Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
High incidence of hypertriglyceridemia in a Brazilian cohort of people living with HIV/AIDS undergoing antiretroviral treatment in Belo Horizonte, 2001-2010.

INTRODUCTION: Hypertriglyceridemia incidence should be estimated in HIV-infected patients after antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed clinical data of HIV-infected adults at 3 public referral centers. Cumulative and person-time incidences were estimated for patients without hypertriglyceridemia. Survival time and hazard ratio (HR) were estimated by Kaplan-Meier analysis and Cox proportional regression, respectively. RESULTS: Cumulative and person-time incidences were 40.4% and 1.4 cases/100 person-months, respectively. The median period for hypertriglyceridemia occurrence was 47 months. Men and patients with switched ART regimens had increased hypertriglyceridemia risk (HR=3.05 and 3.34, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Hypertriglyceridemia incidence is high in HIV-infected patients undergoing ART.
Effect of Individual Height and Testing Methods on Outcome of the Forward Functional Reach Test

All rights reserved. This publication is intended for use solely by faculty, students, and staff of Nova Southeastern University. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, now known or later developed, including but not limited to photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author or the publisher.
Splash : Integrated Ad-Hoc Querying of Data and Statistical Models University of Michigan Technical Report # CSE-TR-553-09

This paper presents a system called Splash, which integrates statistical modeling and SQL for the purpose of adhoc querying and analysis. Splash supports a novel, simple, and practical abstraction of statistical modeling as an aggregate function, which in turn provides for natural integration with standard SQL queries and a relational DBMS. In addition, we introduce and implement a novel representatives operator to help explain statistical models using a limited number of representative examples. We present a proof-of-concept implementation of the system, which includes several performance optimizations. An experimental study indicates that our system scales well to large input datasets. Further, to demonstrate the simplicity and usability of the new abstractions, we conducted a case study using Splash to perform a series of exploratory analyses using network log data. Our study indicates that the query-based interface is simpler than a common data mining software package, and for ad-hoc analysis, it often requires less programming effort to use.
Systematic review and meta-analysis: susceptibility-guided versus empirical antibiotic treatment for Helicobacter pylori infection.

BACKGROUND The cure rate of standard triple therapy for Helicobacter pylori infection is unacceptably low. Susceptibility-guided therapies (SGTs) have been proposed as an alternative to standard empirical treatments. The aim of this study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis evaluating the efficacy of SGTs. METHODS A systematic search was performed in multiple databases. Randomized controlled trials comparing cure rates of SGTs versus those of empirical therapy were selected and analysed separately for first- and second-line treatments. A meta-analysis was performed using risk ratio (RR) and number needed to treat (NNT) to measure the effect. RESULTS Twelve studies were included in the meta-analysis. In first-line treatment, SGT was more efficacious than empirical 7-10 day triple therapy (RR 1.16, 95% CI 1.10-1.23, I (2) = 33%; NNT = 8). Most studies used a 7-10 day triple therapy and randomized the patients after endoscopy and/or culture, thus precluding the comparison of SGT versus non-invasive testing and empirical treatment in clinical practice. For second-line therapy, only four studies were found. Results were highly heterogeneous and no significant differences were found (RR 1.11, 95% CI 0.82-1.51, I (2) = 87%). CONCLUSIONS Once endoscopy and culture have been performed, SGT is superior to empirical 7 or 10 day triple therapy for first-line treatment. Further studies are needed to evaluate the effectiveness of SGT in clinical practice, especially when compared with currently recommended first-line quadruple therapies.
Comparison of International Guidelines on the Accompanying Therapy for Advanced Gastric Cancer: Reasons for the Differences

