Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Association between suicide attempts and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors: systematic review of randomised controlled trials

Abstract Objective To establish whether an association exists between use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and suicide attempts. Design Systematic review of randomised controlled trials. Data sources Medline and the Cochrane Collaboration's register of controlled trials (November 2004) for trials produced by the Cochrane depression, anxiety, and neurosis group. Selection of studies Studies had to be randomised controlled trials comparing an SSRI with either placebo or an active non-SSRI control. We included clinical trials that evaluated SSRIs for any clinical condition. We excluded abstracts, crossover trials, and all trials whose follow up was less than one week. Results Seven hundred and two trials met our inclusion criteria. A significant increase in the odds of suicide attempts (odds ratio 2.28, 95% confidence 1.14 to 4.55, number needed to treat to harm 684) was observed for patients receiving SSRIs compared with placebo. An increase in the odds ratio of suicide attempts was also observed in comparing SSRIs with therapeutic interventions other than tricyclic antidepressants (1.94, 1.06 to 3.57, 239). In the pooled analysis of SSRIs versus tricyclic antidepressants, we did not detect a difference in the odds ratio of suicide attempts (0.88, 0.54 to 1.42). Discussion Our systematic review, which included a total of 87 650 patients, documented an association between suicide attempts and the use of SSRIs. We also observed several major methodological limitations in the published trials. A more accurate estimation of risks of suicide could be garnered from investigators fully disclosing all events.
Variational equivalence between Ginzburg-Landau, XY spin systems and screw dislocations energies

We introduce and discuss discrete two-dimensional models for XY spin systems and screw dislocations in crystals. We prove that, as the lattice spacing e tends to zero, the relevant energies in these models behave like a free energy in the complex Ginzburg-Landau theory of superconductivity, justifying in a rigorous mathematical language the analogies between screw dislocations in crystals and vortices in superconductors. To this purpose, we introduce a notion of asymptotic variational equivalence between families of functionals in the framework of Γ-convergence. We then prove that, in several scaling regimes, the complex Ginzburg-Landau, the XY spin system and the screw dislocation energy functionals are variationally equivalent. Exploiting such an equivalence between dislocations and vortices, we can show new results concerning the asymptotic behavior of screw dislocations in the | log e| energetic regime.
Investigation of HER-2 codon 655 single nucleotide polymorphism frequency and c-ErbB-2 protein expression alterations in gastric cancer patients.

AIM To investigate both whether the risk of gastric cancer is associated with the Ile/Val single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) of human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2) transmembrane domain-coding region at codon 655 and the suggested existence of HER-2 expression in gastric cancer cases in a Turkish patient group. METHODS Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) followed by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) strategy was used to analyze the presence of HER-2 SNP at codon 655. c-erbB-2 expression pattern was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. The results were compared between gastric carcinoma group and chronic gastritis group, as well as between clinicopathological parameters and carcinoma. RESULTS Results showed that Ile/Val genotype accounted for 20% within the Turkish gastric carcinoma group, and none in chronic gastritis group, and this genotyping was associated with stage IV gastric cancers (P=0.04). Positive membranous HER-2 immunoreactivity, on the other hand, accounted for 24% within the Turkish gastric carcinoma group and none from chronic gastritis cases; further, it was correlated with intestinal type carcinomas (P=0.007), and stage III-IV carcinomas (P=0.004). CONCLUSION These observations imply that the tested HER-2 SNP may participate in the development and progression of gastric cancer. Thus, after confirming these results with large sample groups, HER-2 codon 655 SNP and/or c-erbB-2 overexpression may also be used as a poor prognostic indicator for gastric carcinomas.
Single Incision versus Conventional Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Outcomes: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Background Previous meta-analyses that compared the outcome of SILC and CLC have not presented consistent conclusions. This meta-analysis was performed after adding many recent RCTs, to clarify this issue. Methods Relevant articles published in English were identified by searching PubMed, Embase, Web of Knowledge, and the Cochrane Controlled Trial Register from January 1997 to February 2013. Reference lists of the retrieved articles were reviewed to identify additional articles. Primary outcomes (postoperative pain scores, cosmetic score, and length of incision) and secondary outcomes (operating time, blood loss, conversion rates, postoperative complications, postoperative hospital stay, time to initial oral intake, and time to resume work) were pooled. Quantitative variables were calculated using the weighted mean difference (WMD), and qualitative variables were pooled using odds ratios (OR). Results 25 appropriate RCTs were identified from 2128 published articles. 1841 patients were treated, 944 with SILC and 897 with CLC. SILC was superior to CLC in cosmetic score (WMD = 1.155, P<0.001), shorter length of incision (WMD = -3.285, P = 0.029), and postoperative pain within 12 h (VAS in 3-4 h, WMD = -0.704, P = 0.026; VAS in 6-8 h, WMD = -0.613, P = 0.010). CLC was superior to SILC in operating time (OT) (WMD = 13.613, P<0.001) and need of additional instruments (OR = 7.448, P<0.001). Other secondary outcomes were similar. Conclusions SILC offered a better cosmetic result and less postoperative pain for patients with uncomplicated cholelithiasis or polypoid lesions of the gallbladder. However, SILC was associated with a longer OT and required additional instruments.
Solution generating in 5D Einstein-Maxwell-dilaton gravity and derivation of dipole black ring solutions

