Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Platelets Enhance Multiple Myeloma Progression via IL-1β Upregulation

Purpose: Tumor cell–platelet interactions contribute to tumor progression and metastasis in solid tumors. However, the role of platelets in hematological malignancies is not clear. We investigated the association of platelet activation status with clinical stages in multiple myeloma (MM) patients and explored the role of platelets in MM progression. Experimental Design: Platelets were obtained from healthy donors and MM patients. We examined platelet activation status in MM patients by flow cytometry and transmission electron microscopy. We also observed the enriched pathways that are involved with platelet activation in RNA sequencing of platelets. MM cell lines were used to assess the effect of platelets on MM cell proliferation in vitro and their engraftment in vivo. RNA sequencing of MM cell lines was performed to explore molecular mechanisms underlying MM cell–platelet interaction and a CRISPR/Cas9 knockout approach was used for validation. Results: Platelets from MM patients were highly activated with disease progression. RNA sequencing of platelets revealed that genes involved in platelets were enriched in patients with smoldering MM (SMM) or MM. Platelets promoted MM cell proliferation in vitro and contributed to tumor engraftment in bone marrow in vivo. RNA sequencing revealed that IL-1β was upregulated in MM cell lines co-cultured with platelets, whereas IL-1β knockout in MM cell lines abrogated the effects of platelets on MM cell proliferation and engraftment in vivo. Conclusions: Platelets from MM patients were highly activated with disease progression. IL-1β is critical to platelet-mediated MM progression and might be a potential target for MM treatment. Clin Cancer Res; 24(10); 2430–9. ©2018 AACR.
Efficacy and Safety of Metronidazole Monotherapy versus Vancomycin Monotherapy or Combination Therapy in Patients with Clostridium difficile Infection: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) has become a global epidemiological problem for both hospitalized patients and outpatients. The most commonly used drugs to treat CDI are metronidazole and vancomycin. The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of metronidazole monotherapy with vancomycin monotherapy and combination therapy in CDI patients. Methods A comprehensive search without publication status or other restrictions was conducted. Studies comparing metronidazole monotherapy with vancomycin monotherapy or combination therapy in patients with CDI were considered eligible. Meta-analysis was performed using the Mantel-Haenszel fixed-effects model, and odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs) were calculated and reported. Results Of the 1910 records identified, seventeen studies from thirteen articles (n = 2501 patients) were included. No statistically significant difference in the rate of clinical cure was found between metronidazole and vancomycin for mild CDI (OR = 0.67, 95% CI (0.45, 1.00), p = 0.05) or between either monotherapy and combination therapy for CDI (OR = 1.07, 95% CI (0.58, 1.96), p = 0.83); however, the rate of clinical cure was lower for metronidazole than for vancomycin for severe CDI (OR = 0.46, 95% CI (0.26, 0.80), p = 0.006). No statistically significant difference in the rate of CDI recurrence was found between metronidazole and vancomycin for mild CDI (OR = 0.99, 95% CI (0.40, 2.45), p = 0.98) or severe CDI (OR = 0.98, 95% CI (0.63, 1.53), p = 0.94) or between either monotherapy and combination therapy for CDI (OR = 0.91, 95% CI (0.66, 1.26), p = 0.56). In addition, there was no significant difference in the rate of adverse events (AEs) between metronidazole and vancomycin (OR = 1.18, 95% CI (0.80, 1.74), p = 0.41). In contrast, the rate of AEs was significantly lower for either monotherapy than for combination therapy (OR = 0.30, 95% CI (0.17, 0.51), p<0.0001). Conclusions Metronidazole and vancomycin are equally effective for the treatment of mild CDI, but vancomycin is superior for the treatment of severe CDI. Combination therapy is not superior to monotherapy because it appears to be associated with an increase in the rate of AEs.
Evidence for Detection Bias by Medication Use in a Cohort Study of Breast Cancer Survivors