The purpose of this study was to determine if international guidelines differ in their recommendations concerning additive therapy for advanced, but potentially curable, gastric cancer. A systematic search of the English and German literature was conducted in the databases Medline, Cochrane Database, Embase, and PubMed. The search terms used were 'guidelines gastric cancer,' 'guidelines stomach cancer,' and 'Leitlinien Magenkarzinom. ' Six different guidelines published after January 1, 2010, in which the tumors were classified according to the seventh edition of the TNM system (2010), were identified. Although the examined guidelines were based on the same study results, their recommendations concerning accompanying therapy for gastric cancer differ considerably. While perioperative chemotherapy is recommended in Germany, Great Britain, and large parts of Europe, postoperative adjuvant radiochemotherapy or perioperative chemotherapy is recommended in the USA and Canada. In Japan, postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy is recommended.The results of identical studies were interpreted differently in different countries. Since considerable effort is required for each country to separately test relevant studies for their validity and suitability, an international cooperation could simplify the creation of a common basis for guidelines and contribute to improved comparability of international guidelines.
Exploring the Benefits of Using Motes to Monitor Health: An Acceptance Survey

Motes which are tiny, wireless sensor devices (Smart Dust) have the potential for transforming the biomedical and healthcare industry sector. Researchers consider motes as prototypes for nano-devices (built from off-the-shelf technology also known as commodity based hardware), which will become a reality in 10 years time. The bio-medical and healthcare market is among the fastest growing markets for WiFi and other Wireless LAN Technologies. Motes are being trialed for emergency triaging, patient profiling and monitoring and education. This paper reports on the findings of a second anonymous web survey of over 100 participants from Australia, Europe and North America, aimed at investigating the possible acceptance of Motes as a reliable and efficient health monitoring tool. An acceptance model, Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) has been applied to determine how viable this technology will be in medical institutions and patients’ homes. This paper reports specifically on the subjective comments made by the survey participants in an effort to measure the acceptance or non-acceptance of motes for monitoring health.
A study of image colourfulness

Colourfulness is often thought of as a mere measure of quantity of colour, but user studies suggest that there are more factors influencing the perception of colourfulness. Boosting and enhancing colours are operations often performed for improving image aesthetics, but the relationship between colourfulness and aesthetics has not been thoroughly explored. By gathering perceptual data from a large-scale user study we have shown how existing colourfulness metrics relate to it and that there is no direct linear dependence between colourfulness and aesthetics but correlations arise for different image categories such as: "landscape", "abstract" or "macro".
Gender-dependent pharmacokinetics of topotecan in adult patients

Gender-dependent differences in the clinical pharmacokinetic behavior of various drugs have been documented previously. Most commonly, these differences are associated with differences in body composition, renal elimination, drug absorption or hepatic metabolism. Gender-dependent differences in the pharmacokinetics of topotecan (Hycamtin®) have not yet been described. In this report, pharmacokinetic data of the lactone and carboxylate forms of topotecan were derived from clinical studies in which topotecan was administered either orally or i.v. to a total of 55 males and 37 females. A significant difference (p=0.0082) of 38% was found between the apparent clearance of topotecan lactone after oral administration in males (237±105 l/h) and females (163±62.5 l/h). When adjusted for body surface area, this difference remained significant (p=0.031). Similarly, differences were noted in the percentage of topotecan in the lactone form (37.1±5.32 versus 41.7±6.51%, p=0.0076). Statistical analysis revealed that individual hematocrit values, which were consistently lower in females (p<0.023), were a significant predictor of the apparent topotecan lactone clearance. This was confirmed experimentally in in vitro incubation studies in whole blood using artificially altered hematocrit values and in blood samples from both male and female volunteers. Topotecan is thus subject to significant gender-dependent differences in pharmacokinetics that arise as a result of a physiological difference in hematocrit values between males and females. This finding may have significant implications for the interpretation of the relationships between pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamic outcome of topotecan treatment, and may provide a basis for the development and refinement of future clinical protocols.
Neural predictors of moment-to-moment fluctuations in cognitive flexibility