We consider 5D Einstein-Maxwell-dilaton (EMd) gravity in spacetimes with three commuting Killing vectors: one timelike and two spacelike Killing vectors, one of which is hypersurface-orthogonal. Assuming a special ansatz for the Maxwell field we show that the 2-dimensional reduced EMd equations are completely integrable. We also develop a solution generating method for explicit construction of exact EMd solutions from known exact solutions of 5D vacuum Einstein equations with considered symmetries. We derive explicitly the rotating dipole black ring solutions as a particular application of the solution generating method.
The nature of X-ray selected EROs

We report on the X-ray, optical, near-infrared, submillimetre and radio properties of ﬁve Extremely Red Objects (EROs) selected at X-ray wavelengths by XMM-Newton in the Lockman Hole ﬁeld. They all have enough counts in the X-ray band to allow spectral ﬁtting: four are most probably obscured, Compton-thin AGN with redshift dependent absorbing column densities of 10 22 − 10 24 cm − 2 , whilst the ﬁfth is best ﬁtted by a thermal spectrum and is likely to be a massive elliptical galaxy in a deep gravitational potential. Their optical/near-infrared colours and sizes suggest that X-ray selected EROs comprise a mixture of dusty ‘starburst’ galaxies and non-dusty galaxies that are dominated by either star-light or light from an active nucleus. The colour diagnostics are supported by the submillimetre and radio data: the two AGN with ‘starburst’ colours have submillimetre or radio ﬂux densities that imply large star-formation rates, whilst those with ‘elliptical’ colours do not. The one source detected in the submillimetre waveband has narrow emission lines at a redshift of 1.45. Although the bulk of its radio emission originates from processes other than star formation, it is most probably a radio-quiet ultraluminous infrared galaxy.
Prevalence and Risk Factors for Latent Tuberculosis Infection among Health Care Workers in China: A Cross-Sectional Study