In previous studies, we found modestly decreased and increased risks of second breast cancer events with the use of statins and antibiotics, respectively, after adjustment for surveillance mammography. We evaluated detection bias by comparing receipt of surveillance mammography among users of these 2 disparate classes of medication. Adult women diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer during 1990-2008 (n = 3,965) while enrolled in an integrated health-care plan (Group Health Cooperative; Washington State) were followed for up to 10 years in the Commonly Used Medications and Breast Cancer Outcomes (COMBO) Study. Categories of antibiotic use included infrequent (1-3 dispensings/12 months) and frequent (≥4 dispensings/12 months) use, and categories of statin use included less adherent (1 dispensing/6 months) and adherent (≥2 dispensings/6 months). We examined associations between medication use and surveillance mammography using multivariable generalized estimating equations and evaluated the impact of adjusting for surveillance within Cox proportional hazard models. Frequent antibiotic users were less likely to receive surveillance mammography (odds ratio (OR) = 0.90, 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.82, 0.99) than were nonusers; no association was found among infrequent users (OR = 0.96, 95% CI: 0.90, 1.03). Adherent statin use was associated with more surveillance compared with nonuse (OR = 1.11, 95% CI: 1.01, 1.25), but less adherent statin use was not (OR = 1.03, 95% CI: 0.81, 1.31). No difference in associations between medications of interest and second breast cancer events was observed when surveillance was removed from otherwise adjusted models. The influence of detection bias by medication use warrants further exploration.
The Assessment of the Slip Influence on the Deflection of the Steel Plate-Concrete Composite Beams

Abstract The aim of this paper is to present an assessment of the slip influence on the deflection of the steel plate-concrete composite beams, which are a new type of a design concept. The proposed method is based on the procedure included in the PN-EN 1992-1-1, which has been modified with taking into consideration interface slip. The theoretical analysis was verified by experimental studies.
Bad Behavior Keeps You Up at Night: Counterproductive Work Behaviors and Insomnia

Drawing from recent research on counterproductive work behaviors (CWB) and moral self-regulation literature, we examine the intraindividual consequences of engaging in CWB. We posit that CWB represents morally discrediting work behaviors that can lead to moral deficits, create distress for perpetrators and ultimately result in insomnia. Specifically, we hypothesized that on days in which employees engage in CWB, they will tend to experience moral deficits and heightened levels of rumination that undermine their sleep that night. Moreover, we hypothesized that these effects will be stronger for those who are high in moral identity internalization. Data from 2 within-individual field studies and 1 experimental study provided consistent support for most of our hypotheses. Overall, we found that by engaging in CWB employees can create problems for their own sleep health.
Prevalence and risk factors of needle stick and sharp injury among tertiary hospital workers, Vientiane, Lao PDR

Health care workers (HCWs) face risks of needle stick and sharp injuries (NSIs). Most NSIs occur in developing countries, however, no epidemiological study on NSIs is publicly available in Lao PDR. The objective of this study is to identify the prevalence and risk factors of NSIs among HCWs in Lao PDR.
Automated long-term recording and analysis of neural activity in behaving animals

Addressing how neural circuits underlie behavior is routinely done by measuring electrical activity from single neurons during experimental sessions. While such recordings yield snapshots of neural dynamics during specified tasks, they are ill-suited for tracking single-unit activity over longer timescales relevant for most developmental and learning processes, or for capturing neural dynamics across different behavioral states. Here we describe an automated platform for continuous long-term recordings of neural activity and behavior in freely moving animals. An unsupervised algorithm identifies and tracks the activity of single units over weeks of recording, dramatically simplifying the analysis of large datasets. Months-long recordings from motor cortex and striatum made and analyzed with our system revealed remarkable stability in basic neuronal properties, such as firing rates and inter-spike interval distributions. Interneuronal correlations and the representation of different movements and behaviors were similarly stable. This establishes the feasibility of high-throughput long-term extracellular recordings in behaving animals. Highlights We record neural activity and behavior in rodents continuously (24/7) over months An automated spike-sorting method isolates and tracks single units over many weeks Neural dynamics and motor representations are highly stable over long timescales Neurons cluster into functional groups based on their activity in different states eTOC Blurb Dhawale et al. describe experimental infrastructure for recording neural activity and behavior continuously over months in freely moving rodents. A fully automated spike-sorting algorithm allows single units to be tracked over weeks of recording. Recordings from motor cortex and striatum revealed a remarkable long-term stability in both single unit activity and network dynamics.
Mortality after Respiratory Isolation of Nontuberculous Mycobacteria. A Comparison of Patients Who Did and Did Not Meet Disease Criteria