Cognitive flexibility is a crucial human ability allowing efficient adaptation to changing task challenges. Although a person's degree of flexibility can vary from moment to moment, the conditions regulating such fluctuations are not well understood. Using a task-switching procedure with fMRI, we found several brain regions in which neural activity preceding each trial predicted subsequent cognitive flexibility. Specifically, as pretrial activity increased, performance improved on trials when the task switched but did not improve when the task repeated. Regions from which flexibility could be predicted reliably included the basal ganglia, anterior cingulate cortex, prefrontal cortex, and posterior parietal cortex. Although further analysis revealed similarities across the regions in how flexibility was predicted, results supported the existence of multiple independent sources of prediction. These results reveal distinct neural mechanisms underlying fluctuations in cognitive flexibility.
Complex Phenotypic and Genotypic Responses of Listeria monocytogenes Strains Exposed to the Class IIa Bacteriocin Sakacin P

ABSTRACT Sakacin P is a class IIa bacteriocin that is active against the food-borne pathogen Listeria monocytogenes, and use of this compound as a biopreservative in foods has been suggested. In the present study, we characterized 30 spontaneous sakacin P-resistant mutants of L. monocytogenes obtained after single exposure to sakacin P. The frequency of development of sakacin P resistance for all strains was in the range from 10−8 to 10−9. Using the 50% inhibitory concentration (IC50) of sakacin P, the strains could be grouped into strains with high levels of resistance (IC50, ≥104 ng ml−1) and strains with low levels of resistance (IC50, <104 ng ml−1). Resistant strains belonging to the same IC50 group also had similar physiological and genetic characteristics. Generally, the resistant strains showed substantial variations in many parameters, such as differences in the stability of the acquired resistance to sakacin P, growth fitness, food-related stress tolerance, and biofilm-forming ability. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed differences between wild-type and resistant strains in polysaccharide, fatty acid, and, protein regions. A mannose-specific phosphotransferase (PTS) operon has been described for class IIa bacteriocin resistance, and the sakacin P-resistant strains displayed both up- and downregulation of the expression of the mptA gene encoding the PTS system. This is the first comprehensive study of the diversity of a large number of spontaneous resistant mutants obtained after one exposure to a class IIa bacteriocin, particularly to sakacin P. The great diversity among the resistant strains exposed to the same stress conditions suggests that there are different resistance mechanisms.
THE BLACK HOLE FORMATION PROBABILITY

A longstanding question in stellar evolution is which massive stars produce black holes (BHs) rather than neutron stars (NSs) upon death. It has been common practice to assume that a given zero-age main sequence (ZAMS) mass star (and perhaps a given metallicity) simply produces either an NS or a BH, but this fails to account for a myriad of other variables that may effect this outcome, such as spin, binarity, or even stochastic differences in the stellar structure near core collapse. We argue that instead a probabilistic description of NS versus BH formation may be better suited to account for the current uncertainties in understanding how massive stars die. We present an initial exploration of the probability that a star will make a BH as a function of its ZAMS mass, PBH(MZAMS). Although we find that it is difficult to derive a unique PBH(MZAMS) using current measurements of both the BH mass distribution and the degree of chemical enrichment by massive stars, we demonstrate how PBH(MZAMS) changes with these various observational and theoretical uncertainties. We anticipate that future studies of Galactic BHs and theoretical studies of core collapse will refine PBH(MZAMS) and argue that this framework is an important new step toward better understanding BH formation. A probabilistic description of BH formation will be useful as input for future population synthesis studies that are interested in the formation of X-ray binaries, the nature and event rate of gravitational wave sources, and answering questions about chemical enrichment.
Extracellular Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type-1 Tat Protein Activates Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase in PC12 Neuronal Cells*