Background Health care workers (HCWs) are at risk of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). In China, tuberculosis (TB) is a major public health problem, but the prevalence of LTBI in HCWs especially in the hospital for pulmonary diseases has not been assessed enough. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and putative risk factors of LTBI among HCWs in a chest hospital and a TB research institute in China. Methodology/Principal Findings A cross-sectional study was conducted among HCWs in China in 2012. LTBI was assessed by T-SPOT.TB, and information on HCWs was collected using a standardised questionnaire. Risk factors for LTBI were analyzed by univariate and multivariate regression. The overall prevalence of LTBI among HCWs was 33.6%. Analyzed by job category, the highest prevalence was found among laboratory staff (43.4%). In the different workplaces, the proportion of LTBI was significantly higher among the high risk workplaces (37.4%) compared to the low risk workplaces. The duration of employment had a significant impact on the prevalence of LTBI. Positive T-SPOT.TB test results accounted for 17.6%, 16.8%, 23.5%, 41.8% and 41.6% in groups of ≤2, 3–5, 6–10, 11–20, and >20 working years respectively. In multivariate analysis, job categories (Laboratory staff [2.76 (95% CI: 1.36; 5.60)], technician staff [2.02 (95% CI: 1.12; 3.64)]); working duration as a HCW for 11 to 20 years [3.57 (95% CI: 1.46; 8.71)], and 20 years above [3.41 (95% CI: 1.28; 9.11)]; and the history of household TB contact [2.47 (95% CI: 1.15; 5.33)] were associated with increased risk of LTBI. Conclusions/Significance Prevalence of LTBI estimated by T-SPOT.TB is high among Chinese HCWs and working duration, job category and the history of household TB contact were associated with increased risk. These data highlight adequate infection control measures should be undertaken.
Making the Cut in Gifted Selection: Score Combination Rules and Their Impact on Program Diversity

The recommendation of using “multiple measures” is common in policy guidelines for gifted and talented assessment systems. However, the integration of multiple test scores in a system that uses cut-scores requires choosing between different methods of combining quantitative scores. Past research has indicated that OR combination rules (where any one score must meet the cutoff) have been shown to identify the largest number of students compared with AND (where all scores must meet cutoff) and AVERAGE (where the numerical average is used) rules. We extended this work to a real data set (Grades K to 5 from the CogAT 7 national standardization data) and found that the different combination rules led to differences in the number and diversity of students identified. However, we found these diversity differences were due mainly to the identified pool size and not to the effects of the particular combination rule. This has important implications for practice.
Different cultures, different selves? : Suppression of emotions and reactions to transgressions across cultures

Summary of thesis “Different cultures, different selves? Suppression of emotions and reactions to transgressions across cultures”, Sylvia Huwae People can differ in how they respond to everyday situations. For example, when treated unfairly by someone, some people may express their anger and find it difficult to forgive the person who offended them. Others, however, may suppress this negative feeling and forgive the offender. People can also differ in their motives to forgive the offender. These variations in how people respond to the same situation can - at least in part - be explained by their cultural background. An often used framework to understand cross-cultural differences in how people feel, think and behave in social situations is that of individualism-collectivism (IC). Individualism involves cultures in which ties between individuals are relatively loose and the interests of the individual often prevail over the interests of the group. Collectivism, by contrast, refers to cultures in which people are integrated into strong cohesive groups and the interests of the groups generally prevail over the interests of the individual. Yet, many researchers have challenged some of this framework’s prime assumptions and its usefulness as a universal model. This dissertation examined the usefulness of the IC-framework by examining how people from individualistic and collectivistic cultures regulate their emotions during social interactions and respond to transgressions in various settings with various people. For this, we used a combination of methods (daily diary, experiment, recall, scenario). Our samples included participants with more individualistic backgrounds (Dutch) and more collectivistic backgrounds (Chinese, Indonesian). We also conducted two studies with descendants from Indonesian immigrants (Moluccans) in the Netherlands. This dissertation showed that, even though participants from individualistic and collectivistic cultures differed in how they suppressed emotions and responded to transgressions, their responses also depended upon how close they were with those who were present or involved. We also found that personal concerns can be important too in collectivistic cultures and that in individualistic cultures relational concerns can also matter when forgiving someone. In addition, our findings showed that group interest did not prevail over personal interest among participants with collectivistic backgrounds following transgressions. As such, our findings present a nuanced view on characterizing cultures as either individualistic or collectivistic. More research is recommended to understand the interplay between individualistic and collectivistic values behind people’s responses to all kinds of situations with more and diverse samples. Furthermore, our findings with regard to the Moluccans in the Netherlands suggest that the longer immigrants with collectivistic backgrounds live in an individualistic society, the more their responses may become similar to members of the host society.
Linear periodically time-varying discrete-time systems: aliasing and LTI approximations