Rationale: The mortality of patients with respiratory tract isolates of nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) and their risk factors for death are not well described. Objectives: To determine age‐adjusted mortality rates for patients with respiratory NTM isolates and their causes of death and to examine whether American Thoracic Society/Infectious Diseases Society of America (ATS/IDSA) diagnostic criteria identify those at higher risk of death after NTM isolation. Methods: We linked vital records registries with a previously identified Oregon population‐based cohort of patients with NTM respiratory isolation. We excluded patients with Mycobacterium gordonae (n = 33) and those who died (n = 21) at the time of first isolation. We calculated 5‐year age‐adjusted mortality rates. We used Kaplan‐Meier and Cox proportional hazards analysis to examine the association of ATS/IDSA criteria and other risk factors with death. Results: Of 368 subjects with respiratory NTM isolates in 2005‐2006, 316 were included in the survival analysis. Most (84%) of their cultures isolated Mycobacterium avium complex. 35.1% died in the 5 years following respiratory isolation. Five‐year age‐adjusted mortality rates were slightly higher for those meeting (28.7/1,000) versus not meeting (23.4/1,000) ATS/IDSA criteria. In multivariate analysis, older age (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR], 1.06; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.04‐1.07) and lung cancer (aHR, 2.77; 95% CI, 1.51‐5.07) were associated with an increased risk of death. A trend was noted between meeting ATS/IDSA criteria and subsequent death (aHR, 1.37; 95% CI, 0.95‐1.97). Among cases, male sex, older age, and immunosuppressive therapy use were independent risk factors for death. Conclusions: In the State of Oregon, patients with NTM respiratory isolates have high mortality, regardless of whether they meet ATS/IDSA criteria for pulmonary NTM disease. Most patients die as a result of causes other than NTM infection.
Enhanced hyperuniformity from random reorganization

Significance Particles in sheared suspensions rearrange due to collisions, until they find positions where they no longer collide. At this point, the system stops evolving. Above a critical density/strain, they can no longer find such an absorbing state, and activity never ceases. At this critical point, the systems are hyperuniform, with number fluctuations in a volume of size ℓd scaling as <δN2>∼ℓλ,λ<d, slower than random (diffusive), where <δN2>∼ℓd. Does hyperuniformity survive noise and thermal diffusion? We find that noise enhances the hyperuniformity toward the most uniform, <δN2>∼ℓd−1 near that of crystals. Practically, this provides a simple means of fabricating noncrystalline materials of arbitrary density and high homogeneity. Diffusion relaxes density fluctuations toward a uniform random state whose variance in regions of volume v=ℓd scales as σρ2≡⟨ρ2(ℓ)⟩−⟨ρ⟩2∼ℓ−d. Systems whose fluctuations decay faster, σρ2∼ℓ−λ with d<λ≤d+1, are called hyperuniform. The larger λ, the more uniform, with systems like crystals achieving the maximum value: λ=d+1. Although finite temperature equilibrium dynamics will not yield hyperuniform states, driven, nonequilibrium dynamics may. Such is the case, for example, in a simple model where overlapping particles are each given a small random displacement. Above a critical particle density ρc, the system evolves forever, never finding a configuration where no particles overlap. Below ρc, however, it eventually finds such a state, and stops evolving. This “absorbing state” is hyperuniform up to a length scale ξ, which diverges at ρc. An important question is whether hyperuniformity survives noise and thermal fluctuations. We find that hyperuniformity of the absorbing state is not only robust against noise, diffusion, or activity, but that such perturbations reduce fluctuations toward their limiting behavior, λ→d+1, a uniformity similar to random close packing and early universe fluctuations, but with arbitrary controllable density.
Hand fasciae innervation: The palmar aponeurosis