We have here investigated the effect of the regulatory Tat protein of the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) on the PI 3-kinase catalytic activity in PC12 rat pheochromocytoma cells. After as early as 1 min from the beginning of the treatment with recombinant HIV-1 Tat protein, a significant increase in the tyrosine phosphorylation levels of the p85 regulatory subunit of PI 3-kinase was noticed in 48 h serum-starved PC12 cells. Moreover, the addition of Tat to PC12 cells induced a great increase in PI 3-kinase immunoprecipitated with an anti-phosphotyrosine antibody with a peak of activity (19-fold increase with respect to the basal levels) after a 15-min treatment. This increase in PI 3-kinase activity was significantly higher in PC12 cell cultures supplemented with Tat protein than in cultures stimulated by 100 ng/ml nerve growth factor (NGF; 8-fold increase with respect to the basal levels). Further experiments showed that Tat protein was able to specifically activate PI 3-kinase at picomolar concentrations. In fact: (i) maximal activation of PI 3-kinase was observed at concentrations as low as 1 ng/ml and was specifically blocked by anti-Tat neutralizing antibody; (ii) a Tat-dependent activation was also observed in experiments in which PI 3-kinase activity was evaluated in either anti-Tyr(P) or anti-p85 immunoprecipitates; (iii) 100 n wortmannin completely blocked the Tat-mediated increase in PI 3-kinase activity both in vitro and in vivo. Our data strongly support the concept that extracellular Tat acts as a cell stimulator, inducing intracellular signal transduction in uninfected cells.
Child Abuse Reporting in a Local Hospital

This thesis explores what effect educational efforts and other interventions had on the detection and reporting of child abuse by emergency room personnel at a loca! hospital. This was accomplished by examining a random sample of children's medical records prior to and after hospital educational efforts. It was hypothesized that all children seen in the emergency room after the in-service whose condition or circumstance were reportable as child maltreatment, were reported to the appropriate child protection agency. In the sample records, it appeared that the most obvious cases of child abuse were identified and reported. However, lack of documentation on child abuse screening made it impossible to support the hypothesis. Based on this finding, it was recommended that a protocol and screening procedure for abuse be routinely completed and documented in all children's medical records. TABLE OF CONTENTS SECTION ONE INTRODUCTION Overview Historiml Components. Child Abuse Reporting in Hospitals. Purpose Background. Summary 1 1 3 4 4
A Study of Hormonal profile in Hirsutism patients- A prospective observational study in a Tertiary Care Hospital

Background: Hirsutism is defined as the presences of excessive terminal hair in androgen-dependent areas of a woman’s body i.e. face, chest, abdomen, upper thigh and areola. Aim: To study the hormonal profile (T3, T4, TSH, LH:FSH, Prolactin, Testosterone) in hirsutism patients. Objectives: To study the hormonal imbalance (T3, T4, TSH, LH:FSH, Prolactin, Testosterone) in hirsutism patients attending Dermatology OPD of C.R Gardi Hospital over a period of 1 year. Materials & Methods: Thirty patients were enrolled in the study between the age group of 18-45 years who hadhirsutism and investigated for various hormone levels i.e.- T3, T4, TSH, LH:FSH, Prolactin & Testosterone. Results: Out of Thirty patients, Testosterone level was raised in 13 (43.3%) and normal in 17 (56.7%) patients. LH/FSH ratio was raised in 14 (46.7%) while normal in 16 (53.3%) patients. TSH level was raised in 2(6.7%) and normal in 28(93.3%) patients. Prolactin level was raised in 10 (33.3%) patients. T3 level was normal in 28(93.3%) and decreased in 2 (6.7%). T4 level was normal in 28 (93.3%) and decreased in 2 (6.7%). Conclusion: It was concluded that hormonal imbalance is seen in patients presenting with hirsutism and hormones like Testosterone was raised in 13 (43.3%), LH:FSH was raised in 14 (46.7%) and Prolactin level was raised in 10 (33.3%) cases. Keywords: Hirsutism, Hormone, LH:FSH, Testosterone, Prolactin
Nurses' delivery of the Tobacco Tactics intervention at a Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES To determine (1) factors associated with nurses' perceived confidence in and importance of delivering cessation interventions to patients after receiving the Tobacco Tactics educational module, and (2) whether self-reported delivery of smoking cessation services increased after the Tobacco Tactics educational programme was implemented. BACKGROUND Intensive nurse-based inpatient smoking cessation interventions are effective; however, due to a lack of nurse confidence, training and time, nurse-administered cessation interventions are seldom implemented. DESIGN Two cross-sectional surveys among staff trained in the Tobacco Tactics programme, conducted at two months and 15 months post-training. METHODS Surveys were conducted to determine whether self-reported delivery of smoking cessation services by nursing staff increased after delivery of the Tobacco Tactics training at a Midwestern Veterans Affairs Medical Center. All staff members who attended the training were eligible to complete the surveys at two and 15 months post-training. RESULTS Having a good understanding of the elements of smoking cessation interventions and satisfaction with training were associated with perceived confidence and importance of delivering smoking cessation interventions. Additionally, 86% of participants reported delivering cessation interventions 15 months post-training compared with 57% prior to training (p < 0·0001). CONCLUSIONS Training nurses how to deliver tobacco cessation interventions increases delivery of cessation services. RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE Nurse-delivered cessation interventions have the potential to increase quit rates and decrease morbidity and mortality among patient populations.
1 0 Therapeutic approaches to the modulation of apoptosis

