variables: air pressure, sample positioning, voltage pulse amplitude and sample properties, notably relative permittivity. We have found that an increased pressure, more asymmetrical sample placement, smaller voltage pulse, and higher sample relative permittivity all increase the chance of a surface streamer, when other variables are kept constant. We have also investigated the velocity and diameter of surface and gas branches, and found that interactions with the sample cause surface branches to propagate twice as fast, with a diameter thrice as small. We have also investigated two cases of correlation. In the first case we found that the chance of a streamer containing a surface branch increases by about 10% when the previous streamer also contained a surface branch. In the second case we found that when we use a symmetrical geometry with the sample directly beneath the needle, a very strong (99%) preference for discharges on one side of the sample sets in after just a few discharges.
The impact of congenital thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura on pregnancy complications

Anne-Sophie von Krogh1; Johanna A. Kremer Hovinga2; Geir E. Tjønnfjord3; Ingrid M. Ringen4; Bernhard Lämmle2,5; Anders Waage1; Petter Quist-Paulsen1 1Department of Cancer Research and Molecular Medicine, Norwegian University of Science and Technology and Department of Haematology, St Olavs Hospital Trondheim University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway; 2Department of Haematology and Central Haematology Laboratory, Bern University Hospital and University of Bern, Inselspital, Bern, Switzerland; 3Department of Haematology, Oslo University Hospital and Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; 4Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, St Olavs Hospital Trondheim University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway; 5Center for Thrombosis and Hemostasis (CTH), University Medical Center, Mainz, Germany
Expression of TrkC Receptors in the Developing Brain of the Monodelphis opossum and Its Effect on the Development of Cortical Cells

In this study, we investigated the distribution, localization and several various functions of TrkC receptors during development of the Monodelphis opossum brain. Western blotting analysis showed that two different forms of the TrkC receptor, the full-length receptor and one of its truncated forms, are abundantly expressed in the opossum brain. The expression of TrkC receptors was barely detected in the brain of newborn opossums. At postnatal day (P) 3, the expression of full-length TrkC remained at low levels, while moderate expression of the TrkC truncated form was detected. The expression levels of both forms of this protein gradually increased throughout development, peaking at P35. We found that in different neocortical areas located both at the rostral and caudal regions of the cortex, up to 98% of BrdU-labeled cells forming cortical layers (II-VI) had prominently expressed TrkC. To assess which developmental processes of cortical cells are regulated by TrkC receptors, three different shRNAs were constructed. The shRNAs were individually tested in transfected cortical progenitor cells grown on culture plates for 2 days. The effects of the shRNA-TrkC constructs were similar: blockade of TrkC receptors decreased the number of Ki67-positive and apoptotic cells, and it did not change the number of TUJ-positive neurons in vitro. Thus, the lack of TrkC receptors in cultured progenitor cells provided insight on the potential role of these receptors in the regulation of proliferation and cell survival but not in the differentiation of cortical cells.