Linear periodically time-varying (LPTV) systems are abundant in control and signal processing; examples include multirate sampled-data control systems and multirate filter-bank systems. In this paper, several ways are proposed to quantify aliasing effect in discrete-time LPTV systems; these are associated with optimal time-invariant approximations of LPTV systems using operator norms.
Small-colony variants: a novel mechanism for triclosan resistance in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

OBJECTIVES A little-understood mode of antimicrobial resistance in Staphylococcus aureus is the evolution of a sub-population of small-colony variants (SCVs). SCVs are a cause of persistent and recurring infections refractory to antimicrobial chemotherapy. Following the inadvertent isolation of suspected SCVs growing in the presence of triclosan we set out to evaluate the formation of these colonial mutants and assess their antimicrobial susceptibility. METHODS SCVs were isolated on Mueller-Hinton agar supplemented with 1 mg/L triclosan. SCV formation frequency was calculated using a selection of both clinical methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA) isolates and methicillin-susceptible S. aureus strains. Antimicrobial susceptibility was assessed and the fabI gene of SCVs was sequenced to ensure resistance was not mediated by mutation of this gene. RESULTS We have found in vitro that triclosan can select for S. aureus colonies showing the characteristic SCV phenotype with low-level triclosan resistance and which coincidently have reduced susceptibility to penicillin and gentamicin. Additionally, triclosan-isolated SCVs were shown to have an increased tolerance to the lethal effects of triclosan. CONCLUSIONS We propose the formation of SCVs by S. aureus is a novel mechanism of resistance to low concentrations of triclosan, which for 25 years has been used widely in the domestic setting in various consumer healthcare products. More recently it has been recommended for the control of MRSA. Consequently, our results identify the potential for treatment failure in infections already notoriously difficult to eradicate. It remains unclear to what extent isolates with decreased susceptibility to triclosan would develop and have the fitness to survive under real world conditions.
PAPP5 Is Involved in the Tetrapyrrole Mediated Plastid Signalling during Chloroplast Development

The initiation of chloroplast development in the light is dependent on nuclear encoded components. The nuclear genes encoding key components in the photosynthetic machinery are regulated by signals originating in the plastids. These plastid signals play an essential role in the regulation of photosynthesis associated nuclear genes (PhANGs) when proplastids develop into chloroplasts. One of the plastid signals is linked to the tetrapyrrole biosynthesis and accumulation of the intermediates the Mg-ProtoIX and its methyl ester Mg-ProtoIX-ME. Phytochrome-Associated Protein Phosphatase 5 (PAPP5) was isolated in a previous study as a putative Mg-ProtoIX interacting protein. In order to elucidate if there is a biological link between PAPP5 and the tetrapyrrole mediated signal we generated double mutants between the Arabidopsis papp5 and the crd mutants. The crd mutant over-accumulates Mg-ProtoIX and Mg-ProtoIX-ME and the tetrapyrrole accumulation triggers retrograde signalling. The crd mutant exhibits repression of PhANG expression, altered chloroplast morphology and a pale phenotype. However, in the papp5crd double mutant, the crd phenotype is restored and papp5crd accumulated wild type levels of chlorophyll, developed proper chloroplasts and showed normal induction of PhANG expression in response to light. Tetrapyrrole feeding experiments showed that PAPP5 is required to respond correctly to accumulation of tetrapyrroles in the cell and that PAPP5 is most likely a component in the plastid signalling pathway down stream of the tetrapyrrole Mg-ProtoIX/Mg-ProtoIX-ME. Inhibition of phosphatase activity phenocopied the papp5crd phenotype in the crd single mutant demonstrating that PAPP5 phosphatase activity is essential to mediate the retrograde signal and to suppress PhANG expression in the crd mutant. Thus, our results suggest that PAPP5 receives an inbalance in the tetrapyrrole biosynthesis through the accumulation of Mg-ProtoIX and acts as a negative regulator of PhANG expression during chloroplast biogenesis and development.
VNTRseek—a computational tool to detect tandem repeat variants in high-throughput sequencing data