The appreciation of the role of apoptosis in the vast majority of diseases affecting humans has revolutionized the discovery and development of drugs targeting inflammation and oncology. Novel therapeutic approaches to modulate disease by regulating apoptosis are currently being tested in preclinical and clinical settings. Enthusiasm for some of these therapies is reflected in the fact that they have received U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval in record time. Approaches include the traditional use of small molecules to target specific players in the apoptosis cascade. They also include radical new approaches such as using antisense molecules to inhibit production of the Bcl-2 protein or antibodies that ligate either death receptors, such as TRAIL (tumour necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand), or the MHC (HLA-DR), resulting in the initiation of apoptosis of target cells. Antibodies targeting cell-specific antigens are being used in conjunction with radioactive isotopes to deliver a more specific chemotherapy, particularly in the case of B-cell lymphomas. Other therapies target mitochondria, a key organelle in the apoptosis cascade. This diverse range of therapies includes photodynamic therapy, retinoic acid and arsenic trioxide, all of which induce apoptosis by generating reactive oxygen species. As our understanding of 131 © 2003 The Biochemical Society 1To whom correspondence should be addressed (e-mail fmurphy@eirxtherapeutics.com). apoptosis increases, further opportunities will arise for tailor-made therapies that will result in improved clinical outcome without the devastating side effects of current interventions.
Role of Phosphatidylinositol Phosphate Signaling in the Regulation of the Filamentous-Growth Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Pathway

ABSTRACT Reversible phosphorylation of the phospholipid phosphatidylinositol (PI) is a key event in the determination of organelle identity and an underlying regulatory feature in many biological processes. Here, we investigated the role of PI signaling in the regulation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway that controls filamentous growth in yeast. Lipid kinases that generate phosphatidylinositol 4-phosphate [PI(4)P] at the Golgi (Pik1p) or PI(4,5)P2 at the plasma membrane (PM) (Mss4p and Stt4p) were required for filamentous-growth MAPK pathway signaling. Introduction of a conditional allele of PIK1 (pik1-83) into the filamentous (Σ1278b) background reduced MAPK activity and caused defects in invasive growth and biofilm/mat formation. MAPK regulatory proteins that function at the PM, including Msb2p, Sho1p, and Cdc42p, were mislocalized in the pik1-83 mutant, which may account for the signaling defects of the PI(4)P kinase mutants. Other PI kinases (Fab1p and Vps34p), and combinations of PIP (synaptojanin-type) phosphatases, also influenced the filamentous-growth MAPK pathway. Loss of these proteins caused defects in cell polarity, which may underlie the MAPK signaling defect seen in these mutants. In line with this possibility, disruption of the actin cytoskeleton by latrunculin A (LatA) dampened the filamentous-growth pathway. Various PIP signaling mutants were also defective for axial budding in haploid cells, cell wall construction, or proper regulation of the high-osmolarity glycerol response (HOG) pathway. Altogether, the study extends the roles of PI signaling to a differentiation MAPK pathway and other cellular processes.