There are few data in the scientific literature about the innervation of fasciae of the hand. The present study first elucidates the density and location of nervous structures in the palmar aponeurosis and, for comparison, in the flexor retinaculum (both can be considered specializations of the deep fascia of the upper limbs). Second, it compares nonpathological with pathological palmar aponeurosis. Samples of nonpathological fascia were taken from the flexor retinaculum and palmar aponeurosis of 16 upper limbs of unembalmed cadavers. Samples of pathological palmar aponeurosis were taken from seven patients with Dupuytren's disease. All samples were stained immunohistochemically with anti‐S100 and anti‐tubulin antibodies, and analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively by microscopy. The palmar aponeurosis showed higher median density than the retinacula of free nerve endings (22 and 20 elements/cm2, respectively), Pacinian corpuscles (2 and 0 elements/cm2) and Golgi‐Mazzoni corpuscles (1.0 and 0.5 element/cm2). Some corpuscles were located at the intersections of the fibers in the three directions. Free nerve endings were denser in pathological palmar aponeurosis (38 elements/cm2). The results indicate that the palmar aponeurosis is central to proprioception of the hand and that surgery should therefore avoid injuring it. The higher density of free nerve endings in pathological samples indicates that the nervous structures are implicated in the amplified fibrosis of Dupuytren's disease. Clin. Anat. 31:677–683, 2018. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Evidence of Bipolar Resistive Switching Memory in Perovskite Solar Cell

In hybrid inorganic-organic perovskite solar cells a very stable bipolar resistive switching behavior in the dark current-voltage characteristics at low-voltages has been observed. The possible use of the solar cell as an electrical memory with a moderate on-off contrast but very good stability over a prolonged time has been suggested. The reversible behavior and the long dynamics during the write/erase processes indicate that the physical mechanism behind the switching is related to polarization effects. A detailed analysis of the charge carrier trapping/detrapping, transport, and recombination mechanisms has been performed by taking the ion migration and the consequent charge carrier accumulation within the device into account. The charge transport during the write operation can be described by space-charge-limited conduction process. The formation and subsequent interruption of conducting pathways due to ion migration have been identified as the main cause of the resistive switching within the perovskite material. The strong interaction between the ion movement and the electron transport enables the operation of the perovskite solar cell also as a non-volatile memory.
The frequency of family meals and nutritional health in children: a meta‐analysis

Findings on the relationship between family meal frequency and children's nutritional health are inconsistent. The reasons for these mixed results have to date remained largely unexplored. This systematic review and meta‐analysis of 57 studies (203,706 participants) examines (i) the relationship between family meal frequency and various nutritional health outcomes and (ii) two potential explanations for the inconsistent findings: sociodemographic characteristics and mealtime characteristics. Separate meta‐analyses revealed significant associations between higher family meal frequency and better overall diet quality (r = 0.13), more healthy diet (r = 0.10), less unhealthy diet (r = −0.04) and lower body mass index, BMI (r = −0.05). Child's age, country, number of family members present at meals and meal type (i.e. breakfast, lunch or dinner) did not moderate the relationship of meal frequency with healthy diet, unhealthy diet or BMI. Socioeconomic status only moderated the relationship with BMI. The findings show a significant relationship between frequent family meals and better nutritional health – in younger and older children, across countries and socioeconomic groups, and for meals taken with the whole family vs. one parent. Building on these findings, research can now target the causal direction of the relationship between family meal frequency and nutritional health.
UvA-DARE ( Digital Academic Repository ) Hereditary & familial colorectal cancer