DNA tandem repeats (TRs) are ubiquitous genomic features which consist of two or more adjacent copies of an underlying pattern sequence. The copies may be identical or approximate. Variable number of tandem repeats or VNTRs are polymorphic TR loci in which the number of pattern copies is variable. In this paper we describe VNTRseek, our software for discovery of minisatellite VNTRs (pattern size ≥ 7 nucleotides) using whole genome sequencing data. VNTRseek maps sequencing reads to a set of reference TRs and then identifies putative VNTRs based on a discrepancy between the copy number of a reference and its mapped reads. VNTRseek was used to analyze the Watson and Khoisan genomes (454 technology) and two 1000 Genomes family trios (Illumina). In the Watson genome, we identified 752 VNTRs with pattern sizes ranging from 7 to 84 nt. In the Khoisan genome, we identified 2572 VNTRs with pattern sizes ranging from 7 to 105 nt. In the trios, we identified between 2660 and 3822 VNTRs per individual and found nearly 100% consistency with Mendelian inheritance. VNTRseek is, to the best of our knowledge, the first software for genome-wide detection of minisatellite VNTRs. It is available at http://orca.bu. edu/vntrseek/.
Identification of Network Externalities in Markets for Non-Durables

This paper introduces a structural econometric model of consumer demand for non-durable goods, which exhibits network externalities. The structural model allows us to identify the parameters, which determine the strength of the externalities in the underlying economic model from the empirical estimation results. The estimates of these parameters can then be employed to test the economic significance of the externalities and the compatibility of networks. The identifying assumption that drives our results is that consumers care about the lagged instead of the current network size. We argue that it does not necessarily bound their rationality. To complete our structural model, we provide an example of functional specification that yields a simple linear stochastic model of demand. Using this functional specification, we identify all structural parameters of the model. In the end, the estimation and the stochastic structure of the resulting econometric model are discussed. ZUSAMMENFASSUNG - ( Identifikation der Netzwerkeffekten in den Markten fur nicht-dauerhafte Guter) Der vorliegende Beitrag stellt ein strukturelles okonometrisches Modell der Konsumnachfrage fur nicht-dauerhafte Guter mit externen Netzwerkeffekten vor. Das strukturelle Modell lasst uns die Parameter von Netzwerkeffekten im zugrunde liegenden okonomischen Modell empirisch zu identifizieren. Die Schatzer der Strukturparameter konnten fur das Testen der Netzwerkkompatibilitat und der okonomischen Signifikanz der Netzwerkeffekte verwendet werden. Fur die Identifikation nehmen wir an, dass die Konsumenten die Netzwerksgrose verzogert wahrnehmen. Wir argumentieren, dass diese Annahme nicht notwendigerweise mit irrationalem Verhalten gleichzusetzen ist. Um das strukturelle Modell zu vollstandigen, geben wir eine funktionale Spezifikation, aus der ein lineares stochastisches Nachfragemodell folgt. Unter Verwendung dieser Spezifikation sind alle Strukturparameter von dem Modell identifiziert. Zum Schluss diskutieren wir die Schatzung und die stochastische Struktur des sich ergebenden okonometrischen Modells.
Investigating the effectiveness of a gymnastics intervention on motor skills and balance of children ages 5-9 with autism spectrum disorder

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) usually display motor skills and balance that are delayed and less proficient compared to their peers with typical development (TD). However, very little research has focused on implementing interventions targeting motor skills and balance of children with ASD. The purpose of this study was to examine the effectiveness of a gymnastics intervention on motor skills and balance of children ages 59 with ASD compared to a fine motor intervention. Participants were randomly assigned into the gymnastics or fine motor group. The results indicated that overall motor skills, as well as motor skill subtests and subscales slightly improved for both groups following the intervention. In addition, manual dexterity significantly improved for the fine motor group following the intervention (p=0.03). The results also indicated small improvements in some sections of the balance assessment for both groups following the intervention. The results of this study indicate that a six-week gymnastics intervention, once a week for 45 minutes per session, did not lead to a significant improvement in motor skills or balance of children ages 5-9 with ASD. More research is needed on the effect of gymnastics interventions with a higher dosage and intensity, as well as a larger sample size.