Guidelines recommend surveillance endoscopy with both forwardand side-viewing endoscopes to identify duodenal and ampullary adenomas in patients with familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP). We hypothesized that both the duodenum and the ampulla of Vater can be completely visualized during cap-assisted forward-viewing endoscopy. Patients and methods A total of 40 patients with FAP underwent forward-viewing endoscopy with a short cap attached to the tip of the gastroscope, with the aim of visualizing both the duodenum and the ampulla of Vater. If unsuccessful, the procedure was followed by a side-viewing endoscopy. Adverse events were reported.
Focus-group interview and data analysis

In recent years focus-group interviews, as a means of qualitative data collection, have gained popularity amongst professionals within the health and social care arena. Despite this popularity, analysing qualitative data, particularly focus-group interviews, poses a challenge to most practitioner researchers. The present paper responds to the needs expressed by public health nutritionists, community dietitians and health development specialists following two training sessions organised collaboratively by the Health Development Agency, the Nutrition Society and the British Dietetic Association in 2003. The focus of the present paper is on the concepts and application of framework analysis, especially the use of Krueger's framework. It provides some practical steps for the analysis of individual data, as well as focus-group data using examples from the author's own research, in such a way as to assist the newcomer to qualitative research to engage with the methodology. Thus, it complements the papers by Draper (2004) and Fade (2004) that discuss in detail the complementary role of qualitative data in researching human behaviours, feelings and attitudes. Draper (2004) has provided theoretical and philosophical bases for qualitative data analysis. Fade (2004) has described interpretative phenomenology analysis as a method of analysing individual interview data. The present paper, using framework analysis concentrating on focus-group interviews, provides another approach to qualitative data analysis.
COOLING, AGN FEEDBACK, AND STAR FORMATION IN SIMULATED COOL-CORE GALAXY CLUSTERS

Numerical simulations of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) feedback in cool-core galaxy clusters have successfully avoided classical cooling flows, but often produce too much cold gas. We perform adaptive mesh simulations that include momentum-driven AGN feedback, self-gravity, star formation, and stellar feedback, focusing on the interplay between cooling, AGN heating, and star formation in an isolated cool-core cluster. Cold clumps triggered by AGN jets and turbulence form filamentary structures tens of kpc long. This cold gas feeds both star formation and the supermassive black hole (SMBH), triggering an AGN outburst that increases the entropy of the intracluster medium (ICM) and reduces its cooling rate. Within 1–2 Gyr, star formation completely consumes the cold gas, leading to a brief shutoff of the AGN. The ICM quickly cools and redevelops multiphase gas, followed by another cycle of star formation/AGN outburst. Within 6.5 Gyr, we observe three such cycles. There is good agreement between our simulated cluster and the observations of cool-core clusters. ICM cooling is dynamically balanced by AGN heating, and a cool-core appearance is preserved. The minimum cooling time to free-fall time ratio typically varies between a few and ≳ 20 ? > . The star formation rate (SFR) covers a wide range, from 0 to a few hundred M ⊙ yr − 1 ? > , with an average of ∼ 40 M ⊙ yr − 1 ? > . The instantaneous SMBH accretion rate shows large variations on short timescales, but the average value correlates well with the SFR. Simulations without stellar feedback or self-gravity produce qualitatively similar results, but a lower SMBH feedback efficiency (0.1% compared to 1%) results in too many stars.
Digestion and metabolism of dietary fat in farm animals

Fat digestion and metabolism differ widely between animal species. In ruminants, dietary fats are hydrogenated in the rumen before intestinal absorption so that absorbed fatty acids (FA) are more saturated than dietary FA. In non-ruminants, intestinal FA digestibility depends on the level of saturation of dietary FA. Fat supplementation of the diet of cows decreases milk protein and has a variable effect on milk fat, depending on the source of dietary lipids. When encapsulated lipids are used, the linoleic acid content of milk is increased, but the organoleptic quality of milk may be altered. Supplementary lipids are incorporated into non-ruminant body fat, whereas de novo lipogenesis is reduced. There is a close relationship between the nature of dietary FA and non-ruminant body FA.